A/N Here's the next installment. It started to feel suspiciously like hard work after a while (shock, horror!), and it's not my favourite, but I hope you like it just the same. I'm trying to keep this Scarlett compliant from her POV - see end A/N, but obviously it isn't from Rhett's. Here's a little 'could have been'... Enjoy.

Rhett stormed out of the study and up the stairs to his bedroom. His mind was racing, he couldn't think straight. Rage pulsed through his veins at the thought of what his sister had done. Rosemary had lied to Scarlett, forged his hand and written her a letter filled with lies in some misguided attempt to save her brother from further misery. As a result Scarlett had felt the need to hide from him, to keep their baby a secret and it had may have cost him the last months of her life. She had been alone and afraid half way round the world among relative strangers when she died. He couldn't bare it!

No, he told himself firmly, she wasn't dead. She couldn't be.

Why, oh why had he given up searching for her? After weeks at Dunmore Landing trying to make up his mind, he had finally given in, tired of fighting himself and his feelings, and gone after her. He should have done it sooner, should have tried harder, spent more money. But he had not.

When he'd eventually run out of avenues to look, he had concluded that she just didn't want to be found. That she did not want him in her life. He now knew the reason for her wish to conceal herself from him. It was a baby she feared he would take from her if he knew of it's existence.

Rhett had known from Scarlett's aunts that she had been in Savannah for Pierre Robillard's birthday since her departure from Charleston in February. He had travelled there once he'd resolved that he wanted her back hoping to find her still there. But she had left her grandfather's house by then. The old man told Rhett that Scarlett had been consorting with her O'Hara relations while she had remained in his house. However, following a disagreement between the two she had moved out of the pink mansion and into the far more modest home of one of her cousins. He had neither seen nor heard from his granddaughter since and Rhett got the distinct impression that the gentleman did not particularly care. Thankful for the information, he had bid the old man farewell and made his over to where he had been told the O'Hara's lived.

--

Flashback to 7 months earlier

It was a beautiful warm afternoon in mid May as Rhett made his way up the front walk that led to the O'Hara residence on South Broad. He knew he could be just moments away from once again coming face to face with Scarlett and his heartbeat thumped loudly in his ears. How she would receive him he could only guess, but he was more than willing to face her wrath if, once it had spent itself, she would be prepared to take him back. He'd make it all up to her if only she'd let him.

Rhett smoothed his clothes and took a deep breath to calm his nerves. He was about to climb the steps and knock on the large front door when a smaller door at street level opened and a stocky white haired man emerged.

"Good day to you sir," said Rhett removing his hat. "I wonder if you can help me. My name is Butler and I am looking for someone I believe was recently staying here." And hopefully still is, he added to himself.

"Mr Butler is it?" The curious look he gave him did not go unnoticed by Rhett but he passed it off as unimportant. "My name is Colum O'Hara. I take it you are looking for our Katie Scarlett."

Relief washed over Rhett and smile broke out on his face. His search could be all but over.

He held out his hand to the other man who shook it. "Yes, I am looking for Scarlett. Her grandfather informed me she was staying here. Is that still the case?"

"No, I'm afraid not. She left here towards the end of March." Colum turned to lock the door he had just exited, and Rhett's face fell at his words. "The same day I am told," he continued, "that she became a divorced woman." He said it in a good-natured sort of way, and without an accusatory tone, as if he were discussing the weather.

Rhett shifted uncomfortably under the scrutiny of the priest. This brief conversation had taken an unexpected turn and, he feared, not one for the better. He was aware now that this man knew perhaps far more than Rhett would like.

"Can I ask what business it is you want with my cousin, Mr Butler, seeing as how you are no longer married to her? "

"That matter is of a personal nature between Scarlett and myself, and I am not particularly comfortable sharing it with somebody I've just met. I'm sure you can understand that, Father." He said it politely but firmly. If this man did not know the whole sordid story of their marriage and how it ended, Rhett would not be the one to enlighten him. Not only for his own sake at present, but for Scarlett's as well. She certainly would not want him airing their dirty laundry. "Our relationship in the past has been, shall we say, complicated. But if you know any of the specifics of our marriage then you will know that neither of us was blameless in its coming to an end."

