Daniel knew that he kept telling himself this every year, but this time around, he really didn't want Serena to go back to London.
They had said their goodbyes the previous day, but he came back to her house the day her family was going to leave, only because he had a small hope of seeing her again. As he stood hidden behind the large oak trees near the carriage driveway of the mansion, watching the servants load the several coaches with tons of luggage, he couldn't help but think about what had happened between him and his best friend.
Serena never mentioned anything. They had spent the rest of the summer vacation together as if nothing had happened – the only change was that she never really looked him in the eyes any more. It made him feel awful. He wanted her to at least acknowledge that it had happened. The fact that she just chose to purposely turn a blind eye to it made it even harder to deal with that she had to leave, and he wasn't going to see her for another year. Now he had to just try and forget about it, because apparently that was what she was doing.
Daniel felt stupid. He regretted it, yet he was glad he did it all the same. It had felt right. It had not been like with Rosetta or Natsumi, or all the other young ladies in Canterbury that had offered to take him home with them in the dead of the night. It wasn't strange, it had been familiar and safe and exciting – but the silence was simply torture! Couldn't Serena just tell him how she felt about it?
Finally the family itself came walking down the large porch steps of the mansion. Regina, whom Daniel had seen fighting with Jemma earlier that summer, looked very bitter. Jemma walked a distance behind her, staring straight down onto the ground. Serena was walking behind her, glancing at her older sisters with worry. The servants opened the door for them, and Regina and Jemma purposely chose separate coaches, Regina climbing into the front carriage after Magdalena and Hilmar. Katharina, the oldest of the siblings, sat with Regina and their parents, and Serena sat with Jemma.
The large group of servants climbed in with the youngest sisters and into the last of the carriages. Soon the horses started walking, and the coaches drove towards the main road.
Daniel could tell that the mood was strained between the family members. He really hoped that nothing too severe had happened. He did wonder why Serena hadn't told him about what was going on, though.
As the carriages strolled away towards London, he grabbed the locket Serena had given him for his birthday, clicked it open and glanced at the portrait inside. She really was becoming more beautiful as the years passed. He sighed and closed his eyes.
This time, Daniel wasn't going to sit around and wait for Serena to write the first letter. He was worried that if he didn't take action first, they might not even keep in touch at all throughout the year.
That didn't mean he was going to confront her, though – even though he wanted her to comment on what had happened, he also didn't feel ready to face it if she were to reject him. He wasn't completely sure what he really wanted her to say, but he knew that if he didn't hear from her again soon, he would go mad.
As soon as Serena had left Canterbury, he went home to write his letter. He couldn't wait till he was back at the school to send it. It had to be as soon as possible if he wanted a quick reply. While the servants of the house were packing his bags and getting ready for his leave to the boarding school, he sat and concentrated hard on getting the letter done. It was even harder to write this than when he had tried to comment on all the attention Serena received from other men. It took him hours to write the perfect letter that didn't make him feel like he was making himself too vulnerable.
Only when it was almost dinnertime, he finished. Daniel sighed, as he read through it with tired eyes.
Dearest Serena,
I know that I'm writing to you very soon. It's just that I am already missing you. This summer was unforgettable, and I hope you feel the same way. I will keep your locket close to me at all times.
I long more than ever to go to London. Not because this place is awful, but because I want to be close to you. I feel like this year is going to be unbearable. I want to keep writing letters to you as often as possible, so that I can feel that you are not too far away. I hope that you won't be too busy with the fine gentlemen of London to write to me a bit more often than usual.
I can't wait to hear from you again, I want to know all about what you're doing in the big city. I'll be waiting right here for you. The summer can't arrive soon enough.
Yours faithfully,
Daniel J. Wilkinson
Even though he was still putting a great deal of his emotions on display, he didn't know any other way to make the letter seem relevant. He couldn't tell her about what had happened since she left, since it had only been a day. Besides, it wasn't unusual for the two of them to proclaim how much they cared about and missed each other, so he guessed it wouldn't be too much.
