Frost Hollow Hall by Emma Carroll

maid passed us carrying armfuls of plates. Up ahead, voices were shouting, ‘More ice, over here,’ and ‘Watch your back,’ and then ‘Clean that fat up, won’t you, before we break our necks.’ The clattering of pans and slamming of doors deafened me. Mrs Jessop stood aside as the same maid came back past, this time with a basket of vegetables. She had sleek brown hair, most of which was hidden by her cap. I was struck by how pretty she was.
    ‘Thank you, Mrs Jessop,’ she said politely.
    ‘I’m sorry you’re having to work down here today, Dorcas,’ said Mrs Jessop. ‘It’s not fitting for a head housemaid, but there we are.’
    Then we followed her into the big kitchen itself.
    The heat was stifling. Pans and kettles steamed away on a massive black range, and the opening and shutting of oven doors wafted even more hot air about the room. The space was huge and brightly lit, with a high ceiling and more little windows. A vast dresser stacked with basins and jugs covered an entire wall. The maid had joined another girl in a white pinafore. Together, they were sorting through the vegetables. The giant table and great tall ceiling seemed to dwarf them both. This space looked made for twenty kitchen hands, not just two.
    We went up to a small woman in a waist apron who appeared to be the cook. She moved about like a whirlwind, though she stopped mid-clatter when she saw us.
    ‘This is Tilly,’ said Mrs Jessop. ‘She’s standing in for Gracie. Let her go when it’s our suppertime.’
    Cook looked me up and down.
    ‘Scullery,’ she said and pointed to a door off the back of the kitchen. ‘Get your hands washed and I’ll be in to show you what’s what.’
    I looked to Mrs Jessop but she was already making for the door. What an odd way of walking , I thought, watching her straight back and swaying skirts. Her feet could be on castors. Her keys don’t jangle at all.
    After the kitchen, the scullery felt cool and quiet. Cook folded her arms and looked at me.
    ‘Now then missy, I’ve seen you before. You’re the girl Will brought in on Sunday, in’t you?’
    I kept my eyes down.
    ‘Well, you look recovered, thankfully. But honestly, can’t you get enough of this place?’
    I wasn’t sure quite what to say.
    ‘What was you up to this time, then?’
    ‘Nothing much,’ I said.
    ‘Oh come on, out with it. I in’t got all day!’ she said, but in a kindly way.
    ‘We was trespassing.’
    Cook sighed. ‘Oh aye, Jake and his dog catch you then?’
    I nodded. So the brute of a man had a name.
    ‘Stealing rabbits from his snares, was you?’
    ‘No!’ I said, sharply. ‘I never stole nothing!’
    Cook laughed. ‘You must’ve been up to something.’
    I wasn’t sure how much to tell her. So I said, ‘I’m to scrub pots as punishment.’
    ‘Why you want to fool around up here is anyone’s guess. And in this weather too!’ she said. ‘But do your work well and there might be a place for you. We’re always short of hands. Not many folk want to work here, these days.’ She saw the look on my face. ‘Don’t get too excited though. It in’t your job yet.’
    But already my mind was racing. Who wouldn’t want to work in such a grand house as this? I’d bite their hand off for the chance. Nosing around here all day, I’d find out plenty about Kit. Such a job was sure to pay better than helping at school. And I might even make Ma proud, for once.
    Cook told me to roll up my sleeves and gave me a cap and pinny to wear. Then she filled two pails, one with soapy water, one with clean. A shout came from the kitchen that something was burning and she made for the door.
    ‘The soft soap’s for the china, soda’s for the pans,’ she said, pointing to some jars on the windowsill. ‘And there’s sand and salt for the copper pans. Brings ’em up a treat. Now get your hands washed!’
    The door swung to and I was on my own. The sink had hot running water. Hot running water! I turned the tap