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At LAX, Elizabeth pulled her suitcase past the baggage carousel toward the exit; she hadn’t checked any luggage, so she could just hop in a taxi. Concentrating on the logistics of the journey helped her forget any fantasies she might have had about Will showing up to surprise her.
A few yards from the exit, she jerked to a stop.
Her parents were standing in the middle of the concourse with tentative smiles on their faces. Elizabeth blinked, sure that she had mistaken them for someone else; but no, it was definitely her parents. How was that possible? She had emailed her flight information to Jane but hadn’t even told her parents she was going to Baltimore.
Her heart clenched. Had Lydia taken a turn for the worse? No, her parents were definitely smiling, although with a tinge of anxiety.
Elizabeth approached them warily. Ordinarily she’d hug them in greeting, but given the way they had last parted, she didn’t know where she stood with them. “Why are you here? Did something happen to Lydia?”
Her mother had tears in her eyes, but she smiled. “No, Lydia’s great. The doctors think she might walk in four weeks. I’ve started scheduling some auditions for her. She needs to get back on the horse. Except”—she put a finger to her lips—“I don’t know if Lydia will be able to ride a horse! I’ll have to ask the doctor.”
“Everyone is fine. Everyone except you, apparently,” her father added. “Recently we’ve been made aware that we judged you rather precipitously and harshly.”
“We’re so sorry!” Her mother lunged forward to hug Elizabeth, who allowed the air to be compressed from her lungs for a full minute before gently disengaging.
They were sorry? Part of Elizabeth wanted to turn cartwheels down the concourse, but part of her wondered if she had fallen asleep on the airplane and was dreaming. She wasn’t even sure how to respond. “It’s okay.” She patted her mother’s hand. “I mean, you were distraught over Lydia—”
Her father shook his head. “We shouldn’t have blamed you.”
Tears sprang to Elizabeth’s eyes. “It’s okay, Dad. I could have done more to stop George. You’re not wrong.”
“You did try to warn Lydia, didn’t you?” her mother asked.
“Yeah.”
“She doesn’t take direction well,” her mother tutted. “But it’s what makes her such a fine actress; she always listens to her instincts.”
Tom Bennet frowned. “I liked George Wickham, too. He’s a smooth operator. I even encouraged Lydia to spend time with him.” He wiped tears from the corners of his eyes.
Her mother shook her head sadly. “But Lydia is such a trusting soul. So innocent…”
“Obviously Wickham has been scamming people for years, and he doesn’t care who gets hurt,” her father said. “We couldn’t expect you to know his history or stop him. I’m sorry, Lizzy. We really didn’t know what was going on with him, and we jumped to some conclusions.”
“It’s okay.” Elizabeth closed the short distance between them and pulled her parents into a three-way hug. “What did you mean by you’ve been ‘made aware’? Who made you aware?”
“It was Will. Will Darcy.” Her mother gave her a watery smile.
“He came to the house and, well, gave us hell for the way we had treated you,” her father said.
“Will?” Elizabeth’s heart soared. Maybe Will did care about her. Maybe his silence didn’t mean anything. God, not knowing what was happening with him was giving her emotional whiplash.
“He laid out his whole history with Wickham, what happened with his sister, and how his parents covered up that bastard’s misdeeds.” Her father’s entire body tensed. “He certainly has a pattern of being cavalier with other people’s lives.”
“I hope we can find him and hold him accountable,” Elizabeth said.
“Darcy said he’s planning to hire a private investigator to search for the guy,” her father said. Then he put an arm around Elizabeth’s shoulder. “Now, what do you say? Let’s grab a taxi and go out for dinner. I’d like to hear about what you were up to in Baltimore.”
***
After dinner with her parents, Elizabeth returned to her apartment. She had barely managed to get her suitcase through the doorway before Jane flew into her arms. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I’m a terrible sister!”
Elizabeth hugged Jane to her chest. “No, you aren’t. It’s okay.”
“But you’ve been avoiding me! Avoiding coming home.”
Elizabeth sank onto the sofa. “I’ve been avoiding everyone—the entire family. And I didn’t want to put you in the middle.”
Jane dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. “You should let me worry about that.”
