by Don Miller
“I have everything packed and ready to go. When I heard you knock on the door, I thought it might be them. So to answer your question, I expect them anytime now.”
“I fear Col. Fitzwilliam and I need to get started, so we need to return to Darcy House. Please assure your parents we will do all we can to find them.” Looking at Col. Fitzwilliam, Darcy said, “I did not ask you. Is Morris in the carriage out front, or did you walk over from Darcy House?”
“I walked over from Darcy House, but I told Morris to keep the carriage hooked up because we might need it. I suspected you would want to start searching right away.”
“Let us be going then. Elizabeth, are you going back with us?”
“No, I will stay here with Jane until the Bingleys arrive. Knowing how you worry, when you get home, send Leila over to walk back with me.”
Darcy and Col. Fitzwilliam were soon in the carriage with Morris and off on their search. The first place they went was the boarding house of Mrs. Younge. When they knocked on the door, a serving girl answered, and when they asked for Mrs. Younge, she told them Mrs. Younge had sold the boarding house four months earlier and was now married to a man who owned a pub in Liverpool. The next place they tried was the Andiron Pub, where Wickham used to gamble in the back room. But they had no luck there either, the proprietor saying Wickham would not dare show up there. He owed too much money. It was similar at the three other places they tried. No one had seen or heard of Wickham in months. Clearly when he left London, he left some debts and hard feelings behind. Having learned what they had about Wickham and his debts, they were surprised he had only gone as far as Meryton in his escape from London. It was only half a day away, and they would have thought he might have easily been discovered. They ended the day feeling rather certain that he had not returned to London with Lydia.
Three days passed with no word from Wickham, and everyone was beginning to fear the worst. Darcy was certain that had Wickham been looking for money, they would have been contacted by now. According to the reports from the officers in his regiment, he had had little or no money. He would hardly be able to afford a place for him and Lydia to stay for two nights, let alone a week. But he had not returned to the regiment, and the curricle Wickham had rented from the hosteller in Meryton had not been returned.
The time came for the planned departure to Devonshire by Darcy and Elizabeth and her grandparents, and there was still no word. Darcy and Elizabeth went to Longbourn to tell the Bennets it was time for them to leave on their trip. They had decided there was nothing else they could do, and they urged Bingley and Jane they not delay their wedding until something was heard. It could be months or years, or, heaven forbid, never. Elizabeth promised she would write from Devonshire, letting them know of their final travel plans so that they could be informed if anything new was learned, and they promised to write to her to if anything was discovered.
The day before their departure, the Darcys and Monttards met at Denby House with the Denbys and Margaret and Col. Fitzwilliam to say their goodbyes, and were informed Col. Fitzwilliam had two things he wanted to tell them he hoped would make both of them happy. First, he and Margaret had decided to marry in three weeks at Margaret’s parent’s estate, Houghton Place, which was adjacent to Fallingwood, the Denby Estate, in Devonshire. “Now do not think we are going to Devonshire just because you are going to be in the area. Margaret’s parent’s estate was once part of the Denby estate, and we are having it there because her mother is weak and could not come to town for a wedding,” said Col. Fitzwilliam.
When Col. Fitzwilliam did not continue, Margaret hit him lightly on the shoulder and turning to the Darcys said, “Of course, what he did not tell you is we decided to do it as soon as feasible so you would still be there when it happened. I cannot speak for him, but Lizzie, I would very much like for you to stand up with me.”
Elizabeth was thrilled. She had thought she was going to miss both Jane’s and Margaret’s weddings, and to know she would not only be able to attend Margaret’s, but be stand with her almost moved her to tears. She hugged Margaret, and said, “Oh, thank you for asking, Peggy, you know I would love to be part of your wedding. “
“I suppose I have to ask you too,” said Col. Fitzwilliam. “I know I should ask my brother, but maybe if I do not ask him to be my best man, he will not come. So, Darcy, how about it? Will you be my best man?”