He folded the letter and put it in an envelope. As he went down the grand staircase and crossed the main hall, headed for the front door, of course he was stopped by no other than the hag.
"Where are you going?"
Daniel sighed. He should have been used to this by now, but it still irritated him to no end. Why did she always have to meddle in his business? He never demanded to know what she was doing. He really didn't care.
He did not even turn around. "To the town."
"What for?" Henrietta said, crossing her arms. As far as she knew, there was no reason for Daniel to be going into town – no other than going to the school, but he didn't have to go before early in the morning the following day. What kind of business could her stepson have in the Canterbury centre that she didn't know about?
"... Grocery shopping," he mumbled, having placed his hand on the door handle. He still didn't look at her.
Henrietta raised a brow sceptically. "We have a maid for that kind of trivialities, Daniel."
The young man snapped and looked at her. "My personal life does not concern you, Henrietta!" he snapped and pulled the door open, then slamming it behind him.
She stared at the door, not bothering to try and go after him or scold him. She knew that it was useless. The stallion could not be tamed.
The next day, both Daniel and Pride were off to the King's School. Hazel sat in her room, looking out the window at the driveway as the carriage strolled away into town. The beautiful colt her brother had received was fastened to the back of the coach. He trotted after it, swinging his elegant head back and forth in energetic swipes.
The young girl sighed. She had always wanted to learn how to ride a horse ever since she started helping the Philips out with their first Thoroughbreds. Daniel had never even been interested in equestrianism until just recently, but he already had gotten his very own colt. It wasn't fair.
Hazel felt bad about envying her older brother. She knew he never asked for it, but she just couldn't help it. She felt so neglected; even though she had done nothing but long for Daniel to return home for the vacation, she found that it didn't really matter if he was here or at the school – he didn't spend time with her, anyway. It was all about Serena now.
She mentally slapped herself. It was so selfish of her to feel this way. She was supposed to be happy for him. He seemed to be doing a lot better, even though he still didn't like Henrietta. But with Daniel being out and making friends in the real world, what would become of Hazel? She never thought it would ever be something to worry about, but it seemed that her greatest fear was about to come true; Daniel was forgetting about her.
Hazel couldn't keep a sob back. Her eyes became moist, and soon salt liquid ran down her flushed cheeks. She quickly wiped the tears away when suddenly the door to her room opened. The small girl looked up in surprise from her seat by the window. It was Henrietta.
"Are you already missing your brother, Hazel?" she said as she strode into the room, her fine dress dragging across the carpeted floor.
Hazel nodded silently. The woman sat down in the armchair across from her. She looked out of the window, keeping quiet for a while. Hazel could tell that she wanted something. She did not just come to her room to chat.
When Henrietta didn't say anything for a while, Hazel broke the silence, "Why is Father almost never home?"
"He is working so hard with the shop," Henrietta merely said without removing her gaze from the landscape outside, "He has to support us, Hazel. What other way would we be able to maintain our way of life?"
"I-I know, but…" Hazel said, feeling as if she had asked something horrible, "I just … miss him..."
Henrietta finally looked at her stepdaughter. Hazel felt small under her gaze. "Your father is a good man," she said, "I just wish his son could be as virtuous and show some appreciation."
"Daniel?" Hazel blurted, her bright green eyes becoming wide, "What do you mean? Daniel is very virtuous!"
The woman scoffed, looking out the window once again. "Would you really say that staying away from a grand dinner prepared in honour of you is virtuous, Hazel?"
Hazel's cheeks flushed. That had been embarrassing. It was hard to defend Daniel when he went ahead and did something like that. Their father was furious. It was fortunate that Daniel and John didn't get around to see each other at all during the summer vacation, or else Daniel would have had it really bad. "N-no, not quite... But Daniel is a good person," she said, "He is thoughtful and noble and smart, and he's also kind and has a big heart..."
