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V - Louisa Finds Out More

Posted on 2011-11-22

'I like Matthew,' Louisa told her husband that evening.

'So?' her husband said. 'So do I, if I may remind you.'

'So,' Louisa said, 'if I did not like him, do you not think that would rather complicate things?'

'It might, yes,' her husband admitted. 'So I suppose I should be grateful that you approve of him?'

'You could at least be pleased to hear it,' Louisa said.

'Very well then,' Mr Hurst said. 'I am pleased to hear it. How did this come about, by the way? Did you look him up?'

'He called on me,' Louisa said. 'He asked if I wanted him to explain anything, then he took me out for tea and overall, unlike some I could mention, he behaved very prettily.'

'Indeed,' said Mr Hurst.

'Oh, you are insufferable!' Louisa exclaimed. 'I do not know what he sees in you!'

'No, me neither,' her husband said, much softer than before. 'I suppose I simply was lucky.'

'Oh, you cannot know how good it is to finally have someone to talk to,' Matthew said to Louisa while they were waiting for their scones. 'About Christian and all, I mean.'

'There is nobody who knows but me?' Louisa asked.

'I think Mrs Miggins may suspect something,' Matthew said, 'but apart from that, no, there is nobody. It is not exactly something you tell people, is it?'

He sipped at his tea and Louisa wondered with how many lies he and Christian had had to live over the years.

'I mean,' Matthew continued, 'I could hardly tell my mother and father about Christian, could I? I introduced him to them, of course, but as far as they are concerned, he is just a good friend -'

He broke off and stared into his cup.

'Christian's sister knew,' he said. 'She found out much the same way as you did, really.'

'Poor girl,' Louisa said. 'Was she very shocked?'

'Actually, no, not really,' Matthew said. 'She was quite sharp and had suspected something for quite some time. I never talked much with her - she was rather intimidating, to tell the truth - but she was great about it. Never mentioned it to anyone, not even her husband. Well, Christian was her baby brother, she wanted to protect him -'

'You said she was,' Louisa said softly. 'Is she -'

'Yes, she died,' Matthew said. 'Three - no, four years ago now.'

'How?' Louisa whispered.

'In childbirth,' Matthew said. 'Something was wrong with the position of the child and they had to call for a surgeon. He tried everything, but the surgery was complicated and Lucie lost too much blood and - nothing could be done.'

'And the child?' Louisa asked.

'A boy,' Matthew said. 'He lived. Lucie named him Christian before she died.'

He took another sip of his tea.

'Christian was with her the whole time, you know,' he said. 'He would not leave her even though the surgeon and the midwife repeatedly tried to throw him out of the room.'

'Where was Lucie's husband?' Louisa asked.

'Overseas,' Matthew said. 'Making his fortune in the Caribbean from what I gather. He is still there, I hear. He left the boy with his parents and hardly saw him above twice in his life. Christian offered to take him, repeatedly, but to no avail.'

'Christian wanted to raise the child?' Louisa asked incredulously.

'Oh, yes,' Matthew said. 'He would have done everything for Lucie. When his lawyer informed him that there was no way for him to get guardianship for the boy, that was what really broke him.'

He bit into his scone listlessly.

'It took almost a year for him to get over that,' he said. 'It was very difficult with him. We went to Ireland - my father has property there, and he wanted me to play steward - and Christian would simply do nothing all day.'

'Nothing?' Louisa asked.

'Nothing,' Matthew said. 'He would just sit in his room, staring out of the window - sometimes he would go walking for hours, without telling anyone. Other days, he would not even get out of bed -'

He broke off and stared at his scone.

'The worst of it was that he would not talk,' he said. 'He would not speak to me. I was getting so frustrated with him, and I could not talk to anybody either. I tried to speak to a priest once, but I did not dare confide in him and I do not think he understood my problem.'

He put the scone back onto his plate.

'I mean, I can understand that he did not want to speak about it,' he said. 'Everybody is different. I always want to speak about everything, but Christian does not. It frustrated me that he would not talk, but I understood. The problem was that I had nobody to talk to either because Christian always was the only one with whom I would talk. The only one with whom I could talk - about me, about us - about how it terrifies me at times -'

'Did you never think about telling someone?' Louisa asked.

'I did, yes,' Matthew said. 'But I never knew how people would react, and I did not want to risk it. It is not only my secret, it is Christian's as well. And so I remained silent, and said nothing, and lived with Christian not talking.'

'And then?' Louisa asked.

Matthew hesitated.

'I am not sure Christian would want me to tell you,' he said slowly. 'He reached a - a sort of crisis. It was painful, very painful, for both of us, but in the end, it proved to be cathartic.'

He grinned awkwardly.

'The longest, most intimidating, most terrifying, most wonderful three days of my life,' he said.

A couple of days later, Caroline was invited to take tea with Miss Darcy and her guardians. As usual, the sandwiches were excellent, as well as the cupcakes specially delivered - the one thing the cook would not make herself - and Caroline graciously accepted the second helpings Miss Darcy pressed onto her.

The recent illness was still very visible in Miss Darcy's face and demeanour; she was pale and rather nervous but she did her utmost to make her guest feel at ease. Caroline could not but admire Mrs Annesley, a true gentlewoman, who subtly guided Miss Darcy without it becoming obvious. She was a great improvement to the companion Miss Darcy had had before, Caroline thought, a rather extroverted lady, who had often seemed to forget her charge when conversing with guests. Mrs Annesley had her share of the conversation, it was true, but her participation was rather to ensure there were no awkward pauses or to even the way for Miss Darcy, and not to present herself.

When they were finished with the tea, Mrs Annesley, noticing the tired expression in Miss Darcy's face, asked her young charge whether she would not like to retire, and Miss Darcy thankfully accepted after having earnestly begged for Caroline's forgiveness.

'Would you call my carriage?' Caroline asked the Colonel when Miss Darcy and Mrs Annesley had left the room.

'I thought perhaps Darcy and I could walk you home,' the Colonel suggested. 'It is such a fine day and it is not very far. Besides -'

His expression told Caroline that they wanted to talk to her in private and she readily accepted.

'Louisa has a new friend,' she told them when they had left the house. 'And Mr Hurst seems to be friends with him as well. A Mr Aldridge. He dined with us last night.'

'Aldridge, Aldridge,' Mr Darcy muttered. 'If he is who I think he is, he is a rather decent young man. Good family. His father has property in Ireland and Aldridge was there for the last couple of years, managing it, if I recall correctly.'

Caroline described Mr Aldridge.

'That would be him,' Mr Darcy said. 'I know him but slightly, but he is very well-respected and liked. He stands to inherit quite a handsome fortune from his mother's side of the family.'

'Not the sort of person you would expect one of Mr Hurst's ilk to associate with,' the Colonel remarked. 'I wonder if there is blackmail involved.'

'Well, there were some rumours a couple of years ago,' Mr Darcy acceeded. 'I do not recall any particulars - actually, I do not think there ever were any particulars - someone apparently claimed to have seen Aldridge coming out of a locale with a certain reputation - but then, he was a very untrustworthy source and nobody paid him any attention.'

'Maybe our friend Hurst somehow came into additional information,' the Colonel speculated.

'What sort of locale would that be?' Caroline asked, curious. 'What reputation does it have?'

'A very bad reputation,' Mr Darcy said hastily. 'Nothing that should be mentioned in gentle company.'

Caroline pouted.

'Have you discovered anything else?' the Colonel asked quickly.

'Not really, no,' Caroline said. 'Only Louisa seems to be in a better mood lately.'

'That does not sound too good,' Mr Darcy said.

'Not at all,' the Colonel agreed.

'We had better observe them closely,' Mr Darcy said.

'In that case,' Caroline said, 'you should perhaps come to dine with us today. I do not think Mr Aldridge is expected but I could throw myself at you over coffee, Mr Darcy.'

'Why, that sounds like an excellent plan,' the Colonel said. 'Does it not, Darcy?'

'We are dining with your mother tonight,' Mr Darcy pointed out.

'Oh, the mater will not mind,' the Colonel said. 'We shall send Georgiana to dine with her and Miss Bingley can expect us.'

'If you insist,' Mr Darcy said grumpily. 'The Hursts will be there though, will they not? Otherwise, there would be no need for a spectacle.'

'Oh, they will,' Caroline said. 'Shall I see you later then?'

They had reached the doorstep of her brother's house so Mr Darcy and the Colonel promised to return later and then took their leave of her.

Inside, Caroline found her brothers and sister in the drawing-room. Louisa was reading a journal, Charles was penning a letter and Mr Hurst was snoring on a couch.

'I have invited Mr Darcy and his cousin to dine with us,' Caroline announced.

'That sounds nice,' Louisa said. 'Which cousin?'

'The Colonel,' Caroline said. 'Remember, Miss Darcy's other guardian.'

