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“Nuthin’,” he answered “Said more than I should have already”

She pressed by disagreeing “I haven’t noticed anything—the girls don’t seeood”

“Course the food is good,” he cut in to scoff “My missus sees to that”

“Yes, that’s right, Cook is your wife”

“Aye, and Molly and m’wife, well, they both be pretty special Need this position Had it for too long to lose it now”

“Gunther,” Sassy said hopefully, “I have had a notion since I got here that soht at Netherby”

He gave her a sideways glance, and when he spoke, it was conspiratorially “Lookee ’ere, Miss, as I told ye, I love this place His lordship even allowed rounds” He shook his head “In fact, we live in the stone cottage near the far end of the stables, and I don’t knohere ould go if we got turned off, so what I arimly—“is not to be repeated”

“I would never—”

“My Molly has been fretting over Miss Saunders, and irl is too smart by half She loved her, ye see Miss Saunders was teaching her on her own tiirls”

“Oh, how lovely” Sassy’s hands caether as she smiled “Someone like that wouldn’t just up and leave” It sounds like Miss Graves was correct

“Right ye be on that Someone that dear doesn’t run off and leave, now does she?”

Sassy was chilled for aat his stern face “What did the headmistress say about the matter?”

“I told her that I didn’t think that Miss Saunders ran off, and she told me to mind my work”

“Could Miss Saunders have had a beau?”

“Just a poor lass like that? No, no beau She never went anywhere, never had anyone call, and spent her spare ti Molly her lessons”