Chapter 5
Walking to the parsonage was agonizing. Each step jolted his injured arm, but even so, Darcy noticed Elizabeth’s pallor increasing. It was hardly surprising, given her lack of sleep since her disappearance, but he was still concerned.
At the parsonage, Elizabeth was greeted with embraces and exclamations of relief by Mrs. Collins and a fashionably dressed man of middle years whom Elizabeth called uncle. They immediately began peppering her with questions which seemed only to confuse her.
Darcy managed to catch Mrs. Collins’s eye. “Miss Elizabeth has not slept since leaving here.”
“You poor thing!” exclaimed Mrs. Collins. “Come, I will take you up to bed this minute before you make yourself ill.” She hustled Elizabeth upstairs.
The unknown man said, “You must be Mr. Darcy. Pray permit me to introduce myself. I am Edward Gardiner, Lizzy’s uncle.”
Thankfully he had not held out his hand for a handshake. The pain of that would be unimaginable. Perhaps when Mrs. Collins returned, he could ask her privately for something to bind his arm for the trip to Rosings. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Gardiner.”
“So you and Lizzy were in Faerie all this time,” said Mr. Gardiner.
“I realize it must sound like a ridiculous story, but it happens to be true.” Darcy tried to keep his temper in check. Naturally the man had doubts. Any sane man would doubt his story .
“That was not an accusation, young man. I believe you. In fact, I would have a great deal of trouble believing any other story.”
“You believe me? Why?”
“Let me see. Lizzy disappears utterly. Two days later you also disappear. You return here the following day, and Lizzy is carrying a fresh apple in April. Faerie is the only explanation.”
The following day? He must have been walking in the glamour woods for a very long time indeed. Richard would be frantic. “You seem to take that remarkably calmly.”
“The idea of Faerie does not frighten me. For all that my mother appeared fully human, her father was fay, so you might say I imbibed Faerie with my mother’s milk.” Mr. Gardiner smiled self-deprecatingly at his little joke.
“You have fay blood? Does that mean Miss Elizabeth does as well?” Why had she never told him? It would have helped him understand a great deal.
“Some, yes. It shows differently in different people. You could see the fay in Lizzy’s mother when she was younger, when she was much like Lizzy is now. My other sister, who is now Mrs. Phillips, seemed to have no fay in her at all. I am somewhere in between – human in essentially every way except for an inexplicable talent for magical healing.”
It stung to be hearing this from her uncle. “Miss Elizabeth did not mention this to me.”
“After a journey together through Faerie? I am surprised.” He frowned suddenly. “Or perhaps I am not. It is possible she does not know. Mr. Bennet does not permit discussion of anything related to the fay at Longbourn.”
“Yet he married a woman with fay blood.”
“He did not always hate the fay. That came later. His wife was fascinated with Faerie, spending much of her time there, but something changed. She became a different person. Silly, shallow, and completely uninterested in anything about the fay. Bennet denied having done anything, but I have my own theories.”
Darcy drew in a sharp breath. “You think he put a spell on her?”
“I am not a mage, and I do not understand these matters. It may be better that way for the sake of family harmony. She had just lost her firstborn child, a son who did not live, and he attributed the change in her to that.”
At least a spell would explain how a ridiculous woman like Mrs. Bennet could have two such clever, well-bred daughters. But Mr. Gardiner must be correct that Elizabeth was unaware of her heritage. If she had known her mother was under a binding spell, she would not have the same affection for her father. “Mr. Bennet will not be pleased by the news that Miss Elizabeth visited Faerie, then. That is why you are telling me this, is it not?”
Mr. Gardiner’s eyes twinkled. “I am not in the habit of revealing my family history to strangers.”
This was too much for Darcy’s exhausted brain and throbbing arm. “Miss Elizabeth’s greatest fear is that a mage will put her under a binding spell. If she discovers her father put one on her mother, she will be furious at him. If she tells him about her journey to Faerie...” He sucked in a deep gulp of air. “He would not put a binding on her, would he?”
Mr. Gardiner pursed his lips. “I think not. Lizzy is not as wild as her mother was. But I cannot be absolutely certain.”
“If Miss Elizabeth were ever to undergo a change in behavior, I hope you would contact me. I can discover if she is spellbound and, if necessary, have someone remove the spell.”
