Previous Section, Section IV

Chapter 27

Posted on Saturday, 4 June 2005

"Elizabeth?" My sister called outside to where Will and I were sitting even though the weather was absolutely freezing. "Elizabeth, Charlotte is on the phone!"

Charlotte? I wondered how on earth she had known I was there, let alone managed to get the number of Charles' lavish and posh house.

"Ok, Jane!" I called back. Will insisted on kissing me goodbye even though I was only going about ten metres to answer the phone. I walked through the main hall, stopping for a second to tell Anne that Mozart's eleventh Sonata sounded very nice as she was playing it on the luscious grand piano that Charles owned. It probably cost about sixty times as much as the piano my parents had bought me and probably didn't require as much of a sacrifice to buy as it had done for my parents. That meant something to me. I knew that when my parents bought me my piano, they had really saved up to get me something which was, in all fairness, a very good piano, whereas Charles had just signed away about twenty five thousand grand without a second thought. And he couldn't even play the piano.

"Hello Charlotte! I hope you guys had a good Christmas?"

"Good Afternoon, Lizzy! Yes, we did. Lucas Lodge was completely full of excitement!" I almost scoffed at 'Lucas Lodge'. Her father was such a lovely guy, but since he had met the Prince of Wales about two decades ago, he had never stopped talking about him. We had heard the story of how Prince Charles had said all of five words to him and how they were now best of friends. I had been really tempted to ask him recently why it was that he hadn't received an invitation to the wedding between him and Camilla Parker-Bowles. But since he was nothing but an old man who was proud of his country and its Royal Family, I didn't break his heart. So the house which had been named 28 Longbourn Avenue had been renamed 'Lucas Lodge' when I was about six. Charlotte was 11 at the time and more friendly with Jane, so didn't hear my six year old self laughing.

In fact, Charlotte and I were nothing more than neighbours that said 'hello' to each other until I was about twenty one. The gap in our ages was too much as we were growing up. I met her properly when I started working in the Tribune. She was the only person I had ever met or seen before, so I chatted to her and we realised that we had loads of things in common. We had such a laugh together and she, along with G and Kyle made me feel really comfortable in my first job.

"I called you because I have some really good news, Elizabeth."

"I love good news!" I said for a lack of anything else to say. She obviously wanted me to guess what it was that was great, and I wasn't in the mood to. I could see Will sitting outside waving hysterically at me and tapping his fingers on his new watch in an effort to get me to hurry up.

"Guess what it is?" she said excitedly.

"Umm ... you're pregnant!" I joked. It was a joke, seriously. But then the shock came when she gasped in response. I was just about to tell her that I had been joking and I didn't want her to take offence when she said, "Oh my God, Lizzy! You always were brilliant at guessing things! I'm three months pregnant!"

I couldn't bring myself to say anything. My jaw had dropped to the floor in shock. Billy and her, procreating? URGH! The thought was an absolutely disgusting one. Why would anyone want a child whose father was Billy? I felt immediately sorry for the poor darling that would have to live with those two.

"Isn't that great?" she asked.

"It's wonderful, Charlotte! Congratulations to both of you! Is Billy happy about it? I bet he cannot wait?"

"Well, actually he wasn't that pleased. He has always held these really high morals that before you have children you should be married and that any child born out of wedlock should be ignored and all."

Why did he sleep with her then? That was such an arrogant, man-type thing to do! He wanted the sex, but was then annoyed when she got pregnant! How ridiculous!

"That's awful, Charlotte! He shouldn't be breaking up with you at a time like this. You need his full support during your pregnancy."

"Oh no, Lizzy. He isn't breaking up with me. We are getting married next week. I was calling to ask if you would be able to come and be my witness."

Umm. As much as I would have loved to be a witness at Charlotte's wedding, there was no way I could be at Billy's wedding. I could not stand by and sign away anyone to a life sentence with him. I just wasn't capable of it. I looked around eager, to find an excuse to get out of it. Charlotte wouldn't be too upset about it. It wasn't as if it was a big affair. It was going to be a rushed registry office type ceremony.

I saw Anne come into the living room and my eyes rested on her growing stomach. An idea popped into my head. "I am really busy next week, Charlotte, but tell me when and where it is and I might be able to get away from something."

"It is in the town registry office in Gretna Green on Thursday at about half eleven."

"God, Charlotte I am so sorry but I promised Anne that I would go with her for her 5 month check up. The clinic is a special clinic in London and it's an all day thing. I am so very sorry. Maybe you should ask Mariah?"

Anne gave me a questioning look but wisely stayed quiet. I did feel pretty bad. Charlotte obviously wanted me to be there with her, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I just didn't agree with Charlotte's marrying him. Perhaps if she wasn't pregnant, she wouldn't have married him? I didn't agree with marrying because you were pregnant either. It would be obvious to everyone that the child had been conceived before they got married anyway. There was nothing wrong with a child being born outside of marriage anyway. It might have been different if Billy was the King or something and he needed legitimate heirs, but thankfully, it seemed unlikely that Billy was going to be made King.

"Oh, that's ok. I suppose it is really short notice anyway," her voice betrayed the fact that she really was upset. "I am sure that Mariah won't mind doing it. Mum and Dad aren't sure if they are coming either."

"Look, Char, I am really sorry. If there is any change of plan, I promise that I will be up in Gretna Green faster than you can say 'elopement'. I did promise Anne though and she has been having a bad time with this pregnancy."

"I understand, Lizzy. It doesn't matter."

"I wish you all the best luck. I am sure it will be a great day and totally perfect!"

"Thanks. I'll take loads of pictures and show you when I come back to work. Oh, do you think you can get me the day off?"

"Of course, it's done."

"I'll see you around then."

"Bye!"

Anne was next. I felt a little bit mean for using her as an excuse. But she didn't look angry with me; she just gave me a look that invited me to explain. "Sorry I had to use you as an escape route there, Anne. Charlotte is getting married to Billy Collins and she wanted me to be a witness."

"Don't you want to be?"

"Have you met Billy?"

"Not more than in passing."

"If you knew him, you would understand my resistance. I don't think that I would be able to watch Charlotte completely ruin her life. It would be asking too much of me. But on the other hand, I don't want her to think that. She doesn't need me to go on about how much I disagree with her wedding. It will just upset her, so it makes more sense to let her think that I cannot make it instead of her thinking that her best friend doesn't want her to get married. So I hope you don't mind me using you as an excuse."

"Of course not. But you are so wise and intelligent, Elizabeth! I am almost your age and I look and act like I am sixteen and make the stupidest mistakes."

I smiled at the girl. She was right. When I first met her, I had thought that she was sixteen or seventeen. "We all make mistakes, darling. Hell, I have made so many that I have lost count."

"You have made mistakes? I find that very difficult to believe."

"Of course I have! You can have the entire list if you want."

We sat down on a nearby sofa as I ignored Will's looks from outside. Much as I loved to be with him, his sister needed comforting. "Ok, how about when I hated your brother?"

"You what?"

"You heard me! For months, I completely despised your brother. We had arguments and screaming matches over the phone! He was rude to me and I was intolerable back to him. Another one ... I fell for George."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, Lizzy."

"That's ok. You need to know. You need to realise that you aren't the only one who has been tricked by him. I was completely deceived by him, just like you were. It wasn't your fault, though it may feel like it was. I have come to realise that it wasn't my fault either. He took complete control over me. He brought me to the state where I couldn't manage whenever he wasn't there."

"But you didn't get pregnant by him. That was a stupid thing to do. I actually consented. I loved him."

"It doesn't matter about that now, love. You need to move on and forget about what happened and concentrate on caring for your little baby. It may not have a father's love, but it will certainly have one of the most loving and caring of mothers."

"Thank you, Lizzy," she smiled sweetly. I didn't care whether George wanted anything to do with his child. Anne would be a marvellous mother and the lucky baby would never lack the love and affection it deserved.

"Oh, and if you want, Anne, I will come with you to the clinic."

"Would you? I wanted to ask you, but I know that you are busy and everything with work when you go back."

"Of course I will come. I'll just tell work that I am still feeling really stressed from the trial and that I will be taking all of next week off. I'm the boss anyway! I can do what I want!"

I went back to where Will was sitting outside with a book. He had obviously got bored waiting for me. "What was that all about, darling?" he asked when he saw me approaching him.

