Chapter 20

Mr. Bennet glanced out of the small, square shaped window of the cramped carriage that he had rented. He squinted his eyes underneath his wire-rimmed glasses at the jolting landscape that went past the window, his green eyes, so like Elizabeth's, narrowing warily as they swept over the shadows of the thick trees that dotted the fields and mountains around Derbyshire.

You have a nice place, Mr. Darcy, he thought wryly. What a pity it is that I shall probably never see it again.

The thought made him frown for what was perhaps the tenth time today. He gave a small twitch of the purple hangings that were draped lazily across the window, moving the soft fabric so that it hid the beautiful scenery from sight. His thoughts drifted away from the bumpy road of Derbyshire homeward, dwelling on the two daughters he had left at Netherfield and the other daughter who was out 'travelling' with Charlotte Lucas. He didn't believe for a second that Elizabeth was doing some idle vacationing with her friend Charlotte. More likely, she was trying to track down one of the vampires who had crashed Bingley's ball. In some ways, he envied his three eldest daughters. He envied their youth and the strength that came with being young, the strength that allowed them to fight the vampires and win. Yet in other ways…. In other ways it worried him to have the girls so close to vampires. He knew that Charles Bingley wasn't a threat…yet, but it still worried him that Jane, Mary, and Elizabeth (especially Jane) hadn't left been away from his house for more than a fortnight since Netherfield's last ball, a few months ago. Of course, his wife had different reasons for worrying, reasons of propriety, but propriety wasn't an issue if you were dead.

The carriage jolted to a sharp stop in front of Bennet's destination. The driver of the carriage leapt nimbly down from his seat at the front and came around to open the aging man's door for him.

"Pemberley estate, sir," he said politely. "Would you like for me to alert Mr. Darcy of your presence, sir?"

"That would be splendid, thank you Simmons," Bennet said calmly as he walked slowly up the ornate walk that lead to Darcy's front door.

Simmons ran ahead of his employer to knock politely at the large front door of Pemberley mansion, his cap held lightly in his hands. A servant dressed smartly in the Darcy livery opened the door, casting a skeptical eye over the dusty driver and the old man who was limping slowly up the pathway.

"Can I help you, sir?" the servant asked politely, his sharp eyes resting on the older man, who was obviously in charge.

"Yes," Mr. Bennet said calmly as he slowly ascended the few stairs that led up to the door. "Would you please tell the master of this house that Mr. Bennet wishes to speak with him?"

The servant's eyebrows rose and he looked over the older man with renewed interest.

"Are you a friend of Mr. Darcy, sir?" he asked cautiously.

"Yes, you could say that," Bennet replied with a trace of amusement. "Although I'm afraid that he is more familiar with my daughters than he is with me."

The servant's bushy eyebrows disappeared into his fly-away gray hair and he stepped away from the door, allowing Mr. Bennet through into the large marble entrance hall. Bennet looked up at the frescoed ceiling of the hall with appreciation and followed the servant into a richly decorated parlor with comfortable wing chairs and a scarlet plush rug.

I wish I could see his library, he thought with a slight pang. It must be filled with books.

A young girl with a head of golden hair and warm ice-blue eyes walked into the parlor, her expression shy and reserved. Bennet smiled kindly at her, encouraging her to speak.

"M-my brother will be with us shortly," she stammered quietly. "Is there anything that I can get for you?"

Mr. Bennet shook his head, a small smile still playing across his face.

"No thank you, Miss Darcy," he told her gently. "Although, I would be much obliged if you would allow me to speak with your brother alone."

"Is there anything wrong?" the girl asked, suddenly nervous. "Is Miss Elizabeth alright? What about Miss Mary? And Miss Jane?"

"I assure you, all of my daughters are fine, Miss Darcy," Bennet said soothingly. As far as I know, he added mentally. Lizzie hadn't sent him a letter just yet, but Mary and Jane didn't seem worried, so he assumed that she was alright.

Darcy's sister nodded, barely hiding her relief, and slipped out of the room as heavy footsteps sounded on the marble grand staircase in the hall way. Bennet strained his ears to catch a few whispered words between the Darcy siblings before Mr. Darcy himself entered the room.

"Mr. Bennet," he greeted him politely. "To what do I owe this great honor?"

"I am sorry to disturb you, Mr. Darcy, but I really must speak with you."

Darcy nodded, his ice-blue eyes, so like his sister's, tightening.

"Is everything alright with your daughters?" he asked stiffly.

Apparently, concern for the Bennet sisters ran in the family.

"My daughters are fine, Mr. Darcy," Bennet assured him. "I'm afraid the real reason that I have come to disturb you is that I have a question for you."

Darcy nodded for Bennet to continue, his expression wary.

"Mr. Darcy, what is your connection to Mr. Wickham?" Bennet asked bluntly.

Darcy stiffened, his hands clenching into fists.

"I am afraid that I don't quite get what you are saying, Mr. Bennet," he said curtly.

"I think that you do, Darcy," Bennet replied coolly as he leaned forward in his seat. "I think that you must have known Mr. Wickham very well, given the fact that you refuse to kill him."

Darcy whirled around to stare at him, his eyes widening.

"What did you just say, Mr. Bennet?" he asked warily.

"I am perfectly aware of the existence of vampires, Mr. Darcy," Bennet said calmly. "Who do you think gave my girls the idea that they existed in the first place?"

Darcy stared at him, his expression shifting to something that Bennet could easily identify.

"I realize that you probably don't approve of how I am putting my daughters in danger, Mr. Darcy," Bennet said mildly. "And I assure you that I have thought of the same things lots of times over the years. However, since I am too old to effectively fight vampires, and my family needs me alive to provide for themselves, I have been forced to hand over my skills to my three most effective girls in order to keep my town safe."

Darcy nodded slowly, his expression still slightly disapproving.

"What is it that you need to know?"

Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters. All of the credit goes to the amazing Jane Austen. Thanks to all of the people who reviewed!