DESIRE & DUTY
by MEL

INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
TBC

DESIRE & DUTY

Chapter One

It was a Monday, early morning, when Mrs. Clarice Starling disembarked the ferry that had brought her from the continent to Dover. Several ladies swooned on the arms of their gentlemen, looking quite green in the face. The trip had been an eventful one, as far as the seas were concerned. She outstripped them all down the gangplank, her lady-maid hurrying after her gulping the fresh air and trying not to look as ill as she felt. Pausing only long enough to see that the man wheeling her trunks down was following, she patted the sickly maid on the shoulder to reassure her and started towards the gates.
"Take deep breaths, Annie."
"I don't know how you do it, Miss," Annie said weakly.
"It's in my blood." She smiled. "Now, let's see about a carriage to London." She looked around, trying to spot a likely coach. The man who had brought the luggage off the ship spoke up.
"If you don't mind waitin' here ma'am, I'll go fetch a cab."
"Thank you. That would be wonderful."
The man trotted of in the direction of the road.

The docks were busy, cargo being wheeled hither and thither, boxes stacked seemingly haphazardly all around, and people - people everywhere. Ladies hitched their skirts a demure inch above the fetid ground and wrinkled their noses, not leaving the sides of their escorts for a second. Gentlemen stood, austere, studiously avoiding looking at the garishly dressed ladies resting in the shadows. The air was dull with smoke and thick with noise. It was not a place for the faint of heart.

Clarice Starling stood tall amidst the chaos. Annie's eyes were wide, distracted from her queasy stomach by the sights around her. She nudged her mistress as she spotted a man approaching them. His eyes were fastened on them as he weaved through the milling throng. He was dressed respectably but his cuffs and collar showed some wear and grime. The two ladies watched him wipe his hands on the seat of his coat as he approached, his beetle black eyes taking them both in from top to toe. He stopped in front of them, and clicked his heels together, bowing low. Mrs. Starling did not offer her hand, and he did not miss the implication.
"Ladies," he spoke, not missing a beat. "Forgive my impertinence but it seemed to my practiced eye that two such as yourselves should not be unattended at the docks. Is your, er, husband, here with you?"
Annie blushed and cast her eyes down, allowing her mistress to answer.
"No sir, I am here on my own. I am awaiting a cab to London."
"You will ride into London alone? Ma'am, is that wise?" The man seemed a little taken aback at such a forthright answer. He thought he had seen a lady in need of rescue.
"Thank you for your concern Mr?"
"Krendler. Mr. Paul Krendler." He bowed again, a little nonplussed by this matter-of-fact lady.
"Do you work here Mr. Krendler?"
"Yes ma'am," he answered automatically. "I'm in the import-export business," He puffed his chest out. "I just came back home from New York. Are you from near there Miss? I recognize by your speech you are from that area."
"Close," she answered, smiling a half-smile. "Is that your ship over there?" She gestured behind him, over his shoulder, to the ship from whence he had approached.
"Yes ma'am. The Clarice."
Annie, who had been studiously looking at her toes, jumped and exclaimed:
"The Clarice? Why, that's-"
"That's a pretty ship, yes thank you Annie." Annie was obediently quiet, if confused.
The man's dark eyes were fixed on Mrs. Starling once more.
"If you'd allow me to be so bold, I would be honoured to ensure your safe journey to London. I am heading north myself, this very day." He smiled, showing many teeth, but there was something predatory in his eyes.
"That won't be necessary, though I appreciate the gesture. I see my man now." She spotted the man returning, he was waving to her over the heads of the crowd. She offered Mr. Krendler a polite, if shallow, curtsey, and made for the carriage, steering Annie by the elbow.

Tipping the man after he had finished lashing down her three trunks to the top of the carriage, Clarice bid him good day and sank gratefully into her seat in the cab. Annie sat opposite her, too much over-excited by her surroundings to sit back and relax finally. Annie had never been far outside of her own small hometown when she had gone to work for the Starlings. She had been lady maid to Mrs. Starling for six years now and adored her mistress. She knew from talking to other servants on her various errands that she was fortunate to have a sensible and fair Lady to serve. Annie's childhood friend had achieved a position at another large house in their town, and regaled Annie with tales of her fussy, demanding and slightly silly mistress. Annie would listen in silence, amused by the anecdotes and slightly sorry for her friend. It was listening to these stories that made Annie understand the true measure of gentility. In her opinion, there was not a more well-bred woman in the world than Mrs. Starling, and not a person she knew who could hold a candle to her beauty and her manner. Even after Mr. Starling passed away, Mrs. Starling was never short with Annie, never unfair, and still gracious in her requests. Once, Annie caught her dabbing tears from her cheeks, but otherwise no expression of grief could be perceived. The young maid was awed by her mistress's courage, and endeavoured to be just like her.

The carriage rolled out away from the docks, and the noise and bustle began to lessen until the people and buildings where left behind and replaced by fields and hedgerows. Only then did Annie sit back from the window and heave a tired sigh. Clarice sat opposite, her face serene with eyes closed in rest.
"Miss Clarice?" Annie ventured.
"Yes Annie." She answered quietly.
"How is it that you didn't tell that gentleman at the docks that that was your ship he was traveling on?"
Clarice opened her eyes and looked thoughtful for a second.
"A gentleman does not approach ladies in that manner, Annie. I thought it best he did not know he worked for me, given that I did not know his character. Do not expect people to take kindly to the new head of the C-Star Company."
"But Mr. Starling trusted you, ma'am."
"Mr. Starling was an extraordinary man. I do not know there is another man like him alive." She turned her face to the window and, observing the sudden brightness in her eyes, Annie thought it best to drop the subject for the present.

Enjoying the first relative quiet since leaving America, Clarice kept her eyes closed and tried to rest while she could. They had to stop several nights on the way to Derbyshire, to rest the horses, and to rest themselves. She had an uncertain time ahead of her. John Crawford, Jack to his friends and associates, naturally had his own expectations of her visit, and no matter how hard she thought about it, she just did not think there was a way to shatter those expectations in a gentle manner. Summoning her strength, she began steeling herself for the tasks that lay ahead.

Go to Chapter Two