'Oh, right, him,' Louisa said. 'Completely penniless, was he not?'

'He is quite charming though,' Caroline said, then remembering her instructions, added, 'although of course nothing compared with dear Mr Darcy. He was particularly attentive towards me today, I must say.'

'How nice,' Louisa said, then lowered her voice and whispered, 'So do you think there is hope after all?'

'Who knows?' Caroline whispered and winked. 'He rather begged for an invitation though, that I can tell you.'

Mr Hurst woke with a start.

'Mr Darcy?' he asked. 'He is coming to dine? Tonight?'

'Yes, Mr Hurst,' Caroline said. 'He is coming just for you; he has been longing to see you.'

'Excellent, excellent,' Mr Hurst said, distracted.

'Why, Caroline, I rather think he might come to see someone else,' Louisa said and winked.

'What is all this talk about Darcy?' Charles asked. 'What has he done?'

'Nothing, Charles, nothing,' Caroline said. 'I invited him to dine with us tonight, that is all.'

'Oh, I would not say that was all,' Louisa said and giggled.

'Oh, quite,' Caroline said. 'How could I forget!'

'I wonder indeed how you could forget,' Louisa said. 'I thought it was especially important for you.'

'Yes, Charles,' Caroline said. 'Mr Darcy's cousin is coming as well. The Colonel. Do you remember him?'

'I was not talking about that,' Louisa muttered.

'Colonel Fitzwilliam?' Charles asked. 'Have you set your cap at him now, Caro?'

'No, of course not,' Caroline said hastily. 'I have set my cap at no one.'

'Really no one?' Louisa inquired.

'Oh, you know,' Caroline said.

'Well, then,' Mr Hurst said, 'I think I forgot something at my club and must quickly go there before dinner. Louisa, could I talk to you for a minute?'

'Of course, dear,' Louisa said and followed her husband out of the room.

'Is there anything I should know?' Charles asked when they had left.

'What?' Caroline asked.

'You are not really pursuing Colonel Fitzwilliam now, are you?'

'Do not be silly, Charles, of course not,' Caroline said and could not help blushing. 'I merely appreciate his company.'

'And Darcy?' Charles asked. 'You are not playing some game with him, are you?'

'Oh, please,' Caroline said.

'I would not like for either of you to be hurt,' Charles said.

'Do not worry, we are all three of us fine,' Caroline said.

'You have been behaving just as oddly as Louisa lately,' Charles said. 'Are you quite sure everything is fine?'

'Yes, of course,' Caroline said. 'Everything is fine.'

Charles did not seem convinced.

'You can ask Darcy if you do not believe me,' Caroline said. 'He will tell you that there is nothing between us and that we are quite agreed about that.'

'And Colonel Fitzwilliam?' Charles asked.

Caroline said nothing.

'I only want to see you happy, Caro,' Charles said.

'I know,' Caroline said, 'but there is no need to behave like my father.'

'I know you are old enough,' Charles said.

'Older than you, actually,' Caroline pointed out.

'Older than me, in fact,' Charles agreed, 'look, Caro, if there is anything, you know you can come to me, do you not?'

'Of course,' Caroline said.

She kissed Charles on the nose and left the room.

Chapter VI - Louisa Dines With Her Family

Posted on 2011-11-29

The dinner went smoothly; the menu Caroline had selected was universally appreciated and the conversation centered on things of general interest such as the weather and recent news. Caroline took great care to keep her promise and flirted with Mr Darcy in what she personally thought was a rather shameless manner. She feared she would be too transparent, especially considering how Mr Darcy was wincing when he thought nobody was watching, but Louisa and Mr Hurst seemed to think her convincing enough. Charles, as usual, was rather oblivious to the niceties of the goings-on around him, and only complimented Caroline's choice of pudding. After dinner, Caroline and Louisa retreated to one of the drawing rooms, leaving the gentlemen to their port. Caroline picked up her needlework and Louisa returned her attention to the fashion journal she had been reading earlier. The gentlemen, thankfully, did not linger long over port and joined them shortly.

'Coffee, Mr Darcy?' Caroline asked sweetly, remembering her promise from earlier on.

'No, thank you,' Mr Darcy said.

His cousin nudged him unobtrusively.

'That is, in a moment perhaps if you do not mind,' Mr Darcy added. 'In the meantime, however, I want to ask you a favour.'

'A favour, Mr Darcy?' Caroline simpered, fluttering her eyelashes. 'Oh, what could that be?'

'I noticed a very fine landscape in your dining-room and I wondered if you could tell me more about it,' Mr Darcy said. 'Perhaps my cousin and I could ask you some questions concerning the picture while we admire it together.'

'Oh, certainly, I should love that,' Caroline said, knowing perfectly well that there was no picture of a landscape in the dining-room. 'Why do we not go there at once? Are you joining us, Colonel?'

She took the Colonel's arm, gave Mr Darcy a broad smile for Louisa's sake and allowed herself to be escorted back into the dining-room.

When the door had closed behind them, Louisa scurried over to her husband, who had settled himself on a sofa and assumed his usual position.

'There is no landscape in the dining-room,' she whispered into his ear.

'Excellent, is it not?' Mr Hurst whispered back. 'We are making good progress. I think you were rather wrong in your assessment of your sister's feeling, do you not think so, and maybe even Darcy's, although it is hard to tell with him.'

'Oh, for heaven's sake!' Charles exclaimed and when they turned their heads towards him, they noticed that he had managed to spill ink over the cuffs of both his arms.

'I only wanted to quickly jot down the directions on that letter, lest I forgot that before posting it,' Charles said, 'and now look at this. I shall have to go upstairs and change before I ruin everything.'

'Yes, do, Charles,' Louisa said.

'What do you mean, excellent?' Louisa asked when her brother had left them.

'Well, apparently Caroline is doing her best at seeking Mr Darcy out,' Mr Hurst said. 'That is well.'

'But it was Mr Darcy who sought Caroline out!' Louisa pointed out. 'And he took his cousin along with him.'

'Yes, the cousin,' Mr Hurst admitted. 'He could pose a problem. Caroline seems to be rather fond of him, and he of her. We must not allow that to happen. You must take care of him.'

'I?' Louisa asked. 'Why should I do that? I am pushing her towards Darcy, was not that the idea? Why do not you do it?'

'Because, my dear -' Mr Hurst said. 'Oh, nothing.'

'Anyway,' Louisa said. 'What about Mr Darcy? Why did he seek my sister out, instead of the other way round?'

'As I said, maybe he is attracted to her after all,' Mr Hurst suggested, 'and your assessment of the situation was faulty.'

'Yes, but, Algie,' Louisa said. 'After all you have told me about him, and what you suspect he is up to, should I really be happy that he appears to be genuinely interested in my sister?'

'At least he is not French,' Mr Hurst said.

'He is as good as, if you are right!' Louisa exclaimed. 'I cannot allow him to prey on my sister.'

'We must do our duty first,' Mr Hurst said. 'Remember, Louisa, you promised me. We are at war, do not forget that. We all have to make personal sacrifices.'

'Yes, I remember,' Louisa said. 'You the most of all, I do not forget that. Heaven forbid that I should forget your sacrifices.'

'Well, then,' Mr Hurst said, 'see how much success you have with the Colonel, I will take a nap. So fatiguing, these dinners.'

He closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep when Charles rejoined them.

Caroline had stepped into the hall with her two companions. They heard plates ringing from the dining-room.

'I think the library is empty,' Caroline said and lead the way.

'Well, then, Colonel,' she said when they had settled themselves around the late Mr Bingley's large writing desk, 'how do you like my brother Mr Hurst, now that you have properly met him?'

'I think he is queer,' the Colonel said. 'I cannot precisely say how, or why, but something about him strikes me as odd.'

'He went to his club again this afternoon,' Caroline reported, 'just before dinner.'

'Well, he never arrived there,' the Colonel said, 'for I was waiting there for him, just in case he should turn up, and I did not see him.'

'He has several clubs, has he not?' Mr Darcy interjected.

'Yes, but he has only ever turned up in one of them,' the Colonel explained, 'a rather dingy affair, if you ask me, rather more frequented by the more dubious elements.'

'I gather you had no trouble securing membership?' Mr Darcy asked.

'None at all,' the Colonel said. 'They do not ask for references or I would have asked you for one.'

'So he goes to that one club?' Mr Darcy said. 'That is a new development.'

'Well, he goes there only occasionally,' the Colonel amended, 'and only to meet other people - curiously though, apparently none of the men he was meeting matched the description of Aldridge Miss Bingley gave me.'

'Aldridge, Aldridge,' Mr Darcy muttered. 'I cannot puzzle out his role in the whole affair. I looked him up at home and he is indeed who I thought he was - very respectable family.'

'Even they can have bad eggs,' the Colonel said.