"He is disrespectful and selfish," Henrietta retorted.
Hazel lowered her gaze. Henrietta's sharp look was almost painful. "He is doing his best..."
Henrietta narrowed her eyes, tapping her long fingernail against the armrest of the chair. After a while, she stood up and went to leave the room. "I am impressed by your faith in him. But in his utter self-interest, he has forgotten about you as well, Hazel. Don't be delusional."
The door slammed.
Arriving back at the school this time around didn't feel as scary as the previous year. Daniel knew exactly who to look for and where to go to find them. They all cheered when they saw him again. "Daniel, I checked just now, and we are going to be room mates this year!" Owen said. That was the best news, Daniel had heard in a long time.
After settling in their rooms and meeting up for the dinner assembly and Headmaster Wallace's start-of-the-year speech, the group of friends sat down together in the common room, and Daniel got to hear all about their trip to Northamptonshire.
Through hearing all of their exciting stories about the sport, the ladies and the culture, Daniel couldn't keep from smiling. Not because he was happy for them – though he was – but because he knew that despite the amazing summer his friends had spent together, he didn't regret staying behind in Canterbury. He had experienced something he didn't want to trade in for any of their adventures; his very first kiss.
But he didn't tell them. They thought that he had already gone all the way in the brothel. It would be better to keep it that way.
Later in the evening, all the boys went to their rooms and prepared for the following very first day of the school year. Lying down in his bed, Owen laughed. "Oh, Daniel! It was so much fun! I really wish that you had been there with us!" he said and turned to look at the bed across the room, "Why did you have to stay in Canterbury?"
Daniel cuddled into the duvet. "Don't feel sorry for me. I had a nice time, too!"
His friend smiled knowingly, "Oh, so you met someone?"
"In a way," Daniel said, hugging his pillow. He averted his gaze to the burning candle. It left the room in a soft light, offering a cosy, warm atmosphere. It was nice.
He dug into the collar of his shirt, pulling out the locket. The flame of the candle reflected itself in the shiny surface.
"Where did you get that?"
Daniel looked up. Owen was eyeing the locket curiously, reaching a hand out, "Can I see it?"
He blushed and put the locket away in his shirt again. He didn't think that Owen would notice. "Preferably not. It's … private."
"Who gave it to you? Did you receive it this summer?" Owen asked, warm eyes glinting in the candlelight. He resembled a fluffy puppy with the mess of brown curls that made up his hair – but Owen had also matured. Daniel hadn't noticed while they had spent nearly every day together for the past year, but after being apart for a couple of months, it was obvious.
"I did," Daniel said and offered Owen a smile, "I got it from a friend. It was a birthday gift."
"You told me you didn't have any other friends," Owen said, confusion apparent in his face.
Daniel clutched the locket through his shirt. "I don't."
She's not just a friend any more.
Things quickly got back into the old routine, and the weeks flew by – before Daniel knew of it, it was October.
Serena still hadn't replied to his early letter, but he didn't worry too much about it right now. He kept himself busy with homework, his friends and the regular training he did with Christopher, so it didn't bother him at the moment. He did feel a little nervous when he began pondering about it, but he always shoved the thoughts aside again.
Early on in the month, Timmy decided to drag Owen, Harvey and Daniel with him out to the town after school to try out some of the new cake by the local café. Daniel made it clear to them from the very start that he really didn't have any money, though – he had been given a bit of pocket money to spend, but he refused to use any of it due to it being Henrietta's – but the other boys insisted on paying on his behalf. The cake was delicious, even in spite of it being bought with someone else's money. It certainly would've tasted worse if it was bought with Henrietta's.
Later, they merely walked around, enjoying the last couple of hours before they had to return to the school for the curfew. It was nice, just strolling along the city streets and talking about anything they could think of.
Daniel never saw it coming.
As they walked around a corner, he caught sight of a familiar face. The sturdy blond and him made eye contact, and before Daniel could tell the others to turn around, his arm was caught in a firm grip.
