Chapter 35
"Love? Wake up," a feminine voice spoke.
Fitzwilliam swallowed and it took him a moment to open his eyes. When he did, his vision was slightly blurry so he blinked a few times. When the view was clear, he stared with a dropped mouth at a woman in front of him. He eased himself up in bed and with a pounding heart, he asked.
"Elizabeth?"
His wife's smile brightened like the sun as she softly replied back.
"Yes, sweetie, I'm home."
Opening his arms out wide, Fitzwilliam exclaimed.
"Drop into my arms!"
With tears of joy, Fitzwilliam cried out as Elizabeth rushed over to him and falling into his arms, even though he was in the bed and his memory returned to him, he didn't care how he appeared when he took her into his embrace and kissed her passionately. His heart felt a complete peace when he felt her body and she was alive and well! He started to praise and thank God more than he'd ever done so in a million years and his heart hurt when he remembered that dream he'd had about protecting her and how he felt God the Father summon him to his full masculinity to protect, cherish, and love her as the husband he was called to be. When he was kissing her, Fitzwilliam knew that God the Father wasn't joking when he had had that dream. He knew that the Father in Heaven meant it and he was going to do what he was told. Remembering in the dream how it felt to be that masculine and protective of her, he knew that God wasn't kidding. And he wasn't going to take the Father's cue lightly.
When Fitzwilliam woke up the following morning, a smile was on his face and this feeling never left him when he held her in his arms. He couldn't believe it but he did when he felt her in his embrace.
He smiled when he felt her whisper.
"I love you."
Henry poured himself a cup of wine before he rolled his shoulders back and sighed loudly.
He had to piece together the what had occurred and he couldn't believe that it had taken all of his ability and strength to step out like he'd done and bothered to ask to have that portrait ripped out of its holder, shatter all the glass pieces around the bedroom, but before and previously, there was the distraction of setting that barn on fire. He was thankful for the quaintly of the wine and when he felt it go down his throat, he thought.
"Distracting everyone with that fire and then sneaking inside the manor sure was worth it."
"Happen to have another glass nearby?" another voice asked.
When Henry glanced up, he nodded as he answered.
"Sure thing! Hand it over and I'll pour you a cup!"
When Fitzwilliam glanced up, his eyes sparkled like the sun when he saw Elizabeth, as she approached him sometime later. His smile was so large and gentle and loving, that when she met his eyes, all she could do in response was smile back as he asked.
"Elizabeth? It's been a while since I've seen you smile like that and I'm happy that you explained to me that after the fire, you managed to make it out alive by running around the barn and seeking a haven elsewhere around the grounds of the manor," he sighed as he finished.
"I just wish I had known where you were before I bothered to step close to that burning thing,"
Elizabeth's smile touched his heart and he raised his chest a little higher and he smiled when she answered.
"And I'm sorry I didn't inform you were I was, sir," upon hearing this, Fitzwilliam felt even manlier when she addressed him as sir. It was something he'd never heard before and especially coming from a woman, who was his wife, he knew that when he was addressed as "sir," it meant that she was allowing him to give the final decision for anything but in this moment, when he heard her say this, all Chris longed to do was gather her in his arms and waltz her around the room. But he held it in as he gestured for her to continue. He sensed that she had something more to say and when she did, it surprised him when it came as a question.
"Fredrick and my uncle mentioned something about my aunt's portrait which was on our bed and shattered glass around the bed?"
"They mentioned what?"
He asked in a voice which surprised him. This was a few days after his recovery from the fire and Chris was thankful that his lungs were fine and that all the smoke was gone. But in this moment, he jolted forward when he heard Elizabeth ask this. He narrowed his eyes as he asked her,
"Say that again, please?"
"My uncle and Fredrick discovered that the picture of my deceased aunt, my uncle's wife, was found on our bed as well as shattered pieces of glass from the frame. When I returned from outside after the fire, I made my way upstairs to see if you're fine but it was then when I met my relations and they informed me about what they had found and that there was a note with it."
"What type of note was it?" Fitzwilliam asked and he turned his head to the right, narrowing his eyes slightly. He was becoming suspicious of something and his heart started to pound. It didn't take long for Elizabeth to answer.
"Here's what they found, sir,"
And extending her hand, she held in her palm a piece of paper and when Fitzwilliam glanced down, his eyes widened and his heart thumped more. When he thanked her he read the sentence.
"Our Lady of Perpetual Help."
Elizabeth had her hands on her hips and she sighed. He heard this and peered up at her but when he saw that nothing was wrong, he returned his attention back to the paper, before he narrowed his eyes more, and stared hard at the sentence. He spoke aloud.
"The sentence only reads 'Our Lady of Perpetual Help,' and there's nothing more on here. How is it that whoever broke in and did that wreckage in our bedroom had this on top of the painting?"
"I'm just as puzzled about it as you are, Chris," Elizabeth replied.
"When Uncle mentioned that he had scanned the paper for finger prints, he discovered that the writer had been crafty and the letter was written with gloves."
