Page 55 of The Countess and Her Sister
The Fergusons were warm and well-practiced hosts.
Mr. Ferguson was not the only blacksmith in Gretna Green, but Jane imagined he must be the most affable.
His shop was the nearest to the turnpike, and he had presided over more than a thousand marriages since taking over the smithy that his grandfather built.
He and his wife had also refused hundreds of others, and told tales of a dozen other cases like hers over dinner – damsels in distress, dastardly rakes, and daring rescues.
Perhaps there was some exaggeration, but Mr. Ferguson was a born storyteller.
This seemed to run in the family, for his wife and children were often talking over one another to embellish the stories with fantastical details.
They seemed to be in competition for who could amaze and divert Jane the most, and by the end of their tales, her sides were sore from laughter.
She consented to share her own story, but she was scarcely sure when to begin.
Jane explained Lady Catherine’s obsession with the earldom, and then happily allowed Hannah to gush over the details of the previous night.
The young maid spun a colorful yarn for them, and spoke with so much animation that it was not at all painful for Jane to hear recounted.
Strangely, it felt as if listening to an account of what had befallen an entirely different person. The woman who had been suddenly thrust into an unfathomable misadventure and taken charge, found unlikely allies, and overpowered her captor – this could not be her.
When Hannah concluded her tale at their arrival in Scotland, the Fergusons raucously applauded her performance. “Aye, and ye walked in here makin’ demands and givin’ orders like anything,” Mr. Ferguson said to Jane with a hearty guffaw. “Handing out jewelry like the Queen!”
“Most ladies that are unwilling have not your temerity – more's the pity,” Mrs. Ferguson agreed.
Jane could not understand why, and furrowed her brow. “Do they not say so?”
“They’ve sisters that face ruin, or fear of their own reputations,” Mrs. Ferguson said gently.
Jane shook her head with chagrin. “Of course. I suppose I am in a more privileged position, being a widow and not a maiden, and I certainly got lucky in my companions.”
“And in finding the brick,” Johnny said. “I’m sure you’d have found it without us, and done the deed yourself.”
“And you’re a countess,” Mrs. Ferguson said. “I daresay ye were born to it.”
“Not at all,” Jane said with a wry smile.
They remained at the dinner table for hours, for the fare was finer than Jane had expected, and so too was the house itself.
She began to feel silly for offering them her necklace, for it was clear that the kind family was far from wanting, and had offered her their kindness without the inducement of any reward.
It was half past eight when Richard arrived, still wearing the clothes she had last seen him in, looking haggard and imposing.
One of the servants showed him into the old Tudor house above the smithy; Jane, her servants, and the Fergusons were gathered in the parlor, after Mrs. Ferguson had refused Hannah’s offer to help clean up after the meal.
Richard stopped in surprise at the sight of Jane laughing with her hosts, wearing a borrowed gown, with her freshly washed hair in a simple braid.
Jane released Hannah’s hand, which she had clasped during her fit of giggles at some jest. She stood and crossed the room, and Richard wrapped his arms around her, nearly crushing her in his embrace.
“Thank God, you are safe. More than safe, it appears. We have been so worried, after such an ordeal.”
Jane nestled into his embrace, relishing the comfort of the man who had become a brother to her, as if he always had been. “I was frightened for a time, but it all came out well.”
“What happened?”
Jane bid him sit and introduced the Fergusons and her servants, and then Mrs. Ferguson called for tea and refreshments after inquiring what Richard liked best. “The baker, Mr. Murray, is sweet on my Fiona, and he’s always givin’ her so many confections she’ll grow fat as me by Christmas!”
Ere long, Richard was devoting a plate of buttered muffins, candied pears, and a chunk of cheese.
Mr. Ferguson shared a mug of cider with him, and bid him sit in the finest chair by the fire as Jane recounted the events of her abduction.
Despite his exhaustion, Richard listened intently, interjecting every proper reaction of dismay.
When Jane told of how they had overpowered the captain, he applauded their efforts.
It was then her turn to listen as Richard told her of the ghastly scene at Matlock when they extracted a confession from Mrs. Bennet, and how they subsequently scrambled to form a plan to rescue her. “It appears you have rescued yourself,” he said, beaming with pride.
When Elizabeth arrived with Mr. Darcy, the Gardiners, and Lady Susan, Jane was obligated to repeat her tale a third time, and gave a more abbreviated account, though Hannah could not resist some little triumphant embellishments.
