Chapter 9
The Lane from Netherfield Park to Meryton
“I believe we chose a perfect afternoon to walk into Meryton. Charlotte and I have been planning this for weeks, and I am—”
Of a sudden, Miss Darcy was pale and trembling. She stopped walking and clutched Elizabeth’s hand.
“Miss Darcy, are you well?” Elizabeth asked in a hushed voice but received no answer. “Come, we will go to our aunt’s house. Her name is Mrs. Philips, and she and my uncle live just a few houses down the street.”
Jane, Charlotte, and Mary followed. Jane introduced their aunt to Miss Darcy’s acquaintance, and Elizabeth sent one of the footmen following them, at Mr. Darcy’s direction, back to Netherfield to request the carriage.
“Aunt, is there lemonade in the kitchen?” Mary asked, taking her aunt’s arm.
“There is tea. Oh, she does look pale. She must have had a fright on the street. Was it the smithy? He is to pull teeth today. Never a pleasant thing. I will get tea and those ginger biscuits I prefer when I have a megrim.” Mrs. Philips rushed away to the housekeeper and the kitchen.
“I do not think that was the cause, Lizzy,” Jane whispered.
“Do tell us what has happened, Miss Darcy. We must know the cause for your upset to determine how we might help,” Elizabeth said, sitting closest to Miss Darcy, who had yet to relinquish her hand.
“I will divert our aunt for a time.” Mary regained her seat when Miss Darcy denied the necessity.
“You need not tell us if it is of a confidential nature, Miss Darcy,” Charlotte said.
With the window open, they could hear a soldier from the regiment encamped near Meryton speaking to their friend Miss King.
She was the one young lady of the area who could claim to be an heiress with a ten-thousand-pound bequest. They were on the walkway in front of the houses.
When Elizabeth started to close the window, Miss Darcy halted her with another slice of her hand.
“His words of devotion and undying affection are so patently false, Miss King is sure to set him down,” Charlotte whispered.
“She will send him on his way in another moment,” Elizabeth said in complete agreement with her friend.
“Oh, Aunt, I just had a wonderful thought. Let me add some cinnamon to your tea. It will be perfect in this blend with the apple pieces,” Mary said, leading their aunt away when she had returned. “The one I am blending now with Miss Darcy has orange blossom and hibiscus. We will bring—”
Their aunt thanked Mary, their voices fading as they walked toward the kitchen.
Mary King's voice came through the window. “But to elope, George? We can wait just three weeks, then wed the day after the banns are read. It would be cruel to deny my aunt the chance to host a wedding breakfast.”
“Elope?” Jane mouthed. Elizabeth and Charlotte sat staring at one another in horror. Their focus shifted when Miss Darcy doubled over and started to wretch into her hand.
“An elopement assures no other might steal you from me, for you are too beautiful to describe,” the man said.
At this, Georgiana shot up. Jane grabbed a bowl so the poor girl could empty her stomach. Elizabeth rubbed Miss Darcy’s back in slow strokes, soothing her with hushed words and drying the inevitable tears that come when one is distraught.
“Some tea,” Mary said as she and Aunt Philips entered the parlor. As their aunt poured tea, Mary handed Miss Darcy a cool cloth.
“Aunt, we thank you. The sight of blood can be quite distressing. I, too, forgot it was the day of the month that the smithy attends to people’s teeth,” said Mary.
“Oh, a horrible sight. I was far worse than your young friend the first time I saw it. I am sure I fainted dead away and that I needed my salts to rouse me,” Mrs. Philips said, shaking her head with grave understanding.
“The Darcy coach comes, Lizzy,” Jane whispered. “Mary and I will walk home after we have tea with our aunt.”
Elizabeth and Charlotte surrounded Miss Darcy as they rushed to climb into the carriage.
They were shocked when the soldier, who was speaking with Miss King, stared at the coach with surprise, fear, and then anger.
It shocked them all the more when he followed the coach down the street and hailed Miss Darcy, and within, Miss Darcy begged for the coachman to depart all the faster.
“Please, I beg of you, do not mention that man to my brother. He has betrayed William so many times that an encounter between them could be dangerous. He”—Miss Darcy spat out the word—“is afraid of none but my cousin Richard, for he is Colonel Fitzwilliam. I will send him an express the moment I am returned to Netherfield.”
“Did he hurt you?” Elizabeth demanded, ready to take up a defense.
“Please. He is so dangerous that I fear for my brother's safety if they were to encounter one another. The man gambles. He seduces young girls by promising marriage, then abandons them. He wants either her virtue or her money. A lady means nothing to him without one or the other. All the better if she has both. The one he was speaking to must be warned,” Miss Darcy said in pleading earnestness.
“I am uneasy with the suggestion not to tell your brother,” Charlotte stated.
“Allow me to send Richard word of our needing him in Hertfordshire, I beg you. I cannot lose my brother. He is the last in the Darcy line and the only family I have left at Pemberley,” Miss Darcy said, dabbing at her tears with a linen square.
“Send your express. You will stay within Netherfield Park until he arrives, or your brother is told. If there is no reply from your cousin for two days, I feel obligated to tell your brother. I prefer he is on his guard, and I know he will want to be aware of what worries you,” Elizabeth said, glancing at Charlotte to see they were equally concerned for both Darcys.
“But he will challenge George Wickham and may be hurt or…or worse. My brother is an upstanding gentleman. That man is a liar, a gamester, and is a cruel man who cares for none beyond himself,” Miss Darcy pleaded.
“Mr. Darcy is our friend. We would not want him to come to harm. I also know his well-being depends on your safety. If this man is a threat, I prefer him to be aware of the danger. I will not stand by if it is possible to avoid something unpleasant by informing him of this man’s presence,” Elizabeth said, uneasy with the thought of keeping this from him if Miss Darcy was this upset by the man’s appearance.
“Town is a short four-hour ride, so we will wait sixteen hours, Miss Darcy. If your cousin is there, as you believe, he can arrive by then,” Charlotte said, reaching out to take the younger lady’s free hand.
“Elizabeth is correct to want to tell your brother. So, we will compromise. We will say we heard in Meryton words spoken by one of the soldiers that upset you, words which upset us all. That we intend to inform our fathers, and, until the man is dealt with, we will visit you here, but none of us will go into Meryton.”
“I sometimes forget how logical you are, Charlotte. Does that suit, Miss Darcy?”
“Thank you, yes. He is warned of the situation, but not who upset me. Thank you,” Miss Darcy said, squeezing both hands she held in relief.
“If the gentleman is so dangerous, I agree it is prudent to wait for the colonel before Mr. Darcy confronts him. I pray your cousin is all you claim him to be. I have never met such a man, but if he is, he must certainly be an incredible sight to behold,” Charlotte said, looking out the window to make certain the man they fled had not followed them beyond High Street.