Darcy’s eyes darted back and forth and she could tell he was thinking. “It would take two days, and the mail coach will not stop.”
He was about right. It would be an exhausting trip, sleeping in the coach and not stopping for meals. “The Royal Mail leaves London at half past seven and arrives in Carlisle the second night at ten. Wickham and Georgiana will have more stops for rest and meals. Darcy!” she cried, gripping his arm to snap his attention back to her. “We ride day and night in the mail coach and beat them to the border. We tell everyone Georgiana and I left Ramsgate to visit her home, and you escorted us on the trip. She won’t marry Wickham and her reputation will be safe.”
He stared hard into her eyes, and at first, she was not sure he understood. But an alertness came back into his gaze. “What about your servant? We will be lucky to get two tickets for the mail at this late hour, let alone three.”
The mail coach only had four seats inside, and she did not want poor Sarah on the roof for days. The decision was made in a heartbeat. “Sarah, you must take a stagecoach back to Ramsgate. I will buy you a ticket.”
Her family’s maid shook her head. “I cannot leave you alone, ma’am.”
“I am safe with Mr Darcy, and he and his sister need my help. Tell my mother we met Miss Darcy in London and we are going to Pemberley. She will be delighted I have such a wealthy friend who might throw her daughters into the path of rich men. I will write to her when I can. Will you keep the secret, for Miss Darcy’s sake?”
Sarah’s mouth hung open, but she huffed and agreed.
Darcy briskly nodded. “I will send my coach to Pemberley to continue the ruse. Meanwhile, we should pretend not to be acquainted in the mail coach. There will only be two other passengers, but they might make inappropriate assumptions if they think we are together.”
She smiled to see Darcy act more like himself. He still looked wan, but at least his words and actions were nearly back to normal. Elizabethpicked up her small bag and then thrust the other into his hands. “The Bull and Mouth is around the corner. We will have to run to make it.”
She did not wait for his assent, but as she ran down the stairs, she heard his swift footsteps behind her.
CHAPTER SIX
There were few travellers at night, and the mail coach had lamps illuminating the way. Elizabeth supposed it was safe enough since they were on a familiar road, with a driver accustomed to the route who trusted his horses. Had it been foggy or pouring rain, there would have been outriders with torches ahead of them.
She gave up looking at her watch, both because it was too dark and because she always wished more time had passed since she last looked. There was no hint of dawn, but surely it was closer to morning than to midnight. The guard kept them on time, of course, but it still felt like it was taking forever.
It was a snug fit inside the coach with four passengers. Because they had boarded at the beginning of the route in London, she and Darcy had seats inside. A man and a woman had joined them for a few stages, but at the last change of the horses, they left and two young men boarded in high spirits, talking about beating their friend home and going to the races tomorrow.
Darcy ignored them entirely, just as he had ignored her since they boarded. He seemed determined to act as though they were not together, even sitting across from her rather than next to her. She was not sure if he did not want anyone to assume there was an improperconnexion between them, or if his own cares, which were admittedly great, preoccupied him.
Elizabeth yawned and leant against the window, trying to keep as far from the man next to her as she could. He whispered and sniggered with his friend across from him, and she wished they would both just go to sleep. She eventually grew accustomed to the sound of the horn announcing their arrival and to clear the roadway and the lads’ inane chatter.
Somewhere between sleeping and wakefulness, she felt her skirts by her ankle move, and she shifted her feet.
“No more,” a voice said. Muffled laughter followed. One of the irritating young men must have moved in the tight space and kicked at her skirts.
But after she closed her eyes and tried to resettle herself, it happened again. Only this time, she could have sworn someone’s fingertips brushed along her ankle. She started and drew in as close to herself as she could without stepping on Darcy’s feet. His hat was low over his head and he leant against his window. He must have fallen asleep sometime since they last stopped.
More stifled sniggers came from both men. “I can do it again,” the other man whispered. This was the man next to her. In her sleepy state, she wondered what he was about to do, but they were finally silent for so long that she closed her eyes as she crossed her arms around herself.
A finger stroking along her arm above her elbow, where she had folded them under her chest, startled her awake. There were soft cackles, and the man next to her whispered to his friend, “I missed.”
The other man made a hushing sound and murmured, “That is enough. She will wake.”
“No, no, next time.”
Elizabeth held herself still, now on alert for more unwelcomed advances. These overgrown boys thought they had the right to fondle any woman who crossed their path. There was no point in screaming because the coachman would not stop and the guard’s priority was delivering the mail on time. She must manage them on her own, somehow.
The man next to her shifted and was about to touch her inappropriatelyagain. Elizabeth stiffened. How many gropes and fondles would she have to endure before they departed?
The moment he reached out his open fingers, Elizabeth recoiled. “Stop it!” she hissed.
A hand shot out across the carriage and grabbed his menacing fingers. Darcy yanked the youth forward while bending back his hand as far as it would go. He would have fallen onto the floor had his friend not steadied him. He gave a howl and tried to pull back, but Darcy held him fast.
“Any part of you that touches her will be returned to you bleeding and broken,” Darcy said warningly.
The young man nodded and tried to pull away again with a wince.
“Say that you understand,” he growled.
