We just discovered that Ellen is actually the illegitimate daughter of the Duchess of Fallbridge and Johnny Donnan, the Grange’s groundskeeper. The Duchess had ordered Johnny’s sister and brother-in-law to take the child and raise her as their own. Upon the death of her adopted father (actually her uncle), Ellen learned of her true parentage and contacted her half-brother, Finlay, the footman at the Grange. Ellen had orchestrated the trip to Scotland by poisoning the Duke. She’d also tried to separate the Duke and the Doctor by killing William Stover—all in an attempt to get rid of the Duke and claim the Fallbridge inheritance. Finlay agreed to work with his half-sister by trying to seduce the Duke, or the Doctor—which ever would bite first. Furthermore, Ellen claimed she would do whatever she needed to do to get what she wanted.
Meanwhile, unaware of what was doing on with their governess, Robert and Punch were relaxing and enjoying their time in Scotland. They managed to get Gamilla and Gerard to go for a walk with them, and, everyone was having a very good time. Still, Robert, Charles and Gerard continued to be suspicious of Ellen. But, Gamilla stood by her friend who had given her a journal of her very own (before you think Ellen was having a rare generous moment, she was actually trying to get Gamilla to write down what she had heard the Duke and the doctor talking about). Finlay tried to get closer to the masters, but found it difficult to get either of them alone. It was then that Ellen suggested a way of getting rid of Charles and Gerard.
As Mr. Punch plans the Servants’ Ball as a treat for the staff, he and Robert have no idea what’s about to happen in their household. We ended the week with Finlay and Ellen lurking in the nursery. This coming week will be filled with more surprises and a few more revelations. You won’t want to miss a chapter.
If you have missed a chapter, there are summaries of each as well as links to the full entries available in the Chapter Archive.
This week is also special for another reason. Monday, July 16, 2012, marks two years since the start of Stalking the Belle Époque. Bertie, Mr. Punch and I would like to invite you to join us next week for a look back at our journey thus far and a celebration of what's to come. The festivities begin Monday! As we prepare for our second anniversary, I just wanted to take a moment to thank all of you for your continued support. Together, we're much closer to our own "Beautiful Era."
2 comments:
Congratulations on two years of a very beautiful place to visit. And millions of thanks for helping give people a gentle way to share in the beauty of the past as well as your wonderful stories. I'm sure that many, many other people include what you've given us as a peaceful departure from the pressures, noise and strife of the modern, stark world.
Thank you very much, Dashwood.
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