Chapter Ten
Fitzwilliam watched in amusement as Miss Bennet sighed.
"Miss Beauty," he began as he sat on the bench beside the tree. Due to a little exhaustion, Fitzwilliam watched as Miss Beauty, dug a little hole in the ground with the gardening shovel. He raised his brows in merriment when she turned to him as she asked.
"Am I doing it wrong, Mr. Darcy?"
"No," he answered but he couldn't help but chuckle a bit.
"You've dug a grave rather than a hole!"
"Excuse me?!" She exclaimed and when he gestured over towards her "little hole", he watched how her face changed from her normal shade to a light white as he said.
"Lizzy bushes don't grow well in holes that look like graves, Miss Beauty."
"Oh…" her response was.
The two were still outside in the gardens of Diamond Springs but Fitzwilliam, though he didn't inform Elizabeth, he was beginning to grow a little tired. He knew that if he let her know of his pain, she would surely vanish and he didn't want this to happen! Instead, he soothed her gently as he spoke.
"Miss Bennet? Why don't you let me finish up here? You can step inside and have a break."
But the queen of beauty shook her head as she replied.
"No, Mr. Darcy. I came here to enjoy your company and to plant these Lizzy bushes with you. Here," she reached over and rearranged the "grave" she'd dug, "I'll change this and then plant the bush. Does that sound good?"
Fitzwilliam felt a little pain sear through his spine and he longed to wince but he didn't.
Taking in a breath, which was small, he answered.
"Alright, Miss Bennet. That should suffice."
Then she surprised him when she turned to him as she added.
"And Mr. Darcy? Between the two of us… I'd much prefer you call me Elizabeth."
Fitzwilliam felt his heart jump a bit when she requested this of him. He remembered how he'd been humiliated by Phillip and Henry but when made the initial move to get to know Elizabeth Bennet more, he never dreamed she would ask him, the 'Beast', to address her by her real name: Elizabeth.
What also charmed him was she didn't arrive in her usual "elaborate dress." When the two were gardening, Fitzwilliam watched as Elizabeth removed her cloak, and revealed a ragged old dress. A few pieces of it were torn at the bottom and it was a dress which deserved, to his knowledge, to be tossed out and not even given to the poor! When she noticed he saw this, she'd turned a shade when she explained.
"It would make sense to not wear fancy clothes when one is gardening."
"I agree," Fitzwilliam inwardly thought.
As he listened to the sound of the birds, Fitzwilliam watched as Miss Bennet resumed her work. He smiled to himself when she began to speak as if she too were in her own world of Lizzys.
"Alright. I will plant you beside some of Mr. Darcy's friends. They seem to love being in the sun as much as you do. Regardless of how you've been tucked away, I know for sure that they will help you as you blossom beside them! And the colors of his Lizzys are so unique, I would be a little embarrassment myself if I wasn't presentable as they are!"
Fitzwilliam couldn't help but chuckle when she gestured over towards his "other Lizzy bush friends' as she rambled on.
"And I believe he was the one who selected the flowers for the ball not too long ago. Would you imagine that one day you will be one of them? The fragrance of his flowers touched me…"
He suddenly heard her stop and when she looked over at him, Fitzwilliam watched as her cheeks flared a little before she quickly turned away. This made him swallow when she softly added.
"He… gave me a little Lizzy to remind me of that night… and you will be pleased to know that you will be one of them! Growing alongside his friends."
For a moment after that, Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth remained silent as she progressed with her work. Fitzwilliam remembered what took place and he was sure Elizabeth was experiencing the same memories. The morning sun was rising to the center of the sky and for a second – the couple basked in the silence and talking wasn't necessary.
"Perhaps remembering that evening should be forgotten," Fitzwilliam thought as he played with his fingers.
The ache in his spine was beginning to decrease as he started to pray. He knew and hoped prayer was his only solace when his "deformity" kicked in. When he inhaled, he thanked God he was able to do this when Elizabeth announced.
"Mr. Darcy? How does that look?"