"Your sister was just a little bit upset and needed a woman's comforting. Nothing you could have done. Don't worry, she's ok now. I have calmed her down. Oh, and Charlotte is getting married on Thursday."

"What?"

"Yeah, she's pregnant and Billy has this thing against having children when you aren't married, so they are going to get married in Gretna Green next week. She asked me if I wanted to be her witness, but I can't go because I am going with Anne to her appointment."

"And because you don't want to go."

I smiled slightly and agreed. It was amazing how he could understand me so well and we had only been going out for five days. It had been heaven though. I didn't feel like he was dominating me or taking over my life. We were a partnership and we would communicate and work the separate parts of our lives so that we could be together.

Chapter 28

Posted on Saturday, 4 June 2005

"F***ING HELL, Will! This is where you live?" I shouted a little bit too loudly as we walked up to a huge London townhouse. It was a beautifully clean, white building, about six or seven stories high with three or four balconies and at least thirty windows. I knew that he lived in style, but this was mad! I hadn't ever known anyone with such a grand house before and the fact that I was going out with him scared me slightly.

Will Darcy and I had been going out for three weeks when he took me to his house. We had stayed a week at Charles' Yorkshire house until the New Year, when we were forced to go back to work and commence the old routines that we had had before. However, the change in our relationship meant that every evening, when we had finished work, Will would come to my apartment, and he certainly didn't leave until the next morning when we had to go to work again. On Sundays, we would meet up with Jane and Charles for a bit and listen to them blabbing on lovingly about their wedding.

"So, how does May 17th sound?" Jane asked the group as we all sat together in Holloway, our new favourite meeting spot. I couldn't actually remember whether I was doing anything on May 17th. It wasn't like I had a mental diary that could tell me what I was doing in four months time. What sort of person was able to recall things like that? "I would like to have a spring wedding, wouldn't you Charles?" Charles nodded his head in reply. "It is a light time of year. The cold of winter has gone, but it isn't so hot that we would have to turn up in swimwear!"

William looked at me in a way that said, 'I certainly wouldn't mind if you turned up in a little bikini, Elizabeth' I shook my head and sighed but at the same time thought of how delightful his appearance would be. His tanned broad shoulders and muscular chest...Yummy!!! I was feeling a sense of déjà vu. I could remember being in this café not three months ago thinking about Will's shoulders and his chest. But at that point I did not know him and he was nothing more than a sexy male for me to rest my eyes on. Now, I definitely knew him.

Later on that day, I went with Jane to try on wedding dresses. Will and Charles were obviously not allowed to see what she was going to wear, so they went off somewhere to talk about what ever it is men talk about when they are not with women. My mother had been badgering Jane to invite her to go wedding shopping with her since she was 'the mother of the bride', however, Jane had managed to get away with the excuse 'I have been working' for long enough that my mother didn't realise that Jane and I had been browsing all the wedding shops in London.

"Ooh, Lizzy, this dress would look simply fabulous on you!" My sister commented as she picked up a dress that I thought looked more like a white bin sack than something I would wear on supposedly the best day of my life.

"It is very lovely, Jane but you forget that I am not actually getting married. That's you.

"What, Will hasn't proposed yet?"

What the hell was she on? We had been going out for three weeks! Sure, those three weeks were three of the best ever in my life, but there was no way that either Will or I were contemplating marriage at this stage in our relationship. No way. Yeah, Lizzy, just keep telling yourself that you haven't been having dreams of romantic picnics and little children running around the lakes of Pemberley. One day, you might actually believe it. "Jane, of course Will hasn't proposed. If he had, you would be the first I would tell and Mum would be the last."

"I think that he will soon, Lizzy."

"Whatever you say, sister. Now, let's find you a simply stunning dress that will knock the socks off everyone."

Jane looked beautiful and fabulous in everything that she tried. She was a perfect size; things fitted her with very little work. She was slight but not disgustingly skinny, and all the dresses that she tried flattered her perfectly. She found many that she liked which I didn't, and I found loads that I liked that she didn't, but in the end we found the perfect one.

The dress was a dazzling white, one piece dress from Maggie Sottero. It had an A-line portrait neckline, with the straps on the shoulder, with Champagne silver coloured Swarovski crystals raining asymmetrically toward the hem of the gown. The veil that came with it would be placed in her hair, about half way down her head and it flowed straight to the floor. The length of the dress was perfect. It didn't have a 15 foot long train like some of the dresses did. It touched the floor with about an inch left trailing the ground. She looked like an angel and despite all her protestations contradicting me; I convinced her that this dress was the one.

As we were debating whether we should go all out and buy Jane's shoes as well, my phone rang. "Hiya Will," I answered with after seeing that it was him who called.

"Hello. How is the shopping going?"

"That would be telling, now wouldn't it?"

"Well I am guessing that it has been successful, because you have been at least three hours already."

"Three hours?" I questioned, yet again surprised by how quickly the time will fly when you are watching your sister try on a billion dresses that she looks perfect in every single time and feeling ugly. "Jane is just getting changed. I think we have almost finished."

"You don't sound too happy. What's the matter?"

"No, I'm fine. It's just that I feel a little bit useless compared to Jane. She has looked so beautiful in all the dresses she has been trying on and she is such a great person too. I am such a b***h sometimes."

"Hey," he tried to calm me down, "Where has all this self hating come from Lizzy? You are a darling! You are beautiful in ways that Jane can never be. You're funny, intelligent, fabulous..."

"Ok, ok," I interrupted, "I am sure that you didn't call me up so that you can flatter me. I guess that I am just jealous of her, that's all. Which is stupid really, because I feel so mean because she is so lovely and thinks so well of everyone else that she doesn't deserve it. She is my sister for Christ's sake."

"Exactly. Now, you are stressed. What you really need is a long and relaxing soak in the bath, with a massage from yours truly and maybe some bubbles, candles, champagne...I think you get my point."

"Umm that sounds good. You're on."

"Ok, you can come and see my house since you haven't been there before," he then added after an afterthought, "If you want to, obviously."

"Of course I want to. How about I meet you outside Holloway's in about quarter of an hour?"

He agreed and we 'mwahed' goodbye over the phone. Jane came out and called Charles who said he would meet her outside Holloway as well. I tried not to look sullen as we approached the café, deciding that I didn't want Will to think I was anymore moody and jealous of my sister than I already was.

We said goodbye to Jane and Charles and began walking in the direction of his Mayfair home. We chatted in a way that only people madly in love with one another can do, about inconsequential things in life. Most of all, we simply enjoyed one another's company.

After my initial shock at seeing Will's house and after I had checked around the street to make sure no-one had heard my really loud and rude outburst, Will smiled and said, as if it was a normal occurrence, "Shall we go in then?" It obviously was a normal occurrence, because he almost stood behind me ready to catch me should I faint when I went inside.

I almost did faint. I had thought that Charles's big country mansion was really grand, but this was unbelievable. The main hall as we went in was almost as gold as the sun. The walls were gold, lavished with extravagant skirting boards and about six square glass mirrors that were about three metres tall. There were three fireplaces in this room alone. The floor, made of marble was really shiny and extra glittery bits were added by the mirrors which reflected huge areas of light onto the floor. I wasn't surprised by the time I looked up to the ceiling and saw five beautiful chandeliers, all lit by natural candle light. Four of them were smaller and at compass points to the main central one. This chandelier was enormous and had at least a hundred candles on it. There were three candles in the centre, with rings around it, the rings getting bigger and holding more candles that the ring before it.

I was just about to ask him how someone managed to climb up the thirty feet to the ceiling to relight the candles how ever often they needed relighting, when a respectable women of about fifty or so walked through the main hall and towards Will. She had keys at her pocket that were jingling as she walked towards us. "Mr. Darcy, sir. I trust you had a good outing?"

"Mrs. Reynolds, I did indeed. May I introduce you to Ms Elizabeth Bennet? Lizzy, this is Mrs. Reynolds, my excellent housekeeper and cook."

"Mrs. Reynolds," I started, wondering whether she was likely to be the sort of woman to think that I was trying to 'ensnare' Will into matrimony or if she was a lovely motherly type lady, "It is nice to meet you. I am in awe of you! This house is so huge that any person who can manage to control it all has my full admiration!"

Mrs. Reynolds and Will laughed, and then Will said, "I think that Mrs. Reynolds is more in control of this household than I will ever be."

