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Chapter 15
"Your father is on the telephone. He wishes to speak with you, Elizabeth." Will handed the receiver into her outstretched hand.
"Hello, Papa! Happy Christmas. Please don't say that you're not coming." Elizabeth said cheerfully.
Her father's voice sounded very tired. "I shall be coming, Lizzie. But your mother will be staying home. I didn't want to say anything to Will, but Lydia came home last week."
Elizabeth uttered a startled "What?" She glanced around to see where Will had gone, and was relieved to note that he had left the room. "What on earth is she doing back? And what about George Wickham?" she whispered into the phone.
"She and George split up. I'll tell you all about it when I get there. It's too ugly and complicated to get into on the telephone." He paused a moment. "Lizzie, your mother and Mary are going to stay here to console Lydia. Kitty and I will come to visit you."
Elizabeth really didn't bemoan the absence of her mother, and was pleased that Kitty, at least, would be accompanying her father on the drive. "Georgiana will be happy to see Kitty, too. Drive carefully, Papa. What time may we expect you?"
"Probably around four."
"Okay, I'll see you then." As Elizabeth replaced the receiver her thoughts raced. What can Lydia be doing back here? What happened to all that money she and George had skived off with? Oh, what nerve the girl has, coming home after all she's done! She wondered how she was going to tell her husband about this, then decided to wait until hearing the whole story from her father.
By the time Mr. Bennet arrived late in the afternoon, Elizabeth could barely contain her curiosity. She still had to wait, however, as her father wouldn't talk about it while Will was in the room. Georgiana and Kitty were keeping William amused with his new toys in the playroom, leaving the others to the comfort of the drawing room.
"Your wife wasn't feeling up to travelling, then?" Will asked Mr. Bennet.
"We had an unexpected visitor arrive, so she and Mary stayed at Longbourn. Nothing was going to keep me from visiting my Lizzie, though," he smiled at her affectionately, "and I see you are just blooming, my dear!"
Elizabeth smiled shyly, but Will was beaming from ear to ear. "I finally persuaded her to ease up on her workload and relax over the holidays. Now I just have to convince her to transfer all of her work to her home office, and I won't be worrying about her driving to Leeds every other day." He looked to his father-in-law for support.
"Oh, don't look at me, son! I long ago gave up any idea of changing Lizzie's mind on anything!"
Will's eyes turned to his wife, and he gazed at her warmly. "Well, I have first hand knowledge that her opinions are not entirely unalterable. I shall persist in my endeavours. However, in the meantime, I can only rest assured that she takes the Land Rover whenever she goes."
"All right, Will." Elizabeth relented. "Next week I'll have the rest of my files shifted to the server so I can access them from here." At her husband's triumphant expression she frowned and warned "But I'm not doing this because you have been pestering me about it! The seatbelt has become rather uncomfortable to fasten lately. I don't relish the thought of driving for such a distance in that fashion."
Will raised a hand to cover his smile as he said "Of course, my dear. I never believed you to be so easily swayed from your position."
She threw a cushion at him but he ducked, and it sailed over his head to land at the feet of the butler, who had just entered the room. The man bent down to retrieve the offending item from the floor. Without so much as a blink, he turned to Will.
"Telephone call for you, sir. A Mr. Randolph."
"Thank you, Peters." Will said. "So, I shall make my escape, and not a moment too soon I see!" He laughed as Elizabeth hefted another cushion experimentally. "I won't be long."
He left the room, Peters following behind. The butler gently placed the cushion on a chair as he departed.
Mr. Bennet laughed heartily. "Flying objects must be commonplace around here, Lizzie, if the staff are unfazed by it!
"Common enough, I suppose." Elizabeth smiled self consciously. Then she turned a serious gaze on her father and leaned toward him. "Papa, quickly. Tell me what's going on with Lydia before Will comes back."
Mr. Bennet's good humour disappeared. "Your sister showed up at the door last Tuesday. She had nothing but a small travel bag with a few items of clothing in it. I was sorely tempted to throw her out of the house, but since no-one else knew the real story of what had happened with Wickham and Lydia and Will......... Anyway, I listened to what she had to say. At first I wasn't prepared to believe her, but I had a private word with her later and concluded that she's told the truth. You wouldn't recognize her, Lizzie. She's nothing like the wild, carefree girl who left us only a few years ago."
"What happened to her?" Elizabeth asked in concern.
"She and Wickham went to Canada with the money that they took from Will. They spent most of it, but used some to start up a small business dealing with cellular phones. They marketed accounts for the national telephone company, as a franchise operation. But Wickham was changing the clients over to a rival company without informing them, and eventually some of the clients began to question why their bills were coming from a different company. A couple of these people enquired, and that's when things turned. The whole plot came out and Wickham and Lydia were sued for over a million dollars in damages. But the scoundrel had put the business in Lydia's name and she was held primarily responsible." Her father fairly spat out his next words. "Wickham got off with a slap on the wrist, and Lydia went to jail for six months."
Elizabeth's mouth fell open in shock. She could hardly believe it. "Oh, poor Lydia! What a stupid girl! How did she get back to England?"
"Deported!" Mr. Bennet snorted. "She was never a Canadian citizen, so they deported her after she'd served her sentence."
"Oh, Mama must be beside herself!"
Mr. Bennet smiled grimly. "Oh, yes. Even more so than usual."
"But what happened to Wickham? Where is he now?" Elizabeth asked.
"He was likely deported, too. So, he's probably back in this country stirring up more trouble."
Elizabeth got up from her seat and began pacing the room. "But that means he's been back for months, now. Oh my lord! What if he......" She raised her eyes, as if she could see through the floorboards to the room where her son was playing. Her hand rubbed absently across her belly. "And Georgiana!" she cried. "Will has to know. We have to take precautions!"
"Lizzie, don't you think you're being a bit melodramatic?" her father said. "I hardly think you need worry about him interfering in your lives anymore."
Elizabeth turned her worried glance on him. "On the contrary, Papa. George Wickham needs money, and Will has always been his target. We'll hear from him sooner or later."
"Hear from whom?" Will's voice came from the doorway. "Elizabeth what's the matter? Why are you upset?"
"George Wickham is back." she stated simply.
"Lizzie, we don't know that for sure." her father interrupted.
Will's face darkened. "Well, we can certainly find out! He'll make his usual contacts, and I still know where some of them are."
Mr. Bennet was growing alarmed. "Hang about! The police must still be watching for him. Surely he would have been spotted at the airport when he tried to enter the country."
Will gave a short laugh. "Don't count on it. George Wickham is as slippery as they come." He moved to Elizabeth to wrap his arms around her comfortingly. "Don't worry, dear. I won't let him play me for a fool again. The next time George and I meet will be the last!" George Wickham can rot in hell before I let him harm any of my family!
"Oh, Will," Elizabeth said. "There's more. You haven't heard the worst of it." She went on to detail Lydia's misfortunes, with some help from her father. Will grew more angry as the story unfolded, and his wife's distress increased.
"Other than that, is Lydia all right?" Will asked Mr. Bennet. "He didn't physically harm her, did he?"
"Thank God, no." the other man replied. "But I think she got a wake up call with her time spent in jail. Lydia is a mirror image of the girl we remember. She's very withdrawn and morose. Not even Kitty could bring a smile to her face. I think she needs some help."
"That's it! I've had enough of Wickham. He's gotten away with far too much." Will looked at his wife and father-in-law with a steely gaze. "George Wickham is going to pay!"
It took Will only three days to ascertain that Wickham was, indeed, in the country. It took another week to find out where.
"He's in London." Will told Elizabeth over dinner. "Of course he'd be in London. It makes it a bit more difficult to find him in the crowd."
Elizabeth had grown increasingly disturbed by Will's preoccupation with George Wickham. He seemed to be almost obsessed with finding the man. What he planned to do in the end, she didn't know, but Elizabeth was sure she wasn't going to like it.
"Now you can leave it to the police, Will." she said hopefully.
Will looked at her incredulously. "I think not. I'm so close. Just a few more days and I'll have him right where I want him." What does she think? That I would trust the police not to bollix this up like they did the last time? He manages to sneak his way out of this country with £250,000 and they don't even lift a finger!! First Georgiana, then Lydia.... Wickham's not going to do it to me for a third time! He's not going to hurt any of my family again.