'As is proven time and again with you,' Mr Darcy said. 'Seriously, though, I think I know him slightly from Cambridge - he came down a year or two before me - and he had the best of reputations. No gaming debts, no boundaries over-stepped with anyone, a great favourite with his tutors - he simply is not the person to have dealings with Mr Hurst.'

'And yet, he has,' the Colonel said. 'We must find out more. Miss Bingley, would you mind dropping Mr Aldridge's name in the conversation later on? Make it something very innocent and allow us to see Hurst's and your sister's reaction to his name. Maybe it is not Hurst after all but Mrs Hurst Aldridge is interested in.'

'But would Mr Hurst meet this Mr Aldridge if he was interested in my sister?' Caroline asked, who had until then followed the cousins' exchange with rapt attention.

Mr Darcy shrugged.

'Stranger things have happened,' he said. 'The two men may have come to an agreement regarding your sister.'

Caroline blushed.

'Now, now, Darcy,' the Colonel said, 'you are over-whelming poor Miss Bingley with these new insights into our capital's morals.'

'I beg your pardon,' Mr Darcy said stiffly, now blushing equally, 'I forgot myself. It was not my intention to shock you, Miss Bingley.'

'I am not shocked,' Caroline lied. 'I am not a child anymore.'

'No, indeed,' the Colonel said and chuckled.

Caroline ignored him.

'Mr Darcy,' she said instead, 'how would you rate my efforts to throw myself at you so far? Have I been eager enough?'

'Err -'

'Did you not think my little maneuver with the salt bowl particularly clever?'

'Err -'

'Everybody must have thought I was touching your hand, must they not?'

'Really, Miss Bingley -' Mr Darcy said.

'You were brilliant, Miss Bingley,' the Colonel interrupted him. 'Absolutely magnificent. Keep up the good work. And now, shall we return to the drawing-room? It is time we proceeded. Miss Bingley, may I have your shawl?'

'Whatever for?' Caroline asked.

'Whenever things inside there become to much for you,' the Colonel explained, placing the shawl neatly on a chair, 'you can claim to miss your shawl and come here. Or, you can ask me to retrieve it for you and then follow me because you recall it is not where you told me it was. I shall meet you here and whatever it is you need to tell me can be said then.'

'Inspiring,' Mr Darcy muttered. 'Do you always use these tactics at parties?'

'Only when I am bored,' the Colonel said.

He offered his arm to Caroline and led her back into the drawing-room.

'I was looking for you in the dining-room,' Charles said when they returned, 'but you were not there. Did you not want to look at a picture there?'

'Uhm,' Mr Darcy began, but Caroline cut him short.

'It turned out that the picture Mr Darcy had been thinking about was not in the dining-room,' she said, 'so we figured he had to have seen it somewhere else in the house. We looked in the small salon, but he could not see it there either. So then we went into the study, but it was not there either. Lastly, we looked in the hall, but Mr Darcy could not find it there. So we concluded that he had not seen in our house at all.'

'Inspiring,' the Colonel muttered into Caroline's ear.

'Yes, indeed,' Mr Darcy said, 'I must have seen the picture somewhere else. If only I knew where it was.'

'Do not worry, Mr Darcy,' Louisa said, 'it will come to you. Colonel, would you care for some coffee?'

'Coffee would be great,' the Colonel said. 'Thank you very much, Mrs Hurst.'

'Come over here with me,' Louisa said, 'I will pour you a cup.'

'I would like some coffee as well,' Mr Darcy said, 'if it is not too much trouble.'

'Of course not,' Louisa purred, 'Caroline, would you pour Mr Darcy some coffee while I serve the Colonel?'

'What? Oh, of course,' Caroline said, 'come with me, Mr Darcy, and I will get you your coffee.'

'Can I have coffee too,' Charles asked, 'or are you ladies too busy?'

'Do not be silly, Charles,' Caroline said. 'There is enough coffee for everyone.'

'Look, here, Colonel,' Louisa said when she had filled the Colonel's cup, 'have a look at this screen my sister painted. Is it not extraordinarily well executed?'

She guided the Colonel through the room, away from Caroline and Mr Darcy, who were still at the coffee table.

'Marvellous, is it not?' Louisa said, pointing out a small detail on the screen.

'Quite, quite,' the Colonel said.

'Louisa, do you think Mr Hurst would like some coffee too?' Caroline asked.

Louisa spun around and saw Caroline standing at her elbow, a cup of coffee in her hands.

'I am sorry, you were saying?' Louisa said.

'Mr Hurst, would he like a cup of coffee?' Caroline repeated, indicating Louisa's sleeping husband on the sofa.

'Mr Hurst? Oh, no, no,' Louisa said. 'Let him sleep. I think Mr Darcy is not completely happy with his coffee, Caroline. Do not leave him unattended.'

'Of course not,' Caroline said. 'I would not have Mr Darcy dissatisfied with my coffee.'

She strolled across the room again to join Mr Darcy but then turned around again.

'I say, Louisa, did not Mr Aldridge want to join us tonight?' she asked. 'Or was that tomorrow?'

'Mr Aldridge?' Louisa said evenly. 'I never invited him for tonight. Did you?'

'Mr Aldridge!' Mr Hurst exclaimed, sitting up. 'What about him?'

'Nothing, dear,' Louisa said quickly, 'you seem to have dozed off.'

'Would you like some coffee, Mr Hurst?' Caroline asked and pressed the cup she was still holding into Mr Hurst's hands.

'Caroline, I think Mr Darcy needs sugar for his coffee,' Louisa said.

'Of course, of course,' Caroline muttered.

She turned to Mr Darcy again.

'Sugar, dear Mr Darcy?' she asked sweetly.

'Colonel, have a look at this picture,' Louisa purred, pulling the Colonel with her. 'I think it completely fascinating. The two of us should have a closer look at it.'

'Oh dear,' Caroline said, 'I think I left my shawl in the small salon. It is quite chilly here, is it not?'

'Would you like me to get it for you, Miss Bingley?' the Colonel asked.

'Oh, would you?' Caroline said. 'I would be ever so grateful.'

'But did you not still have your shawl with you when we stepped into the library?' Mr Darcy asked when his cousin had left the room.

'Why, I believe you are right, Mr Darcy,' Caroline said. 'You are always such an astute observer. I had better tell the Colonel, he will never find it in the salon.'

She went straight into the library.

'What is the matter, Miss Bingley?' the Colonel, seated behind the desk, asked. 'You seem a bit uneasy.'

'Louisa! The nerve!' Caroline exclaimed, pacing up and down in front of the desk.

'Beg your pardon?'

'Did you not see how she threw herself at you just now?' Caroline cried. 'First Mr Darcy, then Mr Aldridge, now you - what is the matter with that woman?'

'Well, it pains me to tell you, Miss Bingley, but some married ladies -'

'Yes, yes, I am aware of that,' Caroline snapped. 'But my own sister? And in such a way? She almost exposed herself!'

'Did she now?' the Colonel said. 'I must confess I hardly noticed. She was rather pushing you into Darcy's arms though, was she not?'

'I did not notice,' Caroline said, 'I was too busy throwing myself at him.'

'You were marvellous,' the Colonel said, 'one could almost have believed you really wanted to marry him.'

He looked her sharply into the eye.

'I do not want to, though,' Caroline said, withstanding his gaze. 'Not anymore, in any case.'

The Colonel raised an eyebrow.

'I have to admit I toyed with the idea once,' Caroline said. 'But I gave that up pretty quickly.'

'You told your sister that?' the Colonel asked.

'Well, not in so many words,' Caroline said, 'but it was pretty clear.'

'And still,' the Colonel mused, 'she seems to want you to succeed with him - when before, you said she had designs on him herself, from what you overheard.'

'Designs which she now has on you,' Caroline said.

'That too,' the Colonel said. 'I cannot make it out.'

'She was rather unfazed too, when I mentioned Mr Aldridge,' Caroline said. 'Did you see that?'

'Too unfazed,' the Colonel said, 'and Mr Hurst seemed rather anxious about the matter. No, I simply cannot understand it. We shall have to continue our observations.'

'Only if Louisa can keep her claws to herself,' Caroline muttered under her breath.

'I am sorry, I did not quite catch that,' the Colonel said.

'Nothing,' Caroline said quickly.

'Very well, then let us return before they begin searching for us.'

Chapter VII - Louisa Tries To Make A Match

Posted on 2011-12-06

When they returned to the drawing-room, Mr Hurst was still snoring on the sofa, Charles was still struggling with his letter and his coffee-cup and Louisa and Mr Darcy were sitting on the other sofa and talking.

'No, actually,' Mr Darcy was just saying, 'I am going to leave town by the end of the week.'

'Not for long, I hope?' Louisa said. 'We would all sorely miss you, would we not, Caroline?'

'Of course,' Caroline said, squeezing herself between her sister and Mr Darcy.

'I will not stay away for longer than a month,' Mr Darcy said.

