*big group hug for all the reviewers* Thank you :)

Chapter 14

When Clara returned from school the next day, she shouldn't have been surprised to find the dining room crowded during tea time, but she was because she had completely forgotten about the visitor her father and Linda had mentioned. As soon as she stepped into the room, all eyes were on her and Clara spotted a man she hadn't seen before.

Robert was around her own age and not bad-looking. His eyes, as well as his smile, were warm and friendly and he wore his dark hair sleeked back according to fashion. The young man rose from his seat to greet her.

"Hello," he said in a polite manner, "my name is Robert Johnson. You must be Clara. Your father and stepmother have already told me a lot about you, but they failed to mention how beautiful you are."

Clara cringed at the remark when Robert went to kiss her hand even though she knew that he was just trying his best to be polite, but she wasn't so very fond of how he was doing it.

When he came back up, Robert chuckled to himself, blushing just a little. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, embarrassed, "that was a little corny, wasn't it?"

His honest self-assessment made Clara laugh as she withdrew her hand. "Just a little, yep."

The young man held her chair until she sat down at the table and as soon as she was seated, her stepmother rose to her feet, clearing her throat. It was most definitely a set-up, devised by both Linda and her father and now, she would excuse herself to leave Clara and Robert on their own.

"Well, I'll leave you two to get acquainted and instruct Jenny on our dinner plans," Linda announced and turned towards Clara, wearing a false smile on her lips. "Why don't you tell Robert a little more about the house and the area in the meantime?"

As Linda retreated, Clara and Robert exchanged a quick glance and the smile he gave her quickly put Clara at ease. He had seen through her stepmother's ruse as well and he likely felt just as embarrassed by the whole situation.

"I'm so sorry," Clara whispered as soon as Linda was out of earshot. "My stepmother is… one of a kind."

Robert chuckled in return. "I'm sorry as well," he apologised quickly. "I was merely looking for a place to stay and your family kindly offered me a room. It's not my intention to impose on you in any way, so don't feel obliged to spend time with me."

"It's alright," Clara reassured him quickly. Robert was nice, just as her father and Linda had told her, and it wasn't his fault that they were trying to find her a match. "But I'm afraid I can't tell you much about the house and the town. I only just moved here from London."

"Linda mentioned you work as a teacher?" he enquired curiously even though he almost sounded like he didn't quite believe it.

She nodded enthusiastically. "I only just started here, but I already love it. The children are saints compared to my old class in London," Clara explained happily.

"It's a little unusual for a woman of your… birth to work," he remarked, but when Clara's gaze darkened, he quickly moved on. "I mean, not that I'm judging, I'm just saying that it's unusual. I'm sure you wouldn't have to."

"But I want to," Clara said determinedly. "Teaching is more than just a job for me. It's a calling. I'm sure that, as a lawyer, you'll understand."

"I understand, I do," Robert confirmed and smiled once again in an attempt to ease the tension. "If teaching is what you love, don't let anyone tell you not to do it."

Clara nodded softly. "Thank you."

Even though Robert had told her not to feel obliged to show her around, Clara gave him a quick tour of the house, introducing the young man to Martha and Jenny and showing him around the grounds. When she told him not to enter the forest at night, Clara decided to omit the details for now and instead, mentioned wild animals. Robert seemed content for now, but still, Clara felt relieved when he finally retreated to his room to unpack and she was free to do whatever she wanted.

And in that case, it was to dive into her research.

The books in the library were still exactly as she had left them, piling up on the small table that neither her father nor Linda occupied while they were reading and she was alone, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to read some more accounts of the Hunter's activities.

Clara laughed at some of the descriptions who described the Hunter as a demon figure with glowing red eyes and a tail because she knew it couldn't be further from the truth. Sometimes, she even doubted if the sightings had been real, so Clara decided to devise a system. One column of her list was filled with reports that were definitely exaggerated or even made up entirely and the other column listed sightings that could have been real even if some details might have been added here or there. The result of her system was a little surprising at first, but the longer she looked at it, the more it made Clara realise that the most accurate accounts came from children.

The Hunter had been seen every now and then over the course of the centuries and Clara knew that he had also killed, but he had always spared the children. The rest of the adults who claimed to have seen him were either dead or lying - or they hadn't talked about it.

"Why are you reading about fairytales?"

Clara spun around and looked into Robert's chuckling face. He seemed amused to find her brooding over this particular subject and instantly, Clara felt her fragile sympathy for him fade.

"There's a difference between urban myths and fairytales," she remarked gruffly. "I'm merely doing research on the local folk tales."

Robert seemed to sense her anger and quickly stepped back, clearing his throat to get ready for an apology. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to laugh," he said in response. "I understand why they can be interesting."

Clara nodded, deciding to accept his apology, but she vowed not to tell him any more about the Hunter or why he shouldn't enter the forest at night. If Robert figured out that the Hunter was real, he would either lose his mind or do something stupid and Clara couldn't risk that. Tonight, when she went into the forest, she would just have to be a little more careful not to be seen.