Elizabeth felt her anger building. "And just where do you want him?" she demanded.
Will's lips set in a thin line. "Don't argue with me on this, Elizabeth. I want Wickham out of our lives once and for all. I am going to make sure he is."
"Oh? And at what expense?" she continued heatedly. "You've hardly said ten sentences together to me the last few days. And William hasn't seen you at all!"
Will was unmoved. His mind was filled with the memories of everything George Wickham had ever done to make his family miserable. Georgiana's fears and nightmares following her near kidnapping had taken months to overcome. The slanderous lies he'd spread about Will ruining his professional reputation and preventing him from getting any job were nothing compared to the ones in circulation regarding Will's personal life. And the money! It wasn't the amounts that made Will's temper flare brightly, but the fact the it was George Wickham who had collected nearly a half million pounds of it. The only thing that wretch deserved was a - "When I find Wickham I'll be free to spend all of my time with the both of you."
Elizabeth threw down her fork. "When you find him! In a week? A month? A year? And you expect your wife and son to just sit around and wait for you all that time, patient in the knowledge that you will come back to us when your more important task is finished?"
"Elizabeth, don't mince words, by any means. What is it you really want to say?" Will narrowed his eyes and stared her down.
Elizabeth paused to collect her thoughts. She was furious with him. He kept saying that he wanted to rid their lives of George Wickham, but couldn't he see that his obsession with hunting down the scoundrel was putting Wickham smack in the middle of their lives, and in between husband and wife? "I want you to leave this whole matter to the police, Will. You don't have an objective perspective on it."
Will grunted. "Oh, and you do? Elizabeth, I know this man better than anyone. I know his habits, his preferences and I know I can find him." He placed his knife carefully on the table before pushing his chair back and standing. "And I will find him."
Elizabeth watched as he strode from the room. "Oh, yes. You'll find him all right. And then what?"
A few days later Elizabeth was in the nursery, laying out the new baby's clothes she had purchased, when she heard a triumphant shout from the lower hallway. She rushed out of the room to stand at the top of the stairs, peering down into the front hall. Will was pacing the floor, a sheet of paper in hand. He was muttering to himself as he read the words on the page.
"Will?" Elizabeth called. He looked up. "What is it?"
Waving the paper at her, Will said "At last! I've got him at last!" Then he disappeared into the study.
Elizabeth started down the stairs, but before she was halfway, Will came bounding up to pass by her and continue on to their room. She swiftly followed him, only to find he had an overnight bag open on the bed and was throwing clothes into it.
She stood silently for a moment, then said quietly "What do you think you're doing?"
Will paused long enough to raise an eyebrow at her, then continued his task. "I assume you mean that in a different sense than the obvious."
Elizabeth let out her breath in frustration. Ever since their argument at the dinner table the other night, Will had avoided any real conversation with her. He was stubborn, and so was she, but he could keep silent about it far better than she was able.
"Don't be so facetious, Will! What the hell is going on? Where are you going, and what did that fax say?"
Will spoke as he finished packing and closed the bag. "George is in East London, and now I have an address. I'm going to get him and drag his sorry behind into the nearest police station to see he's locked away for good." He picked up the bag and crossed the room to stand in front of his wife. "And if he gives me any trouble, I'm sure the world will not mourn his loss."
He pushed past her before Elizabeth could register his words. In horror, she whirled around to grab his arm before he had advanced many steps.
"What are you planning, Will? Don't be an idiot!"
Will shook her hand off angrily. "Leave me be, Elizabeth! George Wickham has been a plague on my life since I was a boy. It's finally within my power to get rid of him......one way or another. It's up to him which it will be."
Elizabeth was beginning to panic. "Will, please! I'm begging you not to go! Don't do this to us."
"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded.
Elizabeth swallowed painfully. "You know as well as I, that you have no intention of letting George go quietly off to jail. You are hoping, probably planning, to provoke him into a fight so you can justify-."
"That's enough!" Will snapped.
"No it isn't!" Elizabeth whipped back. She had to say what had been preying on her mind for the last week, in the hope of dissuading him from his mission. "If you do this, how do you think I'll feel? How can I live with you, knowing what you've done? How could you live with yourself?"
"Don't presume to judge my conscience, Elizabeth." Will said in a dangerous voice. "As for yours......you've had practice living with your conscience. It is entirely up to you."
Without a glance he left her in the hallway. Elizabeth was stunned by his words, and she followed the sound of his footsteps as they traversed the tiled hall and out the front door.
Will watched as George emerged from the pub entrance and stood a moment, the light from the doorway illuminating him briefly as he glanced right and left. Then he turned to the right and set off at a brisk pace, Will following at a discreet distance.
Will could barely contain his wrath, and the urge to twist the neck of George Wickham, to feel his throat under his fingers, propelled him forward. George slipped down an alley, and Will hesitated a moment. This was definitely not the ideal setting to confront such a dangerous man. Shaking off his misgivings, Will rounded the corner......right into a fist.
"Will Darcy!" George cried in surprise, then laughed. "Well, I never expected to see you again!" They eyed each other warily.
"George!" Will spat out. He lunged forward to slam the other man against the wall. Pressing his arm against George's throat, he said "I can't believe your nerve in coming back to England!"
George laughed again. "Well, well, well. Still a bit ticked are we? What, the lovely wife not as satisfying as you hoped she'd be? The gloss worn off?" Will pressed harder, but the other man continued as if he never noticed, though his voice sounded a little strained. "What took you so long to marry her anyway? I mean, she'd already produced one little bastard for you. I hear she's ready to give you another squalling brat, too! Tell me, was she in the club this time before or after you married her?"
As anticipated, Will pulled back to swing a fist at George's face but the intended target took advantage of the opportunity to slip down and out of the way. Will's fist connected with the brick wall, and he roared in pain and frustration, whirling around to face his opponent.
"You never were any good at that sort of thing, Will." George continued to laugh at him, infuriating Will even more. "I'll bet Elizabeth gives you a run for your money. Quite the passionate woman as I recall. Oh, quite passionate, indeed! She really deserves better than you, Will."
Will's rage increased, but somehow he restrained himself from foolishly reacting once again. The two men circled one another, watching for an opportunity.
"I rather regret ending up with the youngest Bennet sister, when I could have had all that fiery passion of Elizabeth." George taunted.
Will growled. "You could never have had her."
"Oh, more the fool, you!" George continued. "It's too bad that Lydia hadn't the talent for exciting me the way her sister did with those lips of hers."
"I don't believe a word." Will hissed through his teeth. "You are the lowest thing that ever crawled, George."
The other man laughed and spat on the cobbles. "You can be so thick, Will! You think I didn't try her out? I assure you, she was more than willing! Tell me. When you finally had her, did she call your name...... or mine?"
Before the words died on George's lips, Will drove his fist into his face. George stumbled backward and Will followed with another blow to his head.
"Don't you ever speak of my wife like that again!" Will snarled.
George wiped blood from the corner of his mouth and looked at Will with mild astonishment. "My, my! You've learned a thing or two over the years." Then he smiled. "But that still doesn't change what happened."
"That's very true." Will said quietly. "Nothing will change the past." His eyes burned into George's. "Nothing will change what you did to Georgiana. Nothing will change what you did to Lydia. And nothing will ever make up for the years that Elizabeth and I spent apart due to your interference!"
"Oh ho! So that's what's stuck in your craw all this time? Elizabeth!" George cried. "Always Elizabeth! But I suppose I can understand that. She is very beautiful. Every bit of her."
Will gritted his teeth and waited for his chance.
George sidestepped to avoid being backed into the wall. "Even so, I never thought you'd put anyone else ahead of Georgiana. You were always a little too protective of your young sister." He tilted his head to one side and sneered. "Perhaps there was something to those rumours after all."
Will threw himself at the other man, knocking him to the ground. Their faces inches apart, Will's voice was barely audible. "You have plagued me my entire life with your plots and schemes to get at my family's money! You nearly destroyed Georgiana, and she trusted you! Your slander and lies about me I could downplay, but when you came between Elizabeth and me...... what we lost as a result of your selfish, greedy actions..... Well, your luck has run out now, George. You won't have anywhere to run once I'm through with you."
