The next day it was back to the paddock again and more trotting around on Elfin Foot, I was really starting to enjoy my riding lessons athough again I sore and stiff at the end, after another oiling and rubdown I rested had lunch and continued to read my book till it was time for dinner, after which I read for a while longer and finally went to bed. I didn`t hear Aunt Margaret and Ms Rose return at all.

The next morning Julia woke me and after bathing and dressing, I was taken to the small dining room for breakfast with the two ladies, after we had eaten Ms Rose left us to talk, I didn`t know anything about parents lifes. Truth to tell I only knew that I was they`re only child and they loved me and that both mum and dad had jobs in factory were we had lived. We hadn`t been rich but we managed and had been happy, neither mum or dad had many friends as far as I knew and no family that I had ever heard about.At their funeral there had been about ten people and myself there, for me it was saddest day of my life as i had them being lowered into the ground I was alone and scared in a big world.

I had been eight when they died and for the past 5 yrs I had been moved from pillar to post and poorly treated. Maybe it was fault, i didn`t know but the kids bullied me and adults had beaten me, I couldn`t help the way I looked or the way I wanted to dress it was all part of me.

Aunt Margaret took me into her private sitting room, this one of rooms I had been told to stay out of unless I was invited to be there, once we were sat down she looked at me for a few minutes.

She told me that she had been to see the authorities to find out more of my background, the information she was given didn`t tell her much so she started digging around and found out a bit more, I had been left everything that my parents owned, the house we had lived in had been sold and the money placed in a bank account for me along with the money my parents had in their bank account, the furniture hadn`t been much and had either been disposed of of given away. The only thing that I left actually belonging to them was whatever jewellry and photographs that had been kept, we never had a lot but then again we had had each other and our love. My parents had taught me the value of money and that love and respect were priceless beyond measure, I knew it saddened them when birthdays and christmas came round as I didn`t get much compared to other kids. They had scrimped and saved and worked long hours to provide what we had while at the time trying to save a few pounds for my future. I had been proud of my parents especially when they found out me my dressing and told me it didn`t matter what other people thought, I was the only thing that mattered to them.

Aunt Margaret handed me the mum's jewelly box, dad had made it specially and I knew it had a few secrets. Aunt Margaret commented on it's size saying it seemed a bit big and heavy for what it contained. I opened it and say dad`s watch,sygnet ring and the only pair of cufflinks he had, mum was different there were the usual rings , necklaces, bracelets, a few pair of earings and a couple of lockets. most of costume jewellry, mum and dads wedding rings were placed on their hands before they buried.

Slowly taking the contents out and remembering the last time I saw each item being worn I emptied the box then I don`t know why I told Aunt Margaret that it was box of many secrets.

She looked at me and asked what I meant, I told her that there many secret compartments and although I knew how to open them had never seen the contents. I placed dad`s sygnet ring back in the box with the crest downwards and a slim drawer opened inside was an envelope that contained birth, and marriage certificates, I handed it to Aunt Margaret who put it to one side, I carried on putting certain items in various compartments and find other jewellry items in the various secret compartments once I had completely emptied the box I put the original jewellry back in of the larger drawers.

Aunt Margaret was looking closely at the pieces I had out and told me that they looked familiar to her, she asked if she could borrow them and get them looked at by an expert jeweller, she assured me that they would be returned to me in the same condition as they were so I agreed.

I had never seen those items of jewellry before and hoped they hadn`t been stolen, Aunt Margaret seemed very interested in them and carefully put them into metal bax after wrapping them in cloth then placed the box in her safe.

Once she had sat back down she started asking me about my parents so I told her, she asked about grand parents, uncles, aunts cousins. I told her that as far I knew there had only ever been the three of us and the fun we had and how much we had loved each other. She told me she had visited the neighbourhood were we had lived and seen how everyone struggled to live, I was a bit abrupt but told her rather loudly I didn`t want any sympathy. I thought she starting to look down and was getting rather annoyed

I said "so we had been poor, didn`t live in a big house with loads of servants etc, sure we had struggle our clothes might have been cheap and sometimes second had like most things we had, but we had the most important things in the world, we had each others love and respect and those things were priceless, now all I have are memories and a few bits and pieces that were left"

With that said I ran out slamming the door behind behind me.

I ran out of the and kept running I don`t how long I kept going I fell into a dirty stream while I was struggling to get up the bank felt a pain in leg as if I`d caught it or something or had been bitten, but fish don`t bite I knew that. I ran a bit further and eventually stopped and sat under a tree and though about my parents and eventually fell asleep.

The was going down behind the far hills when I shaken awake, I was one of estate worker. "Lets be getting you home, her Ladyship has everyone out looking for you" he said we got into his Landrover and he took me back to the house.