A Lady's Guide to Courtship

XLI. A Lady's Guide to Life

"Has it ever bothered you?" Violet asked their grandmother half an hour after they had settled in the guest room. "What Margaret did," she added to further elaborate.

"You mean agreeing with Thomas' plan?" their grandmother asked.

"No," Violet said, "Getting rid of Aurora is more like it. I never took her for someone who could do such a thing."

"I agree," Valerie said with a nod. "She was a Leaguer. She could have done something."

Their grandmother smiled wanly. "What she did, my dears, she did to protect us all."

"But you know what happened to Aurora and her child. Things could have ended differently if Margaret kept her as she did you and Faye."

Their grandmother sighed. "Many things happened that I never wrote in the books, my dears. Many terrible things that was not suitable for the fairy tales I penned."

"But she did what Aurora did to her sister. She went behind their back. They would have done something different if they knew the truth. I simply cannot accept that Margaret would do that."

Fiona Trilby smiled. "Mayhap, when you are older and have children of you own, then you will understand why Aurora and Margaret chose the things they did. And I believe that Lady Alice would have done the same should she have known. Motherhood can push one to do the vilest of things for the love of her child." When the twins just stared at her with confusion, she added, "There are things the Everards could not handle, my dears, and they are not perfect. They were rich, yes. They ruled Wickhurst in a way, but they did not rule the entire Town. Aurora and her child were just a small piece of a big story brewing in the background and Margaret was aware of that. As a Leaguer, she saw the amount of damage it would cause should she have helped them. She had to make the sacrifice or risk the family's safety. Was it bad? Perhaps even evil. But was it a good decision? Considering how the Everards ended their story, I have to say yes."

"Except for Aurora and the child, yes, it did end well. I still think Margaret should have helped Aurora."

"But like Aurora, Margaret valued her family more that she was willing to do the bad thing her family would not have done. Aurora knew that. Margaret had made certain she understood it."

Valerie scoffed. "Then I am sorry to say that Aurora was right—that the Everards would not have lifted a finger for her. Margaret's actions simply proved that and it sucks!"

Violet was silent, just staring at their grandmother with a meaningful look in her eyes. "But they did still have to face Osegod. And he did terrible things."

"As I have said, my dears," their grandmother patiently said, "things could have turned worse. They merely got a piece of Osegod's wrath, see?"

Valerie sighed. "I assume everything else—your story with gramp will reveal more of this? You said so yourself that there are other things you did not write in the books. It is about the future of the Town, isn't it? What truly happened after the final book? How you ended to be here?"

Their mother chuckled. They heard the front door open. "Your grandfather is here." She stood and faced the twins. "Have I ever told you about the Trilbys?"

The twins frowned.

Their grandmother turned to walk away. "They are quite interesting, I tell you," she said over her shoulder.

The twins gaped at Fiona Trilby. "Oh my God, gram! You cannot be such a cliffhanger!" Violet violently said.

"In time, my dears. In time."

"Vee? Val?" they heard their grandfather's voice ask from the hall.

"Gramp!" the twins jumped in unison to meet their grandfather.