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Mary Elizabeth BraddonLady Audley's Secret
Mary Elizabeth BraddonFiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1862A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
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BetaVolume 1, Chapters 6-10Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Volume 1, Chapter 6 Summary: "Anywhere, Anywhere Out of the Word"
Upon finding that Helen’s father, Mr. Maldon, has not returned to the cottage, George and Robert search for him. They find him at the beach with George’s young son.
Mr. Maldon laments the fact that George had not arrived a week earlier, and George responds that if he had, then he would not have let Helen die. The old man looks at him helplessly and Robert observes that he seems almost afraid of George.
When George introduces himself to the boy as his father, the child replies that he does not know him. George says that he will leave the child in his grandfather’s care, and Mr. Maldon asks why. George replies that he is returning to Australia.
When George asks the landlady whether Helen died in poverty, she replies that Helen “wanted for nothing” (44). George is relieved, though puzzled as to where Helen’s father found sufficient money.
The next day, a document is drawn up appointing Robert guardian of George’s son. Robert argues that he is not suited to such a role, but George says that he trusts him to ensure that the boy is cared for. However, George misses the ship sailing from Liverpool, so he returns to London to stay with Robert. Robert tries to raise George’s spirits but George remains despondent; he must wait a month before the next ship sails to Australia.
Robert then suggests that George spend the winter in St. Petersburg with him and a barrister friend. George is unresponsive at first but ultimately consents.
Robert writes to Alicia to inform her of the situation, and she replies that Robert is cruel to run away. Nevertheless, she tells Robert that he may bring George to Audley Court.
Volume 1, Chapter 7 Summary: "After a Year"
For the first year of widowhood, George remains desolate and says that he will carry the burden of Helen’s death to his grave.
When Robert invites George to join him at Audley Court, George declines. As it happens, though, neither is able to attend: a letter from Alicia informs them that Lady Audley is currently too ill to entertain visitors. Even so, Robert maintains that they should go to Audley and stay at an inn. He keeps Alicia’s letter, unaware that it will “come to be a link in that terrible chain of evidence afterwards to be slowly forged into the one only criminal case in which he was ever to be concerned” (49).
After a day in the village, George and Robert return to the inn and Robert spots his uncle’s carriage. He goes to greet Sir Michael, who is accompanied by his wife and Alicia. Alicia expresses her eagerness to meet George, and Robert says that he will fetch him. However, Lady Audley conveys to her husband that she does not want to be bothered with introductions. Sir Michael therefore invites Robert to bring George to the court the next day. Alicia makes some barbed comments about her stepmother to Robert, and is exasperated to find that Robert appears to have fallen under her spell.
When Robert returns to the inn, he exclaims “I am falling in love with my aunt” (53). George, however, is lost in his thoughts about his wife and child.
When Lady Audley returns home, she asks Phoebe to do her a favor the next day and to keep the matter a secret. The following morning, Lady Audley receives a telegram from her old schoolmistress, who is seriously ill and requests a visit from her former pupil. She and Sir Michael consequently depart for West Brompton. Despite the haste with which she leaves, Lady Audley double locks the door to her suite of rooms.
Volume 1, Chapter 8 Summary: "Before the Storm"
With dinner at Audley Court postponed, Alicia must wait to meet George. It may be that her real motive is to make Robert jealous but, according to the narrator, only an outright marriage proposal on her part would be sufficient to convey her feelings to one so indifferent.
The day after Lady Audley’s departure, Robert and George are becoming weary of the village and keen to return to London. George is depressed and has a premonition that he will not see his son grow up.
Alicia is disappointed to hear that they are leaving and shows them a letter in which Lady Audley asks how long they are expected to stay, and if there is a chance that she will be back in time to receive them. Robert marvels at the “pretty, fairy-like note” (59). However, George has already started walking away, and Robert and Alicia say their goodbyes. Once out of sight, Alicia decries Robert for seeming to care as much for her as he would a dog.
