A/N: Well, it's been a minute, but I'm back with another chapter. :) I had a ridiculously hard time writing this, considering that it really is just a filler chapter. Does anyone else think those are the most difficult to write sometimes? That being said, there are some important things mentioned and hinted at however, so keep an eye out for them. :)


Chapter 9: November 1817

It was the following afternoon when Richard came slowly into the room where Kitty was waiting for him and said quietly, "I have been to see Mr. Morrison as you know. But Mr. Gangridge has beaten me to it. He visited the lawyer's office yesterday, after we left Ashton, and filed a complaint against us, under Lady Ashton's name of course. There will be a court case in York at the Winter Assizes. It will be some weeks before we know the date."

Kitty's eyes were fearful, but she smiled bravely. "We knew it would come to this, did we not?"

"I suppose we did. But I did not count on Mr. Gangridge moving so quickly. I had hoped to speak to Mr. Morrison first. I had hoped that there might still be another way of solving this mess."

"It was not of your doing Richard."

"What was not of my doing?" His voice was tired, his eyes awash with regret.

"All of this… this uncertainty and distress we are now enduring… you did not cause it."

"I might have prevented it though." He paused, and then swore softly under his breath, adding, "Why could I not have gone last night?"

"You could not have known that he would act with such speed."

"Well, I know now. I have gained valuable insight into my opponent's character. He does not fight in the open. He does not allow us to mutually file a dispute; he files a complaint first. I am forced to admit that I am up against a slyer adversary than I bargained for."

Both were silent for a moment, then Richard finished, "Well, there is nothing for it but to see it through now."

Kitty nodded. "And has Darcy replied to your message?"

"Yes. He will come on Monday and stay for a few days." Richard leaned against the back of a chair as he spoke.

"You look so tired darling," Kitty said quietly. "Will you go and rest a while?"

Richard straightened up quickly and gave a half-hearted smile. "I have work to do I am afraid."

"Your latest attempts to find a steward have been unsuccessful, haven't they?"

He nodded. "I have had no luck yet. Sending Mr. Bartlett to Rosings is not a decision I regret. He is doing good work there and I hear that his daughter's health is improving. But it had proven more difficult than I suspected to find an acceptable replacement to take over his work here at Matlock. I intend to speak to Darcy about it when he comes. Perhaps he will have a suggestion."


"You are ready then?" Elizabeth asked her husband, as he entered the family sitting room on the morning of his ride to Matlock.

"Yes," he said, coming up to her and taking her hands in his.

"You have everything you will need?"

"Yes," he said again. "And it is only a short trip, Elizabeth. I shall be back in four days."

"Nay, Fitzwilliam. Do not cut your visit short on my account. Stay as long as they need you."

"You do not want me then?" he asked her playfully.

Lizzy's voice was low and earnest as she replied, "I shall want you every moment you are gone. But I will gladly suffer, knowing that you are bringing comfort and help to my beloved sister and her family."

He looked at her for a long moment, then bent and kissed her tenderly.

"I love you Elizabeth," lightly touching the slight curve of her belly, beneath which their child was growing.

"And I love you. You must promise not to fret about me Fitzwilliam, as you always do, do not bother denying it. Instead devote all your energy to helping Richard and Kitty. Remember that Matlock is not far away and, if I truly need you, I can send for you and have you home in six hours. But that will not be necessary. I shall be quite well, and I have Georgiana."

He kissed her once more and then, reminded of his sister by the mention of her name, asked, "Where is Georgiana? I have said goodbye to the boys, but I have not seen her yet."

Georgiana herself answered, "I am here, brother," as she hurried into the room.

"Have you been out walking?" Darcy asked her.

"Yes," she answered quickly, stepping forward to embrace him, thus hiding her face from his view.

"Be a good girl while I am gone," Fitzwilliam told her, more out of force of habit than anything else, as he put his arms around her and bent slightly to place a kiss on the top of her head.

Georgiana stepped away from him as she said, "Do you not think that phrase is a little outdated Fitzwilliam? I am twenty after all, and not a little girl anymore." Her tone was mostly playful, but there was a handful of annoyance in it, and a fleeting touch of desperation.

"Yes, I do think it is outdated," her brother told her gently. "I just have a hard time reconciling myself to the lovely young lady you have become. I miss my little sister sometimes."

