The door shut. The coachman cracked his whip, and the carriage lurched forward into the night.
For several minutes neither man spoke.
Darcy stared out into the darkness as hedgerows and fields rushed past, his mind racing through a thousand possibilities—all of them terrible.
What if we are already too late?
What if Elizabeth has already been taken away?
What if—
Richard suddenly leaned forward.
“Stop.”
Darcy blinked.
“What?”
“You are borrowing trouble,” Richard said calmly. “And doing it very poorly.”
Darcy exhaled sharply. “I cannot help it.”
“I know.” Richard leaned back against the cushions. “But panic will not help Elizabeth.”
Darcy nodded once. “You are right.”
They rode in silence for another mile before Richard spoke again.
“When we approach Longbourn, we should slow the carriage and extinguish the lanterns.”
Darcy’s mind immediately followed the thought. “Yes, we ought to see what the situation is before announcing ourselves.”
“The first thing we should check is to see if their carriage is there. If it is gone, they may have already taken her.”
Darcy felt his stomach drop.
Richard saw the look and raised a hand. “Do not assume the worst.”
Darcy forced himself to breathe.
“If the carriage is present,” Richard continued, “then Mr. Bennet will have not yet moved her.”
“And if it is gone?”
Richard’s expression hardened. “Then we follow.”
Darcy nodded grimly. The carriage rolled steadily onward, the wheels crunching softly along the frozen road. At last, the dark outline of Longbourn’s lane appeared ahead.
Richard leaned forward and rapped sharply on the roof. “Extinguish the lamps,” he called quietly.
The carriage slowed. Moments later the lanterns went dark, leaving them nearly invisible in the moonlit road. As they crept towards the gate, Darcy’s pulse hammered in his ears. They came to a stop just behind the hedgerows, where nothing could be seen from the front door of Longbourn.
“This is as close as we can take it,” Richard said, “without drawing any attention.”
They swiftly descended from the carriage. “Wait here,” Darcy told the coachman.
“Follow my lead,” Richard said, stooping down slightly and taking soft steps on the gravel.