"That is true perhaps, but you are the one who chose to dissolve it." Colum pointed out.

Rhett bristled. How was what had transpired between him and Scarlett any of this man's business? He might be her family, but Rhett had known her a lot longer and probably a lot better than this man ever would. He took a deep breath.

"I had my reasons for doing what I did."

"I'm sure you did, sir." Colum said, and walked passed Rhett towards the small front gate. He stopped for a moment, as if considering what more he should say, then turned back to Rhett. "Has it occurred to you that Scarlett may not wish to see you? Your recent actions have hurt her very badly."

Rhett said nothing. Of course he had thought such things, but whenever they encroached on his mind he pushed them away. She would forgive him eventually. She had to.

"Scarlett has been in Ireland these past 6 weeks," Colum offered, and Rhett's heart flip-flopped in his chest at the news. "She left Galway the same day I did."

"Was she on the same ship? Has she returned to America?" He felt as if he were finally getting somewhere.

"No, she didn't leave on the Brian Boru. She was going to remain in Europe. I believe she mentioned a particular desire to see France."

Scarlett had always wanted to visit France. Rhett had talked enthusiastically of Paris with its high fashions and fabulous cuisine, and she had wanted to see it ever since that long ago day during the war when he had surprised her with a green taffeta and watered silk bonnet. He had wanted to be the one to take her of course, but it was hardly a stretch of the imagination to think she may have gone by herself. Or found someone else to take her. The priest was saying something about her looking up her Robillard relations, and Rhett forced himself to pay attention.

"So you think she has gone to France?"

"It is possible," said Colum vaguely, although also extremely unlikely given her current condition, he thought to himself. "But perhaps you believe I am more informed of your former wife's travel arrangements than I am, Mr Butler. I'm afraid I cannot tell you where Scarlett is right now, and nobody else here will know any better than I since I was the last one to see her. Perhaps you should take your search elsewhere." He didn't want this man badgering the rest of the family for information. "Now you'll excuse me if I cut this conversation short, I have some church business to attend to. If I see Katie Scarlett again, I'll be sure to tell her you are looking for her. Good day, sir."

Colum donned his hat and made his way out of the front gate, leaving Rhett behind. He would not be telling this man where his cousin was, not unless Rhett would first divulge to him the reasons he sought her. And he had not. Colum firmly believed that Rhett had a right to know of his child's existence, but Scarlett had been adamant that following his marriage to Anne he should not know she was expecting, and Colum would respect her wishes above the rights of a man he did not know and saw as a potential threat to his cousin's well-being. He knew how much that baby meant to her.

End of flashback.

--

Colum O'Hara, Rhett groaned. The name had sounded familiar when he read it in her letter and yet he hadn't been able to place it. He now realised the priest had probably been protecting her from someone he thought could jeopardize her happiness.

He had lied.

No, surely not. He was a man of the cloth, and though they certainly weren't incapable of lying, the thought rankled. Perhaps he hadn't lied, only told the truth selectively. Rhett tried to analyse what more he could remember of their conversation. Had he left any clues that could be useful now? Colum had said he could not tell him where Scarlett was. More likely he would not tell.

He said she had been in Ireland when he left it, but that he did not know where she was. Rhett now realised that he hadn't specifically said that she had left the country, only that he didn't know her present location. She could easily have been in Dublin or Limerick, even back in Galway. Semantics, groaned Rhett to himself. He had just assumed she was no longer there. In reality, she had probably been there the whole time!

Or perhaps he was being unfair to the man. Maybe he really hadn't known where she was. Scarlett could well have left Ireland for a time only to return later. Whatever the case, Rhett now knew from her letter that Colum O'Hara had been a great source of strength and support to Scarlett in her time of need.

But Rhett was still no closer than before to pinning down her exact location.

