Anne squeezed Elizabeth’s hand. “I am sorry, but it appears so. Do not give up on him yet. There might be a reasonable explanation for it all.”
“I am sure there is.” Elizabeth nodded. “What could be more reasonable than to serve me my just desserts. How heartily I regret every saucy speech I gave him!”
“I do not think it possible that he intentionally engaged your heart just to humble you and make you regret him. He has too much honour for that. Indeed, if he believed your heart attached, he would feel compelled to offer for you even if he no longer loves you.”
“I am sure you are correct. He must believe me capable of changing my opinion on a whim. If he stays away for a week, then perhaps I might give up on him entirely. After all, the last he heard from me, I barely welcomed his courtship at all.”
“I think that sort of art is too close to deceit for my cousin. He would use more honourable means to make his disinterest known.”
Elizabeth shrugged. She did not wish to explain to Anne about Darcy’s interference with Jane and Bingley. It was done with good intentions, but it was deceitful all the same. He was not above such things when he thought it for the best. She could not blame him in the least. He must have no desire to be reminded of his past love for her or to recall her previous abuse of him.
Anne and Miss Darcy could not stay for long. Another two days passed without much change at the Gardiner residence. Bingley arrived at breakfast and stayed through morning calls. Sometimes he took Jane for a drive around Hyde Park, and Elizabeth was invited as a chaperone. Once they went to the theatre. In every crowd, Elizabeth searched for Darcy’s familiar features. It seemed most unusual that he would not communicate with his family and friends. However, perhaps they were sworn to secrecy.
On the fifth day after her arrival in London, Elizabeth withdrew a box from her trunk. It contained the various missives and scraps of information she had garnered from Darcy. There were snippets of poetry, letters of love, a childhood story, even an entry from his journal from before his arrival at Rosings in which he confessed his love for her. How could the man who gave her all these things now be avoiding her and have forgotten all about her? How could he awaken such love in her heart only to separate himself from her forever?
Elizabeth stared down at the heartfelt words in her hands through the tears in her eyes. She had thought she loved him—really, truly loved him. She thought she understood his mind, nay, his heart. Mere days ago, she was more confident than the next breath that he loved her. Why should she doubt him because of an unexplained absence? Perhaps she ought to worry for him rather than about his love.
Wiping her eyes, Elizabeth put the items back in her keepsake box. Clutching it to her heart, she ran down the stairs to find her aunt. A scan of the room proved Maria was upstairs and Elizabeth could be assured of relative secrecy as she spilled her heart to her aunt and sister. “Aunt, I wish to call on Darcy House at once.”
Mrs. Gardiner snapped her head up from her sewing but only blinked at her niece for a moment. Her mouth opened and closed in several attempts to speak, but no sound came out. She looked at Jane for help.
“Lizzy, are you unwell?” Jane put down her work and came to Elizabeth’s side, eyeing her with concern.
“I am extremely well, but Mr. Darcy may not be.”
“You have been crying.” Mrs. Gardiner’s words left no room for doubt.
“Yes, but I finally see things clearly. Please, we must hurry.”
“Elizabeth,” Mrs. Gardiner began and then motioned for her niece to come to her side. Once seated next to her, she gathered Elizabeth’s hands in hers. “Why do you wish to call on Darcy House? It is most unseemly—”
“Anne and I are good friends,” Elizabeth interjected. “She and Miss Darcy recently called here, and we may return the call with impunity. However, there is something wrong with Mr. Darcy. I know it!”
Mrs. Gardiner frowned. “He is his own man, my darling. If he does not wish to pay his respects to you, no one can force him. I am sorry to say it, and I had thought highly of him, but young men often get over these flirtations, and young ladies often make too much of them.”
“When you first met him, did you think he admired me?”
“It was not immediately obvious; however, your uncle and I thought we detected some partiality.”
“There was. He loved me then and had said as much in Kent. He loves me still!”
“How can you be sure?” Jane asked, her eyes cast down.