'Where are you going, then, Mr Darcy?' Caroline asked.

She thought that as a fellow conspirator, she should have been informed about Mr Darcy's plans.

'I am accompanying my sister and my aunt to the North,' Mr Darcy said. 'As you may recall, I had intentions of sending her there with my aunt so that she could recover from her recent illness. My aunt has now decided they will leave by the end of the week and I will go with them and see them settle in. They will stay until Christmas, but I intend to be back in London by the end of September.'

'Excellent,' Charles said, looking up from his correspondence. 'Then you can come to Hertfordshire with me.'

'Hertfordshire?' Mr Darcy said, frowning. 'What do you want to do in Hertfordshire?'

'I have been thinking about taking a house there,' Charles said, 'for the shooting-season at least, to see how country life suits me.'

'But why Hertfordshire of all places?' Mr Darcy asked. 'I cannot recall anything about the county which particularly recommends it.'

'I hear it is quite pleasant,' Charles said, 'and it is an easy distance from town if I should find it too boring.'

'This is the first time I hear about this plan,' Caroline said. 'Could you not have mentioned it earlier?'

'Well, I only conceived of it this week,' Charles said. 'You know, I have always thought about buying a house but I was unsure in which part of England to settle, and whether I should like it at all. So I decided I should lease a house first to see if it suited me. Right now, I am writing to a fellow someone recommended to see if he can send me some offers so I can find out how expensive it would be.'

'Charles, do you have any idea about the technicalities of leasing a house?' Mr Darcy asked.

'Not as such, no,' Charles admitted, 'but this fellow Watson is supposed to be a very honourable man.'

Mr Darcy groaned.

'If you knew, Charles, how many men I have heard described as honourable, who have absconded with a substantial amount of money only a week later -'

'Also, Charles,' Caroline pointed out, 'if you leased a house in the country, there would be an estate to tend as well, would there not be?'

'Yes, that,' Charles said. 'It cannot be too difficult to do that, can it? Although, I suppose, if Darcy were to come with me for perhaps a week or two, just to show me where to start -'

'Oh, that is an excellent idea!' Louisa exclaimed. 'We could all go, could we not? What do you say, Algernon, dearest?'

Caroline snorted, but hastily pretended to be coughing.

'Go what? Where?' Mr Hurst asked.

'Charles is going to take a house in Hertfordshire in September,' Louisa explained, 'and he is going to take Mr Darcy with him so that Mr Darcy can show him how to run the estate. I said that it would be splendid for all of us to go, would it not? What do you think, Algernon, would not that be fabulous?'

'September, eh?' Mr Hurst asked, 'Shooting season? I hear there is quite decent shooting in Hertfordshire, eh?'

'I suppose so,' Charles said.

'Wonderful!' Louisa said and clapped her hands. 'Will not that be delightful if we all went to Hertfordshire? You must come as well, Col. Fitzwilliam!'

'I am afraid, ma'am,' the Colonel said, 'that I will be needed elsewhere, much to my regret.'

'That is a pity,' Caroline said, 'it sounded so exciting, this party in Hertfordshire.'

'You will come, though, Darcy, will you not?' Charles asked earnestly.

'Very well, then,' Mr Darcy said, 'I will come to Hertfordshire with you, Charles.'

'Fantastic,' Louisa said and clapped her hands. 'The fun we will have! When did you say we were going, Charles?'

'I do not know yet,' Charles said. 'I suppose I shall have to find a suitable property first and make all the necessary arrangements.'

'Oh,' Louisa pouted.

'You know, Bingley,' Mr Darcy said, 'I cannot assist you in the search for a house, but I can give you the name of a man whom you can trust if you would rather not rely on that Watson fellow. He will explain all the details to you and if you explain what kind of house you are searching, will be able to find something suitable.'

'Oh, I suppose that could not hurt,' Charles said.

'That the time?' Mr Hurst suddenly said. 'Goodness, it is quite late, is it not? It has been very pleasant but I think I shall retire. Are you coming, Louisa, dearest?'

The Hursts took their leave of the rest of the party while Mr Darcy jotted down directions for Charles.

'How was I then?' Louisa asked when they were upstairs in her room.

'Goodness, Louisa, are you drunk?' Mr Hurst asked.

'No, should I be?'

'If you are not, then could you perhaps curb your behaviour a little bit?' Mr Hurst said. 'You were close to sitting in the poor man's lap at one point.'

'But you said -'

'I know what I said,' Mr Hurst said, 'and I admit that you tried very hard -'

'- and I gathered some useful information -'

'- and you gathered some very useful information,' Mr Hurst agreed, 'but please, could you perhaps be a little less direct the next time? I really do not want to have to challenge Darcy - or the Colonel.'

'Still,' Louisa said, 'we know where Darcy is going for the next month and I have made sure that he is coming with us to Hertfordshire.'

'And that was excellent work,' Mr Hurst said. 'Here, have a cupcake.'

'You know, I think I had better take this to the library before I lose it again,' Charles said, indicating the paper with the directions. 'I shall be right back.'

He closed the door behind himself.

'Well, then,' the Colonel said, 'I gather you are off to Hertfordshire, Darcy.'

Mr Darcy grimaced.

'Surely it cannot be as bad as that,' Caroline said. 'We shall have some fun, I wager.'

Mr Darcy groaned.

'And if worse comes to to worst, you could always compromise me,' Caroline said. 'That would be bound to create some excitement.'

'Heaven forbid!' Mr Darcy exclaimed.

'Good gracious, I was only joking,' Caroline said. 'I did not know I was that repulsive.'

'Forgive me; it is not that you are repulsive, Miss Bingley, far from it, only -'

'Yes, I know,' Caroline said. 'And ditto.'

'You do know you will have to keep up your act while in Hertfordshire,' the Colonel reminded them.

'And looking forward to it,' Caroline said. 'Listen though, Colonel, I was wondering -'

'Let us talk about it tomorrow,' the Colonel whispered as Charles re-entered the room carrying Caroline's shawl.

'I found this under the desk in the library,' Charles said. 'I had been wondering why you had not had it with you when you returned.'

'Oh, there it is,' Caroline said. 'We simply could not find it, could we not, Colonel?'

'Untraceable,' the Colonel agreed. 'Where did you say it was?'

'Could I not at least tell Charles?' Caroline asked the Colonel.

They were strolling through the park by themselves, having lost Lady Julia and her nursery-maid at a previous bend. The Colonel had made it a habit of his to call on Caroline almost every other day ever since Mr Darcy's departure for the north. He was usually accompanied by his sister or an elderly aunt, who was completely deaf and thought Caroline was quite charming.

'Your brother,' the Colonel said, obviously choosing his words with care, 'is a very admirable young man but silence, I fear, is not one of his greatest strengths -'

Caroline had to agree that this was true.

'So, while I am sure he would be nothing if not supportive,' the Colonel continued, 'I am afraid the risk would be too great.'

'You have a point there,' Caroline said. 'I only thought it might be nice to have someone else to discuss things with when I am in Hertfordshire.'

'My cousin will be there,' the Colonel said. 'You know you can trust him.'

'Yes, but,' Caroline said, 'when he is not in the right mood, he will not tell me anything unless I pressure him. Besides, it is awkward enough I have to pretend to be after him all the time - I need to be away from him.'

The Colonel said nothing; he only pressed Caroline's hand, which lay in the crook of his arm.

'Are you quite sure you cannot come with us?' Caroline asked.

'I am afraid not,' the Colonel said. 'You will be on your own, but I am sure you will do wonderfully. When do you leave?'

'Oh, I still do not know,' Caroline said. 'Charles is talking of taking possession after Michaelmas but so far, he has not yet found a house that is acceptable. Charles of course wanted to take the very first one they saw but luckily, that man your cousin recommended put his foot down. From what I hear, it was nothing more than a converted cowshed but Charles of course thought it charming.'

'So they are still looking for something?' the Colonel asked.

'They left for Hertfordshire again this morning,' Caroline said, 'and intend to return tomorrow or the day after.'

'Have you heard anymore from Mr Hurst since he left town?' the Colonel asked.

'Well, Louisa had a letter this week,' Caroline said, 'but she only said he sent his regards, and the business in the North would take a while longer. She did not say where up North he was or what he was doing. I tried to find the letter, but I could not.'

'Well, Darcy said he would have an open ear whilst up North,' the Colonel said. 'Maybe he will find out something about this Hurst Hall.'

'Mr Aldridge came to see us yesterday,' Caroline said. 'Again.'

'Anything interesting happening?' the Colonel asked.

'No, but they act as if they are both in on some big secret and I am not,' Caroline said. 'Whenever they think I am not listening, they make stupid jokes and they keep calling Mr Hurst dear old Algie.'

The Colonel shook his head.

'Mr Aldridge has an impeccable character,' he said, 'I have made enquiries everywhere and I have found nothing. I simply cannot fathom how he is involved in all this - unless it is your sister who attracts him.'

