Elizabeth’s thoughts flew immediately to Mr Darcy. His words to her in the stillroom had brought her comfort beyond measure; his taking possession of her hand had spoken even more. Was she right to hope so?
‘Lizzy?’ Jane peered at her sister intently, and Elizabeth squirmed under her assessing gaze. ‘What has happened?’
Turning away, Elizabeth walked over to the dresser. ‘Had we best not begin our preparations for the ball? We shall have to pay attention to the elaborate dressing of our hair to do our new gowns justice.’
‘You are being evasive again!’
Elizabeth drew in a shallow breath and turned about. ‘I—I saw Mr Darcy.’
Jane released a small laugh. ‘We are in his home, so I am surprised at the level of disturbance this has caused.‘
‘He—I...’ Elizabeth released a frustrated breath. ‘Mrs Reynolds was tending to him. He incurred a slight injury to his face during his ride this morning.’ Recalling standing so close to the gentleman in the stillroom, her fingers pressed against his skin and separated from it merely by the thin piece of lint, she felt warmth fill her cheeks.
‘And?’ Jane’s smile widened as Elizabeth walked slowly back across the room. ‘You are becoming pinker by the moment!’
‘He said... he implied... at least, I think what he meant was...’
‘Your wits appear to have deserted you, Lizzy!’
‘I have little doubt of it. I fear I may read too much into things because of how much I wish it to be so.’
Jane smiled encouragingly. 'And?'
‘Something Mr Darcy just said to me hinted at his...’ Unable to put it into words, Elizabeth raised her eyes to her sister.
‘Affection remaining with you, just as I suspected?’ Jane nodded. ‘And you, Lizzy? What did you do?’
‘I wished... I tried to show him my ill opinion of him is long gone. It pains me to think of him labouring yet under the impression I do not respect or admire him.’
‘I believe Mr Darcy understands you far better than you think.’ Jane took her sister’s hands. ‘You have a full half hour with him during the opening set this evening. Make good use of the time. There is such a houseful here, moments for private discourse are rare.’
Elizabeth gave Jane’s hands a slight squeeze before releasing them and turned back to the dresser, opening the drawers in search of pins for her hair. ‘I will heed your advice, Jane, though I harbour some trepidation. The one and only occasion when Mr Darcy and I stood up together was not an auspicious one.‘
Jane laughed. ‘Then this one will surely surpass it with ease!’
Chapter Fifty-Six
Once Elizabeth had entered the drawing room, Darcy turned his steps in the direction of his study, only to find it already occupied by his cousin, settled into a seat beside the hearth.
‘Where is Bingley?’ Darcy closed the door and walked over to join him.
‘Having a few words with his sisters.’
‘Ah; I see.’ Picking up the poker, Darcy stabbed at the logs, causing them to flare and spit.
‘He said he assumed we would reconvene after we return from the pleasures of this evening to plan our approach on the morrow.’
Darcy replaced the poker and dropped into the chair opposite the colonel. ‘Are you certain you wish to be involved in this search, Cousin? You have never met the young lady concerned and would not know her appearance.’
‘True, and we can hardly march into The Grange and demand a likeness of Miss Lydia Bennet, or ask her sisters for one.’ The colonel held his cousin’s gaze for a moment. ‘There cannot be too many waif-like apparitions hiding in Pemberley’s woods! I think I shall know her well enough, Darce, if our paths cross.’
Darcy’s gaze drifted towards the fire; then, he frowned and looked up. ‘Cousin, you do not think... there cannot be any connection between this girl and the ghost the twins claim they keep seeing?’
Colonel Fitzwilliam shrugged. ‘I cannot see how so. They have seen, when all is said and done, nothing but a flicker of light in the tree tops and found a discarded ribbon!’ He snorted. ‘There is no ghost, of that I am certain.’
‘Then these things must be connected.’ Darcy tried to think back to what had been seen or said of the suspected poacher. ‘Bennet spoke of there being someone out there; Miss Elizabeth had sensed being watched. Perhaps we can ascertain discreetly where it was she felt this?’ Then, he frowned again. ‘Did the twins not claim Miss Elizabeth Bennet had also seen this strange light? I meant to remind her to show me where it had appeared.’
