“You speak of Christiana?” Isabella said. “She is nothing and nobody. Richard has never liked her. We were used to mock her between ourselves for her vanity and loose manners. She has ever been one who allowed liberties. But Richard and I have always loved each other, first as children, when he was my protector, and later as two parts of the same heart, saving ourselves for one another until the day we could marry.”
Lewis turned to Richard. “What do you have to say for yourself? Speak, man. Do not hide behind a woman.”
Mary stepped back, startled by his tone. Lewis saw her movement and turned at once. “I beg your pardon, Mary. I forget myself. I forget that I was bred a gentleman. My only excuse is my fear for my sister, whom I have tried to protect since our father’s death fifteen years ago.”
Richard said quietly, “I never looked at that woman except to find fault. She never held any attraction for me. Her mannerswere too bold, too contrived. I do not believe she feels anything for anyone but herself.”
Lewis searched his face and saw truth there. “Then who? She was seduced here, in her own neighborhood. If not you, then who?” His gaze turned to Darcy. “We all knew you were courting her. What happened? Or did she fall to your seductions, did you tire of her and leave her to her shame?”
Darcy remained perfectly still, stunned by the sudden and unexpected assault. No word escaped him; he made no move to defend himself, nor did he yield to anger. He merely regarded his accuser in shocked silence.
Elizabeth watched him, willing him to protest, to deny the accusation, to declare that he would never abandon his own flesh and blood. When no such words came, a faintness washed through her. The room dimmed, and she reached out, catching his arm to steady herself, but her strength failed, and she sank down, down into the darkness.
Darcy caught her before she struck the floor and knelt beside her. “Elizabeth, darling, can you hear me?” She did not stir.
He looked up at Lewis. “You are in mixed company, Lewis. You accuse first Richard, then me, of things you do not know. You fling accusations without care for the harm you cause. I did not impregnate Christiana, nor abandon her. She turned her back on me for another. She knew it was my wish to marry her. I thought her perfect, and when she fell, I was destroyed. I turned my back on women for years. No, I did not bring her down. She brought ruin upon herself. I warned her, but she would not listen to reason. She called me jealous, and when I caught her, it was too late.”
He looked at Lewis. “You will remember that day. We were all fishing when she was missed, and I went in search of her. Wickham was there. He, too, was gone. I found them in the meadow. She was laughing, and they were teasing. Then I saw her lying with him in the grass. Her bodice was undone, her undergarments cast aside. It was clear what had occurred. Later, she claimed to her father that she had been forced, but it was not the truth. All that transpired that fateful day was done of her own choosing.”
Darcy lifted Elizabeth in his arms and asked Richard to send Mrs. Reynolds to her bedchamber with smelling salts.
Lewis turned to Mary, who was hurrying from the room, her face buried in her handkerchief. He moved to follow her, but Richard stopped him. “She has seen and heard enough. Let her be. Once Elizabeth has recovered and learns the truth, she will help her sister think better of you than you deserve. If you believed such a monstrous tale about me, you should have spoken years ago instead of letting it fester. I know you are protective, but learn from this. Your sister is now married and no longer in need of your protection. But your future wife will be, as will your children. Learn from this. Ask questions and seek the truth instead of believing you already know everything.”
He turned to Isabella. “Come, my dear, we must be going. The carriage is waiting.”
Isabella reached into her reticule and handed her brother a letter. “Give this to Mamma. Tell her I would have married in our parish church had it been possible. Tell her I am very happy and will visit in two weeks.”
She took Richard’s hand, and he looked at her with longing. “Come, my dear. We have waited long enough.”
Lewis remained, wondering how he might make things right with Mary. He had been harsh, angry, and reckless with his accusations. He had not behaved as a gentleman should. His lips twisted in self-reproach. He had never been mild-mannered, but perhaps he could change. He would do it for her, for love of his gentle wife. He craved peace and serenity. Now that Isabella was married to an honorable man, and not the blackguard he had once believed Richard to be, he could at last begin to rest.
Chapter 44: The Dark Hour
Darcy carried Elizabeth up to her bed chamber, and the footman ran ahead and opened the door for him. He stepped into the room and called to Ellis. The maid hurried in, then turned down the covers and went to fetch the smelling salts. Before long, Elizabeth stirred, and Darcy dismissed the maid.
“That will be all, Ellis. Thank you for bringing the salts.”
He sat on the edge of the bed and looked down at Elizabeth. “Darling, can you hear me. All is well.” He took her hand in both of his and began to chafe it. “Elizabeth, wake up. You have nothing to fear. All is well.”
She gave a quiet groan, then opened her eyes and looked around the room. She seemed disoriented at first, then her gaze fixed on his face, and she turned away. She rolled onto her side so that her back was to him.
He said, “Elizabeth, what Lewis said is not the truth. He was making baseless accusations.”
He placed his hand on her shoulder, but she shook it off. “Do not touch me.” She began to cry.
“I swear to you. I have never had relations with that woman. I never even kissed her.”
She continued to weep softly, burying her face in her pillow.
“Elizabeth, you have suffered a shock, but you must hear me now. I did not father her child. All of us were fishing, and she wandered away. When we noticed she was gone, I knew I ought to look for her. I was courting her then and hoped to marry herin time, so it fell to me to go in search of her. I walked through the meadow into the tall grass, and I heard voices and laughter. I followed the sounds and found her lying in the grass beside Wickham. Her bodice was undone, leaving her wholly exposed. When she saw me, she attempted to cover herself. I remember her pulling at her gown to cover up. The sight was seared into my brain, and I felt sick. She was ruined, and she was lost to me forever. I turned and ran, and I never laid eyes on her again.”
Elizabeth had ceased to weep, and Darcy felt heartened.
“I left Pemberley the next day and spent the remainder of the summer in Kent with my aunt Catherine. From there, I returned to university, and when I graduated, I went directly to the continent on a grand tour for two years, until the war closed the borders and many of us came home. Father wrote to me in Kent to say that she had fled to Scotland, but not before my name had been dragged through the gutter. They said I had not been man enough to keep my woman’s eye from wandering, and no man escapes shame when he is thought to have been cuckolded. She left Ashbrook Manor scarcely two months after I departed, when she knew for a certainty that she was with child. My father said she could not remain at home, for the Ashbrook servants had spread the truth throughout the parish. She was unmarried and pregnant. Her father sent her to his sister’s family in Scotland, where I believed she would remain. I never heard of her again until the rector announced her return at our table.”
He leaned toward his wife to see how she received his words. “Elizabeth, darling, do you hear what I am telling you?”
She lay very still, not yet looking at him, but listening to every word.
