“My staff saw to their stabling,” said Darcy. “They will await your return.”
Lady Catherine appeared to wish to say something, no doubt a repeat of her intention to see him married to Anne at once, but she refrained, for a wonder. With a nod, she left to make whatever arrangement she deemed appropriate, leaving the three men to their own devices. Darcy turned to Bingley.
“You mean to accompany us?”
“I do,” said his friend with no hint of hesitation. “I shall send my carriage to Netherfield, for I mean to go there once we complete this business. For the moment, what assistance I can offer is yours.”
“Thank you, Bingley,” replied Darcy, nodding to his friend. “Then I believe there is nothing left to do but depart.”
Leaving home for a long journey was always a large undertaking, but in this instance, there was little of that fanfare. There was no carriage of servants or belongings to follow, for they intended to make their way north with all speed, eschewing all but a few changes of clothing. With any luck they would find the runaways before the lack of personal effects became a problem.
Georgiana, Darcy noted, greeted him before he left the house, no doubt wishing to avoid their aunt, who had not spoken one word about his sister. As he could always count on her to pontificate about Georgiana as she would about any other subject, it was a testament to her concern about Anne. Darcy knew much of that concern was her wish to ensure Darcy married her, but it showed a more human side of his aunt.
“I hope you will not need to pursue them for long, Brother,” said Georgiana. Darcy had informed her of the situation when his aunt had been resting in one of his bedchambers.
“I hope we shall come across them before nightfall,” said Darcy. “When I return, Bingley has invited us to accompany him to Netherfield Park, the estate he leased in Hertfordshire. Do you wish to spend some time there?”
Georgiana regarded him and said: “Do you suppose Aunt Catherine will allow it?”
“With all due respect to our aunt,” said Darcy, “she is not in a position to allow us anything.”
“No, but her voice is piercing and her demands endless.”
Fitzwilliam, who had been nearby, chortled at Georgiana’s characterization. “It appears youhavemet the woman, Georgiana.”
Georgiana gave him an impish smile and turned back to Darcy. “Let us discuss it again when I return,” said Darcy. “We cannot know how to act until we discover Anne’s situation.”
“As for our aunt’s insistence you restore her reputation,” said Fitzwilliam, “that is a matter we can discuss in more detail at a later date.”
Darcy peered at his cousin, but Fitzwilliam stepped forward to farewell Georgiana. It was not, Darcy supposed, the proper venue in which to raise such weighty matters, so he pushed it aside for the moment, saying his goodbyes before exiting after his companions.
“It is about time, Darcy!” cried Lady Catherine when she caught sight of him. “I was on the cusp of sending a servant to retrieve you.”
“There is no need, Lady Catherine,” said Darcy, unperturbed by her annoyance.
Within a few moments the travelers entered his conveyance, and the carriage set off. With Darcy’s instructions, the driver attained the best possible speed they could manage in the narrow confines of London’s streets, knowing they would travel more quickly when they left the city. Regardless of Lady Catherine’s insistence, however, Darcy would not run his horses to the point of exhaustion. They would make better progress if they treated the animals well rather than running them ragged. Darcy made a note to himself to send a footman ahead when they left the city to arrange for changes of horses in certain locations to the north. That would be one of the chief advantages they had over those they pursued.
The first minutes of their journey were uneventful, passing through vistas Darcy had seen innumerable times during histravels. There were some miles to traverse before they reached the roads heading north, and inevitably there were delays, as traffic grew heavy, or circumstances blocked their path. Despite Aunt Catherine’s constant moaning because of the slowness of their progression, Darcy thought they made good time. Soon they approached the limits of the sprawling city. Then the carriage slowed, and the driver alerted them to the approach of a Darcy footman.
“Mr. Darcy,” said the man, named Peters as he drew his horse to a halt and dismounted. “Word has come from Watford that a coach carrying a woman matching the description of Miss de Bourgh was seen passing through the town.”
“Watford?” demanded Lady Catherine, having followed Darcy from the carriage. “That must be in error. Watford is not on the road leading north.”
“It is onaroad leading north,” disagreed Fitzwilliam as he considered this new communication. “If I am not very much mistaken, the road to Watford leads to Meryton.”
“It does,” said Bingley. “I remember passing through Watford on my way to Netherfield Park last year.”
“As do I,” agreed Darcy.
“That would seem to firm my suspicion that we are dealing with George Wickham.” Fitzwilliam turned to Peters and asked: “Was there a description of anyone traveling with her?”
“No sir,” said the footman. “Therewasa man with her, but I received no description.”
Fitzwilliam nodded and turned to Darcy, who nodded. “We cannot ignore this report.”
“Of course, we can!” snapped Lady Catherine. “It is obviously in error. The most direct route to Scotland is the Great North Road. This notion of Anne passing through Watford is nonsense.”
“This is exactly why we waited before setting out,” saidFitzwilliam, directing a pointed look at his aunt. “While the reportmaybe in error, it is a risk we cannot take. As I said before, the report of Anne traveling through Watford is evidence of Wickham’s involvement.”
