A Matter of Honor

by Abigail Reynolds

  Once the ladies settled themselves in the drawing room, Georgiana asked timidly, “Do you think they will quarrel again?”

  “I do not know, but that is why I asked Mr. MacLaren to stay for dinner,” Elizabeth said. “Since Mr. Darcy would be unable to intervene physically, I wanted to have one man there who could and would defend Jasper if needed.”

  “He would be good at that,” the girl said confidently. “He is always so calm.” Her eyes shone with admiration.

  Aunt Emmeline sniffed. “I hope he will keep them apart. I cannot say I like that Colonel Fitzwilliam.”

  “He is not usually like that,” said Georgiana. “He has never understood Jasper, though.”

  “You seem very fond of Jasper,” Elizabeth observed.

  “Oh, yes! He and I have always been friends, even though he is much older than me. He used to say we were two of a kind because...” The girl’s cheeks turned scarlet and she seemed to sink in on herself.

  Elizabeth said reassuringly, “You do not need to tell us.”

  “I am sorry,” the girl said softly.

  “You have nothing to be sorry for,” declared Aunt Emmeline. “But I wish you to try something.”

  Georgiana’s knuckles turned white. “What is that?” Her voice was little more than a whisper.

  “I understand you are fond of The Lady of the Lake. Do you ever wish you were like Ellen?”

  The girl nodded.

  “Now, I want you to close your eyes and pretend you are Ellen, sitting in your father’s hall. Think of what Ellen would wear, and imagine you are wearing it. Can you do that?”

  “I will try,” Georgiana said hesitantly and closed her eyes.

  “You are Ellen, and you are not afraid of anything, not even the king of Scotland. Now I want you to open your eyes, still being Ellen, and say, “It is a private matter.” Say it the way Ellen would.”

  Georgiana opened her eyes and said firmly, “It is a private matter.”

  “Excellent!” exclaimed Aunt Emmeline. “Just perfect. I hope you remember that whenever you are feeling shy or embarrassed, you can pull Ellen around you like a cloak and say whatever she would say.”

  “It was only that Jasper and I were both the youngest, and neither of us felt we could fit the lives we were supposed to lead,” Georgiana said with that same unusual calmness.

  Aunt Emmeline smiled warmly at her. “I did not fit my life, either. I was not meant to be a proper young lady. I tolerated it until my father decided to marry me to a horrid old man, and that was when I ran away.”

  “Oh, I do not want to run away! My brother is the best man in the world, and I love Pemberley.”

  Aunt Emmeline looked inquisitive, but Elizabeth felt her situation with Mr. Darcy was quite complicated enough without encouraging his sister to confide in them. “I have been trying all afternoon to try to imagine the Jasper Fitzpatrick I know as the unhappy, ne’er-do-well son of an earl, and I just cannot picture it. He seems so happy to me.”

  “He has always wanted to act,” said Georgiana. “I am so glad for him.”

  To no one’s surprise, the gentlemen rejoined them as soon as was decently possible. It could not have been a pleasant foursome for them. There were new lines between Darcy’s eyebrows, and the colonel wore a stoic expression. Jasper seemed withdrawn, quite unlike his usual self.

  Fortunately, Aunt Emmeline put into effect her remarkable talent for entertaining guests. She enlisted Jasper and Elizabeth to help her perform a comic scene from a popular play that even moved Darcy to smile, and persuaded MacLaren to sing an old Scottish ballad. He in turn coaxed Georgiana into a duet of “My Heart’s in the Highlands.” The girl’s sweet voice entwined pleasingly with his baritone, but Elizabeth was shocked to see tears in her aunt’s eyes at the end of the song.

  Before she could decide what to do, MacLaren had come to sit on her aunt’s other side. “What is the matter, Aunt Emmeline?” he asked softly.

  She shook her head. “Nothing. It just made me remember how you and Imogen would sing together.” There was a wealth of sorrow in her voice as she fished out a handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes. “I keep expecting her to walk through the door. She loved Kinloch so much.”

  MacLaren took her hand in both of his. “Aye, that she did. Do you remember how she used to beg me to take her rowing on the loch? And the islet that she declared was her kingdom, and she was its queen?”

