Chapter 40
Darcy entered the library at Matlock House with Col. Fitzwilliam before breakfast the next day. He had arrived home to late to call on Elizabeth from Hertfordshire last night and was eager to see her. Col. Fitzwilliam was eager to tease his cousin about his eagerness to see Elizabeth. Littleton had told Col. Fitzwilliam about how not only had Elizabeth's friends Priscilla and Lady Rebecca called yesterday, Lord Westcott as well as a few other bachelors had called on Elizabeth while he sat in the parlor with the ladies. Col. Fitzwilliam wanted to tease both Darcy and Elizabeth about the number of gentlemen calling on her. He enjoyed tweeking his serious cousin and Elizabeth always had a witty response to his baiting.
When Elizabeth entered the library a beaming smile broke out across her features when she saw Darcy. He greeted her with equal joy, answering her smile with his own. Col. Fitzwilliam smiled at the two. He was glad that his cousin, who was also his best friend, had found happiness. That it was with their own cousin who had been restored to them, made it even better.
"I assume based on the fact that you are smiling not scowling, that my adoptive father granted his blessing?" Elizabeth asked merrily.
"He did. And he has accepted my invitation, though he refuses to stay in London for very long. He told me the Bennets would arrive the day before the ball and return to Longbourn a day or two after it," Darcy told her.
"Well hearts shall break when the announcement is made. Just how many eligible bachelor came to sit in my mother's parlor yesterday alone. Hmmmm, Lissy. I hear one even attempted to compose an ode to your eyes," Col. Fitzwilliam said with a grin.
"Do not remind me," Elizabeth said with a groan. "It was not so much an original composition as a mangling of Shakespeare's work. To attempt to quote the bard, misquote him and claim it as your own is bad enough. But to do so like Mr. Hector did was ridiculous."
"You mean you did not appreciate the doctor in your eyes or his view of your promiscuous fire? Littleton seemed to find it rather hilarious in the retelling. He made sure to quote your erstwhile suitor to me, 'From woman's eyes, this doctor in them I derive, they sparkle still the right promiscuous fire. They are art and nourish me.' I got that right, did I not?" Col. Fitzwilliam said grinning wickedly.
"But love, first learned in a lady's eyes, lives not alone immured in the brain, but with the motion of all the elements, courses as swift as thought in power, and gives to every power a double power, above their functions and offices. It adds a precious seeing to the eye: A lover's eyes will glaze an eagle blind. From women's eyes this doctrine I derive: They sparkle still the right Promethean fire; They are the books, the arts, the academes, That show, contain and nourish all the world," Darcy qouted. "An apt sentiment, for in loving you my life has been enriched and I would be a fool not to love you. I have often thought of Shakespeare's words in relation to your eyes, but Mr. Hector I suspect did not understand them what-so-ever in his case, other then that you do have uncommonly fine eyes. I believe we may safely declare him to be a fool."
"I think fool would be an apt descriptor for Mr. Hector. He had decidedly no understanding of the context of the work he borrowed from for expressing himself," Elizabeth said with a huff. "And mistakenly assumed that I would not recognize it."
"Or that he should not tell a young lady her eyes were promiscuous, " Col. Fitzwilliam said with a snort. "I do wish I could have seen your face when he delivered that particular line, Lissy."
"I believe I was to horrified by his attempt at poetry to be offened. Nor do I believe he had the wit to comprehend what he had said. Mr. Smelt certainly did and bundled Mr. Hector off with him quickly. Wallace appeared to be torn between laughter and calling him out for calling my eyes promiscuous."
"Well William, I recommend as Lissy's guardian, you speak up and forbid her from dancing with that particular fool in the future," Col. Fitzwilliam teased. "I am sure when tales of his claiming her eyes to be promiscuous appear in tbe ton drawing rooms, it would be considered a reasonable stricture."
"And I suggest William does not make such a misguided attempt to exert himself as my guardian. I believe I am perfectly capable of dealing with a fool. After all, dear cousin, did I not deal with you yesterday?" Elizabeth said archly.
"A hit, my lady, a hit!" decried Col. Fitzwilliam.
"I am not as foolish as the good colonel here and wouldn't dream of believing I may in anyway have a say in selecting your dance partners," Darcy said his eyes twinkling.
"No you employ your scowl to keep any truly objectional ones away," Elizabeth teased him.
"I did say say, which implies verbal. I never said anything about other more effective means of communicating between males," Darcy said unrepentantedly.
"Good you are here. Since Darcy is inclined to keep you informed as details develop, you had best stay to hear this as well, Lissy," Matlock said as he strode into the library. "As your mother mentioned yesterday, Richard, the de Boughs are expecting to sign settlement papers with a Sir Mortimer. Apparently they were anxious enough to ensure the match, that they have announced it in the papers. Take a look at this," Matlock said as he handed the paper over.
Col. Fitzwilliam read outloud the announcement his father indicated. "Sir Mortimer of Wilder Wood, Shropshire is honored to announce his engagement to Miss Anne De Bough, daughter of Sir Lewis de Bough and Lady Catherine de Bough of Rosing Park, Kent." Frowning Col. Fitzwilliam said, "Lawton is from Shropshire."
"More then that, I yesterday morning paid a visit to Darcy's investigator for information on Sir Mortimer. His initial report he sent to me this morning reveals what I suspected, a lifetime title confered for a small manner. He was part of a bit of design ingenuity and was recognized for his contribution with a kinghthood. A typical manner for such a thing, much like Sir Lewis's and Sir William Lucus's circumstances for receiving theirs. Sir Mortimer is someone on the fringes of the ton, not quite polite society but not entirely shunned either. It was the next bit of information that came as a surprise to me. He is a close buisness associate of Mr. James Lawton," Matlock said grimly.
