Alternative Ending to Rumours
By Claire Duff / Spinebreakers Crew
"It's my fault, Penelope, my doing."
He was alert as one only becomes after full days of sleeplessness. He could see now, plainly, that this was his chance to do something gallant. He had Penelope here, and her secret hadn't gone anywhere yet. He knew her, he reminded himself - he could figure out how to stop her.
"It's me you want to punish, anyway. Punish me."
"Of course I want to punish both of you," she replied with a blithe wave of her hand. "But I'm not a bad person, Henry. I know it's your fault. I'll let you be a man and take care of it."
Henry's whole body was taut with fury, and he had to close his eyes to hide all his violent feelings. It took him a few seconds before he even managed to nod.
"The first thing is that you won't be seeing Diana anymore. But that won't be difficult, because the second thing is that you'll be proposing to me."
"What?!" Henry exploded.
"This is taking it too far, Penny! I would rather die than marry you!"
"Now now Henry, temper temper!" Penelope reminded him patronisingly.
"Do you want your darling Diana's reputation to be ashes in the graveyard of New York's finest?"
"Of course not," Henry retorted hotly.
"But I can't just stand by and marry you when I love Diana!"
"Oh, so you love her!" Penelope simpered while circling Henry like a shark.
"Is it the same way you loved me? Because you know there's a difference between love and lust, don't you?"
"Yes," Henry said, beginning to manage his anger.
"But what Di and I have is different! Everyone thinks it's so bad because I was engaged to her sister, but so what? Even while I was to be married to Elizabeth I couldn't take my eyes off her younger sister! I love her, and she loves me too! If only society would accept it we could be ecstatically happy! But no, they only care about being disrespectful for the dead!"
Henry spat the last word out.
"But I know for a fact that she's not, and she's living out West with the coachman!"
Penelope paled at this. "How do you know?"
"I got told," Henry riposted.
"What did you think? I'd never know? That you could just carry on lying and not get found out?!"
"She only left because she hated you and wanted to marry Will Keller! She couldn't stand the fact that you had to be married, and the only reason she even pretended to like you was so that her family wouldn't get even more into financial ruin!"
"Do you think I don't know that?! I knew she didn't love me, I knew she loved somebody else, but so did I! Why did you think you could get away with lying to me, saying she was dead, making me think she'd rather kill herself than marry me! Do you have any idea how guilty I've been feeling, how upset and remorseful I am, that she saw me and Diana on what was supposedly her last morning on this Earth?!"
Penelope had no idea how to react to this outburst of uncommonly violent emotion from Henry, but quickly covered it when she realised what his last sentence had been.
"What do you mean she saw you and your precious Diana on her last morning?"
"I mean she saw Diana getting out of my carriage! What did you think I meant, that she walked in on me and her younger sister? What do you think I am, mental?!"
"You were stupid enough to get caught last night!" she retorted with just as much anger.
"I know! But I was driven crazy by knowing she loves me and that I couldn't get to her because my stupid father had me under house-arrest!"
"So that's why you've been so mopey!" Penelope gasped, knowledge clicking into place in her mind almost audibly.
"That's why you've constantly rejected me, in spite of our past!"
"Yes! Thank God you're finally getting it!" Henry said, visibly relieved.
"And there I was thinking you had lost it and were never going to know what I meant."
"Yes, I get it," Penelope replied slowly.
"But that doesn't change the fact that you were seen in Diana's bedroom early this morning, both in various states of undress!"
"Penny, Penny, Penny, it's exactly what I was doing with you! The only difference is, I wasn't caught with you!"
"And you were never engaged to my sister," Penelope quickly reminded him.
"I know," Henry replied soberly, despite of the amount of champagne he'd consumed.
"But that doesn't change how I feel about Diana."
"Regardless, if you get found out it would ruin both of your reputations," Penelope prompted.
"So, if you don't want to ruin your ex-fiancee's sister's reputation, you better propose, and soon! As in, tonight!"
Henry slipped his hands into his trouser pockets to conceal the fact that they were clenched tightly in anger and fear for Diana's reputation. He slowly meandered around the room, deep in thought as to how he and Diana could both get out of this unhurt. Of course, he could always just go propose to her. At least then everybody would know and Diana would still have an intact reputation. Yes, that was exactly what he'd do!
"Penny," he said excitedly.
"You don't worry your pretty little head any more. I have a plan, and this will work! Otherwise, I will tell everybody about your dalliance with me, and as you won't be engaged, it could seriously hurt your marriage prospects."
He strode out of the room to look for his soon-to-be fiancee, leaving Penny looking furious at being played at her own game.
Diana looked up from her book sharply, having heard a creak from outside her room. She went to the window that was slightly open, and gasped as Henry's head poked above the railing.
"Oh Henry!" the youngest Miss Holland said, surprised.
"What are you doing here?"
"I have something to ask you," Henry replied happily, with a big smile spread across his face.
"Something I think you'll agree to."
"What?" enquired Diana, hope blossoming in her breast at the prospect of Henry possibly asking her something that could change their lives forever.
Henry got down on one knee, and all of a sudden Diana felt really light-headed.
"Miss Diana Holland, would you do me the honour of becoming my wife?" the young Mister Schoonmaker asked.
Diana just stood there, overwhelmed by happiness. Her elder sister Elizabeth had got her true love and was getting married, and now so was she!
"But what about everybody else? They'll think it's dishonourable and sick and . . . and . . ." her words trailed off as Henry stood up and wrapped her in his arms.
"I take it that's a yes?" he asked, grinning like the happiest man in the world.
"YES!" Diana suddenly yelled, happy that her romantic daydreams of the past were actually coming true.
"Yes Henry Schoonmaker, I will be your wife!"
Just then there was a knock at the door.
"Di? Are you all right?" Elizabeth's voice came through the thick oak door.
"Come in!" Diana called gaily. The door opened and the eldest Miss Holland stepped in. She stopped as she noticed her sister wrapped in her ex-fiance's arms.
"What . . ." she started.
"We're getting married!" Diana exploded.
Elizabeth smiled and crossed the room towards them.
"My congratulations on this happy occasion," she replied formally, but her true feelings were exposed by the wide smile and happy glint in her eyes. The girls and Henry stayed up, planning how their happy days would go...