Part 6: Danger
A/N: Because the couple are separated, we're basically fast forwarding through the war to peacetime where things get interesting.
*Question I've been wrestling with: Should Murdoch and Emilia have a family? Can't decide, so you all decide for me!
"Dear Emilia;
"Can you write me from where you are in Canada? To be clear, are you in hiding or is it OK to be casual? I don't want to cause you and your family harm. It is a time of war after all.
"Likewise I can't reveal too much to you anyway of what's going on with my command. I have about 80 men under me and after about 3 months of basic naval discipline, Lightoller and I mutually decided to do away with the naval discipline on board our own ships. We are operating under his Royal Highness, so with basic courtesy and work ethics we are all fine. A lot of the our former merchant marine men don't like the strict formality of it all which does endear them to us a little more.
"So how are things going on with you and your family? I'm doing all right and there's mention soon of Lightoller and me going on Dover patrol sometime in the future. Imagine that, eh? Lights will have to uproot his family in order to serve his time, but Sylvia won't mind. She's very supportive and encouraging in his career, just another wonderful quality about her. I've got a few an old friend that I trained previously on board the Oceanic, a mister Jack Clyde if you remember.
"It was great to have another person on board who really knows me and my style of command. He's my second lieutenant.
"I'll write you when I have some stories to tell, hopefully soon!
"Lovingly, Will."
"Dear Will;
"My family and I are holed up in Halifax near the coast in a sleepy little town that I forget the name of just now. Funny how that happens.
"The locals don't know that we are gentry despite us being there before. The British government advised us to adopt aliases just in case that our enemies decide to raid houses of gentry, etc, in order to try to gain the political upper hand.
"It's known now that we are a couple, Will, so it would be advisable to address me as Felicity Highgarden. I picked out the name myself and it's very advantageous to be a commoner in unfamiliar surroundings. Without the pomp and circumstance, I've been out horseback riding along trails by myself, gone swimming, done market shopping and all that. I feel quite liberated, really.
"Dad still is on the hunt for the leak who spilled the beans on our relationship. I told him of my suspicions of Alphonse and though he agrees with me, we need to catch him out in a lie in order to get any kind of proof of it. Being that we are in a war, personal revenge will need to wait. Alphonse is still my butler, though he's known here as Gerry, the family servant. Because of the war, most of the servants went to enlist and the ladies went to their families on the home front of the war.
"All investigations into the murderer of my sister have been null and void. It's very depressing and I do despair that we will never find the bastard.
"Well, I'm off. One of the locals has an apple orchard in bearing right now and he asked us if we'd like to help him pick.
"Much love, Felicity (Em)."
"Dear Felicity;
"Much thanks for your letter, though I received it almost 3 months ago, making it a total of 6 months we've been in the war. Correspondence is damnably slow in these times as I'm sure that you already know.
"Clyde has come more and more into his own. We were involved with taking a U boat recently and he manned the guns and helped to command the men very well. I was impressed, him standing around and bellowing at the top of his lungs.
"My men are very good to me, they took a little warming up to at first. I think that they regarded me as a pompous ass who was a snob at heart. Clyde bragged about me to the other men, but words are words. After we helped take down the U boat, a few of my men were hurt in the encounter. After a day or two of their recoveries down in surgery, I came down to see how they were.
"You should have seen their faces. I gather their former commanding officer or CO wasn't a kind person and given the fact that I was on Titanic which only a few knew about, they weren't very keen to be on my ship. I can imagine their reticence, though the disaster was purely an accident. My visit to the wounded boosted up the morale of the wounded men and helped improve the general atmosphere of the ship too. Clyde accompanied me, we coaxed a little well intentioned humor towards them, now I've heard the ship's company are talking positive things about me.
"It does a lot to the men to show some humanity and care about them in general. Lightoller has written to me of the same thing in general and he begs me to remember him to you so I'll write that in now before I forget.
"Duty calls, love.
"Lovingly, Will."
"Dear E-I mean Felicity!
"Charles here. I'm currently in the naval hospital for a severe attack of the measles. I've been in here for over a week and I'm going stir crazy! Must be a sign that I'm getting well, says Sylvia.
"Did you hear about the Oceanic? The best ship the White Star Line ever had bungled up by the Royal Navy. I know Will has told you about all the needless pomposity and general idiocy that makes up our fighting forces, but really!
"There were two captains on board, a merchant mariner and a captain from the navy. They both butted heads about where the ship was going, they would argue about courses and after awhile, they managed to settle on something resembling a schedule-the navy captain would captain at night while our (true merchant marine captain) would captain the ship during the day. Why the navy decided to butt in with us I have pondered over many times with my old friend Davy Blair but neither of us could come to a conclusion. Thinking about it now, I decided it was the admiralty being paranoid, not trusting us merchant mariners.
"It makes scary sense as you once so eloquently put it. So what happened was that the frequent arguing on our navigation (which was charted by Blair who is brilliant at it-almost to Boxhall standards), and we thought the ship was well away from the notorious Shaalds. The Shaalds jut up like teeth and they've been responsible for many a shipwreck.
"So to make it short, I was asleep at the time of the collision with the rocks, got up, and I ended up supervising another ship evacuation.
"It was some time after that, I don't remember exactly when, that I came down sick. I've been in the hospital for 8 days, the doctors keep giving me their assorted drugs in order to bring my fever down and I feel miserable.
"So, spare a sick man a line or two, will you? I'll heal faster after I hear from you, old friend.
"The ill CH Lightoller."
"Dear Charles;
"Something must be going around in the air, my old pal. When I got your letter last week, I was suffering from a bad attack of laryngitis and had a mild fever. Alphonse is still my butler, but he's known as Gerry over here. For the sake of possible confusion, I will still refer to him as Alphonse.
"Like I told Will, the revenge on Alphonse will have to wait until the war's over. Will is convinced now that Alphonse is a crazy psycho and I just don't see it. Perhaps I'm too complacent in my situation right now, and I wouldn't be comfortable firing Alphonse unless Will is around to protect me. I've been really indifferent on the whole subject and it might be a bit of a stretch, but do you think it's possible that Alphonse has something to do with my sister's death?
"While I was sick, I had a mild fever and the mind plays games on one when they are ill. Yesterday was when my fever reached its peak and I wound up sleeping almost all day. The fever played games with my head and I dreamt that Alphonse had a hand in my sister's death.