Robert wakes with a headache the next morning, so their departure is delayed. Nevertheless, he later proposes that they take a stroll to Audley Court. They meet Alicia, who shows them around the house but, when they reach Lady Audley’s rooms, the door is locked.
When Robert asks if they are any secret passages, Alicia remembers that there is a passage leading to Lady Audley’s dressing room. Shortly afterwards, George and Robert are viewing the room’s paintings; in particular, a portrait of the Lady. Robert notes that the portrait looks both like and unlike the Lady and has strangely sinister, disagreeable features. Alicia replies, “We have never seen my lady look as she does in that picture; but I think that she could look so” (66). George remains mostly silent, but when he does speak, Robert observes that his voice is hoarse.
When Robert and George depart, a carriage passes by and they spot Lady Audley. As it is dark, the Lady cannot distinguish them and asks their identities. Robert says, “It is your most dutiful nephew” (66), and Lady Audley exits the carriage with her husband. Looking at the sky, Sir Michael observes that there will be a storm tomorrow.
Volume 1, Chapter 9 Summary: "After the Storm"
Sir Michael was mistaken about the weather, as a storm breaks that same night. Observing George’s agitated state Robert asks if he is afraid of lightning. George denies this and goes walking in the rain. Robert subsequently asks what prompted him to go out on such a night, but George tells Robert to leave him alone.
The next morning is calm and sunny. George apologizes to Robert, admitting his fear of the storm, and they decide to spend the day fishing.
Lady Audley had been extremely frightened by the lightning but is now back to her usual, merry self. Finding her dressing room disarranged, she playfully chides Alicia for letting George and Robert enter her room. Sir Michael then says that he will invite the two men to dinner.
At the bank of the river, Robert has fallen asleep and George decides to walk to Audley Court. The servant tells him that Lady Audley is not at home. George seems disappointed and leaves while muttering something about wishing to see his lady. When Lady Audley returns, Alicia mentions that George has been asking after her, which she seems to find puzzling.
When she goes to her rooms, she summons Phoebe. After talking of mundane matters, their eyes meet and Lady Audley says, “you are a good industrious girl, and while I live and am prosperous you shall never want a firm friend or a twenty-pound note” (73).
Volume 1, Chapter 10 Summary: "Missing"
When Robert awakes, he searches for George and is surprised to find that he has not returned to the inn. Robert goes to look for his friend but, just before he leaves, the landlord remembers that Sir Michael had stopped by and invited them to dinner earlier. Robert therefore thinks that George might be at Audley Court.
The servant at the court says that George had stopped by earlier but has not been seen since. Robert heads back towards the village, worried and confused. He wonders if George could have returned to London by train, and goes to the station to question the clerk. When Robert describes George, the clerk believes he may have been there that day.
It is now clear to Robert that George had “got one of his gloomy fits on him” (76) and returned to London. Robert decides that he will also depart the next day but, before then, he will go to Audley Court to meet Lady Audley.
Volume 1, Chapters 6-10 Analysis
Chapter 6 begins with Robert and George finding George’s father-in-law, Mr. Maldon, and son. Robert observes that Mr. Maldon seems nervous and a sense of nervousness is apparent throughout this and subsequent meetings, suggesting that Mr. Maldon is covering something up. Likewise, George is puzzled as to where Mr. Maldon found sufficient money to care for his ailing daughter: a question that will be answered later in the novel, when the truth is revealed.
Chapter 7 finds George still grief-stricken, which prompts Robert to suggest a visit to Audley. This is one of the most significant points in the novel’s narrative, shaping the course of the characters’ lives thereafter.
Though Robert is keen to visit Audley Court, he receives a letter stating that Lady Audley is too ill to accept visitors. The narrator remarks that, in hindsight, this letter forms part of the chain of evidence that Robert will later piece together. In other words, it suggests that Lady Audley is trying to avoid meeting George.
