“And his friend, what is his name?”
Elizabeth quickly turned to him with a blush sweeping over her face, startled at his reference to her husband. “He… his name is Mr. Darcy.”
Wickham smiled at her obvious nervousness.
“And is he from around here?”
Elizabeth chided herself for her sudden nervousness. “He lives in Derbyshire.” Elizabeth unknowingly began rubbing her hands together.
“And you said you had only come to know him spending those few days at Netherfield?” He flashed her a charming smile, meant to disarm and assure her of his trustworthiness.
Elizabeth turned her face from him, feeling as if she was being interrogated.
“I… he…” Elizabeth had the gnawing suspicion that his questions were not as casual as they seemed. “I have not known him long, no.”
Wickham narrowed his eyes, noticing her obvious discomfort.
“I notice that he did not join his friend today. Is he no longer in the neighbourhood, then?”
Elizabeth looked at him, searching the face behind the charming smile, suave voice, and penetrating eyes. “No, I believe he had some business that took him back to his home in Derbyshire.”
Wickham’s charming smile was quickly replaced by a satisfied grin.
Further conversation was prevented by Lydia briskly walking toward them.
“Mr. Wickham, I wondered where you had gone off to!”
“Well, Miss Elizabeth, it appears as though your sister desires my company. If you will excuse me, it has been a pleasure conversing with you.” Wickham gave her a polite bow, and then eagerly went off with Lydia.
As he walked away, Elizabeth was annoyed at herself for reacting as she did. Why did I feel so uneasy when he spoke of William? She gripped her hands together and shook her head. There was no reason to react that way . She could not help turning her gaze back on him, nevertheless, wondering what it was about him that so disconcerted her.
Chapter 27
Darcy arose at dawn the next day to get an early start making inquiries with Durnham’s help. When no one at Pemberley seemed to recall seeing Wickham in quite a long time, they set out for the surrounding villages and made inquiries. Wickham had not been seen by anyone.
That night Darcy retreated to his study. It had been a long day and he was too restless to sit and relax, wondering what Wickham could be doing and who it was that saw him. What is it that I am not seeing? he asked himself. He paced relentlessly before walking over to the mantel and picking up Elizabeth’s sampler. As he looked at it, Georgiana walked in.
“Am I disturbing you?”
Darcy quickly put the sampler down and returned to his chair. “No, please, come in and sit.”
Instead of sitting, Georgiana walked up to her brother’s desk, facing him. She had just come to learn from one of the servants that his preoccupation since arriving had something to do with Wickham.
She decided to ask him outright. “Fitzwilliam, what brought you home so suddenly?”
Her eyes searched his and noticed the pain that flooded them.
“I… I received a note that there was a matter of urgency here that needed my attention.”
Georgiana waited, but he seemed reluctant to go on. He tapped his fingers lightly on the desk. Over the years, Georgiana had come to recognize that as a sign he was nervous and concealing something.
“Does it have to do with George Wickham?”
Darcy started at this, looking up into the wise, maturing face of his sister. Her look of tenacity surprised him at first, and then softened his guard.
“Have you seen him recently?”
Georgiana shook her head. “No, and I do not wish to, but I would have liked to have been informed of this.”
“You have grown up, Georgiana, and sometimes it is difficult for me to remember that.” He stood up and beckoned her to come to him. She walked around the desk and he drew her into his arms.
“I received a note that Wickham had been seen around Lambton and Pemberley. I was worried about you.”
“Did you not trust me, Fitzwilliam?”
“I trust you, Georgiana. I do not trust him.”
He drew her away and looked at her. “I will make some final inquiries into this matter tomorrow, and then on the following day I want you to join me when I return to Netherfield.”
She gave him a sly smile, and walked over to the mantel. “You have been spending a great deal of time with your good friend, Charles Bingley. You must be enjoying his company.”
“Yes, I am.”
“And Miss Bingley?”
“Miss Bingley is, and always will be, an unfortunate accessory to my friendship with Bingley.”
Darcy watched as Georgiana casually picked up the sampler.
“And what of Miss Bennet?”
A lump in Darcy’s throat forced him to swallow, and he watched her turn slowly and give him a piercing gaze.
“Miss Bennet?”
“Yes.” She turned and bore her eyes into him. “You claim that you trust me. Would you please trust me enough to tell me exactly who Miss Elizabeth Bennet is?”
Darcy stared at her and then laughed softly.
“Oh, I had forgotten. She mentioned that she met you when she and her aunt and uncle toured Pemberley.”
“So you have seen her at Hertfordshire!”
“Yes, I have. But how did you know?”
Georgiana walked back around to the chair opposite his desk and sat, still holding on to the sampler. “Too many things were all too conveniently linked together. You called out the name Elizabeth from the carriage in America and reacted in a way I had never seen you act. And then there was the strange note from Wendell, with only the word Longbourn written on it. When Miss Bennet visited Pemberley, she mentioned that she lived at Longbourn, which is in Hertfordshire, which just happened to be where you set off to so suddenly.”
“You are quite the detective, I see.”
“Oh, I have all the clues, but I do not know what they mean! The final clue, however, I have just recently discovered while you have been gone.”
“And what is that?”
She held up the sampler. “I had not noticed this before, but a few days ago I was looking at this sampler and I saw the initials of the one who stitched it. EB . They are cleverly concealed among the tendrils of the vine, but definitely an EB. Now please do not tell me it is all a coincidence!” Georgiana crossed her arms in front of her, as if she was not going to leave until he explained this all for her.
Darcy looked up, taking a deep breath as he did. “I met Miss Bennet on the ship going to America.”
“I thought as much.”
Darcy tightened his jaw as he contemplated how much to tell her. “I grew quite attached to her, but did not come to learn any particulars about where she lived or where she was staying upon arriving in America. That morning when we docked, I went in search for her, but she had already disembarked and was on a carriage to I know not where.”
“And that is why you seemed so despondent when you arrived in America?”
Darcy nodded. “All I knew was that she was staying with her aunt and uncle in New York for a few months and then would return to England. I knew she lived in Hertfordshire. Wendell said he would see if he could find out exactly where she lived. That was what his note was for, which, by the way, was addressed to me, and younger sisters should not be sneaking a peek at their brother’s correspondence!”
Georgiana smiled and looked down, then slowly lifted her eyes to look innocently at him.
“So you found her at Longbourn in Hertfordshire?”
Darcy nodded, a wide grin spreading across his face.
Georgiana clasped her hands. “I am glad!”
“You are glad?”
“Yes. Fitzwilliam, I liked her so very much, and I prayed and prayed that she was someone of whom you were fond and that she cared for you in return.” She nervously looked down at her hands. “I have very often thought about the fact that you would someday marry, and that it might be someone whom I would not like or who would not understand me.”