Foundation of Love: The Gypsy Blessing 2

by Wendi Sotis

  Elizabeth called out to her sister, but Lydia’s giggling must have drowned her out. Wickham opened the passenger door and practically threw Lydia inside. As he ran around to the driver’s side, Elizabeth yelled, “Stop!” Either he didn’t hear her or he ignored her.

  Elizabeth stood watching, helplessly, as he hit the gas and headed for the main road.

  Her phone made that tone—it was picture time. She pulled it out. Yet another picture of Wickham and Lydia at the store.

  Elizabeth started toward the garage. After punching the wrong contact several times as she ran, she successfully selected William’s cell phone and hit the call icon.

  William picked it up on the second ring. “Elizabeth?”

  Elizabeth panted out, “Will! I need help. Wickham was here... at my house. He just left. Oh, Will, he took Lydia!” She reached the garage door and entered the code to open it. “I just got a photo—they’re going to the store. She had a bag packed.” Elizabeth opened her car door, got in, and slammed it shut. “I don’t think she’s coming back!”

  “Stay there, Elizabeth. I’ll wake Richard and Charles and head over there.”

  She pushed the button to put the call on speaker and pulled out of the garage. “She may be doing something very stupid, but she’s my sister, Will. I’m already on my way.”

  ~%~

  William opened Richard’s bedroom door at the same time as he almost screamed into the phone, “Do NOT go in there without me, Elizabeth! Do you understand?”

  Richard jumped out of bed. William grabbed Richard’s pants off a chair and threw them at him.

  “Elizabeth?” The last word echoed back at him, confirming that the call had been dropped. He knew exactly where she must have been—that always happened as he pulled out of the Bennetts’ driveway and onto the main road.

  Richard already had his jeans on when Darcy pushed “end.”

  William had to stop himself from throwing his phone across the room. He spit out, “Wickham has Lydia!” Rushing into the hallway, he called back to Richard, “Wake Charles and go to the Bennetts’ store. I’ll meet you there.”

  William was already down the staircase near the garage before he finished speaking.

  ~

  Elizabeth turned off the headlights and pulled her car to a stop on a side street where she could see the rear of the store. There was a rented moving truck parked by the warehouse loading dock. The door slid upwards, and she could see Wickham wave to the guys in the truck. Three large men climbed out of the cab of the truck.

  Her phone already in her hand, Elizabeth dialed 911. She recognized the operator’s voice as Bertie McGraw when she answered.

  “Bertie, it’s Elizabeth Bennett. Someone’s breaking into Meryton Building Supply right this minute. There’s a truck out back, and I’ll bet they’re about to load it up. Tell the police there are at least four men inside the building, and they have my sister Lydia with them. One of the men is George Wickham. I’m not sure if Lydia is there willingly or not.”

  With her luck lately, Elizabeth should have expected Bertie’s answer. “Most of the guys are at the scene of a multi-vehicle accident north of Meryton. It might take a little while for someone to get there, but they’ll be there. Stay put, Lizzy!”

  As Elizabeth hung up, she saw Lydia through the bay doors. Her sister grabbed onto Wickham’s arm. She could hear Lydia’s whine from where she was, but Elizabeth couldn’t make out what she said. Wickham pushed her away from him with such force that Lydia fell to the ground.

  Lydia screamed, “You hurt me!” She rubbed her arm. “I’m bleeding.”

  Wickham yelled, “You’re gonna be in a lot more pain if you don’t listen to me. Get back to the office and open that safe.”

  After texting William the latest information, including where she’d be, Elizabeth set her phone on silent-mode, slipped out of the car, and sneaked around to the employee entrance at the side of the building.

  As she had left the driveway, before her phone had dropped the call, she had heard William’s plea to stay out of the store until he got there—but this was her sister! She couldn’t leave her in there alone with Wickham and those other men.

  Elizabeth had her keys out, but she didn’t need them: the door was unlocked. They must have used this door to get in.

