Carson blew through the servant's halls in Grantham House as easily as he did at the Abbey. He had just received a telegram for His Lordship and was on his way to deliver it. The maids and footmen parted before his thunderous gaze. They knew well his temper and when to avoid it. His scowl lifted, though, as he spotted Anna farther along the corridor.
"Anna," he called out, brightening his countenance as he caught up with her. "Did you and Mrs. Patmore have any trouble finding Harley Street this morning?"
"No, Mr. Carson," Anna said with a slight curtsey. "We found the doctor all right."
Mr. Carson nodded thoughtfully. "And Mrs. Patmore," he paused. "Was she...well when you left her?"
Anna smiled. "Yes, Mr. Carson. The doctor said we could pick her up in a fortnight and she would be right as rain."
Mr. Carson cleared his throat. "Very good. Thank you, Anna."
He felt Anna's eyes on his back as he continued on his way. Mr. Carson didn't know why Anna seemed so surprised that he would ask after Mrs. Patmore's well-being. She was a member of his staff and a butler was only as good as his staff. He grunted irritably at a hall boy that didn't scurry out his way fast enough. That Mrs. Hughes would be happy for news of the cook was of no consequence.
Robert smiled as his wife and three daughters breezed into the sitting room of Grantham House fresh from their outing to one of London's many dressmakers. "You're just in time for tea," he said rising from his chair. "I almost thought you wouldn't make it."
"So did we," Cora said giving him a quick kiss. She smiled indulgently at their girls. "I'm afraid some of us got a bit carried away."
"Oh dear! Do I have any money left?" Robert joked.
"Not very much, I'm afraid," Mary quipped.
"Oh, Papa! I've found the absolute perfect dress for Lord and Lady Merton's ball next week," Sybil gushed as they all sat.
Robert reached for Cora's hand beside him, running his thumb across the back of her hand as they listened to their youngest exclaim over the shopping trip. He smiled at his family happily gathered together. He was so proud to have them all. He met Cora's eye with a grin and leaned over for another easy kiss.
He froze momentarily when he leaned back into his own seat. He'd caught sight of Carson stood quietly behind the table where the tea was laid. He consciously loosened his jaw to smile at a small joke from Edith. This was his family.
"Carson," Robert called out. "I'm sure that Thomas and William can serve our tea today. Don't you have preparations for Lady Sybil's presentation ball to attend to?"
The room fell into silence. Carson's eyes darted to Robert's in mild shock. He nodded stiffly. "Of course, Your Lordship."
Robert held onto Cora's hand more tightly as he watched Carson leave.
"I thought perhaps you could wear this dress tonight, my Lady," Anna said holding up a delicate evening gown for Mary's approval.
"Of course," Mary half-smiled, barely glancing at the dark green frock. She stood pliantly as Anna dressed her in silence.
Mary was troubled. Oh! How she hated that word! Troubled. It sounded much too much like Edith. Mary sneered. But...there was no other word to describe what she felt. She was troubled.
She hadn't realized how much the events of the past year still affected her family until Papa had sent Carson out of the room earlier. After Matthew had accepted Carson as Mary's father, Mary had thought the whole business over. She was going to marry Matthew and she was happy. Shouldn't everyone else be happy, too? What did it matter anymore about her true relationship to Carson? Couldn't Papa just let it go?
Mary frowned as a new thought struck her. Was Papa regretting his decision to have her as his daughter? He had told her that she was his as far as he was concerned, regardless of her mother's affair. And he had seemed genuinely happy at the news of her engagement. But was it all an act?
"Anna," Mary began carefully. "Do you think I'm doing the right thing?"
"The right thing, milady?"
"In marrying Matthew," she clarified. "Am I right to be marrying him?"
"It's not my place to say, milady, but," Anna smiled, "you seem very happy."
Mary smiled back. "I am very happy."
Anna nodded as she adjusted Mary's necklace. "Then, yes, I think you're doing the right thing."
