The Whitesmith

a_libertine

Literotica Guru
Joined
Feb 13, 2010
Posts
6,739
This story is closed for Showdolly, please enjoy.



Edward was bent over his work bench, painstakingly embedding sapphires and diamonds into a pendant that had been commissioned by Sir William Cecil for a favored woman, perhaps even his wife. Rumor had it that Sir William was to be appointed Secretary of State, and Edward assumed that the pendant was a celebration of that appointment. The pendant was shaped like a dolphin, the eyes diamond, the body Ceylon sapphires. No expense was to be spared, and Edward wanted the piece to be a master piece.

He heard the door to his shop open as he was working and firm foot falls approached him. As he crimped the gold prongs that held the sapphire in place Edward muttered, "A moment if you please, sir."

A familiar voice said, "Of course Master Woodward."

As he finished Edward placed the voice, it belonged to the man that delivered the post. Placing his tools carefully into their respective slots, for everything had its place, and in its place it should be placed, he looked up with a wan smile, "Hello Ethan."

The younger man stepped up and placed a letter on the bench the backed away, "Good day sir."

He looked at the letter a moment, pondering it before picking it up and mechanically opening it with sure movements.



Dear Sir;

It is with great regret we inform you that your niece Isabel has reached the age which she must decide whether to continue with her education and tutelage in serving Our Lord Jesus Christ as a nun, or return to her family.

She has stated that she feels no Calling and wishes to rejoin her family.

As her last surviving kin, it is to you that she shall return. Do expect her on the First of September.

In Grace

Abbot Hensley

Edward placed the letter down and stared at it a moment. "What in heaven's name shall I do with a woman in the house?" he muttered to himself.

Glancing at the calendar he noticed that it noticed that it was the First of September already! Glancing at the letter, it had been delayed in its arrival by nearly a week.

His blue eyes, much the same color as the sapphires he was working on, flicked from the letter to the calendar to the door to the pendant. Sighing, there was nothing to do just yet but work, Edward bent his head to the task, finishing the piece.
 
Isabel

Isabel hadn't encountered any trouble in the packing up, the leaving, nor the travel from the convent. It was not a difficult decision to leave; her faith she still clung to but the isolation and silence was hardly something the young woman was invested in as a lifestyle. No, though she'd only met him but the once as a young child, Isabel knew that returning to her uncle was the path her life would take.

She wished she could be more presentable, though. All the clothing allowed at the convent were the habits and robes, and as they confiscated your personal belongings upon arrival they assigned you a plain brown dress with a long-sleeved undershirt when you left. Besides her humble grooming set, the clothes she wore, and the rosary she carried all she owned in the world was her mother's brooch and her father's watch.

Clucking her tongue, she tried to improve her appearance, using her small mirror that came with the brush set. She brushed and smoothed her thin, long, dark hair. Isabel wiped her face, pursed her lips and pinched her cheeks to add a touch of color to her pale complexion, and asked at the Post Office for directions to Edward's place.

Confident of where she was going but unsure of what she'd find there, Isabel headed down the road with her small handbag tucked under her arm. When she arrived at the location described by the postmaster, she took a deep breath and knocked.
 
The last gemstone was in its place, and Edward was studying, making sure of its perfection. His inspection was interrupted by a knock. A tentative knock, light on the wood, would barely be heard in a normal shoppe or home.

"It is unlocked," he called.

After a moment the door opened nearly silently. In stepped a young woman of striking beauty, clad most plainly. Her brown shirt was loose around her torso and swallowed her hips into a formless mass.

Her skin was pale, nearly alabaster. She had obviously added a little color to her cheeks which was obviously hastily applied, and nearly garish in its impact.

He looked down at the letter and back up at her. "Isabel, I presume," he intoned as he stood.

Edward walked toward her then slowly around her, inspecting her closely. Yes, he thought to himself, she has Edwina's eye, which favored his father. His eyes favored his mother's.

He looked at her bag, and it's relative emptiness. Reaching down he took it from her and turned, "Follow me Isabel, we shall prepare a room for you. I received the letter announcing your arrival with the noon post."
 
There was nothing to do but follow him. Only slightly taken aback by his brash hello, Isabel wasn't even certain if it was appropriate to speak or answer him. He certainly knew who she was and had been expecting her. But surely he had known before today?

In her confusion she hesitated to follow, and then hurried a bit to catch up with him.

"Uncle? Ed? Edward? But didn't they send you notice last week? I was sure...!"