'That is the oddest thing,' Caroline said. 'Neither he nor she behave like lovers, not even when they think they are alone. They are more like brother and sister if you ask me, but I could swear Louisa has only known him for a couple of weeks.'

'That is an idea though,' the Colonel said. 'Maybe Mr Aldridge is a figure from Louisa's past, not Mr Hurst's. Tell me, Miss Bingley, were you and your sister always together before she married?'

'Mostly, yes,' Caroline said. 'We lived together in Charles' house, we visited our aunt in Scarborough together, we were at school together - there only was that one term when I fell so ill at school and was sent to my aunt to recuperate - Louisa was at a school in Weymouth that term because they did not want to send her back to the old school.'

'Did you go to that school in Weymouth as well?' the Colonel asked.

'No,' Caroline said, 'when I had recovered, they found a school for us that was not so very far from our aunt.'

'So you never met your sister's acquaintances from Weymouth?'

'I do not think so,' Caroline said. 'I still have her old letters. I can see if she ever mentioned somebody.'

'Please do,' the Colonel said. 'What year was that again?'

Caroline told him.

'I shall see if I can find out anything about Mr Aldridge's activities during that year,' the Colonel said, 'and whether they brought him close to Weymouth.'

'There is your sister again,' Caroline said. 'I think you are to fly that kite now, as you promised half an hour ago.'

A small boy, clutching a kite in his hands, ran towards them, followed by his mother, who was in fact the Colonel's sister.

'Well, then, madam,' the Colonel said and bowed deeply, 'I must honour that promise, painful though it is for me to part company with you.'

'Do not be silly,' Caroline said and fell into pace with Lady Julia.

When Caroline returned, Louisa was sitting in the drawing-room.

'It is past four already,' she said.

'I know,' Caroline said. 'We lost track of the time; the weather was so fine. I hope you did not worry?'

'Well, the footman only told me you had left with a gentleman,' Louisa said. 'Is Mr Darcy back in town?'

'No, it was Colonel Fitzwilliam,' Caroline said. 'We went for a stroll in the park.'

Louisa raised an eyebrow.

'Alone?'

'Lady Julia and her children went with us,' Caroline said.

'I see.'

'You were shopping?' Caroline asked.

'Oh, only some ribbons,' Louisa said. 'Nothing of particular interest.'

'For your green gown?' Caroline asked. 'I thought you said you wanted to have it altered.'

'No, only some for the burgundy one,' Louisa said. 'I could find nothing for the green.'

'Yes, I always thought the shade was rather difficult,' Caroline said. 'It is just so between dark and light.'

Louisa did not answer immediately but took up her fashion journal again.

'Perhaps you could try some gold trimmings,' Caroline suggested. 'I think that might work.'

'It might,' Louisa said. 'Colonel Fitzwilliam is rather charming, is he not?'

'Yes,' Caroline answered, taken aback. 'Yes, I suppose he is. He is certainly very easy to talk to.'

'He has very friendly manners, too,' Louisa said.

'Oh, certainly,' Caroline agreed. 'He behaves very nicely.'

'It is a pity he is not the eldest son,' Louisa said. 'How much money does he make as an officer?'

'I have no idea,' Caroline said. 'Not very much, I suppose.'

'Has he any other income?' Louisa asked.

'I do not know,' Caroline said. 'Maybe his father -'

'He will probably have to marry very rich,' Louisa said. 'Miss Darcy has a dowry of thirty-thousand, I hear. Nothing below that will do for the Colonel, I think. He is used to a certain standard of living probably.'

'I suppose you are right,' Caroline said.

'He is not like Mr Darcy,' Louisa said. 'Mr Darcy will always have a large enough income from Pemberley. He can marry where he chooses.'

'That is true,' Caroline said.

'I do have to say,' Louisa said, 'that of the two men, I find Mr Darcy's countenance far more agreeable. The Colonel is rather ugly if you think about it, is he not?'

'Well, I would not say ugly,' Caroline amended. 'His features are perhaps not as fine as Mr Darcy's -'

'No, not at all,' Louisa said. 'And that scar -'

'He has a very charming smile though,' Caroline said. 'And to tell you the truth, I hardly notice the scar anymore. It is perhaps because I have become so used to him but I think there is a certain something in his face when it is animated, or rather the expression of it - and he has very shapely hands, you must admit that.'

'Has he?' Louisa said. 'I must say I did not pay much attention to them.'

Chapter VIII - Louisa Visits A Friend

Posted on 2011-12-13

'Please, help yourself to some cupcakes,' Matthew said. 'I picked them up from Mrs Miggins' just this morning.'

Louisa was sorely tempted.

'Should we not wait for Algie?' she said.

'Oh, I do not think we need to,' Matthew said. 'After all, there are enough for all of us if you can curb your greed, and it is his own fault if he is too late.'

'Well, then,' Louisa said and picked out a cupcake from the plate on the table.

Matthew poured himself a cup of coffee.

'Oh, dear me,' he said. 'I forgot the cream. I will be back in a moment.'

Before Louisa could say anything, he had left the room and she had time to take in her surroundings. They were in one of the drawing-rooms about whose existence she had speculated when she had first visited this house. This time, however, she had entered it through the front door. To her astonishment, it had not been a butler who had opened it for her, but Matthew himself, greeting her cordially and leading her into the small but comfortable parlour, where coffee for three had already been prepared. The room was nothing compared to the parlours Louisa had visited in other houses. She could tell that the furniture's object was not show but actual use and things like a forgotten newspaper on a small table and mis-matching cushions on the sofa told her that it was indeed used frequently, although she wondered by whom.

Moments later, Matthew returned with a small jug.

'I knew there was something missing,' he said as he added cream to his coffee.

'Are there no servants in this house?' Louisa asked, frowning. 'Whose house is it anyway?'

'Mine,' Matthew said proudly, 'that is, ours. Algie's and mine, but the official documents are in my name only for obvious reasons.'

'You live here together?' Louisa asked.

'When we have the time, yes,' Matthew said. 'Algie has rooms somewhere, of course, but we try to live here when we can. And that is why we have no servants living in the house.'

'But who -' Louisa began then did not know how to ask the question.

'I cook,' Matthew said. 'Or sometimes Algie but he is rather dreadful at it. Most of the time though, we simply have things delivered here or we eat somewhere else.'

'And -'

'We have someone coming in for cleaning and laundry and the like,' Matthew explained. 'As you could see, I am rather good at opening doors and I also do an admirable footman's job when standing around and looking unfazed is required.'

Louisa still was not quite convinced that this would work.

'I assure you, Louisa, it is quite possible to live without servants,' Matthew said. 'Of course, there are disadvantages but it does have its benefits.'

'And - this neighbourhood?' Louisa asked.

'Do you not think that two single men living together in Grosvenor Square with no servants would cause attraction?' Matthew asked. 'Here, nobody could be less interested. To all appearances I live here alone with a friend occasionally visiting, and since I am widely known as an eccentric amongst my family, they could not care less.'

Louisa could not find much more to say. Matthew checked his pocket watch.

'Algie should be here soon,' he said. 'He knows we are having cupcakes, so I think he will try to be on time.'

As Caroline had known she would, Lady Grace, the Colonel's elderly aunt, had fallen asleep as soon as she had sat down in the armchair. It was obvious why the Colonel thought his aunt to be an ideal chaperone, Caroline reflected as she leaned on the mantelpiece and watched the Colonel fumble with his pocket watch.

'You are definitely to go to Hertfordshire?' the Colonel asked.

'Definitely,' Caroline said. 'Charles took possession of it just before Michaelmas and sent some servants there almost instantly. He went there again just yesterday and he intends to ready everything for us to follow but he cannot give us a precise date yet. Your cousin was in a very bad mood when I told him that, but I said it was your express wish that we go along with Charles' plans. Then Louisa came near us and I had to pretend to laugh at something funny he had said, so he could not vent his anger.'

'Your sister is still in favour of the match then?'

'Very much so,' Caroline sighed. 'Hardly a day passes without her enumerating his many qualities. It is always Mr Darcy this and Mr Darcy that and when I so much as suggest that other mothers may have sons too she always reminds me that Mr Darcy is far superior and better-looking.'

'That sounds as if you might make a match out of it after all, with so many qualities recommending the gentleman,' the Colonel said and his smile did not quite reach his eyes.

'Dear me, no,' Caroline said. 'Mr Darcy and I are quite decided about that. We should never suit. Goodness, no offense to you or your cousin, but he can be such a bore.'

'He is keeping up with your pursuit very admirably though,' the Colonel said.

'Well, it is easy for him,' Caroline said. 'He does not have to humiliate himself in front of everyone. You said this would only be for a couple of weeks and now both Mr Hurst and Mr Darcy have been back from wherever they have been for nearly a fortnight and I am still throwing myself at him. Have you still not made any progress?'