  A fond smile curved the older woman’s lips. “And she was always singing. I have so many memories of her here. That is why I never came back until now.”

  “You belong here,” he said firmly. “We have all missed you. The clan has not been the same without you.”

  She looked down. “But I am no longer part of the clan, not now that Charlie and Imogen are both gone.”

  MacLaren frowned. “You must listen to me carefully, Aunt Emmeline. You have never stopped being a member of the clan, not for a second. Once a MacLaren, always a MacLaren. Why do you think my father writes to you every month?”

  “He writes me to boast about you,” she said with a little laugh. “I was always the one he talked to when he was worried about you, and now that you have grown up so well, he wants to tell me that. He wrote me a fortnight ago to propose a marriage between you and Lizzy. I told him I had married for love, and I intended to let Lizzy do the same. But you took care of matters yourselves, did you not?”

  Some of the color faded from MacLaren’s cheeks and he released Aunt Emmeline’s hand. “Aye, that we did. But it is good you are back.”

  She nodded. “Yes, it is,” she said steadily. “But I am tired after my travels, so I will bid everyone good night.” She made a majestic exit, but her face was pale.

  MacLaren asked Elizabeth quietly, “Did I say something I should not have?”

  Elizabeth shook her head. “I think she did not expect you to still consider her part of the clan. She has said on occasion I am her only family, but I believe she has felt the loss of her connection to the MacLarens.” Seeing her in this setting was revealing a new side of her aunt, one Elizabeth had not even suspected.

  A pained expression crossed his face. “I should have gone to see her when she did not come here.”

  It was something, at least, that he cared about her aunt. “Your father tried, and you cannot hold yourself responsible for everything anyone in the clan might happen to think.”

  “No, I suppose not.” He moved closer to her and said in a quiet voice, “And you? Are you well? Her arrival must have been a shock for you.”

  She shook her head. “A surprise, but a relief. I am glad she has taken our news so well.” And it helped that she was no longer alone with her struggle. Having Aunt Emmeline and Jasper here gave her strength.

  “Good. As for our plans, obviously we will not be going to Edinburgh tomorrow.” He dropped his voice even lower. “Have you thought what you wish to do?”

  She glanced across the room where Colonel Fitzwilliam sat moodily fingering the pieces on the Indian chess set. “I do not know how much longer I can convince the colonel to stay after today’s quarrel, so I suppose we had best have the wedding as soon as we can,” she said quietly, proud that her voice did not tremble.

  He nodded. “I need to consult one more solicitor about the settlement papers. I thought to do that in Edinburgh, but there is a man in Glasgow as well. I could go there tomorrow and we could be wed the day after. Would that be soon enough?”

  “I imagine I can manage to keep him here that long.” Tomorrow would be her last day as a single woman. Perhaps it was for the best. But it made her want to tear her hair and weep. “And I will check on my aunt now, if you will pardon me.”

  “Of course.” He bowed as she left the room.

  She found Aunt Emmeline still in the front hall speaking to the housekeeper. Elizabeth waited until they were finished before approaching her aunt. “Do you mind if I walk you upstairs? I have not seen you alone for a moment since you arrived, and I have missed you
so.”

  “Of course, my dear. I am going to the nursery first to see Timmy. When I checked on him earlier, he had another little boy with him, so I said I would return later.”

  Elizabeth swallowed hard. She been so preoccupied by the news of her engagement that she had not thought to tell Aunt Emmeline about the changes in Timmy’s treatment. “I will come with you, if I may, and I have a confession to make. I have not been following his doctor’s orders.”

  Aunt Emmeline pushed back a stray lock of hair. It was a sign of her fatigue that such a thing could exist. “Nurse told me. She thinks it is helping him.”

  Elizabeth breathed a sigh of relief. “Something is helping him, although Timmy would attribute his improvement to the sheepdog he has adopted here. But he is getting stronger every day.” Her aunt might have taken the change in the boy’s regimen well, but Elizabeth decided to wait until morning to tell her about Mr. Jack’s involvement. Today had been trying enough already for both of them. Instead, as they walked upstairs, she told Aunt Emmeline about Timmy’s Latin lessons with Darcy.

  The candles were still burning in the nursery. Timmy sat in his nightshirt at the head of the bed, his clubfoot exposed and resting on Mr. Jack’s lap.