“But I already am a better man, Richard. Will not you feel embarrassed I will outshine you up there in front of all the guests?” Turning to Margaret, he said with a smile, “And Margaret, will you be willing to marry him if you see me standing beside him?”
“Ah, Mr. Darcy, it is all a matter of perspective. You are the husband of my cousin and best friend, so you are nothing to me. I will not even notice you are there. So, have no fear, you can accept Richard’s offer and know that you will not disrupt the wedding. As a matter of fact, I have much more to worry about. I have to pick a frumpy gown for Lizzie, so she will not dazzle everyone and outshine the bride.”
Col. Fitzwilliam put his arm around her shoulder and said, very seriously, “I guarantee you, Peggy; I will see no one but you in that room.” Turning back to Darcy, he said, “So can I assume that is a yes?”
At Darcy’s nod, Col. Fitzwilliam then told them the second piece of news that was even more momentous. “Shortly after the marriage, you are going to have to start calling me Mr. Fitzwilliam. I turned in my resignation Tuesday morning. I had been talking to the general about it since Anne confirmed to me I was her heir and she would like me to move into Rosings after her birthday in September. He tried to convince me to stay, saying I was almost sure to make general, however, I finally convinced him family considerations now had reached the point it was time for me to pursue a gentleman’s life. My retirement ceremony will be after Peggy and I return from our short honeymoon trip to Brighton.
Darcy and Elizabeth could not have been more pleased. They had been concerned he would be called back to the war and be put in danger. He had had several close calls, and they knew his mother would be particularly pleased. She had been trying to convince him to retire ever since he returned from France after his last injury. At that point, the group began discussing the upcoming wedding, the wedding breakfast, which it had been decided, would be held at Staunton Park with Lady Matlock helping Lady Monttard, and the ball, which would be held at Fallingwood. Col. Fitzwilliam and Margaret were also questioned about their plans after the wedding.
Their discussion was interrupted by the butler who said, “Col. Fitzwilliam, there is a young gentleman in a military uniform asking to see you. He says he has information about a Mr. Wickham.”
Everyone but Lord and Lady Denby looked shocked. Col. Fitzwilliam immediately stood, excused himself, and left the room. After he closed the door, Lord Denby said, “I could not help notice the reaction on all of your faces when Mr. Wickham’s name was mentioned. Is there a story there that we should know?”
“Yes, I suppose you might as well know.” said Darcy. “Mr. Wickham is a childhood friend of mine who was raised with me at Pemberley. His father was my father’s steward. Unfortunately, after my father paid for his education at Cambridge, he has turned into a wastrel. He has been stationed with the militia in Hertfordshire near the Bennet estate, and had recently treated the Bennet family very badly. Col. Fitzwilliam and I have been looking for him for some time to force him to make restitution for what he has taken. However, our search proved totally fruitless, and we had given up any hope of finding him. It was very surprising to we who knew of his transgressions that he would, after all this time, have been found.”
Feeling that Darcy did not want to divulge what had been done, Lady Denby stopped her husband from asking more, by saying, “We hope it is good news. The Bennets seemed like nice people, and I hope all is taken care of satisfactorily.”
Col. Fitzwilliam reentered the room and said to all, “I have some very disturbing news, and Darcy, Elizabeth, and I need to go to
Darcy House immediately.” He walked over to Margaret, and took her hands and kissed them, “Peggy, I hate to leave you right now, but I think the three of us may be making a rather long trip in the next several days. I am not sure when I will be back. I will call on you briefly in the morning to tell you all about it.”
Col. Fitzwilliam said nothing to Elizabeth and Darcy until they were in Darcy’s carriage. Then he waved the paper in his hand in the air and said, “This is from Col. Forster. They think they have found Wickham and Lydia, and it is not good. They received an ‘all commands’ bulletin that said a man with a militia lieutenant’s uniform in his trunk was found unconscious in an overturned curricle in Somerset. There was a young woman also with him who is also in critical condition in a local doctor’s office near the town of Wells. Their possessions were strewn on the ground around them, anything of value they may have had was gone, there was no horse, and the name Wickham was found inside the uniform jacket still in the trunk. As of the time the bulletin was sent out, they both were still alive, but the doctor has not been able to determine if there are any life-threatening internal injuries.”
