It has come to this Anonymous writer's attention, that Captain Asher Newman impregnated a whore to who he was not married. And to show how dishonourable he was, he didn't bother to take care of them.

Quite barbaric if you ask me.

And guess who he has been working closely with? It's none other than the Rake of London, who under certain circumstances, hired a certain Ella Featherington to work for him dressed as a man.

An act most would consider disgusting. More so the fact, that he made a bet with Gerrard Finley that he could sleep with her. Which I can surely tell you must've happened.

I hope I have given London the topic of the year and surely I trust you all to deal with the victims of this slander, accordingly.

Your Anonymously,

The man behind the ink.

Robert settled the newspaper on his lamp, his eyes raking over the photos in the anonymous newsletter. There were images of him and Ella hugging at the boxing ring. Gerrard had someone watching them all along. His heart thrummed and his palms were sticky with sweat.

Gerrard had done his worst. He was on the verge of ruining the only good thing he had built along this journey; his relationship with Ella. Ella's eyes raised from the newspaper and they were already teary.

"Is this true?" She asked and he could see her heart shatter right in front of him. They were in his carriage and were on their way to his house. "Did you make a bet with Gerrard?"

Robert's lips parted and his throat constricted. "There was a bet he made me, but it wasn't this. What he said was that he could woo you. I wasn't in on it, I swear. What he's saying is not true. "

"If you're saying the truth, why didn't you tell me about the bet he made earlier?" Her voice was breaking with each word she spelt out.

Gerrard was smart enough to choose a good topic of conflict. Robert never knew that ignoring Gerrard's bet would lead to this. If he could rewind time, he would tell Ella everything. But now it was late, he doubted she would believe him. Mostly because of his history.

"I didn't think anything of it, I swear."

Ella's tears streamed down. "I was just a pawn, wasn't I? You just used me. I can't believe I lost my virginity to you." She hit him continuously anywhere she could. "I could've known a rake like you would never change!" She relaxed back into her carriage seat and covered her mouth with a hand, sobbing softly. "I was so naive to believe you could change."

Robert's soul shattered to bits. He had truly changed. He wasn't a Rake anymore and he had to live with the mistakes of his past. Though the fact Ella dug that shameful past up and shoved it in his face made him sad. He had never thought of using her. If only she could trust him more. That bastard son of a bachelor who called himself Gerrard had succeeded in severing them. Robert doubted that no amount of explanation would help Ella see the truth.

Gerrard was twisting his words.

He was pulling them apart.

And it was working.

Ella was still trying to digest the fact that she was adopted and then the bastard came with this news. With all that emotions bunched in her head, it would be hard for her to see things clearly and logically and he understood that. He was going to give her some time before he spoke with her. But for now, this mess had to be dealt with. Everyone in London had this anonymous newspaper because it was distributed for free.

He had to find the publisher and stop them from publishing more. If they couldn't take away the information, he could at least stop it from spreading. Ella was the victim here. He could shoulder London's critics; he had been doing it for years. But Ella was innocent and he didn't know how she would handle this. It was all his fault for bringing her into this life. If he had rejected her on that balcony that night, she would be living a peaceful life.

Every bad thing that had happened to this point was a result of his quest to make the moon lamp. Maybe that wasn't what he should be doing. Maybe he shouldn't be trying to make his father love him. But with all this that was happening, it was a slap to his face and a reminder that he wasn't good enough and that was why his father would never love him. Gerrard kept beating him.

Where was he going wrong?

They arrived at Ella's home and she didn't hesitate before she went out. He tried to stretch out a hand to her, but decided it was best he left her. He had to get home first and sort this out.

*****

"My Lord, your father was here earlier and he didn't look pleased. He has asked to see you," Mr Griffith said, serving Robert tea in the dining.

His father was surely going to be furious. And that wasn't because of what was said about Robert, but because of the reputation, he had to maintain.

"Let him know I am back and I would see him soon."

"Okay, My Lord."

"You can leave."

Griffith bowed and walked out of the dining room. Robert knew that each time he spent thinking of how bad this was, the situation would get worse. So he needed help and quickly. Reaching the telephone next to him, he dialled the Captain and he picked up on the first ring.

"I assume you've seen the newspaper," Robert said.

"Aye, how is she?"

"Furious."

Captain Asher sighed over the phone. He had left earlier with Howard so they could ensure the safety of his children. And judging by his tone, Robert could tell everything was fine.

"I'm just coming back from Helen's home. I didn't go in though." There was a pause before he continued. "Robert, I've given you the benefit of the doubt that the news of what you did isn't true. Is it safe to assume so?"

"Yes, Captain."

"Good. So what's our next move?"

Robert combed his long fingers through his golden hair. "You'll need to pull some strings at the police station. Get them to confiscate every one of those newspapers they could get their hands on."

"Surely they wouldn't agree to go door to door. But they could storm the streets and take it from anyone seen reading it. Then the picture, unfortunately, nothing can be done about it."

"I understand."

"So what will you do?" Captain Asher asked.

"I'll search for who's printing that newspaper and make him an offer he can't refuse."

"Your Lordship, that man called my wife a whore," The Captain said over the phone. "We can't let Gerrard win."

"I agree."

********