They tangled on the cobbles, each struggling for the advantage. After several attempts, George succeeded in pinning Will to the stones, and looked at him contemptuously.
"You always thought yourself so high and mighty above the world, Will. I relish the thought of finally wiping that smirk off of your face!" He added silkily, "And I'm sure Elizabeth would benefit from my tender consolation." George started to laugh, then saw the murderous gleam in the other man's eyes. He realized that he had finally pushed too far. "Will," he said hurriedly. "I didn't-"
Will pinned him with his glare like a butterfly on a mounting board. "You've said all you're ever going to say." he growled.
"Well, well. What 'ave we 'ere?" said a voice. "A couple of gentlemen, eh, lads?"
George peered over his shoulder to see a group of young men, roughly clad, ranging from seventeen to twenty years of age. He groaned, then scrambled to his feet and watched the younger men form a circle around them. He reached down to offer Will a hand up. Surprised, Will took the hand warily and stood. He surveyed the group before him and tried to gain control of his adrenalin-charged mind. Standing back to back, George and Will watched and waited.
"Oh, I think they know each other a little better than we thought." said the stockiest of the group. It was the same voice that had spoken earlier. With a flick of his wrist he produced a knife. The six others did likewise, but they stepped back to allow the first man to advance alone.
"Let me, Will." George said quietly as he stepped forward.
Will watched in horrified fascination as the two performed a ritualistic dance, sizing each other up. There was suddenly a knife in George's hand as well, and the younger man grinned, anticipating the fun to come.
"'Ere, Padraig, take 'im down!" called a skinny youth leaning against the wall.
Will was distracted by the sound, and missed George's opening thrust. Belatedly, he realized that if it had been himself instead of George, Will would in all likelihood be lying dead in the street now. The comment had been intended to distract. He focussed his attention on the pair before him.
The blond-haired Padraig had parried George's opening quite easily. The two continued to test one another. Their hands often moving too quickly for Will's eyes to follow, they continued to thrust and parry, occasionally scoring a mark. Suddenly George seized an opportunity when his opponent swung wide, leaving his left side unprotected. The knife plunged into his ribs, and Will gasped as the young man's eyes widened in surprise. Then he staggered back, hands on the protruding knife hilt, and collapsed to the cobbles. Before either George or Will could move, two of the remaining youths leapt on George's back, driving their own weapons deep. George fell to the ground.
Will gazed about wildly, searching for an escape. The six young men slowly advanced, twisting their knives eagerly. Will backed away until he felt the solidity of the wall behind him.
"Oy!" came a voice from the top of the alley. "'E's coming!"
The six looked at each other. Two nodded, and the other four disappeared in a matter of seconds. Surprised, Will missed seeing the taller of the two remaining men lunge toward him until too late.
He felt the cold steel of the blade slide between his ribs, and a rush of air escaped his lips. Hands searched his pockets, drawing out his wallet, keys and other items.
"Bloody 'ell!" one of them whispered, holding up a wad of bills. "What an idiot to carry this lot around 'ere!"
"Just finish 'im and go!" the other one hissed.
Will gasped as he felt the knife plunge into him again. He was vaguely aware of their hurried retreat, then he was alone in the alley. He looked over to where George was lying, unmoving. Idly, Will wondered if his childhood friend was dead. Drawing a painful breath, he attempted to drag himself over to George's still form. Every inch was excruciating, the pain from the knife wounds threatening to send him into oblivion. After what seemed like forever, he reached George's side and felt for a pulse.
Will looked at the puddle of blood forming beside him on the cobbles, and then at his own blood-soaked clothes.
"Will." The weakened voice brought Will's eyes around to the face of the other man. "I always dreamed of seeing you dying in front of me." George smiled feebly then coughed, his body jerking spasmodically. When he was still once more he said faintly "I never really meant any of it, Will. I'm sorry." George's eyes closed briefly. Will said nothing. "Elizabeth is perfect for you. I knew it the moment I met her." With a last ragged breath, George gasped "I'm sorry, Will, you'll forgive me.......please......"
Will stared at the body of his enemy, his friend, his brother. He felt nothing. His eyes began to glaze over and he laid his head back on the cobblestones.
In the stillness of the alley a quiet whisper broke the silence.
"Elizabeth, my love...... forgive me....... forgive me......."
Chapter 16
. "I have no idea where he's gone!" Elizabeth was frantic. "He raced out of here threatening to get rid of George Wickham once and for all, and I haven't heard anything from him since! I've never seen him so angry." She looked at Charles desperately. "Oh, Charles, please find him! He's been gone since yesterday morning!"
Jane pulled at her sister's arm. "Lizzie, please sit down. This is doing you no good in your condition. Take a deep breath and try to calm down a bit." She pushed Elizabeth down onto the sofa. "You must have some idea where Charles can start looking?"
"London." Elizabeth said between sobs. "East side, I think."
Charles nodded and started toward the door, saying over his shoulder "I'll start there, then, and call you every couple of hours in case you hear something before I do."
But as he was pulling his car out of the drive, Charles saw a police car approaching the house. Swallowing a feeling of dread, he hurriedly parked his car and raced to the front steps to intercept the two constables before they reached the main doors. They looked at him with serious expressions, and Charles felt his stomach drop.
"Is it bad news?" he asked, praying for a negative reply.
The taller of the two inclined his head slightly. "I'm sorry, sir. You are......?"
"Charles Bingley. Will Darcy is my brother-in-law." Charles looked from one to the other of the constables.
"Police Constable Wilkes," the tall one indicated his partner. "I'm PC Roland. Perhaps it would be better if we went inside?"
Charles hesitated. Elizabeth was already in a state. He thought it might be better if he broke whatever news there was personally. "If it's bad news, I would prefer to tell Mrs. Darcy myself. She's already near hysterics, and almost eight months pregnant." He looked at the sympathetic faces of the two other men.
"Very well." said Roland. "Perhaps you would do just as well, sir." He motioned to Wilkes, who pulled some photos from a folder in his hand. "Do you think you could identify the men in these photos? I warn you," he added, staying Charles extended hand, "it isn't pretty."
Charles swallowed nervously, and reached for the photos. The first was of George Wickham, lying in an alley, his head turned to face the camera. A pool of blood surrounded him. Charles shuddered.
"George Wickham. It's George Wickham." he said quietly. He handed the photo back and reluctantly looked at the next one. "I don't recognize this man." he said, relieved. He looked again at the image of the young blond man with a knife in his chest, blood covering the entire upper torso. "No. I've never seen him before."
"What about the third man?" Wilkes returned the first two photos to the folder and looked at Charles once more.
Charles stared at the third photo. He closed his eyes in painful recognition. "It's Will." His heart sank as he looked at the photo again. Will's blood-stained body lay next to George Wickham's, in the pool of blood that Charles had first assumed to be George's. He choked back a sob at the sight of his best friend, cursing himself for his failure to prevent this from happening. He could only manage to utter one word. "Dead?"
Roland nodded. "Two of them."
Charles' head swung around. "Two? Which two?"
"That would be......" Wilkes consulted his notes inside the folder while Charles impatiently waited for the reply. "Wickham and the one you couldn't identify."
Charles almost cheered out loud. "Thank God! What about Will? Where is he? What's his condition?" He grabbed at the constable's arm in his impatience to know.
Wilkes ignored the hand on his arm and replied "Critical. He lost a lot of blood and the doctors are concerned about infection. It might be best if his wife were taken to London to be with him."
Charles agreed and, after obtaining the necessary information regarding name and location of the hospital, as well as the few details of what had happened that they could tell him, rushed inside to carry the news to Elizabeth and Jane. The two constables returned to their car and drove off.
Charles found the ladies still in the room where he had left them. Jane looked at him when he entered, tears streaming down her cheeks. Elizabeth was staring out the window which overlooked the lake.
"We saw the police car arrive." Jane reached out to take her husband's hand. "I'm afraid for her, Charles."
Charles smiled grimly and squeezed her hand in return.
