Chapter Eighteen #2
“A celebration sounds like a lovely idea,” said William. “After we have our carriage ride, I should like to take the two of you to Gunter’s for ices and creams.”
“Mama!” Anna said with excitement. “My favourite cream is strawberry! Will you have strawberry with me?”
“Yes, I will. Strawberry is quite delicious.”
“Now, little one,” William interjected, “I would like you to let Miss Hannah help you dress and send for a tray. Mama and I have some letters to write this morning, and Mama wishes to meet our servants. As soon as she is able, Mama will come and get you for your tea party.”
“Yes, Papa.”
“Hannah,” Elizabeth added, “I would like Anna to wear something very pretty today. One of her pink dresses would be quite lovely, and perhaps she can choose some matching pink and green ribbons for her hair.”
“Yes, ma’am. I know just the dress. It was recently sent over by Lady Eleanor while Miss Anna was in Kent. She has yet to see it.”
“Did you hear that, Anna? A new dress from your Aunt Eleanor! And after we have our tea party, we can practice our music and sing for Papa later this evening after dinner.”
“Papa, Mama taught me a lullaby when we were at Rosings Park, and we sang it together every night before we went to bed.”
“A lullaby! I shall look forward to hearing both of you sing it.”
“Thank you, Papa. Ar Hyd y Nos is a song about the angels watching over us while we sleep.”
“Ar Hyd y Nos,” William repeated the words and smiled at his daughter for having pronounced them so clearly. “My, I have not heard that song in a very long time.”
“William, you will be pleased. I taught Anna All through the night and as you heard, she was very diligent in learning some of the Welsh words.”
“Her pronunciation is excellent, Elizabeth, and I look forward to hearing the two of you sing. It will warm my heart to end our celebration with music.”
“Then we shall make it so, shall we not, Anna?”
“Yes, Mama.”
“Anna, now Papa and I must go,” Elizabeth said giving Anna a kiss and a hug. “Be sure to have Dolly and Janie ready for our tea party.”
“We will be ready, Mama.”
“Hannah, if you need me, I shall be in my sitting room working on my correspondence once Mr. Darcy and I break our fast and I have met the servants.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
After William said a few more parting endearments to Anna, the couple reluctantly took their leave. Though they both knew Anna would be well-taken care of by Hannah, the suffering that their child had endured was not easily dismissed, as was evident by her dream.
Walking through the hallway, William tightly held Elizabeth’s hand and pulled her close on entering the bed chamber. “Elizabeth,” he said, “may we sit and talk a bit before we go about our day?”
“Of course, my love.” Seeing the anguish on his face, she reached up and caressed his cheek. “She will be well, William. Anna has both of us to comfort her. She is very young, and soon the horror of those terrifying memories will pass.”
Sitting on the bed, William took both of Elizabeth’s hands in his.
“Elizabeth, I hate the thought of what you and Anna and Georgiana endured because of Wickham. The three of you were put in danger, and it disturbs me that there was nothing I could do to stop that man. I know we have spoken of this before, but if only I had paid….”
“No, William.” She held his face in her hands and proceeded to kiss him. “You will not accept the blame for what happened to the three of us, nor will I allow you to feel guilty for what is long past. You could not anticipate Mr. Wickham’s misdeeds. No one could.
“Right now it is all so fresh in our minds, and that is what makes it difficult. Anna will have a good start today with our little celebration, and each day she will improve. In truth, I fear it will be far harder for Georgiana after what you told me she witnessed at the inn. At present, she has no one to comfort her at Rosings Park. Yet, like Anna, she will have us to help her through any further suffering she may experience, and she will mend.”
He nodded, “Thank you for reminding me.” He kissed her hand and brought it close to his breast. “My love, you have said very little about your own experience. Are you not equally shaken by what happened?”
“I admit I was afraid, but it did not signify, for I had Anna to protect. I had to keep her safe, and I had to be alert in the event I might find some means for us to escape. Mercifully, when Anna and I were at that despicable boarding house, we saw very little of Mr. Wickham. It was only just before we were taken from the house that he came by and threatened us if we did not cooperate.”
“Threats?!” his voice suddenly became strained with alarm and his scowl clearly showed he was not pleased. “What threats? Did he hurt you?” He momentarily studied her face. “I saw the cut on your neck. Did HE do that?”
Her hand flew to the place where Wickham had cut her with the knife and involuntarily bit her lip. “He did, it is true. But, William, ‘tis nothing.”
He pushed her fingers to the side and gingerly touched the long thin scab before kissing her injury. “It is something to me, Elizabeth,” he murmured. “He could have killed you if he wanted to, just as he did Mrs. Younge.”
“Yes, but, he did not. His desire for your money was far greater. Dear William, please, please, do not despair. I am here, safe with you.”
“Oh, my darling,” he said crushing her to his chest. “I love you so. Forgive me, I cannot help but worry over what might have been. Any one of you might have been taken from me.”
“I know, and I love you all the more for your care.” Again they kissed.
Tenderly caressing her face he said, “Elizabeth, tell me, how is it that you knew how to swim? Without your help I might not have been able to save our daughter.”
