Page 34 of Triumph at Pemberley

If help came.

Darcy hurried into the drawing room. Elizabeth was alone and vulnerable, facing the Faerie king, and he needed to reach her as soon as possible. Every second’s delay made his heart ache. But during the long ride back from the Nest, there had been time to think. A year ago he would have ignored everyone and simply jumped on his horse and gone after her, but he had taken hard lessons since then in the risks of acting only on his own judgment. If he was to go up against the High King of Faerie, he needed all the help he could get.

“Lady Amelia, I will be leaving shortly. If you have any advice about how to deal with the Wicked King, I would be grateful to receive it.”

She turned her keen eyes on him. “How unexpectedly wise of you! I feared you might follow your mother’s example and throw yourself willy-nilly into Faerie, and I was prepared to force you to listen to me.”

It was no time to be playful. “I have done what I can. My saddlebags are filled with food and supplies.” He had learned a few things from being on the run in France, and there was no telling how long this might take. “But I do not know why she failed to return from this supposed tower, nor how I am to negotiate with the Wicked King.” Life had been easier when he thought he knew all the answers.

“That is why we must consult the dragons, who know his abilities best. I have asked your sister as well; she has met him more than once.”

He hissed out a breath. “I do not want to worry Georgiana.”

“Do you truly think this has nothing to do with her? She has a great deal at stake here, and she is stronger than you think.”

He did not like this, either, but Georgiana might indeed know something. “Very well.”

Her voice softened. “I know you love Elizabeth and are desperate to reach her. She is my great-granddaughter and Cerridwen’s companion, and we can help you. But until the others are here, let me begin with what I know. And pray sit down; save your strength for when you reach Lizzy.”

He hated this, having to seek help. But he would do anything that would help him get Elizabeth back.

How could he go on without her?

Chapter 14

This was not how Darcy had anticipated going to rescue Elizabeth. Instead of riding in alone, he was at the head of what could only be called a troop, even if most of them were Pemberley grooms and footmen rather than soldiers. Jasper mingled with the Pemberley men, dressed as a commoner – “the better to fight in,” he had said – and no doubt loaded with hidden daggers, knives, and other sharp implements. Darcy’s lynx familiar Fire Eyes loped off to one side.

Jasper had given him a leather vest to wear under his coat. “It will not keep you safe, but it might turn a blade enough to save your life,” he had said. Not that knives and swords were the danger keeping Darcy up at night. No, that was facing the immeasurable power of the Wicked King.

He had somehow assumed he would be able to perceive the tower where Elizabeth had vanished.

“Are you certain she saw it from here?” Darcy asked Cerridwen as she landed beside him.

“She did, but I could not. I did see her disappear, as if she had gone behind an illusion.”

“Do you remember which direction she took?”

Cerridwen snorted out a puff of smoke and pointed with a single talon. “I last saw her in exactly that direction. Perhaps a quarter of one of your miles from here. Dragons do not forget these things.”

He nodded, checking his compass to confirm the heading. The dragon might be more accurate, but he could carry the compass with him beyond the wards.

I go through. His lynx spoke in his head, loping back and forth through the line of the wards.

Good. Can you find Elizabeth’s scent? Darcy accompanied the sending with images to illustrate what he wanted. Fire Eyes still misunderstood words sometimes.

Yes. The lynx nosed the ground. She was here.

Darcy called to the men, the servants unaccustomed to this sort of travel, but their loyalty was certain. “We will go on foot from here. There is a tower in about a quarter of a mile, hidden by illusion. Our best chance is to find it by running into it. I want you to form a search line, taking hands. Keep as much distance from each other as you safely can, but the ground is uncertain and you may need to avoid obstacles. We will walk until we stumble across the tower. The lynx and I will lead the way.”

After a few minutes to organize themselves, they set forth. Darcy followed Fire Eyes, who picked a winding path through the tall grass and heather. The land was indeed uneven, and Darcy almost stepped into a deep puddle when he tried to push ahead too quickly. Elizabeth was nearby; he was certain of it, and he could not wait.

But nothing was happening. Surely they had gone a quarter of a mile by now! Had they somehow missed it? Darcy checked his compass. No, the direction was correct, and the lynx still had Elizabeth’s scent. Unless that was a fae trick.

Fire Eyes veered off to the left, and a moment later, a cry came from a groom.

“Stop!” cried the groom, rubbing his forehead. “I hit something. Big. Feels like a stone wall, high as I can reach.”

They had found it! “Good work. Everyone else, move forward carefully. See if you can encircle it.” He reached out his hand, too, while still following his familiar.