Elizabeth jumped to her feet upon hearing her name.“Colonel Fitz—Fitzwilliam!” she stammered.
Immediately, he took her hand in his two large hands and gestured to the chair.“Please be seated.” He looked around, as if expecting Darcy to come through the door.“May I join you, Ma’am?”
“Certainly, Colonel.” Elizabeth looked away in embarrassment. She would need to explain to Darcy’s cousin why she had left Pemberley without her husband.
Damon Fitzwilliam sat next to her.“I am in amazement to find you in this out-of-the-way inn, Mrs. Darcy. I would not think my cousin would allow you out of his sight so soon after your nuptials.” He gestured to the innkeeper to bring him another tankard of ale.
Elizabeth stalled; she took a sip of her tea before she answered. “My mother is ill, and my papa is distraught.We have experienced a family tragedy, Sir.”
“I offer my condolences.” She acknowledged his words with a slight nod.“Yet I am still at a loss as to why your husband does not travel with you.There are many things one might say about Darcy, but ignoring his responsibilities is not one of them.”
The reappearance of the woman with her sweetmeats and his tankard gave Elizabeth a moment to decide how to answer. The truth—as much as she could offer—seemed the best bet. Obviously, Darcy’s family would soon know of their separation. “How candid might I be, Colonel?”
“Personally, I can think of only one reason for your separation from my cousin. I asked Darcy before he married if you were aware of his unique situation, and he assured me that you knew everything. Darcy loves you. Otherwise, he would not have brought you into his life.” His words demanded she speak honestly.
“My husband, I assure you, Colonel, owns my heart!”
He took a drink of the ale and studied her closely. She was not what he had considered her to be when he met Elizabeth Bennet in London.“I have all the time in the world, Mrs. Darcy, and sometimes it is best to get another opinion.”
Elizabeth nibbled on the sweetmeat, and although it had nothing to do with the woman’s cooking, it certainly tasted bitter. “May I assume, Colonel, that you know of the pox which haunts my husband?”
“As I share guardianship of Georgiana with Darcy, he confessed his concerns to me about the Darcy legacy. No one else in the family knows. My father is a Fitzwilliam, as was Darcy’s mother. The aberration travels through the Darcy line, and I doubt my father would welcome the knowledge of what James Darcy did to his sister. It would explain Lady Anne’s withdrawal from her husband and also her weakened condition.” He leaned forward to ensure secrecy.“My cousin has not infected you, Madam?”
“No…no, Colonel. My husband refuses to continue the family curse over to another generation.” She blushed thoroughly at sharing such intimacies. “Mr. Darcy is a man of honor.”
“Then you must explain what caused this sudden departure. You do sound as if you wanted this removal. I will not judge, so please be honest. I cannot imagine how both of you must suffer with such an arrangement.” He cradled her hand in both of his as he spoke.
Tears misted Elizabeth’s eyes. It would be helpful to share some things with another, even one of Darcy’s family—to speak some of her thoughts aloud. “Do you know of Mr. Wickham, Colonel?” Her bottom lip trembled with the memory.
“I am aware of the menace that Mr. Wickham created for my cousin.” He guarded the emotion shooting through him.
“Yesterday, I received two letters from my eldest sister, the one you met at the wedding. She reported the disappearance of Lydia, our youngest. A man disguised as Colonel Forster, the commanding officer of our local militia, convinced my father to allow Lydia to attend Christmas festivities in London with him and Mrs. Forster. Through putting details together, it is quite obvious that the man who took my sister was no man at all; it was George Wickham. My family, at first, suspected an elopement. But as another officer is accused of a heinous murder similar to the ones his own.”
Colonel Fitzwilliam added cautiously,“And this brought unfair accusations on both your parts?”
“Oh, Colonel, I said the most hurtful things to Fitzwilliam.” Her tears flowed easily now. “How could I have been so stupid? It was not my husband’s fault, but I stormed out, and now I know not what to do.”
“I suspect we should order you more tea, and you will tell me everything.” He handed her his handkerchief and motioned the innkeeper over.“Mr.Witherspoon, Mrs. Darcy is my cousin’s wife.” He needed to prevent rumors as to why they might be together. The colonel stopped regularly at this inn, and he wanted no gossip about an assignation. “Imagine my meeting her along the London Road! We will catch up on family news for a few minutes, so please freshen the lady’s tea and ask your good wife if she has any of those delicious rolls I love.”
“Immediately, Colonel.”The man made his way to the back of the inn.
For the next hour, Elizabeth told Darcy’s cousin how her own family was part of the curse, how she had met Darcy, how Wickham had killed the bar maid and Miss King in Meryton, how she and Darcy fought Wickham and Amelia Younge in London, how they had studied the books for knowledge of vampires, and how Mrs. Annesley believed that Elizabeth’s dreams were the key to defeating Wickham. “The dream from last night haunts me even now. Fitzwilliam fought Wickham’s followers and lost. It was so real, Colonel, that I expected to see a bloody body at the foot of my bed.” She shivered in remembrance.
“Where is Wickham?” Colonel Fitzwilliam demanded.
“His carriage was seen leaving London and heading north. Recently, Mr. Darcy received a report from Bramwell’s men saying that Wickham has a house in Stanwick, above Chillingham. Fitzwilliam did not want to follow Wickham there; he feared putting
“Then my cousin has left for Stanwick?”
Elizabeth froze with his words. “He would not! Fitzwilliam cannot face Wickham alone!” She started up from the table, but the colonel’s hand on her arm stayed her.
His words were ominous.“Mrs. Darcy, you know my cousin as well as anyone. Can you imagine his sitting at Pemberley while Wickham flaunts his possession of your sister?”
“I taunted him about removing Lydia’s head to release her soul.” She sat down, as if in a trance, as she recalled her cruel words. “Fitzwilliam said he would do whatever was necessary to end her wanderings.” Elizabeth grabbed the colonel’s hand. “We have to help him. Fitzwilliam cannot defeat Wickham by himself. My dream says so. I must return to Pemberley immediately.”
“Darcy is not there!” His words spoke the truth that she did not want to acknowledge. “If you left Pemberley by noon yesterday, I would venture to say that Darcy left for Northumberland shortly afterwards—by this morning, at the latest. Our going all the way to Pemberley would be fruitless.”
Agitated, Elizabeth asserted,“I must go to Northumberland.”
“We will go,” the colonel said, taking command. “First, we need to lighten your coach so we travel faster. Have your maid pack you
“I have my pin money, and Fitzwilliam had Mrs. Reynolds bring me five hundred pounds.”
“Perfect! We will leave your maid and the excess baggage here. I will send word to Pemberley for someone to come and retrieve her and the baggage.Your coachman and I will take turns driving the carriage. Even with that, it will take us four to five days to reach the Scottish border. Hurry, Mrs. Darcy. We must be on the road.”
He took over the dismissal of the maid’s services, over the woman’s protestations. Elizabeth paid for their food, the horse’s feed, and a room with board for the maid for two days. She asked the innkeeper to make a basket out of which the three of them—she, the colonel, and Peter—could partake on the road.