"The thought really distressed me, Charles. I woke up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night and the dream was still in my memory. My fever broke, but my emotions were all over the place. I'm not one really given to flights of fancy, Charles, but maybe a I had that dream for a reason? Anyway, I had an outbreak of weeping afterwards.
"I wish you well, Charles. Get discharged soon and stop driving the doctors crazy. Their only aim is to help you get well and get back to your regular life. Hurry up and get well! Those U-boats are not going to blow themselves up!
"Fondly, Felicity."
ARTICLE CLIPPING FROM THE SOUTHAMPTON GAZETTE
"German U-boat 370 was sunk two days ago off the coast of England. Two destroyers, the Piper and the Cadet ambushed the U boat in patchy fog. Captain Edgar Massie and Captain William Murdoch, of the Cadet and Piper, saw the U boat and opened fire, hits striking the submarine broadside. The U boat was able to manage to fire on Captain Murdoch's vessel the Piper, hitting a bit of the railing and injuring two sailors.
"The Piper was repaired at sea and is working better than ever, according to Captain Murdoch. The two men are duly recovering from their wounds and will be back on active duty within the week."
"Dear Will;
"Dad told me of the assistance you rendered to Captain Massie of the Cadet recently in an article that our relations sent to us. I'm really proud of you! Do you get a commendation in your records or any kind of accolade? I'd send you an accolade but our wealth and possessions are shall we say elsewhere at this time.
"I'm doing well, and I'm learning some more about my interests. To Mom's surprise, I started taking a cooking class twice a week and through my parents' advice to make the best of the situation. I also began French lessons, as the majority of the people here are French speakers and of French ancestry.
"Well, we had a quiet family Christmas and I made the presents that I gave. I do admit that I find it interesting to do so, fashioning a beautiful emerald green scarf for Mom, a pair of gloves for Dad, and I made Edward a sapphire blue ascot that brought out his eyes when he wore it. He was really pleased and I was pleased to make something and give it to him. We usually buy things and give them which are appreciated mind you, but there's real pleasure of making said object.
"I would send you a Christmas present Will, but Dad said packages from the civilians had to be screened by the government agents first. I don't know if he was pulling my leg or not, but if someone found out you were writing to me, bad things could happen. Best to err on the side of caution.
"You can speak about me, but call me Felicity. How is your other officer that you trained? Have you had any contact with Burroughs?
"It's freezing outside! I hope 1914 brings an end to this war! I'd love to see you again.
"Much love, Felicity."
ARTICLE CLIPPING FROM THE SOUTHAMPTON GAZETTE MAY 8TH, 1915
"The Cunard liner the Lusitania was approaching the Old Head of Kinsale yesterday morning when a U boat sighted and torpedoed her. According to eyewitness reports, there was a massive secondary explosion in her hull and she sank in less than 20 minutes or so.
"Lists of survivors are currently being compiled and will be available for the general public by daybreak tomorrow. So far an eyewitness report says that multimillionaire Alfred Vanderbilt did not survive the disaster.
"Captain Turner is among the saved and he will be available for comment once he recovers from his cold. We will keep you informed of all the major developments.
"The Southampton Gazette wishes to extend our deepest condolences to those affected by the disaster."
"Dear Felicity;
"November is nearing and my sanity is nearing its end as well. This war has lasted about 4 years now, Lightoller and I are quite tired of battering around the Dover coast when there hasn't been any action for awhile now. Both of us want to be doing more useful things like commanding more destroyers rather than lowly torpedo boats.
"Lights was involved in a U boat sinking and his men were pelting the survivors in the water with debris shouting things that had to do with the Lusitania, etc. I thought it was in bad form really, but Lights just shrugged at me when he told me and said he couldn't control his men's feelings. Sometimes I wonder if we're just as bad as our enemies or even more so.
"At any rate, my men are all well-behaved and I permitted them to have a day off from their duties, allowing them to play their instruments, have games, that sort of thing. I saw who could dance the best, sing the best, all of that. It was instrumental for their spirits, I saw many crack smiles today who have not done so for a long time now. I admit that I wondered if many of my men had forgotten to smile!
"Clyde really stepped up to the rank of commander after I got hurt in the crossfire. Don't start fussing now as it was a month ago! It was stupid really, I was standing in the wrong place at the wrong time. I was near where they were cleaning the guns, I slipped on the decking they were polishing, and whacked my head on it.
"When I roused, I found the doctor and Clyde staring at me. They reassured me that my injury was superficial and I would be up and about in two days' time. Even so, from my bed in the recovery room of the surgery, I can hear Clyde commanding in a very admirable way. I hope I have been a good influence upon him both in war and peacetime. He's very clever and has a rapport with the men like I have. I will recommend him for a promotion very soon.
"I'm fine, so don't start worrying! I know you too well. How are you, dear?
"Lovingly, Will."
"Dear WIll;
"We're on our way home! I'm more than ready to leave this small town behind and get back to my royal duties and whatnot. My idleness these past 4 years have been almost unbearable. I've learned French and Spanish, I dabbled in German but my father almost threw a fit when he found out.
"I've learned the humble domestic arts, red scores of books, learned needlework, knitting, and I experimented with my own fashions. What would the Duff Gordons think?
"The times have been a bit rough for us, Will. I've had to close out my Solara jewelry line as the metal is in short supply and I need that to mount the pieces. The war has dictated to us that we need to keep a tighter hold on our money and Solara was really for the rich types. The rich types aren't so rich anymore and the ones that remember me and my jewels are more interested in other things now. I think the upperclass jewelry status symbol has gone down considerably now.
"Diamonds have really gone up, though. Everyone here in Canada likes the diamond engagement rings and given that some of the diamonds in the mines are very small, I think I can develop my own line of diamond rings. Affordable mind you, according to the grade of the gem.
"I am a bit sad to leave Halifax behind. It's been so good to us. I'll be home on December 15th if you'd like to stop by.
"All my love, Emilia. (not Felicity anymore!)"
"Dear Emilia;
"I'm docking my little torpedo boat on December 16th and as far as I'm concerned, my house is open to you. I've had a housekeeper occupying my house for these past 4 years while we've been away, and I'd be happy to have you live with me if you want.
"The only condition is that you fire that godawful butler Alphonse. I'm certain he is keen on you but not for the right reasons. I remember what you said years ago, how you're sure that you can incriminate Alphonse into admitting that he was responsible for the leak to the press about us. I wouldn't put it past him to have a hand in your sister's murder as well.
