“Just that?”
“Yes, and I will wait here iffen he wanna talk to me.”
The footman scoffed at the unlikelihood of that, but he disappeared into the house. The Colonel waited, thinking again about the extraordinary reaction of the two Bennet girls to the sight of him standing over a dead man’s body. How had Miss Mary recognised him? No one else had.
Mr. Darcy was at his side in five minutes. “Richard? Is that you?”
“Darcy.”
“You look…well, never mind. You found him?”
“Found him and ended him.”
“Were you seen?”
The Colonel winced.
“You were seen! By whom?”
“Mary and Elizabeth Bennet, of all people?”
“Did they see you kill him?”
“No; they walked past the alley where his body lay just as I was cleaning my knife.”
“They must have screamed! How were you not caught?”
“They didnotscream. Miss Mary said, ‘Colonel,’ though how she recognised me I shall never know, and she put her hand over Miss Elizabeth’s mouth at once. I quickly told them that this was the man who had hurt Georgiana. Then we heard voices, and Miss Elizabeth ran off to keep them away. Then Miss Mary, cool as you please, told me I had better leave as soon as possible, and walked off to join her sister!”
Mr. Darcy’s eyes were wide with astonishment. “I can scarce believe it,” he said. “You were fortunate, cousin, that it was the Bennets who saw you and not anyone else.”
“I am everything grateful, believe me. I did not like to pick so public a place, but I did not know how to get him anywhere more private. But, Darcy, before I killed him, he told me where to find Mrs. Younge. She is at a boardinghouse on White Horse Lane.”
“Spitalfield?”
“Yes.”
“Do you plan to kill her as well, Richard?” Mr. Darcy’s tone was dry.
“I suppose not. Have you any other thoughts?”
“Not just now, but I will think on it. Should I tell Georgiana about Wickham, do you think?”
“Yes; otherwise, her face will betray her when she hears that a Lieutenant Wickham had been found dead.”
“Agreed. And, Richard…”
“Yes?”
“Thank you.” Mr. Darcy’s voice was sincere, his simple words heartfelt.
“Entirely my pleasure, I assure you.” The Colonel’s wide face split into a wolfish grin; he gave Mr. Darcy a mock salute, jumped onto his horse and rode back across the fields. He would be back at Matlock House just after nightfall. It was a long day in the saddle, but this was nothing new to an Army man.
Chapter Fifty-Two
Mr. Darcy stood at the entrance to the drawing room, listening to his sister and Miss Bingley at the pianoforte. They were, evidently, working out a tricky fingering problem. Mr. Darcy shook his head in amazement; he would never have imagined a world in which Miss Bingley and Georgiana were good friends! This trip to Hertfordshire had proven to be the best possible choice for his sister’s well-being.
He very much feared that telling Georgiana that George Wickham was dead would bring all the memories back, undoing the good that had been done these past weeks. But Richard was right; hearing the news in a public environment would be far worse.