“It relieves my mind to know the spell can be reversed. I have often wondered about that.”
“Do you plan to tell her about her heritage now?” She would not be happy to discover Darcy had known it first .
Mr. Gardiner grimaced. “I think I must, though perhaps not the part about her mother.”
“Good. She and I are to meet with a Sidhe lord on Beltane. Good God, I do not even know what day today is!”
“Not to worry, you have five days still. But a Sidhe lord! This is a story I must hear, but perhaps after you rest. Your eyes are glassy.”
Darcy nodded, too tired to argue.
“As I mentioned, I do have some small skill in healing,” Mr. Gardiner said conversationally. “If someone had, for example, a broken arm, I could speed the healing process and reduce the pain. A Collegium-trained healing mage would no doubt do better, but there is not one here.”
“How did you know?” Darcy asked. “Never mind. I do not care how you know. I would be very appreciative of any assistance you can give.” He did not have time for a broken arm, not with Beltane only five days off. He gingerly moved his arm out from his side.
Mr. Gardiner slid his chair closer and ran his hand along Darcy’s forearm. Astonishingly, his touch did not hurt. “The bone is still in place. That is good.” Holding Darcy’s wrist in one hand, he laid the other over the throbbing spot in his arm and closed his eyes. After a moment he began to hum softly.
Darcy watched him, but his lips never moved. No spoken spell, the same as Elizabeth. But Elizabeth had been right. He would have hated it if her uncle had tried to heal his arm without asking him first. It did not matter that he needed the help. Elizabeth would be pleased to know he understood now.
The throbbing in his arm was diminishing as Mr. Gardiner worked his magic. Darcy leaned his head back and closed his eyes.
“DARCY, WAKE UP! YOU can sleep after you tell me where the devil you have been.” It was Richard’s voice, and he did not sound pleased.
Darcy opened his eyes. Where was he? He must have fallen asleep in the chair. “I...what?”
Mrs. Collins said, “Apparently the pain was the only thing keeping him awake. Once Mr. Gardiner healed his arm, he went straight to sleep. It should hardly be a surprise; Lizzy lay down on her bed fully clothed and fell asleep midsentence.”
Darcy attempted to pull his scattered thoughts together. “Richard, I have been in Faerie, as you must have guessed. It went well in that both of us are still alive, and poorly in that we discovered the fay are determined to make humans suffer for breaking a thousand-year-old agreement none of us remember having made.”
“Good God! But how did you travel there?”
Darcy had thought ahead to this question. “I found a stone sitting in the faerie ring and recognized it as belonging to Miss Elizabeth. I picked it up to keep it safe for her and it sent me to Faerie. Perhaps it is a gateway of some sort.” Now he had kept his word to Elizabeth and prevented anyone from suspecting Pepper was anything but an ordinary cat.
“Did you return the same way?” Richard demanded.
“No. We stepped inside a silver filigree gazebo.”
“Not a faerie ring? How did you know to go there?”
“We did not know. A Sidhe lord ordered us to go into it, and he is not a man – pardon me, a fay – with whom you would care to argue.”
Richard threw his hands in the air. “A Sidhe? Everyone knows the Sidhe are a myth.”
“I beg to differ.” Darcy yawned. “I understand your curiosity, but could the interrogation wait until I have slept?”
“OH!” ELIZABETH STOPPED in surprise. What was Mr. Darcy doing in the parsonage breakfast room so soon after sunrise? Her insides felt suddenly warm. He had been the first thought that came to her mind when she awoke, remembering the feeling of his arms around her as they rode Pepper and her decision to share a cup with him. Did he understand the significance of that? And why was his arm in a sling?
“Good morning, Miss Elizabeth,” he said gravely. “I hope you slept well.”
“Monstrously well. I cannot believe I slept through the day and all night!” She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks.
“As did I. Mrs. Collins offered me the use of her spare room when it became clear I was in no condition to return to Rosings Park.”
She hesitated. “What happened to your arm?”
He grimaced. “A slight injury on our return from Faerie.”
“A slight injury.” She put her fingertip to her lips. “Would that mean a slightly sprained or a slightly broken arm?”
His lips twitched. “Slightly broken, but nothing to worry over. Your uncle helped me with it, and I am much more comfortable now.”