  After spending a good portion of her life at the store, she knew her way around, even in the dark. She made her way to the office without seeing anyone else. Elizabeth peeked through the open doorway and saw that Lydia was sitting on the floor in front of the closed safe, working the knob on the lock. Wickham stood over her.

  Elizabeth stepped back out of sight and listened, hoping to find out how deeply Lydia was involved.

  Lydia asked in a teary voice, “Who are all those men?”

  “They’re friends, helping out. Since you got me past the alarm, I might as well make it worth my while.”

  Lydia sobbed. “But why steal from us when you have all that money from your inheritance?”

  “It can never be enough, and that’s your sister’s fault.”

  “What could my sister have to do with your inheritance?” Elizabeth could hear the pout in Lydia’s voice. “You promised we’d take only your paychecks so we’d have more money to spend after we get married in Las Vegas.”

  Wickham snorted. “Don’t blame me that you’re naïve enough to believe any of that.”

  “You said you loved me... Why would you hurt my family like this? They’ll be your family, too, once we’re married.” Lydia sniffed.

  “You still don’t get it, do you?” Wickham laughed. “It’s amazing what doors the M-word can open, isn’t it? We’re not getting married, Lydia. I only needed you to get past the alarm and get into the safe. I’m good with electronics and could have figured out the alarm myself eventually, but that takes time and planning. I couldn’t stand spending any more time with you and your stupid mother. Besides, I couldn’t find a girl at the alarm company like the one I found at Darcy’s house in the Hamptons. This was a lot more fun. For Lizzy’s own sister to betray her... What a fantastic way to get revenge!”

  Elizabeth had to stifle a gasp. Will’s house in the Hamptons? Was he involved with Caroline Bingley, too? Elizabeth cringed as she heard Lydia sob.

  “Don’t feel so bad, Lydia,” Wickham continued. “You’re not the only one who does whatever I want when I mention love and marriage. There’ve been quite a few girls who have done the same.”

  “I’m not doing it, George!”

  Elizabeth could picture the stubborn expression that usually went along with that tone of voice.

  Lydia demanded, “Tell those guys to leave my parents’ stuff where it is. I’m not helping you. In fact, I’m leaving, and I’m going to call the police.”

  Elizabeth heard a slap and her sister’s scream. She grabbed the door handle but froze when she heard footsteps. There was no way she was going to be able to handle two men—and she didn’t have her pepper spray this time. Where are the police? She hid behind a checkout counter.

  “Wickham!” a male voice bellowed. “There ain’t even half as much copper as you told us there was.”

  Elizabeth knew that voice—it was Smith!

  “Yes, there is. I told you—Oh, forget it. I’ll show you where it is.” He hesitated a moment. “Lydia, if that safe isn’t open when I get back, you’ll regret it!”

  Wickham and Smith walked toward the rear of the store.

  As soon as they were out of sight, Elizabeth rushed in and closed the door behind her.

  “Lizzy!” Lydia sobbed. “I’m so glad you’re here. George is going to hurt me if I don’t open the safe. I’ve watched you do it a hundred times, and I thought I could do it, but I can’t. Can you open it for me?”

  Elizabeth blinked a couple of times. Lydia was definitely not thinking just now. “Lydia, we have to go, okay?” Elizabeth took her sister by the hand and helped her to stand. “It’s time to go home, now. Come with me.”

&nb
sp; Lydia threw her arms around Elizabeth. “I didn’t know, Lizzy! Eloping sounded so romantic.” She sobbed into Elizabeth’s shoulder. “But now all these men are here, and they’re stealing from us. I didn’t know what to do.”

  Elizabeth untangled herself from her sister and took Lydia’s face between her hands to force her to pay attention. “Lydia, you must calm down and listen to me. I am going to get us out of here, but I need your help. You’re going to have to be very, very quiet to do this without their knowing. Even if you stub your toe, you cannot make any noise. Okay? You have to follow my directions without questioning me like you usually do. This is very real—both our lives may depend on it. Understand?”

  Lydia nodded.

  “Perfect.” She knelt before the safe. “Maybe they won’t look for us if the safe is wide open. It’s just the start-up drawers in there for tomorrow morning and some change; I went to the bank on my way home with today’s receipts.”