"De Bough mentioned that Anne's suitor was interested in her apparent connections," Darcy said frowning.
"Is it even possible that Mr. Lawton Sr. is behind the betrothal and thinks we have not learned about Aunt Kitty-Cat and that man's marriage," Elizabeth asked in disbelief.
"With Anne? I would put nothing past her," Col. Fitzwilliam said grimly. "She is either an acomplished liar or deludes herself so throughly, she believes her own lies. She is manipulative enough to think she could manage Lawton Sr. now. After all that is exractly what her father did before and she managed her father."
"What though can possibly be her scheme?" Darcy said frustrated.
"You. Well, more so Pemberley and the Darcy holdings," Elizabeth said to Darcy. "Evil Annie once threatened me to stay out of her way, that she would be marrying William. She told me that if she had to she would see me taken care of to ensure the marriage happened. That a snively little girl with torn dresses and a toy sword was no match for her. It was at Pemberley. The day before she had been scaring me, threatening to never let me see baby GiGi when she was the Mistress of Pemberley and that she would toss me out in the snow to freeze if I tried to visit. And then Wills came and rescued me. He took me away with him. She was livid," Elizabeth explained to the others.
"The end of winter!" Col. Fitzwilliam who had been frowning thoughtfully proclaimed. "The last visit Lissy made with the family to Pemberley was at the end of the season , hence the freezing threat by Anne, and Lawton mentioned Sir Lewis approached his father about his scheme at the end of winter. I hypothesis that Sir Lewis tried to engage the services of Lawton to do away with the Glenwood Fitzwilliams at the behest of his daughter, because she was smart enough to know as long as Lissy was around, she would never get William and Pemberley."
When Matlock and Darcy both gasped in disbelief and argued that Anne while cruel, was too sickly. Col Fitzwilliam said, "Don't mistake Anne's supposed frailness and sickness for her being unable to plot, let alone carry out, such a scheme. Those are merely smoke screens for a lazy, spoiled child. Think about it, did you ever see Sir Lewis deny Anne anything she wanted? Even if it was entirely unreasonable? My mind has been ruminating over what Lawton said about anyone engaged in an unscrupulous enough activity in the higher circles for Lawton Sr. to have bkackmail against sufficient for his needs, would have simply been the type to kill him. So why did Sir Lewis not do so? We know he was apparently capable of such, or of at least arranging another's death. The answer is simple. Sir Lewis was a schemer but it is daughter that is truly the evil mastermind behind his later scheme."
"I certainly cannot argue with that statement. Lissy did not start calling her Evil Annie as a small child becuase she was sunshine and roses. She had no idea Richard and I had taught Lissy how to swim when she scared her so bad she fell into the lake," Littleton said joining the conversation as he entered the library.
"Fell?" Elizabeth said with a snort. "I jumped in rather then stay near her a second longer from the little bit I remember. "
"Anne potentially had a very definate reason to want her father to see Lissy removed," Darcy said paling. "After the incident Elizabeth referred to where I rescued her from Anne, I later sought out Uncle Marcus to request he agree to betroth Lissy to me. He did not believe the timming was right, but assured me of his blessing when it was. After leaving him, I saw Anne. I thought nothing of it at the time, other then to go the opposite direction. But she could have easily overheard our conversation. It could have been my fault that Uncle Marcus and Aunt Lily died. That you disappeared. "
"Absolutely not, Fitzwilliam Darcy. Do not you dare blame yourself for what happened," Elizabeth cried out vehemently grasping his hand in her own and tugging on it. "I love you and I will not allow you to blame yourself. Sir Lewis is to blame. Mr. Lawton Sr. is to blame, and perhaps Anne is to blame. But you most certainly are not."
"She is right, William," Matlock said decisively. "You are not to blame. Sir Lewis over indulged his daughter, catering to her whims. Any action he or her decided on is their own responsibility, not yours. If Anne overheard you and Marcus and manipulated her father, you are not responsible. "
"From Aunt Catherine we know that Anne has been very manipulative with Rosings, which is why Aunt has been so overbearing and involved in her tennat's lives. She has literally been trying to manage their lives to save them from Anne's manuverings," Littleton said. "They way you are speaking it appears you are now considering Anne's involvement? "
"Yes. I hypothesized that Anne manipulated Sir Lewis into approaching Lawton Sr. with the original scheme to get rid off Uncle Marcus, Aunt Lilly and Lissy," Col. Fitzwilliam said grimly. "It had been running through my mind what Lawton had said."
"I suggest son, you explain your theory to your brother later. I suspect his mother sent him to bring us to the breakfast parlor. It would not do to speculate in front of Georgiana," Matlock said, interrupting Col. Fitzwilliam.
The other agreed and left the library for the breakfast parlor. Darcy, Elizabeth's hand in his, followed his uncle and cousins. Elizabeth gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. He glanced down at her and his heart felt lighter. The look in her eyes assured him she in no way blamed him for what had happened. Her expressive eyes were full of affection.
Darcy was inclined to see his own fault in events, especially if Col. Fitzwilliam's theory was right and Elizabeth was right that it was the Darcy holdings through marriage to him, Anne had wanted. As long as Elizabeth did not blame him though, Darcy felt he would learn how to deal with his own guilt. If Elizabeth had looked on him with blame and wanted no more to do with him it would have been no more then he deserved, he thought to himself, but he was thankful she did not.