When Benjamin and Alice were in the hotel bathrooms, the hotel butler handed me another letter. I lowered my newspaper, on which Mr Aberdain's new life sentence was the headline. In the same story, Dalere had also been jailed but only for a few years. Leticia was not charged, irritatingly.

I thanked the butler, before opening the letter with the silver sword-shaped letter knife he'd supplied me with.

It was from Mr Olton.

Dear Mila,

You are invited to speak with me at my mansion today. The time does not necessarily matter, I will be around all day. I would like to discuss an important matter with you.

Best regards,
Mr Jonathan Olton.

I was intrigued. I explained my actions to my friends once they had finished and when we were packing our bags to leave the hotel. (It was our final day) They were fine with it, so Alice took us to Victoria Park, let us board her airship. Once inside (And once Benjamin had rushed to the shops to grab a sack of corn for his chickens and then fed them onboard.) Alice started the airship and her driver flew over to Mr Olton's mansion.

******

I arrived at the mansion. Benjamin and Alice told me to telephone the hotel once I had finished. They stepped back in the airship and flew away.

I knocked on the gold grizzly bear knocker, 3 slow times.

This time, when Mr Olton answered the door, he smiled genuinely. He held out his hand and I shook it.
"Welcome back, apprentice!"

"Good to see you!" I responded happily.

We climbed the staircase up to the drawing room. This was the same room I had seen Mr Olton in with Alice one week ago. I could still hardly believe time had passed so quickly! The room was the same decor with the wooden-cog armchairs, fire crackling in the grate and large bookshelves stuffed with novels. It was now that I noticed most were engineering titles, like brief science of locomotives, Stevenson's Rocket and (my favourite) aeronautic flying locomotives. (Translated from the jargon: airships)

Mr Olton sat down in his velvet armchair next to the fire and I seated myself in a tan armchair near the other bookcase. The fire crackled in the grate.

Mr Olton adjusted his cufflinks. He was wearing his clock top hat and a black patterned silk waistcoat with tails. He began:

"Mila, I am here because of this - "

Mr Olton opened one of the cupboards at the bottom of the wooden bookcase, producing a small stepladder. He climbed up it and retrieved a box on top of the tall bookcase and placed it on the floor. He turned it round and I immediately recognised it: it was the personal files I had rescued from Averat station!

Bother. I thought. I forgot I'd left it on Royal Clockwork!

Mr Olton also reached under his chair and removed a green binder file. Gareth and the Stokers must've got it from Welhae while I diffused the dynamite.

"Don't worry, you're not in trouble." Mr Olton informed me on seeing my self-critical expression. "Though you might want to take your files with you next time you borrow a train!" Mr Olton laughed. He laughed and laughed and I joined in too, loudly.

We calmed down and Mr Olton continued:

"Anyhow, it's jolly well good you did leave these! Because they've reminded me of some issues regarding you." He clicked his fingers and pointed at me. "That is what I am going to talk to you about!"

I nodded, interested. I folded my arms casually and reclined in my armchair. The fire had heated the room nicely; it must have been going for a long time.

Mr Olton opened the box lid, revealing sepia binder files. He extracted four of them and then replaced the lid of the box. Running his fingers over the papers inside the files, he said to me:

"Tell me what you know about your parents."

"I was abandoned on top of Crimson Comodo as a baby and would've died if you hadn't rescued me. But apart from that I know nothing." I replied.

Mr Olton nodded.
"It turns out, Mila, that you're not an orphan! Your mother died shortly after leaving you but according to these files, your father is alive! He is based at the Aeronaut Society in Averat."

My eyes widened. Benjamin was part of that society! But my father was too...

Mr Olton continued:

"In fact, I believe I have actually seen him multiple times! I thought he might be related to you but couldn't prove it. This is why I didn't let you off the train for so long - I didn't want to release you into a world where you didn't even know your parents, for I think that would be a lonely existence."

I was genuinely surprised. This was extraordinary! I had father... What's more, Mr Olton wasn't so irritable and selfish as I had judged him to be. He had wanted to protect me.
I had a question though.

"I remember that you were always a bit irritable onboard. But when you left the train at one point and then came back, you were worse. What on earth happened off that train?"

Mr Olton was silent.

I clapped my hand over my mouth. "I was too frank there, wasn't I -" I began.
Mr Olton raised his hand to indicate that he wanted me to stop.

"It's alright, Mila! I've always been a bit 'irritable', like sometimes you're a little inexperienced. I was alerted that Mr Aberdain had arrived at my mansion by the butler telephoning me. Knowing he had killed Benjamin's father, I rushed off the train as soon as I could. I didn't get there in time. Evangeline had been murdered. I spent the rest of the week in mourning."

I was silent. This is why he'd been so angry! I had not known the full story!

"I know that being without a family member is a terrible thing, which is why I didn't want you to leave until you were older." Mr Olton finished.

"I wasn't aware of any of this." I answered.

Mr Olton replied:
"I know. I apologise for my inexcusable behaviour. I should not have treated you like that back on 5th January."

"I accept your apology." I replied.

Mr Olton nodded. He leafed through the first file and retrieved a birth certificate.
"Your full name, is Miss Mila Rose Jameson. Your father is Mr Mark Jameson and your mother was Mrs Lavina Jameson. As far as I'm aware, you have no siblings."

"I don't mind." I smiled. It felt good to be officially recognised in the law. To actually be someone.

Mr Olton extracted all papers related to me from the three Manila folders be was holding. He placed the remaining folders back into the box on the floor and replaced the box's lid. He handed the papers back to me.

I sorted through each paper, noticing a black leather book for the doctor to record any illnesses. There was a red card to mark my employment, lots of white official letters, a brown Manila envelope ("That is from your father, I believe." Mr Olton informed me) and my birth certificate.

My birth certificate was contained in a wooden vial. I uncorked it and glanced at the parchment. Mr Olton had read out all the information on the certificate. But it also stated something more important to me: my birthday.

I'd always celebrated it onboard with the other Stokers and Angie on 19th July, the day I'd been found. It wasn't far off from my actual birthday, which was 9th July.

I gathered my papers together again and re-corked my birth certificate. We stood up and as I walked to the door, Mr Olton thanked me for coming. As I left the room to go and telephone Alice, Mr Olton stopped me.

"During the Crimson Comodo disaster, I yelled at you that you were fired and I never wanted to see you again. I never gave you redundancy pay."

He unbuttoned his inventors waistcoat, and removed some paper. He handed 2 of them to me.

I stared at the swirly copperplate writing and numbers.
"What are they?" I asked.

"Banknotes." Mr Olton chuckled. "They equal 20 pounds."

I thanked him and telephoned Alice. Once I had finished, I walked to the front door. I paused just before I opened the heavy wooden door as he told me:

"I should inform you: you are not banned from working with me again. Royal Clockwork does not have a line to go on yet, but next time I am in charge of a new train line, I will be more than happy to further train you in locomotives."

I thanked him before waving goodbye and leaving his mansion.

******

Penultimate chapter guys!
:( I'm going to miss writing about Benjamin and Mila. But then I have enjoyed writing this, so I'm happy :) see you soon!