Chapter 13: Chapter 13 – Please, don´t write letters

Time was pressing and, as much as Oscar would have liked to take a few days to talk to Theresa about Patrick, little by little, forgetting to mention that when he talked the latter his intentions seemed anything but honest, that could not be possible. The same afternoon he returned from Lilac Hall, he had to arm himself with patience to defend the indefensible.

Of course, it seemed unfair having to sacrifice one of the few characters he liked in the entire play, but what could he do right now? He was bound hand and foot, as it were. And as for the problems, one by one was how best he knew to solve them.

This is why, shortly after four o'clock in the afternoon, Oscar snuck through one of the corridors of Rose Cottage that led to the little room the young women used as a classroom. According to his calculations, the classes for the day would be about to end, so he considered it appropriate to sit and wait in a humble armchair, leaning against one of the walls, a couple of meters away from a still closed door. From there, he would not disturb anyone who passed and, just five minutes later, he would see how the girls began to leave, quite encouraged by having finished their school day.

Oscar barely saw the door begin to open when he got to his feet and waited, without even taking a step forward, for all the girls to come out. Theresa used to be the last to leave the compound, just before Ms. Groves. So it was no wonder the other three sisters appeared first, with Beverley leading the way.

Of course, Oscar didn't notice who came out first, stressed as he was by what he was going to have to do next. Nor did he notice that Madeleine, as soon as she saw him, had run towards him with a look of joy on her face.

"Did you miss me so much today that the first thing you did when you came back was to come see me?" She asked, this being a rhetorical question asked for the sole purpose of feeding her ego.

Although Oscar did not respond. And, as you might think given their history, he did not do it because he wanted to treat Madeleine coldly, or because at that moment he did not want to talk to her. Nor was this part of any stratagem. No. Oscar didn't answer because he had just seen Theresa lean out. And Theresa was not like her sisters, who sometimes stood in the hall talking. But she, as soon as her lessons ended, was the kind to disappear quickly.

She either went to the living room to practice with the piano, to the garden to take some fresh air with a book or to her own room. It did not matter. Theresa needed her time alone and that was why it was sometimes difficult to find her.

Therefore, it´d be difficult to describe in words what Madeleine had to feel when she saw her precious friend Oscar running after her little sister as soon as he saw her. In any case, it was certain that among all those feelings there was not a single positive one.

But that didn't matter, right? In any case, the protagonist of the novel would never end up paired with a mere secondary.

As for Oscar, still oblivious to the hurricane he had just unintentionally unleashed, he managed to catch up with Theresa when she was already approaching the room where they used to serve tea shortly after.

Upon approaching her, he began by saying that, while at Lilac Hall, Patrick Seymour had written a letter for her and given it to him to deliver. A letter that, by the way, Oscar had just taken out of his pocket and gave it to a surprised Theresa, who had never received letters from people who were not related to her.

Oscar's intention was to let Theresa read her note, as Patrick had clarified that, to avoid any inconvenience, he himself would write to the teenager to express his sincerest intentions. And then tell her everything he had been through, what he was really planning on going to Lilac Hall -not the lie he had told Madeleine about- and finally, if she was still in a good mood, convince her to cooperate in exchange for some remuneration not yet agreed.

Although some things sounded better in one's mind than in reality. And as Theresa was reading, the usual expression indifferent of hers was turning into a grim face. Oscar didn't know what the hell was going on, but he was sure it had to do with what Patrick had put on. He should have read the letter and been a proofreader! But of course, he would have had to open the envelope, destroy the seal and… Too much work for so little time. Be that as it may, when Theresa finished reading, she folded the paper two or three times before discarding it on a tray where all the documents that would eventually end up in the trash would go.

"I suppose you wanted to tell me something else," she said in a firm voice; even though she was irritated, Theresa continued to differ from her sisters in that she did not cry out to heaven or in situations like this “Otherwise you wouldn't have stayed to wait for me to read it.

"Yes, yes, I have a couple more things to say. But if it could be, I'd like us to go somewhere else” Oscar looked around, surely he felt a presence. “This is a somewhat complex matter and I would not like third parties to find out... Not yet, at least”

 Theresa must have understood that there was something murky about it, because she did not object and they both went out into the garden, into an area where no trees or opportune bushes stood between them and a supposed spy. They didn´t speak again until they had reached a safe distance from the mansion, since from there, although they could be seen from the house, there would be no place for someone to come listen to them without being seen coming.

"I can't believe this guy," Theresa began. “I thought he already had a fiancée in Surrey!”

"Did he have it?"

Oscar hadn't heard of it, and although the women in these kinds of stories were usually more into these issues, what was the rush for Patrick if he already had a mistress?

"Yes, but it's not official yet."

Ah, that's the rush. He had to be hunted before the engagement was made public, so the subject of their courtship had to be something taboo among the ladies of high society or some excuse like that. Hence, Oscar knew nothing of it.

