Decisions
Chapter 13
True to her word, Elizabeth continued to keep her distance from Wickham as much as she could, a fact that did not escape Wickham’s notice and annoyed him to no end. The chit was supposed to swoon into his arms when he told her of his tragic misfortunes. Instead, since a few days she was now barely speaking to him. Determined to have her, he decided that it was time to take a different approach.
“Ah, Miss Elizabeth” Wickham accosted her as she was passing him.
“Lt. Wickham” Elizabeth replied coldly. “I trust that you are in no great discomfort.”
“Much greater than you would think and I am sure that only a kiss would lessen it” he smiled at her seductively.
“Then you shall have to bear it unless your horse might be prevailed upon relieving you” she said tartly, out of patience with the coward whom she now saw for the real cad he really was.
“I am sure that a much more appealing arrangement can be made” he grabbed her arm, as he had risen from his cot, forcefully pulling her to him, surreptitiously looking around and satisfied that those closest to them were sleeping, heavily sedated with laudanum.
“Unhand me sir this instant or I shall break your arm so that at least you shall have a valid reason to be stationed in this tent” she hissed.
“I am not afraid of you” he grinned pulling her even closer, ignoring her outraged struggle. “You shall be mine whether you want it or not so you better not fight it. You might get hurt” he smirked, trying to kiss her, greatly inflamed by her struggle. He liked them spirited.
“You are mistaken, second-lieutenant Wickham” she snarled. “You are the last man in the world whom I might ever consider in any capacity.”
“Do not be so full of yourself little nurse ” he sneered. “Who do you think will protect you? You are a nurse for heaven’s sake. You are…”
“She is Senhorita Bella, the noblest lady that you, sorry excuse of a homem 13 will ever meet” Ramon stepped close to them as he just arrived to tell Elizabeth about the letter he received from Esterlita.
Surprised and annoyed by the interruption, Wickham let go of Elizabeth’s arm and pulled out a knife from his waistband, his eyes flashing at the unexpected threat. “Come close and I will kill you.”
“I would not consider using that knife, escumalha 14 ” Agostinho’s deep voice slit the air as Carlos took hold of Wickham from behind, twisting his arms behind him and forcing him to drop the knife. “ Nobody threatens Senhorita Bella” Agostinho grabbed Wickham by his throat, “and gets away with it. Vocês está morto, bastardo 15 ” he snarled.
Ramon hastily removed Elizabeth from the tent before she could see the beating he knew his brothers-in-law meant to dish out to the scoundrel that dared to accost her.
By the time the Lopes brothers were done with him, Wickham was a bloodied mess with a broken nose, missing front teeth and a few broken ribs.
“Te serve bem 16 ” Carlos spat on the unconscious man, kicking him in the ribs one more time for good measure. “Fique longe da Senhorita Bella ou você morrerá 17 ”
---$---
After being patched up none too gently by Dr. Porter, Wickham lay on his cot in considerable pain. The dark looks directed his way by the other inmates gave him the shivers. The fact was that Elizabeth was loved by all, friend and enemy soldiers alike, and the fact that he tried to assault her did not make him popular with anybody in the camp.
Although somewhat worried about his commanding officer’s reaction if he hears of this incident, Wickham was pretty sure that he will be able to wriggle his way out of it just like he did from most of the scrapes he had gotten into before. However, he cursed the bastards who destroyed his good looks, taking away one of his most powerful weapons, the irresistible charm of his winsome smile which seldom failed to sway its recipients in his favour. Hurting with every breath he took, Wickham seethed with anger and he was worried about his future. All of his life he had relied on his good looks and smooth manners. With a crooked nose and no front teeth it will be considerably harder for him to ingratiate himself to the unsuspecting fools whom he was so used to manipulate into giving him whatever he wanted.
His resentment towards Miss Elizabeth who, in his twisted mind was at the root of all of his current troubles, was only slightly less than that towards Darcy who had everything that Wickham coveted. At least, while he could do nothing against Darcy, he could thoroughly destroy the chit’s reputation if he will be called to task for accosting her.
“Seien Du dankbar, dass Du zu schwer verletzt sind, als dass Du noch einmal geschlagen werden konnten” a German soldier in the next cot growled at Wickham and spat at him “da würden wir uns gerne verpflichten 18 .”
Many other soldiers nearby vehemently nodded their agreement. Although he did not understand what the man said, Wickham was frightened by the hatred that radiated from the men’s eyes as they glowered at him.
---$---
The morning after his attack on Elizabeth, Wickham was dragged out from his cot and hauled to the officer’s mess where his commanding officer Major Caldwell, Rear Admiral Fane and Field Marshal O’Donnell were waiting for him.
“Lt. Wickham, I have received a report that you tried to assault a nurse. Furthermore, Dr. Murphy reported that your foot wound is self inflicted. Is this true?”
Wickham smirked derisively. “Sirs, I am the victim here. My wound had been indeed inflicted by myself but it was an unfortunate accident, not a deliberate act. I was cleaning my flint when it went off and, while I do admit that I should have been more careful and ensure that it was not loaded when I started to clean it, it was by no means intentional. I blame it on pre-battle nervousness. As for attacking Miss Bennet, I assure you that it was the other way around. It is well known that she preys on the helpless wounded and on our homesick brave men to satisfy her lust. She had become enraged when I refused to succumb to her seduction and she has instigated her other lovers to attack me. As you can see, I am greatly injured as a result. I am innocent of all charges” he concluded, trying to look as pitiful as possible.