When he moved his eyes over to her gardening, Fitzwilliam nodded as he replied.
"Very good, Miss Elizabeth. The plants are pleased."
The queen of beauty Lizzy and dusting her hands, which were covered in dirt, Fitzwilliam heard Elizabeth reply.
"Thank you, Mr. Darcy. Now… where is the watering bucket?"
"Over here," Fitzwilliam directed his eyes over towards two buckets beside him.
He continued to smile when Elizabeth approached and once one was in hand, she returned to the roses before she watered them. He could hear the liquid pouring out as she soothed.
"And here's the drink you were desiring, dear plants."
Here, Fitzwilliam felt his heart thump as she continued to speak towards the flowers. It was both feminine and charming as he leaned back and folding his arms, waited for her to finish her little "plant discussion" as the morning progressed along.
"Miss Elizabeth? Would you grace us with your piano playing?' Elizabeth heard Mr. Darcy ask.
Sometime later, as Elizabeth would attest, both she and Mr. Darcy finished up in the gardens and by the time the sun was high in the sky, all the plants were planted. And Elizabeth pushed away the memory of her first "Lizzy hole" for papa's Lizzy! Mr. Darcy not only surprised her by informing her their work was finished but that there would be a light tea for the two have in the music room. The room held an elliptical ceiling molding which bore inscriptions of French songs, music, and harmony. The hearth was made of Campan marble and the colors of the walls were silver and gold, while a French ormolu piano was to the left.
Elizabeth, who sat closest to the instrument, glanced over at it before she nodded.
"In response to your request, Mr. Darcy, I will do so." She answered before she made her way over and seated herself. The lid was still covering the keys; raising it, they glowed at her and when she placed her fingers on them, she tried to keep herself calm when she began a song she'd known by heart: Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.
As she felt the blood in her fingers begin the first part of the song, Elizabeth became unware of the hunched figure of Mr. Darcy. As he approached, he used the cane to help him walk over to her and when she became too engrossed in the song, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik was fast, Elizabeth wasn't aware he was standing beside her, watching as her fingers flew across the keys as the famous Mozart piece made the entire music room sing with life!
When Mr. Darcy stood beside Elizabeth, he couldn't help but feel he was drawn in to something more than her piano playing. He'd listened to his brothers' stories about her that she was a skilled piano player and at any social gathering: she would play for anyone who asked her to do so. And if there was an instrument available.
"And I see that the stories are true," he thought.
"She not only is a beauty… but also a talented musician!"
Then the song suddenly stopped and her voice exclaimed.
"Mr. Darcy! I didn't see you there! You startled me!"
It was Elizabeth and when Fitzwilliam heard this, he was startled out of his trance and took a step back. But this move caused him to stagger and then... he landed on his backside with a slight thud and this caused the pain in his back to return.
"Oh, gracious! Not again!" He heard Miss Bennet exclaim.
"Miss Elizabeth," he began as he tried to rise but the pain started to sear.
"I can manage."
But her the queen of beauty wasn't listening. As he watched, she Lizzy from her seat and ignoring anything he'd said, rushed over and when she bent down, he felt her hands touch his shoulders as she answered.
"No, Mr. Darcy! You may say you're alright but not from that expression on your face!"
When Fitzwilliam heard this, he looked towards Miss Elizabeth and watched as her features changed. Her brows narrowed and her attention was fixed on helping him to his feet. With her hands on his shoulders, they were soft and she didn't grip them, as Francis would if he found him on the floor like this. Fitzwilliam remained silent when he stared into the queen of beauty's face. He noticed her golden hair and he felt the impulse to touch it… along with that nose of hers… those eyes which sparkled like the blue sky… the way she appeared even without all her decorative dress… he even admitted he liked the fragrance of the outside air on her… or was it a perfume she'd put on?
He wasn't sure when he felt his soul jump when her eyes stared into his as she said.
"Mr. Darcy? Will you help me as I assist you up?"
"Yes," He replied.
