Millie's Escape (Hartford Manor Book 4) by Marcia Clayton

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

1885 North Devon, England.  It is winter in the small Devon village of Brampford Speke, and a typhoid epidemic has claimed many victims. Millie, aged fifteen, is doing her best to nurse her mother and grandmother as well as look after Jonathan, her five-year-old brother. One morning, Millie is horrified to find that her mother, Rosemary, has passed away during the night and is terrified the same fate may befall her granny, Emily.

Excerpt:

Annie arose early the following day and hurried to the nursery to feed the twins. She paused to peer into Selina’s bedroom, and, for once, the little girl was still fast asleep. Annie tiptoed away quietly and gently opened the door of the room in which Jinnie and Eliza were sleeping. She was pleased to see that they had not yet awoken. Paul and Martin were in the next room, and the sound of sobbing reached her ears before she even opened the door. Annie found three-year-old Paul in tears and Martin trying to comfort him.

   “Good morning, boys; what’s the matter, Paul? Are you poorly?”

   The toddler shook his head, clung to his brother, and wouldn’t meet Annie’s eyes. She looked at Martin, wondering why the boy was so distraught.

   “What’s wrong with Paul? Has he had a bad dream?”

   “No, ma’am, but he’s wet the bed. I’m so sorry. I’ll help him take the sheets off and wash them; we don’t want to be any trouble.”

   “Oh, don’t worry about that; Selina still has an accident now and then. It happens, and I expect you were tired last night.”

   The younger boy lifted his face and stared anxiously at Annie in bewilderment. The tears were still flowing down his cheeks, and his nose was running; his frail body shook with sobs.

   “Are you going to beat me?”

   Annie was shocked.

   “Goodness me, no! Of course, I won’t beat you; why would I do that? You didn’t wet the bed on purpose, did you?”

   “No, ma’am; I didn’t know it was wet until I woke up.”

   “No need to worry then. Do you ever have little accidents like this, Martin?”

   “No, ma’am, luckily I don’t, but you see, if this happened in the workhouse, Paul would get a hiding, so he didn’t tell anyone if he could help it; he’d just sleep in the same wet bed the next night.”

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About the Author

Marcia Clayton is the author of five books in The Hartford Manor Series, a heart-warming family saga stretching from the Regency period to Victorian times. A sixth book is to be released in 2024. Marcia was born in North Devon, a rural and picturesque area in the far South West of England. When she left school, Marcia worked in a bank for several years until she married her husband, Bryan, and then stayed at home for a few years to care for her three sons, Stuart, Paul and David. As the children grew older, Marcia worked as a Marie Curie nurse caring for the terminally ill and later for the local authority managing school transport. Now a grandmother, Marcia enjoys spending time with her family and friends. She’s a keen researcher of family history, and this hobby inspired some of the characters in her books. A keen gardener, Marcia grows many of her own vegetables. She is also an avid reader and enjoys historical fiction, romance, and crime books. Find out more from Marcia's website: https://marciaclayton.co.uk/ and find her on Facebook and Twitter @MarciaC89111861