Page 44 of I Thee Wed (Pride And Prejudice Variation #2)

Darcy turned the phaeton onto the back road after leaving the parsonage.

Lady Catherine sat stiffly at his side, her eyes fixed ahead.

He guided the horses over the rise until the new barn came into view.

The barn doors were shut, the yard was empty, and the building stood silent in the field.

He slowed the phaeton and drew it to a halt.

“This barn is new,” he said in an even tone. “Does it belong to Rosings?”

Lady Catherine did not move or look at the barn. She folded her hands. “This is not Rosings' property. We must leave at once. Take me away from here, Fitzwilliam. I insist.”

Darcy looked at her steadily. “What are you afraid of, Aunt Catherine?”

Color rose in her cheeks. “I am not afraid. I simply do not wish to be here.”

Darcy kept his silence but marked the tremor in her voice and the unease in her eyes. I have seen enough, he thought. She knows of the smugglers, and they have likely threatened her for years.

“Very well, Aunt. Let us return to the house.”

He turned the phaeton. The horses took the incline, and the house soon came into view. When they arrived, he handed her down and led her into the drawing room, where Richard and Anne awaited them.

Darcy crossed to the sideboard and poured a glass. “Richard, may I pour you a drink?”

“No, thank you. I have already had one,” Richard replied.

He turned toward his aunt and continued, “I will be frank with you, Aunt. Anne and I searched Sir Louis’s private room and found a second set of ledgers.

From what I see, you paid a mason every month, possibly the bricklayer who inspected the chimneys in 1808.

Did you pay him for protection from the smugglers? Did his charges grow too steep?”

Lady Catherine’s eyes flashed. “That despicable man demanded fifty pounds each month. I refused. I turned to the other side. The North Kent gang offered to pay me instead. If I left them alone, they would leave me alone. When Lord Ashbrook grew too ill to manage his estate, they built the barn. They store brandy there until it can be transported inland. They bought the magistrate, Percy, and the excise officers as well. The threats began when Anne was out driving. That was when I paid the mason. When his demands grew higher, I turned to the smugglers. By then, they were strong enough to leave us alone and even pay us for silence. Each year has grown more difficult than the last. It is my daily expectation that the smugglers will demand to store their goods upon Rosings Park itself.”

Richard spoke firmly. “Aunt, you and Anne must leave Rosings at once. Darcy will drive you to London tomorrow. You will stay at his house while he makes arrangements, and then he will take you to his estate in Scotland. I will go to the War Office and request dragoons to sweep this part of Kent. We will need new excise officers and a new magistrate. The smugglers will want revenge. You and Anne must be safely out of the way.”

Lady Catherine sat very still. Finally, she said, “Yes. That is best. Jenning vowed to kill my daughter if I ever spoke a word about the smuggling ring. The masons must also be dealt with. They hold shopkeepers and estate owners hostage, forcing us to pay for protection. They are organized criminals.”

Richard asked, “What is the mason’s name?”

“Wilson. Jeffrey Wilson of Westerham. His trade is a cover. Once he gains entry, he demands payment with threats.”

“Very well,” Richard said. “We must tell the servants something. Without a proper tale, both sides will learn of your departure by tomorrow afternoon and will invent their own reasons for it.”

Anne stood and began to pace. “Mother, let us say we go to Bath for my health.”

Lady Catherine nodded. “That is as good a story as any. Let us go and begin packing.”