Having had a private education and immediately followed by her 6-year servitude in the convent, Isabel was more than a little awkward. Not to mention that she'd never learned much how to act around a man because there simply hadn't been any men around for her to act any way around! Nearly 25 now, the girl seemed younger and was extremely naive.

She kept her head down and hurried after the burly man.
 
Edward trundled up the stairs, mentally trying to wrap his head around the fact there would be a woman in his house for the first time since he started his apprenticeship. What does one do with a woman? He knew biological compatibility, but intellectually? Emotionally?

On the positive side, he no longer had the expense of providing for her cloister. Now he merely had to face the fact that eventually he would have to provide dowry to someone. Women, he thought. Were they worth the effort?

Substantially he thought not, which was why at 40 he was still a bachelor with no real interest in marriage.

Arriving on the second floor, a hallway ran front to back of the shoppe and house combination. Immediately at the stairs was a disused sitting area, for one simply cannot work whilst sitting. Down the right hand hall were two bedrooms facing each other, each lacking a door.

Down the left hall was a simple kitchen area not terribly well stocked but not bare either. "Your bedroom is to the left, Isabel."
 
Isabel nodded and headed into the room, looking around only briefly to see that her basic needs were covered. After all, at the covenant they'd taken a vow of poverty and all she'd needed was a bed and a dresser. That was pretty much what was here as well, and it was obvious that he'd not had much notice of her arrival.

The girl turned and only then realized that the room had no door. A bit perplexed and confused, but only thinking about what proper modesty would require, she pursed her lips before giving a slight curtsy as she was taught to do before speaking to any authority figure.

"Uncle, I hate to impose, but might there be a door for this room? Or, possibly, an extra sheet I could fashion for use as a curtain? For proper etiquette's sake, you understand. I could sew it myself...."

As the brunette spoke, her glance was cast slightly down while still making polite enough eye contact to not be considered rude. Her voice was soft, and her neck long and thin like a gazelle. Her chest tested the limits of the material, though it was big the rest of the way around her so that her hips could not well be distinguished.

She consciously remembered not to wring her hands; that was one thing the nuns berated her for constantly. Just because you are not the important person in the room doesn't mean you have to act like he's going to squash you at any moment.

Whatever could she do in a place like this? How could she contribute, and earn her keep?
 
Edward nodded at her modest request, "Of course Isabel, for tonight and until which time I can engage a carpenter, we can use cloth of some sort."

He looked at the room and made note of the items she would require, a pitcher a basin for night soils, an oil lamp by which to see, and other sundries.

He placed her bag on the dresser and stood by the door and said, "Do you have additional clothing coming by freight?"
 
Isabel nodded in acknowledgement to his agreement of a door covering. It was only appropriate, of course.

"More clothes?" The girl was almost confused, having forgotten that most people own more than two articles of clothing. One to wear, and one to wear when the first is being washed.

"Oh, no sir. This is all I have - all of my belongings. It's all I need, really..." She scuffed her feet against one another, her gaze downcast as she glanced stealthily around the room again. Now that she was no longer at the convent, maybe an item or two wouldn't clutter her life or distract her too terribly much.

"I can cook. And clean. And do the washing. And I'm happy to learn any tasks for which you might need assistance in your work. I'm a quick learner! What would you have me to do first? I so appreciate your letting me stay here. Just let me know how I can contribute."
 
Edward almost scoffed but reigned it in. "No, Isabel, that article of clothing as loosely as that term can be interpreted for what you are wearing, simply shall not suffice. While we are not invited usually to elegant society functions, they do come here for jewels, so we must dress the part within reason."

He looked over the space and continued, "Once you are settled in we shall discuss chores and such. Meet me downstairs once you have accomplished that."

Edward then spun and headed down the stairs to his shoppe. Once there he finished cleaning the necklace he had been working on and boxed it up.
 
Isabel looked around the sparse room. She opened her handbag and removed her brush, comb, and hand mirror, and placed them on the dresser. She moved over to the bed and brushed off the bedspread with her hand before turning down the covers to reveal the bedsheets. She fluffed the pillow and turned it over on the bed, nodded her approval, and smiled.

Then she turned and followed her uncle back down the hallway, barely a few steps behind him. She quietly watched him work until he placed it in the box. What beautiful work her uncle performed! The priceless jewels Isabel had never before seen the likes of, and she mentally warned herself to never go near them. The love of money was the root of all evil, and she wasn't quite sure if she loved the jewel for its beauty or for its value.

Her uncle turned, and she straightened her stance and folded her hands, ready for his next instruction.
 
Back
Top