“He courted me at Rosings.” Elizabeth held up her box of treasures. “This is full of the tokens he sent me. I know his mind, and more importantly, I know his heart. We must convince Darcy’s family to mount a search.”
“Even if we did that, where would they start?” Mrs. Gardiner asked.
“There must be some indication of where he went,” Elizabeth said. “If I am mistaken and he is merely avoiding me, then I will bear the weight of my foolishness. Do not waste time worrying over my reaction or wondering about my senses, for nothing shall shake me from this. I will go unchaperoned in a hack if I must.”
Mrs. Gardiner and Jane shared a look which appeared to Elizabeth to be full of doubt, pity, and caution. At last, Mrs. Gardiner stood and said, “Very well. Allow me to inform the governess and Miss Lucas. Fetch your outdoor clothes.”
On the ride to Mayfair, Elizabeth ignored the questioning looks of her aunt and sister. The Mr. Darcy she knew would never disappear for days without so much as telling his sister. He would never let Anne down when he had arranged for her to come to London. She did not think Miss Darcy could lie so well, and Anne had no reason to do so. Mr. Darcy was not hiding in his townhouse.
Arriving at Darcy House, they were shown to a spacious drawing room where Anne, Georgiana, and their companions awaited them. Before they could be seated, Colonel Fitzwilliam was announced.
“Anne, Georgie, what do you mean Darcy is missing?” he began as soon as he entered without looking at the occupants.
“Oh! You are worried about Mr. Darcy, too?” Elizabeth cried, relief and worry mixed in her voice.
“Pardon me. I did not see you had guests.” Colonel Fitzwilliam turned from his cousins to Elizabeth. “Miss Bennet! I did not expect to see you here! Does everyone know Darcy is missing but me?”
“Perhaps it would be best if we introduced everyone and allowed our guests to sit,” Mrs. Annesley suggested.
Once formal introductions were made, Elizabeth looked nervously from one Darcy cousin to the next. Seated next to one another, she quickly saw the familial resemblance. She had not expected to have to make her case to Colonel Fitzwilliam immediately. Butterflies filled her stomach.
Elizabeth cleared her throat. “I had expected Mr. Darcy to call on me the morning after I arrived in London. That was five days ago. Anne and Miss Darcy explained that Mr. Darcy left without a word the day before our arrival. I believe it is rather uncharacteristic of him to go so long without communicating his whereabouts to his sister.”
“Indeed, most out of character,” Colonel Fitzwilliam agreed. “However, sometimes a man might prefer to make himself scarce.” He gave Elizabeth a knowing look, causing her to wince.
“I do not understand,” Georgiana said. “Why would Fitzwilliam prefer to hide himself away somewhere?”
Colonel Fitzwilliam coughed and then rubbed the back of his neck. “I should not expose my cousin’s secrets, even to his sister. Suffice it to say that a man may have several reasons he does not wish to be in the company of a certain lady.”
“You mean when he wants to discourage her affection,” Anne said, her brows rising in a challenge.
Richard assessed her for a moment. “Or when he desires to discourage his own.”
Georgiana huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “Is it that you think Fitzwilliam does not want Miss Elizabeth to love him, or is it that you think he does not want to love her?”
“Georgie!” Anne and Richard exclaimed in unison.
“My dear, sometimes it is better to be a little less direct,” Mrs. Annesley said with a pat on her charge’s knee.
“I do not see what I said was wrong. We are attempting to settle if my brother is missing or only a coward. If he is missing, it has been nigh on a week and we have lost precious time. For myself, I know he fancied a lady, and I believe it was Miss Elizabeth.”
Elizabeth looked at Anne but was surprised to hear Colonel Fitzwilliam speak instead. “Yes, he once thought to propose to her, but we left Rosings without news of an engagement. Therefore, I presume the lady does not return his affections. Why did you expect Darcy to call on you, Miss Elizabeth?”
Before Elizabeth could reply, Anne interrupted. “You spoke from knowing Darcy’s feelings and not out of your own experience? Will any man hide away from a lady to kill his affection or only Darcy?”
