The fetch did not seem disinclined to confide further; she opened her mouth, and seemed about to speak. But a bustle went up below, a bustle of arrival. Glancing down, Bessie saw that the Adair family had entered the hall, with all the pomp and noise that could suit their consequence. The time for quiet conversation had clearly passed.
The fetch shut her mouth with a snap, an expression of acute irritation passing over her borrowed face. ‘I swear it shall not harm you!’ she said again. ‘Remember: this is my world.’
With these words she was gone, bounding away down the stairs to return to her duties as host. Bessie was left to consider these inexplicable words as best she could, and to decide, if she could, whether or not to comply with the fetch’s request.
The decision was soon made. Sh
