Cora glided through the front door as Elliot stood to attention. She barely noticed him as she stepped through the foyer and turned towards the grand staircase that led to her room. Trying to process everything that had happened was demanding all of her energy and then some. She opened her bedroom door and meandered across to her vanity as she tried to contemplate what Robert had told her about John. She could never see her husband in the same light again now but at least she wouldn't have to face him for another few days.
Reaching down, Cora's hand closed around the handle of the bottom drawer and she pulled it open and took out her jewellery box. Sitting it in front of her, Cora unclipped her purse and pulled out the note Robert had given her when they parted ways. She slowly unfolded the paper and found an address of a hotel in northern London, The Marquis Hotel along with instructions to go there if she badly needed to get away from John in a hurry. Her body temperature rose as she read the last part: Send me a message and I will meet you there as fast as I can. Carefully refolding the note, Cora unclipped the jewellery box and pulled out her mothers' letters so that she could place Robert's note at the very bottom, just in case John should ever see fit to look inside. She then bent down and returned the box to its hiding place before sitting up and staring at herself in the mirror.
Cora's eyes flickered down to her hands and she examined them absentmindedly as her mind took her back to the moment Robert had taken her hands in his. In that moment, Cora had thought he would kiss her but something appeared to have stopped him. Conscience of the fact she was married maybe? Cora loved his honourable side but she also knew for certain now that she really wanted to be with him and not John though of course it was a foolish idea to entertain. She still didn't know for sure what Robert really felt about her and John wasn't the sort of man to cross lightly either. But still, Cora couldn't help but look forward to seeing Robert again on Saturday.
A slight movement on the bed made Cora wake with a start. The dream she had been having was nothing special but it wasn't enough to make her stir, let alone switch her senses onto full alert so why was she awake when it was clearly the early hours of the morning? As the features of the room came into focus and Cora started to calm down, she rolled onto her back and let out a sigh of relief. Then her mattress moved again, even though she was perfectly still. Cora froze as her eyes came to rest on the black outline of a figure sitting at the end of her bed.
Bedcovers were thrown hastily to one side as Cora leapt out of bed and backed away in the direction of the door. All her senses were now screaming at her to get away but she seemed to be partially paralyzed as the figure rose up and came around the bed towards her. Cora's back hit the wall and she stood, rooted to the ground as the figure drew closer. "So Cora, did you miss me?" A deep, gravelly voice ripped through the air between them.
"John!" Cora blanched. Thinking quickly as he took another two steps closer she tried to distract him. "Wh-when did you get back? I hadn't expected you so soon." The admission weighed heavy as she thought of Robert.
"Oh I arrived a couple of hours ago after stopping to get something on the way back into town." Cora thought she could guess what it was that he had stopped for because as he drew closer still, it was becoming more and more potent. She also could make out the faint white powder remains sitting just under John's nose and unless she was very much mistaken, she was seeing the evidence of John's other addiction first hand. He closed the gap between them and Cora could feel a gastronomical amount of heat radiating out from his body. His eyes were diluted and his breath stank of whiskey.
"John for heaven's sake what are you trying to do to yourself?" Cora said as she fought to keep her voice even.
"Why must it end so quickly?" John grumbled hoarsely. "For half a bloody hour I feel amazing and then the stuff pulls me back into darkness and despair." Cora's blood ran cold as his hands found her throat and he cut off her air supply. "WHY?!" he roared manically as Cora struggled to loosen his hold on her neck. She couldn't breathe. Her chest constricted and then she started to slip into hell as John bashed her head against the wall in frustration. He grabbed her arms as she went limp and pinned her up against the wall, fumbling with her nightgown desperately. Blood trickled down one of her arms as his long, unkept fingernails dug into her. Inside, she was screaming wildly but it didn't rise out of her and she didn't make a sound as he found his way between her thighs. Cora Durham was the silent victim of her husbands' substance abuse and his venting on her for being addicted.
After an unknown amount of time, Cora slowly became aware of her surroundings again. She was in a crumpled heap on the floor against the wall and her muscles all screeched in protest when she tried to move. John had disappeared at some point when Cora had lost consciousness and she lay panting from her first attempt to sit up. Was it even possible? Pain shot out from the back of her head and hit her eyes from the inside rendering momentarily blinded. She cried out as fresh pain which felt like stabs from multiple sharp blades tried to stop her from crawling to her vanity on her hands and knees. After stopping to rest several times she reached out and yanked out the bottom draw. Her hands shook as she tried to get the clip of the jewellery box open and she began to sweat with the tension. Finally, it came loose and Cora reached down to the bottom and pulled out Robert's note, her only lifeline. Deep down, Cora knew that if she were to stay with John now, then the eventual cost would be her life. Chilled by the realization, Cora knew what she had to do.