"Hello, Daniel," Henry said with a voice as sweet as honey, "It's been a long time."
"Do you know this person, Daniel?" Timmy said, eyeing the stranger curiously. The mysterious boy was even taller than the lanky redhead.
Daniel felt the panic spread and his arm instinctively tensed in Henry's grasp. He tried his hardest to keep his face calm, staring Henry back in his marshy eyes.
Henry offered Daniel's friends a very fake smile. "Don't mind me, Daniel and I are old friends," he said. Daniel felt the grip around his arm tighten more. "I just want to borrow him for a minute, it won't take long."
Before any of them could ask any further questions, Henry dragged Daniel along with him down the street and around a corner into an empty alley. Daniel's pulse immediately sped up, fearing a beating coming his way, but Henry was not having any of his violent streaks today, it seemed. "You thought I forgot about you, huh?" Henry snarled, giving Daniel a hard shove to his chest, "You can't get rid of me that easily. I see that you are still spending time with that upper-class girl." He snorted, "When are you going to give up?"
He reached out for Daniel's collar, almost strangling the younger boy with the force which he pulled the locket out of his shirt. Daniel grabbed his wrist, "Let go, Henry!"
Henry did not let go. He managed to open the silver heart and take a glance at the small portrait inside, before Daniel ripped it out of his hands. He let out a scornful laughter, "Don't tell me you're actually in love with her! Surely, you know that she will never want anyone like you?"
"Shut it!" Daniel barked in a fit of fury, "You don't know anything about our relationship!"
"There is no relationship, Daniel!" Henry roared back, grabbing Daniel's collar again, "At least, there won't be any if you don't watch your disgusting mouth! I've still got this on you, so you better choose your words wisely!"
Daniel glared at Henry with nothing but utter resentment. The vile boy was right. If he didn't think twice, Henry might tell on him and Serena. He could not allow that to happen, especially not after what had happened in the summer vacation – Daniel couldn't be sure what Henry had seen. "What do you want, Henry?" he mumbled through clenched teeth.
Henry chuckled and let go of Daniel's shirt. "Now that you know your place, we can talk business. I need you to seize some of that wealthy fortune of yours for me."
Daniel did not like the way Henry blatantly emphasised the word wealthy, as if it was something he should feel bad about. But the whole idea Henry was presenting was in general not comfortable in any way. "Are you completely mad?" he said, "How am I supposed to get you any money? I don't have access to that so-called 'fortune'! It's not mine, it belongs to my stepmother!"
"I'm sure you're crafty enough to figure something out," Henry said, walking closer and putting his face very close to Daniel's. His stinky breath was worse than ever before. "Or else, you know what is on the line here, Danny. Don't disappoint me." Before Daniel could answer, the broad boy turned around and walked away with quick steps, leaving the younger man alone in the alley.
He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He really wanted to just scream or kick something. In the end, he slammed his fist against the brick wall, regretting it instantly afterwards when the pain shot up through his arm.
How was he supposed to do what Henry expected of him? He couldn't ask for money, there was no way he would ever concede to Henrietta like that; his pride would never let him. Besides, she and John would probably question him about what he needed it for.
But Henry was practically blackmailing him. If Daniel didn't yield to his cruel demands, he would tell everyone about Serena. There was nothing he could do – he had no choice but to steal from his stepmother.
The frustration of the situation was brutal. It took him a while to gather himself to go find the others. Fortunately, they had not moved too far away from where they had been left by Daniel and Henry. When they saw him coming their way, the questions washed over him.
"Daniel, who was that?"
"What did he say to you?"
"Are you all right? You look pale!"
Daniel just dismissed the questions, telling them that Henry was indeed just an old acquaintance and nothing more. He really wished that it was that simple.
Finally, the house was quiet. Hazel was sleeping in her room, John was in the shop, working as usual, and Henrietta was nowhere to be seen, so Daniel figured that she wasn't home.
