In S3 there is an anomaly in the script if you have seen all of S3 it is in episode 3. Whether it was intentional or a mess up in the story I have no idea. This story is based on S3 events and looks at the story from a more sinister point of view. This isn't a Bates/Anna sweetsy romance. It makes the most sense if you have read In His Own World. Please remember this is meant for entertainment.

Chapter 1 – The Listener

He stepped back into the shadows of the second floor landing of Downton Abbey. It was his favorite vantage point from where he could watch the coming and goings in the great hall as he had done so many times before. Lord Grantham and Lord Flintshire, Lord Grantham's friend and cousin were orchestrating a search for two young boys who were Branson's cousins and some thieves who had made off with a truckload of hay. It was the middle of winter. Everyone including the police were doing their best to find the boys before they were injured or got hypothermia and died. The boys had disappeared from the farm where they lived with their mother and stepfather. It looked like foul play was involved.

"Look at the fools," he thought to himself. "Making the valiant effort to save those two worthless boys." He could see Branson and his brother talking with the Detective Inspector. The voices from below drifted up and he could hear snatches of the conversations. The Detective Inspector was such a chump stating in all likelihood the thieves were stealing hay and feed and selling it back to the estate. He hadn't been selling the stolen hay back to the estate. Did they think he was stupid, some small time crook that bumbled around waiting to be caught? The fools had no idea he had been playing this game for years. The estate had been a shoddily run mess when he first arrived. The old estate agent Jarvis hadn't a clue. The missing goods had been detected once. A few snips to a brake line and loosened blots had fixed that little problem before it was ever fully investigated and reported to the police. Now Branson's new chit couldn't keep her nose out of things and figured out things were going missing. No one yet had managed to figure out where the hay and grain was going or where it was being sold. Even if they found the abandoned farm where his hired goons were, there was no way to trace anything back to him or to the feedlot where it was being fenced.

The searchers down below and those waiting for news of the snatched boys were keeping the majority of the staff busy. It was quiet up here. The children were being kept away from the turmoil. No one missed him. He'd kept up the appearance of the faithful servant for years. It was a perfect cover. His Lordship and Branson discussed the affairs of the estate openly in front of him. Before that it had been Jarvis and later Matthew Crawley. Half the time they went off and left the record books lying open. It was just right for him to take a look and find out where the bounty of grain and hay was stored. It had all been too easy and they had played right into his hands.

He heard a sound on the servants' stairs. That would be one of the maids coming up with the day's laundry. They usually did at this time of day. He straightened his tie and moved off from his vantage point as though nothing was amiss. He worked there after all. If anyone had spotted him on the second floor they would assume he was going about his duties and not give it a second thought.

-0-

John Bates went downstairs to the servant's area once the search had been called off for the day. He had spent most of the afternoon minding the tea table in the great hall. With his bad leg he hadn't been able to go out with either the mounted groups or the men searching with automobiles. They needed to stop at every bridge, ditch and culvert to check for any trace of the missing boys. With his bad leg he would have just slowed them down.

"Mrs. Hughes, I've collected the soiled cups in the drawing room, library and great hall and put them on trays," John said. "I'm sorry I'm not able to carry them down."

"The maids will see to it, Mr. Bates and the footmen are back. I'm sorry I had to ask you to help out with serving today, but we were in a bit of a pinch," Mrs. Hughes replied.

"There's no issue, Mrs. Hughes. I'm happy to help out where I can," John replied. He continued on to the servants' hall. He spotted Alfred in the kitchen kneading a batch of bread for the next day and his wife sitting at the table doing some mending. It was easier and more economical for them to take their meals at the Abbey. There was just enough time for a cup of tea and quick bite to eat before he was back upstairs and standing by for Lord Grantham. He entered the room to see a host of faces of men and women he barely recognized. The house was full of company at the moment and with the company were an assortment of valets and ladies maids traveling with their employers.

"You haven't worn yourself out, have you Mr. Bates?" Anna asked with a smile.

"No, I'm well," John replied. "I'll be a bit stiff tonight from standing so long. It's nothing a hot bath won't cure."

"It's a terrible thing isn't it?" Anna said. "I would hate to be the poor boys' mother. She must be beside herself."

"We can only hope they're found soon," Miss O'Brien contributed from across the table. "If they've run off and are playing a prank I'll box their ears myself."

"I doesn't look that way, Miss O'Brien," John said. "It's rather a serious prank for a pair of boys to play."

"They're boys," Miss O'Brien stated. "Spare the rod and spoil the child, my parent's always said. You saw the way the two of them behaved at Mr. Branson's wedding."