"Now that is nonsense, sir," she then turned slightly to face me and added, "As for you, Ms Bennet, I have heard absolutely nothing but good things about you, from a source that I dare not doubt and I am sure that we will get on very well."

I felt almost proud that she had said that and that I had earned respect from her almost immediately. She seemed the type of person to be quite protective over Will, especially since his parents had died when he was young. I was also happy that Will had obviously said some nice things about me, although I was quite curious as to what he had said.

"Would you like something to eat or drink?" the kind lady asked.

"Yes please, Mrs. Reynolds we will have it on the terrace balcony that overlooks the lake if you don't mind."

The terrace overlooking the lake? Holy crap! I knew he was rich, but how many people have a terrace? Or more than one terrace? Or a lake? The sheer amount of his wealth was beginning to worry me. I had a good job and plenty of money, but I knew that houses in his part of London and of this size and grandeur cost millions. Literally, I had seen similar properties on sale for seven or eight million. I didn't want anyone to think that I liked him for his money. I was not mercenary and though I thought money was important, it wasn't the most important thing.

Will gave me a little tour of the house as we made it up to the terrace. Well, as little a tour as you can get in a house which has twelve bedrooms all with en suites, a lake, seven living rooms, four ballrooms and three pools. Obviously.

"Do you not like it, Lizzy? You are awfully quiet."

"I am in awe," I replied, more quietly than I really wanted to speak.

"It's only a house, Elizabeth. It doesn't mean anything."

"But it does mean something." He gave me a look that said he didn't quite understand what I meant and invited me to elaborate. "It says 'look at me; I can afford a house that costs millions of pounds'. It shows you the complete difference between ours lives, Will. I know that I am pretty well off, but look at you! You have about fifteen members of staff in this house. It's just me at mine. I do everything for myself where as you have people to wait on you hand and foot."

"How long has this been worrying you, Elizabeth?" he spoke so calmly, and annoyingly his face didn't betray any sort of emotion that I could try and decipher.

"For ages," I admitted, really glad to get it off my chest. "Everyone will think that I only want to be with you because you have so much money. Bloody hell, my own parents thought that. You read that article in the Mirror the other day. The only thing it didn't say directly was, 'Elizabeth Bennet is with him for his money,' but it almost did, with all the things it was implying."

"I know that you aren't with me for my money. I know that you really do care about me. Who cares what everyone else thinks?"

"I care what other people think, Will. I know that you hold no value to other people's opinions. That's probably because you're so damn rich you could buy this country. But I do care about what other people think. I have a reputation to maintain within the media, and someone writing about how I am with you because you are loaded is not something I enjoy."

"Why didn't you talk to me about this before? I thought we were going well. I thought that we had something good."

"We do have something good, but look around you, Will. You are practically royalty! It's like the master of the house going out with the chambermaid. I don't know how to behave in social functions and posh parties and to be quite honest, I don't want to."

Will stood up and started pacing. I loved it when he paced; he looked so very sexy. "I don't understand this, Lizzy. About an hour ago, we were walking home together hand in hand and I was telling you how much I love you. It sounds like you are trying to break up with me."

"I do love you, Will and I don't want to break up with you, but you have to understand that it is so difficult for me to even imagine someone living in such luxury, let alone be invited to share in that."

This was tearing me apart. Half of my heart was saying, 'You two are too different. He is too good for you and will tear your heart into even more shreds when the novelty of having a witty girlfriend wears off. He is rich and you are not. Let it stay that way.' But the part of my heart that was lurching towards Will like a magnet was saying, 'You love him. He loves you. Isn't it worth the risk?' I was wondering where this conversation was coming from. I hadn't even thought that it bothered me too much. But it obviously did.

"Will, you have to know that I love you. I do, I swear. I think that I need some time to think about this adjustment though."

"In other words, 'we should just be friends' or 'I'll call you' or 'It's not you, it's me' or 'I'm not ready to settle down yet' basically, it's over," he said it in a scornfully sarcastic way which I didn't like.

"Will, you know that is not what I meant. I love you! You are the most important person in the world to me; I just need some time to think things through."

"Yeah right!"

"You know what, it is 'yeah right'. Call me when you have grown up, William Darcy."

I immaturely and very stupidly marched off the terrace and almost ran down the grand staircase and stormed through the front door, slamming it like a moody teenager. It was quite late and getting dark as I calmed down and stopped running just in time to narrowly avoid crashing into a man standing outside of his car with a map and shouting to his friend in the van, 'I think Buckingham Palace is this way,' whilst pointing in completely the wrong direction.

"Excuse me," he said to me. Grrgh! I hated tourists. "Can you please tell me where the Palace is?"

Feeling mean for thinking rude things about someone, I started on a lengthy description about how to get there, and before I knew it, his friend had got out of his van, opened the back door without me hearing, and grabbed me from behind. The other guy with the map grabbed the other half of me, as I screamed insults at them and, gagged me. They literally threw me into the back of there van which was cold and dusty. As I shouted at them in vain, I heard one say to another, "G will be pleased."

This could not be good.

Chapter 29

Posted on Tuesday, 7 June 2005

Sitting leaned against the back of a van filled with bits of wood, with sawdust digging into my derriere, I contemplated my unfortunate position. No-one would realise I had gone. Jane and Charles would not see me until next Saturday anyway, I hardly ever chatted to my parents, Kyle would think I couldn't be bothered to come into work and would pretend that I had called in sick and Will Darcy, the love of my life would call me after he had calmed down and when I didn't answer, would probably just think that I didn't want to talk to him and be stubborn and not call back. I was definitely in a bit of s**t.

I could hear the stupid 'all body, no brain' men in the front of the van. "He said to take her to his place in Liverpool..."

"No, Clive, he said to take her to The Royal. Ya know the dingy one in Manchester?"

"I swear, Tommy, you are such an idiot. He told us Liverpool."

"IT WAS THE ROYAL!"

"You never listen to a word the boss says, Tommy."

"I have an idea, guys," I interrupted, knowing that if I could hear them, it seemed likely they would be able to hear me, "Why don't you travel through Liverpool and if it's the wrong one, carry on to Manchester?"

There was a brief moment of silence in which I can only guess that these dim men were looking at each other, and not at the road and they obviously agreed that this was a good idea, because they said, "That might work." In unison. How very depressing. I had been kidnapped by two ridiculously stupid men who had gagged me but forgotten to tie up my hands, so I had simply undone it.

What the hell was I going to do? I really regretted that argument with Will now. He would have been looking for me in seconds, but he wouldn't know now. What mess had I got myself into? If I hadn't been so damn over-reactive and Will and I had discussed it like sensible and mature adults, I would probably be in the bath with bubbles having a relaxing massage instead of on a journey that was supposed to be towards Manchester, but knowing the stupidity of these guys, I could have been half way to Cornwall.

I decided that this was the perfect opportunity to reflect on life. After all, what was a better chance than sitting in a van with two men with fists the size of my head, on the way to meet the guy who I had put in prison and ruined the life of? I couldn't think of a better excuse to do some good old fashioned Will-style brooding.

To put it plainly, I was utterly f****d. I was going to die. I knew it. I just had this feeling. It was those dramatic situations, where you wish that you had spent your last ten minutes of conversation with your loved one telling them how much you loved them. Not that you weren't sure that it was going to work out and then hurl insults and call them immature. Well, at least William would regret it. He would say, 'I wish that our last words hadn't been so harsh.' God Lizzy! Even in your last few hours on this earth, you are trying to make people guilty. IT WAS YOUR FAULT! You brought it up! He didn't say anything wrong. He was perfectly right the whole time!

"...News just in..." I heard over the radio, shocked that these barbarians would actually listen to the news. "...George Wickham, the convicted burglar and rapist has escaped from the Birmingham high security prison. People in that immediate area are warned to be on their guard. It is believed over the past few weeks, that he seduced one of the female prison officers and then attacked her, successfully stealing her keys and escaping..." HOLY S**T!

"Good ol' George!" The bigger man that I had identified as Clive shouted, a little too loudly. "I knew he would make it out. That woman was just too stupid!" SAID THE F*****G POT.

"Too right," added Tommy, the other guy who was slightly smaller, but even that was about four times the size of my own body.

"He will probably be waiting for us when we get there. I know he said that he wants to deal with her quickly and then be able to get out of the country as quickly as possible. You know, Tommy; I think you might have been right. He would want to do it in The Royal. The place in Liverpool is all public. Anyone could just walk in. We're heading for Manchester so G can dispose of her."

