I watch as Mary sets the dining table for tea.

"Mary, please allow me to help." I ask her for the tenth time.

"I will have you know, son, I am not so old that I cannot set my own table." Mary smiles at me.

I grin back. "Well, I shall fetch Ella once you are done."

As I finish speaking, there is an almighty bang. Mary and I look at each other in alarm. The door swings open and Eloise bursts in, raking in heavy breaths, her hair dishevelled and her eyes wide with an uncontrolled panic. She looks around the room, desperation clouding her gaze before she meets my eyes.

"Ella!" She pants. "Where is my daughter?"

"She is in the front, playing with the neighbour's children. Did you not see her as you came in?" Mary asks.

"The street is empty!" Eloise yells. "Where is my baby?"

With a shrill cry, Eloise runs out again.

Ice shoots through my veins as I rush after her. Why is Eloise so startled? Why is so she concerned about Ella?

As I enter the street with Eloise, I realise she is right. The street is deserted. Ella and the three children she was playing with are nowhere to be seen.

Eloise turns slowly, scanning the entire street, raking her hands through her hair. She looks at me and whispers, "He's done something to my Ella."

He? Emmanuel?

Eloise takes off running once more, fuelled by adrenaline, her arms pumping as she moves. She is headed back in the direction of her house. I turn back, almost walking into Mary.

"Mary, I am going to find Ella. Can you go to the neighbours and ensure she has not gone into one of their homes?"

"Go with Eloise, I will come to the house if I find her." Mary shoos me in the direction that Eloise has gone in.

Nodding, I sprint after Eloise, praying that Ella has just visited the house of one of the children near Mary's home. Eloise's words ricochet off the walls of my mind as I run. It is as though with every step, they are being bounced around my head. If Emmanuel has harmed my child, if he has touched a hair on her head, the consequences for that man will be dire. He will rot in the deepest pit of hell and I will personally deliver him there. He took the woman I love and I will not let him have my daughter, too.

The breeze catches on my clothes as I run, creating a resistance that is sure to slow me down. Gritting my teeth, I press on, determined to not lose speed. I need to make sure that Ella is safe. Nothing is more important.

My thoughts are consuming me with such a fire that I almost cannot comprehend the scene before me as I approach Eloise's home.

A coach stands in the road. Loud cries are piercing the air. In the coach is Emmanuel and in his arms is a red-faced, shrieking Ella. Her arms are outstretched, her cheeks wet with tears.

"Ella!"

Three feet in front of me, Eloise hikes up her dress and runs after the coach as it begins trundling down the road. Emmanuel pulls Ella into the coach and just like that, she is gone from view.

I spring into action, blood pumping through my veins as I also join Eloise in her attempt to reach the coach.

He is taking my daughter! I cannot let him just steal her from us. I cannot let him take my happiness once again.

My breathing is shallow and my legs are beginning to burn, but I cannot slow down. I cannot.

Ahead of me, Eloise tumbles and with a yelp, she collapses to the ground, landing in a heap. I skid to a stop in front of her, kneeling down to hold her.

She pushes me away, "Get Ella! Go!"

I look back in the direction of the coach, which is fast disappearing. No matter how fast I run, I know I cannot reach her. A sole human is no match for two horses pulling a coach. My legs give way beneath me.

Emmanuel has just taken the very essence of Eloise and I from beneath our noses. He has taken Eloise's life force from her arms. The air around me is heavy and suffocating. It is as though the coach sucked away all the oxygen as it left.

Eloise lets out a whimper as I look at her.

"Did he just... Has he - Ella! He took my daughter. Damon, he has my baby!" Eloise grabs me by the arms, shaking me. Her body is trembling. "Help her, Damon, help my Ella. Get her back, I need my daughter back."

"Eloise! Damon!"

Ruddy-cheeked and with laboured breath, Mary is upon us. "Where is Ella?"

Eloise looks up at her, "She's gone. Mary, she's gone. He took my baby."

The colour drains from her face and she looks to me for confirmation. I can barely meet her gaze. I should have run faster. I should have been the first one running to find her. I failed my daughter. I let her go with that monster.