“Somerset is on the way to Devonshire if we go by carriage rather than ship,” said Darcy. “What do you think, Lizzie, should we head toward Devonshire tomorrow by carriage? I know both sets of your grandparents, my aunt and uncle, and the Gladneys are going by ship later. We will arrive at Staunton Place a little early and have some time to ourselves.”
Elizabeth thought for a while. “Do either of you know anything about such a trip? I think we probably have to make it, but would it be a dangerous trip? Do you know anything about the roads?”
“We will ask your grandparents, but I do not think it should be dangerous. I will take a full complement of men: a driver and three footmen for the carriage. I am sure your grandparents must have taken a carriage to Devonshire at least once. We will ask them about the trip.” Turning to Col. Fitzwilliam, he said, “Richard, did Col. Forster say they were going to send someone to check on the victims?”
“He did not. He just said he had sent a messenger to the local militia commander telling him that if it was Wickham, then he was a deserter, and someone who knew him and the young lady would be coming to identify them. Since he had deserted, if he dies and no one claims the body, the militia will just bury him in a local pauper’s field. If he lives, the local militia commander will take him into custody until someone from Col. Forster’s command can be sent to take him back to their camp at Brighton for trial. He did suggest that we should get there within a week or so.”
“I will go talk to Lord Monttard about the roads down south. He and Lady Monttard should be home within the next hour or so. Why do not you go to your headquarters and find out what the army thinks of the roads down there and if they have any information about the danger of road bandits? Anyway, with my four men, plus you and me and Morris, we ought to have enough manpower to discourage any robbery attempts. From what you said to Peggy, I did assume that you are intending to come with us.”
“You are correct. There is nothing important I am working on at present, and I think England can do fine without my services starting tomorrow.”
At Darcy House, after Col. Fitzwilliam had gone, Darcy and Elizabeth talked about what to do about telling the Bennets and decided they would wait until they had confirmed it was Wickham and Lydia before they told them. They would then send an express to the Bennets. They then informed the staff who were going with them to prepare for the trip. Col. Fitzwilliam went to Matlock House to gather his belongings and tell his parents the news, and then returned to Darcy House to stay the night.
When Col. Fitzwilliam returned, he and Darcy went to Monttard House to talk with Lord Monttard about their planned trip. Lord Monttard told them the last time he had made the trip by carriage had been four years earlier, and the roads in places had been marginal, but passable. He recommended they carry an extra carriage wheel, if they had one, and they not overload the carriage. He also suggested, rather than having the main carriage overloaded with luggage and riders, they take the two horse phaeton he owned which had a rear cargo area to haul the luggage. He would also send a driver and footman with the phaeton, both of whom had been over the roads to the south several times.
Chapter 22: To Somerset
The weather was slightly foggy on Friday as Darcy and Elizabeth prepared to leave Darcy House to begin their trip to Somerset and then Devonshire. The Monttard’s driver and footman had arrived early at Darcy House with the phaeton to load luggage, the carriage was ready, and Darcy’s horse, Lightening, was saddled. Darcy would ride most of the way with Elizabeth in the carriage, but occasionally he would ride Lightening and join Col. Fitzwilliam, who intended to ride his horse most of the way, only planning to ride in the carriage if the weather became bad. The colonel had left Darcy House by horse early in the morning to go to Denby House to speak with Margaret and Lord and Lady Denby about what was happening. He would join the main party on the way.
Their route would take them out of Middlesex into Buckinghamshire and then through Oxfordshire and Berkshire, in which counties Lord Monttard had assured them the roads were quite good, and they should be able to make fairly good time. Col. Fitzwilliam was able to join the main party shortly after they left Middlesex. Their intention was to stop for the night at an inn in Berkshire which was on the road just before entering Wiltshire. The weather started with a little fog, but for the most part was pleasant, with partly cloudy skies and mild temperatures.