They were all wickedly pleased with the chamber pot spilling all over the captain, and their would-be rescuers enjoyed hearing of it, too.
Jane embraced her relations repeatedly, tears of joy streaming down her face as they chatted with the Fergusons, whom they all thanked most warmly.
“I’ve seen my share of stolen brides and ladies with last minute doubts, but the countess is one I’ll never forget; she showed up here bold as anything,” Mr. Ferguson said.
Elizabeth looked at Jane with pride, and Lady Susan grinned at her. “You have been a countess, I see.” Jane threw her arms around the woman.
They began to talk of what must happen next, for Mrs. Ferguson informed them that at this time of year the inns ran short of rooms. “We’re thinkin’ of building one ourselves, right next to the smithy.
As it is now, we’ve but one spare room here in the house, though I suppose my girls could share, and young Duncan can bring a cot down to watch over the captain and the coachman.
We could at least accommodate the Gardiners and the ladies. ”
“Oh, no, we cannot be such an imposition,” Jane cried.
“Ye have been a delight, my dear,” Mrs. Ferguson said, patting Jane’s cheek.
“Take Fiona’s room, she’ll stay with Catroina.
And ye’ll be wantin’ your own sister, the lass with the dagger.
Lady Susan can take Duncan’s room, and of course the Gardiners will have the guest chamber.
I know just who ye are, I do, and it’s an honor to have ye in my home. ”
“Indeed, now I do feel as if I’ve met the King and Queen,” Mr. Ferguson agreed.
Mrs. Ferguson looked over at the servants. “Miss Hannah here, and Johnny Brick, you’re welcome to lie down on the sofas, so long as ye do no more than sleepin’, mind ye.”
“My estate is but another twenty miles, and I am rested enough,” Mr. Darcy said. “Blaeloch Manor has been closed for many years, but I can manage without servants for a day, if my aunt brings the staff from Matlock.”
“We can help, since Mrs. Ferguson won’t make use of us,” Hannah said meekly, tugging at Johnny’s hand. “If her ladyship means to go to your manor, sir, we ought to help make it ready for her.”
Jane smiled at the girl who had more than proven her worth already. She gave Mr. Darcy an encouraging nod, and he accepted. “Richard, will you come along?”
Richard glanced at Lady Susan, who looked rather willing to share her bed with him, and he seemed just as eager.
“I am more exhausted than I have ever been in my life, Darcy. I shall stay here and make good use of the, ah, sofa…. By the by, Mr. Ferguson, we shall have a different marriage for you to perform in a few days’ time. ”
Jane followed his gaze to Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy, who had scarcely let go of one another’s hand since they arrived. She grinned. “Lizzy, really?”
Elizabeth nodded with a bright smile. “Mamma and Mr. Bingley intend to put it about the area at home that we always meant to marry, and have travelled as a family to Scotland to celebrate together, everything perfectly respectable.”
“Well, Mr. Darcy has already instead on payin’ me so handsomely, I could perform twenty weddings for ye,” Mr. Ferguson said merrily.
“Perhaps there may be a second,” Richard said, giving Lady Susan a significant look. “I am so exhausted that if I get on one knee, I should never arise, but….”
“In lieu of a proper proposal, I shall be satisfied with a wedding trip of my own fancy,” Lady Susan replied, taking Richard’s hand.
Jane felt a wave of euphoria at the happy outcome she could never have imagined when she was tied up and tossed into the carriage a mere twenty-four hours prior. She approached her brother and took off the wedding ring she still wore out of habit. “This was your grandmother’s, I believe.”
Richard accepted it with a smile. “Dare I suppose you are ready to wear a different ring?”
“Oh! Where is Mr. Bingley?”
“I imagine they are about twelve hours behind us, if they drive straight through. I do not think they will, traveling with children, so I should expect them late afternoon tomorrow,” Richard said.
“I am charged with telling you that Mr. Bingley was instrumental in organizing the chaos after your disappearance, and means to pay particular attention to your son on the journey north.”
“I left word in Preston at one of the inns, reserving half a dozen rooms for them,” Sir Edward added. “They know that we are headed for Dumfries, but they may look for you here in Gretna Green.”
This left only the matter of the prisoners tied up downstairs to be settled, but the gentlemen agreed that it could wait until the morrow, so long as the captives were guarded.