She would not to go to Bristol, after all. She knew nothing of the city. She suspected it had become her goal just because it was a long way away and the railway line led there. Philomena had thought herself in command of her destiny, but she had made a muddle of her escape. She would think more carefully in future.

Her only happiness had been here at Thatcham Hall. She could not remain here and so she would return to the city she knew. She would make a successful life for herself in London.

It was true that Joseph still lived in London, but Philomena knew the city well enough to avoid him. In any case, he had rushed off to Bristol. Philomena was as likely to run into the man there as in St. Giles or Seven Dials. She must not bump into Joseph while alone and friendless in a strange town. London was a bigger city, and she knew it well. She could far more easily lose herself in the familiar streets and narrow passages of the capital.

Even so, she could not escape Joseph forever. She shrugged. She had a new plan. Joseph surely knew the truth of her strange wedding. Until she encountered Hugh, she had blocked the marriage from her mind, determined to live happily alone, needing no man in her life. Now, she felt less confident. A small voice in the back of her head spoke to her. Once you uncover the truth of the marriage, you may find a way to overcome it. Perhaps it was not legal, after all. Or perhaps the man with the cold green eyes is dead.

Philomena tried not to listen to that voice. She could hardly bear to imagine her joy should she discover the marriage was a trick. Why, she would be able to return to Hugh and accept his proposal. No. She must not allow herself to imagine that day could ever arrive. Still, she would return to London.

The more she considered it, the more sensible it seemed. She would stop running away. She would go home to London, seek out a way to manage Joseph, and find out the truth of her past.

She could find something to hold over Joseph, to make him tell the truth. She could handle him. Why had she ever been terrified of him? She was more than a match for such a poor specimen. Fear of Joseph was nothing compared with the misery in her heart.

Philomena had a little money now, saved from her wages at the Hall. In fact, she had more now than when she left London, for the Dowager had insisted on giving her a parting gift. She could not accuse Hugh’s mother of lack of generosity.