It will have been a year next week since we had fled London to come and live here in Scotland - a whole year. Mr. Hare, William and I had spent our time happily  running our small, loving inn; we didn't want to leave for it was perfect. Mine and William's wedding had been quaint and quiet but it was the most memorable day of my life; it proved to us all that our days of running and of living in fear were finally over. I reminisced about that precious day as I strolled home from the bakers; it was Thursday evening and the autumn sun was sitting low on the horizon. I had grown accustomed, over the years, of the sound of leaves crunching beneath my feet, of the wind whistling past my as it hurried along the path and the sound of footsteps close behind me - but there was no one behind me. Or so I thought. Pausing momentarily to inspect a dress through an old shop window I heard the crunch of crisp leaves behind me; last time I had checked I had been alone in recent street for everyone else was hiding from the bitter breeze.
Cautiously I turned once more - there was nobody there. No leaves had been interrupted in their slow decent from tree to ground; no wind had stopped in the path of the man who followed close on my heels. I was alone. A feeling of slight uneasiness and discomfort came over me on seeing that I was alone even though I knew I was not; hurrying home I continued to glance over my shoulder but came to no avail of spotting my mysterious follower. My flustered expression baffled my husband as I stumbled through the front door of our inn and I noticed that as always all eyes in the room had fallen on me, the only woman worker there. William embraced me and I allowed Mr. Hare to take my cloak whilst I fixed my hair into a messy bun. In hushed tones I warned my companions about my journey there and watched as their intrigued looks turned to those of worry and fright; before they could utter any further comments or ask any questions I had begun to greet those who awaited my assistance around the room.
No more than ten minutes later when the last of our tenants had dragged themselves up to their beds I sat down to talk to William and Mr. Hare. Much like I had expected, they were full of questions about who the man was, why he was following me and if I got any help. Keeping my answers short and to the point I simply replied with: no I did not see him, I don't know why he was following me and no I did not get help because one does not call for help when the eye sees nobody around to call about. How should I call for help when I cannot even see the man following me. The men agreed and asked if I was ok - I nodded and made my excuses to go to bed for my brisk walk home had sent me into a phase of fatigue. The last thing I said to both men was what I believed we should do about the matter and I told them the honest truth of what I wanted...
"I want to go back to London for the anniversary of my parents' death".