“As Richard and I do not believe in murder, your life is safe…for now,” Darcy drawled. “You know, there is nothing we can prove against you in this. However, listen and hear me well,Wicky. Try anything that would harm any member of our extended family directly or tangentially, and your life will be forfeit. For you to prevaricate to Miss Younge when you know full well my late father did not leave you a penny in his will and never recommended you to any of the livings in Pemberley’s gift shows the depths of your manipulation. You do not want me to hear you have been spreading that lie again. I will have you up for slander. You will lose, and as you have no money, you will spend the rest of your days in debtors’ prison.”
As he stood in the study, George Wickham did not doubt the resolve of the two men before him. He would have to find a way to get out of London and earn money. How, he knew not, but he needed distance between himself and the cousins. He thought about asking for money to purchase his silence but discarded the idea, realising it could very well lead to his demise.
Darcy rang the bell. Thompson entered the study. “Throw this rubbish out of my house,” he commanded.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
As Wickham sat in the taproom of an inn nursing an ale, one of the last he could afford, he saw two officers enter. He would have ignored them; except he recognised one of the men from Lambton. He thought the name was Denny. He wracked his brain, but he did not think he had owed money to a Denny in the town. He had not been able to gain much credit in Lambton at all thanks to the Darcys letting it be known they would not cover any of his debts. Next, he considered if he had meddled with a young lady with that name. He did not believe so. He hoped his memory was accurate as he approached the two men.
“You are Denny from Lambton, are you not?” Wickham stated, putting on his most charming smile.
“I am, but I am sorry; I do not know who you are,” Denny replied.
Good, that meant there was no debt or sister involved. “George Wickham. My late honoured father was the steward of Pemberley some years ago. I used to spend time in Lambton with the Darcys, Fitzwilliams, and Wendells.”
Denny knew all three families as good, upstanding ones. He relaxed a little because even though the name was not familiar to him, he could not be a bad sort with those connections. “So you are from Derbyshire. Are you educated as well? Because we are looking for officers to join our regiment of the Derbyshire Militia.”
“I did go to the school near Lambton, but I did not receive a gentleman’s education,” Wickham responded. He wanted to add he should have been sent to Cambridge, but he bit his tongue.
“In that case, if you are not otherwise busy, our regiment is looking for more lieutenants. This one here,” Denny inclined his head at the other officer, “is Hedwig.”
“Is there a cost for a commission? The cards have not been good to me of late…” Wickham enquired, putting on a hard-done by look. Hopefully it was not much, and one of the men would loan him what was needed. The militia would be perfect; that way he would not be sent to the battlefields of the Peninsula.
“Colonel Forster, the regiment’s commander, has allowed me to bestow a free commission on the right man, as long as he is from Derbyshire. It is yours if you want it,” Denny offered. Wickham was the only one they had found who met the criteria.
“I accept. Where is the regiment?” Wickham questioned.
“We are encamped outside of the town of Dadlington inLeicestershire. We will be there until sometime in November when we move to the town of Meryton in Hertfordshire. We have rooms here; we leave first thing in the morning. Make sure to be ready before seven; otherwise we will depart without you.” Denny extended his hand. “Welcome to the militia.”
Wickham went to see the landlord and requested a room for three nights. He promised he would pay by the evening of the morrow.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“Darce, Caroline has invited you and Fitzwilliam to dinner again,” Bingley whinged. He was meeting the cousins at White’s. He knew they did not want to be in his sister’s company more than absolutely necessary, but thanks to her strident demands, he passed on her invitations so that he could at least say he had done so.
“And yet we continue to meet here,” Darcy responded. “Bingley, I, we,” he inclined his head to his cousin, “enjoy your company, but you must know your sister makes your acceptance into high society much more difficult. Have you not noted I have ceased inviting you to Pemberley or to Darcy House because Miss Bingley joins you even though she has not been invited?”
“The same for me at Rosings Park and Fitzwilliam House,” Richard added. He had renamed the former de Bourgh House some years past.
“I know. It is just so difficult.” Bingley shook his head. “That is not why I asked to meet you. My man of business has found an estate for lease in Hertfordshire. It is less than four hours by coach from London. I have taken your advice that a good first step would be to lease before I purchase. Will you two join me in viewing the estate if I make an appointment to do so?”
Both cousins agreed.
Chapter 7
“Come now, Little One, why are you wandering around at night like this?” the man with the blurry face asked.
“What you do in Papa’s swudy?” Ellie asked. She did not know why she had woken and was wandering around the house. “It late now, why you here?” she demanded, her arms akimbo like she had seen Mama do when she was angry with someone.
“Are you sure you are awake and not walking in your sleep?” he enquired.
“Why you silly? I awake. I looking for faeries and pixies. I sure they come into the house at night,” Ellie explained.
“I have seen them,” he claimed. “There is a magic potion you must drink, and then you will be able to see all of them, even the faerie queen who is flying right there.” He pointed behind Ellie.
“Queen here?” Ellie exclaimed excitedly.
“You cannot be loud, or you will scare her and the rest of them away. Do you not want to see them?”
