“She must be on foot,” Richard said in a tone more appropriate to the gravity of the situation. “All the horses are here aside from Bingley’s chaise and four.”
Darcy exhaled. “Good. She cannot have gone far then.”
They had saddled their horses when Molly found them. Breathlessly, she leaned against the opening of the stall. “Mrs. Nichols sent me to tell you that Miss Darcy found Archie. They are in the front parlor if you wish to see them. Mr. Bingley will be relieved, as I am sure you are.” Looking about, she lowered her voice to a whisper. “She came in through the kitchen, so no one in the household is the wiser.”
Darcy’s relief was immense. If anyone in the stables overheard the news or commented on his hasty entrance into the stables, they could credit the disruption to Archie’s prolonged disappearance. “Thank you, Molly. You have done well.”
She bobbed a curtsy and scurried back to the house, Darcy and Richard following minutes later.
Now that he knew Georgiana to be out of danger, Darcy’s relief became overwrought with all the dangers she might have faced. A dark cloud settled over him.
Richard elbowed Darcy’s side. “Do not be too hard on her, Darcy.”
Darcy directed his scowl at his cousin.
Raising his hands, Richard said, “Your frown is a fearsome thing to behold.”
“Do you expect me to smile after she scared us out of our wits?”
“No. You may frown. Just try not to frown so thoroughly.”
Darcy spoke through gritted teeth. “Why should I listen to you?”
“Because of the two of us, I have my emotions under firmer regulation than you do.”
That was a first. Darcy wished he could deny it, but he could not rightly object. He was thoroughly rattled. Cross but not wishing to scare his sister, he ceded to Richard until he gained his composure.
After entering through the back of the house, they passed the stairwell to the entrance hall and the open door of the front parlor. Darcy heard Georgiana’s voice mumbling. “Where are they, Archie?” He and Richard were about to cross the threshold when she said more excitedly, “E.B. There they are! As clear as day!”
Richard charged into the room with Darcy close behind him. Georgiana stood before the two paintings on the wall, startled and face-flushed but seeming not at all guilty or self-conscious about her deception. Archie stood at her side, looking intently at the artwork as though they might produce a bone if he stared hard enough.
“What is as clear as day?” asked Richard, moving beside her to look at the paintings.
“Ah, er…C.B., of course. Many artists hide their initials in their art. I was merely trying to find Miss Bingley’s initials. C.B.”
“And did you find them?” Richard leaned closer, searching for the hidden letters.
Georgiana tittered and shrugged. “I think I did, although I am uncertain whether the initials were added intentionally or not.”
“We shall have to ask Miss Bingley.”
“Oh, she has not returned yet from Longbourn, and I daresay I shall forget to ask by then. It is nothing.”
Darcy could not care less what Miss Bingley had done, intentionally or otherwise. Archie, too, lost interest. He trotted over to the window facing the road, jumping onto a chair he was not allowed on for a better view.
“Oh!” A shriek from the chair nearly made Darcy jump out of his skin. “You naughty boy!” continued the shrill voice of Mrs. Hurst.
She stood and smoothed her gown, only then looking up to see that she was not alone in the room. “Oh dear, I must have fallen asleep in the chair. My apologies if I gave you a start.”
The blush drained from Georgiana’s face, leaving her as white as the bedsheet she had used to hide her escape.
Darcy had not thought it possible for his mood to worsen, but it did.
CHAPTER 28
Watching his sister pale under Mrs. Hurst’s scrutiny, who knew very well what assumptions the lady would make if she knew Georgiana had been walking without a chaperon when the regiment was camping at Meryton, Darcy felt angry.
After all he and Richard had done to save his sister’s reputation at Ramsgate! How could she act in such a way that she might place herself under the thumb of aton-pleaser like Mrs. Hurst? Had he not impressed upon her how easily a lady’s reputation could be ruined? Voices echoed in his mind, the sounds of malicious gossip spreading beyond his ability to contain. Why had Georgiana sneaked out of the house? Where had she gone, and why had she risked being observed by a woman whose discretion could not be trusted?