Georgiana looked like there was something else she would have liked to say on the subject, but it was not the time. Instead she relented into a resigned smile.

"Give Kitty my love," she said, hugging her brother again as she spoke.

"And mine as well, to Kitty and Richard too," Lizzy added.

"I will."

Darcy left his wife and sister with a final smile for each.


Three hours later, Darcy arrived at Matlock. His quiet confidence and cheerfulness brought temporary peace to the minds and hearts of the worried parents.

The following morning, Mr. Morrison called again. The three gentlemen spoke together for an hour, while Kitty remained upstairs with the children, for she did not trust herself yet in another such conversation and knew that Richard and Darcy would soon tell her all that they had learned.

When the lawyer had departed, Kitty joined the two remaining gentlemen in her husband's study.

"We have learned," Darcy began, when she had seated herself, "that Mr. Gangridge, acting in Lady Ashton's name, has contested not only your legal right to Cathy's guardianship, but also accused you to the court of neglect. In this way even if the results are in your favor regarding the legality of the matter, they will still have a chance."

Kitty nodded quietly.

Darcy went on. "I have questioned Mr. Morrison in depth about your chances in the issue of who has legal right to Catherine's guardianship. He, like myself, cannot yet see any clear outcome. If Lord Ashton were still alive the odds would be very much against you. Yet as the case stands, the contestants are strangely equal. You, her mother's cousin," looking at Richard, "and her maternal grandmother, Lady Catherine, involved as she is through her signature on the guardianship papers, are being challenged by Cathy's other grandmother and her father's cousin. For a child is required by law to have at least one male guardian and if Lady Aston were to win the case it seems very likely that she would choose Mr. Gangridge."

In which event Mr. Gangridge would receive official as well as unofficial power over Cathy, and thus over the family estate and what money they have," Richard pointed out. "No wonder he wants to hasten matters along, since at present his position depends solely on Lady Ashton's goodwill."

"Yes, although he certainly seems to have her completely in his power even now," Kitty said sadly.

"Well, he has no doubt poisoned her mind against us," Richard said. "We must prove in court that we are not the self-seeking, heartless villains she thinks we are."

Kitty nodded again, though somewhat doubtfully, before turning to Darcy. "Please go on," she urged. "You were speaking of our chances of winning the legal aspect of the case."

"There is little else to say on that point. All we have gathered is that it is difficult to predict its outcome. So let us now turn to the second aspect of Mr. Gangridge's accusation. On what grounds could the court reasonably find you guilty of neglect?" Darcy asked.

"The grounds that we deliberately withheld the information of Cathy's birth from her father's family for the purpose of remaining in sole control of her fortune," Richard replied.

"But I stood beside you while you signed and sealed the letter telling them of it," Darcy said. "The claim that you never attempted to contact them is thus easily refuted."

"Yet the fact remains," Richard pressed, "that we did not confirm that they ever received the letter. That was neglect on our part. I had a great deal on my mind at the time, but it is no excuse."

"I should have seen to it myself," Darcy said regretfully.

"No Darcy, it was my task. And I must confess that, when I thought of the matter at all, I entertained the hope that the lack of response from the Ashtons meant that they simply wanted nothing to do with raising Cathy. I hoped for a peaceful, carefree childhood for her. My hopes were unfounded, and, if the court can be convinced that they signify neglect, may lead to some degree of suffering for her…" He choked on his words and could go no further.

Kitty felt tears rising in her own eyes. The thought of little Cathy being brought up by some unknown governess, living in the same house as the pitiful woman and the scheming, greedy man, made her feel sick. She had not lied when she said that she would rather leave the country. What pain that would be, to leave behind her sisters and her home and go to a foreign place. But if it were the only way to keep her child she would not hesitate.

But she knew that this was not the time to dwell on such unhappy thoughts. There was still hope and she must focus on finding a solution to the problem, rather than on its possible consequences. Kitty bit her lip, thinking, and soon, an idea came to her. It was not a complete idea, but it was a beginning and would fill the heavy silence with had descended on the room.

