"That's neat," Rose commented, when he told her about his job, but when he asked about her family, she avoided his eye and felt a knot tie somewhere around her stomach. "We've had some ill fate. Lost me mother and two older brothers. Hence why I went into service."

She didn't know if he had heard about Simon at the time. The murder and Simon's sentence had been all over the local newspapers and had been the topic of local talk for months of course. But either was, Rose was not keen to touch on that topic if she didn't have to. Instead, she quickly steered the conversation away from the tragedy.

"I worked 'ere in Whitby as a maid up til last week. For a dreadful grumpy goat of a man, I'll tell ye that. But I finished me contract. I'll be a baker's wife as of next week!" Suddenly the impending marriage was a perfect topic for conversation. It did suddenly make a lot more sense as well, against the backdrop of her family's tragedies and their struggle for survival. As a baker's wife, Rose had done quite well for herself.