"My theory is that he couldn't stand the fact that you were not the only princess in the household, conspired with Tristan, managed to get Tristan to kill Sarah so your competition would be eliminated. Then in the aftermath of the death, Alphonse would profess his love for you when you were at your weakest, you would submit to him, then you two would get married-despite the fact that I am seeing you, and despite the fact that gentry and royalty are not accustomed to marrying the help. I bet we could get him to incriminate himself. There's a spare bedroom on the second floor of my house where he can bunk down, so bring him with you and we'll conspire to end this once and for all.
"So what do you think? My theory too farfetched or scarily accurate?
Time will tell.
"Love Will."
Emilia walked up the pathway to her family's house in outer Southampton. Alphonse was already cleaning up the place to make it liveable again. Her brother Edward was out at the Kent estate while he reviewed his finances and planned out his next venture.
The princess knew that Edward was spearheading a fund to help victims of the war. She would have contributed, but Edward modestly told her that he wanted to take the reins alone. Truth was that Edward had been a bit jealous of Emilia's ventures and her publicity, so he wanted to do something public so he could have his time in the limelight.
It was now mid December and Emilia was taking care of the gardens, shoveling dead leaves to cover the old dead flowers. Her mother had introduced her to gardening and though Emilia had no great love for the hobby, she still continued to do her mother's routine of covering up the flowerbeds every fall.
It was a typical early winter day with the sky a frosty blue with a little bit of sun peeking out, the grounds were quiet as all the birds had migrated south already. Emilia sneezed, pulling out her handkerchief and wiping at her nose. The mold on the fallen leaves never failed to agitate Emilia's nose, making her sniffle a lot until the frost fell.
Emilia's eyes were dry, so she had to blink tears into them in order to keep her eyes tolerable.
"Of course Mom had to be in Prague with Dad so she couldn't do any of this!" Emilia groused, standing up and arching her back. "Least I'm done."
A pair of hands latched themselves around her eyes, blocking off her vision, she swore and turned around. "Will!" Emilia dived into his arms and kissed him deeply, happy to see that he had not changed in the least since she saw him last. He kissed her back, snaking his hands around to her waist so he picked her up.
"Such a pleasure to be with you again."
"Drop the formality, Will," Emilia giggled, taking off his hat and putting it on her head. "I've missed you so much and all I dreamed about was you, me, my bedroom."
He cleared his throat as he brought her into the living room, putting her down on the couch. "What do you think we should do now?" his hand trailed up her thigh, giving it a gentle squeeze as she put her hand on top of his. She raised her eyebrow suggestively, giving him a playful wink as she slid her hand just underneath his trousers.
"How about we go upstairs so we can be comfortable?" the sailor suggested, not liking the idea of doing something very private in a public space. "If we can make it that far." he added, glancing up to make sure Alphonse had not come in.
"I love a challenge!" Emilia leaped up and stood by the banister, Murdoch followed her and kissed her roughly, sliding his hand up the side of her dress as she clutched at his back, raising up a leg slightly. Murdoch gripped her leg and held it up in his strong hand.
Neither one of them had their eyes open at that point, or they would have seen Alphonse with an intense stare of disapproval. The glare intensified as Murdoch brought his free hand up to bring Emilia's face closer to his. She parted her lips to breathe, then uttered a small moan as he continued to kiss her, dropping his head down to kiss her neck repeatedly.
The couple worked their way upstairs somehow, Emilia managing it backwards with her eyes closed, Murdoch steering her into the bedroom, bringing her to the edge, then gently pushing her onto it. She looked up at him from the bed, giving him a come hither look. The officer loosened up his tie, pulled off his jacket, then straddled her, taking off her shirt as she unbuttoned his.
"I've dreamed of this for months-years!" Murdoch amended as he kissed her hungrily, unlacing her corset and peeling it off of her. Emilia laughed and wrapped her legs around his waist, trying to bring him in closer. "Well, telling me something then aren't you?"
"Oh, shut up!" feigning exasperation, Emilia stripped Murdoch of his shirt as he fumbled a bit with her underskirt, but he managed to get it off of her in the end. Both of them stark naked now, Murdoch straddled her again and she gave a slight gasp as the familiar cold feeling wrapped itself around her lower body as Murdoch grinned.
"All I've wanted is to be with you since this whole war started!" she necked him as he began to take up a familiar rhythm. The sailor had spent many sleepless nights aboard his destroyer and torpedo boats dreaming about Emilia and the touch of her lips on his which helped to keep him sane during many tense moments.
The princess had been worried about him for so long, now it was very rewarding to see her man back in the flesh, unscarred by his activities in the call of duty. She arched her head back in sheer pleasure as the rhythm crescendoed up, one of her hands fumbled for something to hold on to, but Murdoch caught her hand, kissed the fingertips, then held it as a final rush of pleasure pulsated through them.
"Will!" she cried out loudly, her body pleasurably throbbed as he collapsed next to her, both of them covered in sweat. Panting, the couple traded more kisses as the sensations dulled.
"I've dreamed of this," he kissed her knuckles, glancing over to see that she was smiling back at him. "all those long nights and orders of battering around the Dover patrol, all I could see was you and your smile, Em."
"Back at you, Will. My mother would tease me and say that I was lovesick."
"Are you?"
"Yeah!" Emilia laughed, rolling over in her sheet and leaning on Murdoch's shoulder. "So what do we do now?"
"Fire your butler." the sound of rustling sheets then Emilia's little gasp of pleasure followed as Murdoch prepared for the second round of lovemaking.
At that time, Alphonse was eavesdropping on their little tryst, having come upstairs to dust and sweep the master bedroom. His eyes hardened and he knew if he was going to do something to secure his path to the throne, he'd have to do it soon.
That night during supper, both Murdoch and Emilia were unwilling to leave the room, so Alphonse brought two covered plates, flushing red at the sight of Emilia just wearing her thin robe which left nothing to the imagination.
"By the way, Alphonse," his heart jumped when she talked to him. "I'm moving in with Will here, so I won't be needing your services any more."
He expected that, but he still felt his heart plummet. How could she stand there so callously with her lover boy and casually say that his days serving her would be numbered? Alphonse watched as Murdoch and Emilia enjoyed a casual drink together, giggling loudly as the butler saw red. Emilia would pay, he decided. Sometime soon she would pay for betraying him and his confidence!
