Henrietta

Farewell

~Chapter Eight~

Ettie seized on tightly to the small baggage in her hand and shuttered at the notion of taking a footstep out of the threshold. Her shoulders curved as she fastened her eyes on the floor and slowly inched the tip of her boot towards the other end of the exit. The large black carriage afore her seemed like a nightmare as Ettie jumped to hear her mother's high pitched shriek.

"Oh my little bonnet, how you've grown!"

Francis Layla Gades extended her long arms out to her daughter, rushing up the few large stone stairs. Ettie drew in a sharp breath and wrinkled her nose in repugnance as her lungs filled with her mother's depraved fragrance. When she released her Ettie let out a weighty breath and shyly looked at her mother. Strands of white hair invaded that of her long curled brown locks. Her blue eyes had faded to a dimmer shade and wrinkles graced her eyes. If Ettie remembered correctly, her mother would be turning forty and one.

"Well aren't you happy to see your old mum?" she asked.

Ettie forced herself to give a smile as she looked down to her feet and back up at her.

"It's just been such a long time." She murmured under her breath.

"Well now, let us get going, it is quite a long ride." She said.

Lady Gades reached out and took Ettie by the arm and as her feet moved down each step she felt her heart sink with every one she took. The wind suddenly picked up and leaves rustled one the ground as her feet finally reached the small little steps up to the carriage.

"Henrietta?" her mother questioned.

Ettie looked behind her to the large brown door and felt her chest heave as a tears spilled from her rosy pink cheeks. It pained her to leave, and even though the large mansion held an eerie ghostly presence, she could not fight that it felt like home.

"Henrietta?" her mother questioned once again.

"Forgive me." She muttered.

Slowly her foot reached the first small wooden step then the other, and before she knew it, she sat inside, her eyes tearing as the door closed before her. Her mother nestled in next to her and gave a light sigh as the carriage gave a sudden tug. Ettie closed her eyes and as tears spilled, she could not contain the pain that tore through her as she listened to the horses hooves trot away from the mansion.

"Is everything alright?" Lady Gades asked.

"Yes, mother, everything is fine." Ettie replied.

"I beg to differ, tell your old mum." She pestered.

Ettie lifted her gaze to look up at her mother as Lady Gades held a small handkerchief out to her.

"I know very well I have not been the world's greatest mother, but I am here now, I do hope to rekindle our relationship again. When The Night of Theodosia wrote me that letter I thought I would burst, I searched high and low for you, the last people had seen of you was wandering the market." She whispered.

"You searched for me?" Ettie asked, surprised.

"After your father passed away, I know I wasn't in the right state of mind. Once I remarried and met Franklin, I was able to...feel again. He encouraged me to look for you; I understood it was the last hole in my heart to fill. If I found you I knew my happiness would be complete once again, and it finally is." She confessed.