Eloise is unable to restrain herself any longer and breaks down into a flurry of sobs. I must do everything I can to get our daughter back.

I will not fail you, Eloise.

Choking back emotion, I rise to my feet and gingerly place my arms around Eloise. "Come, let's go to the house. We shall think of what to do next."

Together with Mary, I haul Eloise back to the house. Her legs are weak, her dress torn at the knees. Tears continue to stream down her face and she moans Ella's name, enveloped in grief for the daughter she has lost. I am all but holding her up as we cross the threshold into the lounge.

Eloise flops into an armchair, staring into the distance. Her jaw is slack, her shoulders slumped. Defeat is creeping into the fine lines of her face, deepening them, aging her features.

I look from her to Mary, at a loss of what to do. How does one comfort somebody who has just witnessed their child's abduction? That too, at the hands of their spouse.

Mary clears her throat. "Eloise, Damon, look at the pair of you. Pull yourselves together. You are the only hope that child has. You are her parents. If you sit here, dejected and aimless, who will fight for her? Who will find her?"

I kneel before Eloise. "She is right, Eloise. The two of us must support each other. Rather than breaking down, we should use each other's strength to work together and find our daughter."

"But... we have no idea where he could have gone! I know where he lives or where he hides. He could be anywhere in the country." Eloise says, the grief in her voice palpable.

"Eloise, he is a man of great stature. This is a small village, his arrival and now his departure will not have gone unnoticed. People will have seen the carriage he left in. We can find our daughter, I know we can."

"Yes," Eloise nods, hope flickering in her face. "Yes, of course. We will leave no stone unturned in our search for her. We will search high and low. We will ask everybody in the village."

"Of course we shall. I shall get us all some tea and then we shall decide a course of action." Mary strokes Eloise's cheek before leaving in the direction of the kitchen.

Eloise takes both of my hands in hers. "We will find her, won't we, Damon?"

"We will not rest until she is right here with us again, where she belongs."

Eloise nods at my response, her lower lip quivering.

How could any husband do this to his wife? How could any man take advantage of a mother's weakness in this way? What kind of lowlife is Emmanuel? If I could just get my hands around his throat...

"Damon." Eloise whispers.

"Yes?"

"Do you think - " Eloise closes her eyes and then musters the courage to speak again. "Do you think he could hurt my baby?"

"We will not let that happen. We will find her before any harm comes to her." I say, my voice shaky with fierce determination.

I do not know if he would have her harmed but I do know that we will find a way of getting to Ella before that can happen. I will make sure of that.

Mary shuffles in, her face unreadable, her hands steady as she holds a silver tray with three cups perched on it.

As she approaches us, there are three distinct knocks at the door.

I turn to Eloise, "Are you expecting anybody?"

Eloise shakes her head.

Could it be Emmanuel, back with Ella? Perhaps he just meant to scare Eloise. I rise, making my way to the door and pulling it open.

Standing in the threshold is a woman. I blink at her as she stares up at me, carrying the challenging gaze only a woman who is high in social hierarchy can. Her blonde hair is coiffed and curled and her blue eyes rove over me as though assessing whether I am to pose a threat.

"May I help you?" I ask gruffly.

"Yes, you may." She replies and then brushes past me to let herself inside the house.

Eloise and Mary look up as she enters. The woman looks around the room and then turns to Eloise.

"I am looking for Emmanuel Colleton." She states. "I have reason to believe he may be here."

Eloise's gaze darts to me.

"I do believe it is etiquette to be invited into somebody's home before entering. Not just that, but before entering, it is etiquette to introduce yourself." I say, planting my hands in my pockets.

The woman sticks her nose in the air. "Yes, in usual circumstances, I suppose that would be so. I am in an unusual predicament and as such, forgot myself. I do beg your pardon, ladies and gentleman. My name is Victoria Colleton and I am the wife of Emmanuel Colleton."

At her words, Eloise's eyes widen. I am sure that my own jaw must be slack.

Shakily, Mary says, "Well, it appears we shall need another cup of tea."