"It seems to me," she began uncertainly, "that the first thing to do would be to look into just what became of the letter. We should see how far we can trace it. For we cannot be entirely certain yet that the letter never arrived." Her voice became stronger and more confident. "Is it not a possibility, however slight, that Lord Ashton received it, but chose to keep its contents hidden or forgot about it due to some circumstance? Could not the receiving of the letter, and the failure to respond, be considered negligence on the part of Lord Ashton. Even if, as is clear, Lady Ashton knew nothing of Cathy or the letter, such a state of affairs would shift some of the guilt of failing to contact the other party, from our shoulders to those of the Ashton family."

Kitty looked from one gentleman to another, only to see Darcy regarding her in some surprise.

Richard had recovered by this time and he grinned. "Now you see, Darcy, what I am up against when we have any disagreement."

Darcy smiled. "I think I am beginning to. I do believe that she and Elizabeth have us entirely beaten between them."

Kitty blushed a little. "I only wish to keep my daughter with me," she said in a low voice.

Richard reached out and took her hand.

"It is my guess that you will be instrumental in the process of fulfilling that objective," Darcy told her. "You have a heart and a mind, both in good working order. You will see when an opportunity presents itself."

Kitty blushed again, surprised at this praise from the usually quiet and practical Mr. Darcy.

"Well," Darcy said. "I suggest we follow your advice and look into the matter of tracing the letter at once. It could well prove beneficial in many ways."

He was all business again. But Kitty had seen the proof of how much Darcy's manner had softened over his years with Elizabeth, and she was glad to have such a trustworthy and compassionate friend in their time of trouble.


"Send my love to Lizzy and Georgiana, as always," Kitty said, when the hour for Darcy's departure arrived.

"I will. And here," drawing a letter from his pocket and handing it to her. "Lizzy wanted me to give you this."

Kitty took the letter and eyed Darcy suspiciously. "Why only give this to me now? What if I wished you to carry a reply?"

"My apologies for not thinking that through. To tell you the truth, I rather wished to be well away before you discovered its contents."

"You are teasing me now," Kitty protested. "It must be good news however from your smile. I only hope," dropping her voice sadly, "that we have as cheerful news for you soon."

His smile faded and he looked at her with compassionate eyes. "Do not be afraid Kitty," speaking seriously. "Cathy will not be taken from you while I or any who know and love you have ought to say about it."

"Thank you again Mr. Darcy, for everything."

He pressed her hand warmly and left.


The letter ran thus:

My Dearest Kitty,

I am so very sorry to hear of the trouble you and Richard have been facing. I cannot imagine what pain of doubt and suspense you must be feeling.

My great wish is that I could do something to help and comfort you, but for now I must trust Fitzwilliam to give you all possible aid and support in this matter. I would accompany him, but I would be more of a burden than a help to you right now for I have been very ill of late. You, Kitty, are one of the first to know that I expect the arrival of a third Darcy child in the spring. I hope you will not feel in any way that I am forcing my happiness on you when you are sorrowing. I simply wish you to know what keeps me from coming to you.

I send you my prayers and so very much love, dear sister.

Lizzy


"Elizabeth is expecting another child," Kitty told Richard happily when he found her a quarter of an hour later, still pouring over her sister's letter.

"Well, congratulations are in order then! But was it not just like Darcy to slip off like that and leave the telling to the letter? He hates a scene so," Richard added, laughed wryly.

"I wonder when we shall have another child," Kitty mused, leaning back against the sofa and gazing at the ceiling.

"At this moment I am more concerned with the question of whether or not we shall lose a child by year's end," Richard said, beginning lightly, but finishing with an angry, aggrieved tone.

"Indeed," Kitty agreed sadly. Then, changing the subject, "Had Darcy any suggestions regarding your hunt for a steward?"

"Yes. In fact, he had more than suggestions. He knows a man who he thinks is a likely candidate and he is going to speak to him and bring me an answer when he comes again in December for the court case."

"That is good news. Perhaps all our troubles shall be happily solved before the new year."

"Let us hope so Kitty. It is a happy thought and one which I would have you hold on to."

"I would have you hold onto it as well, darling."

He smiled at her, and Kitty felt very hopeful as she rose and folded her sister's letter and tucked it away in her desk. All about her she had loving friends and family. They could weather this storm together.


A/N #2: For any of you who may be wondering when we are going to get back to Georgiana and Nathaniel, hold on to your seats. The next chapter is going to be a wild ride. ;)

Also, thank you all so much for 50+ reviews after only eight chapters! You all are just the best and I couldn't do this without the support and inspiration you give me.