How could Mr. Gardiner have helped him? Perhaps he had made the sling. “I am glad of it.” She was far too aware of him, so instead of meeting his eyes, she studied the sheet of paper in front of him. It appeared to have hen scratches all over it. “What is that?”
Darcy sighed. “I thought to set down as much as I could recall of our conversation with the Sidhe lord while it was fresh in my mind, but my penmanship with my left hand leaves a great deal to be desired. Legibility, for one thing.”
She could not help smiling. “Perhaps it would help if we pooled our recollections. I would be happy to do the writing.”
“I will accept that offer since my efforts are an unpleasant sight.” He pushed the paper and the inkwell in her direction .
The task allowed them to pass the time in relative harmony, though whenever she stole a glance at Darcy, she found him watching her with an intent look. Was she destined to blush every minute she was in his presence?
Mr. Gardiner joined them a short time later. He asked after their health, and then said, “Lizzy, I thought at first to leave yesterday as soon as I knew you were safe, but after speaking to Mr. Darcy, I decided it would be better to wait until I could talk to you. There is a matter your father has strongly discouraged me from discussing with you, but I believe it may be important for you to know about it now, if you have not already been told. Are you aware that my mother was half mortal, half fay?”
“Not Grandmama?” she asked sharply. She had only vague memories of a warm, white-haired, completely mortal woman.
“Yes.”
It made no sense. “But that would mean my mother has fay blood, and so do I.”
“Exactly so.” Her uncle seemed to be waiting for something.
Elizabeth looked down at her hands. Hands with fay blood. “Well, I suppose that explains my fay friend. Why was I never told?” But something niggled at the back of her memory. Had she once known she was part fay?
“As you are no doubt aware, your father has a strong distaste for anything related to the fay. Most likely he wished you were entirely human. In truth, it is hardly a major matter that one of your eight great-grandparents was fay when the other seven were mortal, but I wanted you to be aware of it so you would take care in speaking to your father of your adventures in Faerie. He will not be pleased to learn of them.”
Elizabeth bit her lip. “I learned long ago not to speak to him about the fay, though I do not know if I can disguise this. I wonder why my mother never said anything. Did she keep her fay blood a secret from him until they were married?” Was that why her father had such scorn for her mother?
“No, he was aware of it, and it seemed to amuse him when he was courting her. His dislike of fay did not develop until later.”
So much of what she had believed about her family, even her sense that her magic came from her father, all that was turned upside down. And her father had hidden the truth from her. But she must not let her disturbance of mind show, especially not in front of Mr. Darcy. She had shown him enough of her weaknesses already, so she said lightly, “This last week has been full of one shock after another. I had so hoped for a few hours without a surprise, but it seems I was too optimistic. Perhaps I should limit my hopes to, say, no more than a quarter hour without a shock.” There, she had responded calmly. She put her hands in her lap so her uncle could not see how they were trembling.
Mr. Gardiner looked relieved, but Mr. Darcy did not. His shoulders were tense and he was staring down at the table, his bottom lip caught in his teeth. Was he embarrassed by this news of her fay heritage? Did it horrify him that he had proposed to a woman who was not even fully human?
That made no sense. He had shown no disdain for fay folk. Then she recognized his look. It was the one he had worn in the days after his aunt’s injury, when he was aware his uncle was coming and had not told her.
“What is it?” she asked sharply. “What are you keeping from me?”
He looked up, and the pain in his eyes told her she was not mistaken. Still, he said nothing.
She turned back to her uncle. “Mr. Darcy is a poor liar. Do you know what he is trying to conceal from me?”
Her uncle removed his spectacles. “It is a matter of conjecture, nothing more,” he said slowly.
Darcy held up a hand to stop him. “Permit me to tell her. If she is going to hate the bearer of this news, better it be me than you.” He took a deep breath. “Your uncle says your mother was once very different, witty and clever, proud of her fay heritage, and a frequent visitor to Faerie. Your father thought it was too much. One day she changed, never mentioned the fay again, and became the person she is today.” He paused, his brow furled. “I am so very sorry.”
For a minute she was perplexed, unable to understand why he was so distressed. Then her stomach lurched. “He put a binding spell on her?” It came out as a whisper.