For the first part of the autumn half term, Daniel had done nothing but wait for the right moment. When it had been obvious that the house would be too busy, he just went out to the Blean and worked on Serena's clubhouse. There had been a bit of an argument when he had returned home; he hadn't seen John at all during the summer vacation, but the artisan was still furious about his son not attending the birthday dinner. Daniel figured that his anger was mostly Henrietta's doing.
Now that John apparently had the studio in town fixed up and ready to go, Daniel also had to come and help out occasionally – fortunately not too often, as John had hired his own workers. That really was some of a step forward, but even though Daniel was happy to be free of the chores in the studio, he didn't like how John seemed to depend so much on Henrietta's money – but then again, here he was, desperately needing it himself, so wasn't he a hypocrite.
Daniel's initial thought was that the fortune would be hidden in a safe in the master bedroom. He waited to see if anyone would show up before he silently tiptoed out of his room and made his way down the hall. He managed to get into the room unnoticed and silently closed the door behind him, sighing in relief. His heart beat like mad; he had expected Henrietta to show up any moment. He gathered himself and began carefully roaming around the room, trying not to make a mess.
After rummaging around for almost fifteen minutes, he began to grow increasingly more nervous. He couldn't find anything. No safe. No money. I have to get out of here soon, Daniel thought, fearing that someone might barge in any moment.
Just then, when he was just about to give up and leave the bedroom, he finally found something that might be useful. It was Henrietta's jewellery box. It was placed in a chest barely noticeable behind a desk, along with other accessories for dressing; John's ties, socks and hats, and Henrietta's brooches and hair clips.
Daniel didn't bother to take the box out of the chest. The lock wasn't easy to pick, but he got it open. Inside were beautiful necklaces, earrings and bracelets made up of diamonds and gems. They were probably worth a lot. Maybe this would satiate Henry's greed, and Daniel was sure Henrietta wouldn't miss a few pieces; she already had more than enough.
He sat for a while, pondering which ones she probably wouldn't notice were missing. It was fortunate that he had placed himself on the floor on the other side of the bed.
"What are you doing in here?"
Daniel nearly had a heart attack. He closed the lid of the jewellery box and stood up in a flash.
Henrietta stood in the doorway, staring at him with wide eyes, a deep frown wrinkling her tight forehead. She looked as if she didn't know whether to be angry or shocked. "You're not supposed to be here. What do you think you're doing?"
His mind was working at full throttle to the point that he could feel his temples pulse. Quickly, he made up a lie, "I was looking for my father's cravat."
She kept silent for a moment. "His cravat?"
Daniel nodded, hoping that she didn't notice how tense he was. "Yes. I made it for him myself. For his birthday a few years ago."
Henrietta placed her hands on her hips, raising one sharp eyebrow, "What do you need it for?"
"Trying it out, of course."
"Do you even know how to tie a cravat?"
Daniel fell silent. He could feel the blood run to his cheeks. He moistened his lips before answering, "I'll … figure it out."
Henrietta scanned him up and down. It did not seem like she bought it. He prayed that she would just stop her questioning and let him go. He couldn't bear this, he didn't know how much longer he could keep a straight face.
"Do you have his permission to borrow it?" she said at last.
Daniel fisted his hands. "I made it myself!"
"But it is not yours. You gave it to your father."
He felt his blood boil. How dared she? He sewed it with the help of his mother's old tailoring books. He was certain that John wouldn't even care if he took it for himself. His father never used it any more, not now that he had a whole bunch of new, expensive ties.
"Whatever!" Daniel spat and walked past Henrietta out of the room. He nearly shoved her aside, but he managed to behave himself – just barely.
Henrietta watched him as he walked down the hall. Instead of going to his room, he went down the stairs and out the front door. The young man slammed it hard behind him; then everything was quiet.
