Chapter 5

Adeline sat for a long time after Roland had left. She sat thinking, calculating, wanting to do something, not sit at home and wait for her brother’s corpse to be bought back, if ever. She could not depend on the men sat, comfortably behind their protection of human wall. She knew what their answer would be. They would reject the appeal. No need to waste time, effort and money to bring back corpses.

She stood up, unable to sit still any longer. She moved silently, slowly, through the house. She could hear Jacqueline and Marie in the kitchen; hear the clinking of china as they tidied up. She looked at the other end of the corridor and saw her brother’s study door open, just slightly. One of the girls must have gone in to do some dusting. She made her way to the room, walked up to the table housing his documents and the lamp. The soft glow illuminated the room. Adeline looked around. “I won’t wait for my brother’s funeral.” She whispered.

She began to sift through the papers on the desk. These were the only ones in plain sight. When she could find nothing to help her she began to walk to the board on the wall. There were many lines and pieces of paper stuck there and as she took them in one by one, she began to form a pattern in her mind. She was a brilliant student, her tutor often praising her for her academic achievements. Her intellect heightened by her sheer love of reading, studying, Maths, History, Geography, Latin, Philosophy, and her parents had never stopped her, instead encouraging her to expand her mind, her thinking, her understanding.

Adeline looked through the small pieces of paper littered on the board, taking down the ones that caught her eye. There were hordes of small notes, some written in such a hurried fashion that the words were undecipherable. But as she read through each one she began to connect the dots. Her brother had done all the hard part, leaving her with a trail of breadcrumbs. And she would follow it to the proverbial gingerbread house. It clicked; all the gears falling into place at once. She would do what no other men were willing to do. She would find her brother, and if death was what awaited her there at least she would be with him. For the first time since Dominique left, Adeline smiled. She moved again, clutching those papers in her hand, moving swiftly through the corridor, up the stairs and to her brother’s room. Her long skirts would only get in the way, so she would have to borrow some of her brother’s clothes. She rifled through his closet, trying to find something that would fit, finally deciding on a pair of well-worn trousers and a shirt which looked as though it had been through the wringer too many times, so frayed it was. Settling on those and a few other items, such as hat, coat and other articles of necessity, she began to dress. The trousers, although slightly short for her brother went past her feet and had to be held up by suspenders, Adeline tucked in the shirt which were almost to her knees and folded the arms up till they were just past the elbows, allowing her to use her hands properly. The hat and coat were large and the shoes she had borrowed felt like clown shoes. She was resigned to having to wear one of her riding boots, and prayed to the heavens that no one would notice them. Taking in her appearance Adeline realised she would have to shorten the trousers length and tighten it around her hips. The hat and coat would have to remain as is; the coat would make a good cover up for all her feminine curves. She took the items to her room and set to work. She would leave tomorrow

At the of five Adeline was ready. Having shortened and tightened the trousers till they fell just right she had donned on the other clothes and tucked in her long hair into the newsboy style cap her brother loved, she eyed her reflection in the mirror, satisfied that she would be able to get away with it. She used a small rucksack to stuff necessities such as gloves, strips of cloth, and a water flask. All were her brother’s items. 

She stuffed some coins into a pouch, using a long coil of string to tie it around her neck and letting it fall under her shirt. Having successfully hidden the money pouch and leaving some spare coins in her coat pocket, Adeline took up the notes, and after examining them one more time, put them into the inside pocket of her coat. Next she took up the small note she had written for Jacqueline and Marie, instructing them that she had received a telegram about her brother and had to rush away. They were, however, not to discuss this with anyone and if any callers came, they were to be told that she had fallen ill. Ghosting down the flight of stairs she went into the kitchen, placed the note on the table, folded some edibles into a handkerchief and went away through the back door. Coming to the front she stopped to take one last look at the house, unsure if she would ever live to see it and feel its warmth again.

“I’m coming, dear brother. I’m coming to save you. Just stay alive.” She whispered as she walked away.