‘I leave you to work on it, Darcy. Not an easy conversation during your set this evening, but perhaps you can weave some of it in!’
Darcy stretched his legs out in front of the fire. His mind was all confusion. The unexpected moment with Elizabeth earlier had given him such hope, yet he knew how precariously things stood with the two baffling mysteries of Wickham’s attempt at extortion and Lydia Bennet’s return unresolved. ‘And what of Wickham? If Bennet does not return on the morrow, do we try to ascertain where they are expected to meet on Thursday?’
The colonel shrugged again. ‘Buxton, was it not? The town is not overly large, but the instructions were too vague; where might a ‘west entrance’ be?’
‘A church; a chapel?’ Darcy sighed. ‘All towns have a wealth of those, and Buxton is no exception. A manor house, perhaps?’
With a grunt, the colonel stirred in his seat. ‘I cannot imagine Wickham would be in circumstances to be established in a property of sufficient size to warrant anything beyond a rear entrance!’
Darcy was barely listening; his gaze had drifted to the fire in the hearth, his thoughts with Elizabeth. He pressed his thumb against the back of the hand she had placed a kiss upon. ‘I fear the outcome of all of this; I fear losing what I have so recently found.’
The colonel fixed him with his eye. ‘You must not speak of our discovery this evening, no matter how much you wish to rid yourself of the disguise. I doubt very much either of the Miss Bennets could sufficiently conceal their emotion over such intelligence, and with Latimer—’
‘I understand, Cousin.’ Darcy ran a hand through his hair. ‘But there will come a time in the next day or so when it must be broached. How does one even make a beginning?’
‘You are a proponent of honesty, Fitz.’ Colonel Fitzwilliam got to his feet. ‘It will be the only way forward when the time comes.’
Darcy threw his cousin a helpless look as he too got to his feet, and the colonel smirked.
‘You know, Darce, try something like, ‘good news! your sister is no longer dead.’
‘For heaven’s sake, Fitzwilliam!’
‘Too abrupt? Perhaps try, ‘I have seen your sister in the parkland; the one you thought to be no more? Hmmph. Perhaps not.’ The colonel paused, then his eyes lit up. ‘Aha! How about ‘a most singular thing happened when I went for my ride...’
Darcy released an exasperated breath. ‘It is not a sport!’
The colonel grinned. ‘Merely trying to lighten the mood, Darce. You are about to attend a ball, not a vigil!’
~o0o~
Within a few hours, and with the aid of Georgiana’s maid to help with the intricate dressing of their hair, Jane and Elizabeth were soon assisting each other into their ball gowns, but as the latter fastened the complex buttons on the back of her sister’s bodice, she sighed.
‘Part of me is all anticipation for the evening ahead; yet another is tortured by questions for which there is no answer. Papa; Wickham. It is all too confusing, too unsettling. I am in conflict, I suppose, feeling guilty for my hopes of the ball when I know not what suffering might be afflicting Papa.’
‘He would not wish it to be so. Come, it is almost time to go down.’ Jane turned towards the dressing room. ‘I have yet to choose some jewellery.’
She returned directly, and Elizabeth fastened a necklet of beaded droplets about her sister’s neck as she attached similar droplets to her ears.
‘You look quite as beautiful as ever, Jane; more so, in this gown.’ Elizabeth lifted the folds of blue silk and let them fall as her sister walked over to the looking glass.
‘I do wish I could have worn the locket, though.’ Jane met her sister’s gaze through the reflection of the mirror. ‘It is the first ball we have attended since Mama’s passing; it would have felt a fitting tribute.’
There was little Elizabeth could say; she patted her sister’s arm, then walked over to pick up her cloak from the bed.
‘Sad though it is to have mislaid the locket, we have a more serious matter to deal with now. Let us be determined to enjoy this evening, for who knows what the morrow may bring. Come, Jane.’
Elizabeth draped her cloak around her shoulders, picked up her reticule and opened the door, only to find Mr Darcy on the other side.