It took Cora a long time to get herself ready. She managed to force herself onto her feet with the aid of her vanity chair before treading carefully to the bathroom where she washed her face using a bucket full of water that had been left by Miss Lacombe. She managed to clean off the blood that stained her skin on her arm leaving only a deep gash and then she retraced her steps back into her room to find an outfit.
Cora rummaged through her dresses and eventually found her grey travel ensemble that she had been looking for. As her back spasmed in protest, Cora pulled off her nightgown and started wriggling into her travel dress, not bothering to put on her corset. Her hands reached behind her in the dark and located the tiny zip at the back and she pulled it up, all the while biting down on her lip as her shoulders made their discomfort plain. Lastly, she went back to her vanity and found her purse. Slipping Robert's note inside it she crept out of her room and along the hallway to her sitting room and her desk.
Cora's eyes were now so well adjusted to the light that she grabbed a piece of paper and her pen and proceeded to compose a quick note for Robert almost effortlessly. As soon as she was satisfied that she had included everything he needed to know without any major details she put her pen down and picked up the message, holding it open to allow the ink to dry and swiftly but silently left the house.
The night air of the city was beginning to lift and the inky veil that held the stars was rolling back to make way for a softer orangey pink effect in the east. But Cora didn't have time to marvel at the sky as dawn neared. She forced herself to set a blistering pace away from Brougham House and her demented marriage for two blocks until she emerged into a main street. During the day, walking along the footpath here in a straight line was next to impossible but now it was very quiet. Cora clutched her side as stitch from her exertions set in and she bent forward slightly.
"Are you alright there ma'am?" Cora looked up to find a middle class, older man looking down at her kindly.
"I do apologize for my appearance sir," Cora started. "No, I am not quite alright. I need a carriage to take me to The Marquis Hotel but I doubt there will be any at this hour."
The man noted her American accent and laughed. "Ah ma'am, you are in London now and this town doesn't sleep anymore than New York does." He stepped past her and walked to the street corner as Cora watched him cautiously. Suddenly he started whistling and flapping his arms around as Cora tried not to laugh, briefly forgetting her pain and her purpose. The man walked back and bowed deeply before her, his grey hair rustling in the breeze. "Here is your carriage ma'am," he said boldly. Cora looked behind him and saw an empty coach come around the corner towards her, then she turned her attention to the man and dug into her purse.
"Thank you ever so much good sir," she said appreciatively as she pressed some coins into the man's hand. "I really mean it. You wouldn't be able to do one more thing for me?"
"And what is that ma'am?" Cora folded her message so that Robert's name was on the front but nothing else was visible.
"I need this delivered to Crawley House as quickly as can be managed. Are you willing to do this for me?" she asked hopefully. The man nodded and bowed once again as he took off down the road at a jog. Cora watched him for a brief moment as the carriage halted in front of her.
"Where to madam?" the driver enquired.
"The Marquis Hotel please," Cora said firmly as he opened the door and she hauled herself inside.
Patrick, the Earl of Grantham sat contentedly at the head of the table in the dining room, chewing on some bacon. Robert and Rosamund ate their breakfast on either side of him, each lost in their own thoughts. Rosamund shot Robert a look across the table as Robert's cheeks started to go rosy. She knew that Lady Durham occupied his thoughts most of the time these days though she was careful not to broach the subject too often as she did not want their parent's to pick up the scent of what was going on. Robert caught her eye and took the hint, bending over his plate of eggs and toast and consuming them with renewed vigor.
As the breakfast continued, Oldroyd appeared with the morning post. The Earl wasted no time in taking his share of the correspondence before Oldroyd turned to Robert and offered him a message with no envelope. The butler was on the verge of saying something about it when Robert cut him off. "Thank you Oldroyd. Is there anything for Lady Crawley?" He took the message and silently communicated with Rosamund across the table as he looked down and recognized Cora's handwriting.
"Yes Oldroyd, I am expecting a letter," Rosamund made up, taking the hint from her brother.
"No My Lady, I apologize but no." Forgetting all about the odd message that the man had brought to the doorstep, totally puffed, Oldroyd retreated to leave his employers in peace.
Robert, meanwhile had read Cora's note three times over and he could almost smell the urgency in her ink. He promptly pushed his chair back, excusing himself from the table claiming a sudden headache as his father tried to talk him into finishing his food.
"No Papa, I am sorry but I just don't feel up to it now," he said as he hurried out of the room.
Robert dashed to the library and hastily composed a note of his own for Rosamund before carrying it up to her room and leaving it on her vanity. Turning to her closet, he raked through her dresses, grabbing several along with her shawl and a pair of gloves. Laying them on his arm he then raced into his own room and found an old leather bag from his school years which he stuffed the articles of clothing into. Robert tried to keep his breathing even as he pulled out his riding boots and changed into them but his brain was invaded with images of Cora, injured and alone in a place she was not familiar with. He snatched up the bag and headed out the door, down to the stables where his mount was penned.