Mary nodded not quite convinced. Perhaps Anna was right. If she was happy did it matter what anyone else thought? Mary stared at her reflection in the mirror.
Yes. It did. It mattered a great deal.
Carson stood silent and stone-faced in the drawing room after dinner. Thomas and William were serving after dinner drinks. After this afternoon, Carson thought it best to limit his interactions with Lord Grantham. His Lordship's rebuke had been particularly harsh and he had been hard put to explain it to his footmen without raising their suspicions about why Lord Grantham had banished him from the room. Dinner had been difficult, but Carson's place was behind Lord Grantham when he wasn't pouring the wine so he had escaped unscathed. Now, in the drawing room, Carson stood as still and inconspicuous as he could.
Lord Grantham was ignoring him. Carson had expected His Lordship to be prickly with him, but before they had left Downton, he had seemed more at ease in his butler's presence. Carson had tried to step back from Lady Mary and push her toward her father, but after he had found her crying beneath the old tree at Downton he hadn't been able to ignore her. He had always been a shoulder to cry on for Lady Mary. The habits of a lifetime didn't die easily. Perhaps Lord Grantham had discovered that it was Carson who had given Lady Mary advice with regards to Mr. Matthew. That would certainly explain the vitriol he'd spewed at tea today.
Lady Mary herself had been withdrawn all evening. Even now, she had sequestered herself at the corner card table with a game of solitaire. Carson forced himself not to glance too often in her direction. He was worried about her. She and the Dowager Countess could always be counted upon to match wits at the dinner table, but Lady Mary had barely uttered three words the entire night.
Thomas and William returned to his side after serving the last of the drinks. Carson nodded to dismiss them. He glanced quickly around the room to make sure that all was in order and caught Lord Grantham's eye. Both men froze with hardened faces. Carson blinked and forced himself to turn and walk out of the room. He would have to be more careful around Lord Grantham from now on it seemed.
"Goodnight, Papa," Edith said giving Robert a kiss on his cheek. Robert smiled down at her indulgently.
"Goodnight, Edith dear." Robert watched her leave thoughtfully. Poor Edith. Always falling behind no matter how much she tried to scratch her way to the top. He would have to spend more time with her. He had been neglecting her between Mary's crisis and Sybil's first Season.
He looked across the room to where his eldest daughter was still playing cards alone. They were the last two up. He walked over to her. "You've been awfully quiet tonight. Is everything all right?"
Mary glanced up from her card game. "Yes. Only… I've been thinking."
Robert chuckled. "That's never a good thing!"
Mary smiled ruefully then looked up at Robert solemnly. "Papa, are you," she hesitated, "angry with me?"
Robert frowned and sat down across from her. "Angry with you? Why would I be angry with you?" he asked genuinely confused.
"Because I'm marrying Matthew."
Robert studied Mary's face closely. "I don't understand. Why would I be angry with you for marrying Matthew? Do you not want to marry him?"
"No! I mean, yes, I do want to, but," Mary sighed and looked back down at her cards. "He's the heir to Downton and I'm just...me," she finished softly.
Robert's eyes widened as he finally understood Mary's question. "Mary," he said gently, reaching for her hand across the table. "Look at me, please." He waited for her look up from the table. "I am not angry at you. I am so very happy for you and Matthew. I couldn't ask for a better husband for my daughter. And you are my daughter. You always have been and you always will be. I promise you that."
Mary's eyes shone too brightly across at him. She blinked rapidly. "So you're not angry about Carson?"
Robert forced himself to smile. "No, I'm not angry with you about Carson."
Mary nodded. She breathed deeply and rose from her chair. She smiled briefly at him and then leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. "Thank you, Papa. Goodnight."
"Goodnight, darling," Robert returned as he watched her walk to the door. He hesitated, then called out, "Mary!" She turned back to him. "As hard as it is for an Englishman to say, I do love you."
Mary grinned brightly at him. "I love you, too, Papa."