‘Miss Bennet; Miss Elizabeth.’ Darcy acknowledged them both, conscious of Elizabeth’s surprise to find him loitering outside her chamber. ‘Forgive the intrusion, but I wonder if I might trespass on a moment of your time?’
He was aware of the ladies exchanging a swift glance, but then Jane Bennet smiled. ‘Of course, sir. How may we assist?’
Darcy turned to Elizabeth. ‘The twins showed you the other night where they had been seeing this ghostly light from a window in the guest wing. Would you indulge my curiosity and confirm exactly where it was you saw it?’
Elizabeth nodded. ‘Of course, Mr Darcy. You did mention wishing to understand where it was.’
‘Then please, ma’am’; lead the way.’
They proceeded in silence and before long had reached the far end of the main hallway of the guest wing, where Elizabeth came to a halt beside a window facing towards the wooded hillside rising up from the parkland behind the house.
‘It was there, sir.’ Though it was now almost dark, the moon continued to do its duty in permitting some light upon the scene, and Darcy followed the direction of Elizabeth’s hand, his gaze narrowing.
‘In the trees?’
‘Yes, sir. Quite in the top branches—a flickering light which seemed at times to come and go. I cannot account for it, but it was most assuredly there.'
Jane frowned. 'Could it not have been the moon behind the trees?'
'No, for it was never constant. Besides, the moon was elsewhere in the sky that night.'
Darcy stared out across the moonlit lawns towards the dark mass of trees, and a sudden suspicion struck him. He turned quickly to the ladies. ‘Thank you; allow me to escort you both downstairs.’ He offered an arm to each of them, and they walked back along the hallway and out onto the main landing, where they encountered Colonel Fitzwilliam at the top of the stairs.
‘Well met, ladies. Darcy.’ He bowed formally. ‘Are you perchance taking some pre-dancing exercise?’
Elizabeth smiled. ‘Not at all, sir.’ She released Darcy’s arm, much to his regret, and took her sister’s as they preceded the gentlemen down the staircase.
Darcy threw his cousin a quick glance. ‘I had a purpose, Fitzwilliam; one that has answered.’
‘Good grief, Darce!’ The colonel spoke quietly, slowing his steps somewhat, that the ladies might pull ahead of them. ‘You did not propose?’
Darcy all but rolled his eyes. ‘With Miss Bennet present? Besides, I hardly think Miss Elizabeth is quite ready for another of my capital approaches, and as I do not wish to lose my one last chance to secure her, I will not ask her until I have devised a manner of eradicating all memory of my last attempt.’
‘To be fair, old man, it would be difficult to make a worse job of it.’
‘Thank you, Cousin; succinct as ever.’ They had reached the main hall now, and the ladies walked over to where Mrs Latimer stood, her daughter by her side.
Turning to his cousin, Darcy said quietly. ‘Enough of this; I believe I know where the missing young lady has been hiding out.’
Chapter Fifty-Seven
The colonel drew Darcy over to the opposite side of the hall to where the ladies had gathered. ‘You have established the source of this floating light? The twins’ ghostly apparition?’
‘Indeed.’ Darcy glanced over to where Elizabeth stood, but she had engaged Miss Latimer in conversation, and he turned back to his cousin. ‘I believe what the girls saw was a glow from the upper floor of the hunting tower at the top of Swallows Wood.’
The colonel smacked a hand to his head. ‘Of course! It is barely noticeable by day, concealed by the trees as it is, but at night...’
‘If someone in there had a lamp lit, it would show through the topmost branches, especially now the leaves begin to fall.’
‘And their perception of this spirited light coming and going; dancing, as the twins put it?’
‘I suspect it was merely the branches of the trees swaying which gave the effect.’
‘If you are right, we may not be searching for long on the morrow.’
‘Even if I am right, I do not expect to find her there. There was no hint of a light this evening; she is, perhaps, hiding elsewhere in fear of discovery.’
‘It is, at least, a step in the right direction, Darce. We must take comfort from that.’
‘I will take any we can find.’ Darcy looked around the hall. Latimer had yet to join his wife and daughter, and there was no sign of Bingley, but Olivia and Viola had emerged from the drawing room and hurried to join the ladies, exclaiming over their dresses.