Alphonse's eyes settled on Murdoch, hating him with a fiery passion that burned in his very soul. The sailor was rugged, well-built, he'd seen some very prominent service within the war that Alphonse had privately hoped would kill him. It had done just the opposite, for Murdoch and his friend Lightoller. Both of them were RNR,
commanders at that as well. Even though neither of them cared for the pomp and circumstance of the navy, they did very well in their services regardless.
"There something wrong, Alf?" Emilia asked kindly, but he knew that her tone meant to get out and leave the lovebirds alone. He sighed and left, slamming the door a little harder than what he meant to.
"He's going to be upset," Murdoch warned Emilia as she got back into bed with him. "keep an eye out and don't be in the same room with him without me there. I wouldn't put it past him to start something with you. Be on your guard."
"I will," Emilia vowed. "that jerk has had this coming for a long time. He'd never be half the man that you are, love." she kissed his lips as he cupped her face in his hands, looking at her, gently thumbing her lips apart.
"Nobody could ever be half the woman you are." Murdoch returned the kiss affectionately.
The two of them had several romantic rendezvous and by the time dawn was arising, the pair had finally fallen asleep. On his way downstairs to do the chores, Alphonse peeked into the room, seeing Emilia in Murdoch's arms appearing in the light of the early morning asleep but very happy on her face. Murdoch was wearing a similar expression as well.
Angry, the butler went into his room, opened up his steamer trunk, searched through his old belongings, then pulled out a smoked green bottle. His father had been a doctor but had his license taken away from him. Having been accused of malpractice, he had been stripped of his license, his office was sold, and he was a societal outcast. The old man then became a laudanum addicted doddering old fool, but he had taught his son a few things before he died. Clenching the bottle in his hand, he grinned and went into the kitchen.
When the Alphonse was outside the bedroom with two covered plates in a tray, he set the tray down on the hall table, pulled out the bottle from his pocket, then put a few drops into Murdoch's teacup. He corked the bottle before Emilia could open up the door, then knocked once.
Emilia opened up the door and admitted Alphonse into her room. He walked over to the bureau, handing Murdoch the teacup, giving Emilia hers, then retiring from the room with as much dignity as he could muster.
"Seems rather composed," Murdoch muttered as he sipped his tea.
"he's up to something, Emilia."
"I've no doubt," she took her tray and set it on the bed, uncovering the plate. "we have to be on our guard, Will."
"Indeed."
"So what do you want to do today?"
"I have nothing planned. You?"
"Actually nothing as well. We can always go riding but the horses aren't going to like being in cold weather."
"Why don't we just talk?"
Emilia laughed. "OK, what do you want to talk about?"
"What is going on with your sister's murder case?" Murdoch joined her on the bed.
"The case trail is as they say, gone cold. The constables have been preoccupied with the war, so nothing ever became of the case. The murderer has remained at large," she hung her head, feeling unwanted tears come to her eyes. Murdoch knew after all this time she still felt responsible for her sister's death. "all I want is closure, Will."
"You'll get it," the sailor told her gently. "I want you to get it. Can't you get some men on the case, you being a royal and all?"
"Dad tried a few times, but they keep saying the leads didn't pan out and there's nothing that they can do."
"Damn," Murdoch muttered, draining his tea. "I don't suppose I could do anything either."
"Just the fact that you want to is good enough for me," Emilia kissed him. "you're so good to me."
"You're very good to me." he countered, kissing her forehead.
"So tell me of your travels in the Dover patrol?" finishing their breakfasts, they put the tray on her bureau and lay down on the bed. Murdoch took Emilia's left hand and caressed it as he began the story of his men's shenanigans on board his destroyer.
"So my man Clyde, I think you remember him from the letters I wrote you?"
"Of course."
"He's a good-looking chap, lots of ladies in port had their eyes on him. The other sailors would rib him a bit and he always took it in good humor. We managed to stumble upon a German U-boat while out on patrol while Lights and a few of the other destroyers had to stand down for 3 days of boiler cleaning. I was at the bridge with Clyde when we saw the wake in the water that's made when a torpedo is fired, so I gave the order to port away from it. Thankfully the destroyer is extremely quick on the helm, so we were able to maneuver away from it in time. She gave us a few strafing shots, one of which hit the plane glass near the bridge, it shattered, and it cut me on the head. A bit of debris came out from the shot, clipped me on the head. I remembered falling, but nothing else."
"Where did it hit you?"
"Right here," Murdoch moved aside a bit of his hair to reveal a small scar near his right temple. "it got me pretty good and when I woke up, I saw I was in the sick bay. The surgeon told me I'd been knocked out for about 6 hours and Clyde was managing the ship very well. He has great things ahead of him, Emilia."
"He sounds like you, Will. I bet he'll rise up through the ranks pretty quickly."
"I hope so. He has the natural charm that is very becoming of an officer."
"So, I told you a tale, you tell me one," Murdoch teased, bringing her hand to his lips and kissing each one of her knuckles. "I've got all day."
"Oh, I know. Well, when I was in Halifax, I helped a local farmer harvest apples from his orchard all 4 years. Alphonse was there and I admit he was helpful when I was alone. Dad and Mom would still travel over Canada, Eddie would travel too. There was a time when I took a walk in the woods, tripped over a tree root, then sprained my left ankle. I ended up hobbling home from the woods, couldn't put any weight on my ankle for about 4 days afterwards."
"Anything else?"
"Not much. I had a couple of colds but that was nothing major."
"You know what? Talk is cheap," Murdoch began to neck her, making her moan softly in the manner that he really liked. "milady."
"You're such a flirt." she joked, surrendering to his touch.
Later on that same day, Emilia bundled up in her coat to walk in the woods with Murdoch. She buttoned up her black greatcoat, pulled on her black leather gloves, then wrapped a blue and white scarf around her neck. Murdoch joined her, buttoning up his coat as well, offering his arm for her to claim which she did, then they set outside for a walk.
"Look at that, Will," they had barely touched the edge of the woods when a deer stepped into view boldly, his majestic looking antlers glinting in the sunlight. Through a curtain of frost, the sunlight made everything both glitter and a faint haze was forming, oddly making Emilia and Murdoch think that they were in a dream. "a buck."
"Beautiful creatures." the creature gazed at them, big brown eyes blinking slowly, then he turned to graze on a fallen leaf.
"Oh, I don't know. I think a .22 gauge shotgun would bring him down," Emilia muttered. "I never liked deer much anyway."
"Since when?"
"Since I've been to Canada, Will. I don't think much of the stupid deer and I have a taste for venison. If Eddie were here he could bring that sucker down and we'd all be feasting. Look how fat this joker is."
