School ended up being a relatively quiet affair considering the morning I had had.

Miss Reid gave us the morning to go through our plans and arguments for Friday so Evelyn and I spent the time huddled together over my desk and going through the notes we had made the afternoon before. After the conversation with Marsh and the comments from Father that morning, I lacked the attention to really focus on what we were doing.

Even though I was away from home and away from Father, those anger bubbles were there. They were hidden just below the surface with new ones occasionally rising to the surface and joining the cluster of bubbles already lurking in my chest. My hands shook and I spent most of the day scrunching my hands up in my dress to make sure I had a relatively clear head. The last thing I wanted to do was allow those anger bubbles to fizz and explode in such a public place. I didn't want to direct my anger to someone who didn't deserve it.

"You're somewhere else entirely today," Evelyn said, prodding me in the arm with the back of her pen. Ink splattered across the desk and across her sheet of paper.

"Sorry. The realisation that we're losing Grandfather's house tomorrow has set in," I said.

"I'm not surprised. You seem to spend so much time at that house, I can't imagine how strange it will be once you've left once and for all."

"I still don't think the will is right, but Father refuses to acknowledge that it might be fake."

"Why? You would have thought that they would at least look into it as a possibility, especially given the fractured relationship between your grandfather and grandmother."

"That's what I said, but he didn't believe me!" I slumped back against my chair and sighed. At least someone agreed with me that something didn't feel right about it.

Evelyn chewed on her cheek. "Maybe you should find out for yourself, you can prove yourself when it comes to your choice of profession."

"I'd have to get a hold of the will in order to do that and the lawyer still has it. I doubt he's going to release it to a total stranger, especially if he's in on it."

"That's true, but I'm sure you'll find a way to figure it out, even if it doesn't end up going in the direction you thought it would."

"Girls, your debate work, please," Miss Reid said when she passed us.

Evelyn offered a sheepish smile before returning to the sheet of paper containing all our notes for the debate. Although I tried my hardest to put as much effort into the debate and the words that I would say, I still couldn't stop myself from thinking about the will and how easy everyone had brushed it aside. No one had even looked at it, not even Uncle Christopher and he was an actual lawyer. How could none of them see that something wasn't right with the will?

Still, I did my best to push down the feeling of anger and frustration and instead poured all my thoughts and feelings into the debate. Uncle Matthew may have been right about not keeping things to myself, but he said nothing about finding other outlets other than talking to people. If it meant I didn't have to tell my parents about anything that had happened, then I would throw all of my time and energy into this debate. At least then it had a place to go.

We spent the remainder of the time we had been given working out an order for my speech before coming up with a plan. By the time Miss Reid announced the end of the time we had to work on the debate, we had a somewhat decent plan of attack for the actual debate. It would still need finalising, but we had a solid base to start with and that would make all the difference when it came to the actual debate.

After Miss Reid called time on our debate work, we moved on to the poetry we had been studying, but I kept adding to my work under the table. Whenever Miss Reid would turn her back at me, I would put the sheet of paper onto the desk and scribble away some additional notes. I didn't know if we were going to be marked on the debate or it was just for fun, but I liked having something I could focus on.

"You seem prepared for the debate on Friday," Miss Reid said after she dismissed us for lunch.

"I think so. We have a whole speech written out but I need to finalise everything."

"You seem so invested that you're doing the work outside of the allotted period." She tilted her head at me and raised an eyebrow before smiling. "Don't worry, you're not in trouble. It's nice to see a student so invested in their school, but please do try and stick to the lessons or you'll fall behind."

"I will, I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I did want to ask about whether you had thought more about the conversation we had last week regarding your future prospects. It is my understanding that you spoke to Evelyn's sister about it."

I nodded. "She helped to point me in a general direction and I think I have some idea of what I want to do once I finish school."

"And?"

"I think I want to study law. I know I can't practice it, yet, but I want to study it. Who knows, maybe one day I could practice."

"That is an excellent goal to have, Isabel. I'm sure that if you put the work in, you can achieve it and I'm sure this debate will help to solidify the idea and dispel any doubts."

"Thank you, Miss Reid."

She furrowed her eyebrows at me. "Why are you thanking me?"

"For pushing me to think about my future and for not laughing at my ideas."

Miss Reid smiled. "Anytime, Isabel. I'll let you eat your lunch."

She walked back across the room to her desk where her own lunch waited for her. I started to eat the sandwich that Mrs Smith had prepared for me, occasionally pausing to scribble another note on the sheet of paper. Like the previous few days, I ate little of the sandwich and just ended up shredding it, focusing instead on making sure the notes I was adding made sense and would actually contribute to my argument.