He walked to meet his sister as she too came through the doorway. ‘I am sorry we are to desert you this evening, Georgie.’
Georgiana smiled. ‘I am not in want of company, Fitz. Mrs Annesley is here, and the twins shall no doubt keep me occupied!’ They both looked over to where Olivia stood, now sporting Elizabeth’s cloak about her shoulders, though it fell to the ground in pools of fabric, their height being so dissimilar.
Darcy tried not to stare as Elizabeth, clearly under the bidding of Viola, turned in a circle, that her appearance might be admired. She was laughing, the curls above her nape dancing as she moved, the rich fabric of her silk dress swirling about her ankles and the beads in her hair catching the light from the chandeliers. Darcy caught his breath.
‘Miss Elizabeth Bennet looks very well, does she not, Brother?’ Georgiana did not look at him, for which he was thankful.
He cleared his throat. ‘She does; very well indeed.’ He glanced over towards Elizabeth again; Olivia was carefully assisting her with her cloak.
‘I suspect you will enjoy the first set more than any other this evening?’ She glanced at him, a faint smile upon her lips.
‘I suspect I may.’ He had yet to tell his sister of his decision over Miss Latimer, but here was hardly the place.
Georgiana held his gaze for a moment, then slowly began to smile. ‘Then I wish you the pleasantest of evenings, Brother.’
Darcy watched as his sister crossed the hall to speak to the ladies. She was growing into a confident and delightful young woman, and he was ever thankful for it. Yet it could not fail to pass his mind how closely they had both come to losing each other at the hands of George Wickham. It was a sobering thought, and he stared over at one of the windows. All was darkness without, and thought of the young girl Wickham had succeeded in ruining, alone and friendless in the woods, quickly lowered his spirits.
‘You look like thunder, Darce.’ The colonel had come to join him. ‘It is merely a dance, old man; not a battle.’
‘It is not the ball I think of.’
‘Well, whatever it is, I would urge you to put it aside for I do not think it will endear you to your partners.’
Darcy dropped his gaze to his feet. His cousin was right; he must shed this preoccupation with matters he could not resolve this evening. Spending time in Elizabeth’s company would be an effective balm after such an extraordinarily stressful day, and on that he must focus.
‘On your guard, Darce. Here comes Latimer.’
Darcy looked up as the gentleman reached the bottom stair, and he c
ame over to join them.
‘You have made yourself scarce since our meeting, Darcy.’ He eyed the cut on Darcy’s cheek. ‘I trust you found some good sport on your ride?’
Darcy exchanged a swift look with his cousin. ‘It was an unexpectedly fruitful excursion, Latimer.’
Latimer grunted, and turned to survey the hall, his gaze narrowing as it fell upon his daughter, who appeared to be tolerating the twins’ admiration of her gown. Then, he turned back to them.
‘I trust those foolish girls have been suitably punished for their actions?’
Before Darcy could speak, the colonel drew himself up in height. ‘The Miss Bingleys meant no harm, Latimer, and in effect, no harm was done. Your daughter looks in the prime of good health, and it is for Bingley to censure his sisters for their behaviour, no one else.’
‘They are a disgrace! If they were under my—’
‘Yet they are not.’ Darcy stared distastefully at the man. ‘Miss Olivia and Miss Viola have offered an apology, and as I understand, your daughter has accepted it. That is the end of the matter.’
Latimer said nothing, though it clearly cost him dear to hold his tongue. Then, he forced a laugh.
‘Come, Darcy; we have locked horns once already today. Let us not stand on ceremony.’ He threw an assessing glance towards the colonel, who met it with inscrutability. ‘You will concede one mark in my favour out of courtesy, I am sure. You cannot allow my daughter to sit out the first set at this ball. It is not fitting for one of her status.’ Before Darcy could respond, he turned and called out to his daughter. ‘Eleanor! Come here, child. Make haste.’
‘It is an unfortunate situation for any young lady, Latimer.’ Darcy bowed as Miss Latimer joined them. ‘I am certain there will be ample young gentleman more than happy to stand up with your daughter. I have already engaged her for the third set and my commitment to my partner for the first will not be altered.’
A Quest for Mr Darcy Page 37