Mysterious Seduction

XXXIII. Guardian Angel

Days later, Ellie had everything she needed.

But not where she needed them to be.

The challenge now was how to go back belowground.

She barely slept as the old man stayed a few more days aboveground.

All she could do for now was wait.

-Above and Below

*****

As much as she wanted to go back to Ulric, Emma realized that it was best she stayed away for a while and give Wynne enough time to recover and herself to organize her thoughts.

To only way she found best to do so was put everything she knew in perspective and she did just that for the next days that followed. She wrote and drew everything she knew about Wynne and the incidents that occurred before and after Emma discovered his true identity.

She placed marks on things unknown to her, perhaps because they could only be explained by Wynne himself or other people like Samuel, her brothers and Margaret.

Her sister may have shared her relationship with the League, but Margaret never discussed in full detail what she had been working on. Just like how they knew Fiona was a Trilby, but how she was rescued or the events that happened prior to her rescue, were never discussed. The same could be said for Maxine, Samuel's sister. They knew her mother was a Trilby, but Emma was not aware how far Maxine had gotten close to that side of her family when she discovered her identity. Maxwell never shared anything, nor was he willing to discuss it. Even the full story of Aurora Randolph was a blur. She had disappeared from Wickhurst and later died, leaving behind a daughter.

As she stared at everything she had come up so far, Emma realized how ignorant she had been—still was. There had been too many things going on and she was left in the dark.

All she was told was that the Trilbys were the enemy.

But who amongst them, truly?

Any woman could say that the Everards were rakehells. Yet she knew well enough that most of her brothers were never such. Could one truly define an individual by the family they belong to?

Could they judge Wynne because he happened to be a Trilby?

She knew that her argument could enlighten her family, but not now when they were this cautious for the truth still remained that any of the Trilbys could be the enemy.

Emma stood and looked down at the large parchment on the table.

Wynne saved Samuel.

That was one of the facts she could say with confidence.

But why would Samuel lead others to believe otherwise?

*****

With one last thing to do, Emma went to the bedchamber Faye and Fiona shared in the Everard manor.

In merely a few days, the children and their parents would be bound to Devonshire.

"Aunt Emma!" Faye said, beaming at her as she brushed Fiona's hair.

"Hello, darlings," Emma said, sauntering into the room. She smiled and then hesitated.

The girls looked quite happy. Any sign of stress from the fire was no longer in evidence. If she wanted to talk about that night, she had to be very careful. If she made one wrong move, Margaret would never allow her near the girls.