Ok. Thank you so much for the kind reviews of the last chapter. I was terribly afraid I had gone too far and even as I was writing it, I hated it. Thank you for making me feel better about it. And thank you for enjoying this story. All the reviews and follows have made me feel so happy that people are enjoying this little story that exists in my brain. I'm happy to share it with you. Thank you again. Much love, B.
Chapter Nine
Carson sat at the long table of the servant's dining hall trying to muster the strength he knew he would need for the day. It had been a long night. He and the entire downstairs had been waiting eagerly to hear any news of the family members who had been injured the day before. Master George had been treated early and they knew he would be alright, though there was rumours that he would bear a nasty scar on his head from his injuries.
Emma had been in and out of surgery by midnight and despite her terrible injuries she would survive. All of the downstairs expressed their sadness at her injury. Mr. and Mrs. Bates were long standing, respected members of the staff and everyone felt their pain. And they all adored Emma. She was an incredibly sweet little girl.
It was Sybbie that they had held their all-night vigil for. Elsie, Carson, Barrow, Molesley, Baxter, Daisy and a few of the maids had sat around the table all night. They were mostly silent as their thoughts were all for the young lady who they had adored since the tragic night of her birth. Every so often Daisy had refreshed the tea pot and put out some food that remained untouched.
The word on O'Malley was that he was holding on to his life, though barely. No one expected him to survive. They all discussed the error of the young man by letting George drive the car. They almost blamed him more than George for the accident.
When the telephone had rung just before dawn they all held their breath until Barrow came back downstairs and let them know that Sybbie had survived her surgery and though she was still very ill, they were more optimistic for her recovery now.
Lord and Lady Grantham had requested a car to pick them up as they were beyond exhausted and wished to return home. Shortly after Barrow had dispatched a car for them, Mary had also requested a drive back to the Abbey.
Being short a chauffeur, Tony had volunteered to go pick up his wife but he didn't know what to do with the girls. Elsie had instantly offered to mind them while their father ran his errand. Carson was waiting for the girls while his wife fed them breakfast and made sure they were dressed for the day. One of the maids, Catherine, gave her a hand.
While he waited at the table, he rested his eyes just for a second with his face in his hand. He may have drifted off to sleep, but his dignity refused to let him admit it when he was startled back alert by two small creatures both attempting to crawl into his lap.
He smiled down at them and pulled his chair back so they could both have a knee to sit on. The girls crawled up and sat proudly on his lap.
"Good morning girls. And how are we today?" He looked so proud as he saw Elsie enter the room and she smiled lovingly at him.
Charlotte, the elder of the two who quite often spoke for her sister as well, was the one who answered.
"What is going on? Mama and George aren't here." The little girl looked up at him with eyes so much like her mother's that Carson couldn't help but smile.
He had loved these girls as much as he had loved their mother and he considered them his honorary grandchildren. He wasn't sure how much they had been told about the accident so he kept his answer fairly neutral.
"They have to be away right now, but I think your mother will be here soon."
"Where is George?" Charlotte adored her big brother and was extremely curious why he wasn't there to welcome her.
Carson was attempting an answer when Elsie came to his side with a small tray. He smelled the aromatic cup of coffee and he smiled at his wife.
"You read my mind my dear. That should hit the spot I'm sure." She leaned over and kissed his forehead.
"I always read your mind. Surely you know that by now." She smiled at him. "Come girls, let Mr. Carson have his breakfast and then he'll take you up to the great hall and you can look at the tree."
The girls climbed off his lap and took up the chairs on either side of him and sat staring at him and smiling as he took a sip of the recuperative beverage in front of him.
"Carson?"
"Yes Lady Charlotte?" He answered between bites of porridge.
"Can we decorate the tree today?"
He looked at her and noticed her eagerness and wondered at her innocence. She had no idea of the trauma the family had suffered the day before. How delightful it would be to be seven years old again.
"I'm not sure. We may wait for the family to be here, but we can certainly go look at it." That seemed to satisfy her for a moment.
"Carson?"
"Yes Lady Charlotte?"
"Do you think Lizzie and I can go play in the attics later?"
"We shall see."
Elsie had sat across the table from her husband and was watching the exchange between the two. She covered a smile with her hand. She loved watching the two of them. They had been good friends since Charlotte was old enough to walk. She was sure it was one of the main reasons he was always so eager to come back and visit the house.
"Carson?"
"Yes Lady Charlotte?"
"I love you."
At this statement Elsie lost her cover and laughed out loud. Carson smiled at her. He turned to the little girl and smiled deeply.
"I love you too my dears. Both of you. Very much."
Charlotte and Elizabeth both sat back in their chairs, so proud that this man loved them and was not afraid to say so.
He finished his breakfast quickly with his audience waiting patiently. As he wiped his mouth with his napkin both girls jumped from their seats and grabbed both of his hands and dragged him from the dining room towards the stairs.
He stopped quickly and gave his wife a quick kiss and whispered to her,
"Please come get me if there is any news. Good or bad."
"Of course my dear. Don't let them tire you out." Her concern for him always made his heart swell. It always had.
"That is easier said than done." They both laughed as the girls pulled him away to go look at the tree.
