“I am glad you were able to trust Richard that far.” It was not fair to feel bitter that it was Richard she trusted. He had not been there, but it was hard not to believe she preferred his cousin. “Are you finding it comfortable here?”
“It is quite comfortable, I thank you.”
“We can send over more servants from the main house if you wish.” It was all he had to offer.
Elizabeth shook her head. “There is no need. You would hardly know the house has been empty.”
Somehow Darcy managed to keep a façade of calm as the discussion continued, but he knew he would not be able to maintain it forever. The day after tomorrow was Beltane, and neither of them needed any extra stress before that. But afterwards, he was going to tell Elizabeth he wanted the right to protect her.
His sleep was haunted by the image of Elizabeth, alone and helpless.
Chapter 6
The following afternoon, Richard examined the Dower House drawing room from the armchair in which he was sprawled. “Pleasant place, this. I should visit you more frequently. There is a delightful absence of Lady Catherine here.”
A footman stepped into the room and bowed. “There is a caller for Mr. Darcy. I regret that we have not yet located a salver for calling cards. I hope you will forgive the impropriety.” He handed a card to Mr. Darcy.
“Naturally. One can hardly expect a household to be fully set up on such short notice.” Darcy’s eyebrows rose as he read the card. “Show him in.”
The footman left and reappeared a minute later. “Viscount Eversleigh for Mr. Darcy.”
“Eversleigh!” cried Darcy. “I had been wishing you were here. What brings you to Rosings?”
“Lord Matlock told me about your recent encounter in Faerie, and I wished to know more about it. You had already left London, so I had to follow you. The butler at the main house directed me here, saying Lady Catherine was indisposed. I hope she was not the one screaming, ‘Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.’”
“Not again,” groaned Richard. “I was so enjoying the respite.”
“Miss Bennet,” said Darcy, “May I present Viscount Eversleigh? He is a distant cousin on the Darcy side and a rising star in theCollegium. Miss Bennet is the one who led me into Faerie.”
Elizabeth curtsied. “I am also the witch thou shalt not suffer to live, so you might wish to deny my acquaintance should you speak to Lady Catherine.”
“It is a pleasure, Miss Bennet. Lady Frederica, Colonel Fitzwilliam, I am glad to see you again. Darcy, why were you wishing to see me?”
“I would like your opinion on whether a particular spell can be broken. You are ten times the spellmaster I am,” said Darcy, “but first I should ask what your position is on forbidding women the use of magic.”
“It is a barbaric rule,” said Eversleigh promptly.
“How odd,” said Elizabeth slowly. “The Sidhe lord also called it barbaric.”
Eversleigh bowed to Elizabeth. “I suspect most Sidhe would say precisely the same. Miss Bennet, you have nothing to fear from me.”
“I am glad to hear it,” said Darcy. “The spell to be removed is a binding spell.”
“I will be happy to help if I can,” said Eversleigh. “But first I would like to hear more about the situation in Faerie. Matlock seemed to think you might be out of your depth, not that he could offer anything better. I have some small knowledge of Faerie, and given the gravity of the situation, I thought perhaps I should put myself at your disposal.”
“Odd,” drawled the colonel. “I do not recollect hearing about your interest in Faerie before.”
Eversleigh looked amused. “Of course not. It is no secret that I harbor political ambitions. Being a mage is already a strike against me, and a connection with the fay would be a killing blow. However, war with the fay would be even worse. I would not have mentioned it were the situation less grave.”
“What sort of knowledge do you have?” asked Darcy.
Eversleigh flicked open his enameled snuff box and took a pinch. “Perhaps this is something you and I can discuss in private. Although I have the greatest faith in the discretion of both Lady Frederica and Colonel Fitzwilliam, I do not wish to put them in the situation of having to keep a secret from their father.”
Frederica said, “If you are willing to trust me, I would be pleased to be part of your discussion. It would not be the first thing I have kept from my father.”
“Having been in this from the beginning,” said the colonel, “I would feel it rather odd to be excluded at this stage. I will, however, bow to your wishes, Eversleigh.”
“Then perhaps we can all discuss it.” Eversleigh stopped to straighten his already perfectly aligned cuffs. “I hope you will forgive my hesitancy. I have never discussed this matter with mortals before.”
