“I was not in attendance, but Mr Darcy mistook me for Miss Bingley when he arrived home.”
“That is hardly evidence,” Mr Gardiner scoffed.
“No, not in itself, but I have since had it confirmed by Judge Darcy. He arrived in a bluster to berate Mr Darcy for his indiscretion. When I left home—”
Her heart ached; it would no longer be her home when she returned to English soil. After the scheme she was about to enact, Mr Darcy would despise her even more, but her efforts were better spent saving her sister from the worst fate.
Elizabeth was bone tired but could not rest. Gathering the last of her strength, she continued.
“When I left the house, Judge Darcy and Mr Darcy were discussing how he might divorce me, and worse.”
Mrs Gardiner’s sharp intake of breath did not escape Elizabeth’s notice. Lydia gaped, and Mr Gardiner raked his hand through his hair.
“What could possibly be worse?” Mrs Gardiner cried.
“To remove a child from a mother’s womb. Apparently, it is not without risks.”
“I am shocked and grieved,” Mr Gardiner muttered.
Mrs Gardiner moved in front of her and grabbed her hands. Elizabeth watched her stroke her knuckles through a misty fog.
“Do you suspect?”
Elizabeth nodded. “I cannot be certain. It is too soon. I am only a week late.” Her cheeks warmed, speaking about such intimate affairs for the first time. “But I am usually regular.”
Mrs Gardiner released her hands and turned to her husband.
“That settles it. I never suspected it of Mr Darcy, but these rich men can do whatever they please with no fear of repercussions. I shall not stand for it! Edward, send a boy to the dock to see whether a ship is to sail for Rendsburg in the not-so-distant future.”
She turned back to Elizabeth. “Do you have any funds?”
Elizabeth pulled her small stack of five-pound notes out of her reticule.
“I had hoped to withdraw money from my settlement account.”
“That is impossible without Mr Darcy’s signature, and what you have is not sufficient. I shall give you all I have and so will your uncle.”
“Do I have any say?” the aforementioned uncle asked drily.
“Not in this case,” Mrs Gardiner retorted with a huff. “Mrs Rowland, a friend of mine from Lambton, knows of George Wickham, and what she has told me is not good. I would not be surprised if he agreed to the marriage to rid himself of his debts, only to leave poor Lydia as soon as they were paid. We cannot allow your sister to be abandoned, and I would not mind teaching Mr Darcy a lesson. By him I have been most grievously deceived.”
Mr Gardiner raised his hands in surrender. “In this, dearest, we are in agreement.”
Mrs Gardiner kissed his cheek before hurrying him out on a set of pressing errands.
“Very well. Shall I take it as a compliment that you still regard me as an errand boy, Mrs Gardiner?” Mr Gardiner winked at his wife. “But I must notify Mr Bennet of this development. He is Elizabeth and Lydia’s father.”
“Can you please wait until the ship has left the dock?” Elizabeth pleaded.
“I shall consider it,” Mr Gardiner allowed before he strode determinedly out of the room.
Her uncle returned a few hours later with excellent news: he had procured passages on a merchant ship and hired two stout footmen for protection. They would have to leave in the middle of the night though, as the ship sailed from Harwich…
Elizabeth regarded the maid who had been tasked to aid her; she was full young.
“I am not certain,” she prevaricated. “I may need help to do the heavy lifting.”
“I have two brothers who are currently unemployed,” the maid replied in a distinct German accent.