That boy really had a bad temper. It would not do to have him behave like that any more. What would the townspeople think of their family? Henrietta didn't want to think about it.
She glanced back into the room again. Daniel hadn't closed the lid on the chest. Walking closer, she noticed something odd. The jewellery box's lock was broken.
Daniel was never at home. Henrietta didn't know where he went most of the time, and that nagged her to no end. He told her that he went to go and help his father, and that would have been very nice if it were true.
John told her that Daniel had only spent three days of the half term with him in the studio so far. She kept quiet about her suspicions to her husband, though; with the rebellious young man being out of the house so much, she had the perfect chance to go investigate his room, just like he apparently had done hers.
She silently closed the door behind her, leaving only a small gap in the door frame. She strode across the floor as smoothly as a snake, her quick steps directly headed for the boy's desk. She stopped in front of it, letting her hand caress the surface, dragging it down the side until her hand reached the drawer. With a firm grip, she opened it.
There was nothing there. Only clear sheets of paper, envelopes, pens and ink. It was ridiculous that a young man would need so many resources to write.
She opened the other drawers, but none of them proved to contain anything of interest. She mentally scoffed and moved to explore his chest of drawers, and afterwards his wardrobe, his bed and the space underneath it. There was nothing.
The boy was clever. He might not have hidden whatever he needed to hide in the house. Or else she was overlooking something.
Henrietta turned her gaze towards the wooden floor, right beside the bed stand. She took a few steps in that direction, stopping when she heard one of the boards creak slightly more than the others beneath her. She crouched down by the board, staring at it intently. Something was off here, she knew. Her fingers ran along the groove.
"Henrietta?"
Henrietta glanced up in a start. Hazel stood in the doorway, clutching her plush bunny tightly.
"My head hurts... And I feel sore in my throat and chest... Can I please have my medicine?" the young girl said, rubbing her eyes. They were completely bloodshot.
The woman quickly stood up, eyeing her stepdaughter with wariness. The small girl just looked at her with her wide, puffy eyes. It didn't seem like she had noticed anything suspicious.
She offered the girl a smile. "Of course, Hazel. I'll tell Miss Turner to prepare it right away. Let's go to the living room and do some needlework together, shall we?" Henrietta put her hand on Hazel's back, leading her out of Daniel's bedroom without even looking back at the wooden floor by the bed stand.
Hazel stole a glance back at the board, though. That had been a really close call. Henrietta had almost found Serena's letters to Daniel. It was lucky that she had felt the need to ask for her pain-reliever right now of all times.
Hazel didn't notice Henrietta's vigilant eyes.
So, the first plan didn't work out.
Daniel was very irritated. This would not do, there was no way he would be able to sneak into his parents' bedroom again – it was much too risky. How was he supposed to get the money, Henry demanded?
There was nothing he could do about it right now. He just had to do the best he could. So he ended up taking a sculpture from his father's studio instead. He really felt awful about it. It was a sculpture his father had spent a lot of time on; it depicted a cherub standing tall and proud, holding a large orb above its head. It had only been finished just last week. The marble that it was cut out from had been very expensive, so it was going to be costly.
Hopefully his father wouldn't lose his temper with one of the innocent workers when he realised that it was gone. Daniel felt even worse when thinking about it, but he comforted himself with the fact that at least now he had a means of keeping his secret.
Unfortunately, Henry wasn't satisfied.
"What do you suppose I do with this?" the blond roared, making a violent gesture with the sculpture in his hands, "It's just some stupid statue! I can't buy opium with this!"
Daniel was about to beg Henry to be careful not to break the cherub, but was caught off guard by Henry's words. He looked at the older boy with obvious confusion. "What in the world do you need opium for?"
That was apparently the wrong question to ask. Henry's face turned completely red. He shoved Daniel hard and roared into his face, "What's it to you? We made a deal! If you can't get me the money, I can't keep quiet! Easy as that! I could go to your parents right now and tell them all about your girlfriend!"
