With a resigned sigh he took the seat beside her on the chaise longue and raised an enquiring eyebrow.
'Things have moved on apace since we spoke earlier today. Young Hall has taken his family to the country but Sir Robert and his father have returned and are behaving as if nothing out of the ordinary has occurred in their absence.'
'Presumably they are aware of the abduction and the fact that their precious package was given in exchange?'
Darcy leaned back and closed his eyes. There was something he couldn't quite grasp – a vital piece of information was alluding him.
He sat up and punched his right fist into his other hand. 'I have it. Those two must have known what they were handing over wasn't valuable – that's why they didn't pass it on. This means they knew the contents.'
'You might be right. Let me think for a minute. The only explanation that makes sense is that their usual source failed to produce the required material this month. Therefore they cobbled together something and wrapped it up, but then got cold feet and left Town rather than pass it on.'
'So once the item had been handed over there was no need for them to remain absent from Town.' Darcy's heart thumped heavily behind his waistcoat. He believed his cousin could unmask the traitor without involving his family. 'The traitor must have been out of the country for the past few weeks and unable to pass on any secrets. If you check who was missing from the war cabinet you will have the man you seek.'
*
Hugo nodded. 'I'll certainly do that, but unless there was only one man missing we will still be guessing.'
Lizzy was reluctant to join in this conversation but as he had thought fit to discuss the situation with her she was emboldened to speak. 'But you will have narrowed down your search – and further investigation might reveal facts about these men that will identify the traitor.'
Both her husband and his cousin agreed there were unlikely to be more than two or three absent at the same time. His cousin left to continue his search and said he would be arriving in Derbyshire several days before most of the guests.
Fitzwilliam then sheepishly explained what he had said to his cousin last night and they laughed about it. He would always be a proud man. Why not, after all, was he not the biggest landowner in Derbyshire and one of the warmest men in the country? Since he had known Lizzy he was now prepared to admit his faults and make amends for them.
He was pleased with her small deception that would mean the temporary staff maintained their employment. 'I was thinking that I might lease this house for the remainder of the Season – possibly for every year as it's prohibitively expensive keeping it open when we so rarely use it.'
'I applaud your reasoning, my dear. Why not make a proviso in the lease that if you require to come to London on business whoever is living here must be prepared to accommodate you in a guest chamber?'
'I'll see my lawyers today, before we leave for home. It's remarkably fine today – why don't you accompany me? I know you don't like to ride, but we could take the carriage and stroll about Green Park either before or after my meeting.'
'I should like that. I'll fetch my bonnet and reticule whilst you send word to the legal gentlemen that you will be arriving imminently. As they are situated in Bond Street, why don't we forego the carriage and walk there?'
After a pleasant afternoon they returned to the house to find Lady Sinclair and her progeny waiting to speak to them. Gregson had shown them into an anteroom and they had been served with refreshments.
'I shall leave you to speak to them, Lizzy. If you need me I shall be in my study.'
A lurking footman was sent to fetch the Sinclair family. He would direct Lady Sinclair, her son and daughter to the drawing room. Lizzy remained on her feet ready to welcome the uninvited guests.
'Mrs Darcy, I do apologise for descending on you unannounced. I cannot tell you what an uproar there is at my house. We have come to throw ourselves upon your mercy and ask if I can accompany you to Derbyshire immediately with Richard and Annabel and not wait until the date stated on the invitation?'
Whatever she had been expecting the lady to say, this was not it. 'Please take a seat all of you, then you must explain what has so distressed you.'
The lady burst into noisy tears and Annabel Sinclair took her parent's hands and offered what comfort she could. Mr Sinclair drew Lizzy to one side.
'Thomas Hall came to see us before he left and explained what our fathers have been doing in order to supplement their legitimate income. I cannot tell you how shocked we are. I knew him to be a hardened gambler and drinker – but a blackmailer? Mama has stormed out in high dudgeon and is refusing to return. But we have nowhere else to go. She has a reasonable annuity but that won't be sufficient to keep us.'
'I can't see that this is any of my business, sir. We are barely acquainted after all.'
The young man looked quite wretched. 'I know that, Mrs Darcy, but my mother would not be dissuaded from coming to ask you. Just tell her that you cannot help and I'll take her home.'
Now was not the time to tell him that his father's sins were far worse than blackmail. She needed to speak with Fitzwilliam urgently. If the family were separated then Sir Robert would not come to the house party. She wasn't sure if that mattered anymore.
'I am sorry for your troubles, sir, and will at least speak to my husband before giving your mother a response. Pray excuse me whilst I go and find him. I promise I'll return as quickly as I can.'
She hurried from the room her thoughts in turmoil. She wasn't sure that even her clear-thinking husband could come up with a solution to this conundrum.
Chapter Sixteen
Darcy listened to what Lizzy had to tell him. 'Let me think – we can hardly take Lady Sinclair and her family to Derbyshire as that would be condoning her behaviour. I think we must persuade her to return to her husband.'
'How will that help your cousin with his mission? What if we tell her she can come to Pemberley immediately as long as she is reconciled with Sir Robert first?'
