Page 128 of A Life Diverted
There was a major flaw in his plan; he did not know which lady was the Princess.
He knew who the Fitzwilliams were, but he had no idea who the other two men were.
All of the ladies were similarly dressed which did not help the hapless lord decide which was the princess.
He calculated that it was one of those two not accompanied by a Fitzwilliam—he had a one on two chance of selecting the correct lady.
He started running—as fast as he was able with his corpulent body—toward the last couple, Mary and Wes.
Before he was within twenty yards of the group of walkers, he found himself flat on his back staring up at the angry visage of one of the biggest men he had ever seen.
As Lord Hamstead attempted to rise, the man growled at him to stay down and, to make his point even more clearly, Johns placed the sole of his boot on the wheezing man’s chest. Two of the royal guard were assisted Johns within moments and dragged the sputtering man to his feet.
The only one of the walkers who noticed anything amiss was Richard.
His military training helped him identify threats, but almost as soon as he saw the man, he knew the escorts would never allow him close enough to disturb them.
Once he saw the man was subdued, he nodded to the captain of the guard, conveying his approval of their swift actions.
Cassie looked at her husband quizzically when she saw the grin on his face.
“Later my love, I will tell you all,” Richard told his wife as he watched the guards dragging the hapless man away.
The rest of their walk was undisturbed and, after enjoying tea in one of the large parlours in the house, the six visitors took their leave. Elizabeth and Mary walked them out to the courtyard.
“You will be my husband in less than two days, William,” Elizabeth said softly as they approached the waiting coach.
“When you become my wife, my love, it will be the greatest day of my life,” William stated quietly as he squeezed her hand.
“For me it will be my best birthday ever,” Elizabeth told her betrothed. “I will never have an excuse to forget the date of our anniversary.”
“Even though it is not my birthday on Saturday, as I am marrying you, my dearest, loveliest Elizabeth, I feel I am the one being given the gift, one which I will treasure for the rest of my life,” William returned quietly, his voice laden with certainty.
“We will see you later at Darcy House for a family dinner, William.” Elizabeth would feel bereft of his company until she and her parents arrived at Darcy House.
After the sisters saw their extended family off they returned to the parlour, where their parents were waiting for them with Prince Frederick and the captain of the guards. “Did you notice the disturbance while you were walking in St. James Park?” Bennet asked.
Elizabeth and Mary looked at one another questioningly; both shook their heads. “No Papa, we did not notice anything out of the ordinary,” Elizabeth reported.
“Then I commend you, captain, as you and your men were beyond efficient,” Bennet stated as he turned to the commander of the guards.
“As much as I appreciate your words, Lord Longbourn,” the captain bowed, “it was your man, Johns, who neutralised the threat before any of the walkers became aware of the issue, other than former Captain Fitzwilliam.”
“Where is the dastard now?” the Prince asked.
“In the dungeon, your Royal Highness,” the Captain averred.
“Thank you, captain, please hold him until you hear from me. You are dismissed,” the Prince commanded. The captain broke off a smart salute and left the parlour.
“What happened?” Mary asked.
“A desperate fortune hunter tried to compromise Lizzy, except he did not know who she was so it seems he was aiming at you, Mary, before Johns brought him down,” the Prince explained. “The closest he got to you was little more than twenty yards.”
“What will happen to him?” Elizabeth asked.
“He will be held until after the wedding,” Bennet replied. “Evidently, he has gambled his birth right away and was trying to save it by acquiring your fortune. We have been informed his debts will be called in and he will lose everything by next week.”
“Even though he did not know who you were, he will still be charged with treason. I will recommend transportation for him,” the Prince explained.
Elizabeth and Mary retired to prepare for dinner with the family that evening.
When they joined their parents in the courtyard before climbing in their coach, Bennet informed his daughters that the King had accepted his son’s recommendation, and the now ex-Lord would be on the first ship sailing to Botany Bay after the wedding.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“Did that gambler, Hamstead, not notice the escorts?” Lord Holder asked. He shook his head at the man’s folly while the men sat enjoying their libations and cigars after dinner.
“He was desperate enough that he threw caution to the wind,” Richard reported.
“I watched as he made his ill-advised charge—if one can call it that. It was barely above walking speed. The only question was who would stop him first. Unfortunately for Hamstead, he was closest to Johns, who had the hapless man flat on his back in an instant.”
“After today, the rectitude of our decision to allow Lizzy and William to marry now has proven to be for the best.” The Prince raised his glass of port to Bennet. “The man is lucky Johns took him down when he did. Had he gotten closer, the guards would not have hesitated to run him through.”
