My beloved Booke,
To start off a fresh new book with such a shocking letter from Mr. Dryden must have horrified you. It certainly horrified me.
When I received that letter, I was beside myself. All along, I thought Lady Durand had paid Mr. Dryden to get me out of Lydia’s way and finally remove me from the family, but I was very much mistaken. Indeed, I was a fool, such a fool!
For apparently I was so inconsequential to the Durands that it was not necessary to go to such lengths. All along, I have fancied myself more important than I really was. How humiliating!
If I’d had any sense, I’d have realized that Lady Durand would never have spent money on me. It seems very obvious now. I have forever been a thorn in her side, even though I am not the one who hurt her. It was Papa, not me. But
