Page 2 of Raised at Rosings (Elizabeth and Darcy True Love Multiverse #4)

Chapter One

Jane’s fingers gripped Elizabeth like the eagle’s talons in the story her papa used to tell her before he died, but she paid it no mind. Elizabeth, a mere seven years old, sensed the gravity of their momma’s absence. It was not a good thing to be so very alone in the world, with only a sister for protection. Walking down the busy street with Jane in tow, Elizabeth looked frantically for any sign that she might be mistaken, that her mother was still in the town somewhere.

Most everyone was going about their business, ignoring the two small girls, and Elizabeth made sure that she and Jane stayed out of their way. She did not think for a moment that it was odd that she was taking care of her older sister. It was just how things were. Jane, with her delicate nature, was easily upset, so it came as no surprise to Elizabeth that the situation overwhelmed her.

Wherever she looked, she only saw unfamiliar faces. Not that there would be many people she could recognize. Before everything fell apart, they had been traveling, and now they were in a new town she’d never seen before. Elizabeth did not even know where they were or how far they had strayed from what used to be home.

Elizabeth felt a tug on her arm and glanced back at Jane, who trailed behind with wide eyes and a worried expression. As always, Elizabeth understood her without a word. She offered a reassuring look and sighed, then turned back the way they had come. They had passed an inn not far back—surely it would have a water closet, or at least an outhouse.

It did not take them long before they reached the inn, and Elizabeth tugged on one of the maid’s aprons, trying to get her attention. Raising her voice over the cacophony that filled the inn, she asked, “Miss? Miss…can you help us, please?”

The serving girl looked down in mild surprise, then smiled. “And how can I help the two of you?”

Elizabeth glanced at Jane, who was biting her lip, then frowned and said, “We need to use the water closet, please.”

The maid’s eyes widened with understanding. “Of course. Let me show you the way.” She tucked the rag into her apron and led them through the crowded room toward a closed door. Her voice softened with concern. “Do you need help?”

Elizabeth shook her head. “No thank you, we can manage.”

While Jane was clearly relieved to finally tend to her need, Elizabeth couldn’t ignore the low murmurs drifting through the door.

“Did they have anyone with them?” the new voice asked.

“No, they were alone, and I do not like it,” said the original maid. “They are finely dressed. They should have someone looking after them. A nurse or governess should be trailing after them.” Biting her lip, Elizabeth wondered if it was a good idea to tell the two women what had happened.

Once they had finished, Elizabeth smoothed out Jane’s skirt, then her own, mimicking the way the maid at home always had. It was not as though they could remain in the quiet safety of the water closet forever. With a steadying breath, she opened the door and stepped out with Jane on her heels.

They were promptly greeted by two women, and Elizabeth recognized one as the maid who had helped them before. Though she feared they would ask something difficult, the maid simply asked, “All better?”

Smiling in relief, Elizabeth easily responded, “Yes, thank you.”

The opportunity for further conversation was cut short when an authoritative voice called, “There is a large group arriving. Beatrice, Hattie, get out there and make yourself useful!”

The two women exchanged a glance, rolling their eyes before forcing matching smiles as they adjusted their caps and began to walk away. But one paused, glancing back at Elizabeth and Jane lingering in the empty hallway. “Why don’t you find a table,” she offered, “and I’ll bring you something to eat?”

Ignoring Jane’s hopeful gaze, Elizabeth shook her head and replied, “We do not have any money for food.”

Nodding, the woman offered a warm smile, but Elizabeth saw the sadness in her eyes when she said, “At least sit down at one of the tables and take a rest.” Shepherding the girls back to the common room, she encouraged them to sit down on a bench, away from the hustle and bustle.

After the woman left, Jane leaned over to Elizabeth and whispered, “Do you think something happened to Momma?”

Despite her young age, Elizabeth possessed a remarkable level of pragmatism. It did not help that the adults in her life often overlooked her, and she heard much of what she should not have. She had heard her mother complaining ever since the sickness that took their Papa and younger sister Mary. Her mother was not happy with the life of a widow and wanted to remarry, especially after the strange man arrived claiming their home as his, all because Elizabeth had no brother.

They had to leave. At first, Momma had said they were going to visit their uncle in London, but he had not been at home, so they returned to their carriage and continued on their way. The night before, her momma told them she had an idea about how to fix everything. Now, it appeared that abandoning her children had been her momma’s plan all along. When they had stopped to water the horses and let them rest, Momma had told Lizzie and Jane to go pick flowers in the nearby woods and that she would come collect them when it was time to leave, but she never came to get them. They waited for what felt like forever, but eventually Elizabeth told Jane they had to go look for momma because she was not coming.

