# Maria Delahay — The Midnight Guest character guide

> Maria Delahay in The Midnight Guest by Fred M. White.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Maria, Delahay

**First appearance:** 0001-ii-no-1-fitzjohn-square

## Snapshot

The murdered man's widow, whose dull, expressionless composure in the witness box masks a hidden identity and a sister she long believed dead.

## Who they are

Maria Delahay sits at the center of the Fitzjohn Square inquest, accused by Stevens of being the woman seen with her husband hours before his death — a charge she meets with unnerving blankness. Behind that stillness lies a life of monastic seclusion, a late marriage of tranquil affection rather than passion, and the slow revelation that her twin sister Carlotta may still be alive. Her refusal to account for her movements, and her refusal to see even Ravenspur, make her the story's most perilous and pitiable figure.

## Relationships

### [The Countess](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/the_countess)

_professional_

Maria Delahay serves or assists The Countess, likely as a maid or secretary with a degree of loyalty.

### [Walter Lance](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/walter_lance)

_friendship_

Maria Delahay is a friendly ally to Walter Lance, possibly sharing secrets or aiding his cause.

### [Lord Ravenspur](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/lord_ravenspur)

_professional_

Lord Ravenspur employs or supervises Maria Delahay, with a formal but not unfriendly dynamic.

### [Lord Ravenspur](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/lord_ravenspur)

_professional_

Lord Ravenspur employs or supervises Maria Delahay, with a formal but not unfriendly dynamic.

### [Walter Lance](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/walter_lance)

_friendship_

Maria Delahay is a friendly ally to Walter Lance, possibly sharing secrets or aiding his cause.

### [The Countess](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/the_countess)

_professional_

Maria Delahay serves or assists The Countess, likely as a maid or secretary with a degree of loyalty.

### [The Countess](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/the_countess)

_professional_

Maria Delahay serves or assists The Countess, likely as a maid or secretary with a degree of loyalty.

### [Lord Ravenspur](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/lord_ravenspur)

_professional_

Lord Ravenspur employs or supervises Maria Delahay, with a formal but not unfriendly dynamic.

### [Walter Lance](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/walter_lance)

_friendship_

Maria Delahay is a friendly ally to Walter Lance, possibly sharing secrets or aiding his cause.

## In the story

### [I: At Whose Hand?](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/chapters/i-at-whose-hand)

Addressed as 'Maria' by Ravenspur; she is the same person as Mrs. Delahay, the grieving widow.

### [After Many Years](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/chapters/xviii-after-many-years)

Seeks out her sister Carlotta after discovering she is alive; reveals she married Louis Delahay and confronts Carlotta about being the woman seen with him on the night of the murder.

### [Carlotta's Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/chapters/xix-carlotta-s-story)

Confronts the Countess about the mistaken identity that led to her being suspected of murdering her husband.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters/maria_delahay
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_midnight_guest_se/characters