“What?” Colonel Fitzwilliam sputtered. “Why, surely I am speaking of Darcy.”
Anne raised her brows as a pleased smile crossed her face. “Do you know that ladies sometimes do the same thing?”
“If we might get back to the issue of my brother being missing,” Georgiana said in a clipped voice.
Elizabeth’s head swirled with the mix of so many strong personalities. Perhaps this is how Darcy felt when he met the Bennets! “I know Mr. Darcy loves me. Although I did not accept his proposal, I agreed to a courtship. It was supposed to begin when I returned to London, but he arranged for various letters to be sent to me through Anne.”
“If you expected him to call on you the very first day, why have you waited until now to worry about his absence?” Colonel Fitzwilliam asked.
Elizabeth lowered her eyes. “I feared he might have changed his mind. I gave him ample reason to do so.”
“Yes, men are much fickler with their hearts than ladies are,” Anne agreed.
“Not all men,” Colonel Fitzwilliam countered. “As it happens, I know that Darcy pined for you for months, Miss Elizabeth. I do not think anything could end his love for you.”
“Perhaps he thought better of the match, even if he still loved you,” Georgiana suggested.
Elizabeth nodded. “I feared that as well. I am not a simpleton. I know he gains nothing by wedding me. However, after wrestling with my insecurities for days, I listened to my heart. I know he still loves me, and something has befallen him. If he no longer wished to court me, he would have enough honour to inform me. He certainly would not conceal his location from his family, especially Miss Darcy.”
“If he is missing, and that is quite a big if, I might add,” Richard said, “where do you propose we begin?”
“He did not take a carriage or his valet,” Georgiana explained. “He told the staff he would return in a day or two.”
“That does limit the distance from London, but we have no idea in which direction to begin the search.”
“I would suggest he went to Kent,” an unexpected voice from the doorway said. Elizabeth turned to see Mr. Bingley. “Pardon me. I arrived at Gracechurch Street to be told that the ladies had come here. I arrived a moment ago and did not wish to interrupt. I saw Darcy the day before Miss Elizabeth left Kent. He could hardly contain his excitement at seeing her again. Perhaps nerves got the best of him, and he rode out to meet her?”
“It is possible,” Anne agreed. “He was most impatient in his letters to me on the subject.”
“Where would you begin looking?” Mrs. Gardiner asked.
“I suppose at the coaching inns,” Richard said. “He would need to rest or change horses often.”
“The Bell in Bromley,” Elizabeth said. “It is his favourite coaching inn on the route to Rosings. He would certainly stop there. If they have seen him, then search forward, closer to Rosings. If they have not, then work backwards.”
“You know his favourite coaching inn?” Richard asked. “I have travelled with him to Rosings these last five years, and I do not think I knew that.”
“Why would he not write to me?” Georgiana’s bottom lip trembled. “If he were sick or injured, surely he could manage to direct a letter to me.”
“Shh, there is no use imagining the worst,” Anne said as she gathered Georgiana’s hands in hers.
“When can you be off, Bingley?” Richard asked.
“This very minute.” He stood. “Or perhaps I should write to my sisters?” He glanced at Jane.
“I will write to Caroline and Louisa for you.”
“I need not return to my post for three days,” Richard said. He rang the bell for a servant and, when one entered, ordered Darcy’s largest carriage to be made ready. “One of us should ride, but I think we should have the coach as we do not know what condition he will be in when we find him.”
Georgiana gasped and began to cry. Richard attempted to soothe her, but his eyes met Elizabeth’s over his cousin’s head. It was far more likely that they might not find him at all or that his situation would be very dire once found.
“Come, girls,” Mrs. Gardiner said. “We should allow Mr. Darcy’s family privacy as they deal with this matter.”
“Please, may Elizabeth stay?” Anne asked with tears in her eyes. “I think Georgie and I could use her good sense and rallying spirit.”
Elizabeth silently pleaded with Mrs. Gardiner, and the older lady relented. She and Jane said farewell to the remaining party and departed.
