“I thought you knew, my lady. He mentioned he bought it at the same shop as your brooch. Lord Tremaine always let the staff borrow his books, my lady, as long as we logged it in his ledger,” said Mrs. Bramble.

Lady Tremaine knew this was true, of course. This conversation, combined with the events from the last few days, had her head spinning in circles. “Well, then I am even happier to have it in my possession, Mrs. Bramble. I will take extra care to read it. Thank you so much for giving it back.” Lady Tremaine motioned to Rebecca to take the old woman out of the room. “Now, you go back downstairs with Rebecca and stay there and rest until I send for you. Everything will be well, I promise you,” she said, kissing Mrs. Bramble on the cheek.

She took a deep breath once both ladies were out of the room. “Good grief,” she said, looking at the book. Seeing Lord Tremaine’s handwriting sent a wave of love and sadness through her. She never knew he had gone back to that strange little shop for the book. She remembered the proprietor mentioning it, and she thought it sounded just like something her husband would do, going back to the shop to get it. But she hated the ideas and notions this book had put in Mrs. Bramble’s mind. The old woman had clearly convinced herself that the stories were true. And then she remembered her conversation with Sir Richard about whether the book of fairy tales could be a history. Could the stories be true after all?

Rebecca came back into the room, interrupting her thoughts. “Sit down, my lady, you look pale,” she said, holding out a chair for Lady Tremaine.

“Thank you, Rebecca dear. Do you know much about the Many Kingdoms? I swear I remember Sir Richard saying something about a book of fairy tales.” She put her hand to her head, and Rebecca took the book from her.

“Don’t worry about that now. I’m sure they are different books. Why don’t you lie down? It’s been a long day, and tomorrow will be another one. You need your rest.”

The next morning was spent in a flurry of excitement. As soon as she finished her coffee and was dressed, Lady Tremaine found herself surrounded by a legion of maids, all assisting Rebecca in packing her things so she could make her way back to London to tell her girls the news. She had written ahead to let her butler, Avery, know she was on her way. He was to instruct the servants to pack up the household and to tell Nanny Pinch to ready the girls for a long journey.