“Bingley, what have you been doing with yourself? The last I heard from my cousin, you were to be in Scarborough with your relations.” Richard spoke as he shook hands with Charles Bingley. After Richard, Bingley was the closest friend Fitzwilliam Darcy had known.
“I felt the need to escape from my sisters and their constant nagging. Louisa and Hurst nag me about Caroline, while Caroline plots of ways she can snare your cousin into marriage. The reason I was able to come to town without them was by telling a small lie, as Caroline believes I will be taking her to Pemberley in June. She is so determined to remain in the north, on the off chance Darcy will visit Scarborough before we visit this summer. Fortunately, she has not discovered that I will not be in the north this summer.”
Richard frowned. “Just where will you be?”
“I have taken the lease on an estate in Hertfordshire. Near the market village of Meryton. The estate is named Netherfield Park. I sent a message to your cousin, as he promised to visit when I found an estate, to give me advice on how to run an estate.”
“What a wonderful plan. It is wise to take a lease rather than purchase an estate. With no experience at being the master of an estate, it is wise to take your time and learn the good and the bad of the property, to make certain you have chosen the best place for your needs. At the moment, I believe William is busy with some important matters at Pemberley. I will send him word of our discussion, and perhaps he will be able to take a holiday and come visit you.”
“The invitation applies to you as well, Colonel. If you have leave, you should think of taking time to come visit. With my sister in the north, the estate will be a calm and relaxing time,” Bingley stated with a chuckle.
Richard chuckled as well. “That is a wonderful idea. If I can get leave, I will send word. Though I am recovering from injuries received in battle, I have been making myself useful doing paperwork. Perhaps I will be able to take a holiday this summer.”
The friends bid farewell and each went along his way. Richard was pleased to see that word of the murder had not reached London, though he was certain that it would not take long for it to be on the lips of everyone in the top rung of society. Once the rumors started, it would be difficult to stop the gossips from devouring his cousin’s reputation.
~~~~~~~ ** ~~~~~~~
Chapter 4
The day following the departure of Andrews for the north, Richard was shocked to receive a letter in a familiar script. He made his way to his bed chamber, closing the door, so he would have complete privacy. Breaking the plain seal, Richard began to read.
Richard,
I pray you are in England, as I am dearly in need of your assistance. Wickham has set the stage for me to be blamed for the murder of a maid at Pemberley. On my mother’s grave, I swear to you, I did not commit the crime. You know me, Richard. I would never have ruined a female, especially a servant in Father’s house.
Knowing Father would believe Wickham over me, I left Pemberley. Many would find this a testament of my guilt. There was no alternative for me to be able to find a way to clear my name of these charges. How has it come to be that my father would believe that scoundrel over his own flesh and blood, I will never know. It saddens me to know father would trust his godson. For some reason, Wickham has the opinion that if I was dead, he would be Father’s heir. All the rumors when we were at university, the belief that Father had sent his bastard to be educated along with his heir, has Wickham believing he is a Darcy. As he is a year older than I, he believes he is the rightful heir of Pemberley.
Trusting that this will find you in Town, I will tell you where I am hiding. Currently, I have taken the position of steward of a small estate in Hertfordshire. The estate is Longbourn, which is located near the village of Meryton. I am using the name Fredrick Denhem. The estate is the property of Mr Thomas Bennet.
Please, Richard, I beg you to believe in my innocence. If you can find some way to assist me in clearing my name, I would be extremely grateful.
Your cousin, FD
Richard gave a sigh of relief. William was innocent and safe. His cousin had not committed the murder, yet how was he to find the evidence necessary to clear Fitzwilliam Darcy’s name? And how were they to prove the truth to Gerald Darcy? Richard knew that Wickham was not a Darcy. When he had heard the rumors at university, Richard had approached the subject with his father. Henry Fitzwilliam had been a close friend of Gerald when they were young men, and it was through their friendship that Gerald was first introduced to Lady Anne. Henry was convinced that he knew his friend was not the father of Wickham. The proof of that fact was simple. Gerald Darcy had been on his grand tour during the time when Wickham had been conceived. When Gerald had returned from the continent, he entered into an engagement with Lady Anne, and they were married two months later. Just before their first anniversary, Lady Anne had given birth to Fitzwilliam. The elder Wickham had been a devoted steward, taking care of Pemberley and the other Darcy properties with care and wisdom. Mr Wickham had been the steward for Gerald’s father, and a month after Fitzwiliam’s birth, Gerald’s father died, leaving the new heir at a loss, and the steward was essential in keeping the estate from collapsing. The devotion the man had for the estate and the Darcy family was the reason Gerald had accepted the honor of being godfather to George, and the reason he wished to give his friend’s son a proper education.
