“Quite certain,” the Colonel replied, stretching out his long legs in front of him and leaning back in the chair. “He has me chasing after some girl who eloped with Wickham, except that it was not an elopement at all.”
“And this is because he wishes to marry the girl’s sister? It is a most unlikely tale, Richard.” The Earl sounded baffled.
“But it is true; and he fears that if her reputation is not pristine, you and Mother will not recognise her.”
“Of course we will not! We have our own reputation to protect, not to mention how it will impact Georgiana’s reputation, to have such a woman in the family!” the Countess said, heatedly.
“Darcy understands the repercussions, Mother. But part of the reason for his precipitous action in summoning me is that he feels he is rather to blame for the whole incident. He knows what Wickham is like, of course, but when the man appeared in Meryton last winter, Darcy chose to remain silent on the subject.”
“That was wrong of him,” the Earl remarked, severely. “It left Wickham free to prey upon the shopkeepers and their daughters.”
“And, in this instance, the daughter of a landed gentleman.”
The Earl sighed. “Very well; I see Darcy’s point. He acted badly and he is trying to atone for it. But for him to marry the sister of a girl who ran off with a steward’s son! No, I think this should be stopped. Do you not agree, my dear?”
“I agree entirely; Darcy must not be allowed to act irresponsibly.”
“You cannot stop him, Mother. He is in love with Miss Elizabeth Bennet.”
“Even though her sister is a girl who could do such a thing? Richard, Darcy could have anyone – and I do mean anyone! – in theton!” The Countess was indignant.
“He does not want anyone else; he wants Miss Elizabeth, and no one else will do.”
“I will have to meet this Elizabeth before it goes too far. But, in any case, we must help Darcy do what is right, and recover the girl; what think you, George?”
“Quite; how may we assist in this endeavor, Richard?”
“I know not; I am still trying to determine how to move forward.”
“Have you not some Army friends here in Town? They are likely to be of more help than these Bow Street Runners you say Darcy has hired,” the Countess suggested.
The Colonel sat upright and stared at his mother. “That is an excellent plan; the Army should put you in charge, Mother.”
“I have said so for years,” she replied, calmly. “You know that Georgiana is visiting with us, do you not?”
“Darcy told me so, yes. I would like very much to spend some time with her.”
“Indeed, she would not forgive me were I to keep you all to myself!”
Chapter Nineteen
Mr. Darcy visited the Gardiners the next day. He received a warm welcome from Mrs. Gardiner. “Mr. Darcy! This is a surprise, but of course a very pleasant one.”
“Mrs. Gardiner, I must first apologise for being delinquent in paying my respects to you and Mr. Gardiner. I recently learnt that Mrs. Bennet passed away, and I know she was Mr. Gardiner’s sister.”
“Ah, poor Fanny. To have that happen, on top of Lydia’s misstep! The Bennet family has suffered a good deal.” She shook her head.
“And Miss Elizabeth?” He could not help asking.
“She feels it most deeply, I fear. We were not able to arrive in time for the funeral, given the season, which made it all the worse for her. And then, of course, she blames herself for Lydia’s situation, as she did not warn her family about him.”
“I believe the blame to be mine alone, rather than hers. It was for me to tell what I know of him, and I did not. Have you had any news of Miss Lydia? I had hoped that she might make her way to you, Mrs. Gardiner.”
“No, we have not seen her, though I truly do not know where we would even begin to look.”
“Mrs. Gardiner, I pray I have not overstepped, but I have made some efforts in that direction. None of them successful,” he added, hastily, seeing her face light up. “But I have spoken to anynumber of innkeepers, asking if they had seen an army officer and a young girl on the day in question.”
“That truly is like looking for a needle in a haystack, Mr. Darcy.”
