Chapter Three
"Mr Carson, may have a word?" Mrs Hughes asked. Carson looked up from the accounts and nodded to Mrs Hughes to come into his office.
"Is everything alright Mrs Hughes?" He asked.
"I could ask you the same thing. I've just seen Sybil and she had red eyes, like she'd been up all night crying. I asked if she was alright and she told me to ask you, that you'd explain."
Mr Carson had been waiting for this. He and Mrs Hughes had watched Sybil grow up, had been there the night she had been born. They were often called an 'old, married couple' and he agreed. She was like their daughter.
"Very well Mrs Hughes. Come on in and close the door. You aren't going to like this though." He said.
She did as he asked and in the next fifteen minutes he told her everything Sybil had told him. She was in tears.
"Oh our poor girl. Why on earth would he do that to her?" She asked.
"He's a nasty human being." Carson answered. "She wants us to look after any money she saves, so he can't find out she has any saved. Would you be willing?"
"What do you think?" She asked, drying her eyes. "But he knows how much she earns?"
"I'm going to speak to my friend, Napier and ask if she can work there. A young man that works there helped her." He said, adding, "His Lordship shouldn't make her marry anyone unless she wants to."
"I agree but it's not out place to do or say anything, least of all to give our opinions on the subject. All we can do is help Sybil." Mrs Hughes said.
"That's correct. Now I should probably get on. I's 9.15am and his Lordship wants waking up once I've made this phonecall." Carson said. He nodded to Mrs Hughes and follwed her out of his office. He made his way to the small telephone in the open-office and made the call he hoped would help Sybil.
. x .
Sybil left the dining room after breakfast at 11am and was greeted by Carson giving her a slip of paper.
"He says you are to go see him today and talk to him. That's the address there. Good luck Sybil." He told her.
"Thank you so much, Mr Carson. See you later." She said. She ran to her room, put on her jacket and boots and left the house.
She had a feeling as though she was being watched, but then decided that she was just being paranoid. She pulled her jacket up higer and made her way to Ripon Centre.
. x .
Tom sat staring at the screen. He was now to work with a woman named Sybil Crawley. Correction Lady Sybil Crawley. Bloody hell. She hadn't looked like a lady. Then again, he expected Ladies of Society to be like they were in the 20's. Unhappily married to a man who probably had lots of Mistress', lots of children they only saw at meal times and bed time, a large house where they only used one room and servants at their every beck and call. Maybe they were a bit nicer and more down to earth these days? Bugger knows. Well, either way she was a Photographer and would be working with him. Though how he was supposed to tell her that she was helping him on an article ragarding domestic violence was beyond him. He could change it, but his boss - Napier - wouldn't allow that. No, he would simply tell her he decided on the subject for his article long before he met her. Yes, she would believe that because she had no reason not to believe that. The fact that she herself is a victim of domestic abuse would imply that she may not believe that.
He glanced at the clock; 11.26am. She would be here soon apparently. No chance to check his sure-to-be gross appearance and no chance to have a fag (he could have sworn he'd given that habit up) so he just had to wait until she arrived, where he could get worked up like he usually did around lovely looking girls.
And - just at that moment - she arrived.
. x .
She made her way through his one-man office and was introduced to him by the Receptionist, Jenna. Sybil smiled and said,
"Hello, again Tom." Jenna looked blank.
"Oh you know each other?" She asked. She was young, blonde and had been chasing Tom for ages but he wasn't interested in someone rumoured to have a night job as a dominatrix. She looked unhappy.
"Yes, he's my night in shining armour so-to-speak" She said, winking. Tom - acting more confident that he actually felt - winked back and stood, shaking her hand.
"Hello again Sybil. No, sit down and I'll let you know what's going to happen while you're working here with us." He looked at Jenna and added, "That'll be all Jenna." She tut's and walked away, heels wobbling.
"She fancies you. Should have heard her talking about you. She may as well have said "I want to do him now" that's how obvious she was being." Tom outright laughed. "She asked if I had a boyfriend, which clearly meant "leave Tom he's mine" so I told her I was a lesbian. She seemed okay towards me then."
And that was it. The ice was broken.
"So, what made you want to work here?" He asked. She looked worried all of a sudden.
"Erm, didn't your boss tell you?" She asked.
"Only that - and I quote - Lady Sybil Crawley will be working with us for a while, for personal reasons and will be working especially with you. That okay, Branson? - and then his telephone rang, which was my queue to leave. But your boyfriend won't be happy about me working with you will he, seeing as I poured my Coffee on him yesterday." He told her.
"Oh, so you know I'm a lady?" She asked. "And no, he probably won't."
"Just that it's your name. That's all I know. But don't worry, I won't ask questions it you don't want me to. I'll just be the words to your pictures." She smiled at that.
"The Earl of Grantham is my Father. My Mother Cora is his American Wife, the Dowager Countess Violet is my Grandmother and I have two elder sisters - Mary and Edith. That's it. Your boss knows my Butler, Mr Carson and we have a Housekeeper Mrs Hughes. I live at Downton Abbey." She told him.
"You know you didn't have to tell me the truth." He said. "You can tell me what you like. Although I'd rather know if you're a serial killer." They both laughed loud at that.
"No. You helped yesterday." She said seriously. "I've come to work here, because my boyfriend James' Father works for a bank and can check what wage I get. So, if I have an extra job that he doesn't know about he can't ask what I've spent it on and ask questions. I'm going to get paid by cheque and give it to Mr Carson and Mrs Hughes alternatively." He looked confused.
"I don't understand." She looked at him hard.
"My Parents want me to marry James, so I've accepted but I plan to run away." She said. "Save some money, start over, there we have it. My parents won't listen to me so please don't ask why I haven't told them. He's a slippery shit and can get away with anything."
Tom was speechless.
"Well, I don't like him." Tom said when he finally found his voice.
"So what are we doing an article on?" She asked. He had hoped this would wait, but she had to ask him now.
"Domestic Violence." He answered.
"How imaginative." She laughed, then turned serious. "But how do we capture that in photographs?"
"I don't know, but..." yet he was interrupted by Sybil.
"Simple. We could make up a story. Get actors, like a story board. You can be the word to my pictures." She said. He grinned.
"That's a great idea. But where the hell do we find people to do THAT?" He asked.
"The street, obviously." She said. "Come on."
Tom knew there and then as she handed him his suit jacket and dragged him out of the office wearing a beautiful smile that he loved her.
. x .