Chapter 10

"You can't start the next chapter of your life if you're still re-reading the last one."

Alexander woke with a start, breath laboured and his hair sticking to his forehead, heart pounding as he looked out at the still-dark streets. Looking at the small alarm clock on his bedside cabinet, he makes out that it was four-thirty five in the morning. Slumping back in his bed, he reaches a hand out to his left. Grasping nothing, Alexander clutched the covers tightly and pulled them over his head. Weeping quietly, he felt so alone.

'I need her back', Alexnder's mind was going blank. He felt so unwanted, lost too. He almost didn't know what to do with himself.

He twisted and turned in his bed for the next half an hour before falling back into a restless sleep. Sighing he got up and looked at the floor for the next few minutes before going and putting his dressing gown on. Alexander walked down the hallway and the stairs into the dining room, looking around he tried to find Emma.

His heart lurched for a second. 'She isn't here.'

Emma's presence was something he had gotten used to her wandering around or just her presence in the room. Now it was just silence and this silence was becoming unbearable; he looked into his cup of tea. He took a slow sip, welcoming the hot liquid, but still, its taste was dull. Alexander set his cup down, greeted the maids with a nod and disappeared upstairs.

Walking slowly through the hallway, Alexander found himself in front of Emma's office. He tried opening the door, found it was locked. He tried again. Punched the door once, twice, three times before leaning against it and sliding down to the floor, Alexander felt his eyes burn, feeling as if that door was a metaphor for Emma closing her heart on him.

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Emma was going through the motions herself, either staying cooped up in her room wither her writing materials or just going back to consuming copious amounts of coffee. Emma doesn't feel anything akin to pain, but there was a type of numbness, a disconnect between her thoughts and her feelings.

Emma sat by her window, zoning out before she shook herself out of her stupor and went downstairs, looking at the clock that hung on the wall at the end of the hallway, it read ten past six. The whole house was quiet except for the bustling activities in the servants quarters and the kitchen. Stepping into the kitchen and quietly rummaging through the cabinets, trying to find the coffee that had already been ground.

"Miss, may I help you?"

"Can I have a cup of coffee please?"

"Yes, I will start making it right away. Where should I bring you your coffee?"

"You can bring it to the front room, I will be writing there. Is there also someone that can run a letter to the nearest post box today?"

The maid curtseyed, "I will have to ask Bertha to check the schedules of maids working today."

Emma watched as the maid left, and just sat down. Before hurrying upstairs to her desk to grab her writing material before settling down at the table. Resting her head gently down on the table, the quiet clinking of porcelain on wood, signifying that the young maid was back. The maid bowed again before leaving the room quietly.

Sitting up slowly Emma opened her notebook and stared at the paper for a long while. The buzz in her head became incessant, squeezing her eyes tight she pictured silence, waiting for a short moment for it to go away. Even though it felt like an eternity has gone by. Her right hand absentmindedly went to rub the ring finger on her left hand. Noting the lack of a ring, she held her breath, about to panic due to the absence of the wedding ring. Until she reminded herself that it was in her office drawer. Locked and secured.

Emma's pen hovered over the paper, there was so much going on inside her yet there was no way for her to say anything.

(She hated the way his absence made her feel. Was it worth it? She doesn't know.)

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"There is nothing else. We only have the note and that is all," stated an exasperated Cayenne, "This is only lead with have. The only thing we know is that fact, about this case, is that the murderer knows Lady Rowe-"

"Lady Zhang now."

"What?"

"They live separately now."

Cayenne was shocked. "What?"

"Not relevant. You can ask her yourself. But-"

Joel burst in, looking frantic, "Two maids found dead at Fox's Gate. We suspect it may be the same killer, another note was found on one of the bodies- "

Before Joel could finish telling the two about what the other officers on duty had already rushed out. They went into the stables and grabbed a horse before they took a back road, soon enough they were at the gates, and they were recognised by the officers that were already blocking off the area. They nodded at each other, Adam and Cayenne hopped off their horses letting one of the stable take them as they headed into the building.

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The telephone rang loudly and Megan picked it up, Emma watched Megan listen to the person speaking on the other side of the telephone.

Megan felt sick, her stomach twisted into knots and she felt breathing becoming hard. Emma rushed to her side and propped her up.

"What happened? Who was it, Megan?"

"Two murders at Fox's Gate. Two maids, Lily and Gena, dead."

Emma felt her heart drop.