"He should be ashamed of himself," she continued, "hiding from my parents and sisters, on top of it. Doesn´t he know I'm not even old enough to appear in society? If I go to balls in town it´s because mother has always instilled in us that it is our duty to attend, since we were little, to be able to open our own path in the world”

"I'm afraid young Seymour is not one of those who fixate on age, which, I agree with you, is totally inconvenient to say the least. I was also surprised, but I had just gotten the job and it´d be overreaching if I expressed my opinion. Well, I am aware that both Beverley and Madeleine have an interest in the man and, although he has an interest in you, I wouldn´t want to put myself in a hurry speaking on your behalf either” Oscar waited a moment to observe Theresa's reaction to those words; As he saw she was saying nothing and that her expression showed no signs of improvement, he deduced she was still as upset as when reading the letter. “Listen, I don't know if Mr. Seymour is engaged or not. What is true, and I can swear it is because he confessed it to me himself, is that he has an interest in you. It´s not a romantic interest... or I don't think it is, considering his fame and how little you´ve interacted”

"If he's not romantic in nature, what is he onto? Because I suppose if he sent you to bring the note here instead of sending a messenger, I guess it was not for you to tell me about conspiracies. In fact, when you brought me here, I thought you were going to give me a monologue about all the qualities of Mr. Seymour”

Would the original Oscar wear such a bad reputation that he was called a change jackets at the first change? Oh, it didn't matter.

"My instructions were those, you're right," he smiled, someone as clever as Theresa was impossible to fool. “But I wouldn´t do more than antagonize you and the rest of your family if I followed them, right? Because you are not interested in him, and it would be torture if they tried to force it on you”

“So you're not going to get something out of your new master if you violate the first order he gives you?”

“Something like that. Look, I'm not going to lie to you, both my job interview at Lilac Hall and the fact that I'm here telling you all this I have done them for selfish reasons. Do you remember Madeleine saying I would go to the Seymour house to help her get into that family? Well, that was not true. Indeed, I told her that that was my motive, but that was only so that she would let me do and undo without meddling”

“Now I see the selfish ends, you wanted to get into work there for personal gain. But once at the scene, you were told that the first task you had to accomplish was to help your new master to look like a decent human being to me” Theresa said, turning this into an accurate account of the events in which Oscar was involved. “By telling me honestly what he's up to, you can take your duty to Mr. Seymour for granted in the sense that it's not for me to be disrespectful to him right now, whatever you say. And, at the same time, you don´t look bad with my sisters, since you did not lift a finger for them to be excluded” After a pause, she added something that, if it had been referred to Oscar the real person and not Oscar the character, It could have been taken as an insult. “Interesting. You are smarter than you look”

Oscar only accepted that as a compliment while he thought that if anyone should be flattered by her intelligence, it was Theresa. Not even in the century he came from had he met many fourteen-year-old girls who performed the way she did.

"Just be nice to him, okay? I will write you an answer in a couple of days, letting you know my decision”

"Ah, speaking of which… Could you do me the great favor of accepting the invitation? He hoped you would do it right away, that I could bring him the affirmative answer tomorrow. Although I know that would be too fast, too timely for him even”

"What´s your idea, then?" If there was a hint of kindness in Theresa's eyes just moments ago, when Oscar confessed the truth to her, now it had just vanished. “I'm not like Madeleine, I'm not going to let anyone use me. Even less if it is in exchange for something from which I will not even benefit.”

"You don't need to go to that fair if you don't want to. I only ask that when it seems appropriate, you send him a letter saying you will go. Then four you not having to come, I'll take care of it”

"Easy to say, but if mother finds out that Mr. Seymour went out of his way to invite me in particular, he won't leave me alone until I accept." Even if she pretended to be ill, on my deathbed, he would try to drag me to Lilac Hall. And if I didn't say anything to her and convinced her to let me stay home, when she got back it would be worse!

"Like I said, I'll see to it that there is no retaliation." Not by your parents, not by your sisters, let alone by Patrick Seymour himself. Who, if you do as I say, will not take more than a month to lose interest in you.

Once this was verified, Oscar proceeded to explain his plan in detail. Not without first reminding Theresa that, although he considered that her idea was the best option for both of them to emerge unscathed from the entanglement, he would not force her to participate if in the end she continued to consider that it was better to act on her behalf. she. When Oscar finished speaking, the teenager had only one question:

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"And what do you say would be my compensation for lending myself to the sham?"

Oscar already imagined that he would ask for something; although it was true that he was proposing a solution to her problem, she had not been the one who had gotten into the wolf's mouth on purpose. It was obvious that she was going to want something so that she could at least motivate herself to have that bad drink! In any case, Oscar could afford it. After all, this was Theresa, the most level-headed of the Cornells. She wouldn't ask for the moon.

"Ask for what you want," he conceded, "if she's in my power, I'll try to get it."

"I'll make a list." Ah, don't look at me like that, it won't be a favor list but a book list. A few German novels, to be exact.

Theresa didn't need to start saying titles for the world to come down on Oscar. Yes, she already knew what books she was referring to: it was a collection of which only a hundred copies had been printed more than ten years ago. And that was, unsurprisingly, in her home country. Oscar knew they weren't easy to come by because, in the original novel, Theresa had spent years trying to get those first editions, and despite her best efforts, she only got her hands on one.

