The rain soaked my clothing within seconds of me stepping through the threshold. Water droplets ran down my face and into my eyes as I crossed the grounds, struggling to see what was in front of me through the rain and darkness. The wind whistled past me. Leaves and sticks pelted my legs from the trees. It was dangerous to be outside.

I pulled my dinner jacket tightly around me to shield myself from the wind, but it didn't work. Each flash of lightning illuminated the grounds just enough for me to see that I was heading in the right direction, but there was no sign of the stable hand that had been on the grounds only a few moments before. With the stable hand disappearing into thin air, I stepped into the woods, narrowly avoiding a falling branch.

In the darkness, I could scarcely see the low-hanging branches that dangled from the trees. Once or twice I walked into one as I stumbled through the woods in search of the stable hand and the girl, both of whom had to have been out there somewhere. I knew the woods like the back of my hand after spending my early years running through them, but even I struggled to find my way through the pitch black. The girl would have had no chance of finding her way out of the dark, but I was optimistic that the stable hand would have been able to find her before I could.

"Joseph? Are you out here?" I called, my voice disappearing into the roaring wind and thunderous rain that drummed down on the leaves above me. "Joseph!"

I knew it was fruitless to call out. The storm was far too loud for anyone to have heard me over the wind and rain, but I had to hope he was nearby. I listened out for the snap of a branch or a voice in the wind, but there was nothing. Part of me wanted to turn around and head back to the house, where it was warm, dry, and safe, but I couldn't. If I returned empty-handed, either without the stable hand or without the girl, then I would be sent off to London without so much as a second thought by Father. I had to find them.

With every passing second, the storm grew worse. The wind grew colder; the rain pelted down harder than it had before and somehow the darkness grew darker. I stumbled through the trees, small branches cutting my face and arms as the wind blew my sopping wet hair into my face. If we did not find the girl, the storm would most likely kill her and I had to hope that she had found somewhere safe to hide, but I doubted it. Had she had somewhere to keep hidden, she would not have been lingering in the trees so near to the house.

"Joseph!" I called again, but the word was lost to the wind.

Something tapped me on the shoulder and I turned, half expecting it to be a low-hanging branch being knocked around by the window. Joseph stood behind me, his dark hair clinging to his forehead, his cheeks red from the cold and his clothing just as damp as my own.

"Thank God, I thought something had happened," I yelled, hoping he could hear me over the raging wind.

"What are you doing out here, Master Nate? It's too dangerous!"

"Looking for you! I saw you take off across the grounds. I know you know about the girl. Where is she?"

"I don't know," Joseph said. He looked at me, a guilty expression crossing his face. "She promised she would stay close because of the storm. I told her she could take refuge in the stables until morning."

"Where does she normally hide?"

"There are some rocks, about halfway in. They act as a sort of shelter and she sleeps underneath them."

"Then we start there. She cannot have gone very far, not in this. You can lead the way. I will be right behind you." A flash of lightning travelled through the sky above our heads. "We must be quick. If the lightning strikes a branch, we could be in trouble."

"Yes, Sir."

Joseph's guilty expression twisted into one of determination. He stepped in front of me and led me through the trees. The two of us tried our hardest to shelter from the raging storm, but every effort was fruitless. My hands had started to go numb because of the icy wind and rain. My cheeks stung and my teeth chattered. I wanted to head back inside and warm up, but we had a task to complete and I would not leave the woods without the girl.

We stumbled through the trees, tripping over unseen tree roots and rocks that jutted out of the ground. Every flash of lightning seemed closer than the last, some dangerously close to the tips of the trees. Father always told me to never shelter under a tree during a storm and I was starting to see why. Branches fell from the trees and leaves attacked my body. Nevertheless, we walked on until we came to a break in the trees.

The area looked familiar, although it was hard to tell because of the darkness and the pelting rain. There were fewer trees here, rocks jutting from the ground all over the place. Off to the left-hand side sat a large rock that was just a little taller than me, with a small shelf that jutted out. It wasn't too big, but it was big enough to shelter the girl.

Joseph and I walked tentatively towards it, trying not to startle the girl. Even through the darkness, I could make out a shadow tucked tightly under the rock shelf, something curled up into a ball to stay hidden from the raging elements. It was far too big to be an animal, and there was little doubt in my mind that it was the girl trying to protect herself. Joseph glanced at me and I nodded my head. The two of us walked over to the rock and crouched down beside it.

"Miss?" Joseph said, reaching out a shaking hand and lightly touching the girl's shoulder.

The girl reacted immediately. She sat up, limbs flailing as she tried to tuck herself against the rock. Her eyes were wide, startled by Joseph's touch. She panted, pressing her body tightly against the rock face as though willing it to absorb her entirely.

"Miss, it's alright." Joseph's voice was soft against the building storm. "This is Master Nate. He wants to help you."

"You cannot stay here. The storm is only going to get worse, and the woods are not the place to be sheltering from it. We can take you back to my house, where it's dry, warm, and safe. There's food, and a bed to sleep in, and it'll be a far cry better than trying to sleep under the rock with this storm. Let us help you." I held out my hand to the girl, but she just pushed herself further back against the wrong.

I did not blame her for not wanting to trust me. To most people, I probably looked a little deranged, especially to someone who looked terrified of her own shadow. Her eyes moved between myself and Joseph, not sure what to make of the pair of us. I hoped that Joseph might have had more of a chance with her, especially if they had had previous contact. My only sighting of her had been through the trees.

"Can you try? She most likely has more faith in you. I don't know her from Eve," I said, turning to Joseph.

"I don't know too much about her. She has barely spoken a word."

