It had cheered Darcy considerably that Georgiana had been so eager to call on the Egertons. Not because he wished to be rid of her, but it was pleasing to witness her developing new friendships. He grimaced, recalling how withdrawn she had become after the Wickham business and he doubted the wisdom of keeping her confined to Pemberley. He and his cousin had discussed the plan at length and whilst Colonel Fitzwilliam had urged Darcy to come to London and bring Georgiana then, claiming the energy and activity of town would serve as a worthy distraction, Darcy had been determined that she remain in Pemberley, safe from stares and gossip. Seeing how she had blossomed at dinner and how freely she went about with these new friends, Darcy was forced to acknowledge that perhaps, in this, Richard had been right. Perhaps it would have been better to allow Georgiana to throw herself into society and thus forget Wickham. The rumours had stayed away. Darcy's payment to Wickham had ensured that and all his fears for Georgiana's future had been unfounded.
She was fortunate. He recalled all that Egerton had confided to him of the fate of his sister, similarly deceived and ill-used by Wickham. She had remained in London but her recovery had been as slow and solitary as Georgiana's had been. He could tell, although he would never have remarked upon it, from the shadows in Joanna's eyes, the drawn-ness of her features, that she suffered still and hoped that a friendship between her and Georgiana might benefit them both.
With a sigh, he turned back to his ledger. It had been more than a convenient excuse when Georgiana posed the notion of calling to him earlier. However much he might have cared to accompany her and see their friends, he truly did have work to complete and he had already neglected things too long for the sake of his friends.
His lips quirked, thinking how unlike himself it was to put social gatherings ahead of his responsibilities. Here, he already had half an eye towards the upcoming assembly and the knowledge that he would enjoy the evening all the more without the press of unfinished work awaiting his attention. Enjoyment? At a public assembly? It was unheard of, and yet it was not entirely unheard of. He had enjoyed the assemblies well enough when he was younger.
He turned a page, and with it, his mind turned back a few years, to when Wickham had been the one urging and cajoling Darcy to attend assemblies with him and his reticence had been at least partly feigned. It had been at one of those assemblies he had first met Elizabeth…
He was so lost in his memories that he did not hear the commotion that signalled an arrival and it was not until the door to his study was heartily knocked upon and thrown open that he glanced up, startled to behold his cousin.
"Darcy!"
Colonel Fitzwilliam did not wait to be greeted, but took Darcy's stunned silence as an invitation and strode in, waving away the anxious servant who had tried to delay his intrusion with a broad smile.
"Now, tell me you have something good to drink. I require it!" He moved straight towards Darcy's cabinet, helping himself to a generous measure of brandy, which he swallowed in one gulp, immediately refilling his glass. "You will not believe the morning I have had, Darcy. I scarcely believe it myself."
"I am still surprised to see you," Darcy said, recalling himself at last and firmly closing the door on his memories of Elizabeth. It would do him no good to dwell on them, especially not now that Colonel Fitzwilliam had arrived. And this was the real question: why had he arrived, so suddenly and without word?
"Sit down and stop thundering around. This room is not big enough for you to march in!" Darcy gestured towards the chair opposite his desk and waved away Richard's offer to pour Darcy a drink of his own brandy. He relented and rose to pour himself a rather more moderate measure, before settling down opposite his cousin and bidding him explain himself.
"You are in London, then?"
"Keenly observed." Richard saluted him with his glass, freezing with his hand in mid-air as a frown darkened his brow. "You are surprised to see me. I thought I wrote…well, never mind. I am here now."
"Do you wish to stay?" Darcy was poised to summon back his servants to ready Richard a room, but he was stilled from doing so.
"No need. My brother is in the country, so our house is all mine for as long as I want it." He sighed as if the thought of such comforts were something to be savoured. "It is a pleasant change from barracks living, let me tell you."
Darcy nodded but said nothing, wanting to know the cause for Richard's disquiet but also knowing his cousin well enough to understand that he must be allowed to do the telling at his own pace, caring little for interruptions.
"Still, I have some regimental business to attend to, so I'll be in and out of there at all hours. Better I do that at home, with only myself to disturb. I'll certainly dine with you once or twice, though, if you care to offer?" He winked. "Never have been able to stomach a solitary dinner, and I much prefer your meals. Old Mrs Brooke's still here, I hope?"
