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“Mr Donavan has ministered to Anne in every condition,” she declared. “I trust him with my daughter’s life—his triumphs on her behalf are many, his methods proven.”
At the piano, Georgiana missed a note, plainly not comforted by his ‘successes’ with her sickly cousin.
At long last, Lady Catherine said her good nights, her every footstep on the stairs punctuated by the strident thump of her ever-present cane, leaving the girls alone. When Mrs Taylor entered to clear the coffee service, Lizzy nudged her friend.
“Mrs Taylor,” Georgiana began hesitantly, “does Mr Donavan attend my brother still this evening?”
“Yes,” she said, sounding subdued. “Mr Stimple arrived early for his shift, so it seems clear they did not expect Hudson to return. Mr Stimple took trays up, but…but the tray of broth and such for Mr Darcy…that tray was returned untouched.”
Lizzy and Georgiana exchanged a look. The moment the doctor departed, Stimple would go to sleep. It might be their only chance, and seizing it was too important to depend upon imprecise methods of waking.
Georgiana took a deep breath and asked diffidently, “Mrs Taylor…I know not if we have someone…who could—could watch for Donavan to l-leave. I do not mean it should be you,” she added hurriedly. “I know we are shorthanded. But if there is someone who—who could inform m-me the moment the doctor departs, even if it means w-waking me.”
Lizzy had urged Georgiana to try to be more assertive, especially now that Mrs Taylor was not quite so convinced of the soundness of her ladyship’s care. To her relief, the housekeeper complied readily enough.
“James has watched at the front door these last two nights and will do so again tonight, in case the doctor calls for the carriage. He will tell me if I ask him to.”
Georgiana lifted her chin “I will visit my brother if—when—he departs. And—and there is no need to inform my aunt of it.”
“Yes, miss.” Mrs Taylor nodded. “It shall be as you say.”
It is something,Lizzy thought, heartened by the small victory. Perhaps the housekeeper would take more risks, if necessary, than they had believed. Perhaps Georgiana would as well. Perhaps, perhaps.
* * *
Lizzy went to Georgiana’s room once she was sure the maid they shared was gone. “Do you mind if I wait with you?” she asked.
They both had changed into simple gowns they could don themselves.
“I was going to fetch you if you did not come,” Georgiana assured.
For a long while, they rehearsed their plans and concerns. But as the minutes turned into hours and they grew weary, Lizzy finally suggested they blow out the candles and lie down on the bed to wait. If they could sleep, they probably ought.
“It is likely fruitless waiting up. He did not leave last night at all.”
“I believe Mrs Taylor will contrive to let you know when he departs, whenever it is,” Lizzy replied. “Lady Catherine left us alone this morning while she attended to her correspondence. Perhaps a morning visit will be possible if he stays tonight. He has to leave sometime.”
But as the mantel clock chimed hour after desperate hour, she wondered if he ever would.
* * *
The doctor must not have departedwas Lizzy’s first dismayed thought when she awakened to the daylight streaming into the room from the open drapes, and she realised the night was passed. She had not even roused to the sound of the maid making up the fire. Slipping out of bed, she pulled the blankets over Georgiana and went to the window. The garden view was cloaked in murky fog, matching her despair.
A light scratch on the door had her nearly running to it.
Mrs Taylor did not look as though she had gotten much sleep herself. “He’s gone, miss. The doctor, that is. Just now.”
“Did he say when he might return?”
“No, miss, but directly after his departure, Stimple left in a great hurry. It is Mr Sharp’s day, but I do not believe he will arrive for an hour yet. Oh, and Donavan was complaining about his lack of sleep…and he muttered something of Lady Catherine’s ingratitude in the face of his ‘heroic’ efforts. I do not know what he meant.”
Lizzy briefly closed her eyes, fearing she could guess. “Thank you, Mrs Taylor. I will wake Georgiana, and she will be up to visit her brother directly.”
“Should I send Edna up to help her dress?”
“No need. I will help her.”
The housekeeper withdrew as Georgiana sat up in bed. “Lizzy?”