When they arrived at the small stable on the edge of the town, there was no sight of their carriage or their mother and her maid. Their only source of security in the world seemed to have vanished without a trace. Walking the length of the town had done nothing but wear out their small feet and crush their hopes.

Elizabeth was too young and too tired to try to protect her older sister from the truth. Shaking her head, she said, “No, Jane. I think Momma left without us.”

Jane laid her head on Elizabeth’s slight shoulder and asked, “What are we going to do, Lizzie?”

Elizabeth felt a twinge of resentment but pushed it to the back of her mind. It was not Jane’s fault that they were in the situation they were in, nor was it her fault that Elizabeth was the stronger of the two sisters. Sighing, Elizabeth murmured, “I do not know, Jane.” It was terrifying for a young girl, who always prided herself on knowing things, to suddenly be faced with the unknown.

Lewis de Bourgh paused, dragging a hand down his face before following his wife into the inn. She was already casting a scornful eye at their surroundings and scolding their daughter for trying to catch up with her cousins as they explored. In moments of honesty, he could not help but acknowledge that the allure of Lady Catherine’s dowry could not compensate for the trials of being married to her.

Even the travel returning from her sister’s funeral had been fraught with complaints and reprimands. Between that and the difficulties he always experienced when he traveled, it had not been an easy journey. He glanced over to find his brother-in-law also watching Catherine, shaking his head before meeting Lewis’s gaze with a resigned shrug. Reginald didn’t like Catherine’s rants any more than he did.

Smiling at his brother-in-law’s antics, Lewis walked into the inn despite his morose feelings and tingling limbs. At least they were traveling with the earl and his family. It gave him a bit of an outlet, an escape from the viciousness that was Catherine. If she went too far, Reginald would rein her in, and to Lewis’s dismay, he was the only one who could. It was no small blow to a man’s pride to know he held no sway over his own wife.

Part of it stemmed from the fact that she thought herself above him. As only a baronet, he was beneath her in status, and she treated his wishes with disdain, confident in her superiority as the daughter of an earl. Fairness aside, she tended to look down on everyone except for dukes and the royal family. Even then, her respect was bestowed begrudgingly.

Moving over to Anne, he told her to go sit with the young viscount Felton and his younger brother Richard. He loved the way her eyes lit up at his permission before she rushed over to sit with her cousins. While she had never been a healthy child, Lewis believed half her problem was her inability to be herself and do childish things. Her lack of time in the sun probably did not help either.

Catherine immediately turned to him with a huff and spat, “Lewis, I just got her behaving as a proper young lady should. Why would you do that?”

With a tilt of his head, Reginald remarked, “Catty, you had her behaving like an inanimate object, rather than a ten-year-old child.”

Suppressing his amusement, Lewis observed Catherine’s intense glare as she locked eyes with her younger brother. Reginald did not flinch and eventually Catherine looked away before saying, “You have never had the proper sense of decorum. With each passing day, my fear for the future of our family’s title grows stronger.” Disregarding them both, she stood with a haughty demeanor and her nose held high.

Determined not to dwell on the negative, Lewis watched his daughter chat with her cousins, her whole face lighting up as she did. He had wished that he had been able to give her some siblings to play with, but it was not to be. Lady Catherine had closed her door to him as soon as she had confirmed her pregnancy with Anne. Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise, as his wife wasn’t the most nurturing mother. While he cherished the innocence and playfulness of children, his wife held a contemptuous opinion of them and believed they should be tightly controlled and shaped into useful tools.

While Reginald spoke with the staff to arrange for rooms and a private meal, Lewis found his attention drawn to two girls sitting alone in the corner. They were younger than his own daughter, and like his own party, they wore mourning clothes. Interestingly, the younger girl, who resembled a fae child with dark hair and mesmerizing green eyes, appeared to provide comfort to the older girl, an ethereal blonde with blue eyes. Looking around, he could not spot any adults who might be looking after them. Their clothing spoke of wealth, marking them as gentry at the very least, so there should have been someone there watch over them, but there was not.

Signaling to one of the maids, Lewis asked, “Who is looking after those girls?”

Glancing to where he had gestured, the young woman frowned. “They seem to be alone. I have asked around, and no one knows them. They just showed up this morning.”

Lewis watched the two children, his heart going out to them. How frightening to be so alone. Thinking quickly, he asked, “Did no one come looking for them?”

“No, and I even had one of the stable hands ask around while on an errand. It seems that they appeared in town this morning,” she explained somberly, “but no one saw them with any adults.”

With a nod, Lewis left his group behind and approached the girls, keeping his pace slow and trying to look as nonthreatening as possible. Once again, he noticed the younger girl’s protectiveness as she whispered in the older one’s ear and patted her hand. Kneeling in front of them, he said, “Good afternoon, ladies. My name is Lewis de Bourgh.”

