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room was finely furnished with a four-poster bed at its centre. White drawers and cabinets trailed away in either direction from the bed. A beautifully ornate dressing table stood in the far corner with a small, plush velvet-seated stool before it. A bay window, fringed with lace curtains and silk drapes, faced the bed on the opposite side of the room and added to its size. Walk-in wardrobes, carved in the same fashion as the other furniture, followed the line of the wall to the door where Winnie and Thaddeus now stood. Thaddeus stepped into the room and gazed about.
    "This is your room, Winnie." He crossed to the far side and swung open an adjoining door. Gesturing into the room, he said, "This is your bathroom."
    My own bathroom? Winnie wondered in awe, as she joined Thaddeus. A thick blue carpet covered the floor, and she could tell it was deep and soft as her boots sank into it. A round-shaped bath lay to one side, slightly sunk into the floor. There was also a shower and toilet. More white cabinets and drawers lined the walls. Crisp white towels hung from a rail fixed to the wall.
    "Oh, my god, I can’t believe this is going to be my room, it beats the Embankment any day."
    Thaddeus caught her gaze and grinned, "Well don't say anything, just enjoy."
    Winnie went back into the bedroom and Thaddeus followed.
    "It's just that I get the feeling...” Winnie started.
    "That it's all too good to be true,” he cut in . “That I must have an ulterior motive for having you here?" He looked straight at her, his face b lank, not giving anything away. Then, turning, Thaddeus went to the bedroom door. He stopped and faced her again. "I've given you my reasons and you decided to come. If you want to stay, do so, but if you feel you must leave, then go. It’s e ntirely up to you, Winnie. T he hour is late and I must work in my room before I rest. So I bid you goodnight. If you decide to stay, I’ll be getting up at dusk tomorrow evening. Do as you please until then, but do not disturb me, whatever the reason." He then turned in the doorway and disappeared into the shadows , which were cast along the landing.
    Winnie stood looking at the empty space where he had been. After several moments, she went to the door and shut it tight. There was no lock, she noticed. Taking a chair , Winnie wedged it against the door. She knew that it wouldn’t keep anyone out, but the movement of it would wake her. It was better than sleeping with one eye open like she had on so many nights beneath the Embankment.  
    Winnie went to the bed, lay on it, and spent her first restless night in Thaddeus’s house.

Chapter Six
     
    Winnie awoke at a little past nine to the sound of heavy rain beating against her bedroom window. A strong wind nagged and tore about the eaves with an icy fury. She laid spread across the bed, fully dressed. She hadn't felt s ecure or comfortable enough last night to strip herself bare and climb between the sheets. She had felt vulnerable in the dark, and a certain distrust for Thaddeus still remained. He had been right. The house, the bedroom, the new clothes, the chance to escape her life on the streets, and Thaddeus himself, all s eemed too good to be true. S he had spent her life distrusting people, because most had hurt her , or let her down in some way. T he distrust she felt for her new surroundings and Thaddeus didn’t surprise her.
    She pulled herself up onto her elbows and gazed sleepily about her new room. It truly was beautiful with its apple white walls and lavish furnishings. It was the kind of room that she had only dared to dream about as a child, as she lay at night and tried to escape the drab surroundings of the care homes she was passed around. Winnie really didn't know what to make of Thaddeus, but so far, he had been nothing but generous, kind, and true to his word. If she left, what did she have to go back to? She had no money, no clothes, or a place to live. Who would employ her? She had been on that