Page 70 of The Lost Prophecy

“Then I shall reserve my irritation until we reach it. What of sunlight?”

“It burns us. Weak winter sun can be endured briefly, but direct exposure causes injury. Fletcher has a protective salve developed by his father, although it is difficult to produce and must be used sparingly.”

Elizabeth remembered Mr Bingley retreating from bright windows during Jane’s illness. “That is why Mr Bingley avoids the windows.”

“Fletcher applies the salve when we must ride or remain outdoors. There was no reason to waste it inside the house.”

Mr Bingley spread his hands. “I had intended to look mysterious.”

“You hid behind curtains,” Mr Hurst reminded him.

“Mystery requires practical arrangements.”

“What happens in summer?” Charlotte examined the heavy curtains and the shaded positions each vampire had chosen.

“The salve must be renewed frequently,” Mr Darcy continued. “Rain washes it away, and stronger sunlight can burn through it. We travel at night, use closed carriages, and remain indoors during the brightest hours.”

“Mirrors?” Elizabeth pressed.

Miss Bingley gave the nearest wall a resentful glance. “We cast no reflection. Nature has denied us the opportunity to admire ourselves and left it to other people.”

“That explains a great deal,” Elizabeth murmured.

Miss Bingley’s eyes narrowed. “I beg your pardon?”

“It explains the scarcity of mirrors,” Elizabeth said more loudly.

Mr Hurst chuckled and walked back to take the seat next to his wife. “She has you there, Caroline.”

Elizabeth’s thoughts struggled to reorder years of certainty around five impossible people. “What about the cold? Mr Collins felt fear when he touched Mrs Hurst, yet when our fingers met over my fan at Lucas Lodge, I felt nothing beyond cold.”

Mr Darcy’s expression changed, and she knew he remembered the same contact. “You felt it. You merely accepted the ordinary explanation.”

“You had declared me barely tolerable the week before. I was distracted.”

“That was not my intention.”

“Which part?”

Mr Bingley covered his mouth. Mr Hurst made no attempt to conceal his amusement, while Mr Darcy endured the question in rigid silence.

Charlotte rescued him, although Elizabeth doubted that kindness had motivated her. “Why did Mr Collins react so violently?”

“We do not know.” Mrs Hurst examined the hand which had touched him. “Some humans have a natural sensitivity. Clergymen occasionally claim that religious vocation sharpens it, although the evidence is inconsistent.”

“Mr Collins will be devastated to learn that his usefulness is inconclusive.”

“We have not told him what we are,” Mr Bingley admitted. “But he has agreed to stay close to you, Miss Elizabeth, for your protection.”

Elizabeth straightened. “You recruited him to protect me without telling him that vampires exist?”

Mr Hurst spread both hands. “He had already reached most of the conclusion without assistance. We merely gave his fears employment.”

“His task is simple,” Mr Darcy intervened. “He will remain near you during the ball and alert us if Wickham attempts to separate you from the company.”

“Mr Collins has been attached to my side since he arrived at Longbourn. No instruction was required.”

“That made him an economical choice,” Mr Hurst observed.