  Just as she stood and took Lydia’s hand, ready to leave, her phone vibrated in her hip pocket. She took it out. There was a picture of the tape recorder her father kept in the drawer of his desk. Thank goodness the silent-mode is working for the pictures this time! Elizabeth rushed into the office and grabbed the tape recorder. Once she returned to Lydia, she said, “Now, follow me before they come back.”

  Elizabeth peeked out the door. All was clear. She started to lead Lydia toward the employee entrance, but she saw a flashlight beam coming down an aisle she and Lydia had to pass to get out of the building. Putting a finger to her lips, Elizabeth backtracked, taking Lydia to the stairs leading to the second floor of the warehouse.

  Unless one of those guys knows how to use a forklift, chances are they wouldn’t go up there. There’s no way they could carry one of those crates down the stairs.

  Arriving at the top of the stairs, she directed Lydia to hide behind some crates. She had to get word to someone of their location, so she texted William. She was sure he’d notify the police.

  Without the noise of the warehouse workers and machines, the place acted like an echo chamber. Elizabeth pointed down to tell Lydia where the male voices that reverberated off the walls were coming from. Hoping to catch some of their conversations, she switched on the tape recorder and slipped it on the top of the crate they hid behind.

  Wickham was angry. “You guys owe me for all Darcy’s business, Smith. You’d never have been able to get to him for all the Lambton stuff if Lydia hadn’t gotten his new cell phone number from her sister’s phone.”

  Elizabeth looked at Lydia. Lydia nodded and mouthed “Sorry.”

  Smith answered, “I keep tellin’ you, if all the copper’s here, you get your money. If it’s not, we ain’t got no deal, Wickham.”

  “Relax, it’s here—I worked here, remember. I changed the labels on the boxes. Just look for the SKUs I gave you. They’re made up numbers; nobody would’ve opened those boxes looking for something else. Copper pipe is so expensive, nobody’s buying it. I think old man Bennett was just keeping it as an investment.” Wickham laughed. “But now it’s ours.”

  Another voice yelled from further away, “The safe’s open, but that girl’s gone, Wickham!”

  “I’m gonna kill her!” Wickham swore. “Are your guys stupid or what, Smith?” He called out louder, “Clean out the safe and look for her, you idiot.”

  Lydia’s sneaker squeaked against the floor. Elizabeth closed her eyes, listening for some indication that the men had heard it.

  “Come on, everyone look for her,” Smith yelled to his men.

  Elizabeth heard the men leave the warehouse. After looking around the dimly lit building, she made her way over to the ledge and glanced over. An experienced tree climber, Elizabeth wished she had not fired the man who kept leaving the lift under the ledge, thinking it was a dangerous liability. Ironically, if it were there now, they could scale their way down. She knew Lydia would have been able to make it, too. But now, the only possibility to hide was to go up.

  Glancing at the label to see what was inside, years of experience told her that the heavy crate they were now hiding behind would not tip over with one person’s weight. She gestured to Lydia that they were going up and whispered into her ear, “Lie flat in the middle of the crate. They won’t see you up there. Quietly.”

  Elizabeth cupped her hands together to boost her sister up. Lydia put her foot in, and Elizabeth lifted. When Lydia was up on top, Elizabeth sighed in relief. At least Lydia was following directions and was now safer.

  She heard the door at the top of the stairs open and moved further away from it. If they did find her, she didn’t want to be anywhere near Lydia and give away her location. Elizabeth continued to move away from the beam of the flashlight until she was at the edge of the floor. She looked down. Her precarious position almost guaranteed a fall, and at this height, she would be hurt badly, if not killed.

  Afraid they would hear her, Elizabeth tried to slow her breathing. With no room to put her heels down, she was virtually hanging off the second floor that stretched only partway across the warehouse to give access to the forklifts. As she shifted her weight and hugged the container in front of her, the wooden crate creaked. She froze, eyes wide with terror, praying that noise would not lead them to her hiding place.