“ Private Wickham” Rear Admiral Fane roared, disgust clearly written on his face. “You shall stop slandering a lady whose character is unimpeachable, which cannot be said about you. You are the most despicable human being I have ever come across and I assure you, I had my fair share of meeting unsavoury characters. You have more than amply demonstrated your valour on the battlefield” Fane sneered. “Do not think for a moment that you fooled anybody that your wound was an accident. What you are now showing us is that your courage only seems to rise when you are trying to best defenceless maidens. Yet even in this you fail. You are not man enough even for that. Be happy that Major Caldwell did not ask for a court martial for you. Word is that you are a gambler and that you shirked most of your duties ever since you joined the regiment. Your character bears no close examination as you are a known liar and a cheat, therefore your word weighs nothing.”
Wickham paled. He had not even considered the possibility that he could have been court martialled.
“I totally concur” O’Donnell nodded curtly, scowling at the scoundrel in front of him. His ire had raised to the point that he could hardly control his temper when the cur started to slander the charming young nurse who tended to his leg wound so gently, while so thoroughly distracting him with her spirited descriptions of the places she had seen on her way to La Bisbal that he barely noticed the pain his wound was causing him. And it was this gentle creature whose honour the scum in front of him dared to impugn. “You shall be transferred to a different regiment. I believe that if you remain here your life is forfeit as most of the camp would be more than happy to see you dead.”
---$---
Darcy was circling the tent that was now his home with increasing agitation. Over the past few days he had shed most of the prejudices he did not even realize he held. The days he had spent avoiding Miss Elizabeth and being studiously avoided by her, taught him how much he yearned to be in her presence. Her complete lack of artifice and affectation and the fact that he could converse with her on any topic like he did with his closest friends, confirmed his first impression that she was different from most of the young ladies of the ton whose favourite pastime was to play the political games of the ton and their single purpose was to marry well and, once that was achieved, to spend their husbands fortune. He knew her for little over three weeks, but he felt like he knew her forever, as if she were a long lost friend with whom he was finally reunited again.
The notion that she would be best suited to be his wife long ceased to be something he could not, would not consider. But could he ensure her happiness in a society which only valued wealth and titles, regardless of one’s character, and which he knew will sneer and look down at the daughter of an obscure and insignificant country squire? Or would they manage to kill that bewitching sparkle that made her the most enchanting woman of his acquaintance?
And then there was the fact that she did not hold him in high regard, especially after his abominable show of arrogance the last time they spoke beyond common banalities when inevitably they had to be together with the others. Would she accept him? Would she be able to forgive him and come to love and respect him?
He knew with a certainty that Elizabeth would be a good Mistress for Pemberley, his beloved home and that she would be a wonderful sister to his dearest Georgiana, not to mention being the embodiment of all of his ideals in a wife, except for wealth and societal consequence, which only a week before he thought so important. Her warmth, kindness and utter selflessness as demonstrated by her very presence in such a place as this battlefield, were unparalleled by any other lady whom he knew. Who better to trust with the wellbeing of the many people who relied on the Darcys for their livelihood and their future, than a lady who had been ready to face the horrors of a war in order to help her fellow men? But would she be able to withstand the throngs of pretentious, puffed-up and malicious so-called ladies of the ton, the likes of the sisters of his good friend Bingley? And alas, the ton was teaming with them.
His previous concerns about her inferior birth, at least when compared to his own, now gave place to concerns about her wellbeing.
As the deep darkness of the night begun to give way to the soft light of the rising sun, Darcy made his resolve.
---$---
“Another three or four weeks and you shall be able to safely board a ship without endangering your life” Dr. Murphy teased as he rebandaged Fitzwilliam’s shoulder and torso. “The wound on your leg is nearly fully healed, but I am still apprehensive of letting you out of my sight until your rib and bullet wound are also healed and you are fully recovered after the massive loss of blood that you suffered.”
“I am quite happy with my current location. It is Darcy who probably chomps at his tethers by now” Fitzwilliam chortled.
“Oh, you might be surprised there” Dr. Murphy chuckled lightly. “I think that my old chum’s mind is much more pleasantly engaged at present.”
“Miss Elizabeth?” Fitzwilliam’s eyes twinkled. “I thought that they would be very well suited ever since I first met her” Fitzwilliam laughed at the doctor’s nod.
“He will have to get over her humble origins though… Although she is a gentleman’s daughter, she is not of the First Circles” Dr. Murphy shook his head with concern.
“Darcy has a deep disgust towards most of the ladies of the ton. But I will not deny that he is mired down by his overblown sense of duty to our family and the Darcy name, so he might throw away his own happiness with both hands only because of some misconception that he might somehow harm the family’s name and standing by offering for her.”
“Miss Elizabeth is a rare gem who will bring sunshine and happiness to any man’s life” the doctor muttered.
“In that we are in full agreement my friend” Fitzwilliam said softly. “Hopefully Darcy is smart enough to realize it too.”
13 Man
14 Scum
15 You are dead, bas tard
16 It serves you r ight
17 Stay away from Miss Bella or you shall die
18 Be thankful that you are too badly hurt for you to be given another beating, as we would be happy to ob lige