"How could he leave me like this?" Elizabeth spoke in a voice heavy with bitterness. "I'll never forgive him for it. NEVER!" She ran from the room.
Charles stopped Jane from following her sister. "Will's not dead, Jane. He's been hurt, but he's not dead."
Jane closed her eyes and buried her sobbing face into her husband's chest. After a few moments she said unevenly "We must find Elizabeth and tell her."
"We have to take her to him. He still might not make it." He told her about George Wickham and the other man. "The police say it was robbery and a knife fight, but they can't figure out exactly what happened unless.... until Will regains consciousness. They found what was left in Will's wallet a few yards away from the......bodies. That's why they came here."
Jane murmured "Thank goodness we were here, Charles. Elizabeth can't deal with this with the baby due so soon."
They left the room in search of Jane's sister. But Elizabeth was not in her room. She wasn't in the library, nor anywhere else they looked. Charles summoned Mrs. Reynolds and asked that the staff be dispersed throughout the house to look for her. The housekeeper looked at him strangely, but Charles wouldn't elaborate.
Within twenty minutes, the entire house had been covered. No Elizabeth.
"Where could she have gone?" Jane asked in despair.
"I hate you! I hate you! I hate you, Will Darcy!" Elizabeth shouted at the distant sky. The tears rolled down her reddened face. "How could you be so selfish? How could you abandon me? You said you'd never leave me ever again!"
She screamed and shouted and vented her rage, cursing Will's name until her voice was hoarse. Then she flung herself onto the ground, into the snow, and cried until there were no more tears left in her body.
Rolling onto her back, Elizabeth stared up at the sky; a sky obscenely blue and cheerfully bright. This clearing had always been her favourite spot, the place where she and Will had first given themselves to each other, where both of their children had been created, a place of joy and passion and delightful discoveries.
Now it was a place of bitterness, of stolen memories and regrets of what might have been, but now never would.
Will is gone.
She could hardly believe the words no matter how many times she repeated them. Each time it would open a well of pain and anguish so great that she wanted nothing more than to run; run away and keep running until her body would finally give out, and the pain would blessedly end. Less than a year ago she had thought her world would collapse if she ever saw Will Darcy again. Now he was lost to her forever, and the void that was left could never be filled.
"What am I to do without you?" Her whispered words were carried off on the wind.
Elizabeth lay silently for a long time. There was no sound but the wind whistling through the bare branches of the trees. She was numb from the pain, numb from the cold. Her mind drifted. The sun warmed her, and the birds were singing in the trees. She could see Will, coming toward her through the wood. He smiled and she reached out a hand to beckon him to her. He laughed, and the sound warmed her. He came closer, closer. She could almost touch him......almost. Elizabeth lifted her hand to his face.....and he was gone. Her cry of despair echoed through the little clearing, but Will didn't come back. Elizabeth felt the pain deep inside, tearing at her soul. But soon she became aware of a different kind of pain. Once more she recognized her surroundings, and realized with a start that her distress and violent emotions had triggered her labour.
"Oh my God!" She got up carefully from the cold, wet ground. "I'm so far from the house! What a fool I am."
Elizabeth cautiously began to make her way across the clearing, in the direction of Pemberley, but the cold had set into her legs, and they wouldn't respond. She stumbled and barely managed to keep from falling. Another contraction seized her and Elizabeth sank down into the snow.
"Oh, please, no. I'm too far away to make it back. Please," she sobbed. " I've already lost Will. I can't lose his baby, too!"
She began crawling through the snow, desperate now to get back to Pemberley, to Jane and Charles, to the sights, sounds and scents that would keep Will alive in her memory.
Chapter 17
Thanks to Jimmy and Dave for the medical advice!!
Charles sent every member of Pemberley's staff out searching the grounds. He and Jane racked their brains trying to figure out where Elizabeth may have gone. The snow around the house had been cleared days ago, and what was left on the lawns had been trampled many times over by Elizabeth, Will and William on their various walks. There were no footprints to make their task easier.
"Has your sister ever mentioned a favourite place she likes to go?" Charles asked for the tenth time.
"No." Jane answered yet again.
"Jane, this is a nightmare! Will's dying in a hospital in London, Elizabeth thinks he's dead already, and runs off lord only knows where, in the middle of January without any warm clothes, about to have a baby......I should have kept a closer eye on her. I'll never forgive myself if anything happens to her!"
"Charles, it's not your fault." Jane wasn't above blaming herself for this disaster either. "Maybe she went somewhere she especially associated with Will?"
Something glimmered in the back of Charles' mind. Somewhere special, associated with Will....... Suddenly he grabbed Jane's hand and dragged her across the lawn. "I may have an idea!"
"What is it? Where are we going?" Jane ran to keep up with him.
"Something I remembered from years ago. When Elizabeth visited here that first time, and Will took her on a picnic." Charles said excitedly as they ran. "Caroline and I happened upon them and I had the distinct impression that we had interrupted something, or just about interrupted them." He almost felt like laughing when he recalled the look on his friend's face when he and Caroline had appeared from the trees. "Will has mentioned several times how he and Elizabeth have a very special spot they like to picnic in, very secluded and romantic. I'll bet that's where she went."
They raced across the fields toward the small wooded copse beyond which Charles knew there was a small clearing with a brook running through it. As they emerged from the woods, Jane caught site of a huddled form in the snow and gave a cry.
"Lizzie! Lizzie!" she sobbed as she drew her sister's head up to cradle it against her breast.
"Oh, Jane. I thought no-one would ever find me." Elizabeth was as cold as ice, her voice sleepy.
Jane could feel Elizabeth's abdomen tighten under her arm. "Oh my God, Lizzie! Are you in labour?" she cried. There was no reply. "Charles, we have to get her back to the house immediately!"
Charles scooped Elizabeth up into his arms and headed back to Pemberley as quickly as he could. When they reached the house he shouted for blankets and carried Elizabeth into the drawing room where the fire was still burning brightly in the grate. Mrs. Reynolds came running with an armful of blankets and she and Jane quickly covered Elizabeth's still body. Charles stoked up the fire and pulled the sofa closer to its heat.
"Dear lord, what has happened?" Mrs. Reynolds wrung her hands together. "Why was she out there for so long, so underdressed?"
Charles pulled her aside. "I'm afraid that Mr. Darcy has met with an accident and is in hospital in London. Mrs. Darcy feared he was dead, and she ran out of the house in her grief. I need to ring for an ambulance, my wife thinks she may be in labour. I also need to ring Mr. Bennet and Georgiana. Can I trust you to look after the two of them while I make those calls?"
Mrs. Reynolds nodded and Charles left the room to use the telephone in Will's study. Once assured that an ambulance was on its way, he made the other calls. There was no answer at Georgiana's flat, but Mr. Bennet picked up immediately. After hearing what Charles had to say, he said he'd be at Pemberley in a matter of hours, but Charles said to wait.
"It would be better if you could go to London and check on Will's condition. I can't leave Jane and Elizabeth now, and I couldn't reach Will's sister. Elizabeth still doesn't know he's alive, and I don't want to tell her if she can't go see him and he ends up......ends up dying anyway." Charles swallowed with difficulty. "I couldn't bear to raise her hopes and then destroy them all over again."
Mr. Bennet agreed and said he would ring Charles' mobile when he had some news on Will.
Charles returned to the drawing room to see Elizabeth's eyes were open, although they looked rather vacant as she stared at the fire.
"The ambulance should be here in a few minutes." he said quietly to his wife. "How is she?"
Jane shook her head. "Physically, she's warmed up considerably, and the labour is definitely well underway. Emotionally, I really don't know. She hasn't said a thing."
Charles decided to wait until they were out of Elizabeth's presence to say anything more about Will. Fortunately the ambulance arrived and they left for the hospital, Jane riding in the back with her sister.
When they reached the hospital, Elizabeth was rushed into an examining room. After determining that there were no serious complications as a result of her extended exposure to the cold, the doctor turned his attention to the problem of premature labour.
"How far along is she?" he asked Jane.
"She isn't due for another five weeks."Jane replied as she held her sister's hand tightly. Elizabeth squeezed it in return but didn't open her eyes.