Lady Audley is still beloved by the villagers and her husband caters to her every whim. The narrator also remarks on the peacefulness of Audley but adds that one hears of murders taking place in such settings. This remark undermines the tranquility of the novel’s setting and contributes to the reader’s sense of unease and the growing air of suspense.
Reaffirming her desire to avoid George, Lady Audley again averts a meeting; this time, utilizing the hold that she wields over her husband. A mere raise of the eyebrow and a weary expression is enough to signal her intentions to him, showing that Sir Michael is very much under her spell.
Though George does has not seen the Lady yet, Robert meets her for the first time and, like the rest of the village, is bewitched. The only person who is not bewitched is Alicia, who finds her vacuous and blandly pretty. In one sense, this would seem to be a more grounded appraisal of Lady Audley compared to the hyperbolic flattery of the other characters. As becomes increasingly clear, however, Lady Audley is neither an angel nor merely a vacuous doll-like figure; rather, she is cunning and dangerous. In this respect, all the characters underestimate her at first, and Robert is no exception.
Another significant plot point occurs at the end of this chapter when Lady Audley enlists Phoebe’s help. The next day, Lady Audley receives a telegram from an old schoolteacher, who is gravely ill and implores the Lady (a former pupil) to visit her. Though not stated outright, it is clear these two events are connected and that the telegram is a ruse.
In Chapter 8, Alicia shows Robert a letter from Lady Audley enquiring how long he and George are planning to stay in Audley; again, demonstrating her continuing interest in this matter. When Robert marvels at the Lady’s charming handwriting, this at first seems merely evidence of his infatuation. As we will see, however, this handwriting proves another link in the chain of evidence revealing Lady Audley’s secret.
Robert and George finally visit Audley Court while the Lady is absent and are able to look around her private apartments. Here, they find a portrait of the Lady, and Robert feels that there is something odd about it: the mouth is “almost wicked,” the eyes have a “strange, sinister light,” and the overall effect is that of “a beautiful fiend” (65). Robert attributes this to the mindset and artistic style of the painter. However, when Alicia replies, “We have never seen my lady look as she does in that picture; but I think that she could look so” (66), the novel suggests that the portrait reveals something of the Lady’s true nature. George’s silence and subsequent “hoarse” (65) voice, meanwhile, suggest shock or confusion.
As they are leaving, Robert and George finally meet Lady Audley, who is returning from her trip. When Sir Michael observes that it looks like a storm is brewing, the remark seems prescient; the storm might be metaphorical as well as literal.
When the storm breaks in Chapter 9, George appears agitated and lost in thought, which Robert attributes to a fear of lightning. Lady Audley, meanwhile, is terrified and frantic. Again, Sir Michael assumes that she is a delicate, child-like creature who is frightened by the storm, and is relieved to find her better the next day. However, neither George’s nor Lady Audley’s behavior is related to the weather.
The extreme nature of Lady Audley’s reaction harks back to her emotional outburst when Sir Michael proposed. These are moments when the Lady lets her guard down and her capacity for hysteria (or madness) erupts. Sir Michael is rattled by these moments but does not attribute them to any deeper issue or question whether his wife is keeping something back. Still, the very fact that the Lady regains her composure the next morning indicates that she refuses to give up and seeks to maintain her web of deceit.
When George goes to visit the Lady, only to find that she is not at home, it is apparent that he is troubled by something. Even though the exact nature of his burden is not revealed at this point, it is evident that it concerns the Lady—a woman whom he supposedly met for the first time the previous night.
When Lady Audley returns to court, she thanks Phoebe for her assistance and assures her that she will never want for friendship or money. The precise topic of their conversation is not revealed, but we know that the Lady has taken Phoebe into her confidence and enlisted her help with the telegram. Her claims of friendship, however, are dubious, as both women are depicted as selfish and cunning.
Chapter 10 marks the point at which George disappears, and, though concerned, Robert assumes that he is merely suffering a bout of depression and does not want company.
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