'None,' the Colonel said.

'I do not understand it,' Caroline said. 'With so many men at your disposal, can you not simply dig until you find something?'

'What men?' the Colonel asked. 'There is only Darcy, me, and you.'

'But -' Caroline was taken aback, 'but I thought you said you worked for - for some agency and that this was all part of that and -'

'I am sorry if I misled you,' the Colonel said, 'it was unintentional. It is true, I work for - some agency, but this is not part of my work. This is a private endeavour.'

'Are you telling me,' Caroline cried, 'that I have been making myself the ridicule of town for nothing more than some sport of yours and Darcy's?'

'Shh, Caroline,' the Colonel said. 'You will wake my aunt.'

He pointed at the snoring lady in the armchair, then leaned closer towards Caroline and took her hand.

'It is true,' he said, 'we are in on this on our own but that does not mean it is not important.'

'How so? If it was important, would you not let the officials know?'

'We have no solid proof,' the Colonel said, 'and we fear the officials may have been infiltrated.'

'Can I ask you something?' Louisa asked.

'Ask away, my dear,' Matthew said. 'I do not think I could keep any secrets from you now.'

'Did you hate me much?' Louisa asked. 'When you first heard that Algie would marry me.'

'Hate you?' Matthew said and laughed. 'If anything I pitied you. I know how annoying he can get when you live with him and you do not have the advantage that you love him.'

'You knew then that it was only for - for show, this marriage?'

'Yes, of course,' Matthew said. 'It was the only way he saw to be close enough to Darcy. He told me that right from the beginning.'

'Oh!' Louisa said. 'He never mentioned that you were part of - of the whole thing.'

'I am not,' Matthew said. 'Not officially, at least. I am not working for them or anything.'

'But you know?'

'I do.'

'He told you?'

'He did,' Matthew confirmed. 'After Ireland, we agreed that it would be better if he told me when something bothered him instead of keeping all to him. He is not exactly a chatterbox - unlike me or you, my dear - but he talks these days and I am glad about that.'

'Do you know that he blackmailed me?'

'Yes,' Matthew said, frowning. 'I cannot say I was entirely happy about that. Of course, for Christian, it was alright to blackmail for the sake of the plan but - well. I tried to argue with him but he was doggedly determined to pursue his plan.'

He sighed.

'Once he has something set in his head, it is hard to dissuade him from completing it,' he said, then added reflectingly, 'I think the only time when he did not have a plan at the ready and the determination to see it through was when he met me. That really threw him for a loop.'

'Did he tell you how he blackmailed me?' Louisa asked.

'No, of course not,' Matthew said. 'That would hardly have been fair, now would it? He only said that I should not worry he was marrying a murderess, but that there were certain episodes in your past he was sure you would rather forget. He never told me though and I never asked.'

'I will tell you,' Louisa said.

'Honestly, you do not need to -'

'But I want to,' Louisa said. 'I think you ought to know.'

The Colonel pulled Caroline further away from his snoring aunt and dragged her into a corner of the room.

'This is between you and me,' he said, 'and must not leave this room.'

Caroline nodded her agreement.

'Someone has been using Darcy's name,' he whispered into her ear, 'in dealings with the French. This person gathers information under Darcy's name since about Easter this year, conveys said information to the French, also under Darcy's name, and in return, receives money and smuggled goods from France. The dates when we know transactions to have taken place correlate to what we know of Hurst's movements, and there is more evidence pointing towards him.'

Caroline gasped.

'Shh!' the Colonel said.

'But - but - but,' Caroline stammered.

The Colonel placed a hand over her mouth.

'Not a single word,' he said. 'You never know who might be listening.'

With a loud yelp, Lady Grace awoke.

'What is going on?' she shouted upon seeing her nephew standing in the corner with Caroline. 'Has he behaved improperly again? Come here, Miss Bingley. Shame on you!'

She wildly gesticulated with her cane in the Colonel's direction whilst trying to pat Caroline's hand comfortingly.

'No, no,' Caroline said loudly, 'your nephew has done nothing, Lady Grace.'

'Nothing?' Lady Grace shouted. 'He was standing there in a corner fondling your ear!'

'He was helping me with my hairpins,' Caroline said. 'One of them had become loose and when I wanted to replace it, I somehow wrapped some hair around my ear.'

'Hairpins,' Lady Grace snorted. 'You should wear a wig, dear, that would be more practical.'

Again, she wildly gesticulated with her cane and barked at her nephew, 'Why do you not get your aunt something to drink?'

'Because this is not actually my house, aunt,' the Colonel said. 'It would be impolite.'

'Let me find a maid,' Caroline said hastily. 'I think I could do with some tea.'

'Tea?' Lady Grace muttered. 'When I said drink, I rather thought -'

'That is all?' Matthew said when Louisa had finished her tale. 'I thought it must have been something much worse - dearest Louisa, there is nothing you should blame yourself for.'

'It is bad enough!' Louisa said. 'And it is so embarrassing - I cannot believe how stupid I was, to be taken in like that - so foolish!'

'You were fifteen, Louisa,' Matthew pointed out gently. 'You were without your sister or your guardians for the first time, you felt alone - it was only natural -'

'I thought I loved him,' Louisa said. 'I thought we were meant to be together - I thought I was justified in doing what I did because I loved him and he loved me -'

'Of course you did,' Matthew said. 'I repeat, you were but fifteen.'

'And he did not love me,' Louisa said. 'I know that now - he never loved me.'

'No,' Matthew said and handed her his handkerchief.

'Still, I was a fool,' Louisa said. 'And it was stupid of me not to realise that earlier - if I had understood earlier - if I had not written those letters where I practically admitted -'

'Then Christian would not have blackmailed you, and we would never have met,' Matthew concluded. 'Now, that would have been a shame, would it not?'

Louisa laughed.

'I can laugh about it now,' she said, 'but you cannot imagine how mortified I was when I was a fifteen-year-old girl who had just found out what she had unwittingly done. I was so ashamed of what I had done and what he had been to me I never told anyone, not even Caroline, and I do not ever want her to find out - and there are the letters, of course -'

'Yes, the letters,' Matthew said, 'they do not throw the best light on the affair. If they ever surfaced -'

'I cannot have them surface!' Louisa said.

'Do not worry,' Matthew said. 'As long as I have a say in that matter, they will not.'

'Thank you,' Louisa said. 'You are a real friend -'

'Keeping your secrets as you are keeping mine,' Matthew said. 'All in a day's work.'

'Yes, but -' Louisa began.

She was interrupted, however, by the sound of the door opening and steps in the hallway. Moments later, her husband entered the room. He lightly pressed Matthew's shoulder before sitting down on the sofa next to him.

'I must apologise for being late,' he said and sighed. 'It has been a long day. What did I miss?'

'We were just talking about -' Matthew began, but Louisa interrupted him.

'- about how it was your own fault if there were no cupcakes left for you,' she finished.

Matthew raised an eyebrow and Louisa shook her head a fraction. Mr Hurst was oblivious to the exchange.

'One of these days,' he said as he helped himself to tea, 'I am going to strangle Sir Horace and I do not care if they send me to New South Wales for it.'

'Do what you must, dearest Algie,' Matthew said. 'Shall I begin packing?'

Louisa frowned. 'Sir Horace?'

'My, ah, superior,' Mr Hurst explained. 'Completely devoid of anything approaching intellectual capacity, but excellently connected.'

He snorted.

'And it is exactly this love of his for connections that has put us into this situation in the first place,' he said. 'I was all for questioning Darcy outright but no, Darcy is too well-connected - the old goblin insisted we must have proof beyond a doubt before we confront him - he cannot risk his standing with Darcy's aunt -'

'Darcy's aunt?' Louisa said and frowned. 'The Countess? What does she have to do with it?'

'No, the other aunt,' Mr Hurst said. 'Lady Catherine. One of the largest land-owners in Kent, and quite coincidentally a neighbour of Sir Horace.'

'Ah,' said Louisa.

'And a widow,' Mr Hurst added. 'The only heir is her sickly daughter.'

'Yes, I believe Mr Darcy mentioned that,' Louisa said.

'Sir Horace has aspirations towards the old battleaxe?' Matthew asked. 'That is the first time you mentioned this.'

'Well, it only came to me today,' Mr Hurst said. 'Whilst I was listening to yet another of the great man's diatribes about how I must traipse careful around Darcy, the pieces of the jigsaw fell together. That was why Sir Horace was so adamant that I try to get close to Darcy through some woman who was to pursue him - Lady Catherine intends for her daughter to marry Darcy but if he is already engaged elsewhere - oh, he may be dim-witted but even Sir Horace has his moments of cleverness.'

He groaned and emptied his teacup.

'And after reminding me that I have to be careful, he begins again to complain that we do not have any results yet,' he said. 'And then the whole litany began anew.'