“Because of the stream which runs along our property, Papa insisted that all of his daughters learn how to swim. I was always glad of it, but never more so than last night. William, God has protected us in more ways than we might possibly imagine. With His help, we shall all move past this travesty and claim happiness for our family. I know it.”
“Yes, my love, we shall, we must.”
Matlock House
Late Morning
The Study
“Darcy, come in,” Lord Gregory said. Both he and Richard had been waiting for William to arrive. “Please, have a seat.”
Although it was not yet noon, His Lordship poured each man a short glass of brandy. With all that had happened in the past few days, he had elected not to go into Parliament until the end of the week since he had no committee work to attend to at present.
“Nephew, I trust you are well?”
“I am better now that I have my wife and daughter back.”
“Good, good. It is hard to believe what you have endured. The sooner we get this sorry business with Wickham behind us, the better. I hope it will not be long.”
“Darcy,” Richard interjected, “Wickham has not regained consciousness, nor is he expected to, according to the doctor who attended him. At present, he is sustaining a high fever and although he was stitched up, the wound is quite inflamed and will no doubt fester before too long. As for the other two men, they deny having any knowledge of what Wickham had planned and insist they were simply paid workers. Obviously, that is not the truth since they had weapons and put up a good fight. Bowden also tells me that the woman who assisted Wickham at the boarding house conveniently disappeared by the time our men arrived. Apparently she was a cousin of Mrs. Younge. Should Wickham perish, Father’s inclination is to have his two associates transported rather than drag our family through a public trial. ”
William raked his hand through his hair and shook his head in disgust. “So you mean to tell me there may be no retribution for that reprobate and very little for his accomplices? Not that I want our names disparaged any more than you do. Even so, Wickham killed Mrs. Younge. He drugged and took Georgiana against her will, nearly killing her, too. Then he kidnapped my wife and daughter, imprisoning them in the vilest of establishments with the intent of blackmail. Not to mention, my daughter nearly drowned at the docks; Elizabeth and I were barely able to save her in time! Unbelievable!”
“After all that has happened, it does seem unjust,” Richard added. “I, for one, would have enjoyed kicking his sorry arse from here to the gallows. Nevertheless, the doctor said the next twenty-four hours would be critical, though he was not hopeful.”
“I understand.” William paused for a moment then said, “Richard, I do not know how I would have managed without your help and that of your men. I am greatly indebted to you and everything you did to help my family and I have brought a monetary reward to compensate the men for their efforts.”
“Thank you, Cousin,” Richard said taking the money pouch from William.
My men will appreciate your generosity. We all worked together: Gardiner, his contacts, the girl and her mother from the boarding house, my men; everyone was indispensable.
Let us be grateful that nothing worse happened.
Mrs. Darcy and Anna are alive and back under your protection and Georgiana survived her injury and will soon be home. ”
“I thank God for that, and believe me, words will never be enough to convey my gratitude.”
“Cousin, I know you have not had a lot of time since yesterday, but have you made any arrangements for your sister’s return?” Richard asked.
“I was hoping either you or Uncle might go to Rosings Park and retrieve her and the maids. I do not care to leave Elizabeth and Anna just yet.
“It would be best if I went,” Richard offered.
“I can leave as early as first light for Rosings Park, providing we have decent weather. Assuming she feels well enough to travel, I should have our girl back at Darcy House late tomorrow afternoon, just in time for dinner. As for Wickham and his men, I have given my statements and have done what I could on that end for now. With Father’s influence, he is by far the best person to oversee that situation in our stead. ”
“Of course. Thank you, Uncle. I also wanted to say how much I appreciate your support with regard to Lady Catherine. Aunt Eleanor told me some of it when she attended my wedding.”
“You owe me nothing, Nephew. Catherine is my sister, and I accept responsibility for her. She is a stubborn woman who at this point would prefer to give up her home and live in Town rather than acknowledge your marriage. Even so, it is my fervent hope she will change her mind over time.”
“My wishes are the same, though it is unlikely she will ever acquiesce. Uncle, I realise you were not pleased with the way my marriage came about, but I tell you, I would have no other woman for my wife. Elizabeth is everything I have ever dreamed of. What is more, she is no wilting flower. She is an intelligent, self-assured woman and did everything within her power to protect Anna from that madman when they were captives.”
“Then it appears you are a fortunate man, Nephew. Despite my previous objections, your Aunt and I look forward to properly receiving Mrs. Darcy once things have settled down a bit.” He momentarily chuckled.
“I dare say, for Eleanor the wait may not be long. She will waste no time in resuming her plans to host a ball in honour of your marriage and will most likely call on your wife in the next day or two.”
“I will convey your message. Elizabeth deserves to be publicly recognised by our family in this community if she is to succeed and I will do whatever it takes to support her in this.”
“Your aunt will be pleased to hear it.”
Extending his hand to Richard and the Earl, William said his goodbyes and promptly left Matlock House. Thus far it had been a long day, but soon he would be home with Elizabeth and Anna where he would put all of this aside and happily give them his undivided attention.