“Have you even noticed how you have been talking about the situation? You talk about ‘us’ as if she is not one of ‘us’. I know many people had doubts about Elizabeth’s Talents in the past, myself included, but she is mywife, confound it! What does she have to do to be considered one of ‘us’? She saved Founder’s Hall, not once, buttwice. Anyone else would have been awarded a medal for bravery. Instead, she is shunned. It isappalling.”
He expected his uncle to be shamefaced, but Matlock merely drank more coffee, his expression inscrutable.
“I understand your frustration, but there are too many unknowns. Elizabeth did not deliberately intend to harm her fellow Warders, but Lady Alice’s accusations are on everyone’s mind. We—and by ‘we’ I mean you and I— need to tread carefully. It is a delicate situation. Remember that accusations of treason have been made, yet these have not yet shifted to Lady Alice, even thoughIwas the one presenting the evidence. You think yourself slighted because they do not believe you? Let me tell you this:Ishould feel slighted, far more than you. I was the one who reported Lady Alice’s tampering with the ring, yet no one has considered it worth pursuing. They have come up with their own ways of explaining it.”
From the breathless way his uncle was speaking, Darcy could tell the level of his frustration.
“People believe what they choose to believe.Evidencehas little bearing on the matter. I deliberately ensured there were plenty of witnesses when I revealed the person who cast the spell on the ring. It made no difference. And you, Darcy, have no evidence at all that there was a dangerous fireball about to destroy Founder’s Hall.”
“Then how do you account for the damage to the Hall, and the debris that fell from the sky?”
“Cannons misfiring. Magic that went wrong. I am not privy to people’s interpretations. I only know everyone is focused on disparaging Elizabeth because her magic is not the same as theirs, and she had now given them the rope with which to hang her. Not literally, I hope – though in cases of treason one cannot discount it— but Society has its own ways of passing judgement and that is, by excluding them. It has happened to ladies throughout the centuries who broke society’s rules in even minor ways, let alone when someone is accused of treason.”
“You were the one who asked Elizabeth to return. Did you not know this would happen? Do you feel no responsibility at all towards her?”
“When I asked her to return, she had not claimed to destroy a strange object in the sky. I am not the enemy, Darcy. I am working on ways to counter this perception, and more importantly, to clear her name in the matter of treason, but it will take time. I am praying, meanwhile, that Bingley and the others will wake up, and they can put a stop to all this nonsense. I council patience, Darcy. It will be sorted out, but we cannot force the matter, because that will not be to Elizabeth’s advantage.”
“So we are to do nothing?”
“We will do many things, but not just yet. And when I say ‘we’, I meanyou and I and Elizabeth. You must trust me on this.”
He rose and poured himself another cup of coffee, and grimaced as he realized it was cold, but drank it just the same.
“Enough said. Let us talk of other concerns. What do you think of Netherfield?”
Darcy did not wish to talk of other concerns, but there was not much point in pursuing the conversation. He had made his point clear, and he would press his uncle to act. For now, he would accept that they needed time before raising the issue.
“I preferred Founder’s Hall. Everyone is packed too closely together here, and there are no areas where you can go to escape the crowds. At Founder’s Hall there were the cloisters if you wished to be alone, and there was a tavern for those who wanted to drink, and the battlements where you could feel the open air.”
“When we have the Wards up properly, there are extensive gardens here and grounds where you can walk, perhaps even ride.”
If you were willing to ride around in circles like an ox tethered to a grindstone. What pleasure was there in that?
“If only we could have gone to Pemberley.”
“You know very well the logistics of moving so many people such a long distance across the country would make it impossible. Besides, considering the frequency with which this seems to happen to us, would you be willing to risk having Pemberley burnt to the ground?”
Darcy’s stomach clenched at the very possibility. He was prepared to sacrifice everything, to lay down his own life for King and Country, but Pemberley must endure.
“No. Never.”
His uncle grunted in agreement.
“That is why this place is perfect for our purposes. The owner has shown no particular attachment to it. It has been closed for some time, and there are no direct heirs to inherit it. When it burns down, Mr. Prescott will be happy to receive a handsome sum in compensation.”
Darcy noted his uncle said when, not if, as if it was a forgone conclusion that Napoleon’s mages would find them. It was humiliating.
“It is hard to see any light at the end of the tunnel if the Royal Mages are being picked off one by one and constantly on the move like an army in retreat. And now we are scattered over several places, not even able to communicate. An express would arrive in London in several hours, which is hardly reassuring if we face any danger here. At this rate, we will need to start training carrier pigeons to keep in touch with our fellow mages. How long are we to live like this?”
His uncle laughed.
“You have summarized our situation in a nutshell. As for how long we will have to do it, the answer is: as long as necessary for us to regroup, rebuild our forces and go on the attack. For now, our goal is to survive.”
It was a sensible assessment, but it did not make the truth any more palatable. The French had the advantage, and Darcy was not entirely certain that the situation would change any time soon. Elizabeth had been their sole hope of countering Napoleon’s mages, but with the Warden’s affliction, the training program they had planned was cast into doubt. It was all too clear that the Council did not have an alternative plan, and that the Royal Mages were resigned to fleeing from one place to another, knowing that they could not win.
Darcy was growing heartily tired of this spineless approach.
“We are never going to win against Napoleon if we are not prepared to take risks. People are resisting having Elizabeth teach the other mages the only skill that might help us defeat the French. Why? Because someone might be hurt. But people are hurt even when we cower in our Halls and do nothing. This is war. People are maimed and killed. There will be sacrifices, but surely it would be worth it to defeat Napoleon, once and for all?”