"Alright. Here we go," she answered and Fitzwilliam, trying to hide the ache, held his breath as he offered prayer to Our Blessed Mother, as he did his best to help Miss Elizabeth as the two worked together to bring him to his feet. Due to the deformity in his back, Fitzwilliam knew that standing was one of the challenging things to do he never wanted anyone to know about it. His spiritual director called it "a sacrifice" for souls. Yet Fitzwilliam had another secret about his hope and prayer life and he continued to pray that a miracle would take place soon! But if servants' such as Francis and even Anne proceeded with bringing in doctors' and other people from the medial field into his realm: it was all he could do but to kick them all out and not give one ounce of a thought to what his brothers' rules were!
"Or keep instructing me to do anyway!" He thought.
Then he found himself on his feet but with Miss Elizabeth's hands on his shoulders.
"There we go," she softly spoke but her hands didn't leave his shoulders. As he looked into them, Fitzwilliam saw that Miss Bennet's eyes were slightly moist and he wondered if it was the sun's lights or the perhaps she was tired from planting? He didn't want to know as he continued to stare into them.
For a moment, they looked into each other's eyes and Fitzwilliam remembered the evening of his brothers' ball. The humiliation… the laughter… how the all addressed him as 'the Beast.'
"Miss Elizabeth," he began but then Fitzwilliam felt her hands release him.
He watched in disappointment when Elizabeth took a step back and she softly answered.
"Mr. Darcy… thank you for such a delightful afternoon… planting the roses was such a grace indeed! But I hear the sounds of my drive approaching."
She peered over towards the piano as she added.
"And for asking me to play for you."
Then before he could say another word to her, Fitzwilliam watched as the queen of beauty turned on her heel and rushed out of the room. Perplexed, Fitzwilliam reached out and taking hold of the cane, tried to run after her but his inability didn't let him. In a few moments, he heard the sound of the front doors open and Francis's voice say.
"Miss Bennet? Your butler arrived and he's here to take you back to town. But seems you were ahead of me."
"Bless that butler," Fitzwilliam thought as he hobbled as fast as he could to the main lobby.
"He always seems to be in places where I don't want him to be in!"
He disliked the feeling of not being able to catch up with her when Fitzwilliam heard Miss Elizabeth answer.
"Thank you for telling me so, Francis. I have to admit… I heard the carriage wheels-"
"Miss Bennet?!" Fitzwilliam heard Norman bark.
"I believe your stay is over. Shall we proceed to the drive outside?"
"How dare he talk to her like that!" Fitzwilliam thought.
It was here he managed to speed-walk to the doorway of the music room. When Fitzwilliam placed his hand on the side to catch his breath, he looked up but to his disappointment, Miss Bennet was being escorted out of the manor by Norman. And Francis, his back turned, had his arms folded as he watched them leave. When Fitzwilliam saw this, he felt his temper spark when he took a step forward and in a voice unlike his usual tone, he asked.
"Francis? Who gave you authority to send Miss Bennet away like that?"
Francis, the butler, wasn't startled as he turned and when Fitzwilliam looked into his eyes, he felt more like a beast when the man answered.
"You weren't supposed to be seen with Miss Beauty, Master Fitzwilliam. Those were instructions from your brothers. You may as well lose all forms of hope of never seeing her again."
"That wasn't supposed to be part of the plan!" Fitzwilliam barked as he gripped the cane.
"And I can see that someone needs to have Doctor -"
"Francis! You're fired!" Fitzwilliam shouted.
And using the cane, he slammed it on the ground but it broke and this caused him to feel the hunch in his back slam him. Then he lost his balance and falling forward, Fitzwilliam hit the floor with a bang. He heard a snap somewhere as Francis rushed over as he called.
"Anne! Fetch Doctor Sterling now! Master Fitzwilliam's condition has worsened!"
He felt something like warm blood seem to erupt from his face… or wherever it was when Fitzwilliam's world blurred a little as he thought.
"No… my condition has worsened because of you!"