Oh. My. God. Deal with me. He really was going to kill me. George has escaped out of prison so that he could kill me. Jesus. Right, calm down, Lizzy. Think rationally. What do you need to do? Make contact with somebody sane, preferably not my mother, who can help me get out of an untimely death. Right, and what do you need to do that? Easy ... A telephone. And what exactly do you have in your trouser pocket? I closed my eyes, shocked at my own idiocy. I had my mobile in my pocket the whole time.

I had to think carefully about this. I was going to call William, but I couldn't be louder than a whisper because the guys would hear me. Or, I could take the risk that they might hear me, but would have to stop the van and run to open it and then grab the phone off me. Since they didn't look like they were particularly fit or energetic, I decided I would have a good fifteen seconds to shout instructions to Will. But I would actually try and be quiet.

I got my phone out and went and sat in the very far corner of the van, as far away from the divider between the driving part and the actual van as I could possibly get. I switched the phone on silent, and for a brief moment, I was enjoying myself. I found the idea that I was on a sort of adventure really fun! Then I chastised myself for being so stupid when I was about to die. Tears came to my eyes when I thought of all the silly dreams of a beautiful wedding ceremony with Will, and mini-Wills running madly around the gardens of Pemberley, things that I might not ever get to do now.

I couldn't stop them falling as I dialled Will's number, praying that he wouldn't ignore the phone just because it was me and he was undoubtedly in a big, bad mood with me. "Hello?" he answered grumpily with, and I was very glad that I had called with a caller ID so that he hadn't just pressed cancel.

"Will, It's me," I whispered as quietly as I possibly could. Unfortunately, this was not loud enough for him to hear and he said, "Hello? Is anyone there?"

"Will, It's me, Elizabeth," I said in a normal talking voice, with tears escaping as I spoke.

"What's the matter, darling? Why are you crying?"

I was instantly grateful for having such a forgiving boyfriend. He wasn't as childish as I had been. He hadn't hung up the moment he realised that it was me. He had noticed that something was wrong and the Pemberley dream came flooding back to me, forcing me to almost choke on my tears.

"Have you seen the news?"

"No."

"G has escaped and ... as I left your house, two men ... well they grabbed me, and I'm now in the back of their van heading for the north of England and..." stupidly, my voice was getting louder as my emotions and nerves were rising and suddenly, the radio that had been playing in the front of the van turned off. "...He is going to kill me, Will. You have to help me please! G is going to kill me."

As I said the last words, Clive shouted, "Stop the van, Tommy. She's got a f*****g mobile."

"I have to be quick, Will. They realise I am calling you."

The van pulled over suddenly and stopped. "Elizabeth. Tell me where you are."

The car doors slammed on both sides as I started freaking out completely. "I ... Will ... I love you ... remember that darling."

I could hear the heavy feet of the overweight men bound towards me and towards the doors of the van. "ELIZABETH! Listen to me. You are going to be fine. I love you too. Now you HAVE to tell me where you are."

I was shaking as I heard the men try to unlock the door. "Why the f**k did you lock it Tommy?" Clive asked him. "What a completely stupid thing to do!"

"If I hadn't locked it, she might have been able to escape, Clive."

"Never mind about that. Just find the f*****g key ... NOW!"

The scrambling and fussing outside for a key could be heard from where I was sitting curled up in tears and shivering, despite the heat of the sweaty men's van. "Elizabeth! Please darling, calm down and tell me where you are or where you are going."

"Will, I am so sorry about what I said at your house. I didn't mean it. I love you so much."

"I know that you love me, Lizzy. You know that I love you just as much back. Now please tell me what is happening."

Tommy, the dimmest of the guys had ran back to the driver's seat to get his keys which he had clumsily left in the ignition. Clive meanwhile was banging hysterically on the door, trying to get in whilst shouting things like, "You b***h, get off the phone! Hang up now! If you don't, I will give you one hell of a thrashing!"

"Will, you have to tell me you forgive me for those things. I will not be able to die peacefully if I don't know that I haven't had your forgiveness."

"You are not going to die! Tell me where you are and I can come and get you. LIZZY, JUST TELL ME WHERE YOU ARE GOING."

His yelling down the headset of the phone woke me up sufficiently to stop my crying and to hear Clive bellowing, "Have you found the key yet you f*****g idiot?" to his supposed friend.

"We are heading towards Manchester. The Royal or something. I think it is a pub. It was all pre-arranged. G escaped from prison to do this, and from what I gather, Clive and Tommy have been watching me for about a week trying to work out my schedule."

Tommy bawled, "I've found it!" very loudly and Clive ironically thanked the Lord. Tommy came thudding once again towards the back of the van, the jiggling keys in his hands reminding me of Mrs. Reynolds. Why was I thinking of Mrs. Reynolds at a time like this?

"Elizabeth, I am calling the police straight away. How far away would you say you are from Manchester?"

I was unsure of how I could work that out, when suddenly the door burst open and I let out a huge scream, "William!" Clive came bursting in, and grabbed the phone off me, so all I could hear was Will's, "Don't worry darling...I am coming for you."

I couldn't breathe as Clive held his hands over my mouth to muffle my cries. His hands were so big that they covered my nose as well. I tried to bite his hands and to kick him as hard as possible, but Tommy was holding my legs down and Clive was too strong and could withstand the tiny bit of pain that I was able to inflict on him.

"Knock her out, Clive," was the shout I heard from Tommy as they both continued to try and peg me down. "She will be easier to deal with if she is out."

I could hear Will yelling from the still connected call, "Hang in there Lizzy! I'll get to you, I promise."

"What shall I knock her out with?" Clive the doofus asked Tommy the bigger doofus.

"Your fist!" was the last thing that I heard before complete darkness.

Chapter 30

Posted on Tuesday, 7 June 2005

My hearing was the first sense to come back to me. A voice that I recognised as G's was speaking, but I couldn't pick up what he was saying. My sense of feeling was next. I was being carried by one person at my feet and another with his hands underneath my shoulders. I could then feel the inclination to open my eyes, but my sixth sense of curiosity overtook and I decided I would be able to understand what was happening a lot better if I pretended I was still knocked out. The smell of the place came in next. It smelt disgusting, like a cross between alcohol and smoke. The place I was in smelt damp and old, like an old flat with mouldy walls.

"Why the hell did you knock her out, Clive?" I managed to distinguish the speaker as George, in all fairness to him, probably one of the most cunning men I knew. "I told you clearly that I wanted her here in one piece. Not weak and I didn't want you to hurt her."

"Why not? You are going to. All I did was give her a bit of softening up. What is the problem with that?"

"Clive, I know what I am going to do. I want to do it myself. I don't need you guys to do it for me. Now, why did you knock her out?"

"She was being difficult. She was kicking up a fuss in the back of the van. We couldn't control her."

"What do you mean you couldn't control her?" George shouted angrily. "You and Tommy weigh about 10 times as much as her. She was sitting in the back of a locked van. How the hell could she be being difficult?"

I could sense Clive's nervousness at answering. It would mean he had to admit that firstly he had forgotten to check if I had a mobile in my pocket, and secondly that Will had probably called the police already. Clive was shaking slightly. I could tell he was, because he was the one carrying the top end of my body. "Well she was calling someone..."

"SHE WAS WHAT?" G shouted at the top of his voice. "HOW THE HELL DID SHE HAVE A PHONE?"

"Well, she ... we didn't realise that she had a phone."

I was really laughing inside at Clive. He had been all tough and big, bossing around Tommy like he owned him and now, he was cowering like a sheep! Tommy seemed to be pretty quiet as well. God, even I had more courage and braveness in front of George than these wimps did!

"Did she manage to get any information to the person she was calling? Did you hear her telling this person where she was going?"

"No," Clive answered wisely. He probably hadn't heard me tell Will, but if he had, he had done the best thing by telling George that I hadn't. George would probably kill him on the spot if he found out that I had told Will where I was. I calculated the hours in my head. I had called him at about eight. He surely would have called the police straight away? Unless he was just planning to come himself? The quickest way he could have got to Manchester would be by plane, and that would have taken at least an hour plus the time to get to the airport and find a last minute place.

At the very least, he would have been arriving in Manchester half an hour or so after me. There was no way, even with his connections that he could get here any faster. I started wishing that I had called the Manchester police, or someone who actually lived in the north of England.