"Of course," Darcy said, mildly. "I shall have her ready the store, with word that you shall be dining here."
Richard laughed, used to being teased by his gentlemanly cousin for his hearty appetite. The laugh died suddenly, though, as Richard's expression darkened.
"Now, let us come to business, Darcy. I did not come here merely to see you nor to book my place at your dining table."
"Yes, why are you here?" Darcy asked. "Not that it is not fine to see you. Georgiana told me we would not meet until the assembly."
"That had been my plan." Richard raked a hand through his dark hair, nursing his glass and looking, now that the point came, as if he was not so eager to speak after all. Darcy grew nervous, wondering what could be causing his usually gregarious cousin such anxiety.
"Well, out with it, man! You came here determined to speak. Do not leave a fellow on tenterhooks. You're not usually one to buy time or tease your audience." He alluded to the numerous war-stories Richard dined out on and enjoyed regaling his friends and family with on all occasions, but even this was not enough to raise a smile.
"George Wickham came to see me."
Darcy's eyes shot up.
"Wickham? Here?"
"Aye, he's here." Richard's lip curled in distaste. "Come with a friend of his, another fellow in a red coat, albeit one who respects rank a little more than our old friend George." A low growl rumbled in his throat as if there mere mention of Wickham's name was enough to stoke his anger against him.
"What does he want?" Darcy placed his elbows on his desk, leaning his chin on his hands with care, although he felt a flash of anger and suspicion course through his veins with such vehemence it took all his strength not to leap into action. No, he counselled himself. Better to have a full understanding of Wickham's plan before I seek to disrupt it. It had never served him well to go up against Wickham ill-prepared.
"To make amends." Richard shook his head in disbelief, downing the last of his drink and setting the glass down with a bang. "If you can believe such a thing."
Darcy could not and said as much.
"He spun me some tale," Richard continued, waving his hand as if to conjure it up. "Something about recognising the errors of his ways, the fact that he had hurt people, and he sought assistance - my assistance, if you can believe it - in mending things."
"And what did you tell him?" Darcy's voice was tight, but Richard was too invested in his tale to notice.
"I wanted to tell him in no uncertain terms to crawl back under whatever rock he'd come out from." Richard grinned. "But then I recognised the jacket and realised I couldn't speak to a subordinate like that, however much I might wish to. So I advised him that we had no need of recruits in London and he'd be better off seeking promotion elsewhere if he could find a place to take him. That's when he surprised me by saying he already had a spot in Hertfordshire. Meryton." He frowned. "It's not far from London, I suppose…"
Darcy's breath caught, and at last, Richard seemed to notice his uncomfortable stance.
"Anyway, I thought it best to warn you. Especially if Georgiana is here. There's a slim chance, but a chance nonetheless, that their paths may cross. I doubt very much he'd be foolish enough to come here -"
"They have already met," Darcy said. "In Hertfordshire." He briefly outlined what little Georgiana had told him upon her arrival in London and debated including his new friend Egerton in the telling, at last relenting and deciding that, if they were to discuss Wickham freely, it would be better to tell all.
"Egerton." Richard leaned back in his chair, mulling over the name. "Now, then. That's a funny detail, because Wickham's meandering tale made mention of him." He arched his eyebrows. "Surprising. If it were from any other fellow than him, I suppose I'd be duty-bound to believe his claims, now. No normal man would make up such an unhappy past, nor claim they wish to mend it."
"You still do not believe him, then?" Darcy watched his cousin carefully, weighing his own decision by Richard's which was not quick in coming. At last, he shrugged his broad shoulders and let out a long sigh.
"I don't know if I do or not. He could be truthful. He could just as easily not be. Either way, I don't doubt whatever he wishes to do it is to serve himself in the long run. We must be cautious, Darcy. He has caused too much strife already in our lives and the lives of those we care about to risk letting him do so again. I advised him to move on. Perhaps he will, at last, have the grace to do so and we might be spared seeing him -"
He did not finish his thought, for the door opened and a set of light footsteps danced their way along the corridor. Darcy had just enough time to sweep their glasses out of sight and stand, along with his cousin, before Georgiana tapped lightly on the door and stepped inside.
"I am home, Brother. Oh! Colonel Fitzwilliam!"
"Colonel?" Richard laughed, embracing Georgiana. "Is that any way to speak to your cousin after so many months apart?"