Christine offered a smile towards Lory and Alice. "It's more than that. I am not going to let him just have his way after he tried to disgrace my name."

She nodded when the other one had spoke well of her and glared at Tobias. "I am well educated and the owner of a local book store. I've not let a man touch me and I won't if they all act the disgusting, aggressive way you do. You will apologize for what you've said to me and my crew. We had every right to race and you've been a monster." She stomped up towards Tobias and looked up at him. "Apologize to me and the rest of my crew right now for the things you've said. Or I will hire whoever I have to to make your life a living hell." She said not hiding the threat.

Murphy stepped beside Mehmet, soaking wet and looking tired. "He's right. Good race. I think it's time we celebrate." He clasped the man on the shoulder and gave Tobias a look saying he should come too, though he was certain he'd be ignored.

His head turned towards the man beside him that he thought could be a new friend, he seemed great. "Let's go and see my boys. We can have lunch."

Alice cringed again as Mr. Meijer continued to accuse her husband. Yes, she had been very afraid of Tobias that day. She was very afraid of him now. But people didn't need to know that. She didn't want to be the center of this unfolding drama that seemed to draw in more and more people. But Miss Pennyfeather left the boat to argue with Tobias, saying her own fight too now, and it seemed even less likely that she could just go quietly and deal with whatever the consequences of her disobedience in private, without added humiliation.

She looked over to Lory and felt a lump in her throat when she saw that her cousin was crying. "He didn't... he doesn't... please don't cry, Lory." She managed to whisper.

Bloody hell. Why couldn't people leave him alone!? He had shown kindness and great patience to Alice and she persistently spat it back in his face - that was what was going on! But he didn't know how to defend himself against Mr. Meijer. That weasel. Oh he wished that he'd launched at the man that day he had found him in his home with Alice. "I don't know! I didn't hit her! I never have!" he shouted back, quite red in the face.

But here was this Amazon already in his face. He turned to her. "Miss," he tried as calmly as he could. "I am unaware of saying anything that insulted ye or yer crew, whereas you continue to be aggressive, insulting and belligerent. Now will ye please leave me and me wife be?"

He looked over her shoulder. "Alice, ye know I never struck ye and I will not," he addressed his wife. "But get off that boat. Go to yer father's home. Ye've caused enough of a scene!"

Mr. Zecheriah Meijer was a liar, a fake. Ben knew that much. And Ben knew he was far worse than that. And yet his words made more of an impact than Ben knew he should allow. What occasion was he talking about? Alice had said nothing about being scared of her husband. For a woman scared of her spouse, she was surprisingly strong-willed and provocative. And yet Ben wasn't entirely sure in that moment which of the two men he really wanted to punch. Tobias didn't seem to deny the situation had happened.

Oh fuck that guy!!! (Except that hadn't worked out, had it?)

Mr. Meijer was attracted to other people's misery like a fly to shit, of course. Sadistic bastard. The claim was outrageous and Tristan didn't believe it. Nothing about this marriage had felt right from the moment he had heard about it - and it was becoming undeniable just how wrong it was. Yet for all his rough exterior and lack of subtlety, he could not believe that someone as sensitive and gentle as Tobias would be violent, least of all to a woman, to his own wife, a fragile thing barely past girlhood and half his volume. And of course, Tobias denied it. It was preposterous.

And then Mr. Meijer raised his arm to demonstrate whatever scene he had witnessed. Once again Tobias denied striking Alice. But Tristan felt his stomach churn when he realized his friend did not deny Alice lifting her arm in self-defense. Turned his gaze towards the frightened woman - no, child - in the boat. He was a doctor. Not just a doctor. He was a bloody alienist! Had he overlooked what should not have been overlooked? What had he participated in?

Rose had been watching the race and had looked on with horror from the moment she realized that Alice participated in Lory's team, and with more horror from the moment it dawned on her that her husband and father had been unaware of this beforehand and were not pleased.

Rose hadn't liked this marriage from the start, and despite Tobias' saving her sisters' lives, she mistrusted him. He was a very strong, fully grown man, and his home was miles away from Whitby in the middle of nowhere. Her sister was but a little girl in Rose's eyes, her mistake being exactly that of a foolish child. It had only demonstrated how little she knew of men, before she was handed over to play wife to one twice her age. Thinking of how horrified Alice had to be at everything that awaited her in Castleton had made her sick to the stomach whenever she thought of it. But much as she disliked it, she had seen the necessity of it, and the only thing she had been able to do for her little sister was pleading for Castleton to be a safe haven and Tobias to be a loving husband in her nightly prayers.

When she had seen where Alice had docked, she had rushed over - partly to shout at her for being so stupid, and partly to shield her from her father and husband doing the same.

But when she got there a crowd had gathered already arguing and just then Mr. Meijer joined. Rose felt her stomach jolt and her knees tremble. Sweat broke out. But fear for her own wellbeing - she didn't even know what she dreaded Mr. Meijer would do to her, but he still gave her nightmares - was soon replaced by fear for Alice's safety. Mr. Meijer was a liar. But she didn't trust Tobias either and she wasn't happy with his answers.

Tobias and the lady who seemed to be in charge of the boat were too close to the boarding plank. Rose ran to the shore, used the momentum to make a leap, and landed nimbly in the rocking boat. She joined her sister and Lory, ignoring for the moment the recent accusations she had heard against her cousin. "Alice," she said, taking her sister's hands in her own and looking at her intently, "what does 'e do to ye?" She looked briefly at Lory - there were tears in Lory's eyes and Rose decided then and there to bury whatever she had heard - and then back at Alice. "Lory and I will protect ye, I promise."

She'd stand up to her father if she needed to.

Probably.

She thought she would.

Hoped she would.

Anne too had been watching and listening. Her eyes had been focused solely on Alice. She wanted to go over, but she was afraid to and the boarding plank was blocked.

But when Rose ran over and leaped, Anne followed.

Alas. Where Rose was lean, gracious and nimble, Anne was short, squat and clumsy.

There was a great splash of water between the dock and the boat.

Christine frowned sharply. "Your friend " she gestured to Ben, "Said half of our boat was from the Pony. And you were demanding your wife to come back, clearly not allowing her to spend time with us. You even wanted her to leap from the boat and swim to shore during the competition if I recall." She said to him then heard the splash. She gasped and looked to the side to see someone in the water. What had they been doing!? It was so close to the boat, did they hit it on the way down? She could swim, but not strongly enough to rescue someone. "Someone, help!" She said as she gestured to the water.

Her lip trembled, but she pulled her neck up and chin high as she tried to reel it back in.

“You have been so–” she paused, she couldn’t help but look at the shouty man! “– so, so miserable since you left. Is it- is it the sex?”

Another quizzical look to Alice at this new dramatic rendition, and she dropped her voice. “Do you … know him?”

Biblically, she managed not to add.

Then, Appleton was shouting his version at her again and Lory gritted her teeth.

“Why do you have to tell her what to think and what to say, then!?” she sneered back, arms about Alice once more.

Rose jumped in, and Lory spread her arms and legs to better steady the boat. Her look was guarded when she first met Rose’s eye … but then the tears fell.

Rose had seen the light!

... Then she heard a splash, and got spattered with water.