“Does Lizzy have dark hair and emerald-green eyes? And does she have a very beautiful sister?”
“Yes, to both; I am surprised you remember them. The reason I bring them up is that Wickham attempted to accost Jane—the beautiful one you remember—as he had heard she had a healthy dowry. She was only eleven at the time. Everyone in the family—my father, Uncle William, Will, and, of course, the Bennets—refused to be in his company any longer. Still, your father did not believe Wickham had done anything so very bad,” Richard related. “We all think the miscreant was very adept at manipulating Uncle Robert.” He lifted his eyes to the heavens. “Uncle, I trust the scales have finally fallen from your eyes.” Richard turned back to Giana. “Yes, you erred, but in spite of your father and Fitz not protecting you as they should have,coupled with the machinations of Wicky and Miss Younge, you did very well in resisting his urging you to elope.”
“We were supposed to take a ride through the forest today, only my companion,him, me, and the coachman,” Giana revealed.
“Giana, please go rest in your chamber. The housekeeper and servants will return anon, and until then, one of the footmen will be in the hallway outside of your door. I need to go have aconversationwith the criminals. First, based on something the Countess of Jersey told me, I want to search the woman’s chamber.” Richard stood and stuck his head out beckoning to one of the footmen. When the man came, he was instructed to follow the Colonel and Miss Darcy upstairs and then to take up his station.
The cousins hugged at Giana’s door. “Do not despair, Sweetling, you did far better than many would have done in the same circumstances,” Richard assured his ward before kissing her forehead. As soon as the door was closed, he entered the chamber the footman indicated belonged to the former companion.
On the underside of the mattress, Richard discovered a six inch slit, and within was a pouch tied together with a drawstring. He untied it and emptied the contents onto the bed. There were four or five pieces of jewellery he believed belonged to Giana. He took them, replaced them in the pouch and knocked on his ward’s chamber door.
“What is it, Richard?” Giana enquired when she saw her cousin standing in the hall.
Richard entered and emptied the contents of the bag onto the bed. “Are these pieces yours?” he queried. Giana approached the bed and looked at the jewellery. Richard had his answer when she gasped.
“I have not checked my jewellery box for some time; these are all mine,” Giana confirmed.
Returning the pilfered items to the pouch, Richard exited Giana’s chamber and made his way down the stairs. He entered the parlour where the sullen co-conspirators were being held. “Remove her gag,” Richard commanded.
The footman did as ordered.
Seeing the woman was about to try and speak, Richard growled. “You will not open your mouth! Your only option is to listen until I say otherwise.” The woman wisely closed her mouth. “I need none of your lies; I know it all—your forged characters, that you are Miss, not Mrs, you were let go on suspicion of theft from the Earl of Jersey’s household, and you stole from my ward. There are more than enough of your ill-gotten gains in this pouch,” Richard held it up, and the woman blanched as the colour drained from her face, “to see you hang. You have one option which will keep you alive. You will be escorted to Southampton and voluntarily join a transport to Van Diemen’s land. Youwill neverleave that country. If you return, you will be arrested for theft, and hanged. Now you may speak, and only to tell me what you choose.”
“New Holland,” was all that Miss Younge said.
“One thing before you go. What was the plan for my ward with the coach today?” Richard demanded. “If you lie, I will know it, and then the only option will be arrest.”
Miss Younge was sure the Colonel did not make idle threats, so she truthfully related the plan to kidnap Miss Darcy and drive her to Scotland after disposing of the coachman.
“Lock her in the windowless room in the cellar. Then come back and stand at the door on the outside. Leave her bound,” Richard instructed the footman. He did not want to seethe woman’s face any longer. As soon as he was alone, he turned to Wickham with a feral look on his countenance.
Wickham, who had been gagged, fruitlessly attempted to make himself understood. The more he fought against his bindings, the more they cut into him.
“There is nothing I want to hear from you. You have always been a blight on this family, but after today you will never be one again. No maidens will fall for your forked tongue, no merchants will be cheated by you, no more millstone around my cousin’s neck. When it is dark, you and I will go for a ride. You will have one chance to escape; if you make the right choice and you live, you will leave the realm forever. If you are ever seen in England again, I will end you myself,” Richard stated menacingly.
There was no doubt in Wickham’s mind that if he survived and did not find a way to leave England’s shores, his life would be forfeit. He had never been particularly good at gambling, and in this endeavour, he had gambled and lost. Wickham kept very still, as he did not want to give Fitzwilliam a reason to unsheathe the sabre he kept on lifting a little and then slamming back into the scabbard.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
That night Richard rode out on Invictus, leading a horse over which the trussed Wickham was lying and bound to the tack to hold him. Wickham did not choose wisely, and his life ended without any physical intervention from Richard.
The only emotion Richard felt as he rode back to the house leading the now riderless horse was relief. Wicky would never bedevil anyone ever again.
The next morning, the two footmen escorted Miss Younge in a rented carriage as they began the journey to Southampton.Richard had not been terribly surprised when the woman asked nothing about the whereabouts of her former cohort. One of the men held a letter to the commander of the military operations at the port, which would ensure that Miss Younge would have a berth on one of the transport ships.
Richard paid the driver, who owned the carriage, enough to bring the footmen back to London once the woman was on her way out of England.
During the day, the house was closed, and with his stallion attached to the back of the coach, Richard and Giana began the journey back to London. Richard planned to travel about forty miles the first day, spend a night in an inn, and then complete the less than forty miles remaining to reach Town the next day.
During the two days, it was apparent to Richard that although Giana was shaken by what had occurred, her spirits were far better than they would have been without the conversations they had at the house and in the conveyance.
In the mid-afternoon of the second day, the coach was pulled to a halt at Darcy House. Richard did not miss the anger on his cousin’s countenance when Fitz saw who exited the equipage, and who did not. He shook his head, knowing that his cousin was about to discover that pride cometh before the fall.
Chapter 12
Darcy controlled his ire until his sister was in her bedchamber. As soon as he heard the door close, he turned his anger on his cousin. “My study! Now!” he barked.
Richard gave his cousin an insouciant look and shrugged his shoulders. He watched as Fitz marched into the study and stood holding the door open. There was no missing how his cousin’s anger was building due to the fact he had not been obeyed instantly and without question. When he was ready, Richard entered the room.
