This was where she’d worked on “The Shoes.”
She’d been a young girl when she’d had the idea of engraving footwear. After all, Oliphants had been wearing engraved jewelry for generations, had they not? So why couldn’t they find a way to incorporate the art into the rest of their fashion? She’d engraved her share of buckles over the years, but why not the heels of boots?
Because it was damned impractical, as it turned out.
Men couldn’t wear boots with metal heels because the noise was outrageous and the sparks alarming.
But…everyone knew women’s fashion trended toward the impractical, aye? That was when Ember began experimenting with engraving the heels of women’s fancy dress slippers. Many had been discarded before she’d settled into a design which worked well.
Tonight would be their debut.
She, Vanessa, and Bonnie would be wearing engraved heeled shoes she’d created in this very workshop, and she hoped they’d draw notice. If they did, she might be able to convince Mr. DeVille to begin taking commissions for them.
And she’d be able to leave the inn and go back to Oliphant Engraving full time, doing what she loved to do: creating art with her hands.
But for now, she had work to do.
With a slight sigh, she crossed to the cabinet where the shoes were stacked, grabbing a satchel along the way. When she opened the door, the three sets of shoes glinted merrily in the light of the lantern.
First into the satchel went her shoes: a perfect pair of dark red slippers. The heels were bronze, engraved with gears, reminding her of what she loved. The geometric patterns had always been soothing to her, and after she’d burnished the heels to a bright shine, she’d covered the rest of the shoe in silk to match.
Next were Bonnie’s shoes, the gold of the brass in the heel was engraved with an image of a single open book. At the top of the satchel, Ember slid in Vanessa’s slippers, a pair of stunningly bright silver shoes. The heels were steel, engraved with twining flowering vines, and Ember’s stepsister had chosen the shining silk which covered the rest of the shoe herself.
They would certainly attract plenty of attention.
She needed to get them upstairs to her sisters, but first, she’d do as her stepmother had suggested—ordered actually—and ensure the supper guests were provided for.
With the bag slung over her shoulder, she slipped into the kitchens. Mrs. Oliphant, the cook, was a large, implacable sort of woman who didn’t allow anything to frazzle her. This evening, she was sweating as she lifted a big pot from the modern stove and plopped it on the counter with a grunt.
“Good evening, Mrs. Oliphant. I’m on my way upstairs, but thought I’d check to see if ye needed any help?”
The round woman knew, as well as the rest of the inn’s servants—of which there certainly weren’t enough—the only difference between them and Ember was that Ember wasn’t paid a wage. So she wasn’t surprised when the cook shook her head immediately.
“Och, nay, lassie. Ye best run to do her ladyship’s bidding, eh?”
“It’ll do her well to have to wait an extra moment or two,” Ember pointed out with a smile. “Are ye certain I cannae help?”
“Fine.” Mrs. Oliphant blew out a breath which caused her curls to flutter and gestured to a tray in the corner. “Both me girls are off getting ready for the big party tonight, and I’m certain there’s a mug or two which needs refilling in the dining room.”
“Say nae more.” Ember bobbed a quick curtsey. “I live to serve,” she joked, as she reached for the pitcher of ale.
She poured four mugs and plopped them on the tray as the cook snorted derisively.
“Nae for long, lassie. Soon enough, some handsome man will scoop ye up and give ye the life ye deserve!”
Ember’s burst of laughter caught even her by surprise, but she didn’t tamp it down. “A handsome man, eh, Mrs. Oliphant? Ye certain ye’re nae thinking of yer own daydream?”
The cook waggled a finger at her. “I’m no’. Ye deserve happiness after what ye’ve put up with, and what better way to find it than with a man ye love?”
“How about having the chance to do what I enjoy and kenning I’m making my own way in the world?” Ember teased as she lifted the tray to her shoulder, grinning at Mrs. Oliphant’s fantasy for her. “I dinnae need a man to be happy!”
Just the chance to make my own choices about my future.
“Just ye wait, lassie!” Mrs. Oliphant called after her as Ember sailed out of the kitchen. “When ye meet him, ye’ll change yer mind.”
Still smiling at the foolish dream, Ember sailed into the dining room. There were only a few patrons—all older folks—eating supper, and it was simple to switch out empty mugs for full ones. She exchanged pleasantries, deferred their questions when they asked if she was going to the ball, and ensured they needed nothing else.
With a shake of her head, she hurried out of the dining room with her tray of empty mugs. A man? Hah! What she needed was a night off from being an unpaid drudge. The chance to be herself and revel in her own power, just for a few hours. A chance to do what she wanted to do.
And once Mr. DeVille noticed the shoes in her satchel, she had every confidence that would happen again. She’d be offered the opportunity to create designs for more women and be allowed to again engrave the designs the Prince Armory commissioned from the Oliphants.
Now that was a dream she could—
“Ooh!”
She was so busy imagining her possible future, she forgot to look out for her immediate future, where the immediate