Darcy and Elizabeth were riding next to each other in the carriage, with Morris and Leila sitting in the seat facing them. Shortly after pulling away from Darcy House, Darcy said to Elizabeth, “This is not exactly how I had envisioned spending part of our honeymoon when we retired on our wedding night. Leave it to Wickham to disrupt my life again at a most inopportune time. I am sure he planned his little escapade, knowing it would interrupt our honeymoon. I was somewhat surprised he headed south with Lydia, but, then I started thinking about it and decided he undoubtedly knew from the newspaper articles we intended to spend some time after the wedding in Devonshire. If he needed money quickly, and he thought he could get it from us, he would have to be somewhere in the vicinity of Staunton Park to contact us and try to make some sort of deal with us.”
“At least we can be fairly sure they are not married,” Elizabeth said in response. “They could not have gone to Scotland and been back by the time of their accident. I wonder if Lydia had the good sense to resist letting him have his way with her unless they were married. If she did, we can probably just take her away and forget about him. But if she did not, should we be willing to make a deal with him so he will marry her? I cannot imagine it would be good for her to be married to him, but if she is possibly with child, do we have a choice? From what you have told me of him, I would assume he would eventually abandon her and the child. Also, I would assume that no matter how much money we gave him, he would waste it away in a short amount of time, and try to get more from us. And I fear giving the money to her would be no better. She would probably give most of it to him, anyway.”
“I agree they are not married and I have been having similar thoughts. I wish I had spoken with my solicitor about it. I was thinking maybe we could set up some kind of trust to give Lydia a monthly income to maintain a household, regardless of whether Wickham was with her or not. But I have the same worry you do that Wickham would just find a way, at least for a while, to somehow extract much of her monthly income from her. There would have to be a manager of the trust to keep an eye on them. There would also be his debts to pay off. Of course, her marrying him may not be a reasonable thing to do if he has to go to prison or possibly get hanged for desertion.”
When Col. Fitzwilliam caught up with them, Darcy asked Elizabeth if she would mind if he rode his horse until noon so he could talk to his cousin about how the militia will probably deal with Wickham. She teased him a little about being anxious to abandon his bride, when
their honeymoon trip had hardly begun, but then told him she agreed he should join Richard. She really did not mind, because she had plenty to read.
After lunch Darcy again rode in the carriage with Elizabeth, and they reached the inn in which they had intended to stay the night earlier than expected. They were happy to find there were three rooms available, one of which was very small. Darcy and Elizabeth took the largest, Leila stayed in the smallest and Col. Fitzwilliam and Morris slept in the third, with Morris sleeping on a mattress on the floor. The drivers and footmen, of course, stayed with carriages to ensure nothing was stolen.
The next day they awoke to a light rain and were forced to travel the entire width of Wiltshire in that rain. Because of the rain and the fact that the roads were not as good, they did not make as good time as the first day. Col. Fitzwilliam chose to ride inside the carriage that day. Because the carriage was built to accommodate six people, if necessary, the addition of the Colonel did not add any discomfort, but Elizabeth used the more crowded conditions as an excuse to cuddle up to her husband on their seat, giving Leila plenty of room to sit on the same side of the coach. Morris and Col. Fitzwilliam rode facing them.
They continued to discuss their strategy as to what to do with Wickham and Lydia. Col. Fitzwilliam had told Darcy Wickham’s fate pretty much rested with Col. Forster. If they could get him back before a month had gone by, Col. Forster might be willing to only charge him with being absent without permission, rather than desertion, and, as an officer, he would be given a heavy fine, restricted to camp for a long period, and forced to extend his commitment to the militia. However, Col. Forster had given Wickham permission to be gone for ten days because he supposedly needed to visit an ailing Mrs. Williston in Derbyshire. Since this was clearly a lie and lying to a superior officer was considered a major offense, Col. Forster might use that as proof that Wickham’s intention was to desert. If Wickham and Lydia had to marry, Col. Fitzwilliam suggested he talk to Col. Forster and see if banishing Wickham to Australia or America would be considered sufficient punishment.