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Ellie parted her hair taking her hand out of Henry's.  He kept his hand where it was as he watched her move her hair.  When she stopped there were parallel places where her hair was missing.  She touched the deep groves where she had no hair with clinical precision.  "You seeing these spaces where I have no hair? Anastasia pulled it out when I was a kid.  She used chemical hair removal on my head until I had permanent chemical burns. She wanted me to say that I wasn't her real sister because my parents weren't married.  I don't even think I'd started kindergarten."

Henry touched the spaces in her head before grasping her face and pushing her head into his chest.  Lopez made a similar sound. Henry pulled her forwards so he could look at her eyes. "Who allowed something like this to happen?  You must have had someone around who cared for you other than your mother. I have a feeling she wasn't even disciplined."

"You're right.  I was tied to a chair and struggled which is why there are rivets instead of spots.  I kept turning my head. She had these long claws too which was why I cheated when dealing with her.  I had Nolan call the authorities who came into the house and made sure I got immediate medical attention."

"Was there anything that she was charged with?  I'd hope that they would put her in some sort of detention center to make sure she wasn't a danger to society." Henry looked terrified for her.

"The police chief just told my father that he needed to keep a better eye on her as that day was something that he would keep off record so that she had a future." Ellie looked away at the distance.

Henry's eyes narrowed in incredulity. "She gave you permanent chemical burns and she got a slap on the wrist?  That seems really nice. But I guess old families go way back."

Ellie brushed her hair back her hair over the marks. Tears stung at the corner of her eyes as she remembered the old wounds from her father's indifference to the whole situation. She sighed.  "It's all right, all families have their own hidden things to keep the peace. I know my father was already under so much stress at the time, it would have devastated him that he had failed as a father.  He would have taken it very personally to right their behavior. My mother always felt like she owed him so much already."

Lopez looked at her with pity in his eyes.  "If I had known, I promise you Lady Braye that I would have done anything in my power to help you."

"It's not a big deal.  I know it's difficult to hear, but it really doesn't bother me anymore.  I left it behind me a long time ago on the plane to the United States after father passed on.  My mom, Nolan and me were all happy to have a chance to rebuilt our lives away from the English aristocrats my mother hated.  It was such a gift to have a new life in the suburbs and make friends who didn't care about titles or money. It was blissful to us.  Also, we would not have been able to fight out a suit in court if we couldn't pay you, Mr. Lopez. My mother had a lot of pride. I'm sure it was the reason why she didn't hire you or go after my sisters."

Lopez took a deep breath before standing to deliver his final pleadings.  "I completely sympathize with you if you decide that you would rather have someone else be caretaker of the stately house, however, I have sources that tell me it should be done by the heir herself.  I know that you need to make a trip back to Stanford Hall when you can. It would be wise if it's sooner than later. The house is heavy in the need of restoration. It hasn't been having it's usual upkeep so it's not really attracting the tourists that it used to.  Due to the tourism falling to an all time low, the workers have not been happy as of late. I don't think they're striking quite yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if they did so eventually. My primary mission in coming here today was to tell you that you have become the owner.  Nonetheless, you must also head back to tend to what you've gained. I have spoken ahead of time with my London associates so that when you do get back, the money will be available right away for you to use on starting the fixing up."

Ellie let in a deep breath as she chuckled.  The assumption that she did not want to return to her childhood home seemed to hang in the air.  She joined Mr. Lopez by getting onto her feet and meeting his eyes. Their heights were equated by the step that Ellie had been standing on.  She reassured him. "I'm nothing like you'd think. Even though it was difficult to have such a childhood, I can't say that it was the house or the lands that I hated.  My half-sisters were just an annoyance to me that I knew would disappear once they went back to boarding school. For me,"--she seemed lost as her eyes stared off into the distance with a faint smile-- "I can't imagine a better place to continue my recovery than Stanford Hall.  It would be wonderful to restore the gardens back to what they once were. They used to say that our garden rivaled that of Chatsworth. I'm sure the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire would have had a good laugh at that, but I would like that to be so someday. Why don't you leave your contact information with Michael or any of the servants around here and tell them to relay it to me.  I'll have a call with you over lunch about what needs to be done so I can know what I'm doing when I get my feet on the ground in Europe. If I did that today, I'm sure I would get a migraine. I have had quite a shock and I'd rather not talk business right now."