"Mrs. Darcy's own doctor will be here in about an hour. Until then, I'll arrange to have her moved to a labour room and we'll monitor her progress".
Mr. Bennet tapped impatiently on the counter at the reception desk.
"What exactly is the delay?" he asked of the young woman behind the desk. "I want to see my son-in-law immediately."
"I'm afraid you'll have to wait until the police inspector speaks with you." she said almost apologetically. "He should be along directly."
The words were barely out of her mouth when the doors to her left opened and a man came through calling out "Mr. Bennet?"
"Here!"
"Come with me, please." The man held the door open, ushering Elizabeth's father through. As he led the way down the quiet hallway he introduced himself. "I'm Detective Inspector Hudson. I have a few questions I hope you can answer for me. Firstly, can you tell me what Mr. Darcy was doing in the east end of London?"
"I have no idea." Mr. Bennet replied.
"Do you know of any connection he may have had with the other two victims?"
"Again, I really couldn't say." Mr. Bennet looked at Hudson impatiently. "I would really like to see Will first, then if I can help you with any of your questions I shall be more than happy to. I must inform the rest of my family about his condition, and I can't do that if I can't see him!"
Hudson nodded his head and pointed to a door a little further along the corridor. "I understand, sir. The doctor is in with him now, and can tell you what you need to know. I'll be waiting here for you."
Mr. Bennet hurried to the door and pushed it open. The doctor looked up from where he stood at the foot of the bed, and stepped forward.
"I'm Dr. Hall. You are a relative, I assume." At the older man's confirmation, the doctor looked back at his patient, saying "He's stable for the moment. We're re-inflating the left lung and so far the lung is responding well. As for the knife wounds, he was extremely lucky that the second wound just missed his heart. Those will take some time to heal, but they were pretty much straight in and out, so we've decided to leave them on their own. Whoever stabbed him knew what he was doing, and intended to kill him. He lost a lot of blood, but the transfusions have eased my concerns on that point. The next twelve hours he'll be under close observation for signs of infection and is currently on a heavy course of antibiotics."
Mr. Bennet moved to Will's side, his eyes taking in the sight of the numerous monitors and tubes connected to the young man's body. "When do you think he'll regain consciousness?"
Dr. Hall stood on the other side of the bed. "It's difficult to predict. He has wandered in and out of a kind of delirium since he was brought in. Right now he's sedated, to keep him still. I wouldn't expect anything for another eight hours, though."
"What exactly should I tell his wife, then? Is he going to be all right, or is there still a possibility of him dying?"
The doctor looked at Mr. Bennet. "So far there has been no sign of infection. I am hopeful." was all he said.
"Well, I suppose another eight hours won't make much difference." Mr. Bennet said. "His wife is in labour with their second child at the moment. That's the reason I came instead of Lizzie." He looked again at Will, lying still in the hospital bed. "I know how much you and Lizzie wanted to share the birth of this one, Will. I only hope that's all you miss." He stood silently for a few more minutes, then turned and left the room.
"Push, Lizzie! Come on, just once more!" Jane winced at her sister's crushing grip on her hand.
Elizabeth groaned, teeth clenched tightly as she bore down and pushed yet again.
"That's done it," smiled her doctor as he quickly placed the baby on Elizabeth's stomach and cut the umbilical cord. "It's a girl!"
Elizabeth fell back against the pillows behind her and reached a tentative finger to touch the face of her new daughter. She was oblivious to the continued ministrations of the doctor and nurses around her.
"Oh, Jane, isn't she beautiful?" she said in a voice husky from abuse. "I only wish Will could have seen her. He so much wanted a little girl." She closed her eyes, attempting to keep the tears from escaping.
"Now, Elizabeth," the voice of her doctor broke into her thoughts. "We need to put her into an incubator for a couple of days, since she's a bit early. So far she checks out fine, but I'd like to be sure. Would you like a few more minutes with her?"
Elizabeth nodded and a nurse handed her the blanket-wrapped baby. Her eyes were open, and Elizabeth felt a stab of grief as she thought how much they looked like Will's. Even the curly wisps of hair were a painful reminder of his absence.
Oh, Will. How could this happen? What am I going to say to our son? How can I even face going back home........ "Jane?"
"Yes, Lizzie, I'm here." Jane drew closer and sat on the edge of the bed.
Elizabeth hugged her baby close to her breast. "Jane, please stay with me. I don't want to be alone." She closed her eyes and whispered "I can't bear to be alone."
Jane stroked her hand across Elizabeth's brow. "I'm not going anywhere, Lizzie. I promise."
A nurse appeared to take the baby to the nursery, and two others to wheel Elizabeth to another room, Jane following behind. She sat with her sister until Elizabeth at last fell into a deep sleep. Then she slipped quietly from the room to seek out her husband. She found Charles in a waiting room not far down the corridor.
"I can't stay long. I promised Lizzie I wouldn't leave her and I would hate for her to wake up and find me gone." Jane looked at him anxiously. "Any news?"
Charles shook his head. "Not yet. I expect to hear from your father soon, though. He said that they hoped Will would come around by now. I managed to reach Georgiana around midnight. She left for London immediately."
Jane closed her eyes wearily. "Would you find me something to eat, and some coffee, please? I feel as if I'm about to fall over."
Charles put his arms around her and held her tightly. "Certainly. I can turn my mobile back on if I go to the café across the street. Which room is Lizzie's? I'll bring it to you there."
"Twelve A." Jane replied. "I'd better be getting back to her. I hope Papa calls soon. I can't stand this not being able to tell Lizzie that Will's still alive. It would be so much easier if we knew he was going to be okay so we could let her know where he is."
Charles kissed the top of her head. "I know, darling, but it shouldn't be much longer. Think how much harder it would be for her if she knew where he was, knowing that she can't be with him, couldn't see him before he.... if he.... Jane, would you want to see her go through that again?"
She shook her head tearfully. "I'd rather bear the brunt of Lizzie's anger for not telling her than to see her suffer like this a second time."
They parted in the hallway, Jane returning to sit with her sister.
As Charles entered the café across the road from the hospital his mobile rang. "Hello, yes?" he said hurriedly.
"Charles?" came the soft voice of Georgiana. "How's Elizabeth?"
"She's fine. Your new niece is fine, too." Charles said. "How is Will? Did you see him? Is he awake yet?"
"He's stirred a bit, but he's not fully conscious yet." Georgiana paused. "He keeps calling for Elizabeth and saying he's sorry. I don't think he's aware of anything around him. Elizabeth had a girl? I know Will's going to be so thrilled! She must be tiny, though. She's quite early."
Charles gave her all the particulars. "We haven't told Lizzie anything about Will, yet. We were waiting to hear some good news from her father. Is he there with you?"
"Yes he is. Would you like to speak with him?" At Charles affirmative, she passed the receiver to the older man.
"Yes Charles? How's my Lizzie?"
"She's quite well. You have a granddaughter to add to your collection!" He waited until Mr. Bennet finished expressing his joy at this news, then continued. "Does Will appear to be any better than when you saw him last night?"
Mr. Bennet replied quickly. "I think so, yes. His colour has improved a little. They gave him a number of transfusions yesterday. There's still no sign of any infection. Have you said anything to Lizzie, yet?"
"No. I wanted to be sure first." Charles said. "So you think it's safe to tell her now?"
"Yes. If you delay any more I wouldn't want to be in your shoes when she does find out! She's not apt to be very forgiving." Mr. Bennet laughed grimly. "I'll ring you in a couple of hours. Dr. Hall will be in again then."
"All right."
They rang off, and Charles proceeded to get Jane's coffee and food. When he returned to the hospital, he went directly to Elizabeth's room. Elizabeth was still asleep and Jane was dozing in the chair next to the bed. Charles gently touched his wife's shoulder.
Jane looked up at him sleepily. "Oh, thank you Charles," she said, taking the coffee from him. She reached for the sandwich in his other hand. "I really need this." They moved away from Elizabeth to stand by the window.
Charles watched her for a moment before speaking. "I spoke with your father and Georgiana a few minutes ago." Jane looked up. "Things are looking better. We can tell Elizabeth about Will, now."