When lunch finished, I tried to keep my focus on the mathematics work we were doing in class, but I didn't understand it. Every few minutes, my mind would drift to the paper I had hidden under my slate and I would pause to add a few additional notes and comments. The debate and my argument consumed every thought going through my head to the point that I couldn't think clearly about anything else.

The debate would be my chance to prove myself. To prove myself to Father who seems to think that I don't see what is happening in front of me. To prove myself to Mother and to show that she doesn't have to protect me from everything and that I can think for myself. I could prove to Uncle Christopher that I am not the child he accused me of being. I could finally prove myself to all of them.

"Isabel!" Miss Reid said at the end of the school day. I gripped onto the edge of my desk to stop myself from falling over as she approached me. "Can you give this note to your parents? It's an invitation to invite them to the debate, I'd like them to see you in action."

"Yes, of course." I accepted the note.

"Good. I'll see you tomorrow."

Mrs Reid smiled and turned her back to me. The moment her back had been turned, I limped over to the cloakroom and grabbed hold of the wall before I fell over. In my hand, the letter crinkled. I stuffed it into my bag, weighing up whether or not to even give it to Mother and Father or just pretend that they wouldn't be able to make it for one reason or another. It's not like they would be able to go anyway.

I swung my satchel onto my shoulder and limped out of the cloakroom and down the front steps, having to use the railing so I didn't end up falling down the steps and injuring myself even further. To anyone watching, I must have looked a little odd but no one asked any questions. Evelyn wouldn't be coming back to Grandfather's with me as she had to babysit so I knew that there would be no avoiding Mother and Father when I arrived home.

Marsh had yet to arrive when I reached the fence that surrounded the school. I leant up against the fence to take as much pressure off my ankle as I could and waited for the car to appear. It was unlike Marsh to be late and since Father had stayed in the house, it wasn't like he had anyone else to collect. He had even confirmed with me that morning that he would be picking me up from the gate once school had ended. The only reason he would be late would be if he had forgotten about me.

I hoped he would hurry up, even with very little weight on my ankle, the pain had started to get worse and there would only be a short space of time before it gave up completely.

"Well, if it isn't Robert's brat of a child," a voice said behind me. I frowned and turned around to see Grandmother and Aunt Matilda standing a short distance away from me.

"Can I help you?" I asked, fighting the anger bubbles in my chest and scrunching my hands into a fist by my side.

"Only a day until you have to move out of my house. It must be so sad for you."

"One day and I get my room back," Aunt Matilda said, a smug smile on her face.

"Not if I have anything to do with it."

"You're just as delusional as your mother. She tried to get rid of me once and I just came back. You cannot get rid of me."

"Like a bad smell," I mumbled. I pushed myself off the fence and took a slight limp forward, regretting it instantly when pain flared up in my leg. "I know that Grandfather didn't make that will, I know he didn't sign it and I will prove it."

"Will you, now? You'll prove it in less than a day. From what I can see, you can't even stand properly. The house will be returned to me, as it should be. You have lost." Grandmother smiled. It was a sick smile that stretched all the way up to her eyes, her teeth on full display, including the gaps. "Matilda, perhaps you can show Robert's daughter just how we deal with those unfortunate enough to cross us."

"With pleasure, Mother."

Aunt Matilda smiled and took a step forward and I took a step backwards. My back collided with the metal of the fence and I knew I had nowhere else to go. It wasn't as if I could run anywhere either because of my ankle; I was pinned against the fence with nowhere else to go. With what Mother had said, I knew Aunt Matilda and Grandmother were capable of anything and what was what scared me the most.

"Perhaps you'll think twice before you lay a hand on me," Aunt Matilda said when she got close enough to me.

I wrapped my fingers around the metal bars of the fence, although I didn't know how much help that would be since I could hardly do anything. She had backed me into a corner with nowhere to go. Whatever Aunt Matilda planned on doing, she took her time to get to it and just slowly walked towards me with a smile on her face, a smile that told me she would enjoy every second of what she was about to do.

Aunt Matilda continued to smile and I watched her flex her hands and then ball them up into a fist as though she planned on punching me. She didn't. With my mind so focused on her, I didn't see her lift her leg.

The moment her foot connected with my ankle, pain erupted up my leg and I dropped to the floor.

~~~

A/N - We are back with Chapter Twenty-Five! This is officially where it all kicks off, so hold onto your hats, or similar headwear!

Questions! Predictions for what's going to happen? We have a fair few plot points to wrap up in 10 chapters and I want to know your thoughts on how they're going to end!

Comment below

First Published - October 19th, 2021