Chapter Text
As much as Sofia loves her brother she can’t help but resent him for all the trouble he’s been causing in the past few days. Barely a week and he has shot a horse dead and then killed a man for reasons that still escape her.
She really hopes their father would disown him once and for all and allow her to somehow take over herself, she knows she’d do a good job of it all; better than Thomas would, at the very least.
They are eating at the table when none other than Nell Jackson comes in bursting through the door.
Her father uses his own forged excuse of poaching for Sam Trotter’s death and Nell takes out a gun, pointing it at Thomas as she continues her monologue, which comes to a peak soon after.
“-but you’ll understand if I’m a bit upset!”
Sofia swallows hard and clutches her napkin, starts to hyperventilate as her father tries to make a deal, offering the tenancy of the Talbot and money as if it were just a transaction and not the death of a man by the hands of his son that he’s trying to cover up.
Finally he seems to come to his senses and says Thomas will be brought to justice and her brother is furious, yelling in a rage.
Nell puts away the gun, saying that it wasn’t loaded anyway and Sofia can breathe again, if only for a split second before Thomas pulls out his own gun and points it at Nell.
The next moments happen through molasses, as a mote of light, almost like a lightning bug, flies into Nell’s ear and she goads him to shoot if he dares; only for him to turn and shoot their own father in the head.
Sofia runs to his side, not that she could do anything even if she wanted to, and cries softly after the shock leaves her. Thomas is screaming louder and louder how their father has been murderer and how Nell Jackson is the killer.
Will this be another crime he will get away with?
“Liar!” Nell Jackson shouts.
Will he just keep killing the people who get in his way?
Nell throws Thomas across the room as if he weighed nothing
“You will hang for this” Thomas threatens as the room fills with people, she sees Rasselas among them.
“-you saw what happened Miss Sofia” Nell Jackson begs her with her eyes, begs her aloud to tell the truth.
“She murdered Lord Blancheford!”
“No I didn’t it was him! He killed his own father!”
Once again time seems to slow down as the cook attempts to hit Nell with a rolling pin, which she stops, followed soon after by a bullet, which amazingly also stops with her bare hand.
Nell turns to Rasselas as if she knew him, asks him to believe her, almost begs him, and when he says nothing she forcibly makes her way out.
When Thomas orders Rasselas to go after her he seems to get his mind back together and seems to actually believe Nell Jackson, even comes to Sofia herself to ask her.
Will she have to accept it and keep quiet just to have a morsel of what her father will leave them in his will?
“-Sofia!”
No.
“He did.” Sofia murmurs.
“I did not!” Her brother roars, rushing her, almost pushing her. “I didn’t kill him, they’re conspiring against me, they want father’s estate!”
Sofia looks at Rasselas, neither can believe how her brother is trying yet again to twist things in his favor. Rasselas extends his hand and she takes it, running off with him.
“What will we do, they’ll come after us?” She asks him as they come outside.
“First we get a horse, they we’ll see”
As they find themselves a horse they see Nell Jackson getting onto her own and catch up to her soon after.
“Where will you go?” Sofia asks from behind Rasselas, clutching onto his coat.
“I have to get my sisters, I’m not leaving without them”
And so they ride as fast as they can towards the Talbot and call out for the younger Trotters.
“What’s going on? What is she doing here?” Roxy asks, setting eyes on Sofia.
After a small protest from George and a quick no from Nell, Roxy helps her little sister onto Rasselas’ horse and gets onto Nell’s.
Soon enough they’re out of Tottenham and making their way to god knows where.
“Why is she coming with us?” Roxy asked again.
“She went against her brother, now she’s in as much trouble as we are.” Rasselas explained.
Nell turned to look at Sophia and nodded in thanks after looking into her eyes.
“I’ve grown tired of my brother getting away with things and me being silent about it. I’d rather be wanted than be his lesser and watch him pilfer away father’s estate.” Sophia said after a while, followed by “I’m sorry about your father.”
“You didn’t pull the trigger.” Nell said with a tone of finality. “I’m sorry about yours.” She muttered after.
“You didn’t pull the trigger.”