“I wish I could, Georgiana, I truly do.”
“Should we watch for them?” She glanced to the wide windows overlooking the Square, restless anxiety wrecking havoc on her attempts to calm. “Perhaps time will be saved if I alert William as soon as they enter the Square.”
“They will come in through the mews,” Simone answered with a shake of her head, continuing at the questioning expression on Georgiana’s face, “Richard will be considerate of discretion. Best not to cause a scene. I am sure the neighbors are already spinning conjectures over what brought Mr. Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam galloping crazily into the Square.”
“Oh! I did not think of gossiping neighbors! This is horrible enough without wild tales spreading through Town!”
“Breathe, my dear, before you faint.”
“I cannot bear it, Simone. Please, tell me how you have learned to remain tranquil in crisis situations. How do you maintain your sanity and stay strong and act bravely? And do not say needlepoint!”
Simone shrugged, the needle continuing to steadily pierce the stretched linen in even strokes. “Tranquility and strength are illusions. And bravery in my case is more bravado. Trust me, crying and raging occurs. Frequently. All I have learned to do is choose the time for my emotional collapse when I am alone and not inconveniencing anyone. Well, generally so, I should say. I did try to kill my own father when my feigned acceptance and patience failed me.”
She spoke in a lighthearted tone, almost as if jesting, but Georgiana knew the pain buried underneath her carefree words. Suddenly, Lady Simone dropped the hoop into her lap, reached across the narrow space, and clasped Georgiana’s hand. “There is no shame in crying. You do not need to be brave or strong if tears are necessary. Releasing the emotion usually aids the rebuilding of one’s fortitude and restores clarity.”
Georgiana shook her head, opening her mouth to assert her intention to remain brave for her family when the door chime rang, jolting through the depressive pall heavy in the air as if a clanging cymbal. Nerves strung tighter than a coil, Georgiana jumped up, taking an involuntary step toward the doorway.
“Fret not. Mr. Travers will handle whoever it is.”
Georgiana nodded but moved closer to the foyer to overhear. Mr. Travers’s polite greeting transmitted across the expanse, but the response from behind the stout door was muted. Yet something in the hushed, mumbled tenor piqued her curiosity.
She opened the door further, peeking curiously through as a hand appeared with a folded envelope extended to the butler. “I shall see that Miss Darcy receives this as soon as she returns, sir.”
The hand disappeared, the butler beginning to close the door, when the response reached her ears. “I would appreciate that, thank you.”
Instant recognition swept through her body, the musical timbre of the male voice causing her heart to lurch with joy while also pulverizing the tenuous tethers holding her emotions in check. Her legs carried her across the tiled floor before she found her voice, then shouted, “Sebastian!” startling Mr. Travers into dropping the note.
Mr. Butler was equally startled, but responded with a broad grin of happiness which lasted about two seconds before the impact of his beloved’s body knocked the air out of his lungs and nearly sent him sprawling onto the outside step. Thankfully, Mr. Travers grabbed one arm, the other instinctively clutching the wooden threshold for stability so he did not tumble with the clinging, sobbing Georgiana onto the stones, but his emotions at such a bizarre greeting were chaotic to say the least!
Years of experience paid off as the butler rallied rapidly, hauling on Mr. Butler’s arm to bring him into the foyer and slamming the door shut. Then he retrieved the fallen note and walked away as if Miss Darcy weeping in a strange man’s arms was a daily occurrence.
Although not adverse to having Georgiana locked within his embrace and not impervious to the fragrance of her hair and warm curves pressed against his chest, Sebastian was utterly flummoxed, his confusion not aided by Georgiana, whose words were indecipherable amid the crying. He held her tight, comforted slightly upon noting Lady Simone standing in the parlor doorway. But her expression was grave, sending additional alarms through his mind, and then the appearance of an armed Colonel Fitzwilliam from the dimly lit back hallway sealed the awareness that something was seriously wrong.
“Ah, perfect timing, Mr. Butler,” Richard said, not a trace of humor or warmth on his face. “The ladies will need your added support. However, I would suggest that all of you retire to the parlor and shut the door as I do not think it wise for Mr. Darcy to see his sister in your arms right now, all considered.”
And then he pivoted, sheathed sword knocking against a holstered pistol, walking purposefully down the left hallway.
Chapter Eighteen
The Night of Reckoning
I have your wife and son. No harm shall befall them if you heed my demands, quietly and alone. 70,000 pounds will pay for their safe release. Make arrangements immediately. You will be contacted for further instructions. Any hesitation or deviation from my dictates and they will die.
Darcy read the words for the hundredth time. He had no need to read them, as they were indelibly etched into his brain and would likely never be forgotten. No salutation. No signature. The handwriting was not Wickham’s, of that Darcy was certain, so he assumed it was Orman’s penmanship. Of course, there was no way to know for sure, but he had little doubt.
He sighed, closing his eyes and dropping the clutched note to his side. The wait was killing him. It had only been an hour since the messenger had arrived at Angelo’s and they had torn through the crowded streets of London to reach Darcy House. An hour that was an eternity.
At least he was calmer now, Richard succeeding in penetrating his irrational raving before departing to collect the necessary manpower required to deal with the situation. Of course it had required taking him bodily and slamming Darcy into the library wall to accomplish the feat, utilizing a strength that amazed his younger cousin who was physically larger. Richard had revealed a side to his character that Darcy was not familiar with: the commanding colonel who knew how to quell an entire company of men with a single look or growled demand. It was painful, and a bit humiliating, but the action had done the trick. Darcy’s emotions were no less tumultuous, but at least he had them well buried and under a semblance of control. The arrival of his uncle was beneficial, the older man so accustomed to trauma that he was a stabilizing force.
Darcy glanced to the wadded fabric lying on the table by the window. George, who paced several feet away, had instantly recognized the odor emanating from the moist cloth as oil of sweet vitriol, or ether. The brief exposition that the doctor provided of the chemical compound had only added to Darcy’s distress over his wife and son.
The questions of how this violation could have happened within the confines of his home were too numerous to deal with at the present time. His unquenchable fury over what he saw as a failure on the part of his staff was so monumental that he simply could not allow himself to dwell on it. Richard was correct. He needed to remain levelheaded and composed for the sake of Elizabeth and Alexander.
But it was horribly difficult. The chaotic clash of indescribable terror and unprecedented wrath warred within his body and mind unrelentingly. It was only by the grace and strength of God that he did not collapse. Or begin breaking things.
Although they had no conclusive, legal proof, everything pointed to Wickham and Orman being behind the kidnapping of his family. They planned to proceed as if this were the case, but on the slim chance that it was all a horrific coincidence and some other criminal was the abductor, he had written to Mr. Daniels for the funds to be delivered as soon as was possible. Darcy could care less about the money, and would pay far more to ensure the safe return of his wife and son. Nevertheless, he abhorred the idea of anyone escaping justice, especially if the lawbreaker was Wickham or Orman. But of greater importance was finding his family before they were harmed any further.