"The other Mr. Branson got them in line quick enough," Anna said. "They were children at a wedding. There wasn't much for them to do. It's understandable they were bored."

"They ruined his Lordship's best top hat," Miss O'Brien griped.

"Hardly that," John said. "The lining was loose and I had planned to mend it the following day. There was no harm done."

Miss O'Brien continued to gripe and complain about this and that until it was time to go upstairs for the evening's duties.

"This is a fine mess," he thought as he sat in the servants' hall and listened to the conversation going on around him. He only had to contribute periodically and no one would suspect a thing. He had told those two idiots working for him to only go to the tenant farms well after the lights were out for the night. The best locations were those well away from any lodgings where they wouldn't be seen. They had gotten greedy and lazy. Those two boys must have stumbled across them while they were in the middle of a job. Fools. Now the boys would have to be disposed of. It wasn't the first time he had turned to murder to cover his tracks. The time before last he had been sloppy. This time he wouldn't make the same mistake. If those two fools hadn't disposed of the boys by the time they contacted him again, he would do it himself and then take care of his hired help as well. A few well placed bullets, a change of shoes that he would dispose of so any footprints couldn't be traced back to him and no one would be the wiser.

He looked over and smiled and nodded at something one of the maids was saying. He couldn't care less what it was. Let them waste away their days working for next to nothing and indulging in gossip about people that barely acknowledged their existence. He was building his fortune. One day he would announce his retirement, head to Ireland or Scotland and spend the rest of his days in luxury and no one would be the wiser. If he had an attractive companion to share his bed, so much the better, if not there would always be another along after a while.

Thomas Barrow surveyed the room full of people at the servant's dinner that night. Thank goodness, Lady Grantham had ordered a buffet dinner, which had been quick and easy. Everyone upstairs was worn out from the goings on today and had retired early. Thomas himself hadn't gone out with the search teams. There were so many people at the Abbey from noon on with a constant stream of comings and goings he had thought it best to stay back and keep an eye on things here. Mr. Bates had manned the tea table for part of the afternoon, which had been helpful, but he wasn't able to carry the trays of sandwiches or kettles of hot water upstairs to the serving area or bring the dishes down. It had put more work on the maids and Thomas. This afternoon and into the evening Thomas had felt more like a traffic conductor than a butler. At one point he had wanted to strangle old Lady Grantham and Lady Flintshire. They had spent the afternoon holed up in the drawing room. They had rung for tea twice and wanted hourly updates on the goings on from the other rooms. "Couldn't the old bats get off their hind ends and walk the few steps to find out for themselves," he had thought after the third time they rang wanting an update. It had been a long day. He couldn't dismiss the maids yet. There was a mountain of dishes still waiting to be done and the men were planning to continue the search at first light. It would be a night of even less sleep than usual. Hopefully they would turn up something tomorrow so he would not have a repeat performance tomorrow night.

-0-

It was almost noon the next day when the boys turned up at the Abbey no worse for wear. There was so much general excitement over their safe return no one noticed when he slipped away when the boys were taken to the library to tell their full story. He made his way through the crowd casually not wanting to draw attention to himself. As soon as he was out of the great hall he quickly made his way to the morning room and cracked the door to the library so he could listen to their tale. There was a great deal of discussion going on that covered the sound of the door opening. All eyes were on the two boys. No one paid any attention to the dark shadow on the other side of the cracked door.

He had to admit they were a smart pair of lads. What havoc those two could wreak if they put their minds to it in a life of crime. The police were on their way to arrest the two idiots that had snatched the boys. He was safe. He had kept his face in shadow when they met and the money from the feedlot went to an account under an assumed name that he withdrew and deposited into a different bank every two weeks. The funds from the last two weeks were lost to him now. He could never go near the bank where the funds had went again incase he was recognized. His life in crime had begun years ago when he was young. Over the years he had learned some hard lessons. Now he let others do the dirty work. When things went wrong they were the ones with dirt on their hands. Lesser crooks had tried to muscle in but he had always outsmarted them. The old proverb "Good things come to those who wait," couldn't have been truer. If he waited long enough the next opportunity would present itself. This operation was blown. It had been a good run over the last twelve years and made him a pretty penny. Now it was time to sit back and wait. Something new would present itself.

He left the door to the library ajar. He moved back silently and made his way out of the morning room and went about his duties. His cover was intact. There was no hiding out in a dingy pub or an abandoned cottage. He was surrounded by luxury with three square meals a day on the table and a warm bed to sleep in. He was no common crook. He was the Mastermind.