"So that his identity wouldn't be known," Chris concluded and where Elizabeth nodded. The two were starting to figure something out and his heart started to beat but he was playing with his brows when he re-read the sentence about Our Lady of Perpetual Help. How did this sentence apply to the moment now?
"Did you uncle find anything else?" he asked after a moment.
Elizabeth shook her head in response and Fitzwilliam nodded his thanks but he was still perplexed by what the meaning of the sentence meant. He knew that Our Lady of Perpetual Help was one of many titles for Our Blessed Mother but he also wondered how this sentence applied to what had happened two days before. As mentioned above, Fitzwilliam was thankful that his lungs were clear of the smoke and earlier that day, he had received a letter from the doctor that he would be fine and jolly to return to work anytime he pleased with fresh, clear lungs. He offered God a prayer of thanksgiving and gratitude but he was still wondering how Our Lady of Perpetual Help was involved in this.
"Did the sender imply that we should pray to her?" Fitzwilliam asked aloud.
"Yes, we can," Elizabeth spoke in a reverent voice.
"Intensifying our prayer life will help both of us greatly."
"Yes," Fitzwilliam answered and he remembered how he had never spoken to Elizabeth about his secret devotion to Our Lady after the passing of his mother not too long ago. And how his own conversion was taking place inside his heart and how, whenever he felt hurt or tempted to do something wrong, he would always go over to Our Blessed Mother and ask her help to help him. And with the events which had occurred not too long ago, which surprised him because time had progressed along so fast but slow, Fitzwilliam marveled in the reality that he'd been married since January and March was already there!
And when he remembered how he'd treated Elizabeth before, he swallowed as he pushed aside all those thoughts of the past and remembered his promise to her that he would never hurt her again. Or ever when he remembered another person: his miscarriage little girl who was up in Heaven with Our Blessed Mother and Our Lord. He had vowed that he would never again do such an act like slapping or yelling at his wife and he would promise himself that he wouldn't do it! And it was through the grace of God that he would keep to his promise and Fitzwilliam meant it.
Elizabeth's voice made him return to the moment.
"Our Lady of Perpetual Help," she whispered in a thoughtful manner and when he heard this, he glanced over at her and watched as she turned her head to the right, narrowed her eyes a bit, and seemed to be thinking really hard and when he spotted this, Chris let out a little chuckle. She was so adorable and cute when she did this and he felt warmed when she did this gesture. Unlike Miss Parkington, Elizabeth's way of thinking and pondering events together was different and when he would compare the two women, the difference between the two was distantly unique. Elizabeth's personality was quiet and tender but Miss Parkington's was stern, harsh, and a bit strict. Something which actually bothered and made Fitzwilliam angry because he never liked it and this displeased him greatly.
He would have preferred to have Elizabeth be his secretary than Miss Parkington because she'd been the previous dentist's secretary and when had arrived in Charleston way back in the previous year, he had been informed that she would stay with him to help him out if he needed anything. He sighed when he remembered this but he didn't wish to bother from Elizabeth's trail of thought so he waited for her to continue but his heart felt warmed when he beheld how beautiful she was when she thought this way.
"Our Lady of Perpetual Help was found inside the piano," she spoke slowly and Chris could sense that she was thinking hard; whatever was progressing in her mind was making the juices flow, he thought and he continued to watch her as she spoke to herself. Which was amused him because he had never heard her speak in this way before.
"And Fitzwilliam traveled over to the church to have it displayed for the Congregation."
Was she talking about the painting of Our Lady of Perpetual Help? Fitzwilliam's mind thought and he widened his eyes. His heart pounded and he leaned forward and he remembered something. He quickly glanced down at the paper and the sentence was still there and he could hear his pounding heart beat against his chest. His juices were also flowing and then memories of how the two of them had discovered the secret compartment hidden inside the piano returned; the emerald found in the carriage, how it had been displayed on her aunt's portrait, when the emerald had been the button to open the piano's compartment, how Our Lady's picture had revealed and glowed and how her tender eyes had met his and his devotion to her…
Snapping his fingers, Fitzwilliam leapt from his seat, as he cried out,
"Elizabeth! That painting!"
"What painting?" She asked and she was bit startled when he spoke this. Noticing this, he apologized.
"Sorry, love; I didn't mean to frighten you like that, but I have an idea."
"I'm open to the possibilities," Elizabeth's voice answered and she held her hands out as if she were open to have several pieces of paper in her hands as she asked.
"What idea entered your mind?"
When Fitzwilliam met Elizabeth's eyes, he answered, excitedly.
"What size of the painting was it in the piano, Elizabeth? The size of your aunt's painting!"
"Chris?" she asked as she stood back, a bit stunned.
"What are you suggesting?"
"Elizabeth?!" He exclaimed but he couldn't finish before Fredrick entered the room as he announced.
"Dislike interrupting you two, but Fitzwilliam? Some of the servants need you outside for the report of the fire."
Fredrick glanced over at Elizabeth as he concluded.
"Mind Elizabeth?"
Elizabeth only shook her head in response as Fitzwilliam stood up and he finished for her.
"I'm on my way, Fredrick."
