A/N Last night the team Downstairs detectives found out that Charles Grigg will return in series 04. There are a few behind the scenes pictures that show him and Elsie Hughes together in a taxi on their way to Crawley house. Because this is all very confusing (since when does Elsie know? Why a taxi? Why Isobel Crawley?) I decided to write a fic about what might happen. (I wanted this to be as close to the original series as possible but the first chapter already ruined my plan ;))

Ghosts of the Past

"Telegram for you Mr Carson." Jack, one of the young hall boys, had just run into his pantry, without bothering to knock on the door. Charles had been ready to punish whoever dared to disturb him. He had already risen from his chair, furious at the tactlessness of the intruder. But he swallowed his anger when he saw the look of fear on the boy's face, instead he wordlessly took the telegram from Jack's hands and sent him out into the servant's hall with one angry glance. The door closed with a loud bang.

All morning Charles had tried to sort out the mess Thomas had made: wrong entries in the wine ledger! One line was missing, wrong numbers were added, the whole inventory was an utter chaos! He should have known better than to trust Thomas. The man was still too inexperienced in his position to take on such a responsibility. He probably did not even know how important this list was. For Thomas these were simply numbers and names but for Charles it meant the world. Downton Abbey was famous for its collection of fine, superior wines and he made sure they were always well stocked. Especially for the upcoming dinner party it was of utmost importance that Charles knew exactly what was stored in the wine cellar. Thanks to Thomas he would spend his day down there instead of dealing with his many other, likewise important, tasks. A telegram was the last thing he needed.

Probably some changes, last minutes, of the list of guests or some extra supplies Elsie had to organise from out of nowhere. With a huff he ripped open the envelope and took out the grey telegram. His eyes widened when he read the short message.

BACK IN TOWN. NEED YOUR HELP. MEET AT PUB AT TUESDAY 5TH. 7PM. GRIGG.

His past had once again caught up with him.

"I'll need you to take care of the dinner service tonight, together with Thomas of course." It was unusual for him to give her orders like that.

He was standing in the doorway to her sitting room, had not even taken the time to step inside, his eyes were restlessly scanning the corridor behind him. Was he expecting someone, had something happened she should be aware of?

Elsie got up from her chair, closed the linen inventory she had been working on and joined him at the door. She looked out into the deserted corridor. There was no one there except the usual noises from the kitchen, Mrs Patmore preparing the luncheon, and some of her maids carrying freshly pressed bed linen upstairs for the guest bedrooms.

"You look as if you've seen a ghost. What's wrong?" He still could not focus only on her face, behaved as if he was ready to flee from this place at the next given opportunity. "Has something happened?" She had never seen him that nervous and restless.

"Can you take care of the dinner tonight?" Charles repeated his question.

"But why?" Elsie would of course make sure that nothing delayed their schedule but she also needed to know what was wrong with him. He could be lost in his own thoughts from time to time but his present state worried her.

"I need to meet someone down in the village later." His deep voice sounded constrained as if he was in some sort of pain.

"Meet someone? Can't this person come here? Or respect that you have other things to do this evening?" She spoke in an equally hushed tone now and realized how ridiculous it must look to the other servants to see them standing here, whispering. "Can we talk about it inside my sitting room?" Her hand was already on his elbow and she had to drag him into the small room.

Once the door was closed, Charles could not stop clenching and unclenching his hands. He did not want her to be involved. It was a problem he had to deal with on his own. After all, Grigg was his shameful past and she should not bother with it. Wasn't it enough that he had told her about his time on the stage all these years ago? After Grigg had left, Elsie had insisted on an answer, an explanation. She wanted to know what had happened, wasn't satisfied by the simple answers he gave her. For days Charles had tried to avoid a direct confrontation but this was Elsie Hughes. She always got what she wanted in the end.

So he had told her a short version of his shameful past, left out a few bits that were not meant to be repeated in front of a woman. He had felt like a fool, defeated and ridiculed, had expected her to laugh at him or despise him. It would not have come as a surprise had she ended their friendship because of his past.

But nothing of the sort had happened. Quite the opposite in fact, she had taken his hands, promised him that no one would ever learn about this and reassured him that she was not disgusted by what he had told her. He knew then and there that he could trust her unconditionally and that her friendship was the most precious gift he had ever experienced.

"Charles, tell me!" The sharpness in her voice brought him out of his reverie. "There is something going on here and I would like to know what I am dealing with."

He reached for the telegram and pulled the crumpled piece of paper out of his waistcoat pocket where he had hastily stuffed it in earlier.

"Read this."

Elsie smoothed out the paper and read the few words, stared at them, went through them again as if to make sure she had not misread them.

"Charles Grigg?" She asked, looking at him now, worry written all over her face. "I thought he had no dealings with you anymore. After all, his Lordship gave him enough money the last time he threatened you."

Charles took back the telegram, only to toss it into the wastebasket next to her desk.

"Well, obviously it wasn't enough." He rubbed his forehead with his left hand. "I'll meet him later, like he requested, to find out what he wants."

"I'll come with you." Elsie immediately offered.

"No, I can't accept that. I need you to take care of the dinner tonight, please. You shouldn't have to deal with all of this."

She crossed her arms and looked at him sternly, eyes sparkling with determination.

"Thomas can take care of it and you'll not go there on your own. No arguments."