'Then he can still join her the following week and nothing will be out of place. This is a miserable business. I can't see this poor woman and her family, or Mrs Hall and hers, facing anything but financial and social ruin when it's done.'
She stood on tiptoes and kissed him. 'Thank you, my dear, I shall go at once and tell her. I believe that all she needs is time to come to terms with the knowledge. I'm sure she is well aware she cannot survive apart from Sir Robert.'
When she got to the door she paused. 'We can still leave at dawn tomorrow can't we?'
'We have no choice, my love, as my lawyers already have tenants ready to move in the following day.'
'How can that be? You only visited your lawyers yesterday.'
'It was fortuitous. Another client of theirs are unhappy in the lodgings they had found the Season. The gentleman concerned had only just left their offices.'
Whilst he had been talking his mind had been on the other problem. He could think of no way for the families of the traitors to extricate themselves from this coil. The Crown would be within its rights to confiscate their estates and leave the wives and offspring destitute. However, perhaps he could use his influence with the Prime Minister, such as it was, to be satisfied with the lives of the miscreants themselves.
Over dinner he learned that Lady Sinclair had accepted their offer and would be setting out for Derbyshire as soon as she could arrange it. 'They will arrive at the same time as Mr and Mrs Bennet and Mary. I rather think that your mother and Lady Sinclair might be bosom bows before the visit ends.'
Lizzy smiled. 'They are certainly of a volatile disposition and have a tendency to say rather more than one would wish on any subject. I hope your prediction is correct for the matter could go in either direction. It would be decidedly uncomfortable for all of us if they were constantly at daggers drawn – especially with everything else that will be going on besides.'
'Have you arranged any entertainment for our guests apart fr
om shooting, fishing and riding?'
'Fitzwilliam, you are quite impossible. I hardly think that the ladies will participate in any of those pastimes. We shall take drives into the countryside to admire the views and we shall also invite our neighbours to a garden party in the grounds.' She raised her hand and began to count on her fingers. 'There will also be a musical evening, a theatrical evening, dancing after dinner most nights as well as a grand ball to round off the proceedings.'
He shuddered. 'If you expect me to be involved in charades then you are sadly mistaken, madam. I might be persuaded to attend the musical event and ball.'
She leaned across and rapped him sharply on his knuckles with her fork. 'It is you, sir, who are deluded if you think you can escape any of these events. I shall require your full cooperation at all times. Have I made myself quite clear?'
The fork was poised, this time with the tines down as if she intended to impale him on the prongs. He shook his head in defeat. 'Desist, you termagant, I shall do as you ask. By the way, will any of our guests be bringing children?'
'Have you run mad, Fitzwilliam? I deliberately excluded them because of the reasons behind us having a house party. I intend to have Fabian and Amanda removed next door for the duration so they will be at no risk from anything that might transpire.'
His amusement vanished to be replaced by something else entirely. 'I should never have agreed to this. It's not too late to cancel it…'
'It's far too late. Arrangements have been made and my family will be setting out in a day or two and are no doubt looking forward to seeing their grandchildren. They haven't seen any of them since they came for the Christmas festivities. Mama intends to stay for a week or two with Kitty and Adam at The Old Rectory before she returns to Longbourn. No doubt my papa will want to remain with us so he can spend time in our library as he did before.'
'With luck the man who is leaking the secrets will be uncovered quickly and we can send the rest of the unwanted visitors about their business.'
His words were said to reassure his wife. He was well aware it wasn't going to be as simple as he pretended. The spy had remained undetected for months and was hardly likely to reveal himself by his behaviour. The house party was planned to continue for three weeks and it could well take that long for the matter to be resolved.
'I intend to retire now, my dear, as we must be up before dawn. I shall not remain for dessert.' She folded her napkin neatly and placed her cutlery on top.
'I have no desire to remain here alone. We shall go up together.' He touched her hand and her cheeks coloured. He had no need to say anything else. She was as eager as he to tumble into bed and make love.
*
The journey to Derbyshire was accomplished without mishap and as the carriage turned onto the drive Lizzy smiled across at her husband. 'Fitzwilliam, are you not as excited as I am to be returning here? You certainly don't look particularly eager to be back.'
He frowned but then shrugged as if shaking off his malaise. 'I beg your pardon, my love, I have been wool-gathering these past hours. I'm not sanguine this house party will be a pleasant experience for any of us. The young ladies invited are going to be sadly disappointed – and two families are going to have their lives ruined.'
'You are refining too much on this, my dear. Even if this were a genuine search for a bride for your cousin, the young ladies might still have been disappointed. They and their families are coming because they hope to be entertained at one of the finest houses in the country at no expense to themselves. I think it highly unlikely any of them will be particularly upset when they are not chosen.'
'I concede defeat on that point. What about Lady Sinclair and Mrs Hall and their progeny? You cannot believe there will be a happy outcome for them.'
'I don't think they will be particularly sad to see the head of the household removed from circulation. Neither of the gentlemen have been loving husbands or fathers. As long as you can persuade the Prime Minister not to confiscate the estates they will be better off in the long run.'