"Our Lady of Perpetual Help," Elizabeth thought as she stood in the living room sometime later. She was by herself and her husband was outside and this didn't bother her because she knew he would return and she tilted her head to one side, wondering exactly what Chris had implied when he mentioned to her that the painting of her aunt matched that of the image which was above the fireplace of her family's living room. Remembering how Chris had snapped his fingers, she peered up towards the area where the painting originally had been. She narrowed her eyes a little and then she gasped. Covering her mouth with her hand, she exclaimed.
"Oh, my goodness! Fitzwilliam was right!"
Before long, she dashed out of the room, her heart racing.
When she rushed outside, she collided with someone and both of their bodies flew backwards. Elizabeth landed on her backside and when she cried out, she glanced up and met the eyes of her husband, Fitzwilliam. He was just as clumsy as she was when he too landed on his backside, too. They blinked after a moment and she felt the eyes of the servants on the two as they all stared at the sight which was presented before. Elizabeth's heart was racing and beating like a drum and she had a moment, before she smiled and started laughing and when Chris saw this, he too started to laugh.
"Elizabeth! Whatever was that about?" Fitzwilliam asked but she could feel his jolly laugh meet her heart and his smile touch her feathers as the two ignored the stares of the servants around them. Even Fredrick had remained stunned but then he started to laugh, too. They all needed this laugh and when she glanced up and ignored all the men and women who were watching them, Elizabeth's heart felt at peace when she watched as Fitzwilliam rose to his feet, and making his way over to her, he held his hand out to her and asked,
"My lady?"
Placing her hand in his, Elizabeth nodded as she whispered.
"Certainly, Mr. Darcy."
As her strong husband helped her up, she heard her brother's voice exclaim.
"Eh…! So mushy!"
"Fredrick, for the one hundredth time, would you care to leave us alone?"
Fitzwilliam exclaimed and Elizabeth felt so safe and protected when she heard him say this.
The way his jaw appeared, how he was holding her hand in his, the way he was looking at her, how his eyes were reading to her an unspoken message, promised her heart a haven of protection and safety and from all the dangers of the world which would hurt her, Elizabeth knew that inside her heart, Fitzwilliam's masculine protection was doing something more than just "being there" for her. He was making her feel safe and when she was safe, Elizabeth was given permission to be herself and live in a world outside of the dangers of insecurity, as well as fear, worry, and anxiety. She felt her his hands wrap themselves around hers and he asked softly.
"What is it, Elizabeth? You seemed to have been in quite a hurry before we bumped into each other."
She felt the tenderness and the love inside his voice and she stepped a little closer to him but remembering that they had an audience, Elizabeth kept her voice low as she replied.
"I understand why Our Lady of Perpetual Help was such an exciting moment for you some time ago, Fitzwilliam."
She met his eyes and he swallowed as he waited for her to continue.
Elizabeth lowered her eyes as she spoke on.
"The painting of Our Lady of Perpetual Help's frame matches the same outline of the painting where my aunt's one was!" She met his eyes and they each blinked and then before she knew it, Elizabeth was in Fitzwilliam's arms and he was springing her around the main lobby, and his joy matched that of her beating heart.
In a low tone, Fitzwilliam whispered.
"We're on to something, my love, and now if you would excuse me," he glanced over his shoulder as he finished.
"I'll be right back and then something will be summoned up."
Elizabeth's heart continued to beat when Fitzwilliam whispered this to her. She had a feeling he was onto something and she could feel the connection. Soon, he placed her down and winking, he turned and disappeared through the front doors. The only audience remaining with her were her brother, Fredrick, and the other servants who had stepped outside when Fitzwilliam had been asked to go out to the front.
"Where is he going?" one of the servants asked Fredrick who had quit laughing.
Elizabeth was grateful when his response was.
"Town."
And that was all he spoke before everyone returned to their regular duties. Elizabeth took this as a cue to remember that she had to check the calendar to prepare for the spring festival opening at the manor. Hawkswood was known for his spring flowers and celebrations and thankfully, the maze out in front, with the bushes, had been repaired just in time and when everyone was gone, she left for the library where her markings had been written on the calendar and she was excited to anticipate that the spring showing would be taking place soon. Her heart also pounded when she remembered that Fitzwilliam was traveling into town for one specific reason only but she remained quiet so no one else would know of his intention. Then she proceeded into the library.
As he traveled into town, he became unware of a pair of eyes watching him. Two of the riders were mounted on tall horses and they wore black garments. They speculated where he was riding to and soon, they urged their own horses forward and quietly but stealthily, followed him as he progressed along to his destination. One of the riders thought,
"Well, I'm pleased to know that they're quieter than the others we've struggled to train."
As if his comrade could hear his thoughts, the second rider turned and nodded at him, in agreement. He knew that Henry would be pleased to know they were following his bidding and the reward would be worth it. He pressed his legs against his stallion's sides and the horse gave a quick step forward and this satisfied him. He knew that his guide trusted him and with his leading hand, he was able to follow the other in front and soon, both of them were trailing the other youth, but each knew that if they let out a sound, they would get caught and they couldn't afford to be caught by the police.
They continued to trail him without letting their presence known before he reached his destination: St. Mary's Catholic Church.