Damn it! He'd been desperate to find her and yet he hadn't wanted to share the details of why. Not telling Colum what he wanted with her had hardly inspired him to be forthcoming with information in his turn. He probably thought, as Scarlett did, that Rhett had remarried. He could easily have contradicted that ridiculous notion and put an end to this nightmare there and then. Of course the man would have protected her. He must have known she was expecting and what Scarlett's fears were regarding losing the baby to her ex-husband and his new wife.

But how could he tell a complete stranger who's relationship with Scarlett Rhett knew nothing about, that he was trying to locate his ex-wife because he regretted divorcing her and wanted the chance to win her back? People didn't just volunteer such personal information to strangers.

As for France, she may have mentioned it in passing, but he now doubted she would ever have gone there with the intention of seeking out her Robillard relations. She made no secret of the fact that she could barely tolerate most of her mother's family. And her French, well it was virtually non-existant. Rhett, however, had latched onto this tidbit and refused to let go of it. He had later gone there in search of her, and, unsurprisingly, found no trace.

--

Following his trip to Savannah, Rhett had gone back to Atlanta. First to the Peachtree Street house, only to find, as he suspected, that she hadn't set foot in the place since the previous November when she had followed him to Charleston. He had then gone to speak with Henry Hamilton. The old lawyer had admitted to receiving a letter from Scarlett saying only that she was going travelling and would not be reachable for some time. 'Travelling' where, Henry did not know, but he presumed somewhere in Europe. That much Rhett had also had suggested to him by Father O'Hara.

She had also signed over her businesses to Henry to run. That had sent up red flag. For Scarlett, who was paranoid about her money and security, to let someone else take care of her financial interests, seemed incongruous to Rhett. Of course, in addition to her own small fortune, she had the 500 000 dollars he had promised her in return for her getting out of his life for good, so she would never be short of money, even if she chose to use it as kindling. But those actions still didn't ring true of Scarlett.

Now however, it made sense to him. She had given up control to a man she could trust to look after her interests in order to remain hidden. She must have been desperate indeed, he thought to himself, to resort to what, for Scarlett, was such a drastic measure.

Why hadn't he thought to look in Ireland? Never mind what he had been told by her O'Hara kin. The fact that he could see the priest didn't trust him should have led him to look there first. Oh, what a damn fool he was!

He had to go to Ireland and find out what had become of her. She wasn't be dead. It just couldn't be true. He would not believe it until he was told it by someone who knew. Someone who had been there.

--

"Manigo!" he shouted down over the banisters.

"Rhett, darling?" called his mother, coming out onto the landing from the upstairs drawing room where she had been waiting for him to emerge from the study following his conversation with his sister.

"I'm leaving Mama, as soon as possible. I have to go to Ireland. I need to find out for certain what has become of Scarlett. I'm going out to purchase a ticket for the next ship. They sail tomorrow."

"But, Rhett, you're in no state- Do you have any idea where to go? Perhaps you should return to Savannah, speak to her family. They may know something more, or they could at least tell you where you should start looking?"

She was the voice of reason, he knew, but he didn't have the time to spare. "I have to go on the next boat, Mama. They won't sail again for another week after that and I can't waste that sort of time. I'll work out the details when I get there." He paused as his mind worked. "I'll send a telegram to Sally's baronet friend, John Morland. The one I've been in correspondence with recently about buying some horses for the Dunmore hunt. He has an estate over there. I'll ask him to set things in motion for me, perhaps hire someone on my behalf to instigate a search. Oh, I don't know," he groaned. "All I do know is that I have to get to Ireland."

He leaned down and kissed her briefly on the cheek. "Just tell Manigo to pack a trunk for me, please. I don't know how long I'll be gone."

Eleanor put a steadying hand on his forearm and studied him with concern in her eyes.

"Please, Mama, not now. I can't afford to waste another minute. Not when I still have hope." At the confusion in her face, he said, "I'll explain when I get back." She removed her hand and he was gone, his light footfalls echoing in the hall as he made his way down the stairs.

He would get a berth on that next ship if he had to buy the vessel in order to do so.

--

A/N Colum does return to America in May following May Day celebrations. Scarlett was due to come back with him but at that stage in the novel she receives word (from the aunts) that Rhett has married Anne and decides to remain in Ireland. Thanks for reading. Please review. J