  Aunt Emmeline stiffened with a suppressed gasp. “Jack!”

  Mr. Jack released Timmy’s foot gently before standing, his posture oddly defensive. “Emmeline,” he said evenly. “I suppose I should be leaving, then.”

  “No! I pray you, no.” Aunt Emmeline drew in a sharp breath. “I hoped you would take care of Timothy. That is why I sent him here. I have followed all of Dr. Mackenzie’s instructions because you recommended him, but poor Timmy kept getting worse. I knew he needed you.”

  “Mackenzie?” Mr. Jack snorted. “That was for his foot, not for consumption.”

  “I did not know,” said Aunt Emmeline in an uncharacteristically humble voice. “I thought you would come back, but you never did.”

  Even more uncharacteristically, Jack looked away. “I could not.” The words seemed forced from his throat.

  Aunt Emmeline’s pained expression softened. “Oh, Jack. I lost Charlie and Imogen. I lost my own brother when I was still a girl. I do not want to lose you, too.”

  Elizabeth could not tell which one of them had moved first, but a moment later Aunt Emmeline and Mr. Jack were locked in a tight embrace, as if the pain of standing apart was too much to bear, as if they were fellow survivors of a terrible disaster.

  It was like watching the final act of a tragedy, but with a bit of hope peering through. And a new, previously unrecognizable side of Mr. Jack. Even in the shadows, the strain on his face was clear.

  In an effort to give them some privacy, Elizabeth tiptoed over to Timmy’s bedside. He rolled his eyes at her, clearly impatient with this adult foolishness, but he let her kiss his forehead and tuck him into bed.

  Elizabeth heard footsteps as she smoothed the counterpane over Timmy. When she looked up, Mr. Jack and Aunt Emmeline were gone.

  Chapter 16

  DARCY GLARED AT MACLAREN. Why did the man have to call today? Tomorrow Elizabeth would leave Kinloch House as his wife, dammit. Could he not have the decency to allow Darcy to have her to himself for her last day as a single woman without forcing his way in?

  But why should MacLaren care about Darcy? He was getting exactly what he wanted – Elizabeth’s money – and Darcy was just a temporary nuisance, an embarrassing one at that, who could not vanish from Scotland soon enough.

  Elizabeth smiled at MacLaren, but it did not reach her eyes. Mrs. MacLean greeted him with outstretched arms. Georgiana’s face lit up at the sight of him.

  Darcy detested him.

  What did Elizabeth see in the man? He was not particularly handsome and he made no attempt to charm her. He had not a penny to his name. The only thing that could be said in his favor was that his manners were good. Darcy had every advantage. He knew perfectly well no sane woman would choose Duncan MacLaren over him.

  But Elizabeth had.

  MacLaren introduced the tall, reedy man accompanying him as Hollings, a solicitor from Glasgow. So that was why he was here. Darcy had no interest in Elizabeth’s marriage settlements. The very idea made him wish he had refused the tea he had only drunk because Elizabeth had offered it to him. It churned sourly in his stomach.

  And now MacLaren was asking Elizabeth to join him and Hollings in the study, depriving Darcy even of the ability to look at her. Damn him.

  Elizabeth was already walking out of the drawing room when MacLaren said, “Mr. Darcy, could I persuade you to join us? I would appreciate your opinions on this matter.”

  Elizabeth looked stunned.

  He could hardly say he would rather eat rusty nails than help Elizabeth with her marriage settlements. “If you wish,” he said with only the barest modicum of graciousness.

  A footman stepped forward smartly to push his chair to the study, trailing after the stork-like solicitor.

  Somehow Darcy needed to maintain a calm demeanor. There was a reason for it; he simply could not remember what it was. Once pride would have been his motivation. Now he no longer cared about pride. But he did not wish Elizabeth to think any worse of him than she already did, so that would have to be reason enough.

  MacLaren told the servants to leave and closed the door to the study. “Forgive me for interrupting your day, but there are matters that must be settled before tomorrow, matters which have come up in my investigation of Miss Merton’s legal status.”

  Elizabeth’s legal status? What did that mean? Through his haze of misery, Darcy was struck that MacLaren looked almost as bad as he himself felt.