"Who did she call? Did you hear her say a name?"

"Yeah, I think it was 'William.'"

George swore rudely under his breath. "Why can't that man just leave me alone? Why does he have to become involved in everything that I do? Why the hell was she calling him anyway?"

"I dunno, boss, but it sounded like he's her boyfriend or something. She was talking pretty sentimental stuff to him, that's for sure."

"What sort of sentimental stuff?" George questioned interestedly.

"Stuff like, 'you have to forgive me, I love you soooooo much and I couldn't possibly go without saying goodbye and oooooh I love you and kiss me' and basically s**t like that."

My temper rose and I felt a huge urge to just attack the man with all my strength for the things that he was saying about me. He was just jealous that I had someone who I cared about and who cared about me. No he wasn't. Stop being ridiculous, Lizzy. He was taking the p**s.

"Typical nonsense from Elizabeth then. Who would have thought that someone so clever and successful would have to be so dependant on other people? So, Lizzy," he breathed onto, leaning down so closely that I could almost feel him crushing me, "William Darcy is it now? I should have guessed you would be screwing him now. Natural progression for you, was it? The man who saved you from me? Well, sweetheart, he certainly isn't going to save you this time."

I had my eyes closed. George was speaking to someone who he thought was completely oblivious to their surroundings, and still he was scaring me senseless. As far as I knew, this man had never killed someone before. As far as I knew. I was seriously hoping that he had enough compassion in him to resist beginning to kill now. I was praying that he would still feel something, even if it was only a small something, for the girl that I am quite certain he used to love.

"Put her down in that chair. Gag her and tie up her hands as well. This time, she will have no chance of calling someone or escaping," George ordered to the now grovelling Clive and Tommy who were obviously trying their best to make up for their previous stupidity. I felt myself crash carelessly onto a really hard chair, "Be careful!" G ordered to the guys. "The rate you two are going, she won't ever wake up."

If I was Clive or Tommy, I would have yelled at George, "Do it yourself!" But obviously, that was preposterous, because George would firstly never be ordered around and also, he wouldn't be able to lift me up himself anyway. Will could just about manage, and he was a lot stronger than George. George was only just about the same height as me. I used to be ordered by him to only wear flat shoes or trainers when with him. He had this stupid notion that a man should never be shorter than a woman, and reminded me of it. At the beginning of our relationship, I thought it was sweet. God knows how. I think it was because I thought it showed that he wanted to be the traditional man in the couple. Like, the man always pays and the man always buys flowers etc. But when I was starting to have enough of him, I saw it as a sign of his possessiveness. Which had to stop.

I was attached to the chair haphazardly; my hands were bound to the chair's back as tightly as possible, whilst one of the men held onto my knees in a way that I definitely did not like. Once my hands were attached, a pair of disgustingly dirty, sweaty and hairy hands held onto my face, one hand on either side of my mouth. I was seriously tempted to bite the hands. I could almost taste where the hands had been and I felt sick. It took so much self control not to open my eyes and my mouth and scream at him to get off him. I could feel the contrast of his rough and worn hands against my skin which for once felt unbelievably soft. He held my mouth open with his podgy fingers and forced a piece of old, smelly cloth into my mouth. He did it aggressively, causing George to shout at him once more and command him to be careful. For someone who was planning to kill me, he was behaving very sensitively. It reminded me of the first time I agreed to go out with him.

It had taken a good few weeks of persuading until I finally accepted his offer of dinner on a Friday evening. I had been in awe of him up until then. He was gorgeous. His very light brown hair was gelled ever so slightly up at the front of his head. His hair got thinner as it got further back until it met his neck. He had a very cheeky and suggestive grin and he knew how to use his smile which was welcoming and enticing. All the women in the office were in love with him and were frequently discussing how they were sure that it would be their turn with him next. Every time that he said 'hello' or simply smiled at them, they would swoon. He was irresistible and he knew it.

He had been so sweet when he picked me up. I was the luckiest woman in the office according to all the others. Everyone wished that it had been them instead of me. When I was on the stand and telling the world what happened, I wished it had been them as well. I had worn a simple creamy white skirt that I was very aware flattered me, with a red polo neck as it had been in the middle of autumn. We had talked about everything. He was such a charmer that there was no lack of conversation. George was clever, very clever. He had a calculating and mathematical mind that could understand and manipulate other people.

By the end of the night, I was persuaded that he was one of the best men I had ever met. I was convinced that I wanted to continue a more serious relationship with him and convinced that he was the greatest. I couldn't see underneath his fake exterior. I was awful at judging people. I had thought that he was a good man and that Will was not, but really it had been the other way round.

"What do we do now?" questioned Tommy, who had finally found the courage to speak.

"We wait," G replied very simply.

"Wait for what?" asked Clive.

"We wait until something happens. We wait until either Will Darcy turns up, which seems unlikely or we wait until Elizabeth wakes up. But by the way that you two hit her, I would be surprised if we are still here waiting next week."

"Isn't there someway that we can wake her up, boss?" said Clive. They were all sitting about five metres away from me, together. I had an image in my head of the place that I thought we were in. I imagined it to be dingy, shabby and damp. It felt like a dark and cold basement. I guessed by the name it had to be a pub of some sorts. The very thing that came to my mind was the E20 club from the soap Eastenders. My eyes were still closed and I dared not open them even for a quick peek as to my surroundings. My head was slumped over my body, so I was sitting almost as if I was dead.

Ten minutes later, we were still sitting the same way as we had been before. Nothing much had happened and I had decided that I definitely wasn't very interested in what men discussed in private when women were not there. Even these guys, who I had thought being criminals and gangsters would talk about exciting things, were unbelievably boring.

"So how was prison?" Tommy asked in a really casual way that implied one got thrown into prison every other weekend.

"Not bad," G replied. "There were some fine prison wardens to look at. They helped to pass the time."

"Like the one who helped you escape?"

"No, she was a right minger!" George exclaimed and then on what I assumed was Clive and Tommy's confused looks continued with, "She had to be. I could tell that she hadn't had much luck with men and she really thought that she had found someone who thought she was gorgeous."

"So not as good a catch as Elizabeth then?"

I almost, almost felt flattered when G replied, completely sincerely, "No-one is as good a catch as Elizabeth." That was before I remembered that he had raped me, abused me, made me completely dependant on him, stolen thousands from many companies, stolen from Will, tricked Anne and got her pregnant, made me confess to the world how immature I had been and was currently planning to kill me and had me gagged and tied to a chair. But I was still a little bit flattered. What? I was still human!

I heard the banging sound of doors crashing open and the sound of G, Clive and Tommy jumping up towards the sound of the interruption. There was a sound of struggling and men fighting, I heard the loading of a pistol and I almost choked as George clicked the gun and obviously held it towards the intruder and said, "Clive, Tommy, tie him up like her," and then after a short pause, "It was very kind of you to join us, Mr. Darcy. I knew we wouldn't have to wait too long."

Chapter 31

Posted on Friday, 10 June 2005

I was petrified as I imagined what had happened. I was almost happy that I couldn't see what was going on. From what I could tell, Will had come in, eager to reason with G and get him to let me go but I doubt he guessed George would have a gun. George had been expecting it. Clive and Tommy were stupid, but he wasn't. He knew what high values Will placed on the people he loved. He knew what lengths Will would go to to save the people close to him. He knew he would come as well as I did.

"I am intrigued as to how you managed to find our whereabouts. How fascinating that you should simply know where to go! No doubt this little b***h told you. She always was easy to get things off her chest." He deserved a slap for that, the little b*****d. I could almost hear the scowl on William's face at George's rudeness and insulting ways.

"What the hell have you done to Elizabeth, George? I swear if you have hurt her, I will seriously kill you."

"What?" George laughed and spluttered at the same time, "You will kill me whilst you sit there with your hands stuck to a chair and three men with guns surrounding you? Somehow I think that I have the advantage over you."

From the sound in his voice, Will seemed really concerned about me. That made me realise that I was still pretending to be knocked out. I didn't really know why. I guess it was something to do with not wanting to face what would happen. But I decided that it was stupid to try and delay the inevitable. What was going to happen was going to happen, and if Will and I were going to die, and George wanted to kill us, then basically we were buggered, so I may as well have saved my really aching neck.

"Don't worry about your little whore, Darcy. She only had a little bit of a bashing with Clive here when she refused to do what he requested."

