Ruined
On Midsummer’s Eve, the sun set after a very hot day. Julie Slade, the Baseharts housemaid was feeling uneasy, it had been a hard time for her since the death of Wilfred Penstock. They were secretly betrothed after an amorous affair, so now she felt alone with no one to share her troubles or life. Julie was a buxom woman in her thirties; in her time, she would have been considered handsome. She always found that she was attracted to older men. Any suitors her own age were kindly rebuked. Wilfred had suited her well, and she had agreed to marry him as he was a widower. Now all her plans were scattered to the winds, and she did her daily chores unhappily.
This particular evening, she felt lonelier than usual, so she left the Mede and went for a walk toward the village. A short while