After thinking the matter over, Richard decided to keep what he knew from his father, at least for the time being. He wanted to give Andrews a chance to investigate, to find any evidence to prove William was innocent.
Suddenly, Richard realized how he could come to be near his cousin, without drawing unnecessary attention to his presence. Bingley. He could take Bingley’s offer to visit the estate he was leasing. Under the excuse of wishing to recuperate in the country, Richard would be able to move about casually in the neighborhood of the two estates. He prayed they would be close, so he could meet with William frequently. But first, he would need to speak with Bingley.
Knowing that Bingley was staying at a boarding house near White’s, Richard decided to pay a call on the young man.
As he walked to the boarding house, Richard was grateful that his cousin had made a friend of Bingley. The Bingley family fortune came from trade, and those of the upper circles of society frowned upon new money and trade. When William and Charles Bingley first met, it was at university, and three fellow students had decided to show their disapproval of a tradesman’s son in their school. William stood up for the young Bingley, earning him several blows in the ensuing fight, and also earning him the devotion and friendship from a grateful Bingley.
When Richard was near the boarding house, he spied Bingley coming from the entrance. “Bingley, where are you off to on such a nice day?”
“Colonel, what are you doing here? Are you on your way to White’s?” Bingley was surprised to see his friend.
“Actually, I was coming to speak with you, if you have a few moments free.”
Bingley was pleased. “Of course. Where shall we go? There is a tea shop around the corner that serves the most delicious sweets, if you are hungry.”
Richard gave a chuckle. “From the sounds of it, you would prefer the tea shop, and their delicious sweets. I see no reason against such a location. Sweets are rare to acquire when on the battlefield, so I must take advantage when I have an opportunity.”
The duo walked along, discussing trivial matters of the weather and such. Entering the shop, the men placed their order for tea and pastries, then settled down at one of the tables near the front window.
“Are you returning to the continent soon?” Bingley frowned. “I thought you were recovering from injury.”
“My injury requires more time to recover, and I would recover faster if I were away from the city. And I am not up to the journey to my father’s estate, or even to Pemberley. Then I thought of our conversation. I was wondering when you were to take possession of the estate you are leasing?”
“Perfect. I shall be ready to join you Friday morning. Would you wish to use your carriage or shall we take one of my father’s? He has no need of the one in the carriage house here in Town.”
“As my sisters and Hurst have taken my carriage north, it would be appreciated if Lord Matlock would make loan of one of his fine carriages.” Bingley chuckled.
“It may not be the newest, or the best sprung, but I am certain it will be comfortable enough.” Richard teased. “My father keeps his carriages well maintained. My mother would not stand for it to be any other way. She has often stated that she will not tolerate any of our carriages being shoddy or in disrepair. It would not look good for her reputation to be seen in a carriage that might fall apart.”
“Well, I must remember to thank her the next time we are in each other’s company.”
The pair continued discussing the journey, all the while, Bingley had no notion that he would be aiding his dear friend.
~~ ** ~~
Lord Matlock entered the breakfast room to partake in the morning repast. As he began filling his plate, his brother in law entered. “Good morning Gerald. I must say, you have the finest cook I have ever known. How you and Anne managed to keep her in your employ, I will never understand. At last check, I have offered her three times her current pay if she would come to Matlock. And she continues to turn me down.”
“Mrs Fowler is loyal to my family. Money cannot purchase all you may desire, Henry. Besides, I have insinuated that if we were to lose Mrs Fowler, I would wither from the lack of her dishes.”
Lord Matlock chuckled. “And that dear woman would not wish for you to starve. I swear, you have that woman wrapped around your little finger.”
“She loves Georgiana as well. Georgie is forever praising Mrs Fowler’s culinary delights. And William…” Mr Darcy allowed the sentence to drop, his loss of confidence in his son clearly etched on his expression.
“I received word that Richard is sending an investigator for which he has great regard. He served under Richard’s command for several years, before leaving the military to make the voyage to the Orient. My son declared Mr Andrews to be brilliant and thorough in his investigative skills.”
“What is to be investigated, other than the whereabouts of my son? We have eye witness testimony as to what happened. The only thing we can possibly change is if we can convince the magistrate to have William transported, rather than hung. I do not hold hope for such an outcome, but I do not wish to see my son dangle at the end of a rope.” Gerald took a plate and a cup of coffee to the table, though he could not find the will to touch any of the food which had been prepared for them.
“Would you humor me, Gerald? I wish to know for certain before seeing my nephew die for something he might not have done.”
Gerald Darcy’s hand motioned a wave, as if swatting at a pesky fly. “Do as you please, though do not expect anything to be different. My most difficult task will be next week, when Georgiana returns home from school. She will be devastated to learn of her brother’s behavior.”
