This was heartbreaking. I thought it was a slight possibility. The BBC series made it more plain than the novel did. The woman was extremely creepy, and not because of her potential interest in women, but rather the domineering, manipulative tone in everything she said and did. It made me very uneasy for Harriet. I hope this was not really the case, but it very well could have been.

Great story! I especially loved that line, "It's as if this woman, ivory-white in the single moonbeam lancing through the curtain, has stolen her soul, drawn it up through her smiling lips and left her with the spoiled remains, like cold coffee grounds in an empty cup." Poor Harriet, she's so insecure and ashamed of herself, feeling like something unnatural; the Victorians' prudery definitely didn't help matters either... To read about this dysfunctional relationship is really interesting, although I believe that somewhere deep inside Miss Wade genuinely cared for Harriet, who knows... It would be awesome to read more about these characters' stories after the end of the novel. Keep up the fantastic work, thanks for sharing!