Chapter 24 Amelia Ridley
Amelia Ridley
Amelia wandered up the steps to the Grant family’s house, because being at home didn’t feel like home for her.
The grounds at the estate felt emptier than usual as she knocked on the door persistently.
She smoothed out her brown-fur-trimmed yellow coat as she waited impatiently.
Seconds turned into minutes. Nothing. Their butler and maid were usually very prompt in answering.
She turned away, sighing. Amelia had hoped Jamison could see her in this outfit, inspiring an impromptu date, but maybe she should have rang first.
Just as Amelia was about to leave, she was startled by the sound of a scuffle at the door. Elion, still in his pajamas despite the late hour, appeared. His presence starkly contrasted with the calm afternoon, capturing his unexpected attention.
“I’m sorry, Mellie. Jamison said he’ll speak to you another time.” Elion’s words hung in the air, heavy with disappointment and uncertainty. His voice, usually warm and cheerful, now carried a weight that Amelia could not ignore.
His eyes mirrored her own, and the uncertainty of when “another time” would be only added to the tension in the air.
Amelia’s confidence in her relationship with Jamison was shaken at that moment.
Ever since she’d confided in him about what had happened that night, he’d never wanted to leave her side.
He felt the same remorse she had, but maybe she’d gone too far?
They had rarely gone days without seeing each other over the last couple of months, as they often spent their time with their horses, writing poetry, or discussing new ideas for her books.
This sudden change left her feeling uneasy.
She tossed around the fall leaves, feeling the same wave of emotions she’d felt the night of Dale’s death. Something was off, but her mind was too tired to investigate. The leaves crumbled behind her, and she turned and noticed her father.
“How is my Mellie dear? I feel like I haven’t seen you in a long time,” he said apprehensively.
Amelia paced, looking down at his boots.
“If you’re about to go hunting, then I want to come with you.”
Father nodded, smiling. He knew how hard it was to get Amelia to do anything with him lately. She found it rather peculiar how quickly Father had returned to health. One minute, he’d looked confused, sick, and senile. Now he was going hunting like he had when she was a young girl.
“Fine, I will wait for you to get out of that scruffy coat. The animals might mistake you for one of them.” He chuckled as he headed to the shed that housed a row of shotguns. Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Pierre were waiting nearby to offer assistance.
Amelia loved the fall. Maybe the brisk, cool air that flowed through her hair brought her a certain level of happiness that she was otherwise missing from her life.
She looked at herself in the gold-plated full-length mirror, adjusting her brown cloche hat with a green feather attached to the edge.
She put on her brown tweed jacket with hints of blue and green and her brown knee-high leather boots.
Amelia knew she had other pressing matters to attend to, but spending time with her father was her priority.
Amelia rushed out the door while looking at her diaries and the scattered pages of her books on her bed.
She thought about putting them away on her desk as usual, but she was sure Father was probably tired of waiting.
She shut the door quietly, ran out, and gave Adesua a slight nod and a smile as she walked past her room.
She rushed down the stairs and ran through the field, past the stables, and to the far point of the estate, to the shed where Father waited.
“Well, ’bout damn time. I was about to leave you,” he said with amusement.
They passed the dense oak trees with their hunting dog, a golden Lab named Bowman. His tail wagged as he heard rustling sounds in the trees above.
“Father, I am sorry I haven’t been there for you or checking in on you. Since you’ve been sick, a lot has been on my mind,” Amelia said solemnly.
“Mellie, you really don’t have to do this alone. You know that, right?” Father said strongly.
Amelia smiled as she put the shotgun down. “Father, I know you could help, but why spread more pain? You need to worry about getting better and making Mother happy.”
She definitely said that as a jab. Although she cared for him, she loved her mother too.
Amelia saw the pain behind his eyes. Father might have loved her, but she knew he’d used her mother’s family to get where they were today.
She thought that would mean Caroline had his utmost loyalty, but that wasn’t the case.
“I know you did it, Mellie.”
Amelia moved to the right, turning her body to square up to her father.
She felt her face tense as her jaw locked in anger.
Father knew a lot of things, but he didn’t know everything.
She lifted one of her eyebrows as her anger slowly turned into a soft smile.
Amelia had, in fact, done it, and she’d done it so well that Father had had no idea what she was really capable of, and that brought her a small amount of joy.
“How? I have done nothing wrong,” she said, each word slowly oozing out of her mouth.
She didn’t bother defending herself. Her father knew that any choice she made, whether it was life or death, was for good reason.
So there was no point in fluffing the edges to make it seem better.
Amelia felt herself losing the fight she once had in her.
From the way she snapped back at him, she noticed that she was turning into him.
Amelia had done a lot of wrong, and here she was, justifying her wrongdoing, just as he had.
It made her skin crawl to think of how similar she was to him.
At the same time, she knew how necessary it had been to get rid of Dale, and it had nothing to do with keeping Father in the public’s good graces.
But she would let him think that for now.
“I know everything. That’s why I have been protecting you and covering up your loose ends.
Dale promised me over the years to put you all in the press to make a name for ourselves.
Because if we are all being talked about, Mellie, that means we are good to do business with.
I controlled each of your images without you knowing until it got out of hand and Dale went rogue.
” He paused, fetching Mr. Jenkins to get him water.
“I was going to handle Dale myself, but I am proud of you, my flesh and blood, for seeing the issue and handling it with grace. This is why I am preparing the world to see you as the new owner when that time comes. You handled business, even with death on the line. I didn’t think you had it in you, Mellie.
” He laughed, nearly choking on his water.
Amelia bit her bottom lip, upset at how calmly her father was taking this.
“Yes, I wanted Dale dead, but it was an accident, Father. Those files . . . what they said about us . . . They couldn’t be released. You don’t understand what was said.”
Father looked to the side as he rubbed the top of Bowman’s head.
“Oh, I know, my sweet daughter. I know.” He laughed again.
“So why are you just now telling me this?” Amelia asked in confusion.
Father kicked leaves off his boots before replying, “Because I knew you weren’t ready.
You still held your siblings’ opinions too close to your heart.
I had to wait to be sure, and you have proven to me you’re more than capable of doing what needs to be done.
” He chuckled. “That’s why I am getting Kavita married off as soon as possible, and I will send the boys somewhere so they won’t be in your way. ”
Amelia’s heart felt like it was about to come out of her chest. She didn’t want her brothers to go away.
Yes, they had their moments of ego, but that didn’t mean she wanted to do this alone.
Father was more demented than Amelia had thought.
He truly didn’t feel like her siblings were a priority.
It was all vanity to showcase that they were somehow better than everyone else.
Father wanted to be the innovator, the man to change the game, and he would do it at any cost. She wondered what Father would have been like if he had stayed in Pennsylvania.
Would he still have turned into the soulless man he was today?
Movement to the left caught her eye, and she saw a pheasant. Amelia whipped up her shotgun, and a gunshot pierced the air. The bird flopped to the ground, to their excitement. Father walked over to see the bird.
“Dead.”