"Don't you DARE insult Elizabeth like that."

"Or what? You need to get this into your head, Darcy. I am the one with the gun. Your silly love declarations will not help you now. Neither will your money or your lawyer's wig."

"I don't care. I am warning you not to speak of Elizabeth as you are doing. I swear Wickham you will be in for it. Even if you kill me and her, you will still have it coming."

I had to say that I was really enjoying all the fighting over me. Will was defending my honour, and I was sure that were he not tied up, he would challenge George to a duel. Now that was a sight waking up for.

In order to make my presence known, I decided that I would wake up in a sort of yawn and then stretch in the usual way I would do if I was going to wake up. Unfortunately, this didn't quite work, because I had stupidly forgot that my hands were bound, which meant that I lost my balance just as they all noticed that I was about to move. Had I not been 'unconscious' I think that everyone would have laughed. But luckily, they didn't and Will just shouted, "Lizzy!" and G who quite obviously had something planned that meant that he needed to be nice to me, rushed over and set the chair the right way around so I was upright. He undid the gag that had been choking me and I coughed loudly.

My shock wasn't fake like I planned it to be. It was the last place I could ever expect to be in. It was a pub, but it was pretty classy as far as pubs go. The walls were painted red and bronze, the tables and chairs were pretty tidy, and the place had an overall cosy atmosphere. If I wasn't about to die there, then I would probably have gone back.

I saw Will who was sitting in a similar way, looking a little bit like he had done a stupid thing in trying to attack George and his cronies single-handedly. But the look he was giving seemed a little bit fake. It looked like an act. No matter what George thought, I was sure that Will wouldn't be so arrogant that he wouldn't have told the police what was happening. At least I hoped he wasn't that arrogant.

"Are you ok, Lizzy?" he asked me in a concerned voice that I suppose the situation did deserve.

"Yeah," I replied, in a forced confused and hazy tone, "Where am I? What is going on?"

George stood between us and interrupted, "Your 'brave' boyfriend here has come to your rescue, Elizabeth. Unfortunately, he attempted to do it on his own," he walked towards Will. He was still carrying the gun, and I followed him with my eyes which were still getting used to the light. "It's your arrogance, Darcy," he said, slapping him lightly on the back. "What is it about you that makes you think you can do everything yourself? You rush over here irrationally and attempt to save the damsel in distress. I half expected you to be wearing a bloody superman costume! You think I am going to let a man who thinks he owns the world ruin my plans for Elizabeth and me."

That didn't sound too good. My eyes met with Will's in a sort of half panicked look. George noticed this and said in a slightly manically evil way, "There is nothing that your love stricken looks can do to save you. I am the one with the gun and you two are the ones that are tied up with no outside communication...unless," an idea had obviously come into his head, "Unless, Darcy, you really did call the police and they are standing outside, waiting for the first sound of a shot to come in and arrest me. Well did you?"

"No. I didn't." He was lying. I could tell that. George may have not been able to, but I certainly could. I was one of the only people, who could sometimes read the expression on his face, and for the first time in my knowing him, I read fear on his face, the fear that G would realise he was lying.

"And how exactly am I supposed to believe you, Will? What will I do? Go and walk onto the street and then be harassed and surrounded by thousands of police? I don't think so."

"You can believe me, Wickham. Unlike you, I am a man of my word and I don't tell lie to people. Go out and check. You will find no-one there."

What the hell was Will playing at? He was playing a dangerous game. I was sure I could tell that he was lying. I was sure that he would not have done something as irrational as racing up to Manchester in an attempt to save me without informing ANYONE. If George killed us both, we mightn't be found for weeks, meaning that he could get away to some random place as far away as Tahiti and never be seen again.

"CLIVE!" G shouted to the man who had been hiding somewhere in the shadows. He was about thirty, but his beer belly and biker style clothing made him seem a lot older than that. "Clive, go to the back door and walk around to the front and see if anyone is there." Clive looked like he would much rather knock George out with his over large fist than do that and it took G's shouting, "NOW" for him to actually move.

There was about a minute of painful silence in which nothing happened but my trying to catch Will's look without George seeing, which was quite difficult. As George turned when Clive could be heard clambering back into the building, Will blew me a kiss and gave me a reassuring smile which suggested that he knew exactly what he was doing.

"No one there, boss. It's totally deserted out there."

"Right. Excellent. Darcy's sense of superiority can be predicted miles away. Now, down to business."

William gave a grimace and a scowl hearing George's insult, but I didn't think that it was a truly heart-felt grimace. It seemed to me that inside, he was laughing his head off at him. Of course, I had been pretty crap at judging people and their emotions recently, so I it was quite likely that I was absolutely wrong.

"Now, Elizabeth, how would you prefer to die? I have this shotgun here. Or perhaps some rope around the neck? Or, I can get Tommy to start up the fire?"

"What a kind person you are, George. So considerate as to other people's requests."

"Aren't I just? You know that I still have some of those feelings that I used to have for you. How is she in bed, Darce? Just remember that I taught her everything she knows," before Will could manage to get a word in, he added, "Of course, she wasn't as innocent as Anne. How is your sister, Will?"

"Don't you talk about my sister like that," Will responded with an air of forced calmness.

"What about Elizabeth? Am I allowed to talk about her like the whore that she is? Or have you puffed her up and made her believe that she is actually your equal?" I wanted to strangle that man. I mean I knew that I wasn't the most maidenly or innocent of women, and I knew that I wasn't as rich or important as Will, but I deserved respect. What do you mean you deserved respect? This man was about to kill you! He couldn't care less!

"What is it that you want, Wickham? Money? I can get you money. Release from jail? I can get you that as well. Somewhere where you can live without the police badgering you? I can do whatever you want."

"I don't want any of those," he replied looking at me in a very eerie way, "I want Elizabeth."

All the room was shocked. Clive and Tommy, bless their little cotton socks thought that he was going to be killing us and they would have front row seats. Will was stunned into silence. There was one thing that he wasn't going to give up without a fight. There was one thing that it wasn't in his power to give. Wickham had chosen his thing well. He had Will's complete compliance and behaviour now. As for me, I didn't really know what I thought. I was relieved that George didn't want to kill me. I suppose. What was better? Dying or stuck with George?

"That's crazy, George," Will replied, the first of us to manage to regain composure from George's surprise.

"Don't talk like that, Will. Your life is hanging on by a thread. If Elizabeth consents, then you are saved. If she doesn't, then you and her are both dead. Or, I might just kill you and then take her anyway. I haven't decided yet."

Will's jaw dropped. He knew that Wickham wasn't joking. He would kill us or at least one of us, anyway. I knew what I had to do. I wasn't going to let either of us die. I was going to go with George. He had to care for me a little bit! Why would he bother doing all this if he didn't? Will's message to me was saying, 'don't you dare go with him, Elizabeth. I would rather die than see you with him' but mine back to him was saying, 'I am not going to let you die.'

"How do I know that you are telling the truth, George?" I asked, speaking for the first time in a while. "How do I know that when I agree to your silly scheme that you won't kill Will anyway?"

"I wouldn't do that. It will mean that you are less 'up for it' later on," he said with a dirty grin. I wanted to heave. "Although," he added, "I do prefer you when you are feisty and unwilling."

That was the last straw for Will who was sick of all the disgusting things that G was implying. He stood up, bringing the chair with him and set forward to grab George. But G was too quick. G wasn't attached to a chair. He dashed towards me and held the gun up against my head. I had never been so close to a gun before ever. It was terrifying. I could feel the metal digging in to my scalp as sweat formed on my forehead.

"SIT DOWN," he barked. "Now listen to me, Darcy. I don't think you are taking this quite as seriously as you should be. This," he pointed to the gun pressing into my head, "this is a gun. I have used it on other people. Remember that man that was found dead by the Thames about two years ago? That was me! I am certainly not afraid to use it again on you."

Will sat down slowly, watching the trigger as if it he was a bird and the trigger his eggs.

"Now Elizabeth," George directed to me, "I believe that you have come to a decision? Would you be so kind as to inform me as to your preference?"

"You can have me if you want me, George but only if it means that you leave Will alone and don't harm him."