Nodding in an oddly regal manner, the smaller girl replied, “I am Elizabeth Bennet, and this is my older sister, Jane Bennet. It is lovely to meet you.”

“I know this might be presumptuous of me,” Lewis started with a friendly smile, “but I was wondering where your family was. You seem very alone.”

For some reason, this caused the blonde to cry. Ever the nurturer, his sister-in-law, Judith Fitzwilliam, the countess, approached him and stood slightly behind him. She hovered at his shoulder, her need to comfort the girls a tangible thing as little Elizabeth said, “Our papa died and our Momma…” Looking at her sister, she bit her lip briefly before adding, “Mama was supposed to collect us after her errand but...”

Lewis heard Judith murmur under her breath before rushing around and embracing the blonde. His sister-in-law practically oozed maternal instinct and had long wanted a daughter, so he was not surprised she would rush to comfort an abandoned child. Not that he was any less interested in wanting to comfort the two children, though as a gentleman, he expressed it differently. Reaching out, he patted the younger child’s hand awkwardly and said, “I am sure that something has simply detained her, and until we sort it out, my family will care for the two of you.”

He was not surprised when he heard his wife screech from behind him, “That is utter ridiculousness!”

Elizabeth studied the expressions on the kind man’s face, and the screaming woman’s. It was clear they disagreed about helping her and Jane. Observing them with the quiet perception children often have, Elizabeth decided she liked the gentleman, but not the lady at all.

Stomping her foot, the woman continued, “We are a noble family. We have no business associating with the unworthy or undesirable. The town, if it is able, it will take care of it, and if they can’t, so what?”

The nice lady who had been comforting Jane gasped and replied, “Even you cannot say something so cruel. These children are neither unworthy nor undesirable. Had you paid attention, you would have recognized that they belong to a well-off family—their clothes alone should have been a clue.”

Scoffing, the woman barked, “Really? How well off could their family be if they were abandoned?”

Feeling the need to say something, Elizabeth inserted, “My papa was a good man. He ran our family’s estate and took care of everything, just like his papa and grandpapa, but he died with my little sister.”

“I am sorry you lost them, my dear. Can you tell me where your estate was or how long you were traveling?” asked the gentleman.

Elizabeth scrunched up her face, searching for the right words. “Our estate was Longbourn, but they said another man gets to live there now because I do not have a brother.”

The man nodded as if he understood the problem, but then the mean woman said, “See, she doesn’t even have an estate to return to.”

That was when a new man showed up and said, “Catty, didn’t your governess teach you to stay silent if you have nothing valuable to contribute? I suggest you keep your mouth shut as we will not be consulting you over the care of these two children.” With a smile that belied his scolding moments before, he pulled out a few candies, offering one first to Jane, then to Elizabeth.

Though Elizabeth was happy to suck on her candy, having something in her mouth suddenly caused her stomach to rumble. Blushing, she pressed her hands into her empty stomach. Embarrassment flooded her when the second gentleman chuckled. “It seems fortuitous that we will have a meal ready for us soon. I insist that you young ladies will join us. As for finding your mother, I am sure my valet can investigate the matter while we eat. How does that sound?”

Elizabeth looked at Jane and saw her eager expression. It had been a while since their last meal. Smiling, Elizabeth said, “That would be very nice. Thank you, sir.”

“Good!” Clasping his hands together, the second man offered a genial smile. Once the stern woman had disappeared from view, he inclined his head and said, “I am Reginald Fitzwilliam. The woman who just departed is my older sister, and this,” he paused to gesture to the kind woman who was still consoling Jane, “is my wife. But I don’t believe I caught your name.”

Though she couldn’t explain why, Elizabeth felt the moment held some quiet significance. “Elizabeth Bennet, sir,” she replied. “And my older sister is Jane.”

“A lovely name, my dear, and your sister’s as well.” Looking over, he spotted a maid who seemed to wait for his attention and exclaimed, “Ah, it seems that everything is ready.”

The man’s wife rose and gently smoothed Jane’s dress before wrapping an arm around her shoulders and following the maid. Elizabeth glanced between her sister’s retreating form and the two men still standing beside her. Though she felt small and a bit wary, something about their manner gave her a fragile sense of reassurance. Sensing her hesitation, Mr. Fitzwilliam offered a warm smile and a light touch to her shoulder. “I don’t know about you, Miss Elizabeth,” he said kindly, “but I’m quite famished.” It was rather distressing when her stomach chose that moment to rumble once more, but the two gentlemen were kind enough not to make anything of it.

They had taken only a few steps when Elizabeth noticed some of the older children joining them who appeared just as friendly as the adults. When the younger of the two boys said, “Hello, I am Richard. Would you like to sit with me?” Elizabeth smiled and nodded, feeling some of the worry lift from her shoulders. Hopefully, her day would not end as badly as it had started.