Chapter Five: Anne's Secret Past
"Had enough to eat?" Mrs. Holliday put her head into the kitchen just as Catherine Howard was pushing away her plate.
"I couldn't eat another bite!" Catherine sank back in her chair, blinking her sleepy blue eyes. The clock in the cozy kitchen said it was nearly one o'clock in the afternoon. She'd been up since dawn, and this was the first time she'd been off her feet all day.
"Reverend Meeps is keeping you busy, is he?"
"I think he's the most wonderful man in the whole world!" Catherine couldn't help feeling that she'd made a very good start in her new life. This morning she'd gone right to church and started sorting old clothes. And then she'd helped deliver meals to the elderly people of the parish. One old lady had patted her cheek and called her a little ray of sunshine. But Reverend Meeps said she was more like a whirlwind!
"Why do you do it? I mean, why work so hard?" After piling up all the dirty dishes in the sink, Mrs. Holliday gave a grunt as she sat down heavily at the kitchen table. This was her break time too!
"It's not so hard," Catherine objected. "I mean, you work hard, taking care of this great big house while Lady Anne is busy in London. And she works hard running Cleves Cosmetics. I'm just taking a bit of a break till my modeling career starts up again!"
"But don't you miss it?" The housekeeper leaned forward, hungry for a bit of gossip. "Don't you miss the excitement, the attention, being seen in those fabulous clothes?"
"Well, I miss my friends, and my old flat," Catherine said thoughtfully. "And I miss having nice clothes, and seeing new places. But some parts of the job I didn't like so much." A picture of Henry Tudor came into her mind, complete with groping hands. Catherine felt almost frightened, even though she knew was safe and snug here in the country. "Do you think Anne will get into trouble for letting me stay here?"
"Our Lady Anne can take care of herself!" Mrs. Holliday laughed. It was a big, sexy laugh that shook the table.
"Oh, I know she's rich, and terribly clever," Catherine said eagerly. "It's just if Henry finds out I'm here, and she gets in trouble . . . I don't want to make things worse. I just want to help in any way I can. I don't want her to be hurt because of me!"
"Ah, she's clever, that lady. A lot more clever than you, my girl!" Mrs. Holiday reached across the table and patted Catherine's hand. "You don't know the full story of who she is, or how she's come so far!"
"No, I don't know anything about her. How long have you been working for her? When did you first meet?"
Mrs. Holliday poured two fresh cups of tea, and told Catherine all about how she had begun working for Anne of Cleves Cosmetics. There were some truly shocking surprises!
"I didn't know Anne was in a women's prison! What was it like being a guard there?"
"Rough work," Mrs. Holliday said, in her throaty voice. "You must be kind, but never weak. Bronzefield was full of young girls, so many of them lonesome and afraid, crying all night. But not Ann! Always thinking how to get ahead, that's how she was. She was far too brave and clever to be a topless dancer all her life!"
"A topless dancer!" Catherine's mouth was hanging wide open. She'd seen a few nude photos of Anne, rummaging through her desk. But she never dreamed . . . "How did she escape from that? When did she begin modeling? How . . . when . . . who?"
"Enough!" Mrs. Holliday laughed again, her big boobs jiggling and her huge sexy laugh making the whole table shake. "All these questions you save for later. Lady Anne will tell you everything!"
"But when will she be back from London?" Catherine was still wrapping her head around the idea of Anne in a women's prison. She rubbed her eyes, feeling slightly overwhelmed by it all.
"Soon . . . maybe tonight." Mrs. Holliday picked up the two empty teacups and added them to the pile of dirty dishes in the sink. "My job is to clean this mess. Yours is to get some rest until dinner. My lady will probably have important guests coming to see you!"
"Coming to see me?" Catherine tried to wake herself up, wanting to hear more and find out what to expect. But Mrs. Holliday only laughed and made a game of shooing her out of the cozy kitchen.
"Off to your room," said the housekeeper. "Have some girl time. Soak those big, smelly feet in a nice hot bath. Get some sleep."
"Oh, all right." Catherine tried to think of something clever to say, but picturing Mrs. Holliday as a matron at Bronzefield Prison made her want to close her mouth and hurry upstairs to her room.