The Factory Girl // Book 1 in the Rosie Grey series

Chapter Thirty-Two

Doctor Ealing returned to his office not long after my outburst, he barely even registered it had happened as he gave instructions to Mrs Ealing and Robert about what they were to do so the twins didn't see what had happened. As they dealt with the twins, he turned to me and Matilda who were both still on the floor. Crossing the room, he grabbed one of the undestroyed glass jars containing a small amount of liquid and a cloth. He knelt down beside us and took my right hand, pouring the liquid onto the cloth, he dabbed it across the small cuts caused by the glass.

The stinging from the liquid didn't bother me. I was numb to everything that was going on. It felt as though I was watching it all from a distance, detached from reality and just going through the motions. Every conversation that happened around me happened in silence as a low buzzing sound filled my ears and blocked everything out. Physically, I was part of the room, part of what was going on around me. Mentally, I was somewhere else entirely, cut off from the voices and actions from others. I was going through the motions without really being there, without being part of it.

After dabbing the liquid onto the cuts on my hand and the crescent-shaped indents on my lower arm, Doctor Ealing look a fresh bandage and wrapped it around my hand and lower arm. As he wrapped the bandage, I noticed the dark brown under his nails. Isabel's blood. Try as he might to remove the dried blood from his hands, he had forgotten to scrub under his nails, the substance a reminder of what had happened. Looking away from his nails, I glanced down at my own dress, noticing the deep red, almost brown spots that covered the front of it. The blood had dried into the fabric of my dress, marking it permanently.

Just looking at the marks on my dress made me want to tear it off and throw it away, but I could barely lift my arm. As Doctor Ealing tucked the end of the bandage inside, he muttered something unintelligible to Matilda who nodded in response. Doctor Ealing pushed himself into a standing position and replaced the glass jar on the shelf, he pushed his sleeves up his arms and turned to the doorway.

"The twins, Mother and Esther have just left. Esther has been instructed to take the pair of them to their rooms," Robert said.

"Are they alright?" Doctor Ealing asked.

"They seem to be. They've been asking a lot of questions, but they know nothing of what has happened."

"Good. We'll have to tell them something, but it's best we get Rosie back to the house before we do anything else."

"What about the Constable?"

"He will come to the house tomorrow and talk to Rosie then. For the time being, he has to decide where the others will be staying. The only option appears to be the building in front of the factory, it's stable and was untouched by the fire. Apparently, the foreman would use it as a front, he set it out as though it was a boarding school."

"He really thought everything out."

"Hm, seems like it. For now, we head home. I'm going to make sure the carriage is out front, I'll meet you out there in a little while, understand?"

"Understood."

Doctor Ealing nodded slightly and walked away, I heard the sound of his hand slap Robert's shoulder as he passed him and the creek of a door hinge as he left. Neither Matilda nor Robert said anything, they didn't know what to say. Instead, Robert's footsteps crossed the room and stopped just in front of me. He paused and knelt down, placing a light hand on my shoulder, with his other hand he grabbed hold of my right arm and lightly pulled me to my feet, using his other arm to steady me as I stumbled slightly.

Beside me, I heard Matilda struggle to her feet and the sound of her hands as they ran over the fabric of her dress. Her hand skimmed the top of my arm as she walked past me, leaving the room and opening the front door. Robert, with one hand still on my arm and the other firmly on my right hand, led me out of the room and towards the door that Matilda had propped open. He helped me down the stairs and let go off me as he climbed up into the carriage, reaching out, he took my arm and helped me in. I felt like a child being taken too and from places, watched every second in case I decided to do something stupid.