“There is nothing the man could have done that would have deterred me from marrying Lizzy in two days,” William stated definitively as he blew cigar smoke out.
“He is lucky he did not lay a finger on her, as then nothing would have saved him from the tower,” the Prince informed them.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“You know how happy your mother would have been if she were still with us to witness you marrying, Lizzy,” Darcy said wistfully as he looked to the heavens. “Your use of Seaview would have pleased her as well. It may not be warm enough for sea bathing yet, though.”
“It will be much warmer than when Jane and I were there during December and January after our wedding in ’07,” Andrew stated and then took a sip of his cognac.
“We will still have four children at home, but I suspect we will lose one more in the next two years,” Bennet stated as he looked towards Wes.
Wes had a faraway look on his face, which slowly transformed to a grin as he thought about Mary, with whom he was well on his way to falling in love.
‘ Yes, Bennet, you have the right of it. If Mary and I have any say in the matter, she will be leaving your protection in about two years, ’ Wes told himself with anticipation.
He and Mary had made no verbal declarations to each other as yet, but they spent as much time together as propriety allowed.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
The ladies drank tea in the music room while Anne played softly in the background.
Catherine, whose playing had improved somewhat under the tutelage of Signore da Funti, still marvelled at how well her daughter played the instrument.
Thankfully, she had ceased berating herself about the past and was able to look to the present, and the future, rather than being caught up worrying about that which she could not change.
Lady Sarah was thankful every day that her children and granddaughter had accepted her back into their lives.
For almost her full year of mourning, she had blamed herself for not finding a way to contact Priscilla.
It took her son, daughter, and granddaughter some time to convince her none of them held her responsible for the actions of her late husband, and that she should leave the past where it belonged.
Because their circumstances were similar and coupled with the fact they were often in company with their shared family, Lady Sarah and Catherine had become good friends.
The former found it helpful to talk to the latter about the changes she had made in her life.
In addition, Lady Sarah forged an extremely close relationship with Priscilla’s daughter—her granddaughter.
It was balm to her soul to be with Elizabeth; she saw Priscilla’s eyes looking back at her when they were together.
Fanny watched her second daughter as she sat with her sisters, Gigi, and Cassie. How she would miss Lizzy when she left home in two days! She knew she would see her daughter often during the year, but for Fanny it was as though she were losing Priscilla again.
Watching the gathering, Fanny thought about Lizzy’s generous spirit.
Before they all departed for Town, Lizzy asked Uncle Phillips to draft a document which gifted Netherfield to the Bennets effective on her marriage, as the bequest from her mother would be hers when she and William married.
Elizabeth also wanted to augment her sister’s dowries.
She was told that, thanks to Uncle Gardiner’s management and because money had been added each year to the amount bequeathed by her birthmother, the amount had grown to more than thirty thousand pounds each.
None of the younger Bennet girls lacked for a dowry.
“Are you ready to marry your William, Lizzy?” Jane asked, though she already knew the answer to her question.
“Yes. In fact, I have been ready for some time now. I believe William and I will be as happy in our marriage as you and Andrew, Anne and Jamey, and Cassie and Richard. It seems members of this family have chosen good life mates,” Elizabeth opined.
“It is because none of us have ignored our hearts,” Jane stated. “It looks like Mary has been listening to her heart, too, have you not, Sister?”
“It is still two years before I come out—well, a little less than—so it is premature to talk of my future.” Mary’s pleasurable blush belied her words, proving that her connubial future was something she thought about often.
“I am very happy I will be the last of my sisters to marry,” Lydia stated meaningfully. “Until I meet a man who excites a love in me like I see in my sisters, our parents, and our relatives, I have no interest in thinking about matrimony.”
“You are not fourteen yet, Lyddie, so it is only right you should think so. You have years to go before you come out,” Cassie pointed out.
“It is so exciting,” Georgiana enthused. “In less than two days we will all be sisters and brothers.” She looked to Tommy as she said the last.
Tommy no longer thought girls the strangest creatures in the world, but he still preferred the company of boys. He and Eddy Gardiner, almost eleven, were sitting in a corner of the room planning a game with their toy soldiers for the morrow.
The men joined the ladies and were served tea and coffee. A little over an hour later, the Bennets and the Prince departed for Buckingham House. The next time Elizabeth and William would see one another, she would be walking to him up the aisle at Westminster Abbey.