'The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done,' Matthew said and squeezed Mr Hurst's hand.

'Do we have something stronger than this?' Mr Hurst asked. 'The tea did not quite do the trick.'

'There is no more scotch but there might be some brandy upstairs,' Matthew said. 'Unless you emptied the bottle.'

'No, I believe I left some,' Mr Hurst said. 'No, stay seated. I will get it.'

He got up and left the room, closing the room behind himself. After a moment, Matthew turned to Louisa.

'Why do you not want him to know that you are still upset about the blackmail?' he asked.

'Oh, it is all so stupid,' Louisa said. 'I had rather not talk about it with him. I always feel the need to explain myself -'

'Yes, but still,' Matthew said. 'The least he could do would be to apologise. It was a rather nasty thing to do to you, even if he had a reason.'

'Maybe, yes,' Louisa said. 'Oh, I do not know.'

Before she could fully explain herself, Mr Hurst had returned, the bottle of brandy in his hand.

'Anybody else want some?' he asked.

'No, thank you,' Louisa said. 'I think I will go home now.'

'Give me a minute or two, and I will come with you,' Mr Hurst said. 'I just need to sit down for a moment -'

'No, you stay here,' Louisa said. 'Matthew can hail me a cab, can you not?'

'Of course,' Matthew said. 'If you really want to go -'

'Oh, yes,' Louisa said. 'I promised Charles and Caroline I would play cards with them tonight.'

'I will be right back,' Matthew said and left the room.

'I really can come with you,' Mr Hurst began, but Louisa cut him short.

'Please, stay, unless you want to play cards with us,' she said. 'I assure you I will be fine. Only do not come too late; I will tell them you are dining in your club.'

'Thanks, Lou,' Mr Hurst said and gave her a genuine smile. 'I do need an evening away from it all.'

'Well, then,' Louisa said. 'I shall see if Matthew has already found me a cab.'

The Colonel helped his aunt into the carriage, then hastily came back inside on the pretense of having forgot his gloves.

'I apologise,' he said, 'fully, unreservedly and from the bottom of my heart, for any and all things my aunt may have said or insinuated. I regret I was ever born to be related to her.'

'You are ridiculous,' Caroline said softly, taking his hand. 'Shall I see you again soon?'

'I shall call on you as soon as I have found a more suitable chaperone,' the Colonel said, lifted his hat and was gone.

Chapter IX - Louisa Views An Exhibition

Posted on 2011-12-20

If Lady Grace had no qualms about sleeping in somebody else's drawing-room, it was no wonder that she should choose to do so in her own even when she had guests.. It was of course not normal behaviour in a hostess, but entirely normal behaviour in Lady Grace. At least the footman seemed to think so when he announced Lady Grace's nephew in a low tone. Caroline was equally quiet when she greeted the Colonel.

'Please be careful,' she whispered and pointed at the snoring figure in the armchair on the other side of the room. 'Your aunt is asleep.'

'So it would appear,' Colonel Fitzwilliam said.

'Why do we not sit down?' Caroline suggested.

The Colonel did as she had asked, then mustered her and smiled. 'You were behind all this!'

'Behind all what?' Caroline asked innocently.

'I received an urgent summons to take tea with Lady Grace,' the Colonel said. 'I can only guess whose idea that was.'

'You said you did not want to meet me without a chaperone,' Caroline said. 'And I want some more information from you.'

'Information? What sort of information?'

'Well, Colonel, it just so happened that you did not finish telling me what exactly you had learnt about the -' She lowered her voice even further and breathed the next word. 'Spy.'

'As I recall it,' the Colonel said. 'That was rather on purpose.'

'You do not want to tell me any more then?'

'My dear Miss Bingley, I have told you far too much already.'

Caroline pouted.

'It is hardly fair, though,' she pointed out and her voice became steadily louder. 'It is my sister after all who is involved in all this. It was I who insisted that we investigate Hurst. It is I who has to pretend all the time -'

'For heaven's sake, keep your voice down!' the Colonel hissed and jerked his head in the direction of his aunt.

'Do you not think you owe me at least the truth?' Caroline said. 'After all, I am doing just as much of the dirty work as you - more perhaps, since I do the actual spying.'

The Colonel said nothing. He did not look at Caroline but kept his gaze on his folded hands in his lap.

'Have you any idea what I am going through?' Caroline said urgently. 'Do you know that people are making fun of me for what they think are hopeless efforts on Darcy? Have you any idea how humiliating it is to know everybody is laughing about me behind my back? I know that my behaviour around him is ridiculous - it might be marginally less uncomfortable if he actually had the acting skills to play along, but as it is, I am making a complete fool of myself in front of almost all my friends.'

The Colonel still said nothing, but pressed his fingers firmly together.

'I do not mind doing that,' Caroline said, 'at least not overly much, if at least I knew that what I did had an actual cause, that I was not doing all of that for nothing - I thought that this was serious business, but from the way you are behaving right now, one could think that you were simply trying to give me an occupation. I thank you, Colonel, but I can keep myself busy on my own.'

Still, the Colonel said nothing. He was staring into his lap and pressing his lips firmly together.

'Can you not, at least, admit that I have a point?'

'Of course you have a point,' the Colonel said. 'I did not deny that. Believe me, my refusal to tell you more is not an attempt to belittle you or your efforts.'

'What is it then?'

'Can you not see I am trying to protect you?' the Colonel cried, then checked himself and continued in a lower tone. 'Too much knowledge about this could be dangerous for you - as long as you do not know anything, you are simply a lady trying to find out more about who her brother is. You are a spy only if you know this is a business of espionage.'

Angry tears shot into Caroline's eyes and she furiously wiped them away.

'Right now, Colonel,' she said, 'you are belittling me. I had thought you, of all people -'

'Miss Bingley, please,' the Colonel said. 'Believe me, I -'

'I wish you a good day, Colonel,' Caroline said and gathered her shawl and her reticule. 'Let me know when you change your mind.'

'Are you leaving?' the Colonel asked.

'Yes,' Caroline said. 'Please make my apologies to your aunt, will you?'

'Try to understand me, please - Caroline -'

'You know where to find me,' Caroline said to the door, not wanting to turn around and look at him again. 'Good day, Colonel.'

She hastily left the room before she could change her mind.

Louisa finished her last cupcake, set her plate down and leaned back in the comfortable, stuffed armchair.

'Oh, I will miss those when I am in Hertfordshire,' she said. 'If ever we do get there, that is.'

'Why, was there a change in plans?' Matthew asked. 'Algie did not mention anything, but then, I only saw him very briefly yesterday.'

'Not that I know of,' Louisa said, 'but Charles is so abysmal at organising things - he makes decisions at the spur of a moment but does not realise we cannot all drop everything and follow him at once. Caroline wrote him a list of things he must do before we can leave, and I do hope he pays attention to it.'

She sighed.

'What is the matter?' Matthew asked.

'It is Caroline,' Louisa said. 'She is angry although I have no idea why or with whom. . It was impossible speaking to her yesterday, she snapped at everyone who dared come near her. I can only hope she has not found out about - you know -'

'Algie's schemes,' Matthew finished for her.

'Yes, them,' Louisa said. 'Speaking of dear Algernon, he is not in the best of moods either, is he?'

'I should not think so,' Matthew said. 'Apparently, Sir Horace decided to leave for Kent two days ago and left him with everything.'

'Going to court a certain lady, is he?' Louisa asked and snickered. 'Poor old Algie.'

Caroline did her very best to look contemptuous as she greeted the Colonel, who had turned up, hat in hands and an apologetic expression in his face, when she had just finished breakfast.

'You are calling very early, Colonel,' Caroline said coolly.

'I hoped to catch you before your other admirers arrived,' the Colonel said.

'Did you?' Caroline said. 'And what, pray, do you want?'

'To apologise, first and foremost,' the Colonel said and sighed. 'Listen, I am sorry. I realise I had no right to patronise you.'

'Hm,' Caroline said, not ready yet to forgive.

'And then, I want to ask you to come driving with me,' the Colonel said. 'A nice, long drive around the park to clear up any questions you might have.'

'What happened to never meeting without a chaperone?' Caroline asked. 'Did you not say that we had to adhere to that rule all the time?'

'I think we can forgo it this once,' the Colonel said. 'I think we shall be safe in an open carriage, do you not think so? I promise I shall try to behave.'

'Oh, very well, then,' Caroline said after some deliberation. 'Wait for me while I change.'

'As you wish,' the Colonel said and took a seat.

Caroline returned not long afterwards, putting on her gloves as she entered the room.

'Shall we, then?' she asked.

'Ready when you are,' the Colonel said. 'By the bye, where is your sister?'

'She was out even earlier than you,' Caroline said. 'She and Mr Hurst are visiting an exhibition together with Mr Aldridge, or so she said.'