"What about Will?" came a raspy voice from behind them. Both Jane and Charles turned to see Elizabeth looking at them blearily.
"Lizzie, I didn't realize you were awake." Jane sat down on the bed beside her sister.
"Obviously." Elizabeth said drily. "What were you going to tell me about Will?" Her voice cracked as she said his name.
Jane took Elizabeth's hand as Charles explained. "I know you feared the worst when you saw the police arrive yesterday, Lizzie, but it isn't true. Will isn't dead. He is in hospital in London. He was badly hurt, and it was touch and go for a bit, but now it looks like he's going to be okay."
Elizabeth stared at him, unable to say a word.
"Did you hear him, Lizzie?" Jane prompted gently. "Will's going to be fine!"
Elizabeth looked from Jane to Charles. Then she squeezed her eyes closed, and laid back on the pillows. Jane and Charles exchanged worried glances.
"What happened?" Elizabeth whispered.
"We're not completely sure, yet." Jane began softly. "It seems he was robbed. And there was some sort of ....... knife fight."
Elizabeth's eyes opened, and she stared at Jane. "Knives? Will doesn't know how to use a knife except at the dinner table!" Her eyes darted back and forth between them. "It was George, wasn't it? Will found him and did something stupid. And George, of course, gets away again while Will almost gets killed! I knew it would come to this. I begged him not to go after George! I don't know who I'm more angry with; George for coming back to England, destroying Lydia's life and sending us all into a panic, or Will for being so incredibly arrogant to think that he could actually rid the world of George Wickham single handed!"
This was hardly the reaction that Elizabeth's sister and brother-in-law had expected.
"Lizzie, I don't understand. I thought you'd be pleased to hear he's okay." Jane laid her hand on her sister's shoulder. "Lizzie, what is it? What are you feeling?"
Elizabeth turned tormented eyes on Jane. "Of course I'm thrilled that he's all right, Jane! I love him more than you can imagine. But at the same time I can't comprehend how he could leave our home, leave William, and leave me, nearly eight months carrying his child! And for what? To chase after George Wickham! To swoop down like an avenging angel saving the world? What could he possibly have been thinking? We haven't been married a year yet, and he very nearly made me a widow! I can't just forget the pain and devastation I felt when I thought he was dead."
There was an uncomfortable silence for several minutes.
"Charles," Elizabeth finally said in a more subdued tone. "What happened to him? When will he be able to come home?"
Charles saw the sorrow in her eyes, and considered his words before speaking. "Will was stabbed twice. His left lung was collapsed, but they're re-inflating it. The second stroke just narrowly missed his heart." Elizabeth drew in a shuddering breath. Charles went on. "He lost a lot of blood, but as of this morning his condition seems to have improved. He's not fully conscious yet. Georgiana says he calls your name a lot, though."
"Georgiana is with him?"
"Yes. And your father, too." Charles took Elizabeth's hand in his. "I know you're angry with him, Lizzie. I must confess that I am, too, for the way he went about this. He should have just let the police handle Wickham."
"I want to know the minute you hear anything else, Charles." Elizabeth firmly said. "That includes whatever the police have to say. I must not be left out of the loop this time!" She glared at the two of them, making it perfectly clear that they weren't about to escape her wrath either.
"Yes, Lizzie." Charles nodded soberly.
"That sounds much more like the sister I know." Jane said more cheerfully.
Elizabeth waved her hand at them. "All right, then. Now you two go away and let me get some more rest. As soon as I'm discharged I'll be leaving for London, so I need some sleep."
"But Lizzie, the baby won't be able to leave hospital for at least several days. You can't run off to London." Jane pointed out.
Elizabeth frowned. This was definitely a problem. But she had to see Will, to touch him, to reassure herself that he was still real and a part of her life. The emotional battering she had taken in the last two days had drained her. All she wanted was to hear her husband's voice and feel his touch, to touch him in return. Letting out her breath, Elizabeth reluctantly gave up the idea of an immediate trip to London.
"I guess I'll have to count on Georgiana, Papa and the telephone, then." she sighed. "I want to talk to my doctor as soon as possible to see when my daughter will be ready to travel with me. I'm not staying here any longer than I have to. I have to see Will."
Jane looked at her sister sympathetically. "It could be a while before she can leave, Lizzie. Maybe he'll be home by then." Something suddenly occurred to her. "What name did you and Will pick for the baby?"
Elizabeth smiled wanly. "That was Will's prerogative. We agreed that he could pick out the name of this child, since he didn't have any input in the naming of the first one. He never told me if he'd decided on any, yet." She grew silent as she realized she might never have known what his choice would have been.
"Well you get some rest, then. We'll come back in a little while, as soon as we hear something from Papa." Jane gave her sister a kiss on the cheek, and she and Charles left.
Elizabeth lay back and closed her eyes, praying for sleep to claim her quickly, and release her from the turmoil of her thoughts.
Chapter 18
"Georgie?"
The weak voice brought Georgiana's head around, and she felt a wave of relief wash over her as she saw her brother looking at her. "Oh, Will, thank God you're awake!" She touched a gentle hand to his forehead.
Will's eyes closed. "What happened? No, don't answer that. I think I remember." He opened his eyes again and gazed around the room. "Where's Elizabeth?"
"She's......she's still in the north." Georgiana said hesitantly.
"I see." Will smiled feebly. "Perhaps it would have been better if I'd died. Elizabeth is going to kill me anyway."
His sister chuckled softly. "And I won't? How do you feel?"
"Like I've been hit by a lorry." He tried to draw in his breath but the pain caused him to cast aside that idea.
"I'll get the doctor. He'll want to know you're awake, now." She crossed to the door and looked out into the hallway where she nodded to someone. Then she returned to Will's bedside.
"Why didn't she come down?" he asked so quietly that Georgiana could barely hear.
She debated whether to tell him the whole truth, or only part of it. "Elizabeth was very upset when you left the house. She asked Charles to try to find you, but before he could leave Pemberley the police showed up and told him what had happened. Elizabeth saw them talking to Charles and assumed the worst. Her heightened emotional state sent her into a premature labour." She watched her brother carefully. "You have a daughter, Will."
Georgiana saw a spark of something in his eyes, but it was gone too quickly for her to identify. His weakened condition didn't allow for much of an emotional reaction, anyway. Finally he spoke.
"I was right, then. Elizabeth really is going to kill me. I wasn't there for her.... again."
Dr. Hall entered the room and, without any preamble, began to check his patient. After poking, prodding and checking all of the monitors he finally addressed Will.
"Tell me how you're feeling."
"My head is in a vise that's slowly closing, my chest is in another vise, and I want to go home."
"Nice try." The doctor looked at him without any hint of sympathy. "The headache will subside. There is a tube in your chest which is currently inflating your left lung. Once that is complete, and the damage from the knife wounds has healed, you will find it easier to breathe. And as for going home......that won't be anytime soon. However, if you improve significantly in the next 24 hours I might see about transferring you to a hospital closer to home."
This brought a small smile to Will's lips. Georgiana's face lit up. "Really, doctor? We could do that?" He nodded. "Oh, that would be just perfect."
Dr. Hall finished his examination of Will and after advising Georgiana not to keep him up too long, left to continue his round.
"I should go and tell Mr. Bennet that you're awake. I'm sure he wants to see you, too."
"He's here?" Will asked, and at his sister's nod, said "I suppose you should go and get him, then." The effort to speak was tiring him already.
Mr. Bennet appeared a few minutes later. His smile was grim as he approached his son-in-law. "Georgiana said she told you about Lizzie." Will nodded wearily. "What have you to say for yourself, then?"
An incredibly sad expression came over Will's face. "What a complete imbecile I've been. All I want now is to go home and be with my wife and children, to appreciate what I have. I'm sure Elizabeth is going to be livid with me. Any forgiveness from her will be a long time coming."
"Aye, I believe you are right there." Mr. Bennet sat down in the chair that Georgiana had been using. "But she does love you, and you will be forgiven.....after she's convinced you've suffered enough!"
Will smiled faintly.