Within half an hour, Richard and Bingley were ready to leave on their mission. The ladies gathered at the main entrance to wish the men well. Unexpectedly, Anne approached Richard and flung her arms around his neck.
“I am tired of hiding, Richard.” Then, she leaned on her tiptoes and kissed him.
Richard stumbled backwards in shock for a moment before pulling Anne into his arms. “I am as well.” He gave her another quick kiss. “Wish me Godspeed, love. We will discuss this when I return.”
Elizabeth met the shocked eyes of Bingley and Georgiana, each wearing grins. Who knew Anne could be so bold? A moment later, the gentlemen left.
Elizabeth suggested that Georgiana perform on the pianoforte, hoping the music would serve as a distraction for the remaining ladies. She knew for herself, however, that her focus would be on that unknown location where Darcy now resided. She fervently prayed he was not injured or deathly ill. The thought of losing him answered Elizabeth’s final question regarding Darcy. Whether he returned her love or not, whether he lived or died, her feelings would not vanish. They would endure for her entire life.
Chapter Nine
Darcy frowned as his host handed a muddied letter back to him. “It never reached London?”
“’Fraid not, milord.”
“Mrs. Green, how many times do I have to tell you that I am no lord. You may address me as Mr. Darcy, or even Darcy if you please.”
“As you say, sir.” Despite the elderly woman’s twisted hands and hunched back, she busied herself with refilling his glass of water and removing the breakfast dishes. “Surgeon may be ‘round today. He can write another fer ya.”
Darcy held back his sigh of frustration. She had said the same thing yesterday and the day before. Apparently, the surgeon had more critical calls to make, and the vicar was not in residence this week. If Darcy had not lost his purse when he was thrown from his horse, he might have been able to motivate more help, but as it was, most people were cautious when helping a stranger dressed in fine clothes with not a penny to his person. They must have thought him a titled wastrel. Although he assured them that if someone carried his letter to his London house they would be justly compensated, no one he had met since being found on the side of the road with a broken leg and bleeding head had bothered to try their hand.
Instead of airing his displeasure, Darcy smiled at the lady. “Thank you. I appreciate all that you have done for me.”
Mrs. Green’s husband and eldest son had found Darcy and loaded him on their cart. He went in and out of consciousness for the first two days. During that time, he heard voices arguing about whether
they could afford a surgeon and how best to stop the blood. By the time Mrs. Green went behind her husband’s back and called the surgeon, three days had passed, and the setting of his broken leg had been so excruciating he passed out.
Thankfully, the man had waited to see if Darcy would come to before leaving. The first thought on Darcy’s mind was that he needed to send a letter to his relations. They would be worried about his absence, and someone must explain to Elizabeth that he was delayed in calling on her.
It was not Mrs. Green’s fault or even her husband’s that Darcy was in this mess. No, that was all his rotten luck. Bingley’s words about admiring his restraint in waiting for Elizabeth to come to London had echoed in his mind all week. He had only one day left to wait and found it impossible. He would ride to Rosings at a breakneck pace, even though it threatened to rain, and remind her of his love in person. They could be assured of more privacy at Rosings than they could in London. He had hoped she would be more receptive to his courtship. In his wildest dreams, she said enough to prompt another proposal, which was sealed with a kiss.
For once in his life, Darcy had been driven away by passion and acted as insensibly as a man desperately in love might be expected to do. All he now had to show for it was a broken leg, a stitched head, and bruised hands. Elizabeth likely doubted his constancy. Even once he managed to return to London — which might be several weeks from now — the tale was too incredible to believe. He must also be causing Georgiana considerable grief, although he was thankful Richard would be present to lend support. He assumed some search for him would be conducted, but he had said nothing to his servants about his direction. He could hardly form articulate words to call for his horse and pack a bag. Funds would be wasted as they had no idea in which direction to look. First, they would probably assume he had gone to Pemberley and would wait for news from there. After waiting a week, a letter of inquiry would be sent. If they sent one by express, Darcy would still expect a fortnight to pass before anyone began searching for him. Even still, the route to Pemberley would be the most probable route with which to begin.
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