The Colonel nodded, but did not speak again until he had handed Caroline into the carriage and they were off.

'What, then, Miss Bingley,' he finally asked, 'was it that you wanted to know?'

'Oh!' Caroline said, taken aback that he would come straight to the point. 'Well -'

'You wanted to know, now ask,' the Colonel said not unkindly.

'There is so much -' Caroline said. 'I do not think I have understood it all. I will need you to recapitulate it for me.'

'Certainly.'

Louisa tried her hardest to appear interested in the still life in front of her, but could not help concentrating more on her husband's voice.

' - and then, if you will believe it, after having casually dropped a whole stack of reports onto my desk,' Mr Hurst said, 'the man had the gall to ask me what I thought of his new beaver hat.'

'And what did you say?' Matthew asked.

'Complimented him on his taste, of course,' Mr Hurst said. 'What else was there to do?'

He cleared his throat.

'No need to tell him he looks like an over-excited goat in it,' he added. 'And then, with a further warning not to let Darcy out of my sight, and a meaningful look at the reports, he was gone to Kent.'

Matthew made some rather rude allusions about Sir Horace's paternity which Louisa tried her best not to hear.

'So, do I get this right - you and your cousin were first suspicious of Mr Hurst when my brother asked you what you could find out about him, and you found nothing but the -'

'- nothing but the naked facts, yes,' the Colonel said.

'But you did not then suspect that he was a spy?' Caroline asked.

'No, we thought he might be after your sister's, or someone else's, money,' the Colonel said.

'So when were your suspicions first raised to his being a spy?' Caroline asked.

'Well,' the Colonel began. 'You may remember that I asked you to keep an eye on him and to thwart the schemes he and Louisa might have as well as you could; schemes which both you and I at that time suspected to involve Darcy.'

Caroline nodded her agreement.

'While you did that, we of course also tried to find out more,' the Colonel said. 'The only real clue we had been able to find was the hint you had given me regarding Darcy, so that was where I began to investigate.'

Caroline frowned.

'One thing I do not understand, Colonel,' she said.

'Yes?'

'I know it would have been too much perhaps in the beginning,' she said, 'but once you realised that there was definitely something wrong with him, what kept you from going wherever it is his house is and making enquiries there?'

'Nothing,' the Colonel said, 'except from the fact that I have work to do here, which I could not just leave alone, and Darcy - well, Darcy had some family problems this summer and could not go either.'

'Yes, but could you not -'

'I could have sent one of my inferiors, on some pretext, of course,' the Colonel admitted. 'But I chose not to do so for reasons I will come to in a moment.'

Caroline tried to look as if she understood him.

'Miss Bingley,' the Colonel said and took her hand. 'Here, perhaps, I have a confession to make.'

He turned towards her and gave her a meaningful look.

'Oh, Algie,' Louisa drawled, 'just so you know, I absolutely had to order new frocks. You will receive the bill one of these days, I suppose.'

'Whatever you wish, Louisa,' Mr Hurst said. 'Have my new boots been sent yet?'

'How should I know?' Louisa asked.

'Could not go shooting with last year's boots,' Mr Hurst continued seemingly unperturbed. 'Let me know when they arrive, will you?'

'She has left the room,' Louisa said. 'Dreadfully nosy woman, Mrs Whittington.'

'And now it will be up to her to decide whether I am spending your money, or you mine,' Mr Hurst said. 'Do either of you care to see any more paintings?'

'Not particularly,' Louisa said. 'Matthew?'

'I believe we have seen everything of worth,' Matthew said.

'I shall hail a cab then,' Mr Hurst said. 'Matthew, will you wait with Louisa? I believe there were some benches in the next room.'

Louisa allowed herself to be led to the benches and helped into a seat by Matthew.

'I wanted to thank you again,' Matthew said earnestly.

'What for?' Louisa asked.

'For allowing us to be ourselves,' Matthew said. 'You cannot know how much it means.'

Louisa did not know what to say.

'I am serious,' Matthew said. 'There are so many other ways in which you could have behaved - you could have had us arrested, or at least - I do not know, tried to make us not see each other -'

'Oh, but I wouldn't!' Louisa exclaimed.

'I know,' Matthew said. 'Forgive me, I am only curious as to why you would not.'

'I have no idea,' Louisa said.

She looked around herself but they were the only ones in the room; no one could overhear them.

'In the beginning,' she continued, 'I suppose I merely was too surprised to do anything.'

'Completely understandable,' Matthew said. 'I think we all were.'

'It is not the thing one expects when one follows one's husband, is it?' Louisa said. 'I mean, I was sure there was another woman -'

'Would you have minded that?' Matthew asked.

'Not in the least,' Louisa said. 'I never had any illusions about our marriage after all. I always knew it was purely a business agreement.'

'You did not wish Christian would fall in love with you one day?' Matthew asked. 'The way these marriages usually play out in novels?'

'Goodness, no,' Louisa exclaimed. 'The man I married was truly despicable! I was only hoping I would be rid of him as soon as I could be. When I first met him ten years ago, I did not know him very well, you see, and the person he was when we married was horrible. He was completely unfeeling, vicious and mean.'

'He tends to present himself like that, yes,' Matthew conceded.

'And then when I first saw him with you,' Louisa continued, 'I understood that what I had seen so far was not his true self -'

'Undoubtedly,' Matthew said.

'This is going to sound trite,' Louisa said, 'but when I saw that he truly loved you, I understood that he was a better man than I had thought.'

'Ah, but does that really make him a better man?' Matthew said. 'For sinners also love those that love them, do they not?'

Louisa did not quite know how to answer this.

'Could not get a cab for ages,' Mr Hurst drawled behind her. 'Do not know what is the matter with some people here. You will not believe who I saw just now.'

'Must you always sneak up on me?' Louisa asked. 'Honestly, Algernon!'

'Shall we, then, Louisa?' Matthew said and offered her his arm.

'Do you know that your sister is driving out with Colonel Fitzwilliam?' Mr Hurst said when they were climbing into the cab he had called.

'I had no idea,' Louisa said. 'Just last night when I hinted about him, she told me she did not care if she never saw him again.'

'She seems to have changed her mind then,' Mr Hurst said. 'I always wondered if there was something between the two of them, but as long as she still thinks favourably of Mr Darcy -'

'That she does,' Louisa said. 'She said so only last night when we spoke.'

'Well then,' Mr Hurst said. 'Sir Horace will not be happy to hear about the drive with the Colonel, but as long as Mr Darcy is still in her good graces - of course there is no saying when Sir Horace will actually see my report, seeing as he is still wooing money in Kent.'

He sighed.

'Meanwhile, he has me write lists of people with whom Darcy might be close,' he said. 'Any friends Darcy has had in the past twenty years. How am I supposed to find that out without asking Darcy? I have half a dozen names of people with whom he was in contact at university but I have no idea how Sir Horace expects me to know who of those might be working together with Darcy.'

'Darcy is working together with an old friend?' Louisa asked. 'You never said so.'

'Sir Horace's latest hare-brained scheme,' Mr Hurst said. 'There is of course no proof and I do not believe it for one second, but it makes Sir Horace happy to think I am investigating it.'

Matthew laughed. 'And so you are going through countless stories of Darcy and his friends indulging in liquor and loose women, poor Algie.'

'If only,' Mr Hurst said. 'The most scandalous thing so far is a childhood friend with a history of gaming at high stakes, but I do not even know if he has been in contact with Darcy these past five years.'

'A confession, Colonel?' Caroline asked, her eyes wide open.

'I lied to you,' the Colonel said.

'You lied to me?' Caroline repeated. 'Colonel, I -'

'Well, perhaps I did not lie as such,' the Colonel amended, 'but I allowed you to continue under a misapprehension.'

He pressed her hand and looked squarely at her.

'As for why I did that,' he said. 'I believe, Miss Bingley -'

'Colonel, the horses!' Caroline shrieked. 'Do something!'

She dug her fingernails into his palm as the horses broke into an uncontrolled gallop and threatened to run straight into the Serpentine.

'Right,' the Colonel said, let go of her hands and pulled the reins. 'No harm done yet.'

The horses, still breathing heavily, slowed down to their usual trot again and Caroline exhaled loudly.

'Well, that only illustrates my point,' the Colonel said with a wry smile. 'I am not a man of action, Miss Bingley. That is what I meant to tell you.'

'But you said you were working for a secret organisation -' Caroline said.

'I am,' the Colonel said. 'I did not lie to you there. However -' He cleared his throat. 'Most of the time, I am confined to a desk. I do not catch spies. I translate incoming letters, I proof reports, I summarise them for my superiors, I evaluate them, I read foreign newspapers -'

He nestled in the pocket of his waist-coat with one hand while holding on to the reins with his other.

'I usually wear spectacles for reading,' he said and placed the wire frame on his nose. 'I am not a hero, Caroline.'