First of all, thank you for all the reviews on the last chapter! And of course for your encouragement.

I am sorry it took me so long to post this chapter, but real life is rather busy. I hope that I'll find a little more time during the Christmas Holidays.

Have a great day everyone,

Kat

October 1896

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She is fuming. Rosamund should have told her that Robert and his American wife have returned to England. But of course she didn't. Her children have always been as thick as thieves, especially when it comes to undermining her.

Now she is stuck at Rosamund's stupid house party. She cannot leave and she will have to face seeing Robert and Cora who have not yet arrived. Worse than that, she will have to pretend she agrees with their marriage without being able to give them a piece of her mind first. It is driving her mad.

Patrick on the other hand seems wholly unconcerned and she wonders why. She is sure that Patrick is not as against Robert's marriage as she is, but he cannot support it. His son married to an American nanny. But maybe he has just accepted what they cannot change. Anything they tried to do against the marriage now would lead to an even worse scandal than the one they are already facing.

"The Viscount and Viscountess Downton" the butler announces and she turns to see her son his wife enter the room. They are both smiling and a few heads turn but nobody seems to be surprised and the muttering amongst the guest becomes much more pronounced when the butler announces Mr. and Mrs. Hurst only half a minute later. Mrs. Hurst is obviously pregnant and there are rumors that the father is not Mr. Hurst. This seems to interest the people around her much more than the marriage of a viscount to a nanny.

"We have to go and greet them," Patrick says and gives her slight shove.

He is right, of course and so they walk towards Cora and Robert.

"Welcome home," Patrick says when he pats Robert on the back and then kisses Cora's cheek.

"Thank you," they say in unison and that American accent makes her stomach clench.

.

Cora knew this would be coming. It is the day after the house party and she and Robert stayed at Rosamund's house. She would have to face her mother-in-law at some point. She will in all likelihood have to share a house with her from now on. Robert mentioned something about them possibly living in another home on the far side of the estate but she knows her husband well enough to not kid herself into believing he really would not mind not living at Downton. He cares about it too much.

So here she is, facing her mother-in-laws wrath. At least Robert is at her side.

"How could you?" the Countess spats at them and she feels Robert shrinking next to her.

"How could you have done that to us Robert? How could you engulf us in scandal like that? This is not what we raised you to be. And you," Violet says and turns to Cora. "You should have had more honor than to turn my son's head again. You should never have accepted a position so close to our estate, you should have known that it was indecent. You should have stayed away."

She doesn't know what to say so she just stares at her mother-in-law.

"Have you nothing to say for yourself?" Still she can only shrug because she does not know what to say.

"I thought you were at least intelligent. Evil, but intelligent. Coming to Downton and worming your way back into our lives. But apparently you are not even that."

She feels tears sting her eyes but she is determined not to let them fall.

"If it made any sense I would ban you two from Downton. But I can't. It would make this scandal even worse. But I will fight you tooth and nail on everything. You won't know what has hit you, Lady Downton," Violet spats and then turns around and leaves them.

Let me know what you think!