"You're more and more unlike any princess I've ever met."
"I'm the only one you've ever met," Emilia grinned. "and you love me for that."
"That and much more." he kissed her, then gasped and put his head in one hand.
"My kisses can't be that bad, can they?"
Murdoch tried to look up but found his head was spinning. Emilia's face loomed into his view, split into two faces, then back into one again. She said something but he couldn't understand her for some reason. Emilia put her hand on his arm and guided him to sit down under a tree, scaring the deer who bounded away.
"Will, what is it?" he focused hard on her face which came into view fully. The sailor grasped her arm and made to stand up, but she firmly kept him down on the ground. "Tell me."
"Can't see straight," he grumbled. "maybe we overdid it last night."
Emilia sniggered. "Somehow I highly doubt it. You and me know our limits and trust me, we did not overdo it."
"Right. Help me back to the house, please," she helped him stand back up and leading him by her arm, they made it back into the house. "I just can't see straight right now."
"Overtired?" she shed her coat and helped him take his off, handing them to Alphonse. The butler smirked behind his hand as he turned to put the coats into the hall closet. Murdoch slouched a little bit as he felt something like a heavy weight settle on his shoulders. Emilia guided him upstairs to the bedroom, assisted him in taking his shoes and tie off, then made him lie down on the bed.
"If this keeps up tomorrow I'll have to call the doctor," she crossed to the windows, untied the sash for the curtains and brought them down. The room grew considerably darker as the curtains were drawn and Emilia had to blink in the brightness of the sun touching the frost outside. "our escapades last night must have taken more out of him than I thought."
Like in the summer house in Kent, Emilia's room also had a four poster bed with curtains around it. She loosened up the sashes, tying each one to the bedpost so she wouldn't lose them, and spread the curtains so Murdoch would have some privacy.
"Something wrong with Mr. Murdoch, Miss Emilia?" Emilia jumped then turned to see Alphonse was standing in the doorway with afternoon tea on a tray he was holding.
Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Could he be responsible for this? Murdoch was in perfect health when he arrived yesterday, could it be Alphonse had done something to him in the meantime? Not wanting to believe it, she dismissed the notion, thinking that Alphonse wasn't the type of person to take his revenge out on an innocent human being.
"No, just a bit tired from our activities yesterday," she couldn't understand it. Murdoch had remarkable stamina from his years as a sailor and it didn't make sense to her that he would tire so easily. "you should be getting your things together for the return to your family, Alf. I can handle everything here. You have until tomorrow to get your shit together and off my property."
Alphonse did nothing but put the tea tray on her bureau and leave the room. Marching to his quarters, he clenched his hands into fists, slammed his door and locked it unnecessarily. Emilia did not venture into his quarters under any circumstances. "Foolish girl," he spat out angrily. "years of servitude and I get the sack!" yanking his things out of the wardrobe, he stuffed them into his steamer trunk willy-nilly, not even bothering to fold them.
Among his possessions was a highly valuable piece of jewelry. Alphonse picked it up, a locket necklace made out of sterling silver. He put it on the bureau as he left one outfit on top of it for the next day.
"He's not worthy of her!" he reached into his pocket and pulled out the vial again. He was relieved from duty, but that didn't mean that he couldn't still cook and make drinks for them.
Stuffing his books and keepsakes into a small suitcase, he finished and sat down on the bed, remembering the time when Stephen and Emilia had found him. Alphonse had been a young lad, not even 18 yet when he had been kicked out of his house by his mad father. The young man had been in a series of transient hotels for about 7 nights when he ran out of money. Alphonse had stolen his father's bankroll before he was thrown out of the house so it did tide him over some while he looked for work.
There had been a small transient hotel where he had stayed for two days, ran out of money, then he had been thrown out for a second time in as many days. Alphonse had been sitting on the stoop, staring blankly when a fine brass-trimmed buggy had pulled up beside him and a finely clothed aristocrat had exited the carriage. Stephen had measured him up with his eyes, asked a few questions, then beckoned to his daughter who had come out to stand beside her father. It had been love at first sight for Alphonse, as Emilia was a very pretty girl with her blue-brown eyes, braided hair, and her sweet face. Even back then, Emilia was very much coming into her own, a loud and opinionated individual.
Stephen had asked her what she thought of the young man, she had checked him over with her eyes, then declared that he would be perfectly suitable as her butler. Alphonse hadn't been looking his best, but she had seen the potential in him and he never forgot that. Stephen gave him enough cash to ride out to the estate and look presentable, and as he reported for duty some days later, Emilia had personally taken him on and trained him. He had grown into a devoted servant, looking after Emilia, watching her grow up.
After all the years of supporting her, nursing her through illness, she was ungrateful enough to fire him! Alphonse didn't think that she'd marry anyone but him.
"Big mistake." his gaze grew cold and hard as he glared at the necklace on his dresser.
The next morning, Emilia woke up, then rolled over to see that Murdoch had not stirred since she had put him to bed that night. Frowning, she put on a robe, went downstairs to make the breakfast. Opening up the cupboard door, she found a small vial tucked in the back, pulled it out, then uncorked it to sniff the contents.
The odor did not come to anything that she would recognize. Knowing that Alphonse was behind it, she quickly took a small container she used for keeping the small specimens of her jewels, put a sample into the container, then replaced the bottle before Alphonse could detect that it was missing.
Murdoch had been right, Emilia concluded, wrapping her hands around the mug of hot cocoa. He wouldn't trust Alphonse as far as he could throw them and Emilia could only conclude that she should have fired Alphonse before she had to leave for Canada. Alphonse would have had no recourse to hurting Murdoch at all then, but she had to hesitate and drag him along with her to Halifax.
With no sign of either Alphonse or Murdoch, Emilia heaved a sigh, finished her drink, then washed out her mug. She got dressed in a blue serge dress, put on her shoes, then pulled on her black greatcoat. The doctor's house wasn't far, a few doors down from her house.
Doctor Paul Anthony had been the family's physician for several years. He was quite clever, skilled in modern medicine, and a personal friend of the family as well. Emilia's mother was fond of him, Stephen liked to invite him over for a day of shooting or riding, and he never shirked his duty.
Dr. Anthony was 6 feet tall, had a head of what was once blonde hair but had mostly turned quite in the intervening years. He had keen brown eyes, a network of tiny wrinkles on his face which deepened when he was concerned but lightened when he smiled.
