Page 17 of Lord Lonbourn’s Daughter

Elizabeth asked nothing more before her sisters took Lady Kitty upstairs. He should not be surprised; he had married a lady of superior intellect who knew when to speak and when to act.

“In what condition was she found?” Elizabeth enquired the moment her sisters were out of earshot.

Darcy explained about the clinic that treated melancholy and female troubles by dosing their patients with so much laudanum they were hardly aware of their situations.

“Quacks that extort people with ill health,” he grumbled. “Laudanum relieves pain but has never cured anyone of anything to my knowledge. My own physician uses it with caution, asserting it could become an addiction if administered too generously.”

“They must be punished!”

“I have some hope of achieving that, but I must speak to your father before I take action.”

“Thank you!” Elizabeth touched his arm, and he soared from her praise and the familiarity with which the touch was given. He would do anything for this lady; she just did not know it.

She was gone, half running up the stairs before any form of reply had begun to form in his mind.

He watched her proceed. The soreness she had tried to conceal that morning, which had impeded her ability to walk, seemed to have dissipated.

He was an ogre, importuning her twice on her wedding night.

He had not thought it through, or he might not have taken a virgin for a second time on her first night as a wedded lady.

Longbourn was waiting for him in his study, so he hastened to the patriarch’s sanctuary.

The earl poured them two generous tumblers of port to fortify them before he rang the bell for his butler. Mr Schneider appeared promptly and confirmed that no letters had been delivered while they were gone.

“You were in a hurry to leave Tothill Fields earlier, Darcy. Would you care to explain why?” Lord Longbourn enquired.

Darcy was not surprised the earl had noticed his haste. The man was astute.

“Yes, I was. I thank you for understanding and refraining from questioning me at that moment. I observed a man I assumed was Doctor Sauveterre return with something wrapped in a burlap sack. The sack split, revealing an elderly woman who had been dead for some time. By the dirt on her clothes, I suspect she had been dug up.”

“Grave robbers!” the earl bellowed. “We must return at once and take them to Bow Street. This cannot go unpunished. It is a despicable practice to deprive a soul of its final resting place.”

“I must advise against us going there ourselves, though I see the need for immediate action. I suggest we notify Bow Street. I have an acquaintance who is a magistrate. He will know how to act, and the doctor will receive his punishment without drawing unwanted attention to Lady Kitty’s stay.

“The practice is particularly abhorrent when you know that all the bodies of executed criminals are, by law, offered to the education of surgeons. I suppose, with a thousand surgeons and fewer than a hundred bodies to dissect, it is a demand that is far from met. I am not trying to excuse the surgeons, though. It is a crime the judicial system has neglected to address for too long.”

“Pardon my outburst, Darcy. I have a lot on my mind—as have you, I imagine. Would you take care of the correspondence? Send a message to your friend in Bow Street and ask him to keep us apprised of any developments. You will find everything you need here on my desk. I would like to see how my daughter is faring.”

Lord Longbourn rose to leave, impatient to see Lady Kitty.

“Of course. I shall write at once.”

Darcy seated himself in the chair the earl had just vacated and mended the pen.

He quickly jotted down the necessary information for the Bow Street Runners to know what to look for and where to find it.

He sanded the paper, and when he was finished, he looked up to find Elizabeth standing in front of the desk regarding him.

“How may I help you?” He sounded formal, which was not the tone he was striving for, but it was all he was capable of.

“Kitty is sleeping comfortably. Mrs Hill foresees that she will be asleep for the rest of the evening and quite possibly for the rest of the night, but I am loath to leave in case she awakens and needs me.”

Darcy needed a minute to understand what she was asking.

It was a request he was as reluctant to grant as she was anxious to be denied.

However, he admitted that he would be furious should he be kept away from Georgiana at such a time.

He had no reason to believe that Elizabeth cared less for her sister than he did for his, but fear enveloped his heart at the thought of letting her out of his sight.

If she resided in another house during the night, it would be impossible for him to protect her.

Yet, he could not rid himself of the feeling that she might be trying to avoid his attentions.

He was not going to force himself on her when he knew she needed to heal.

