Chapter Nine
Dear Mr. Cutting,
I am sorry to inform you that you are needed back at the office.
A problem has occurred and you a greatly needed as soon as possible.
This can not wait.
-FD
Teddy opened the door to his carriage before it was completely stopped. There was no point in waiting for his driver to come open the door. He stepped down and his feet hit the frost covered ground. A protest came from his driver but he wasn't listening. He slammed the door with furry, making the entire cab shake. His whole Sunday which was going to be spent with his loving wife was now gone and there would never be the chance to take back stolen time. He spent most of his week working stressful hours like he did any normal week. With no spare time on his hands, he looked forward to the weekends which were filled with social events that he would be attending with his wife and his good friend Henry. Only on Sundays he got the chance to stay at home and just relax. He didn't have to please anyone, no papers to fill out or hands to kiss. He only had to be himself, a husband, and a father, which was what he was best at.
On this particular Sunday, Teddy was called into the office because of an employee's mistake. He spent his whole day at the office trying to fix the problem. By the end of the day, everything was back into order. A couple years ago, Teddy inherited a large shipping company and all the fortune that came with it. He enjoyed what he did, but not enough to do it all the time. He had to fire the worker that made this error. If it wasn't caught when it was, it would have cost his company tons of money.
He walked up the front steps to his home. All that angry and frustration he had had before was going to have to be masked. He knew is wife would understand why he had to leave, but he had known her long enough to know how she really felt. Even though she didn't say it, her eyes always would say the words for her. He knew that she had been looking forward to today as much as he had. A little disappoint and pain would fill her eyes today. He prayed that she wouldn't be too heartbroken, there was still a little time left. Teddy collected himself before pushing open the door into his home embracing himself for Elizabeth's greeting.
Once he stepped inside, he realized something was different. The house was quiet. Also, Elizabeth had not been waiting to greet him when he got home. He was confused. He slipped off his coat and hung it up in its rightful place before heading upstairs to Keller's room. It was almost eight o'clock, the usual time he went to sleep. He figured his wife would be there too, rocking the young boy to sleep. But when he got there, he pushed the door quietly not to disturb anyone. But he found the room dark and the chair empty. The only light was from the rising moon that shone through the frosted window. He thought this was strange. When he turned around, he saw one of the maids walking by with her hands filled with freshly washed towels.
"Mary," he called out to the girl. She turned around surprised, almost dropping the contents in her arms.
"Yes Mr. Cutting? Is there anything I can help you with?" she asked walking towards him slowly. He nodded back at her, "can you tell me where is Elizabeth?"
Mary smiled, "she is downstairs and I can't believe you haven't heard her." She then turned on her heals and walked away, leaving Teddy standing alone in the dark hallway. Now he was very confused, he hadn't heard anyone. He then retraced his steps back down the stairs. He made his way towards the sitting room where she usually spent days reading by the fire. But when he walked inside, he found a book sitting on the couch arm and a blanket mangled on the floor. A fire danced in the fireplace. The light from the hearth reflected on one side of Teddy's face and casted a shadow on the other. He picked up the blanket and felt its warm material between his fingers.
It was then he heard a large bunch of laughter coming from behind the door. He smiled at the sound of Elizabeth's voice. He dropped the blanket and made his way towards the glow beaming at the bottom of the door. Behind it was his office. Why she was in there was a mystery to him. But without being announced, he opened the door and a wave of warm air overwhelmed him. Obviously the door had been shut for some time.
Elizabeth was the first thing he saw when he got inside. She didn't seem angry at all. In fact, she was smiling. She was sitting behind his large oak desk with her hands folded on top of it. Behind her was his oversized bookcase filled with many books. The cherry red curtains were shut and only the flicker from the fire lighted the room.
"Teddy," Elizabeth cheered and got up from behind the desk. She walked over to him with a smile on her face and excitement in her eyes. She kissed his cheek while he wrapped his arm around her small waist. He wanted more than just a kiss on the cheek but she didn't offer anything to him. Her eyes were fixed on something else. That's when he realized someone else was in the room. Teddy looked over at set of chairs and the couch on the far side of the room.
A woman's back was to him as she cradled something in her arms. She was resting against the arm of the tan loveseat, facing the warm light. Her chocolate colored curls fell against her bare shoulders. It was only when she turned around that he recognized their visitor.
"Hello Teddy," beamed Diana as she stranded up from her seat. Keller lay asleep in the cradle she made with her arms.
"Diana," he surprisingly said. He walked over to his sister-in-law and carefully gave her a welcoming hug. A million questions flooded his mind but all he did was smile.
"When did you get here?" was the first question that he happened to ask.
"She got here this afternoon," chimed Elizabeth behind. She walked up beside him and fell back into his arms.
"I actually docked this morning but I first ran to a local store and bought Keller a gift," Diana corrected her sister playfully.
"It's such a nice surprise to see you, it seems ages ago since we last saw you," Teddy commented.
"I know and it feels so great to be back, Paris was getting so dull." He noticed Elizabeth roll her beautiful eyes and everyone laughed quietly, making sure not to wake Keller.
"I better take Keller upstairs, I will be right back," Diana said as she made her way past Elizabeth.
"You know where it is right?" Elizabeth asked but her sister only smirked. When she walked out, Teddy gave his wife a long apologetic kiss.
"I am so sorry I had to leave today," he said.
"Teddy, it's okay. I understand that kind of stuff comes up but don't worry about me. I was with Di all day." Teddy only had to believe her.
"How long is she staying anyway?"
"For the time being. Also she is staying in one of our guest rooms upstairs if you don't mind," she explained.
"Of course not, besides we wouldn't want to burden your mother with her." He watched as Elizabeth's expression turned from happy to some sort of pain.
"Your right," she said. He knew he shouldn't ask but he was worried about her. Just then, Diana's head poked from behind the doorway.
"One of your maids told me that dinner was ready if we were," she said.
"Well I am," Teddy said looking back at Elizabeth. Her masked smile soon came back as she took his hand and led him out of his office. He knew she was worried about her mother. But what ever happened, he would be there by her side. Also Diana was here too so he knew Elizabeth wouldn't go through this alone. Yes, everything was going to be okay, he thought. But of course, no one can tell the future. Hopefully, everything was going to be okay.