"You don't need to buy them, that would be overdoing me," Theresa continued. It is enough for me to find out where I can get them. The rest is up to me. Do you think you can?

"Of course," Oscar smiled, displaying a confidence he didn't have.

"I'll go with your plan for now, but if I don't hear from you before the fair as promised, I'll do things my way."

Oscar had no choice but to settle for it. He'd already done enough to get Theresa to consider the matter, although now she had added another annoying chore to her pile of things she needed to get done before they tried to kill him.

He parted ways with Theresa after this, heading toward the service area. Although, halfway through, he stopped and retraced her steps. What would Patrick have put in his letter to make Theresa react with such revulsion? He asked her to please be subtle. But of course, these types of protagonists did not usually listen to the secondary ones. Much less one who wasn't even his friend.

So, to go to that wing of the mansion, Oscar went through the same rooms he had passed before with Theresa, stopping next to the same tray where she threw a note that, now, he picked up, unfolded and began to read. He did not feel remorse when reading other people's correspondence because the recipient of the same had discarded it and therefore would not miss it.

«Dear Theresa,

«I´m convinced it´ll bring you great happiness hearing from me after such a short time of having seen me in person, and it is that it couldn´t be helped! It may sound daring to say so, but since I´ve found you to be the most beautiful and intelligent of your sisters, I have taken the liberty of bothering you by sending this letter to let you know about my feelings.

«To let you know about it and, also, to invite you to the fair that I will be holding at my home in a few weeks. We don't have a specific date yet, but I needed you to be the first to know, since I would have the intention (if you accept me) for you to be my companion on that evening. As soon as we agree on dates, I'll send you an invitation to Rose Cottage. Which, of course, will extend to your parents and sisters.

«I hope, then, you can respond to my invitation as soon as possible.

«PS: I really don't understand how it can be your attributes go unnoticed among your relatives, the other day I was observing you during the whole time we were in the tea room and, let me say this, not everyone turns the pages of a book with your same grace.

«PD2: Your former stable boy here, Osmond I think it was, he's worried something might happen to you during the fair. Since you haven´t been presented in society, are young and pretty and, on top of all that, I guess haven´t had any suitors before. Therefore, please don´t worry. If you accept my invitation, I promise I will not part with you for the entire holiday. That way no pervert will dare to touch you without stepping over me first

What followed this was the obligatory dismissal and a signature almost as poorly done as the character himself.

Oscar was not surprised by this reaction from Theresa, the content of the letter was ridiculous in itself, but the two postscripts gave chills even to someone who had nothing to do with the protagonist's affections. The best thing, then, would be to tear the letter, that is, apart from throwing it away. If any of the other Cornells found it would be a problem.

"Oscar!" Madeleine called a few steps from him, timely as usual. “I've been looking for you, where have you been?”

"Ah, in the garden, as usual." In his shock, Oscar hadn´t had time to put the letter away, so when Madeleine approached, he was trying to stuff it into one of the back pockets of his pants.

"In the garden… With Theresa, I guess," she guessed with a smile that was far from sweet. “I didn't know you were friends.”

"We are not, it was just a casual conversation."

"It took so long…"

"Madeleine, I know Miss Groves will have told you by now, but spying on people is awful."

“Maybe if people limited themselves to their duties and didn't go around acting as bitches, some of us wouldn't have to worry.”

The word "bitch" had puzzled Oscar, but he had no chance to ask about it, because the next thing Madeleine did was try to rip a piece of paper from his hand that he had not yet managed to hide.

"What are you hiding there?" she inquired suspiciously as she moved quickly to try to get the letter.

Luckily, Oscar was taller than Madeleine and if he held the paper as high as his arms could, she couldn't reach it.

"Whose is that? How could you fall so low! I thought you liked me, but you are exchanging little notes with my little sister!”

“It's not what it seems! The letter didn't…” Oscar had to stop; he really couldn't tell who the sender was, so he opted for another way out. “Madeleine," he began again, halfway between a reprimand and a tone of absolute calm like that of a father who is already bored with the mischief of his daughter, "are you not a young lady? First of all, you should calm down. We can't speak like civilized people if you don't.”

Although reluctantly, because she knew he was right, Madeleine put her hysteria aside. It would have been terrible if someone had walked through the door and seen her moments before, when she was hopping around a dirty stable boy to retrieve a letter that, totally, she shouldn't even care.

"Good," Oscar approved, seeing the protagonist was back to her usual self and thinking of a plausible explanation for everything she must had seen. “Now you´re calmer, we can talk...”

However, Oscar did not finish saying that phrase, as a still angry Madeleine used all of her strength to give him a loud slap on his cheek. She called him shameless, affirmed she would never believe in him again and then left slamming the door like a real soap opera diva, without looking at a letter that had fallen to the ground in the disagreement or waiting for explanations.

Oscar stood there, his face aching still in disbelief.

Ah, so the bitch word was for him.

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