AN: All characters and places you recognise belong to J. Followes.
Dear Lord Grantham,
By the time you find this letter, I will be long gone and the consequences of my last letters ought to be a reality. I must firstly apologise for all the trouble that I have surely caused the household and yourself. I trust Mr. Carson would find a suitable valet for Your Lordship in time, and I am confident that, once you know my motives, you would understand that there was not really any other path for me.
If you forgive me, My Lord, I will be bold enough to ask one last favour from you. I know I have no right to, when over the years, and contrary to my every wish, I have brought distress and complications to yourself and your family. However, believe me, I wish there was any other course of action. There is none.
As Your Lordship must already know from my last, I have declared myself guilty of Green's dead. I hope you would share my opinion of the convenience of this arrangement. I just could not leave my wife to take the blame of an act she most certainly did not perform; I have to do everything in my power to guarantee her safety and well-being. Hopefully this plan of mine have worked so far and Anna is now home.
I would not be as naïve as to think she is happy. On the contrary, I am painfully aware that she is probably almost as upset with my leaving as she was in prison. And this is what takes me to this last favour. I need her to join me and, if you would excuse my presumptuousness, I think she needs that to. If time, terrible experiences and bad luck has taught me something, it is that Anna and I cannot be apart from one another. It does sound rather silly when put on writing, but that does not make it any less true.
Please, My Lord, send Anna to me. You would know how and you know where. Let us wait some time, several weeks after her release, so that the authorities would not find it odd and go after her. Perhaps after New Year's Eve? And this is the last, enormous favour we will ask from you.
Anna does not know of my plans and certainly this ignorance of her is for her own benefit. There is no certainty that the police would not be returning again, with more questions. I beg you not tell her a thing until it is time to go. She will then be able to decide if she wishes to do so and join me, or if she rather stay safe. It pains me more than I can express to think about all those long months apart from her, or that they could turn into forever; and yet we all know this is a decision for her to make, and nobody else. I do hope you would not think I am being egotistical, wanting her with me just for me own benefit, and I know this will sound strange, but I am not a fool and I have learned that her happiness is with me. I cannot just leave her behind.
It saddens me not to be able to return to Downton and part properly, but circumstances do take us towards strange paths.
I cannot thank you enough, My Lord, for this and every consideration you have had with me and Anna. You might not agree with me, and I would certainly understand if you do not, but for me it was a very strange, generous fate that lead me to Downton and your service, and for that I will be ever grateful.
Most sincerely,
J. B.
AN: I just couldn't believe that Bates would have left Anna *again* and for her own good... *again*. So I am convinced there must have been an explanation and a plan. This is my theory. Thanks very much for reading!