Elsie sat at the table awhile longer sipping her own cup of coffee. She was tired. It had been such a long night and she was so worried about the family. She thought their visit for the Christmas holidays would be relaxing and merry, but it seemed fate had led them here this year for a greater purpose. She and her husband would help the family deal with the situation that was occurring. She was glad she was there. Despite the tragedy that had transpired.
She heard some shuffling by the door and stood up to go look to see who was there. Most of the staff was busy upstairs performing their daily duties so she wondered who it could be.
It was Anna.
Elsie immediately went to the woman who had taken over her job at Downton when she and Carson had retired to their inn. Anna noticed her and attempted to smile. Elsie took her in a warm hug and just held the woman for a minute.
"How is Emma?" Elsie looked carefully at the younger woman. She looked so very tired. And stressed. And very much out of sorts. With good reason.
"She's going to be okay. In time."
"Did they manage to save her arm?" The look on Anna's face told her the answer. "Oh my dear. I'm so sorry."
"We should be grateful we have any of her left. She very nearly bled out at the scene but someone gave her first aid and saved her life. And then the doctors as the hospital worked so hard to save her again. Tom Branson donated blood which likely also saved her life." Anna's expression told of her gratitude to the man who had lived with them so long ago.
"Well, can't we feel so blessed that he decided to visit with us this year. Do they know who the bystander was who helped Emma?" Elsie guided Anna as they spoke to the long table of the dining room and asked one of the footmen lingering a round to get her a cup of tea. The woman clearly needed it.
"No. No one saw who it was. Lena was with her when it happened, but she ran off to get help and she didn't see anyone else around. She's very upset by what she saw."
"I can only imagine. The poor thing. How is Mr. Bates?" Elsie poured her a cup of the steaming liquid that had been quickly brought to them.
Anna took a sip before she answered.
"I'm scared for him Elsie. I've never seen him lose his wits like he did. He tried to attack George last night. He blames him for everything. I know it was just an accident, but Mr. Bates is so angry at him."
"I can only imagine. His little girl was seriously hurt. He needs to blame someone. We both know how much he adores those girls." Elsie put her hand on Anna's that was resting on the table.
Anna looked at her gratefully.
"I'm glad you are here. It's nice to have someone to talk to. But I really must be going. John won't leave Emma's side and Lena won't get out of bed. I really should be going. I just came to drop this off."
She lifted a white cloth sack onto the table. Elsie had seen her carrying it, and had wondered what was in it.
"You go to your family my dear. I will take care of everything here. Don't you worry. It will be nice to be kept busy while this is going on."
Anna looked relieved. She had been wondering how much of her duties would be expected of her. It was a week before Christmas at Downton and so many guests were in the house. It would be so very busy. And then this had happened. She was torn between her own family and the one who had done so much for her and her husband over the years. She wanted to get back to her daughters. And now, realizing that Elsie could do her job and organize things better than she ever could let her believe it would be okay to focus on her girls and her husband.
"What's this then?" Elsie started to open the sack.
"Lady Mary gave it to me. It's the clothes that George and Sybbie were wearing. She thought perhaps we could dispose of them, or repair them. They're ruined in my opinion, but perhaps we can save the beads from Miss Sybbie's dress. And clean Master George's jacket."
"Let me take care of this. You go to be with your family now. They need you."
"Thank you Elsie. I don't know what I would do without you." Anna reached out to hug the older woman.
"Just give that little girl a kiss from us and please tell Mr. Bates if he needs anyone to talk to, we are here for him. And you."
With that, the younger woman stood up and left Elsie with the white sack on the table.
Elsie took it into the Butler's office to open it up. She pulled out Sybbie's dress and she nearly fainted at the amount of blood that covered it. She knew Sybbie had been hurt badly but to see the evidence of it tore her heartstrings. How terrible. She pulled out a white shirt after that, knowing it must belong to George. She held it out. It also had quite a bit of blood on it but there was something else strange about it. It was missing a sleeve. How bizarre she thought. She laid it out flat on the small table and noticed on the sleeve that a cufflink was still attached to it. She took it off the sleeve and held it up. It was gold and had the initials MC engraved on it. Her heart tugged a bit again to think of George. He must have been wearing his father's cufflinks. The poor boy. What a life he's had so far. And now this. She knew he was kind, and this must be ripping him apart to think he had caused so much grief.
As she held the cufflink up, Carson entered the room.
"What's that?" He asked her.
"It was on Master George's shirt. The other one is missing though. Perhaps we can find it, though I'm not sure how. The entire sleeve was missing." She handed him the cufflink. "Where are the girls?"
"Lady Mary arrived back a few minutes ago. Lord and Lady Grantham are back as well. She said Anna came with her and I was hoping to catch her to give her my condolences." Carson looked closely at the cufflink as he spoke. He recognized it as having belonged to Matthew. It would be a shame if the other one was lost.
"You've just missed her I'm afraid. She's gone back to her family. I told her I would take care of the house." Elsie tucked the ruined clothing back in the sack. She couldn't look at it anymore.
"Alright. I'll take this back to his Lordship. With Bates indisposed, I've offered to dress him until we can think of something else. I should go tend him now. He's had a very long night. They all have."
Carson tucked the cufflink into this pocket and left the room to head back upstairs.
"We all have indeed." Elsie spoke it mostly to herself. She left the room to talk to Daisy about dinner for the evening...
to be continued...