"Ah! That's what I like to see! A reasonable person. Darcy, you could learn a bit from your woman ... Oops, I mean MY woman. Now, Darcy. Elizabeth and I have a car waiting outside to take us to the airport to a destination unknown to everyone except me." The gun was still pointed at my head and I was shaking a maraca in the hands of a hyper-active samba band. George noticed this and, still holding the gun at my head, bent down slightly and kissed me on the lips. For the second time that day, I wanted to BITE. George continued with, "You Darcy will stay here with Clive, who, I might add, also has a gun in his possession. You will stay here for half an hour and once that half hour is up, Clive will take you back to London. Understood?"

Will nodded very reluctantly, his eyes looking like they would kill George at any moment. George, ever willing to annoy Will, saw this and kissed me again. This time however, I kissed him back. I did it because I thought it would make George easier to deal with and this seemed to make Will even angrier which pleased George even more and he then said, "Good girl," to me.

George had always been intelligent; he had always been calm in moments of crisis and been able to control other people remarkably well. However, in this situation, perhaps it was his triumph over Will when I had kissed him back that did it, but this time, he forgot his intelligence, "Look, Will! The gun is going back into my pocket," he said as he put it in there, undid the restraints on my arms, helped me up and gave Will a parting smile.

He stupidly forgot to send Tommy or Clive out to see if the coast was clear, because as soon as he stepped outside and the fifteen or sixteen awaiting officers saw that the gun was most definitely in his pocket, one of them grabbed me, and one of them grabbed him, shouting, "HANDS UP!" over George's loud cursing and shouting at being caught.

Chapter 32

Posted on Friday, 10 June 2005

It didn't take very long for the police to go into the building and bring out Clive and Tommy. They were good men at heart and just caught up in George's web. They gave up easily and handed over their guns. I was sitting in one of the police cars, warming up with a blanket over me. I didn't even realise that I had been so cold, but the policeman did and made me sit in the car whilst they went to get Will.

It seemed that I didn't know my own mind. That probably was acceptable considering I just been kidnapped and held at gunpoint. I hadn't realised how freezing or how scared I had been until I actually got out of there. I also didn't know how frightened I had been for William until I saw the five policemen who went in to get Clive and Tommy come out and William walk out behind them, looking around for me.

I surprised myself and him with my energy as I jumped out of the car and ran straight into his arms. He wrapped his arms tightly around me, whispering, "Elizabeth, thank God you are ok."

I couldn't help the tears falling as I whispered back, "Will, I am so sorry. Look where my stupidity got us! I should never have left your house."

"Stop it, Lizzy!" he said, between kissing the tears away from my cheeks. "I shouldn't have let you leave. I should have behaved more maturely, and we should have discussed it properly."

"It doesn't matter now. If we can get over this," I gestured to pub, "then we can conquer anything. As long as we are together."

"I do love you, Elizabeth."

"I love you too, Fitzwilliam."

He didn't have a chance to say anything in response, because I kissed his lips quiet. All the sadness and fatigue that had attacked me was washed away as he held me close to him. I could hear our hearts beating in time together and relished in the feeling that he cared so much for me.

Some time later, the chief policeman present came over, apologising for the interruption, but asking if he could have the headset. This led to Will stepping back from me and taking his sweatshirt off. On the very top of the t-shirt he wore underneath (which happened to be one that I had bought him...I would ask if that was coincidental later) there was a tiny microphone, no bigger than the nail on my smallest finger. It was connected to a small pack which was tucked in on the inside of the t-shirt. It was a tape recorder. I was sufficiently confused to get an explanation.

As soon as he had been cut off from me after I had called him from the back of the van, he rang the airport and paid a ridiculously large amount of money to get a last minute ticket to Manchester. Whilst on the plane, he decided his plan. As soon as he arrived in Manchester an hour later, about half an hour before I arrived with Clive and Tommy, he called the police there and told them the situation. They agreed with his plan and they all went to the pub that we were in. Thankfully, I had pretended to be still knocked out, which bought all the time that Will and the police needed.

Will was going to go in and try to reason with George. He went in with a microphone so that firstly the police would know if they needed to interfere if things were getting out of control. The other reason he had one was so that they could catch George confessing things on tape and he would have no chance of getting away with it. When George had said about the man who had been found dead by the river, he meant to say it in a way that scared us, but it only resulted in the very huge possibility of a life sentence in prison. Unfortunately, things didn't go to plan when Will went in, because George had been expecting it and was ready. However, Will played everything to his advantage and made up a new game plan.

He had been acting the entire time. The police had been outside waiting as George expected they had been but because they could hear everything that was being said, they trusted Will's judgment, they retreated just enough until they could hear Clive come in once again and say that the coast was clear. They had guessed what Will's plan was once George had admitted that what he wanted was to steal me away to some foreign country. All that they needed was for George to be calmer and not do anything crazy when we came out. I had helped the situation by kissing him. G was a lusting man and a little bit of action always made him easier. When they heard for definite that the gun was in his pocket, they moved in, directly outside, with three officers managing to get in through the back entrance and standing waiting until they saw G and I walked past.

When we did walk past, they sneaked behind us so that once George had seen all the police standing outside; there was no where that he could run. He was trapped. He had no way out, and he was going to prison again but this time for a very long time and probably in the company of only male officers.

Will and I went home. The police got us another flight back to Gatwick, where Will's car was. I slept on Will's shoulder all the way back even though it was a flight of no more than an hour. As soon as we got back to William's house, I was so tired that I didn't gawp or comment on the size of it, Will hit the shower as I simply curled up and tried to sleep. Sleep refused to come. Every time I closed my eyes, the smell of the disgusting room, images of Wickham holding the gun at Will and the feeling of the gun pressed against my head all came flooding back to me instantly. When Will came out of the shower, got into the bed and held me to his chest, I felt warm and cosy. He stopped me from having the nightmares that I know I would have had if I had endured the ordeal alone.

I slept through most of the next day, physically exhausted and mentally depleted. When I did wake up, it was late afternoon and Will had been awake for hours. He was watching the T.V and didn't realise that I had woken up. I was on the T.V. I don't think that Will would have let me watch it if he knew that I was awake. There was the footage of me coming out of the pub with G, looking as rough as hell. I had huge bags under my eyes and it looked as if I was about to throw up. I hadn't even realised that there were cameras there. That was how oblivious I was to the outside world at this point.

I suddenly hated the media for showing this for the entire nation to see. I was in a right state - upset, tired, sick and in a mess - and yet they were all talking about me as if I was entertainment. "The footage you are about to watch may distress you," the reporter had said just before they started showing it. Too right it may distress you. Especially if it is you. "Last night George Wickham, the man who had escaped from Birmingham early that same morning, was recaptured. The men who worked with him, brothers Clive and Tommy Saunderson had kidnapped Elizabeth Bennet, the woman who had helped put Wickham away only five weeks ago by telling the world of how he raped her. Elizabeth was kidnapped from outside the home of her boyfriend, William Darcy. She was taken to Manchester where George Wickham awaited her. Luckily, she managed to make a call to Will Darcy who was able to get up to her and inform the police.

"The pictures you have just seen are of Elizabeth and George coming out of the pub. We understand that Elizabeth was forced to agree to running away to a foreign country as George's companion and after she agreed to that, then George agreed not to kill Darcy or Elizabeth as his plan had been. The police were awaiting them outside and managed to get Wickham in a car and back to prison where he will await a further court trial. The main question now is how was such a man able to escape? Some theories are..."

Will turned around to check on me and saw that I was listening and watching. "I bet the papers found out as well," I stated more than asked.

"Never mind about that, Lizzy. What matters is that you get better. How are you feeling now? Good sleep?"

"Not a bad one considering all that has happened in the last twenty four hours. My life has been utterly crazy since I met you, Will. Don't take offence. I didn't mean it like that. What I meant was that everything has happened at a crazy pace. Things that don't usually happen to normal people during their entire lives have all happened to me all in the past few months."

He sighed and got up from the sofa, coming to lie next to me. He stroked my hair lovingly and kissed the tip of my nose. "Things are going to be slowing down substantially in this next month."

I gave him a curious look and waited for him to continue. "You and I are going to take a month off work and we are going to go to Pemberley and simply relax. There will be no mad meetings with the police, no work, no sadness and most of all, there will be NO George Wickham. I think that both of us have had enough dealings with him to last a lifetime."

If I had been feeling in a more feminist mood, I would have argued with his presumption at telling me what to do, but I needed some time off. I wasn't even sure that I wanted to carry on working in the media. I didn't know what I wanted to do, but I was certain that whatever it was I did with the rest of my life, it would involve Will.