  As she stood in this position, she heard the door open and close again. She really needed to be up on top of a crate, like Lydia!

  Feeling for some sort of handhold, she found nothing within reach. Her lack of height had not bothered her for years, but there was no getting around the fact that what she needed to do was simply impossible for someone of her limited stature. If only she had inherited her physique from the Bennett side of the family like her sisters, she would not be in this predicament.

  The door at the top of the stairs opened yet again. Were they gone now? She didn’t see any more flashlight beams. Was it safe to get away from this ledge? She tried to keep her breathing to a minimum and listen.

  Looming high above her, the shadow of a man appeared from around the side of the crate. Someone took hold of her arm.

  They found me!

  She was being dragged forward and couldn’t try to escape for fear of falling. She clamped her lips together to remind herself not to scream—no sense in letting them all know where she was in case she was able to get away from this guy.

  The man pulled her around the side of the crate and into his arms as a familiar voice whispered into her ear, “Are you okay?”

  She released the breath she had been holding with a gush of air. “Will!”

  “Why didn’t you wait for me?”

  Knowing sound echoed around the warehouse, Elizabeth placed her hand over his mouth and shook her head.

  He whispered, “Lydia?”

  Elizabeth pointed up at the top of a crate.

  William whispered, “Police are here.” He pointed to her and then at the top of a crate away from the ledge. She nodded. He boosted her up the same way she had done for her sister, and she settled quietly in the center of the crate. She was expecting to see William hoist himself onto another crate, but he didn’t. All was quiet for several minutes until she heard the click of the door and heard the shuffle of a number of footsteps. A couple of minutes later, the lights turned on. She was blinded for a few moments, but when her eyes adjusted to the light, she looked around the tops of the crates. She could see Lydia, but nobody else. Lydia waved. Elizabeth almost laughed.

  What sounded like Larry’s voice on a radio echoed through the warehouse from somewhere nearby. “All clear.”

  William’s voice came from the other side of the crate. “Would you like to come down, or are you comfortable up there?” She turned to look for him and saw his head pop up. “I have a ladder this time. Scoot on over here, and I’ll hold it for you.”

  Elizabeth looked over and saw a police officer helping Lydia down.

  William held the step ladder with one hand and kept the other hand on her lower back to support her. W
hen both feet hit the floor, William took her into his embrace. “Please don’t do anything like that again. You should have waited for me.”

  “When I saw Wickham hurt Lydia, I had to try to get her out of here. You would have done the same for Georgiana.”

  “I know from experience that so would you.” William breathed deeply into her hair.

  Elizabeth shivered in response.

  “You’re cold. I was in such a rush, I don’t have on a jacket to give you, but maybe the police have a blanket.” As William stepped away to ask the police officer who was talking to Lydia, he glanced back at Elizabeth. His eyes almost popped out of their sockets. Pulling her to his chest once again, he rubbed her back for a few moments. “Maybe you should take my shirt—for now, anyway.” He turned away from her and stripped off his t-shirt.

  She hugged it to her chest. “Thank you... I was dressed for bed, not for running around town and being with a bunch of people. This tank top is one of my favorites to sleep in, even though it’s been washed until it’s almost threadbare.” She blushed. “I didn’t think anyone else would ever see it. Even at the dorm, I always wore a robe when I got out of bed with this on. When I realized Wickham was with Lydia, I followed without even thinking about what I was wearing.”

  ~

  William almost laughed. Oh, yes! He absolutely, positively, and most definitely had noticed her shirt, and when he had, without a doubt, he’d been able to tell she was cold. Heaven help him!

  He had also observed that the male police officer seemed more than a little interested as Elizabeth slipped on William’s t-shirt. William moved to block his line of sight and glared.

  ~

  Once she was wearing William’s shirt, Elizabeth walked over to Lydia, but the police officer held out his hand to stop her. “We need to take your statements separately, Lizzy.”

  “Can I just give my sister a hug, Kyle?”

  “I’m supposed to keep you two away from each other.”

  “Why, so we won’t sync our stories? We’re victims here, Kyle.” Elizabeth was clearly annoyed.