“Oh, Mr Darcy! Is Elizabeth unharmed? Foolish girl, tripping on my rug.”
Darcy lifted Elizabeth into his arms.
“I think I can walk,” Elizabeth protested.
Darcy shook his head. “Not before we have ruled out any injuries. You are in shock and may not feel it yet.”
“Show some gratitude, Elizabeth. Mr Darcy is always solicitousness itself to everyone in his care.”
He turned his concerned eyes away from her to settle a scowl on Mary. “As for you, Mary, disguise of every sort is abhorrent.”
Mary’s lower lip trembled and tears welled in her eyes. “I do not take your meaning, sir.”
“Do not play coy with me. I have been listening behind your door for the last ten minutes. Nothing you say in your defence could tempt me to accept it. I have only one question, and that is how you came to have fifty pounds to bribe Mr Wickham.”
“Mary has that and much more,” Elizabeth informed her husband. “She receives forty pounds in allowance per annum and hardly ever spends any of it. I would not be surprised if she has two or three hundred pounds. Or rather had, as she must have spent a fortune on errand boys to deliver all those notes to the newspapers and rescind the invitations.”
“It was worth every farthing,” Mary growled.
“But…how could you do so without detection?” Darcy asked.
“No one ever pays any attention to what I do,” Mary sneered. “My only regret is that Miss Mildmay, Captain Warrender, and Colonel Greville did not receive theirs.”
“What about the judge and his children, the Matlocks… Even Lady Catherine received an invitation but no withdrawal,” Elizabeth wondered aloud.
“I wanted them there, of course, to witness your mortification. Not one of them approves of you.”
A throat cleared from behind them.
Shocked, Elizabeth turned away from the blackened look Mary directed at her. Peering over Darcy’s shoulder, she regarded the shocked expressions on her family’s faces; only Georgiana wore a determined countenance resembling her brother’s master of Pemberley mask.
“My grave error of judgment is infinitely preferable to your affected piety fabricated to hide a hideous flaw in your character.” Georgiana’s faint voice trembled. “I rejoice in your downfall, Mary. You have done nothing but belittle me and laud your own virtues since the day we were introduced. I heartily regret ever confiding my secret to you!”
“I am so sorry, Georgiana. I had no idea! It is no wonder you have been civil but reserved towards me. I can only hope that sometime in the future, you will find forgiveness in your heart,” Elizabeth begged.
“I heard everything, and there is nothing to forgive. We have both been victims of a distorted mind.”
“I am shocked,” Lady Louise whispered on the threshold, flanked by Count Reimarus and Lady Catherine.
“I am not,” Lady Catherine interjected. “There is always one lunatic in every family. In mine it is my brother. If I had been the earl… Well, never mind. I have been the queen of Rosings for a decade now, and it has every modern convenience that Matlock lacks. I have no cause to repine.”
“Nor have you grown humble these past fifty years,” Lady Louise muttered.
“Absolutely not! Humbleness is contrary to my nature. My character has ever been celebrated for its sincerity and frankness, and I shall certainly not depart from it at such a moment as this.”
Darcy made for the door, intent to carry her to her room.
“Wait!” Elizabeth yelped. “We cannot leave Mary unattended. She is dangerous!”
“Leave the girl to me,” Lady Catherine boomed. “I shall lock this miscreant in her room and order a footman to guard each door. We shall leave for Rosings on the morrow.”
“I cannot foist my sister upon you. You already have a frail daughter to attend to.”
“Balderdash! Anne is much improved after taking Mrs Collins’s foul concoctions. She needs hardly any of that dulling laudanum for her pains any longer. I assure you, dear niece, that I can handle a recalcitrant child. I did not grow up with a pig-headed brother like Lord Matlock without learning every trick in the book. He thought he could lord over me, but I am not the kind of female who can be dictated to. He even wanted me to marry one of his impoverished friends. But I would never have anyone but my dear Lewis, so I convinced the queen to knight him, which made him more palatable to my father. Have no fear, Elizabeth. I have managed much worse and must laud my husband’s foresight. He was an admirer of everything gothic and added a dungeon in Rosings’s cellar. I had never thought it would one day become useful… But rest assured, Mary will not escape her imprisonment.
“Since Anne has recovered and gained a new friend, I often find myself without occupation. I need a new project to rescue me from the disgrace of idleness, as Mr Collins has proved to be a hopeless case. Which reminds me—I hope Martha is performing to your satisfaction. I had her in mind from the day I met you. You are a rustic kind of girl and would not be comfortable with one of these French trollops who are the rage these days. Oh no, a hearty Yorkshire lass would serve you much better. In addition, she is the eldest of twelve brothers and sisters and will be of much aid to you when you approach your lying-in.”
Every eye turned to Elizabeth. Lady Louise looked composed, Georgiana brightened, Mary scowled, a smug smile bloomed on Darcy’s face, whilst Count Reimarus only raised his eyebrows.
