THE MORRAB LIBRARY

Once Mr Mason (with the unnecessary help of the orderly, pushy butler) arranged a lift to the station with Mr Bennet, they loaded the luggage and took off.

The car ride didn't take long, and neither did the train ride, surprisingly. Around midday they finally arrived in Cornwall. They were picked up by John (one of Mr Mason's cousin's employees) and soon enough they found themselves at the doorsteps of their humble yet picturesque hotel.

"Welcome back, cousin Albert!" Mr Hart bellowed when he saw his favourite relative walk in through his door. Bernard Hart didn't look dissimilar to Mr Mason, the main difference was a couple more pounds around the waist and in his cheeks, oh, and darker hair.

"Good to see you again, Bernie!" The farmer jumped straight into his cousin's embrace. "And you Ann!" He then turned to his wife.

Ann Hart stepped out from behind her husband to greet everyone. She was a tad shorter than Mrs Hughes but a tad taller than Mrs Patmore. Her glasses were hiding her small dark brown eyes, and her smile was very broad and welcoming. "Cousin Albert, Beryl." She patted the farmer's shoulder. "And Mr and Mrs Carson." They all met before, at the Masons' wedding but only very briefly.

"It's nice of you to invite us." Mr Carson nodded towards them.

"Very nice indeed." His wife joined.

"We've got so much planned for you, you won't even have time to tie your boots!" Said Mr Hart with a boisterous belly laugh.

"And what's that?" Mrs Patmore was already excited.

"We've got some Cornish cider tasting for everyone this evening, and tomorrow a boat ride for the men and a little special Cornish workshop for women." Mrs Hart announced.

"What about the Morrab library, when can we fit that in?" Mrs Hughes panicked for a moment; she would hate to break her word to her husband.

"We will do that today, now in fact, after you've unpacked, and after a quick lunch Mrs Hart has prepared." Bernard smiled at the Carsons. "Will you need more than two hours in there, Mr Carson? We can take the others for a walk around Penzance while you're there."

"Two hours should be more than enough." The butler confirmed.

"Fantastic, let us show you to your rooms then." Mr Hart chimed and led the two couples up the stairs, all the way to their loft rooms.

…

The group of five dropped Mr Carson off at the library and carried on to see the town, the port, and the beach of Penzance. They arranged to meet the butler in ninety minutes in the Morrab Gardens under the gazebo. Once they returned (on the dot) Mr Carson was still nowhere to be found. After a few moments, Mrs Hughes decided to fetch him.

When she entered the library, she found Mr Carson sitting behind a table with a hefty book, jotting down notes into his logbook.

"Mr Carson?" She said quietly, mindful of not disturbing others, and he looked up at her.

"Is that the time?" Charles took out his pocket watch to double-check.

"It is." She stepped closer to him. "The Harts and the Masons are getting rather inpatient."

Mr Carson exhaled in frustration. "I- I am struggling a bit." He admitted and showed her his shaking hand. "I want to make sure I'll be able to read my notes after, so it's taking a while."

"Oh, Charlie," she said almost inaudibly and titled her head sympathetically. "Would you like me to help?"

"I think I would actually." He forced a smile.

"I will go and tell them we will be another… Twenty minutes, you think?" He nodded to approve her estimate, and she promptly left the library.

When Elsie came back, she sat down next to her husband. He handed her his pen and his notepad and showed her the bits from the book he wanted noted down.

"It got worse, didn't it?" She whispered while writing, referring to his tremors.

"Maybe." He replied plainly.

"It always gets worse when you get worked up about things…" She noted without looking at him, as she recalled his recent over-the-top, unreasonable behaviour.

"Hmm… Maybe…" Charles said again, trying to remain vague to make sure they don't delve deeper into the subject. "No need to write that down, Elsie, you can move onto this paragraph." He guided her, turning the page.

They just sat there in silence, Mrs Hughes transcribing and Mr Carson staring at her, and seldom directing her. After a few moments, Mr Carson suddenly leaned in closer to her, she could feel his warm breath on her cheeks. "Have I ever told you I have always admired your handwriting?" He whispered.

"Oh," She stopped for a second. "No, you haven't." And shook her head. "That's high praise coming from you." She bit back a laugh.

"Hmm." Mr Carson chuckled at that. "Get away with you." He muttered, causing her to blush.

After a few moments, she composed herself and added. "Is that what made you fall for me, then, Mr Carson, my handwriting?" She teased him, her voice very high-pitched.

Mr Carson just raised his eyebrow at her. He opened his mouth to speak, but he quickly closed it again, jumped slightly, and grumbled 'sorry' in embarrassment, as they were being shushed judgingly by one of the librarians.