Regular Time – The Next Morning
Elizabeth and Quentin still didn't know what happened to both Brian and Susie! There was no sign of them anywhere in Collinwood! Their jackets were still on the foyer coat rack, but they weren't in the house! Quentin even checked some of the secret passages that everyone knew about to see if they had got lost in them! But they were not in them as well! After a couple of hours of looking, Quentin decided he had better get something to eat before continuing the search for Brian and Susie.
As he went into the kitchen, he grimaced that Mrs. Johnson, nice woman that she was, was making everyone breakfast now! He smiled at her as he saw that the eggs were scrambled hard as a rock, the bacon was burnt beyond belief, and the toast was burnt to charcoal! He made an excuse that he wasn't hungry right now, and made a beeline to the front door only to remember that everyone was snowed in right now! He saw both David and Roger coming down the stairs, and warned them that Mrs. Johnson was making breakfast for everyone!
Roger had a bottle of Tums ready for such an emergency, and David had some as well! Quentin just laughed as father and son thought alike at times like this, and they joined in the laughter as well! Quentin then explained about Brian and Susie were still missing, and that there was no way they would have left without their coats. Roger actually had a concerned look on his face as did David. Roger told Quentin that they most likely are still in the house somewhere that was not searched yet, and could not find a way to out of their situation.
David said that he could help with the search, but Quentin told him that there was no need to because someone else could end up lost as well. David was disappointed, but he knew that his cousin was right. As they made their way to the dining room, Quentin kept thinking about that one room in the East Wing where Susie's scarf was found, and wondered if that was the key to their disappearance.
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Parallel Time – The Next Day
Brian, Susie, and Will were going over the plans to introduce Brian and Susie to the rest of the Collins family. Once Barnabas and Julia 'woke up', they would go over it with them as well. They were going to introduce themselves with Brian being from Long Island City, N.Y., while Susie was orphaned at an early age in Egypt.
Once the sun had set, Barnabas and Julia come upstairs to see what they were going to do. Will explained how they would introduce Brian and Susie to the family, and Barnabas and Julia seemed to think that would work. Everyone had put on their coats and jackets, and headed over to Collinwood. They arrived a short time later, and knocked on the door. Elizabeth answered the door, and smiled when she saw Barnabas, Julia, and Will. She wondered who the two strangers were once everyone was inside.
"Barnabas, Julia, who are your friends here?" Liz asked them.
"Elizabeth, this is Brian Collins, and his soon to be wife Susie Anck-sun." Barnabas said with a smile on his face.
"Brian Collins. Where are you from?" Liz wondered.
"I'm from Long Island City, N.Y. Grew up there even after my father and mother died some time ago." Brian said with a sad voice.
"And what about you Susan?" Liz asked Susie.
"It's Susie ma'am, and I'm from Egypt. My family died a long time ago as well." She told Elizabeth with sadness in her voice as well.
Brian put his arm around her to give her some comfort. She did the same with him as well. Elizabeth saw the two of them, and knew they were meant for each other. Liz led everyone to the Drawing Room, and told them to make themselves comfortable. Brian looked into the foyer again to see a portrait of Barnabas hanging up, and asked Liz about it.
"That portrait in the foyer. Is that a relative of Barnabas here?" Brian asked fully aware that it was.
"Yes. It's an ancestor of Barnabas here. He's the first Barnabas Collins that lived here. He and his wife Julia left here and went to England. I still can't get over the fact that the two of them look so much alike." Liz said with a smile towards Barnabas and Julia.
"Is there a portrait of Julia Collins then?" Susie asked Liz.
"No, but from what I have read in the Collins family history, she didn't like to have any portraits done of herself for some reason." Liz told them.
"I've always wondered how both Barnabas married someone Julia? It's strange to think both of them would somehow marry a woman named Julia." Will said for the hundredth time since knowing everyone.
"It is strange Will, but now is not the time to dwell on the past, it is time to think of the future." Barnabas said with a smile on his face.
"That reminds me Barnabas. I've decided to hire a new housekeeper to help Mrs. Johnson around here. She said she was bringing some snacks for everyone. I'll check to see what's keeping her." Liz said with a small smile as she left everyone.
Once she left, everyone breathed a sigh of relief as they had past the first of many questions so far about Brian and Susie. They talked in low voices so not to be heard by anyone else. They then heard Elizabeth talking to the new person that she had hired, and at least four of them thought they had recognized her voice! Will had no idea about the person, but the others did as they saw her for the first time. But it wasn't the first time that the four of them saw her! For they thought they had recognized her! For two of them, it was nearly two hundred years ago! For the other two, it wasn't that long ago, and they all saw her for who she was from their own time bands! She looked a lot like both….
