I went to sleep or I tried. I thought about Charles a lot but then the bad memories came back. Edward and Cecelia engaged, Vincent and her, Bernard is my brother. I continued thinking till I reached a drastic conclusion. The love that Bernard has for Daphne, it is not brother to sister. It is lover to lover. He doesn't know it of course because she is his sister. But now, they could be together.
What will I do about that secret? Should I keep it? Should I tell them? I don't know.
Father and she checked up on me of course. I must have scared them, leaving like this. I played asleep every time that I felt the door open. Father checked up on me only once but she, she checked up every hour or something. She was expecting me to be awake, I was but I won't talk to her.
While I was dressing for breakfast, she came.
"Good morning, dear," she said with a smile.
I didn't answer.
"Did you sleep well?"
"Don't act as if you care," I said angrily, "just beg and leave"
"I was young, Amelia. Young and stupid," she said desperately.
"So should I do it too?" I asked looking at her, "Should I go and have a baby with some man then go and marry another? Then I will leave my child with Cecelia to take care of, what do you think about that?"
I felt a weight on my cheek then a burning feeling. She slapped me.
"I won't accept that language from you, young lady," she said pointing a finger at me.
"The only reason why I am not going to tell papa is that I don't want to hurt him but if you have any kind of self-respect, you better tell him," I said with anger.
I passed her and went to the door when she said, "I will tell him, today before we leave"
I frowned, "Leave?"
"We are going to London. He has some business to do and I am going with him. I will tell him before we go"
"Good," then I left the room. For some reason, my heart ached from that information.
I went downstairs to the dining table, "good morning, papa," I said as I kissed him, "good morning, everyone," I said as I sat down next to Cecelia.
"Where did you go last night?" Papa said looking at me with worry in his eyes.
I forced a smile, "I wasn't feeling well. So I came here to rest"
"Where you there when papa announced my engagement?" Cecelia said showing me her engagement ring.
You are the least of my troubles, now.
I forced another smile, "yes, congratulations"
She came down then we started breakfast. It was a quiet one except for few comments by father or Cecelia. The first breakfast that I don't hear her voice in.
After breakfast, the bell rang; it was Meg, Mr Denton and Charles.
"Good that we saw you before you leave," Meg said with a smile.
She smiled, "thank you for coming, Mrs. Walsh" then she looked at father, "dear, can we go to our room? I need you for something"
My father frowned but accepted and they were gone.
"Congratulations on your engagement, Mr Denton," I said hiding my pain.
He flashed me a smile. Oh that smile, "thank you. I think that you should call me Edward from now on"
I smiled a little sadly, "sure"
Mrs Walsh gave me a look full of pity and Charles came closer to me.
"How are you, today?" He whispered.
"I am fine but maybe a doctor should check me," I whispered smiling.
"I will call Dr Philips, then," he said smiling mischievously.
I held his hand, "you are the only doctor I need"
His smile widened, "go easy on me or I will get used to this"
My smile widened.
"You won't be angry if I congratulated your sister, will you?" He asked.
I squeezed his hand and said still smiling, "I will be angry if you won't"
Charles almost held my face in his hands but stopped when he remembered that we weren't alone. He kissed my hand and went to Cecelia.
"What did I miss?" Meg asked coming close to me.
"I think that I finally found happiness," I said still looking at Charles who was smiling to Cecelia and Edward.
"Does your father have to leave?" Meg asked.
"You too have a bad feeling about it?" I asked.
"Do you have it too?" She said with worry flashing from his eyes.
"Since he told us, last night, yes. My heart aches and I don't know why"
"Me too," Granny said. I didn't know that she was listening, "let's just hope that nothing bad will happen"
My heart ached more.
After about ten minutes, they came down. It didn't work well. Father went away without saying goodbye.
"Papa!" Cecelia shouted angry that he left without saying goodbye.
"What is wrong?" Meg asked her.
I looked at her to find her looking at me. When she shook her head, I ran after him.
"Papa!"
He stopped and turned. I stared into his eyes and I could see the tears that want to come out. I hugged him.
"I am so sorry," I said.
He pulled away, "you know about this"
I shook my head, "I only knew, yesterday, that's why I left the ball"
He looked behind me and his features changed. She must be behind me.
"The past can't be changed," he said still looking at her, "I will need time to think about everything"
"Let her stay here and you leave," I said, "take it as a chance to think about everything.
He looked at me and cupped my face, "if I leave without her, I will never be able to forgive her. Maybe just maybe, if we left together, things could get better"
He kissed my cheek, said goodbye then went to the carriage.
"I am so sorry," she said, "I am so sorry for everything"
I shook my head, "you are apologizing to the wrong person"
She hugged me but I didn't hug her back, "I am so sorry"
She passed me crying.
"Mama!" I shouted after her.
She stopped and turned, "I know that your mind is busy with other things but I have to ask. Does this have anything to do with why you hate me?"
Her eyes widened, "hate you?!"
