Beth
~~~~~
Dear Mr. Darcy, or should I say Uncle George,
I hope you received the letter I sent from America some weeks ago, and this letter will not come as a surprise. I was very sad to inform you of your brother Andrew’s death. One of his final wishes was for my brother and me to heal the breach in ourfamilies. He did not blame you for any of it and was sorry he ran out of time before making amends himself.
I have arrived with my companion and man of business in London. Your nephew Ethan could not be spared to travel, at this time. We would very much like to meet with you at soonest. The hotel we are staying is _______, and you may send any correspondence here. If we do not hear from you in the next few days, we will go on to my mother’s family in Hertfordshire and hope to meet with you at a later date.
Best regards, your niece,
Elizabeth Darcy
~~~~~
Fitzwilliam Darcyhatedthe season. The dinners, the balls, the fetes, all of it. The only things he enjoyed in town were the plays, the concerts, the museums, and the bookstores. Being chased by every debutant and their rapacious mothers had paled after his very first season. His cousins, Viscount Rosemont, Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam, Lady Marie, and their parents Lord and Lady Matlock were the only family he could stand to visit while in town. Well, maybe not the viscount. His sister, Georgiana, or Gigi as shepreferred to be called, spent most of her time sighing and complained of being bored. He had finally found her a companion a few weeks ago, and things had improved slightly. She, at least, was happy shopping.
He tore off his cravat and sat down at his desk to read through the daily mail. He had poured a rather large brandy when he saw a missive on the very top which had handwriting, he did not recognize. It looked neither masculine nor feminine. He was curious so opened it first. He went straight to the signature line. ‘Elizabeth Darcy! What is this?! Someone else trying to wheedle money out of me, or another compromise?’ He nearly threw it in the fire in a fit of pique, but then he saw the words ‘America and Andrew’.
He hadnotreceived a letter informing him of his Uncle Andrew’s death, and apparently his uncle had never received word of his own father’s death, since his cousin thought she was writing to her Uncle George.
He sighed and took a long pull of his drink. Obviously, he would write her back. She was family, so it would not be compromising. He wrote his cousin Anne frequently and even would write his cousin Marie on occasion. Close cousins did sometimes marry, butit was frowned upon by the Darcys and most of the Fitzwilliams. His Aunt Catherine was an exception. She expected him to marry her daughter Anne. Both he and Anne disagreed with her. No sense putting it off.
Dear Cousin Elizabeth,
I am Fitzwilliam Darcy, the son of George Darcy, your uncle. No, we did not receive any letter from you. I am most sorry to hear of your father’s death. Apparently, your family did not receive notice of my father’s passing five years ago.
In my father’s correspondence, I found a letter offering condolences after my mother’s passing. It was the only letter I found from my uncle. My father went into a deep depression after my mother left this world. I sincerely doubt he ever wrote back.
I would, of course, wish to meet the children of my uncle Andrew. I wish I had met him in this life. My father had a great many stories about him. Please come to Darcy House on Park Lane at your convenience. I will be home each afternoon this week waiting on your call.
Eagerly,
Your cousin Fitzwilliam
William did not know if he actuallywaseager, but the Darcy family was so small, he truly did want to meet his cousins. Too bad they both had not come. He would tell Georgiana about it in the morning and let her read the note. Maybe meeting a cousin would excite her more than shopping. He gave the note for a footman to deliver in the morning and threw back the rest of his brandy. He had best go to bed in case she came to visit tomorrow.
Chapter Six
“Mamie! I have received a note back from Darcy House!”
“Well dear, you ought to read it.”
Elizabeth’s excited gaze dimmed and she frowned. Her eyebrows lowered as her eyes became serious. “It appears any correspondence sent between the Darcy families went awry. We did not receive the notice that my uncle passed…five years ago…and the current Mr. Darcy did not receive notice that papa had died or that I was coming. That is very strange, is it not? Three separate epistles gone missing?”
“It is not unusual for letters to go astray. Especially when they must go by ship. I wonder how many of the letters to or from your Bennet cousins were never delivered? You will have to discuss it with Lizzy.”
“Yes, I will do that. Well! He invites us to come any afternoon this week, so shall we go today? I am quite excited to meet my Darcy cousin…or cousins. I wonder if there is more than one? I had heard, from Lizzy, that the paper mentioned a daughter, but that was years ago.”
“We have no plans, other than shopping, this afternoon. Do remember we will go to supper at the Gardiner’s home this evening.”
John entered the suite with the daily newspaper. “What are our plans today?”
“I received a note from Mr. Darcy…my cousin, not my uncle who has passed away…we are invited this afternoon. Will you be free to join us?”
“Your brother would be most cross with me if I did not attend you.”
“Very good! Then let us do a bit of shopping and then go on to Park Lane. I am anxious to meet some family.”