With a nod, Lord Matlock finished his meal before making his way to the library. He would be pleased to get to the heart of the matter, to know the truth and clear his nephew’s name.
Later that day, Mr Andrews arrived at Pemberley. He was shown to the library to speak with the father of his colonel, a man he respected tremendously. “Lord Matlock. It is a pleasure to meet you, though it is far from ideal timing.”
“My son has spoken of you frequently. You impressed him while serving in the regulars. I pray you will find something that will assist in clearing my nephew’s name from the accusations being leveled at him. Did Richard inform you of all that I had told him?”
“He did. Might I inquire to the room where the murder took place? Other than the removal of the deceased, has the room been protected from others moving about, possibly destroying any evidence?”
“I had the room locked, as soon as the body was removed. Everything else is as it was the day the maid’s body was removed. It has been my hope that you would be available to come and investigate.” Lord Matlock nodded his head.
“And what of the man who claimed to witness the murder, is he available for questioning?”
“He left here yesterday. He claimed to be in need of a holiday, to recover from the ordeal. My brother-in-law has given Wickham funds and sent him on his way. I believe Wickham was heading to London,” Lord Matlock stated. Disappointment in the actions of his brother-in-law’s behavior was clear.
“We should be able to call him back to Pemberley, if there was a need, correct?” Seeing Lord Matlock nod his head in an affirmative, Andrews continued. “Well, I had best take a look at the scene. Will you join me, or is there a staff member who can show me to the room?”
“I will join you. It is my intention to do everything in my power to see that everything that can be done to prove my nephew’s innocence is accomplished. And I do not care of the expense. Fitzwilliam Darcy is a fine, upstanding young man, and I will not allow anyone, not even his father, believe him capable of committing murder.”
The two men walked up the staircases, until they reached the fourth floor. Lord Matlock led the investigator down the hall to the west wing of the manor house. Andrews was pleased to see that a footman was standing guard of the door to the room they were approaching. “You took precautions. I am impressed.”
A nod was seen come from the earl. “And there is another footman stationed at the servant door. They are both footmen from my estate, loyal to me. I did not wish to run any risk of loyalty to Pemberley to cause conflicts.” He removed a key from inside his coat pocket. Motioning the young man to the side, Lord Matlock used the key to unlock the door of the guest room.
The first thing Andrews noticed was the large area of dried blood on the floor. Near the stain was a stone carving of a turtle. Andrews knelt down, inspecting the turtle closely. “Lord Matlock, I believe this situation could be resolved simply. On the smooth surface, there is a mark in blood. When I was in the orient I learned some interesting information. On their pottery and even documents they sign, they use impressions from one of their fingers. According to many of their people, the marks from our fingers are unique, and none of us have the same patterns to the fine ridges found on our fingers. While I was there, I did some research on this information, and I will admit, there is truth behind their theory. Even on our own fingers, each one has a unique pattern.”
Lord Matlock frowned. “I have never heard of such. Are you certain it is true? Could it be different in England than it is in the orient?”
“From what I have seen, it did not matter where the person is from. Each person has unique lines on their fingers. I experimented with members of my own family, and found their lines to be different. And it has been used as a form of identification in the orient and India for decades. That is how unique the marks are.”
“But can the marks change over time? Do they become different as one ages, or where they live?”
Andrews shook his head. “From what I have learned, they grow in size, but the lines stay the same. I have seen marks made by people when they were children and then by the same people when they are adults. I found they did not alter on the lines, only the thickness that comes from the skin expanding as one grows.”
“Then we should protect this carving at all costs. P
erhaps I should have you take it to my townhouse in Town. My son can lock it in the safe there, for when my nephew is found.”
“As you please, your lordship. If you do not mind, I would like to examine your nephew’s rooms. Perhaps I can find a clue to where he might have gone.”
“Follow me. It is downstairs and the other wing of the house.”
~~~~~~~ ** ~~~~~~~
Chapter 5
Elizabeth heard the sound of hooves pounding on the dirt, moving quickly in her direction. Shielding her eyes from the sun, she spied the oncoming horse and its rider. “Mr Denhem, out for a ride, I see.”
The young man chuckled. “And I see you are out for your morning constitutional. Might I inquire as to your wellbeing?”
A smile graced her lips. “On such a fine day, how can anyone not be magnificent? Nature has given us bountiful beauty and to remain indoors would be a sin of unforgivable proportion.”
“I could not agree with you more.” Denhem dismounted his horse, and holding the reins, he began walking beside her. “Have you visited Mrs Crawford in the last few days?”
Fitzwilliam Darcy, Fugitive Page 3