"Why do you prefer Cecelia?" I asked with hurt.
She smiled and cupped my face, "because you, my dear, remind me of the person who I couldn't be"
She kissed my forehead then went to the carriage.
I returned to the house and watched them from the window. With every step the carriage took, my heart ached more and more.
A few hours later, I knew why it did when the news came.
James was so drunk that he didn't notice another carriage coming and they crashed. Cecelia was standing when she heard the news but she isn't now. She is on the floor crying hard, Edward is by her side trying to calm her down. Aunt Mildred is crying in a corner with Daphne to calm her down while Grandmother is in another corner doing the same thing as Bernard is beside her.
Suddenly, they all stopped and stared at me with terrified looks. I didn't know why until they told me later.
I was laughing. I was laughing so hard that tears started forming in my eyes.
Charles came closer to me and tried to talk some sense to me. When he failed, he slapped me. I am, now on the floor crying my heart out. I can't stop. I am crying, I am screaming, I am in someone's arms. Someone is holding me and stroking my hair. Now, someone left me from the floor and onto the sofa. Then, everything went black.
I opened my eyes to find myself sitting on a sofa with someone stroking my hair. In front of me, there was granny and Aunt Mildred between them, there were Daphne and Bernard. Next to the sofa, Uncle Vincent was standing with his head low.
I lost my memory when I woke up for about two minutes then I remembered. They are dead. My parents are dead. I looked at Bernard.
Bernard, his mother just died and he does not know. If they are not going to talk then I will.
"You have to tell him," I said as I sat down properly and removed my tears. I looked next to me to find Meg; she was the one stroking my hair. At two chairs next to Meg's side of the sofa, there were Edward and Cecelia and at the chair next to me, there was Charles.
They all stared at me but no one spoke until Aunt Mildred said, "what are you talking about, dear?"
"For God's sake, she died. His mother died, why don't you tell him the truth?" I replied with anger. I could hear a sob coming out of Cecelia's mouth.
My aunt was still in the dark but grandmother knew what I was talking about.
"Darling, what are you talking about?" Aunt Mildred asked again.
I nodded at my Granny, "she knows what I am talking about, let her speak"
"Amelia, please!" Edward begged me to stop talking.
"I won't stop talking,"I shouted and I felt a hand on mine, it was Charles's.
"Calm down, darling," he whispered to me.
"I am not crazy, Charles," I spat, "Granny, speak the truth or I will"
"How do you know?" Granny asked very quietly.
"I heard her yesterday talking to the father. He was asking for money to guarantee his silence"
She looked at Vincent in disgust.
"She told him, yes?" Granny asked.
I understood that she was talking about papa, "This morning"
"That's why he left without saying goodbye"
"Exactly, now tell him," I shouted impatiently.
"What are you two talking about?" Daphne asked with confusion.
Granny looked at Bernard and held his hand, "we are talking about Bernard"
Bernard looked from left to right and to everyone with confusion then he looked at granny, "what do you mean, granny?"
She stayed silent. She opened her mouth a few times, tried to speak but couldn't.
"Bernard," I said with tears in my eyes, "you are my half-brother"
Silence. No one spoke, no one moved, no one did anything. He looked at me with confusion and disbelief then at grandmother then Aunt Mildred then Daphne then Cecelia then he left the room.
"Wh... What?" Daphne asked, "He... He is not my brother"
"No," I said. I was the only one who could speak in this room, "he is my and Cecelia's half-brother"
"Wh... What do you mean by half-brother?"
"He is the son of Caroline and..." Granny said and drifted away "Vincent"
Everyone gasped and looked at him. After a few seconds, he left the room too.
"Are you happy, now?" Aunt Mildred said, "Now, he knows and only God knows where he is"
"Yes, aunt. I am happy. For how long were you going to hide it?" I said then an idea came to me, "and I think I know where he is, excuse me," I said as I left the house.
There was a little garden where Bernard and I always played. We loved that place and always went there. For some reason, I was sure that he would be there and he was.
He was sitting on a bench crying silently, I sat next to him and interwined out hands together. We looked at each other then tears found their way to my eyes. Finally, he took me for a hug.
I put my head on his shoulder and he put his head on mine and we stayed at that bench until sunset.
"We should return," I said.
"I don't want to be with those liars," he said with hurt in his voice.
"I am trying to find an excuse since yesterday for what they did and I could only find one"
"Which is?"
I looked at him, "they wanted you to be close to them"
"Will people know?"
"They will know but granny will be the one to decide when"
"Then we should return," He said, "I have a lot of things to discuss with granny"
After two weeks, I became very ill. I hated this town and everything. Meg offered me to stay at her cottage far away and I accepted.
Why should everything bad come at the same time? Why did my parents die? Why did Charles decide to leave me? Why did they decide to get married? Why am I so unfortunate?
Author's Note: I know that the last part is confusing but it will be explained in the next chapter. Don't forget to vote, comment and tell me what you think oh and don't kill me in the process *sweats and laughs worriedly*