"It's worth a try."

Joseph nodded and moved forward a little. The girl moved further back, although I didn't think that was possible. "Miss? Please trust us. Master Nate is one of the good ones. He helped me and he can help you too, but you have to trust us."

"Listen to him. Neither of us will hurt you. We just want you to be safe." I followed Joseph's lead and shuffled forward, pushing my hair out of my eyes. "Perhaps we can start with your name. Mine's Nathaniel, but everyone calls me Nate, and this is Joseph, though I expect you know that already. He works with our horses. What should we call you?"

The girl mumbled something, but it disappeared in the wind. I moved a little further forward, and she muttered it again. "Rebecca."

"Rebecca? That's your name?"

She nodded.

"Alright, good. Will you come with us? It's freezing and you'll catch your death if you stay out here any longer. This storm is only going to get worse and you cannot stay out here in it. You can walk with Joseph and he'll lead us both back to the house. He most likely knows a shortcut back to the house. I've lost all feeling in my fingertips and I've been out here for less time than you. I cannot imagine how cold you are. We have warm food, including a pie."

From my trip to the village with George, I figured the promise of pie might have been a little more persuading than me.

"Do you trust me?"

I made no move to touch or even approach any further than where I crouched. The girl looked at me, blinking water from her eyes as she stared between Joseph and I, most likely trying to figure out our motives. Another flash of lightning lit up the woods, and the girl jumped, hunching herself into a small ball. After a few seconds, she unfurled herself and slowly nodded her head at me, but she said nothing.

Joseph and I shuffled backwards, rainwater running down the back of my shirt. The girl crawled out from under the shelf, wrapping her arms around herself and shivering against the increasing cold. I looked at Joseph and nodded my head a little to signal that we needed to get back to the house before the storm took another turn. He offered me a small nod in response and started through the trees; the girl following but keeping her distance.

Through the darkness, I struggled to spy Joseph and the girl as they moved through the woods. I kept as close to them as I dared, trying not to spook her too much and send her running back through the trees. With Joseph in the lead, it did not take us too long to stumble out of the trees and back onto the grounds of the house. Candles flickered in the windows and I could see faces squinting through the darkness from the dining room window. Several of the faces disappeared as we moved across the grounds, the front door opening only seconds later.

The girl stopped upon seeing the people standing on the threshold. She took a few steps backwards as I took a few forwards. I knew better than to touch her or to creep on her, but I could not have her taking off to the woods, not when we had made it so far.

"It's alright," I said softly, "they're going to help you, we all are. I won't let anything bad happen to you. You have to trust me, just like you have trusted Joseph recently."

Another flash of lightning crossed the sky, and the girl whipped around to look at me, fear crossing her eyes. I offered her a slight smile, hoping it might quell her fears just enough for me to get her into the house. She took a shaky breath, turned back towards the house, and tentatively followed Joseph across the grounds. I let out a breath of my own and continued to follow them, Joseph leading the girl up the steps to the front of the house.

Father stood on the threshold with Mr Seabrook and Andrew, all three of them staring at us with wide eyes as Joseph led the girl into the house. She didn't run, but I watched her head move violently as she tried to identify all exits. I followed the two of them, crossing the threshold and into the warmth of the house. Mr Seabrook, Father, and Andrew followed us, the three of them covered in small droplets of water.

"Are all of you alright?" Mr Seabrook asked, breaking the silence.

I nodded. "J-just a little cold."

"Who's this?" Father jutted his chin towards the girl. He tried to keep his face expressionless, but he failed to hide the look of surprise in his eyes at the sight of the girl and the knowledge that I had been right the entire time.

"Her name's Rebecca. I know nothing beyond that."

"The three of you need to put on some warm clothes and get some food into your stomachs before you all freeze. Joseph, you are relieved of your duties for the evening and tell Mrs Lucas that I have instructed her to make some soup for you and to send some upstairs for Nate and–" Father paused. "–Rebecca."

"Yes, Sir."

"Off you go."

Joseph turned and walked down the hallway, dripping water onto the floor as he went, something that would no doubt annoy the rest of the staff. I looked at Rebecca, who fidgeted with her hands and stared around the room, unsure of what to do now that Joseph had left us. He was the one that she really trusted and with him gone, there was a chance she would run, even if there was the promise of warm food.

"Andrew, can you see to Nate? I'll get one of the servants to see to Miss Rebecca here," Father said.

"No need, I'll do it," Alice said, stepping from the dining room and into the hallway.

"The servants are more suitable for this than you, Alice."

"They're busy dealing with other things. Besides, I didn't believe Nate when he first told me she had been in the woods and, if I had, she might not have been out in the storm."

Father sighed, knowing he was beaten. It was rare for Alice to stand up for herself, even rarer for her to speak up against a decision Father had made. There was no use arguing with her when she behaved in such a way. She was steadfast in her resolve. "Very well."

"Thank you."

"Nate." He turned to me. "We shall discuss the events of this evening in more depth at a later date. For now, get yourself dried off before you catch your death."

"Yes, Sir."

Andrew placed a hand on my shoulder, biting back a laugh that he no doubt wanted to share. "Come on, you look like a drowned rat."

~~~

A/N - Here we are with Chapter Six! I think I've made it past the stuck section and managed to make some progress this week which is awesome. My favourite chapter so far is also coming up! (Pssst ... It's Chapter Eight!)

Questions! Do you think Rebecca will come to trust Nate? How do you think Mr Thorpe will react?

Comment below!

Dedication - There is no dedication this week! Comment for your chance to recieve a dedication!

First Published - November 8th, 2022