CHAPTER SEVEN E: THE ROOM WITHOUT A LOCK

Adelaide was sitting beside an open window when Elias entered her bedroom.
The door stood wide, and Ruth remained in the passage where she could see them both.
The missing blanket lay folded across the foot of the bed.
Elias recognized the faded blue border his mother had sewn from leftover thread.
He crossed the room and picked it up without asking permission.
Adelaide did not try to stop him.
“Thomas believes it belonged to Hannah,” she said.
“It did,” Elias answered.
“He believes it can help him identify her.”
“He knows her name already.

”
“He wants something that will persuade a stranger she came from this estate.”
Elias tucked the blanket beneath his arm.
“Why did you ask for it?”
Adelaide looked toward Ruth.
“I wanted to keep it out of his hands.”
“You could have asked my mother to hide it,” Elias replied.
“You sent someone to search her home.”
Adelaide lowered her eyes.
“I gave the clerk an order, and he used it in the cruelest way available to him.”
“That is what orders do here,” Elias said.
“They become threats by the time they reach the quarters.”
She did not answer immediately.


Elias noticed that the small walnut drawer stood open and empty.
The brass key lay on the windowsill beside a bowl of water.
“You have removed the lock,” he said.
“Ruth took it off this morning,” Adelaide replied.
“Why?”
“I could not bear to look at it.”
Elias stared at her.
“You could have stopped using it months ago.”
“I know.”
“You keep saying that.”
“Because I have no answer that makes what I did acceptable.”
He looked at the open doorway.
Ruth stood there without moving, her expression cautious rather than approving.
“The man in the cottage knew where the children were taken,

” Elias said.
“He has been looking for them.”
Adelaide pressed a hand against her stomach.
“I thought he wanted Beatrice.”
“He wants every child he can find.”
“I cannot let him take her.”
“Then do not tell him where she lives,” Elias said.
“And do not tell Thomas where Hannah lives if you ever learn it.”
Adelaide looked up.
“You believe Thomas would send for her?”
“He asked my mother whether she would bring Hannah back.”
The color drained from Adelaide’s face.
“He said nothing to me.”
“He did not need to.”
A carriage wheel sounded on the gravel below the window.


Ruth stepped into the room.
“The clerk has brought a second man from the village,” she said.
“They are asking whether any workers have left their cabins.”
Elias tightened his grip on the blanket.
“Who is the second man?”
“A constable who sometimes works for the estate.”
Adelaide rose too quickly and caught the bedpost to steady herself.
“I will speak to them,” she said.
Elias shook his head.
“They will listen to you because you are the mistress,” he replied.
“They will listen to me only if I tell them something they want.”
“Then what will you do?”
“I will tell them nothing about the road.

”
He turned toward the open door.
Adelaide called his name, and he stopped without facing her.
“I am sorry about the blanket,” she said.
“My mother will be glad to have it back,” Elias answered.
“That is the only thing I need you to understand about it.”
He left the room with Ruth and carried the blanket down the service stairs.
Outside, the estate had begun another ordinary morning.
The sound of the mill and the smell of breakfast made the danger harder to see, not less real.