This is the story of Thomas Barrow.
Thomas Barrow has been working as the first footman at Downton Abbey for years. He's always been careful to keep his personal life hidden from the prying eyes of the other staff members and the Crawley family. Bu...
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It was another busy day at Downton Abbey and Thomas was up early to carry out his duties as first footman. He made sure his daughter Ellie was well fed and changed before taking her to the nursery room. As he walked through the halls, he couldn't help but notice Miss O'Brien's strange behaviour.
Miss O'Brien simply scowled at him and continued on her way. This wasn't the first time Thomas had noticed her acting strangely around him and his daughter.
As the day went on, Thomas kept bumping into Miss O'Brien and he grew increasingly weary of her behavior. He could tell that she didn't like his baby and it made him uncomfortable.
"Is there something wrong, Miss O'Brien?" he asked her, trying to get to the bottom of her animosity towards Ellie.
Miss O'Brien simply shook her head and muttered something under her breath before walking away. Thomas couldn't help but feel frustrated with her.
Later in the day, Thomas overheard Miss O'Brien talking to another maid about his daughter.
"I don't see why he has that baby with him," she said, her voice dripping with disdain. "It's not proper and it's certainly not welcome here."
Thomas felt his blood boil. How dare she speak about his daughter like that? He had never heard such cruelty from her before.
As the day drew to a close, Thomas couldn't help but feel grateful for the other staff members who had welcomed Ellie with open arms.
But he couldn't shake the feeling of unease that came with Miss O'Brien's behavior. He knew he would have to confront her about it sooner or later.
For now, he simply went about his duties, hoping that things would eventually settle down and that his daughter would be accepted by all members of the Downton Abbey staff.
~
As the day progressed, Thomas started to feel like something was wrong. He couldn't shake off the feeling that Ellie needed him. His heart raced as he hurried to the nursery room, but as he got there, his eyes widened in fear. The door was locked, and smoke was starting to appear from underneath it. Panic set in as he tried to force the door open, shouting and screaming for help, all the while hearing his baby wailing on the other side.
" Ellie! Ellie! The room is on fire! Help me, someone, please!" Thomas shouted in desperation.
The smell of smoke grew stronger, and Thomas knew he had to get Ellie out of there. He kicked the door with all his might, and finally, it gave way. He rushed inside, choking on the thick smoke, and grabbed his wailing daughter, holding her close to his chest.
"Come on, Ellie. Daddy's got you. We're going to get out of here," he reassured her.
As they made their way out of the burning room, Thomas spotted Miss O'Brien, and he knew what she had done. She had locked Ellie in the nursery and set it on fire.
Thomas felt a surge of anger and fear. He had to get Ellie to safety, but he also knew that he had to confront Miss O'Brien. He tightened his grip on Ellie and stepped towards her, his eyes never leaving hers.
Before he could tell anyone what she had done she had disappeared from sight. Thomas let out a sigh of relief as he held his daughter close, tears streaming down his face. "Thank God you're okay," he whispered to her, his voice filled with emotion.
As they rushed out of the room and into the fresh air, the family and the servants gathered around them, relieved that they had all made it out safely.
"We have to find out how this happened," Lord Grantham said, his voice filled with determination. "We can't let this kind of thing happen again."
Though Thomas already knew how it happened for now it could wait until the morning, to him all that mattered was that his precious daughter was safe and sound in his arms.