He glanced at Mr. Gardiner. “There is no proof. Your father claims he did nothing.”
Mr. Gardiner said, “It was around the time she had a son who died at birth, the year before Jane was born. Your father attributed the change in her to that. He was not the same either, but it was not as drastic a change. He just became more bitter and sardonic, especially towards your mother.”
She shook her head slowly, not even knowing what she was denying. Her mother, whom she had always looked down on as unintelligent and silly, was spellbound. Her beloved, trusted father had done it, and nothing could ever be right again. Ever.
Darcy’s warm hand settled on her wrist. “If you wish it, I will arrange for Richard to meet your mother. He will be able to tell you for certain, one way or another.”
She nodded jerkily. “But why could I not tell? I was able to feel the spell on Miss de Bourgh.”
“Would not any such spell simply have felt like part of her? After all, she was under it when you were born, and children do not question why their parents are the way they are.”
“I suppose so.” Blinking back tears, she pressed the back of her free hand against her mouth. “Now I pray you to speak of something else.” Otherwise she might start sobbing then and there. A quarter hour without a shock had been too much to hope for .
After a brief silence, Darcy asked, “Mr. Gardiner, what are your plans for the day?”
“I plan to stay for breakfast and will head back to London after that.”
“Would you perhaps consider staying a little longer? I must discuss with my cousin the question of our further meetings with the Sidhe lord, and I would appreciate your perspective, both as a non-mage and someone with some knowledge of the fay. I hope Miss Elizabeth will take part as well, if she is willing.”
“Why, if you would like it, I would be most interested to take part in that discussion,” said Mr. Gardiner. “I can delay my return without any difficulty.”
It was too much. Elizabeth put her head in her hands. “Five minutes,” she said plaintively. “Is five shock-free minutes really too much to ask?” At least this shock did not make her want to curl up in the corner and sob.
With a puzzled look, Darcy asked Mr. Gardiner quietly, “Did I say something I should not have?”
Elizabeth gave a humorless laugh. “This is my uncle, the one in trade, who lives in Cheapside on Gracechurch Street, for heaven’s sake, and you just told him you want his opinion. You are not the Mr. Darcy I met in Meryton.” And the more she came to know him, the more he confused her.
“Perhaps not,” said Darcy, “but this Darcy has only recently come to realize the depth of his own ignorance on certain subjects and will accept wisdom wherever it can be found.”
She swallowed hard. That was the Darcy she found altogether too attractive. “As I said, shocking. Would you be so kind as to ask the maid to bring me breakfast in my room? I feel the need for some quiet reflection.”
“Of course.” Mr. Gardiner cleared his throat and added hesitantly, “Before you go, Mr. Darcy tells me you have a fear of being spellbound, but I think it is unlikely your father would attempt that with you. Your situation is different from your mother’s.”
Darcy touched her wrist again, sending a bit of his warmth into her. “I also asked Mr. Gardiner to inform me if he ever notices a change in you. I will make certain you are freed, whether it is tomorrow or in twenty years. You have my word of honor on it.”
But even if she were freed, the very idea that her father would bind a woman, much less his own wife... It made her feel ill. “I thank you.” Her voice seemed high-pitched even to her own ears. “It is unlikely to occur as, given these circumstances, it is improbable that I will return to Longbourn. I do not know where I will go, but it will not be there.”
Her uncle’s eyes were full of pity. “You always have a home with us on Gracechurch Street. Your aunt and I would be very pleased to have you.”
“Thank you. Pray excuse me.” She fled the room.
DARCY PUT DOWN THE pages he had just read aloud to the assembled group. “That was our conversation with the Sidhe lord as Miss Elizabeth and I recall it. The question is what we should do next.” He looked at each of them in turn, careful not to let his gaze linger on Elizabeth. Her eyes were still red rimmed.
Richard tilted back his chair, balancing precariously on two of its legs. “You will meet him on Beltane, clearly.”
“We must have something to offer him,” Darcy said. “Some plan for how the groves could be protected, perhaps, but I am not empowered to make promises for any land but my own. He was very specific that it should be only the two of us, so even if I could convince someone from the government to take this seriously, I cannot bring them. ”
Mr. Gardiner stroked his chin. “Presumably he wishes to meet with you because he has more trust in a man he has met, but why did he insist on Lizzy’s presence as well? You told him you were a mage, so it makes sense he would think you had the ability to make changes, but why would he think Lizzy could? If we can understand his reasoning, perhaps we can understand him better.”
