The Frozen Rose

CHAPTER ONE: Seven years ago...

Every one of the Brompton family was in the parlour. Everyone except one man - the head of the household.

Officially there were two men missing, but no one had ever spoken of him since last year. He was no longer a part of the family.

Lady Anne was holding the hand of her oldest son, Andrew, hoping he would be able to give her support. His hand was probably almost crushed, but he did not flinch. He was not the only one who felt numb while waiting for disaster to strike.

Everyone was hopeful, saying there was still a chance her father would recover. But Elizabeth did not believe that. She pretended she did, so that her mother would have more hope. But in her mind, she kept repeating how she should not hope, for it would only be crushed.

Mary, the youngest of the Bromptons, was held by Thomas, the second youngest. She tried not to cry, but just like her mother, she had the urge to be overdramatic. Certainly, it was normal to feel sad and painful, but she was crying and wining like disaster had already struck.

Elizabeth sighed, feeling quite lonely. Yes, she was surrounded by her family, but there was one person missing.

She hoped he would come. She had send him a letter, saying today might be the day. But thus far, he had not replied. Did he think she was lying? That this was a way for her to get him back?

She would never set herself so low as to make up a lie to get pity from someone. She was stronger than that – something she had learned from her father. Her mother had told her that when he wanted to be there for her, he would come. Elizabeth made up reasons why he would not be here, like he had had an accident on his horse or he was stuck because of the bad weather.

But every reason she came up with, was so easily dismissed. He was an excellent horseback rider, and the sun was shining bright. Too bright, she thought, for such a dark day.

Truly, the whole year had been dark. Not only did her parents make a difficult decision, it was also the beginning of their end. Their family felt the aftermath of the choice they made, but she also felt lonely. It sounded easy to be lonely. After all, her brother, Andrew, had always been quite lonely. But truly feeling that loneliness and living with it, was much harder than it seemed.

She was frightened to tell her family how she felt, for that might make them laugh at her and tell her it is stupid to feel that way over young love. She was only 17 years old after all. What did she know of love?

Yet being without him and assuming she would never see him again, hurt her more than anyone could imagine. She did not think anyone would understand. Andrew was too lonely, Thomas too insensitive and Mary too young. Mayhap lady Anne would understand, but she was happily married with children. Did she know what it was like to be hurt?

Elizabeth shook her head. Her father would never have left her mother, not for any reason. They loved each other so much, they could never hurt each other. Then why could he? Had she not thought they had the same kind of love their parents had? Did she not think they would be forever?

She knew she could ask Andrew about him. After all, her brother was his best friend. They went to school together, and he is the reason they met. Him visiting his friend, wanting to spend time with him, but entering the house and seeing Elizabeth instead. He kept returning and both she and Andrew believed it was more for her than for him.

Her brother did not mind. In fact, he seemed to like it, for his relationship with Elizabeth created a closer bonds with his friend. Elizabeth knew it was a good thing, for Andrew was quite lonely. Most of the time, she felt he needed someone by his side to support him and fill his days. Of course, she had wanted a woman for him, but she was happy he at least had a friend. She would give Andrew a lot of time with him, but at the end of the day, he came to the Brompton estate for her and she asked for his presence with her.

Their courtship was quite private. They spend most of their time inside the Brompton estate, but they also went to walk around London. People had seen them together, and they knew they were courting each other. But no one knew of the latest developments – luckily. She hoped no one ever would and that all will be alright in the end. But something inside her told a different story. Would he not be here if he truly wanted her?

Had she misjudged him and their relationship completely? Had she felt more for him than he had felt for her? Was everything they had done, everything he had said, a lie? Was he an evil man?

The door to the parlour suddenly opened, taking Elizabeth out of her useless trail of thought. They would not change anything in her life, then why would she think and hope? If she could not hope for her father's life, why could she still hope for him?

The doctor entered the room, his face as sad and dark as his tailcoat. He looked around at everyone's face, before he stated: "My sincere apologies for your loss..."