  MacLaren continued to Elizabeth, “You agreed to marry me because you thought it was the only way to save your father, but that is not true. Mr. Hollings was kind enough to come here to explain this to you. He is Glasgow’s foremost expert on English law.”

  Elizabeth’s head rose, her eyes wide. “I do not think we need trouble Mr. Darcy about any of this,” she said determinedly. “I would prefer to continue this privately.”

  “I am sorry, my dear,” said MacLaren. “I know you wish to protect him, but he needs to know. It is wrong to leave a man in ignorance of his family’s misdeeds. As it turns out, crimes would be a better word.” He held out some folded papers to Darcy.

  “No!” Elizabeth started from her chair, but sank back as Darcy’s hand closed around the documents.

  Darcy looked from her to MacLaren, and opened the paper. A contract of some sort. He skipped to the bottom of the second page to see the signatures. Lady Catherine de Bourgh and Lord Matlock? His chest tightened until he could barely breathe.

  How could his aunt and uncle have behaved with such unutterable cruelty? He pressed the back of his hand against his mouth as he read, the churning of his stomach threatening to overset him. His own family had done this to Elizabeth. His aunt, whom he had faithfully visited every year and helped to manage her estate. His uncle, the patriarch of the Fitzwilliams and Lord Chancellor of Great Britain. The very people he should most be able to trust, and they had betrayed him by doing their utmost to harm the woman he loved. Good God, they would have destroyed her entire family to keep him from marrying her! Everything that Elizabeth had suffered, all the losses, all the pain, had been caused by his family. Had been caused, in the final tally, by his interest in her.

  Now he knew why she had run from him, had pretended to be someone else, and had fought with him; why her warmth would vanish at times into anger and coldness. It was a testament to her kindness that she had been civil to him rather than spitting in his face. She could have left him to die in that cold hill fort and been free of all this, but instead she had saved him, and by doing so, had risked her own family.

  There was nothing left to read, but he could not bring himself to look up. He did not deserve to be allowed to gaze at her.

  When he finally raised his head, he said softly, “This is why you kept running from me.”

 
; Elizabeth nodded miserably.

  MacLaren said, “When Colonel Fitzwilliam arrived here, she knew he would report her presence to your uncle, leading to the arrest of her father. As you can see, there is a clause stating that her marriage to someone else would void the contract. I was available and suitably desperate.”

  That was why she had become engaged? It had nothing to do with him! Nothing to do with her feelings about him, at least. His mere existence was the source of her problem. He looked down at the contract, his gut clenching. All of this had happened because of him.

  “I am so very sorry,” Darcy said to Elizabeth. Damn his leg! If only he could walk over to her, he would say far more for her ears only.

  “Miss Merton, you have no reason to fear,” said the solicitor in an Eton accent. “Your father is in no danger, I assure you. That document is fraught with illegalities. A single woman cannot sign a contract, so it is invalid. That by itself would not protect you, but, invalid or not, that contract is written proof of extortion and misuse of legal powers, which are crimes.”

  MacLaren squatted down next to Elizabeth. “It is true. He has shown me the relevant statutes.”

  The stork-like solicitor pushed up his spectacles and offered Elizabeth a closely written sheet of paper. “These are my notes. I wish to be very clear on one point, Miss Merton. The contract is invalid, but the threat is real. Should you choose not to marry Mr. MacLaren, you cannot simply ignore it. You would need to take legal action to stop Lord Matlock and Lady Catherine de Bourgh. This document is quite damning to Lord Matlock in particular, given his position in the government, so I suspect he would agree to a private settlement. A charge of extortion would ruin his reputation and likely force him to resign his office.”

  Elizabeth studied his notes, her face wan. “But if I challenge this, and Lord Matlock does not agree to a private settlement, all these matters would become public. The scandal would harm my family as well as Lord Matlock, perhaps even more so.”

  “You are correct, but I think it unlikely Lord Matlock would take that risk. He was a fool to affix his signature to this document, but he would have to be ten times a fool to allow this to be made public. His legal danger is minimal, since he would be tried in the House of Lords where his peers would be unlikely to find him guilty, but his reputation would be lost, and with it, his ability to perform his office.”