Wickham looked hurt. “I meant no offence, Fitzwilliam. I never lifted a finger against my old friend. May I not be permitted to express my joy that he has been recovered?”
“Your sincerity is touching,” Darcy deadpanned. “Have you depleted your funds?”
“Well, Darcy, as a particularly enchanting young lady once expressed to me, we must all have something to live on, regardless of our personal charms. I had a wife to consider, as you know, and would have been a fool to turn down a lucrative offer of employment. How was I to know that it might appear disloyal to the family to whom I am indebted for all my advantages in life?”
Richard was rolling his eyes and hissing through his teeth. “I have heard enemy spies tell fewer lies! Darcy, let us take him directly to Newcastle and have done with it.”
Wickham’s eyes went wild for half an instant, but he seemed to draw breath and calm himself. “My dear Fitzwilliam, as a fellow man in uniform, you understand honour and integrity better than anyone. If granted an opportunity to guard the back of your comrade, whether he wore a uniform or not, is it not your duty to step up? So I have done, but I fear my actions will be misjudged by many. I know that I may depend on you, however, to see clearly and act fairly.”
“We will do nothing to prevent whatever military justice you have merited, Wickham,” Darcy broke in. “A man who deserts his regiment before he has even joined it deserves judgment.”
“I am of little value to you at the end of a noose, Darcy.”
“You are of little value anywhere!” spat Richard.
“Calm yourself, Cousin,” Darcy gestured mildly with his hand. “Allow him a moment to consider the proper course. If he is, indeed, concerned about justice, he will share with us what he knows.”
“I would be most obliged to, Darcy,” Wickham smiled. “But, you know, I am in a ticklish spot. I fear that my memory at present is somewhat muddled. You do understand how it is, when a man does not know who his friends are, he is like to act rashly. I would rather not speak in haste and regret my words, Darcy.”
“I do not know what protection you seek from me. The army will find you at length, and as a loyal subject to the crown, it is my duty to surrender you.”
“Oh! There is always a back door in, as well as a front. Surely you cannot have lived so long without knowing that.”
“You will have to lump it, Wickham,” Richard crossed his arms, a faint satisfaction glimmering in his eyes. “Whatever your sentence, you have earned it. I’ve no patience for deserters.”
“If it is my duty to give my life on the altar of justice, I shall be honoured to do so,” Wickham bowed gallantly. “But there is a matter of more lasting harm, and I think you would be unwise to overlook it. You see, nothing but the gravest of matters could have called me away from my comrades in arms and my adoring bride. Even should I be taken by the army—as is no doubt right and just, as you say Fitzwilliam—the danger to you, Darcy, is as real and potent as ever.”
“I will have what you know straight out, Wickham. I can promise you no protection beyond fair treatment for your crimes, so you are wasting both your time and mine trying to extract such a promise from me.”
Wickham turned his fingers over to inspect them. “Tell me, Darcy, how is my dear friend Miss Darcy faring? It has been too long since I had the pleasure of her company. Is she relieved to have you come back at last?”
Darcy glanced to his cousin, who seemed to have grown horns and fangs, and was balling his fists. “Calm yourself, Richard.”
Wickham’s confidence grew. “I also trust that Miss Elizabeth Bennet is well? A fine young lady, Darcy. May I presume that congratulations are in order? You have excellent taste, old boy, the Bennet ladies are of—forgive me—robust and spirited natures. I imagine that her grief over your disappearance was unparalleled. Fancy it, now you are come back to both lovely ladies, and nothing can ever again disrupt the tranquil future you have planned for your family. Oh, well, I suppose there is one matter, but surely you will find your way round that obstacle.”
“I tire of your empty words,” Darcy commented in a bored tone. “Either you intend to make yourself useful, or you do not. I have no doubt that I will discover the truth without the benefit of your rather dubious advice.”
Wickham began to show the first signs of tension. “Surely you understand how it is, old boy. Your money and Fitzwilliam’s connections can purchase freedom for me—and Mrs Wickham, of course. You would ever have a loyal man in me, for if you knew how diligently I served the Darcy family in your absence—”
“I have heard enough!” bellowed Richard. “I do believe I shall have to bathe after listening to your filthy lies. You will accompany me to London for a court-martial.”
“London!” Wickham’s voice changed in pitch and his colour heightened, all his former bravado now evaporated. “Oh, that cannot be necessary! Surely my own commanding officer in Newcastle may judge this business, and I am confident that your word will carry much weight. I was merely absent without leave, I did not truly desert. Some may see it that way, but I assure you, it would be a gross miscarriage of justice to label me a malicious deserter! I never left the country, sir, and I always intended to return to my ranks.”
“London,” Richard repeated, leveling a searing look of hatred at the scoundrel.
“Darcy! I beg you, talk some sense into him. I can help you! Did anyone ever mention a deed to you? I can help you find it!”
“You know of this supposed deed?” Darcy asked cautiously.
“Naturally! Oh, I do not know in whose hands it rests, but itisgenuine, I have seen documentation referring to it.”
“And where was this?”
Wickham closed his mouth and looked at Richard.
Darcy exchanged a glance with his cousin. “Make yourself comfortable in the stable, Wickham. You are bound for London on the morrow.”
“Darcy!” he protested. “You are acting the fool! I can help you!”
