"Was that a scream in the distance?" asked Augusta, a bit startled by the muffled noise.

She, her son, Albert, and her brother-in-law, William, all remained in the sitting room, watching the glorious view of the Atlantic.

"It was probably a seagull," William replied, his face glum and mind clearly somewhere else.

"Yes, perhaps," Augusta nodded, then returned to their previous topic of conversation: "Really, William, you must not beat yourself up over what Sophia is going through. Her actions last night were bizarre but as you noted, it may just be a response to all of the change in her life in recent years."

"But she was doing so well with everything," William countered, "when Lucinda died, why, it was me who was emotional and a nervous wreck. Sophia was obviously sad to lose her beloved mother, but she was stoic and strong through it all. And when I met and fell in love with Minnie, well, Sophia wasn't thrilled but again, she did not do anything to stand in my way or act out. Even when Horace was born, I felt she was fine with the situation. Yet now, we have being here on Sharpy Island as a family but one day and she already is talking of sealmen and defecating enormous piles on the back path and..." he trailed off.

"We don't know that she did that," volunteered Albert, knowing in his heart that was not the actions of Sophia, though not knowing what other explanation to offer. His uncle, however, merely waved a hand dismissively.

"Yes, well, you supporting her on the beach earlier made matters worse," he said, "probably gave her grounds for her hysterics. You said you didn't see anything yourself, isn't that right, Albert?"

Albert slowly nodded. "No, I...I didn't see anything myself."

"So then why on Earth would you say you believed her ridiculous sealman story when clearly she just saw a regular seal or that strange lighthouse keeper from Phoque King Light?"

Albert didn't reply. What could he say? He felt a warmth whenever around Sophia, and he wanted her happy. He would always be supportive of her, even if what she was saying didn't make any sense.

"William, maybe we shouldn't worry too much," Augusta cut in, knowing her son's shy tendencies and noticing that the young man looked uncomfortable being questioned, "perhaps after a night's sleep Sophia will be back to normal. This may have just been a temporary issue."

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William sighed."I do hope so. I am still debating sending for Dr. Gramheist, though."

Dr. Vesuvius Gramheist was a well-known psychologist in the city, a fashionable favorite of the well-to-do with mental issues. Of course, a wealthy man such as William Dilly could easily afford his services, but the thought of hiring such a doctor for Sophia caught Augusta and Albert off-guard.

"William, I hardly think Sophia needs Dr. Gramheist," Augusta remarked, "that seems rather extreme in light of all that has happened."

"I haven't sent for him yet," replied William, "but I have to say the events of last night really have me shaken and concerned. But perhaps you are right- perhaps Sophia will be fully recovered today, whenever it is she chooses to leave her room."

"She was quite upset last night at your doubting her," Augusta said.

"I am not sure what she expected me to say."

Albert squinted as he looked at the beach before them. There appeared to be motion.

"Isn't that...?" He began, pointing. His uncle and mother turned to look. It was, in fact, Minnie, running as fast as she could, across the beach. Her expression was one of horror and her hands were still clasp over her cheeks, making her a strange sight in motion. What exactly she was running from was not clear- and it didn't matter, for in mere seconds the young woman, not looking where she was going, had stumbled over some of the loose stones beneath her feet and slammed head first into a particularly large rock. At that point, she went limp as she lay half on the shore and half in the sea.

"Minnie!" William cried out in fear as Augusta gasped. Albert didn't know how to react and kept his eyes on the beach, looking to see if there was anything more to observe.

William raced out of the sitting room and towards the door outside. The butler, Jerome, popped his head in from the next room over. "Is everything alright?" He asked.

"Jerome, you must go to the beach and assist William at once," ordered Augusta, the panic clear in her voice too, "it appears Minnie has hurt herself!" From the large window before them Jerome could observe the scene of the motionless woman below.

"Oh dear," he replied, taking off towards the door outside as well.

From behind them, there was the sound of soft footsteps. Albert and Augusta turned to see Sophia, finally awake and approaching; while she was dressed in a lovely pink gown and her hair was playfully done up in a bun, the dark lines under her swollen eyes showed evidence she had spent most of the night crying.

"What's going on?" she asked meekly.

Albert and Augusta did not reply, but rather looked out to the scene at the beach, allowing Sophia to follow their gaze. She took a few steps closer to the window and watched as her father, following quickly by Jerome, approached Minnie and checked her for signs of life.

"Oh," was all Sophia said, without a hint of emotion or concern to her voice.