Daniel's eyes widened with anxiety. He grabbed around Henry's wrist, "Please don't, Henry! It's made out of marble, and the carving is exquisite! You can sell it at a very high price, I promise you!"
The sturdy boy was just about to shove the younger man away again, but then he calmed down and thought about what he said. Daniel bit his lip, hoping so deeply that Henry would accept what he was able to offer right now. Henry narrowed his eyes, then lowered his arms again. "All right, then. I certainly hope you're right."
Daniel felt a great sense of relief wash over him and his body finally relaxed. He let out a sigh, but he barely got to finish it before he was harshly gripped by the collar yet again. "But next time, you better come up with something better than this!" Henry spat, growling like some wild animal, "Or else you'll have to give up your precious lady!"
He let go of Daniel again so suddenly that the latter almost fell onto the ground. Henry turned around and walked away, leaving Daniel feeling like he was on the death row, waiting for his inevitable execution.
Daniel didn't return home until late that evening; Henry always wanted to meet in the dead of the night, shaded from any unwelcome eyes.
He was completely exhausted. It had been a long day doing chores at home, training with Pride, working on Serena's clubhouse and finally sneaking into the studio and getting the cherub sculpture – and that in itself had been a lengthy procedure. His plan had been to go to bed as soon as he came home, but when he went to his room, a low whistle grabbed his attention. He turned around.
"Daniel, can you please come to my room?" Hazel whispered from her door in the other end of the hall.
Daniel leaned up against his door and sighed. "I'm sorry, Hazel, I'm too tired to read you a fairytale tonight..."
Hazel shook her head frantically. "It's not that!" she said under her breath, "It's important, Danny!"
He didn't notice the worry in her eyes until now. He frowned, then took a quick glance around. When he was sure that no one was watching them, he took a few fast-paced steps towards Hazel and let himself into her room. As soon as he had closed the door behind him, Hazel took his hand and seated him in her bed beside herself. "What's wrong, Hazel?" Daniel asked.
"It's Henrietta," she said in a hushed voice, "She was in your room. I think she knows. You have to hide your letters another place. She was really close to finding them, but I distracted her."
Daniel's eyes widened. "Blasted woman!" he hissed, fisting his hands, "Why does she keep meddling with my things... You're right, I can't keep Serena's letters in the house any more."
"But where do you plan to hide them then?" Hazel said, glancing at her brother with worry. He looked so frustrated. It did not suite her loving brother's handsome face.
"I... I'll figure something out," he said, his brows furrowed close together, "Thanks for telling me, Hazel."
Before going back to the school, Daniel hid all things related to Serena out in the unfinished clubhouse – including the locket. Owen had already noticed it, and Henry as well. He was sorry he couldn't keep the promise about keeping it close to him that he had made to Serena, but he had to take the measures necessary.
There was still no letter from Serena. This was worrying. It had already been almost three months. He had sent it early for a reason, and usually she replied around October at the latest. When he returned to the school, the only thing he could think about was why he hadn't heard from her. It was frustrating. When homework was finished, he would find himself roaming the school grounds, just obsessing over why she didn't write.
He was even too distracted to socialise. The other boys asked him if he wanted to go with them out to town or play a game of skittles, but he always said he wasn't in the mood. Not until Harvey, being the oldest member of their group, turned seventeen in early November, did he finally manage to put his distress aside.
The whole group sneaked out once again. Daniel thought they wouldn't dare any more after getting caught in the brothel, but Everett insisted that if they just stuck to the pubs and bars, everything would be fine. It was fun; Harvey got incredibly drunk, as everybody kept insisting that he should drink more and more. Daniel laughed so much his jaw hurt. The ladies circled around him; he had become almost as popular as Christopher.
But he didn't dance.
It wasn't because the girls weren't attractive. Some of them were very pretty, in fact. They were desperate for his attention. He smiled and played along for a bit – but his thoughts were a completely different place.
Would she just answer already?