"Love is a Choice" by Gratiana Lovelace, 3/15/13 (Completed)

Ch. 26-- Letters Keep Wingate Family and Friends Connected During the Autumn

“Love is a Choice”, Ch. 26-- Letters Keep Wingate Family and Friends Connected During the Autumn,  June 24, 2013 Gratiana Lovelace

(An original story by Gratiana Lovelace; All Rights Reserved)

[From time to time, I will illustrate my story with my dream cast of:  Richard Armitage as Lord Rafe Wingate, Carla Gugino as Lady Katharine Southwick Wingate, Lesley Nicol as Mrs. Plunkett, Emilie Francois as Anna Wingate, Mark Strong as Sir Collin MacGregor, Alan Bates as Lord Charles Wingate, Christian Bale as Stuart MacGregor, Daniel Day-Lewis as Sir Antony Southwick, Michelle Pfeiffer as Lady Charmaine Southwick, Catherine Deneuve as Lady Esmѐ Sinclair, Julian Sands as Sir Percival Southwick, Samantha Morton as Lady Lucinda Southwick, Raymond Coulthard as David Harriott, Rosamund Pike as  Fanny Miller, Brendan Coyle as Uncle Miller, Princess Adelaide as herself, and Princess Victoria as herself, and others, etc.]   [Story Logo 1abcd]

Author’s Mature Content Note:  “Love is a Choice” is a story of love and romance set in the early to mid 1800’s.  I like Regency sensibilities with regard to comedy of manners, but Romantic period modes of dress.   Ha!  As such there will be some passages in this story involving heartfelt love scenes (perhaps some R rated) and some passages involving highly dramatic moments.  I will label the maturity rating of those chapters accordingly.  Otherwise, the general rating for this story is PG or PG-13 due to some mature situations and topics.  If you are unable or unwilling to attend a movie with the ratings that I provide, then please do not read the chapters with those labels.  This is my disclaimer. 

Additional Disclaimer: The Wiki and other reference links I cite contain general information merely to indicate that a place, person, or artifact, etc.,  possibly existed.  Though I try to use real locations in England and I make reference to some historically complementary information whenever possible, the fictionalized history that I write about for these towns, towns folks, and areas in my story are mostly figments of my imagination and should not be taken as fact.

Author’s Recap from the previous installment:  The small Wingate family of Lord Rafe, Lady Katharine, Anna, and her grandparents settled into a comfortable domestic pattern over the Summer months in 1826 after Fanny was laid to rest in the Wingate Family Cemetary on the estate of Dearing Manor.  Lady Katharine even learned how to bake pies with the help of Anna and Mrs. Plunkett.  But the spectre of Fanny’s death from the mines well water poisoning still hung over them--despite Sir Collin being named a Baronet for his investigation and discovery that saved countless lives, and Anna being elevated to the rank of Baroness when her father Lord Rafe asked for the recognition of his part in initiating the discovery of the mine water well poisonings go to Anna.   It all came to a head at what started out to be a lovely royal garden party in August 1826 to celebrate the still Prince William’s birthday--and where Baroness Anna met the little Princess Victoria, who drew her portrait because she like Anna’s nose. 

The outcast Montgrieves who had missed their boat for exile in Australia for their negligence in the poisonings as the mine owners turned up uninvited at the royal garden party.  Lord Rafe and the other Wingate, Southwick, and Harriott family men confronted Lord Montgrieve about murdering Anna’s Mama and the others.  Though Lord Rafe was held back from swinging at Montgrieve, David Harriott knocked Montgrieve to the ground and bloodied his nose.  Then a solemn Anna walked forward unbidden and accused Lord Montgrieve of murder and said that he  should be dead.  The crowd of nobles concurred and surged forward. But Prince William reminded them that England has laws--and that in the Montgrieves failing to take their ship to exile that morning, they had forfeited any clemency from death, and they were hauled away. Anna fainted with the stress, but was revived by her father.  Then she caringly tended to David Harriott’s bruised hand as they looked upon each other fondly.