Tristan sat back. He didn't like the idea of Pippa going out while a murderer was looking for her. And anyway, his offer had been generous, hadn't it? It wasn't like he enjoyed the thought of his maid pursuing her lower appetites under his roof, but if it was the only way to keep her safe...

Tristan kept his sulky thoughts to himself however, and drank the rest of his brandy. He set the glass down. "That still leaves us with the murderer himself. Something needs to be done, or Pippa with either be a hermit for the rest of her life or dead, and the inheritance won't do her any good then. I think we ought to at least let the police know. Even if you don't have the letter, Pippa, you could tell them what it said and show them your drawing. Even if there is no evidence, they have at least been alerted, in case the man shows up in Whitby. We could also try to get in touch with your former school. See if they have kept any of your belongings. We may recover the letter that way."

Douglas gave the woman an understanding glance.  He would go crazy if he had to stay at home all the time and he was a man who would not have as many issues having a woman in his home for private time.   With Tristan's comments, he nodded.  "Aye, at least alerting them is a good idea even if they cannae do much of anything aboot it at this time."

When Pip gave him the location of the lawyer.  "I will get my lawyer in London making connections once I leave 'ere.  I'll stop at the telegraph before I gae back to my cottage.  Then I'll need yur school as well, we can send a telegraph there as well via my lawyer. Tristan yu want tae 'ave one of my men o'er 'ere tae 'elp with security?"  He asked.

She gave the name of the school to him. "I am sure by now that everything has been collected. It happened in October. The boat ride over took time, of course." She gave pause and sighed, "I am so very sorry that I've brought all of this to you both... I..." She felt extremely guilty, and she was frightened and tired and grieving. And now possibly pregnant. Hurray for that, right?

"As far as the other issue... I..." she looked down, "I will talk to Viktre on my own terms about that when I know for certain whether I am pregnant or not."

Then she looked to Tristan, "I would like to get the examination over with as soon as his Lordship has taken his leave, if that is alright with you?" She knew it was weird to do it in front of him. And then to both she said, "Thank you... for everything."

"I doubt I'll be able to give you full certainty for the moment. But very well," he said, not responding to the apology. There were too many things he was angry about and too many things he had yet to process. He turned to Douglas. "If you can spare one, I think that would be a good idea. Send one over, and I'll come see you later today, alright?" Mostly because he wanted to complain about Pippa without Pippa around. And because they would need to come up with a strategy to protect her. That too.

Douglas nodded.  "I'll take my leave now.  A stop at the telegraph office to 'ave my lawyer come 'ere tae speak privately aboot 'ow tae get this information and 'elp 'er get 'er things and inheritance."  He stated heading to the doorway.  "I'll send one of the men o'er tae keep an eye on the lass once I get back tae my cottage, Tristan."  He then reached to open the door.  "Let me know when yu want tae visit aboot further plans."  He gave a brief nod to Pip.  "We will keep yu safe, lass, just try tae relax and feel better."  He hoped she wasn't pregnant, but her being sick was not good either.  He gave a nod goodbye to Tristan and headed out.

She nodded as the man dismissed himself. "We will be in touch as well, my lord," she said quietly. Then she watched the man leave and took a deep breath, letting it out as a sigh. When alone with Tristan, she didn't look at him for a long time.

Once Douglas was gone, Tristan went downstairs without a word and returned a minute or so later with a glass of water. He handed it to Pippa.

She took the glass of water and took a drink, then mumbled, "Thank you..." Her hand then rubbed at her face and she sighed heavily. "I truly didn't mean to bring any of this down on your head, Dr. Wells," she said raggedly and stared off. "None of it. I'm sorry I didn't tell you things..."

Tristan sat down and looked at her intently, a stern frown forming on his forehead. "I'm not angry about that murderer out there or you not telling me Pippa. It must have been hard to face it even for yourself, and you did what you had to do to survive. It's your recklessness that bothers me. And your blatant disregard for the terms of your employment after I gave you a chance."

"I understand... That was why I was expecting you to fire me, honestly. I wouldn't have blamed you for it," she said very quietly. "I would have understood." But it didn't matter right then. She squared her shoulders.