Emilia smiled to herself as she thought of him, stepping up his brick pathway and knocking on the small cottage door. When she had first met the doctor back when she was around 10 years old, he had been a bit chubby, vivacious, with a lovely wife and two children. Mrs. Anthony had been just as bubbly in personality as her husband, their two children Joshua and Agnes had inherited their parents' personas, their lively natures, and Emilia recalled playing with the children many times.
Now Joshua was off with a wife and family of his own, Agnes had taken the veil in a nunnery in France. Mrs. Anthony had died ten years ago and the elderly widower lived with an equally old housekeeper named Florence.
Rapping on the door, it was Florence that had answered. She had kind blue eyes with white hair piled onto her head. The housekeeper wore a simple blue dress with white pinafore and she was holding a dust rag in one hand.
"Why, it's Emilia!" the housekeeper chirped loudly. "Do come in, dear! Tell me everything that's been going on! When did you get back from the other side of the pond?" she allowed the housekeeper to take her arm, steer her inside and guide her towards the sofa. Florence always asked questions and never seemed to wait for an answer. Sitting down, Emilia didn't bother to reply as the housekeeper bustled off to the kitchen to stoke up the stove fire.
"My goodness," a gravelly voice crept into the room. "you're almost the spitting image of your father, my dear." Dr. Anthony came into view, leaning on a walking stick. "How many years has it been now?"
"At least 8 years since I saw you, sir." he assumed the chair across from Emilia and offered tea, which she declined.
"I was sorry to hear about your sister, Sarah," Dr. Anthony accepted the teacup from Florence who gave Emilia a wink in passing. "great shame."
"Thank you, sir," Dr. Anthony had been at the funeral but she barely remembered seeing him there and accepting his condolences. "it was a great loss."
The physician's gnarled old hand pressed down upon hers kindly. "It is always a great tragedy when one loses one that they love," he said sadly, remembering his own loss. "but I am glad to see you dear, after so many years."
Emilia did not like being called dear, but it felt natural for the doctor to call her that. In fact she preferred it. He felt so much like family and she always had him in a high regard. The princess leaned forward and pulled out the container from her pocket. "I am here on business, sir. The man I am courting with-"
"Aha! Is it that man they talk about in the newspapers? That Murdoch fellow?!" Dr. Anthony set his teacup down before he spilled it on the rug. "You'll be the first of your siblings to marry!"
"Eventually, sir. Anyway, we care for each other a great deal and that is why I am here today. Murdoch-Will-took sick yesterday and upon looking through the cupboard to fix my cocoa this morning I found this," she handed over the container. "I suspect my butler has something to do with this."
"Oh, that Alphonse character!" Florence muttered. "He was such a shady person, never liking to talk and all that. Aloof, that's what he was!"
"Mmm hmmm," Dr. Anthony allowed as he accepted the container, opened it up, then sniffed at it. "no discernable smell," he tilted it and tasted a drop. "it's laudanum."
"That explains it then. Yesterday, Will had a sudden attack of dizziness, he couldn't see straight, and as soon as I got him into the bed, he fainted and hasn't roused since."
"That would be the textbook symptoms, yes. It all depends on how much he was given."
"Right. I suspect Alphonse has something to do with this," Emilia put her head in her hands. "he never took to Will, always acted very aloof, now I think he's been drugging Will."
Dr. Anthony shrugged. "Is there any kind of activity that would make Mr. Murdoch more tired than usual?"
She lifted up her head. "No. He's a sailor and trust me, he's got loads of stamina." a flush of color infiltrated her face and the doctor laughed as Florence tittered. "Will and I, we're in love and I know we will be engaged sometime soon. I told Alphonse yesterday that he has 24 hours to pack up his things and leave the house. I'm moving into Will's house in Southampton and it's a small place so I won't need Alphonse."
"Really? Why didn't you transfer Alphonse to your brothers or parents?"
"Because Alphonse was hired on especially for me. Everyone else has their own staff of servants. I just want nice and low key lifestyle with my Will."
"You will get it, dear. I can say at this point that I suspect that Alphonse has been drugging Mr. Murdoch, but we need to catch him in the act in order to get any proof."
"Well, when Will becomes conscious again, I think we can manage that." the heat from the fireplace and her coat which was still on was making her turn red at the cheeks. "I think I should get back to the house and keep a sharp eye out on Will so Alphonse can't come and drug him again."
"Good idea!" Dr. Anthony rose up when she did. "I will stop by in an hour or two in order to at least give the impression that I'm doing my job. We'll ambush the sot and have him out of the house by noon today!" the old doctor was excited by the fact he had a part to play. Emilia hugged him tightly, knowing he was honored that she had thought of him. She hugged Florence goodbye as well, telling her that she would love to stop by soon and joked that Florence better have made some of Emilia's favorite treats, meringue cookies. The jolly housekeeper flushed red in the face, pleased that Emilia remembered her signature treat. She had become addicted to them at a young age and though she tried to master the recipe, she never could.
The princess shut the door to the cottage, a little smile on her face. Once long ago she had thought that the doctor and the housekeeper might marry, but Stephen had told her that the two would be just friends and never more than that. Dr. Anthony's heart belonged to his late wife and he would never remarry. With a little shake of her head, she started down the lane, ignoring the icy breeze that tried to creep up into her coat.
A door slammed shut downstairs and Murdoch opened up his eyes, feeling very tired still and quite confused. What had happened to him? He vaguely remembered talking with Emilia outside yesterday and she had a loathing of deer as an animal but she loved deer meat. Wiping his eyes, he sat up in bed, brushing aside the curtain. Weakly he stood up, then tied back the curtains so he could see if it was daylight outside.
"The hell?" he put his head in one hand for a brief moment, trying to get his wits about him. He had slept in yesterday's clothes, so he changed out of them, pausing every few moments. Where was Emilia? The sailor wanted to stick his head out into the hallway and call for her, but he was too weak to do so. His limbs felt heavy like lead and he sat on the edge of the bed, trying to get his stamina back.
Footsteps resounded on the stairs and within moments Emilia burst into the room. Shedding her coat as she walked over to Murdoch, Emilia sat down beside him and looked him in the eye. "Will? How are you feeling?"
"Tired and confused." he admitted. "I don't know why I came over all faint like that yesterday."
"I know," she hissed in a low voice. "I found a vial in the cupboard when I went to make hot cocoa for myself this morning. Alphonse wasn't up because he's not on duty anymore, so I took a sample to our old family doctor, Dr. Anthony. He discovered it was laudanum that Alphonse had been doping you with."