"Ok," I agreed. I was still too tired to argue as well.

"Excellent, now first of all, call Kyle," he ordered. He handed me the phone and I dialled my office. "Kyle!" I said happily as he answered with, "Elizabeth Bennet's office, how may I help you?"

"Jesus Christ, Lizzy!" He then yelled so loudly that I am certain I could hear him from the other side of London, "IT'S ELIZABETH, EVERYONE!" He lowered the volume of his voice and came back to talking to me, "Lizzy, you have had us all terrified. We all woke up this morning to the news that you had been kidnapped by G and that he had held you at gunpoint and we were all terribly worried about you, babe."

"Awww, thanks for your concern, Kyle, and tell the others thanks as well. I have only just woken up, actually. I was just calling to say that I am going away. I don't know how long I will be gone, but it will be at least a month. It may even be more than that."

"We understand darling, you need some rest. Do you want me to tell Thepale that he needs to look for a temporary replacement?"

"Yeah, you better had. But, you better make sure that whoever does fill my space temporarily is someone that can fill it permanently, in case I don't actually come back."

Kyle agreed reluctantly and I put the phone back on its stand. "You're thinking of leaving?" Will questioned, once I had settled into his arms and adjusted my position so that it was a comfortable one for me and for him.

"Yeah. I'm not really sure, but I am definitely going to consider it when I am away."

"But you're at the top, Lizzy! The only step left for you is to be an editor on a national paper and you are so good that I wouldn't be surprised if offers came for you for those papers."

I sighed. I knew that. But my heart wasn't in it anymore and now, the entire country knew me as the person who had been mistreated by George Wickham. "Will, the only reason people would want me now is because they have heard about me on the news and they feel sorry for me. Apart from that, I don't actually want to work within the media industry anymore. It is horrible. I feel sorry for all the people who we write about in the papers. Having been on the opposite side of the camera as such, I've realised how cruel journalists really are only to make entertainment for other people and to sell papers. I don't want to be a part of that any longer."

Will looked at me lovingly for the umpteenth time since I had woken up. "You are such an amazing woman, Elizabeth. You are so thoughtful and caring. Everything that you do is done for a reason. I am proud of you, my darling."

He kissed me again, first on the top of my head, then on my forehead, my nose, my mouth and finally my chin before he began working his way up the way that he came. The phone ringing made both of us jump and just as Will was going to answer it, he said, "That's probably your sister. She has been calling every hour of the day since about ten to see if you have woken up."

It was Jane, and she told me of how worried everyone was and how when they couldn't get through to me at my apartment, they had all called her at work and the poor school had never had so many calls since it had opened than it had had in that one day. My parents, now back together properly, had rang, Kitty, Mary and Anne had all rang from there various parts of the country (Anne had gone back to Liverpool with Kitty as they had become very good friends now, and Mary was in Wales, visiting the universities and seeing which one she wanted to study at). Charlotte...Collins had called, from their honeymoon in northern Scotland and so the list went on.

Jane was very glad to hear I was ok. She quite agreed that Will and I should take a break, "Of course Lizzy. You must relax and have some time to calm your life down slightly. Since November, so many things have happened to you, I have lost count! What was that, Charles? Hang on, Lizzy...Lizzy, Charles says that there couldn't be a better place in the world for you to spend a while relaxing in. Derbyshire is a beautiful county and Pemberley a delightful estate."

"I am glad to hear it."

I listened to Jane rattling on about insignificant things and all the news that I had missed over the past day and all the plans that she had decided on about the wedding since the last time that we had spoken and smiled. She was so sweet sometimes that it made me laugh. I was about to say something to Will about it when I turned and saw that he had fallen asleep in the position that he had been, lying with his head on my chest. I whispered my goodbyes to Jane and stroked my hand through Will's hair tenderly, affectionately caressing his skin with the tip of my thumb at the same time. He didn't stir. He was just as tired as me.

My mind flashed back to all that he had done for me. All the things that had been said in our complex but short acquaintance. At that time, I didn't know what the future would bring, or what we would be doing in ten or twenty years time, but I did know that I would still be loving him as much, if not more than as I did now. His eyes opened and he smiled at me. I kissed him on the lips and watched his smile widen and then him drop off to sleep. Yes. I did love Will. I would love him for all eternity.

Epilogue

Posted on Friday, 10 June 2005

Just in case you were wondering what happened next...

Billy and Charlotte Collins had a little boy who was born prematurely but thankfully pulled through. Lewis was named after his father's boss and fortunately for Charlotte proved a good companion as the years went by and he matured. Charlotte, who had not been wedded long before she knew for certain what a mistake she had made in marrying Billy, devoted all her time to ensuring that their only child displayed none of the pompousness and stupidity that he had managed to avoid inheriting. We didn't see each other very often, but I knew that she had come to hate her husband but was content to simply live the rest of her life with him. Their relationship reminded me of my parents' own relationship.

However, after my parents had had their separation and then got back together afterwards, they became closer and spent the last twenty years of their lives making up for the years of their relationship which they had spent trying to annoy the other the most, living in harmony with fewer arguments.

Perhaps this was because of my mother's happiness that all of her girls were settling down. Mary had gone on to study Philosophy in Cardiff University, where in her third year; she met a young Welshman, Jeremy Jones (Jones being the favourite name for people in Wales). When she was 28, she and Jeremy got married and they had two boys, Timothy and Gerard. They were very happy.

Kitty graduated with a teaching degree in Art and went on to be an excellent professor in Liverpool University. She and Jack got engaged, when they were twenty one, but on realising how long the rest of her sisters had waited to get married, she broke off the engagement to enjoy her youth. It turned out that she and Jack were meant to be together, because they met again when they were twenty six and got married after about four months. Kitty and Jack didn't want to have children, they were both content to play with and spoil their many nieces and nephews.

Anne Darcy's baby was stillborn. It was a little boy. She was devastated, but the rest of us, though upset at her loss, were slightly relived that she wouldn't have to raise the son of the man who broke her heart and was a convicted murderer, rapist and burglar. She managed to get over it pretty quickly for her, and became a cellist in the London Philharmonic Orchestra, playing in venues all over the world. She didn't marry, but when she was thirty six, met a man who had joined the orchestra playing the saxophone and they were a couple for the rest of their lives. They didn't see the need to marry.

Caroline Bingley, the woman who never got over the fact that I had stolen her William from her, upon realising that she was almost past her 'sell by date' quickly married an old millionaire from Norfolk who just wanted a trophy wife. Turns out that she wasn't a trophy for him to be proud of. She wasn't a particularly good wife either, having countless affairs with pool boys and gardeners. She ended her days living off the luxuries that her husband left her when she died, with no-one who really loved her around her.

George Wickham was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Hamish Thomas, the one that he had confessed to murdering whilst trying to frighten Will and I. He also got extra sentences for possession of a gun, kidnapping, violent behaviour and escaping from prison. This resulted in him going to another high security prison where there were NO female officers or gay male officers to seduce. He committed suicide after about ten years. No one really cared.

Jane and Charles' wedding went just as perfectly as it should have done with two perfect people in love with each other as much as they were. Jane continued to work in the primary school with all the children that she adored. They had three children, two boys, Fredrick and Gareth and one sweet little girl, Jessica. They remained as much in love as they were when they got married.

The night of their wedding day was a beautiful spring evening. May 17th had been perfectly picked by Jane for the weather. It was as the sun was setting and Will and I stood on the balcony of the hotel they had the reception in, watching Jane and Charles Bingley drive off together for their honeymoon that Will asked me to marry him.

We married in September that year. The autumn leaves were just falling from the trees and the farmers preparing for harvest as we began the rest of our lives together. We swore to love, cherish and care for each other for the rest of our lives. We did. I gave up working in the London Tribune and began working at our home, Pemberley as a freelance writer. I published four books which sold pretty well. But after we had been married for six months, my concerns lay elsewhere. I had our first child, Catherine Marie Darcy, nine months later. I still wrote, but my main priority was with Catherine and her siblings, Richard Jason, Patrick John, and Felicity Anne. And also with their father, the man who I loved more every single day, the man who saved me from a life of ridiculous amounts of exaggerating and procrastinating, the man who I had once called a Beast. Fitzwilliam Darcy. My Fitzwilliam Darcy.

The End