Her eyes narrowed as she looked at the approaching ruins. “He has discovered something I wished toremain a secret, and he seeks the proof to use it against me. Now that I have my wits about me, by any means, I will find a way to stop him.”
Only the rhythmic clop of the team of horses outside filled the silence. Darcy looked at Bingley before he began. “Lady Catherine, as much as I wish to help you—”
“I will ensure your fortune.”
“Money is not an obstacle for me. I am quite well-situated. I require noth—”
“Pemberley. Pemberley shall be yours.”
It was late. His meeting with Lady Catherine had been nothing he’d expected. She had peppered him—and Bingley—with demands and promises. Yet, his thoughts always returned to Pemberley! The possibility ofhishome, hisfather’shome, and every other Darcy generations before, belonging to him in this lifetime.Lady Catherine must know who I am. But how?He glanced at his watch and could see by the moonlight it was a quarter past ten. He had gone home with Bingley to discuss the propositions Lady Catherine had put before them.
Pemberley!It had been a difficult tale to hear—how Wickham had been playing cards when a stranger had taken aseat at the table. The man had won moderately at first, playing into Wickham’s bravado. Then the tides turned. After losing a considerable amount, the stranger had a string of luck and stripped Wickham of all his earnings. With his pride and vanity at stake, Wickham had called on his good friend Charles Bingley to front him money to cover his bet. As a gentleman, Bingley had agreed, foolishly setting forth a substantial amount to keep Wickham in the game. He lost it most miserably and was prepared to play anew when the stranger stood to leave.
Facing the possibility of losing more, Wickham raised the stakes to entice the man back by throwing down the deed for Pemberley.Thatis what the stranger had been waiting for. As a secret emissary of Lady Catherine, the stranger played the game, underscoring all of Wickham’s weaknesses, and won the prize he had been so well paid to achieve.
Pemberley! That Lady Catherine owns it but refuses to make that known to anyone for fear Wickham and Georgiana will leave her house, and he will use whatever information he has against her.
And Bingley.A pall came over him as he thought about his good friend.
For Bingley, that was the beginning of his financial downfall. Having invested in overseas ventures andmortgaging his father’s factories to extend himself to the Chesterfield’s debts and crumbling estate, it was not long until he was in complete ruin.
Aware everyone in the house would be asleep, and not yet ready to be stifled by four walls, he walked toward the back of the house, to lose himself in the moonlit garden.
The memory of his aunt’s request from earlier in the day filtered back into his consciousness, and he was lost in contemplation. He was surprised to come upon Elizabeth sitting on a stone bench.
“Miss Bennet. What brings you out this late?”
“I cannot sleep. My mind is full of thoughts and cannot settle.”
“As is mine. Would you feel it improper for me to join you in the garden, unchaperoned?”
“If we were at a ball or assembly, it would not be deemed so.”
“True.” He grinned. “But then, we have the possibility of cackling hens watching our every move. In this dark garden in Hunsford, it is only you, me, and Luna.”
Elizabeth looked up at the moon. “And she is ever so bright tonight. We are quite safe.”
Wordlessly, he sat on the bench and leaned back against the bushes.
“Did you meet with Lady Catherine?”
“It was enlightening. Lady Catherine is quite a…spirited woman.”
“Spirited?”
“Yes. Surprisingly so. She is very opinionated about what she desires. It is as if she has been reborn to what she must have always been.”
“Truly? I have not heard her speak more than ten words together before last night, although both Miss de Bourgh and Mrs. Wickham assure me of her civility and interest in numerous topics. I can barely believe you, Mr. Fitzroy.”
The levity in her tone and the smile playing at the corners of her mouth indicated he was in for quite a tease. “Are you questioning my integrity, Miss Bennet? Is that what you think of me after I have allowed you to help nurse me back to health?”
“Allowed me?” she said, attempting to stifle a chortle. “I do not believe there was any choice in the matter on my end. I could not allow a creature of God’s to suffer needlessly.”
“So, I am as a wounded animal?”
Her eyes sparkled, and she weighed her words. “I believe a wounded animal would have been of more help tohimself. You were quite lifeless, sir.” They stared quietly into the sky.
“Lady Catherine gave me more reasons for you to be leery of Mr. Wickham. I ask you once again to always be on your guard.”