"What happens now?" he took her hand. "are we leaving today?"
"No. We can't leave and besides I haven't even started packing yet. You're not well enough to do anything and besides that, the doctor and I have a plan," she dropped her voice lower. "you are to play a big part in it."
"Oh, it sounds like you have something up your sleeve," Murdoch's eyes were glazed over from the effects of the drug, but he could still work up a bit of enthusiasm for Emilia's plan. She never failed him in any respect so he was glad to hear what she had hatched this time.
"Listen, Will, we'll need your complete cooperation in order for this to work.." she took him aside.
One hour later, the doctor called in and even though Alphonse was no longer employed there, he still took Dr. Anthony up to the room. Emilia, lurking behind them hidden by the curtains on the second floor drawing room. The ex butler took Dr. Anthony right into the room where Murdoch was lying supine, pretending to be asleep.
"Ah, stay with us if you please, Alphonse," the doctor's voice was bright and cheery as usual, not letting on that he knew of what had been happening in that house. "I may need you to fetch me something from the kitchen."
"As you please, sir." he stood near the doorway as Dr. Anthony sat on the edge of the bed, putting his hand on Murdoch's chest as a say of silently telling him that he was there. The sailor gave a theatrical sigh and opened up his eyes slowly, seeing Dr. Anthony looming above him.
"Hush, lad," the doctor told him in a whisper. "I'm here for you. We'll get to the bottom of this."
"How long do I feel like this, sir?"
"The effects should wear off about suppertime tonight. Just go with me on this one, OK?" Dr. Anthony winked, instilling more confidence in Murdoch.
"If Emilia trusts you sir, I do as well."
"That's the spirit," Dr. Anthony said loudly, not wanting to cause Alphonse any suspicion by whispering. "perhaps you and Emilia will hire me to deliver your children after you're married."
The sailor blushed but did not say anything else. Dr. Anthony chuckled but did not say anything more as he performed a complete physical examination on Murdoch. Every 6 months while out at sea, he had to have a complete physical in order to keep on working for the White Star Line and he had always passed his exams with flying colors.
"Hmm, throat fine, nares patent, no purulent discharge," he took Murdoch's pulse. "nice and regular but a bit sluggish due to your fatigue. Your heart is normal sounding, no jaundice, no irregularity at all. There's one more test that I want to perfom and I will need a glass of water from the kitchen. Alphonse, would you be so kind as to fetch that for me?"
Through the door, Emilia heard Dr. Anthony's cue, then scampered downstairs to the kitchen where she hid herself in the dining room adjacent behind the sliding pocket door. Alphonse's quick steps thudded into her ears as she grabbed a book from the nearby table and opened it, pretending to read in case he walked in unexpectedly.
Peering through the crack in the door, Emilia saw Alphonse turn on the tap, fill up a glass with the water, then he set it on the countertop facing her. He opened up a cupboard, pulled something out of it, then in plain sight of Emilia, uncorked it and began to put it into the glass.
"The HELL do you think you're doing?!" Emilia shoved open the door and stomped into the room, her blue serge dress rustling loudly. Alphonse, startled, dropped the vial on the counter which she snatched up. "What the hell is this?!"
If she hoped that he would have the sense enough to come clean, those hopes were dashed. Alphonse smirked arrogantly as she held it up in one hand. "That's medicine for Mr. Murdoch that the doctor ordered."
Emilia knew that there was no chance in hell that Dr. Anthony would have prescribed something for Murdoch in this case. She shook her head, her earrings bouncing with every movement. "If you're lying, I'll find out."
"What could you know about honesty from that common sailor?" he fired back, making Emilia's jaw drop open. "Do you know how many women that sailor has been with?"
"Only one before me! Come now!" she grabbed him like her mother used to do with her when she'd been naughty, grabbing his ear and pulling it with all her might.
"What's going to happen?" Murdoch asked as soon as Alphonse had left the room.
"Well, we are going to put Alphonse in prison where he belongs. You and Emilia will move into your Southampton house where you will marry, have many children, and live in your happily ever after."
"I hope so."
"We've set it up so that Emilia will catch Alphonse doing something incriminating and we just play it by ear from there. If all goes well, you can start packing tomorrow."
"I really hope so."
"Have you decided about children yet?" the doctor prodded gently, sensing apprehension. Murdoch gulped and looked up at the doctor with an almost guilty expression on his face. "Bad experience?"
"It was worse than that," the sailor muttered. "my first wife Ada was with child during our first year of marriage and when I was away on the Doric, she had a miscarriage with near fatal bleeding. When I got back, I was horrified to learn the truth, she was devastated and it took a long time of me counseling her in order to help. She felt responsible in taking away our happiness but I had to get her to see reason."
"How old was your wife, sir?"
"Nigh on 38 years, doctor."
"Emilia is barely 27. Based on what we know of anatomy and fertility, she's got some good childbearing years left in her. She's younger and a very strong person."
"Possibly. I would like an heir and a beautiful little girl to take care of. My parents would love more grandchildren," Murdoch admitted. "we'll see."
"There you go. Don't discount every possibility. Take it as it comes." they heard Emilia bellowing downstairs and both chuckled. "She's always been able to do loud very well."
A scuffle sounded, then one pair of angry footsteps with a lighter pair following came up the stairs and the door burst open. Alphonse, all dignity forgotten, glared at the princess and the two men like it was all their fault he was caught. The sailor returned glares with one he had developed to stop junior officers in their tracks. It was impressive and Alphonse temporarily dropped his glare.
"Doctor, I caught him stirring this into Will's drink. I know it's not medicine." she handed over the vial, Dr. Anthony tasted it and said it was laudanum.
"I didn't prescribe that. Alphonse, where did you get such a thing? You know you can't get it without a prescription."
"I've had that since I left my father's house almost 12 years ago."
"Laudanum gets stronger as it ages!" the doctor lectured sharply. "Even the slightest dose could render Mr. Murdoch here unconscious for almost 24 hours straight!"
Alphonse didn't appear disturbed by that, proof to them that he knew more than what he was leading on. Emilia swore colorfully, making Murdoch grin and startling the other two men.
"Why on earth would you do something like that? Like the rest of the help, you should be happy that I met someone who loves me!" the question had been bugging her for awhile now and she would finally get an answer.
Alphonse sneered. "Because I have loved you from the first day that I met you!"
Murdoch had guessed as much, but Emilia still gasped upon hearing it. Dr. Anthony's expression was of similar shock, but he narrowed his eyes and left the room. "I'm calling the police!"