He looked at her as if she were an escapee from Bedlam. 'How can having their family name blackened beyond repair be an acceptable situation? The girls will never marry well and neither will the young men. They will not be received anywhere and it might be generations before the taint is gone.'
'You are right to say they will not be received by Society, but where they are known and liked in their own neighbourhood I'm sure things will not change. It certainly would make no difference to us if one of our well liked acquaintances was in a similar position.' She fixed him with her fiercest look. 'You won't refuse to entertain either of the families after Sir Robert and Mr Hall have been arrested, will you?'
His smile was warm and he looked like her beloved again and not a formidable stranger. 'Whatever my personal feelings on the matter, my love, as always I shall be guided by you.'
'Fiddlesticks! You only do as I ask if you do actually agree with me. We will be home very soon and I can think of nothing else but holding our babies in my arms.'
Their arrival would have been noted long before the carriage actually pulled up in front of the house even if one of the outriders had not gone ahead.
Not only was Nanny standing outside with one of the nursemaids, each holding a baby, but Jane, Bingley and little Charlotte were also waiting to greet them.
'It seems an age since we saw our son and daughter and yet we've been gone scarcely a sennight. Is it my imagination, or have they both grown in our absence?' His expression was of wonderment; his love for his children could not have been more obvious. How could she have ever thought him a delinquent father?
The door was opened and the steps let down but Fitzwilliam was out first and turned to lift her to the ground. Lizzy took his hand and together they ran up the flight of marble steps. Fabian was crowing with delight and holding out his hands to her. She snatched him from the nursemaid and her husband took Amanda from Nanny.
With her son on her hip she rushed across to embrace her sister and kiss her little niece. 'I cannot tell you how pleased we are to be back here. We have so much to tell you – are you coming in or shall we come to you?'
'I have asked the kitchen to prepare a repast for us all and it is waiting in the garden room.' Jane was positively glowing with health and Charlotte looked equally robust.
Lizzy turned to ask Fitzwilliam if he was content to go into the East Wing but he had already set off after Charles in that direction. ‘Nanny, we shall take the twins with us. There's no need for either you to accompany us.'
Charles had had the garden room built on when the East Wing had been converted for him and Jane. It was a welcome addition and a pleasant place to sit – it was also a safe environment for all three babies.
Over their meal Fitzwilliam told them everything that had happened in London. He had decided that Jane should be included in the discussion as they would need her help when the guests arrived.
'We have ample room in our nursery for your two, Lizzy, and also for your nanny and head nursemaid. I think it wise to remove the children from any possible danger.' She shared an anxious glance with Charles. 'I was so looking forward to this event, to having three of my sisters and my parents here together. But now I'm rather dreading it. Do you think there will be violence when the traitor is uncovered?'
'You must not fret, Jane, my love, there will be half a dozen military gentlemen present and they would take care of any nonsense of that sort.'
'It is my intention to keep the two parties separate. They will be housed on the ground floor of the West Wing. When Fitzwilliam's father was alive he was a stickler for etiquette and believed that single gentlemen should be kept as far away as possible from single ladies. The chambers have not been used for years as we prefer to have everyone upstairs at night.'
'Where have you put Mary and our parents?'
'They will be on our side of the house, of course, as they are family. Fitzwilliam, do you think that your cousin should be wit
h us or with his comrades?'
He raised an eyebrow and she wanted to throw something at him. He saw the danger signals and hastily answered her very reasonable query. 'He must go in with us, after all this whole farrago is, as far as everyone else is concerned, being held for his benefit.'
He turned to Charles with a sigh of resignation. 'I'm damned if I'm going to join in any theatricals – what about you?'
Lizzy laughed. 'Kindly moderate your language, my dear, I'm sure that Jane doesn't want to hear such things in her drawing room.'
'As we are not in that particular room, presumably I'm free to swear like a trooper anywhere else.'
'Now you're being quite ridiculous, Fitzwilliam. Apologise at once for your bad language.' She sounded stern but he knew she was having difficulty containing her amusement.
He rose and bowed deeply to her sister. 'I beg your pardon, Mrs Bingley, I do hope you have it in your heart to forgive me.' He then clutched his chest in a dramatic fashion and quite ruined his apology.
He was irresistible when in this mood. This happy interlude was interrupted by Fabian falling flat on his face and screaming as if he was being murdered. His crying was contagious and soon all three were howling.
'Come, we must take our children back to the nursery. They are overdue for their afternoon nap. Thank you for a delicious luncheon, Jane. I have matters to attend to this afternoon, but we must spend time together tomorrow morning.'
*
The next two days passed in a flurry of activities into which Darcy was dragged whether he wished to be or not. Lizzy required him to oversee the preparations for the bachelor rooms, agree to her itinerary and even make a list of suitable activities to entertain the Bennets and the Sinclairs who were due to arrive today. Their luggage had come first thing and their servants had said the others were not far behind.
They met for luncheon – a repast he didn't always indulge in – and she posed a question that had been bothering him too.
A Spy at Pemberley Page 14