"Detective Inspector Hudson will be here in a little while to question you, so we're not to tire you too much." Mr. Bennet pulled a newspaper from his pocket. "You made the papers this morning." Will's eyes widened slightly. Mr. Bennet unfolded the paper to show him the photo inside the first section.
"My God, is that what I looked like when they found me?" Will had a sudden vision of Elizabeth's reaction upon seeing him in that condition. "Has Elizabeth seen this?"
"I certainly hope not!" Mr. Bennet drew himself up straight in his chair. "I made it clear to Charles that he should spare her the details. She'll see you soon enough."
Will perked up. "Is she coming down here, then?"
Mr. Bennet shook his head. "The baby can't leave the hospital just yet, so Elizabeth has to stay up there with her."
They were silent for a while, and Will felt himself drifting back to sleep. The sound of voices brought him back to a foggy state of awareness.
"There, he's coming around again." It was the doctor.
An unfamiliar voice said "How much time can I have with him?"
"He'll likely drift off after about a half hour, maybe a little more. Just don't get heavy-handed with your questions."
Will opened his eyes slowly. He looked to where his father-in-law had been sitting. Mr. Bennet was still there, a book open in his hands, but his eyes were on the other man in the room.
"I'm not leaving." Mr. Bennet stated firmly.
"So you said." The man turned his attention to Will. Finding him awake, Hudson approached the bed. "Mr. Darcy. I'm Detective Inspector Hudson, in charge of this case. Can you tell me what you remember of the incident?"
Will's voice was rough at first. "George...." He cleared his throat slightly. "I followed George into an alley."
"For what reason?"
"To talk to him."
"Is that all?" Hudson asked skeptically.
"No. I wanted to ......." He stopped.
Hudson looked at him quizzically. "You wanted to what?"
"Inspector Hudson." Mr. Bennet interjected. "Will went looking for George Wickham at my request."
"I know what you told me yesterday, Mr. Bennet." Hudson said impatiently. "I'd rather hear Mr. Darcy's answers if you don't mind." His eyes returned to Will.
"I wanted him to come with me and turn himself in." Will said quietly.
Hudson's eyebrows rose. "Just like that?" He looked at Will, clearly disbelieving. "And if he didn't agree?"
"Here!" Mr. Bennet cried. "What are you implying?"
"Mr. Bennet, please. If you won't keep quiet you will have to leave." Hudson was firm. Elizabeth's father reluctantly sat back in his chair. "Mr. Darcy, what happened in the alley with Mr. Wickham?"
Will tried to collect his scrambled memories of that day. Hesitantly he began. "I followed George into the alley. He hit me, we argued...." He felt a surge of anger as George's words rang in his head. "Then a group of rough lads appeared. George fought with one of them, and ..... I think he killed the kid. Two of the others attacked George with their knives." He paused, his fogged brain trying to keep up with the rush of images in his head.
"And?" prompted Hudson.
Will started to shake his head, then thought better of it as it brought on a wave of nausea. "They came after me. Somebody shouted, some of them ran, and two were left I think." His voice took on a distant quality, as his mind replayed the events in slow motion. "I felt the knife go in......and went down. Hands were searching my pockets......talking....Just finish him, he said. Then the knife again." Will was silent a moment. His eyes opened and he looked at the police inspector. "I crawled over to George to check if he was still alive."
"Was he?"
"Yes." Will looked away to stare at the wall as he recalled George Wickham's last words; I'm sorry, Will, you'll forgive me.......please...... "Lying pig." he muttered under his breath.
"What was that, Mr. Darcy?" Inspector Hudson leaned closer, thinking the injured man may have gone to sleep on him again.
"Yes, but he died a few minutes later."
" Do you think you could give me descriptions of the men who attacked you and Mr. Wickham?" The Inspector pulled out a notepad and pencil.
"I don't think so." Will said wearily. "It's more of a blur. I think there were a half dozen of them."
Hudson closed his notepad thoughtfully, and tucked it into his breast pocket. "Mr. Darcy, I am well aware of your past trouble with Mr. Wickham, although I am not sure how much bearing it has on this case. If you recall anything else, please have me contacted."
Mr. Bennet answered for them both. "We'll do that, Inspector." He watched the door close behind Hudson.
"Georgiana!"
She spun around at the sound of her name. "Rich!" she cried, and rushed across the crowded hospital waiting room, into his arms. "Oh, Rich! How did you know?"
Richard Fitzwilliam hugged his younger cousin to him comfortingly. "I saw it in the paper this morning. Georgie, why didn't you ring me? I would have come right away to be with you." He tilted her chin up to look at her tear-stained face. "How is he? Is it bad?"
Georgiana shook her head, at first unable to get any words from her constricted throat. "He's much better today. He's going to be okay." Her voice broke and she finally let the tears fall. "Oh, Rich, I almost lost him!" she sobbed, and buried her face in his shoulder once more.
Richard led her to a quiet corner of the room and held her tightly. Although he was impatient to hear the details of Will's condition, he was relieved that any immediate danger was past, and his cousin would be alright. He let Georgiana cry for several minutes, then spoke in a gentle voice.
"Tell me what happened, Georgie."
She pulled back from the warm comfort of his arms and wiped her face. Richard offered her a handkerchief. She mumbled a thank you, then said "I'm not very sure of all the details, Rich. The police inspector is in with Will now, asking him some questions. Elizabeth's father is with him, too."
"Where's Elizabeth?" Richard looked around the crowded room.
Georgiana gave a sigh. "She was absolutely distraught, Rich, and went into labour. Elizabeth is still up north. She delivered a baby girl early this morning."
Richard let his own breath out in a rush. "Good Lord! They can't even be together at a time like this!" He looked at Georgiana in concern. "But it's too early for the baby, isn't it? Is she okay?"
"Oh, yes." his cousin reassured him. "She's five weeks early, but that's not as bad as it sounds. Charles and Jane are with Elizabeth, and he said that the baby is fine but she'll have to stay in the hospital for a while until they're sure there are no complications."
"Good, good. Now tell me about Will."
"What did it say in the paper? I haven't seen it." Georgiana asked.
"Just that it was a knifing. There were two men dead and Will was in this hospital in critical condition." Richard looked more closely at Georgiana. "There wasn't much more than that. The main point of interest was that it was Will Darcy and speculation as to how and why a man of his position was in such a rough neighbourhood. Who were the other men, Georgiana, and what was your brother doing there?"
Georgiana glanced around, then leaned closer to Richard to speak in a very low voice. "One was George Wickham. The other, some street punk who probably was responsible for the whole mess!"
"Wickham!" In light of this news, Richard somehow doubted that the street 'punk' was entirely to blame. But what was Will doing in an alley with George Wickham of all people? I don't have a very good feeling about this. "I thought that man was out of the country. Georgie, this doesn't look good. There's more you haven't told me, isn't there?"
She nodded her head. "Elizabeth's sister came back home last month. Apparently she and George had gotten into trouble in another country and Lydia spent some time in jail. George came back to England. Elizabeth was terribly upset about it, and Will blew up. He started searching for George, ostensibly so that George could be turned in to the police for something he did several years ago. I don't know what that was about. I just know that Will called in a lot of favours to track down George, and when he finally did, he and Elizabeth had a big row over him going. Elizabeth was afraid of what Will might do. She said he was more angry than she had ever seen him before."
Richard knew perfectly well what George Wickham had done several years ago, and how much it had cost Will. "The fool! Why didn't he ask me for help?" he said more to himself than to Georgiana. "What about his injuries, how bad are they?"
Georgiana repeated what Dr. Hall had told her. "He finally woke up about an hour ago. The doctor has seen him again, and Mr. Bennet offered to stay with Will while the police Inspector questioned him."
"Have you been here all night?" Richard asked.
Georgiana nodded.
"Excuse me, Miss Darcy?" said a tall blonde woman in a white lab coat. "I'm Dr. McCarthy. I was the surgeon on duty when your brother came in."
"Oh, doctor, I am pleased to meet you." Georgiana shook her hand. "Dr. Hall spoke very highly of you."
"We made an excellent team." The doctor motioned to a door on their left. "If you'd like to step in here, we could discuss your brother's prognosis in private." She glanced at Richard, who stood just behind Georgiana.
