CHAPTER 1
"You're really here."
The words came out as a mixture of both surprise and delight. Alethea Carter was not sure how to respond, as she looked up at the woman saying them to her.
Daphne Carter. Her sister, if only in name. Alethea froze just beyond the carriage door at her sister's words. She had imagined this moment for days, dreaded it for years, and now that it had arrived, she found herself untethered. Her fingers clutched at the folds of her travelling cloak, willing herself to step down and join the life she had been taken from.
This is your home,she told herself.And this is your family.
Even though she had been born here at Glavingale Estate, it was difficult for her to see it as home. She had been gone for most of her life, and now wasn't sure if this moment should feel like a homecoming or an entirely new beginning.
"I—" she began, but her voice cracked. Alethea was not one to be tongue-tied often, but the moment felt too big for words. What was one supposed to say when they returned to a home that they had never actually known?
Or had any memories of living in?
Daphne crossed the distance between them, and wrapped her into a tight embrace. It was the first time in over a decade that someone had touched her with familial intent. The intimacy of the moment made Alethea step back for a moment. She was not used to being shown such affection.
"Forgive me," Daphne said, pulling back as if she had overstepped. "It's just that… we weren't certain this day would ever come. You must understand that it means a great deal for us for you to be back here after so long."
"I share that sentiment," Alethea replied, still feeling her stomach erupt with nervousness. She noticed a look of worry cross Daphne's face, and Alethea recognized it not as pity, but the unfamiliar warmth of a sister's care.
This was going to take a while to get used to,Alethea thought to herself.
Behind her stood two other young women. Alethea recognized them, if only from fragmented memories.
"Felicity," said the second woman, taking Alethea's hand warmly. "And this is Joyce."
"I remember," Alethea murmured, though the truth was that she did not, not in any tangible way. It was just glimpses of her life before she had been taken away.
"It's all right," Joyce said quickly, as if she could sense the lie. "We barely remember either."
There was an awkward pause, like all four of them were navigating the shape of a memory that no longer fit.
"I used to follow you about the house," Joyce added, as if grasping at something cheerful. "Felicity says I was terribly annoying."
"You were," Felicity said with a small smile. "But we were all children back then."
Alethea nodded, but didn't speak. She wasn't sure how much they knew of what had happened. The truth was, even she wasn't sure what parts of her life counted as the truth anymore. The convent had been her entire world for so long. And now she stood among three sisters who had grown up without her, and who thought that she had been dead all these years.
"It will take time," Daphne said gently, as if reading her mind. "We don't expect things to feel familiar right away. We just want you to know… you're wanted here."
Wanted.It felt strange to hear that about herself. It was a word she had come to understand as a privilege that she did not have.
"Yes, Daphne is right," Joyce cut in, a nervous smile playing up on the corners of her face as though she was worried about saying the wrong thing somehow. "We had never really forgotten about you."
Alethea bit back her response. She did not know what to say to them, or if she should challenge that statement. If they had not forgotten about her, as they were claiming to, why did no one come looking for her sooner? There were many questions that she did not have the answers to yet, but for the time being, she decided to hold back.
After all, for the first time in her life, she seemed to have the luxury of time on her side.
"Shall we go inside?" Felicity suggested with a reluctant expression that was not much different to the one that Joyce had on her face. Alethea found herself wondering what their conversations about her would have been like. Did they really feel happy at the news of her return, or did they have a different reaction?
You will find out in due time,she reminded herself again. It occurred to her that she was going to have to keep telling herself that for many things.
"We shall," Alethea answered, realizing that all three women were looking anxiously towards her for a response. They broke out in nervous smiles.
"Good, very good," Daphne nodded, "Right this way, then."
They led her up the steps of Glavingale Manor. As they stepped into the entrance hall, Alethea's breath caught at the sight of two footmen standing silently by the door. A maid passed with a silver tray, offering a low curtsy before disappearing through a side corridor.
