Chapter 18

Benjamin went back to his room and sat at his desk. He had two options as to find out to where Louisa had been sent: ask her parents or ask Paul.

He imagined that the Dubois were not at all happy with the Dankworths for making their daughter go away, and even less with Benjamin for having, even if indirectly, been the reason for it.

Reluctantly, he got up and headed for Paul's bedroom door. He lifted his hand, took a deep breath, and knocked three times.

First the sound of the chair being dragged, then footsteps. Paul was approaching the door. As soon as he opened it, the look he gave Benjamin was cold.

"What do you want?"

"Where did they send her?" Paul raised an eyebrow.

"I do not know." He finally answered. "And why do you think if I knew, I would ever tell you?"

"I didn't know she had been kicked out. Nobody said anything to me."

"I have my doubts about your sincerity, Benjamin." Paul replied and Benjamin took a step towards the boy.

"I like her! I kept my distance because I thought I would be protecting her!" He said through gritted teeth.

"Oh, yes, of course. And that was really effective. The truth is, you did what was most convenient for you."

"You must think I'm a jerk, really." Benjamin placed a hand on his hips, shaking his head as he looked down. "But I'm not! If I'd known my mom had kicked Louisa out I would have tried to talk to my dad right away. And if there was nothing I could do, in the end, I would have enjoyed my time with her better, not giving an asshole like you a chance to take advantage of her frailty!"

"Enjoyed your time with her? Do not make me laugh! You would still be busy pampering my sister and being the perfect son, without any flaws, ready to obey the parents' orders blindly!" Paul mocked.

"Shut up! You do not know anything!"

"Yeah, I don't know anything. But now that doesn't matter, does it? The difference, Benjamin, is that I'm going after her as soon as we get out of this house. And I am ready for all it takes to be with her. Can you say the same?" Paul slammed the door shut in Benjamin's face, who growled loudly in frustration.

The trip to London took a little longer than expected, as one of the wheels got stuck because of some rocks in the road and they had to stop to fix it. Since the day was already starting to get dark, the Smiths preferred to stay overnight at a roadside inn.

Louisa stayed in a room alone, as it wouldn't be okay for her to sleep with the couple.

They all got up early the next morning, had breakfast, and were on their way, arriving in London about two hours later.

They passed through the fields and the landscape gave way to some paved streets, with houses getting bigger and bigger. They weren't like Iontach, but Louisa knew she should consider they were in the big city and not the country. The houses were not spaced far apart between each other in there.

The carriage stopped in front of a stately home, pale gray, with Greek-style pilasters—Louisa saw them in one of the books in Iontach's library once and has never forgotten them. The entrance to the house was flanked by beds of purplish flowers. Violets.

"Is it here?" Louisa asked.

Mr. Smith looked at a piece of paper and looked around before replying.

"Apparently, yes, dear." He got down and reached out to help Louisa. Mrs. Smith handed over the girl's small suitcase.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Smith!" Louisa thanked him, to which they both smiled.

"There is nothing to be thankful for, my dear. Here, save our address. It's where our daughter lives. We will stay for at least a month. But in case you need it and we're not there anymore, you can talk to her and she'll help you for sure." They had gone to London because their daughter had a baby and they were there to help with the infant.

Louisa thanked them again and kept the piece of paper with their address along with Paul's. They said goodbye and Louisa took her suitcase and went to the door. She took hold of the big ring at the door and knocked on it with that. It didn't take long for a man with graying hair to open the door and look her up and down.

"The servants must enter through the service door, young lady. Turn around and get in through the other door!" He said and closed the door, not giving Louisa a chance to say anything.

She didn't know where the other entrance was, but if he told her to turn around, it was probably in the back of the house. Louisa looked both ways and realized that she would have to take a good walk around the block. She went down the small stairs of the entrance and started to walk away, but the door opened behind her.

"Louisa?" a voice asked and the girl turned. A woman about Eva's age was standing there. Her features clearly stated that she was Louisa's aunt. She was wearing a navy blue dress of expensive fabric that Louisa recognized as silk. It was far more elegant than any dress Louisa had ever seen Mrs Judith in. The woman's hair was pulled back in an elegant bun, with a few strands straying framing her face.

"Yes?" Louisa replied.

A broad smile formed on the woman's face, who walked downstairs and caught up with Louisa, giving her a tight hug. She released the girl and looked at her, holding on to Louisa's shoulders. "Welcome!"

The man who had slammed the door in Louisa's face approached them and the woman motioned for him to take the suitcase.

"You can take it to Louisa's quarters, Randolf. Thanks." The woman took Louisa's hand and guided her to the entrance, through which they passed in seconds.

Louisa saw in front of her the most luxurious house she'd ever laid eyes on, and feet inside, too.

On the outside, the house wasn't as large as Iontach's, but inside, it was obviously much more elegant. The pattern of Greek pilasters was repeated along the wals, with a red and gold carpet hanging between each one. The floor was white, with some darker ones in the center of the room, forming a flower. A staircase wide enough for four people to climb together was adorned with a red carpet, and at the top it split in two. The banisters were white with golden lines.

"I'm Emmeline, as you may already suspect." She said, smiling. "I've waited so long for your coming! I'm your godmother and forgive me for not having more contact. Family isn't always easy, is it?" She continued walking and turned into a hallway on the right, before reaching the stairs. At the end of it, an imposing door. Emmeline knocked on the door and, without waiting for an answer, opened it.

"She is here!" she announced. Emmeline was jumping up and down and approached a man who was still sitting behind a large table. He stood up and Louisa saw how tall he was. His facial features could not be better described as 'noble', with a strong nose, but perfectly molded to his face, a thin mouth, with a well-groomed mustache and beard. His hair was blond and it was already possible to notice some gray hairs at his temples. He was a contrast to Emmeline, who fell below his shoulders, was thin and skinny.

Although Eva was four years younger than Emmeline, this one appeared to be much younger. 'Probably because of the kind of life they each had,' Louisa thought.

"I'm Roger, your godfather. Welcome to the Crawford residence, Louisa!" Despite being big and having a voice that matched his looks, he still sounded kind. But Louisa figured that if he yelled at someone, that person would feel its soul leaving the body.

Louisa smiled at the couple in front of her and bowed. Her life was about to chance and she could feel it. She was happy to finally be around her godparents, but this made her remember that Eva and Olivier were not there and it made her heart sink a bit.

She held back her tears. The couple in front of her were being nice, warm and welcome and she would not spoil the moment. Soon, she probably would have to go to some other house to start working, so, the better she could do was to enjoy her time with those two.

Emmeline and Roger were thrilling. Roger more for Emmeline than for anything else. He knew how much his wife wanted a baby girl. Louisa was no infant, but she was a young girl with the need of a female to help her sort things out. He felt sorry for the girl, no doubt. Being apart from her parents, but he would do his best to make not only his wiffe happy, but that girl in front of him.