"Good idea, doctor. You're not in love with me!"Emilia sputtered as Murdoch sat up on the bed. Alphonse glared at her but did not reply. "Of course you're not in love! Love means that you like me for me and if I happen to fall in love with someone else, you'd leave me be and be happy for me!" she snatched the vial from where Dr. Anthony had left it and threw it at Alphonse. It just missed him, hitting the wall and shattering into several pieces. "Get your shit! I'll have to supervise you now just to make sure that you don't hurt anyone else."
The sailor had wanted to help her, but he was still feeling too weak to help in any way. He wanted to, but he didn't have any strength at all. Alphonse followed Emilia out to his room and he had picked up his suitcase when her eyes traveled over to his bureau. Glinting in the sunshine was the necklace he had forgotten to pack.
"Is that what I think it is?!" she barked out, crossing the room and picking up the necklace. Alphonse swore as the locket popped open, revealing two tiny photos of Emilia on one side and Sarah on the other. "My sister's locket! How in the hell did it get here?!"
"I-she gave it to me a few days before she died," he lied. "she always liked me."
"That is the best nonanswer I've ever heard!" Emilia raged. "Sarah loved this locket and she was wearing it the day she died-" she gasped and backed away, her eyes becoming bigger with every second passing. "You did NOT!"
"What's the point in hiding it now?" the former butler snorted. "That stupid wench-"
"As long as you are under my roof you will speak in a RESPECTFUL manner!" Emilia almost screamed, hand clutching at the locket like it was a lifeline.
"As long as that WENCH was around, you were only the second best! You know how much your mother loved your sister more than you!"
"You misconstrue everything, Alf! My family dynamics are not your problem and they never were! Sarah and I were equals, we had a great childhood, not that you ever saw it! I loved my sister and she loved me!"
"You only think that-"
"SHUT UP!" Emilia roared so loudly. "I will see you off in the police wagon before the day is out! Get your goddamn gutter trash out of my house before I see to it that you never work again!"
"I won't be working again as your butler!" he shot back in a feeble attempt to try to preserve what was left of his dignity. A sudden commotion reached their ears downstairs as a rich voice emanating authority wafted up to them. Alphonse froze, but he tried to dodge past Emilia to try to make a break for it.
"Oh no you don't!" Emilia caught him by the shirt tail, tried to rein him back as he ran towards the stairs, lost her grip and took a tumbling down the stairs as the constable managed to catch the fleeing criminal.
"My dear!" Dr. Anthony bent over her. "Are you all right?"
"I'm OK." Emilia tried to sit up but her head was spinning slightly. "I better just sit still for a moment."
"Come on, I must examine you upstairs. You can give your statement to the constable here."
"OK." Emilia gave her statement, citing the necklace as a tip off that Alphonse had murdered her sister. The constable wrote it all down and asked Alphonse for a confession.
"Fine! No point in keeping it in anymore." he at least had to know when he had been beaten. "I got that sodding twit Tristan drunk that night-it wasn't hard to do really, what a wine driven old sot that idiot was that night. He was prone to drink, I tried to get him rip roaring drunk and mad, tried to tell him that Sarah was no good for him at all, I tried to influence him to murder Sarah by strangling her, but he was too drunk and just fell on the floor."
"Why did you want Miss Worthington dead?" the constable handcuffed Alphonse and was making notes.
"So that Emilia here would have a better chance at getting the crown when she becomes queen!"
"A dozen relatives need to die before that happens! I don't want to be queen anyway! Too much responsibility!" Emilia lashed out, feeling her hair coming loose from its knot.
"So I throttled the bitch," Alphonse said calmly. Dr. Anthony embraced Emilia, not wanting her to look at the former butler and knowing that she needed a friendly face to comfort her. "I was in love with her and I know she reciprocated that."
"Liar!" Emilia choked out. "I love Will Murdoch and I will love nobody but him!"
"She's in denial," Alphonse explained. The constable looked over at Emilia and winked, understanding her completely. What Alphonse didn't know was that he was incriminating himself, giving the policeman more evidence by his blindness to the fact that Emilia was not in love with him at all. "so I strangled Sarah and I would do it again! She would always treat me with cruelty, threatening me and all that."
Emilia rolled her eyes and looked up at Dr. Anthony who kissed her on the forehead, helping her up. They knew the rest of the story, how Sarah had been strangled in her own room the night before she was to be married.
Murdoch started when he saw the two people enter the room. Emilia had a shallow cut on one cheek but other than that, she seemed fine. Dr. Anthony briefly recounted the story to Murdoch, who sighed.
"I don't have to say I told you so."
"Oh, shut up! I'm going to get packing here." Emilia pulled out her suitcases, arranged her clothes in them, and then snapped the locks shut. She dragged out her steamer trunk, packed it full with her most precious possessions, and locked the trunk tightly. "What say we go to your house tonight, Will?"
"So soon? Well, I suppose."
Dr. Anthony bade them a fond farewell, left the home as Murdoch felt more of his weariness fall away from him. The sailor regained his energy, going over the house with Emilia and making sure that she had taken everything that she wanted. Several keepsakes found their way into her pockets, she picked up her summer and winter outdoor attire, packed them up, then called for a horse and hack wagon to haul the items to the home in Southampton.
"Come on, Will. Let's start our lives together." Emilia got up into the wagon and Murdoch followed her.
"Before we go on, I have a question," the sailor showed her a small emerald and sapphire ring. "will you help me make it official?"
"Do you need to ask?" Emilia laughed and allowed Murdoch to fit the ring on her finger. "It's perfect, just like you."
They kissed deeply as the clouds rolled into the sky and Emilia felt a drop of coldness on her shoulder. "Will, it's snowing!"
"Come on, we better get into town before your things get ruined!"
they huddled together on the buckboard seat and flicked the reins.
"There's going to be so many wonderful things ahead in store for us." Murdoch leaned his arm around his now fiancee's shoulders.
"I can't wait for the future now."
TELEGRAM FROM EMILIA AF WORTHINGTON TO STEPHEN AND EVELYN WORTHINGTON
Will and I are engaged STOP Wedding set in two months STOP Invite only 10 people, we want it low key as possible STOP
TELEGRAM FROM STEPHEN AND EVELYN WORTHINGTON TO EMILIA WORTHINGTON AND WILLIAM MURDOCH
Congratulations STOP We will be in town on the 15th of February STOP