Perhaps separate households were best; it would remove the temptation.

His contemplations had taken too long before he was ready to answer her question. Elizabeth was biting her lip and wringing her hands in apprehension.

“You may stay.” Again, his answer was too clipped, not conveying the thoughts and sentiments behind it.

“Thank you!” She took a step towards him when Lady Jane sailed into the room.

“Lizzy, I thought I might find you here.”

Lady Jane smiled serenely, but he thought he caught a twinkling in her eyes that reminded him of her sister’s.

“I am wondering where to put Mr Darcy?” Lady Jane enquired.

“There is no need to air out a guest room. We should be comfortable in my old room. I doubt the dust has had time to settle in the twenty-four hours since I left.”

Lady Jane smiled and nodded before she flitted out of the room. He could not help a relieved smile from erupting. Elizabeth had not expected him to return alone to Darcy House but to stay with her at Bennet House. It was a vastly better arrangement than the one he had conjectured.

#

The third letter of instruction arrived in the evening and contained directions for the release of Georgiana. The demands must be conveyed and acted upon, but nothing could be done before the morning beyond informing the sisters, which was a task neither of the gentlemen was anticipating.

Elizabeth and Lady Mary were entertaining the ladies with a duet when the gentlemen joined them. Darcy and the Earl of Longbourn had discussed their next move and the sacrifice that must be made to release Georgiana.

The earl applauded absentmindedly when the duet ended, clearing his throat to relate the distressing news.

Elizabeth noticed, and her beautiful green eyes widened in apprehension.

She was astutely aware of her father’s small shifts in mood and immediately understood what he was about to relate would not be pleasant.

“The kidnappers have sent instructions for the release of Miss Darcy. They demand that Jane must marry Mr Bingley,” Lord Longbourn blurted rather tactlessly.

Elizabeth gasped and looked at Lady Jane, who showed little emotion beyond the serene smile that always graced her countenance.

Darcy could not guess what she was thinking, but the lack of response was telling.

She could not be particularly opposed to the marriage, or she would surely have expressed her objections.

“I shall do my duty, if Mr Bingley accedes to the demands,” Lady Jane replied quietly.

“He is an amiable gentleman,” Lady Mary said in comforting tones. “I am certain he will consent.”

“Yes, very amiable. He is graced with the happiest disposition I have ever encountered,” Lady Jane added too demurely to be convincing.

“I wonder whom Mary must marry?” Elizabeth mused before clutching her hand to her mouth. It had obviously not been her intention to speak her misgivings aloud.

“I would guess it is Colonel Fitzwilliam,” Lady Mary remarked drily, much to her eldest sister’s bewilderment as her eyes widened in surprise.

“Let us hope the good colonel will apprehend the miscreants before it comes to that, Mary,” Elizabeth comforted her sister.

“I have taken the liberty of investigating your Mr Bingley, Jane,” the earl informed her.

“He is one generation removed from trade, but that does not worry me. He has the means to support a wife comfortably, especially since he does not need to buy an estate. Between your complying temperaments, nothing will ever be decided upon, the servants will run rampant over you, and no income will ever suffice with your generous dispositions.”

Elizabeth chuckled at his jest—if it was a jest; Darcy thought the earl’s predictions held a degree of truth.

The ladies discussed the impending wedding amongst themselves, listing what they needed to do and what could be postponed until after the ceremony.

“I have one item in mind that you should not do without.” Elizabeth smiled furtively at Lady Jane.

“I wonder what that could be?” her sister asked.

“I shall tell you in private.” Elizabeth smiled awkwardly. “Oh, do not look so distressed, Jane. It is only an item of clothing that I, in my ignorance, deemed unnecessary.”

Lady Jane blushed, so he deemed it best not to enquire.

#

It was both disconcerting and exhilarating to perform his ablutions in Elizabeth’s old dressing room.

She had given it up for his use and was currently ostracised to her chamber where her maid was helping her prepare for the night.

Soft female voices wafted through the door, soothing his worried soul and dousing his fear.

This was the most pleasant part of marriage, having someone waiting for you, having someone to return to, no matter the outcome of the day. Someone to depend upon…