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“Little do he and his cohorts know,” Lord Thomas’ expression was deadpan.

He had received confirmation from the Regent that as soon as the attempt was made, and the perpetrators in custody, they were to be sent directly to the Tower.

He was sure that young Tony would take it hard, being orphaned in that way, but it seemed like his mother had ignored his pleas to abandon her folly.

No matter what Tony said, Lord Thomas was sure that if his mother was beheaded that it would scar the young man for life.

He decided to talk to the others once they arrived at Falconwood, and if they were in agreement, he would request that his cousin commute her sentence and have her transported with the stipulation that sentence would be carried out if she ever set foot on any lands belonging to the realm outside of Australia.

With a refreshment break where the teams of horses were changed, the trip to Falconwood took a little longer than four hours and the party arrived between two and three in the afternoon. The carriages entered the gates over which an arch proudly displayed the name of the estate in copper letters.

As soon as the vehicles had been sighted, the long-time gatekeeper sent a young groom at full gallop down the mile and a half drive to inform the senior staff that their Graces’ arrival was imminent; he removed his cap and bowed as the conveyances passed him.

The long drive was in fact an avenue lined with oaks on either side which supplied very welcome shade on the warm August days.

With a final dogleg turn to the right, the manor house came into view.

It was very much like Lady Anne had described, and everything about the estate that the master and mistress had been able to see so far spoke of the dedication of their servants to their tasks.

The carriages halted under an oversized portico that was supported by four marble columns.

The covered area of the circular drive was enough to accommodate three of the coaches.

The Duke and Duchess of Derbyshire were the first to exit their lead conveyance where their housekeeper, Mrs. Roselyn Horton, the butler, Mr. Oscar Jeffries, and the steward, Mr. Gerald Straughn were waiting for them at the entrance to the house.

The three senior staff warmly welcomed their Graces to their home.

“We would have liked to come visit our estate sooner, but we have been busy at Pemberley. We are most pleased to be here now,” the Duke said.

“We are most impressed with what we have seen of the estate so far. We thank you and all of the servants for your diligence in keeping Falconwood in excellent shape,” the Duchess added.

Based on the kind words from the master and mistress which boded well for the future, the three senior staff relaxed.

The rest of the party had exited their vehicles, and his grace introduced everyone to the three servants who were quickly in awe meeting yet more dukes and duchesses, dowager duchesses, earls and countesses, a viscount and viscountess, and a lady.

The housekeeper and the butler led them into the foyer where the house’s servants were lined up to meet them.

Darcy excused Mr. Straughn after setting a time to meet with him in the morning to review the estate’s ledgers while still outside before they walked into the house.

“My husband and I appreciate you all assembling here to meet us,” the Duchess spoke directly to the servants.

“I look forward to meeting all of you over the coming days and getting to know you.” There was polite clapping from the servants as the butler and housekeeper instructed them to return to their tasks.

The housekeeper led the arriving family members up the grand black and white grand marble staircase to the second level where the family wing was located.

The master suite was very large if over forty years out of date, which was understandable given the span of years that had elapsed since a Duke and Duchess had inhabited the suite, or the house at all.

Elizabeth was very pleased that her older sisters, sister-in-law, mothers, and mother-in-law were present as she would enjoy having the help and distraction of updating the house to reflect their tastes.

All she had so far seen during their walk to their chambers told her she would be redecorating the whole house.

Mayhap her being in residence for a time was more a blessing than inconvenience.

“William, you know that I hate to spend money without good cause.” Elizabeth said as she joined him in their shared sitting room after changing out of her travel garb into a pretty, hunter-green, muslin day dress.

“From what I have seen, we will need to redecorate the entire house. I hate to reduce our future children’s portions on a house that we will only reside at a few months out of each year; but, as the estate has been generous to us, so too should we be generous and update it for our son and his wife, as well as our family when we do visit. ”

“One, you know I would want you to do it anyway because it does reflect on our family when we visit here with guests,” Darcy said and gave her a kiss, “Remember, we want it to show we are proud of the appointment, but also it will be our son’s one day, and he should have the gift of knowing you put the time into making the estate a home.

“It did have a generous gift for us, so do not think so much of the expense, but of the legacy we start here for our whole family for generations to come. We have decorations that the first Mistress of Pemberley, Josette d’Arcy, chose for a room that have remained for centuries as they set the tone for the elegance of the house.

“One day that will be you mentioned, and your special touch here in this house as well as our own,” Darcy said, highlighting the importance of the house even if it was not their primary residence.

“I agree with you, William, and it is the perfect project to keep me busy until you return from Pemberley after the unpleasantness is over,” Elizabeth said lovingly.

“How I love you, my grace,” he punctuated his words with deep, toe-curling kisses. “Do you not remember, my dearest, loveliest Elizabeth, when your father and Uncle Sed told us about the money that has been untouched for decades?”

She had forgotten that conversation with everything that had transpired, but as soon as he mentioned it, it all came back to her. “I remember now. The dukedom has vast wealth that has been growing each year.”

“Yes, my Lizzy,” he said as he hugged her close.

“You could have the house torn down and rebuilt ten times over and hardly make a dent in the funds that we have at our disposal. Even if we had twenty children and ten of them sons, between what we had before I was elevated and what we have in addition, not one of them would ever have to worry about their futures.”

Elizabeth was quiet as she contemplated the vast wealth that would allow them to have twenty wealthy, and hopefully healthy, children.

She suddenly stood up with her hands on her hips as the number he mentioned sunk in.

“I know we both want children, but do not even joke about twenty unless you are willing to birth them yourself,” she said giving a mockingly severe warning.

She had trouble stopping herself from giggling and they both broke out in laughter, him with a guffaw and her with her melodious, musical laughter that he loved to hear.

When the master and mistress joined the rest of the family in the music room, they were both obviously content.

Elizabeth noted that it was sorely lacking quality instruments and so she added that to her mental list of requirements for the house she was tabulating in her head.

When her mother asked what had amused her middle daughter, she shared what she had discussed with her husband, resulting in the men finding a lot of amusement at the thought of their own army of children, while their wives did not find the prospect quite as amusing.

Jane’s babe decided to kick at that moment to add his or her voice to the conversation.

“What do you think of your house, Lizzy?” Lady Anne asked.

“It is very much like you described, Mother Anne,” Elizabeth replied.

“I am very impressed at the way that the servants have maintained the house in pristine condition. Whoever made the decision to keep a full complement of servants made a good choice.” She looked around the music room, “As I am sure that you have all seen, while everything is well maintained the house is about forty years past the point that it needed to be redecorated.”

“Thank goodness you see that, niece,” Lady Catherine exclaimed, “You know I have the finest taste…”

“We will all help Lizzy make sure that her home is decorated as she would like it,” Lady Elaine interjected before her sister-in- law could recommend opulence that would not fit their niece’s style.

“That will be an excellent project for all of us to tackle while our men are at Pemberley without us,” Marie smiled.

“I love decorating, and Aunt Rose has gifted us with homes that needed almost no updating,” Amy said as she took and squeezed Lady Rose’s hand.