Georgiana noticed the direction of her gaze. "This is my cousin, Richard Fitzwilliam."
"Mr. Fitzwilliam." Dr. McCarthy's eyes appraised his figure. Once again she motioned to the door beside them. "Shall we?"
Richard and Georgiana followed her into the small room and sat down in the comfortable chairs at the far wall. The doctor took a seat opposite them.
"Mr. Darcy has improved considerably since his surgery." she began, looking straight at the young woman across from her. "I understand that his wife is unable to come to London and it would be advantageous if arrangements were made to move him to a hospital closer to home?"
"Yes, we'd like that very much if it's possible." Georgiana reached for Richard's hand and held it tightly.
Dr. McCarthy smiled and nodded. "I've already looked into it. We've consulted with your brother's personal physician and he is arranging for a room at the hospital in Sheffield where his wife is right now, I believe. I am hopeful he will be improved enough to move in a couple of days."
"Oh that's wonderful!" Georgiana happily cried.
"Thank you Doctor." Richard added warmly. He liked the way the young doctor's blue eyes sparkled at Georgiana's happy response. There was something about her......and he couldn't quite place her accent.
Dr. McCarthy went on to explain the possible complications from Will's injuries, and what was involved in the process of transferring him to Sheffield. She gave them the name of a recommended surgeon to tend to Will once he was safely there. "If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me anytime."
Richard grabbed the opportunity to ask "Do you have a card with your number?" He loved the little smile she gave him before reaching into one of the deep pockets of her lab coat to retrieve a business card.
As she handed it to him, Dr. McCarthy's fingers held on to the small piece of paper for just a fraction of a second; and Richard felt his own fingers brush against hers. Then she released it, and smiled at him again.
"Oh, let me add my pager number to that, in case of an emergency." she said, holding out her hand to take the card back.
Richard relinquished it, and watched her write on the back. Then she handed it back to him and said goodbye to Georgiana. "Mr. Fitzwilliam." she said, and turned and left the room.
Richard looked down at the card in his hand. Dr. Laura McCarthy, M.D. He turned it over. Her handwriting was strong and legible. He almost laughed; a doctor with legible handwriting! Her pager number was marked clearly, but she had written more beside it. Richard squinted in the light to make it out.
Dinner tonight at 8? I'll be waiting at my place. 5435 Colville Terrace, Notting Hill. #5.
Richard smiled to himself, then noticed his cousin staring at him. "Shall we go and see your brother now?" he said quickly.
Georgiana agreed. They left the little room and headed for Will's.
Elizabeth felt much better after a few hours of sleep. She was grateful for the presence of Jane, who had sent Charles back to Pemberley to check on their own son and William. Now that the sisters were alone Elizabeth wanted to know more about what had happened to Will, but Jane appeared reluctant to go into more detail.
"Jane, I can see there is something you don't want me to know. If you don't tell me, you know I'll get it out of Charles, eventually."
Jane gave her a resigned look. "It's not that I don't want you to know, it's that I'm not sure how to tell you." She saw her sister become alarmed. "Don't worry, it's not about Will. At least not his state of health. Lizzie, two men were killed in that fight where Will was stabbed."
"Killed?" Elizabeth said, horrified. And Will could have been one of them. "Who were they?"
"One was a young lad. The police feel he was a member of a gang that attacked Will." Jane took a deep breath before going on. "The other was George Wickham."
Wickham! Elizabeth felt fear race through her. "Will found him. Did he....... Do the police think....? Jane, what else aren't you saying?" Elizabeth turned a desperate gaze on her sister.
"Charles saw the police photos. George and Will were found laying beside each other."
"Oh, my God!"
"And it was in the papers this morning." Jane reached for Elizabeth's hand. "George is dead, Lizzie. You don't need to worry about him anymore."
Elizabeth shook her head. "But who killed him, Jane? Was it one of the lads in the gang? Or was it....." She couldn't say the words.
"Oh, Lizzie!" Jane hurriedly interjected. "No. Don't be thinking that! You know Will would never--"
"I know nothing of the kind!" Elizabeth shot back. "You didn't see him, Jane. You didn't see how angry he was! He was hoping that George would pick a fight, wanted to 'get rid of him once and for all' he said! Good God, what if he did? What am I going to do, Jane?"
"Lizzie! I don't care what Will said, nor how angry you say he was. I know he could never kill anyone! And so do you!" Jane turned her sister's head to look in her eyes. "You've been under a lot of strain the last couple of days, Lizzie. You know it's the stress talking. You know you don't believe what you're saying."
Elizabeth wanted to agree with Jane. But the memory of the last time she'd seen Will, their argument, replayed time and again in her mind. Words had been said that had nothing to do with George Wickham. Words that indicated to Elizabeth that her husband had not entirely forgiven her, either.
"Lizzie? Don't torture yourself like this." Jane had concern written all over her face. "Charles says Will may be transferred to this hospital in a couple of days. Then you'll all be together again." She squeezed her sister's hand to gain her attention. "You'll see him soon, and everything will be fine."
Oh, Jane. What a storybook world you live in! "I hope so, Jane. I truly hope so."
"You sure managed to get yourself into a real mess, Will." Richard shook his head and looked sadly at his cousin. "Sometimes I wonder if you have any sense at all."
Will looked at him through bleary eyes. The medication he was being given for the pain was warring with his desire to stay awake. "I'm wondering that myself, Rich." he muttered thickly. "I can't believe what I did.... what I said to Elizabeth!"
Richard sat up in his chair. He crossed to the open door to see if Georgiana had returned from making her telephone call. Seeing only nurses, he closed the door and returned to Will. "Just what did you say to Elizabeth that has you so concerned?"
"We argued. The last words I said were so hurtful. I don't know why I said them. How could I have been so heartless?" Will's eyes closed and his mind began to drift off into sleep.
"Will, I don't understand what you're talking about." Richard said in frustration. "What did you say to her?"
Will's eyes fluttered open briefly. His voice was quiet and detached. "God help me, Rich. I couldn't live without her, but I couldn't forgive her either......"
Richard watched his cousin fade off into sleep, still not knowing what he had said to hurt Elizabeth. "Damn it, Will. How can you be so blasted stubborn and arrogant, especially after all you have been through? Won't you ever learn?"
"Learn what?" came Georgiana's voice from the doorway. Richard quickly turned around. "What did he say?"
"Apparently your brother said something rather hurtful to his wife when he left her last. He muttered something about not forgiving her."
Georgiana's eyes widened. "Oh." she said. Her eyes began to mist over and she turned her gaze on the figure in the bed. "Perhaps I should speak with Elizabeth. Maybe I can help to smooth things over before he sees her."
Richard took her arm and pulled Georgiana into the hallway. "Georgie, stay out of it. All married couples have their arguments, and say things they shouldn't. Leave them to sort it out by themselves. Elizabeth has probably forgotten it, anyway, considering everything that's happened."
Georgiana nodded slowly. "Okay, Rich. I'll keep my nose out. But it won't be easy." She smiled at him. "Well, since you've persuaded me to stay out of my brother's love life, you've left me no other option but to check into yours!"
Richard grinned. "I assure you, it will be very boring."
"Oh ho!" she cried. "That I'll never believe! You've never been short of lady friends."
"That's because I always picked up the pieces of broken hearts scattered in your brother's wake." Richard whispered. "All those lovely young ladies that he wouldn't give the time of day...."
"Oh, I see. After Will and Elizabeth married there were no more broken hearts to pick up?"
"On the contrary, there were so many broken hearts! But this time they weren't looking for any consoling. They were looking for husbands!"
Georgiana laughed and shook her head. "Oh, Rich. Don't you ever want to settle down?"
"Sure. I just haven't felt the inclination too strongly, yet." Richard looked closely at the young lady beside him. "I think you should go home and get some sleep, Georgie. Will's not going anywhere, and I'll stay here if you'd like."
Georgiana looked at him gratefully. "Thanks, Rich. I'll do that." She gave him a kiss and started off down the hall, then turned back suddenly to say cheekily "Don't worry. I'll be back to relieve you in time for your date with the lady doctor!" She then blew him another kiss and disappeared through the doors.