“Perhaps he sensed I had been influenced by fay, and that made me some sort of ally.” Elizabeth’s voice lacked its usual liveliness.
“Or perhaps that is how negotiations in Faerie are done, by both male and female fay,” said Richard. “Devil take it, we know nothing of them!”
Darcy cleared his throat. “Miss Elizabeth handled the discussion with the Sidhe lord better than I did. She spoke fluently and seemed comfortable when I was tongue-tied and my discomfort must have been apparent. If they felt Miss Elizabeth’s hunger, they must have known I was afraid.”
Richard raised his eyebrows. “Afraid, cousin?”
Darcy met his eyes. “Yes. I would have been a fool to feel otherwise. I was stranded in a strange world where the horizon curves up instead of down and trees magically appear out of nowhere, and then I entered an impossibly huge hall built of silver filigree to be faced with an angry immortal with cat’s eyes the color of emeralds, half a foot taller than me and a hundred times more powerful.”
Elizabeth’s brows drew together. “Hmm. You are correct about the horizon. It did not strike me at the time, perhaps because I had seen it before.”
Mr. Gardiner asked, “Lizzy, were you afraid of the Sidhe?”
“A little, I suppose,” she said slowly. “He was angry, and I did not know why, but I did not think he would harm me. He did not seem particularly odd to me.”
Mr. Gardiner nodded. “He may want Lizzy’s presence because he perceives her to be more accepting of him.”
Richard ran his finger along the arm of his chair. “Darcy,” he said slowly. “You may not like this, and I am certain Miss Bennet will not, but you ought to speak to my father. If there is any chance you will have to seek the cooperation either of Parliament or the Collegium, you will need his help.”
Darcy turned quickly to Elizabeth. “I could go alone. I see no reason for you to go to London to speak to him unless you wish to.”
The ghost of a smile crossed her face. “You will not be surprised to learn I would prefer to stay here.”
ELIZABETH PICKED UP a shift from the basket of torn clothes. She and Charlotte had made a dent in the pile of clothes to be mended and given to the poor, but it seemed a never-ending task. But it was far better than going to London to talk to Lord Matlock. She wondered how Darcy’s meeting was going.
Charlotte looked up at the sound of the front door. “Mr. Collins must be returning from Rosings already.” It was the first day he had been permitted to visit Lady Catherine, so they had expected him to be gone for hours.
She expected him to stop at the sitting room eventually to report on every detail of his visit, as was his habit. This time he appeared immediately, his face red with choler.
Charlotte jumped up immediately. “Why, husband, is something the matter?”
“Something the matter!” he spat out, pointing a shaking finger at Elizabeth. “That...that viper is the matter!”
Elizabeth’s stomach sank. “I am sorry if I have done anything to offend you.” But she knew what she had done, and there would be no avoiding paying the price this time.
“Witch!” he hissed. “I allowed you to stay against my better judgment after you disappeared for days, and this is how you repay me. Lady Catherine has told me of your sins and how you defiled her own person. You have deceived and dishonored me, and you will leave this house this very minute!”
Charlotte’s mouth hung open.
Elizabeth had worried so much about being exposed by Mr. Darcy. How ironic that it should come at the hands of her foolish cousin instead! “Very well. I will pack my trunks.”
“This very minute! Lady Catherine has decreed it so. Your clothes will be burned. Out!”
Elizabeth stared at him in shock.
Charlotte said soothingly, “Husband, if what you say is true and Lizzy must leave, should we not set an example of doing so with Christian charity? She can leave the house now, and I will pack her trunks and take them to the posting inn.”
“She is fortunate I am allowing her to leave with her life!” Mr. Collins shouted. “She must leave this minute with nothing but the clothes she is wearing, or Lady Catherine will never see us again!” Fear showed in his eyes.
So that was the reason for this uncharacteristic behavior. She could well believe Lady Catherine would not be above such cruelty. “Charlotte, my money is in a reticule in the vanity drawer. Would you bring it to me?”
“Certainly.” Charlotte took a step towards the door.