Chapter 24

Hi everyone! School is over for this academic year! Woohoo! I made it through this tumultuous year of delivering face-to-face and online lessons, sometimes simultaneously.

So… that means… I have more time to write. Or read. Or both. Plus many more things I want to do now that school is finished.

Anyway, back to this story. Allow me to thank you all for your time and consideration. I cannot express how happy I am when I get a follow, a favourite or a review (not a rude one, though). Thank you all so very much and especially to the reviewers:

pemsnowy, Jansfamily, Guest, Eleoopy, loritahubbard, darcy84, Lisa, ilymarmer, liysyl, Shelby66, PDS1, ChrisM0519, crispill, Levenez, netherfield2000, Colleen S, srhittson, RHALiz, Deanna27, roses0002, lpinney

It means so much to me that you like this story despite my limitations. I am glad to know that I can somehow provide you some entertainment.

Colleen S: Thank you for your confidence. I have never thought of publishing. I know I am not that skilled at writing and I have no knowledge how publishing works (cue: more critics). I googled how to publish fanfiction and the first thing I read was that it was illegal haha. So I stopped researching before I read anything worse. ;-)

Jansfamily4: Your reviews are so funny. I am happy to know that you are enjoying this story and that it is different to others on FF.

So about this chapter… some of the ideas here were only conceived recently. Is this how writing is? Plans change so many times???

Stay safe, everyone!

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As soon as Mr Darcy noticed his cousin approaching, he stood up and waited for Miss Elizabeth to compose herself. He then quickly offered his arm to her before his cousin stole the opportunity away from him.

"Shall we head back inside?" the colonel asked.

"Yes, let us seek an audience with Mr Bennet so we can deal with Wickham at the soonest possible time. Miss Elizabeth is aware of what it is all about."

"Is he a dangerous man?" Elizabeth nervously asked.

"He could be. But worry not, Miss Elizabeth, I am here to be of service," the colonel gallantly stated, which earned a jealous glare from his cousin.

"And I am also here to ensure that you… your family is protected," added Mr Darcy.

"I am very grateful to you, both of you, for your assistance. Meryton will be safer without that man. But… will you be careful? Please?" Elizabeth turned her pleading eyes to Darcy.

"Yes," he almost whispered. It was the first time that he saw genuine concern directed at him from her expressive eyes and he was very much affected.

The colonel cleared his throat and that broke the spell.

They then proceeded to walk back to the house and the men immediately asked to speak to Mr Bennet in his study.

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"Wickham accumulated all these debts?" Mr Bennet asked in an astonished tone.

"Yes. It seems to be a particular talent of his to know how to spend so much money in such a short space of time," replied Mr Darcy.

"And that does not include the three thousand pounds that Darcy gave him in exchange for this living at Kympton. He squandered that amount easily and came back to ask for more," the colonel added.

"And these testimonials about the young women and girls he had ruined… and the babes he fathered but neglected… this is a very grave matter," Mr Bennet lamented.

"It is indeed, Mr Bennet. That is why we need to act as soon as may be to stop him from causing more damage to unsuspecting people," continued the colonel.

"To think that he is a favourite among the townspeople here in Meryton. I believe he has charmed even the ladies in my household."

"I have made Miss Elizabeth aware of Wickham's character and that we are determined to make him accountable for his actions," Darcy assured him.

"Very good. We need to report this right away. Will you accompany me to speak to Colonel Forster now?"

"Of course, Mr Bennet."

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Mr Bennet, Mr Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam left Longbourn directly while Mr Bingley stayed so there was a dependable man in the house. Little did they know that Lydia and Kitty had gone out to Meryton and had barely returned just before they left the study. Consequently, they had no knowledge that Lydia had met with Mr Wickham.

Once the men made their appearance with Colonel Forster, they promptly detailed all of Mr Wickham's past misdeeds and presented all the supporting evidence to him.

"I thank you for bringing all this to my attention. Wickham appears to have gotten away with a lot these past years. But his time of reckoning has finally caught up with him and he will not get away with this lightly."

"Our family had been extremely generous to him for so long but we can no longer abide by his poor choices and innumerable transgressions."

Colonel Forster ordered for Mr Wickham to be summoned and they all waited for him to be shown in. After some time, an officer rushed in to declare,

"Colonel, he is gone!"

"What do you mean, gone?"

"He is nowhere to be found. After asking around, I learnt that he was last seen leaving the camp in haste."

"When was he last seen?"

"Not twenty minutes ago, sir."

"And no one knows where he could have gone?"

"No, sir. A couple of officers have also reported some of their money missing."

"He must have fled. But he cannot have gone far. He must still be in the vicinity of Meryton, unless he had found some form of transport."

"Colonel Forster, it would be best to alert the townspeople about his history and that they are to report any sightings of Wickham urgently," Colonel Fitzwilliam stated firmly.

"I agree. We need to warn as many people as possible and ask them to keep an eye out for him."

The men then spent some time going around the shops and houses to inform them about Wickham's character. It was no surprise to learn that Wickham had also amassed debts from multiple shopkeepers. After a couple of hours, Colonel Forster declared that they could leave the rest of the dissemination work to his squad and thanked them for their assistance. Colonel Fitzwilliam asked to be notified of any development with regards to Wickham.

The three men then made their way back to Longbourn to arrive in time for dinner. They decided that Mr Bennet would make the announcement to his family about what was happening with Wickham during the course of their dinner.

Mrs Bennet had tactically seated Mr Darcy next to Elizabeth, much to his delight. As the Bennets had three guests for dinner, the chairs were naturally positioned closer together which Mr Darcy certainly had no objections to. He was a rather tall man and his knees would occasionally brush Miss Elizabeth's accidentally. As he also had large hands, his fingers also unintentionally touched hers a few times when they were passing platters or condiments. Each time they had physical contact, no matter how insignificant it may be, he felt his heart pound faster and he wondered if Miss Elizabeth also experienced the same. Whenever he observed her handsome face for a reaction, he could not discern anything other than a faint blush on her cheeks. However, he was unsure whether the blush was her body's response to his presence or merely due to the seemingly increasing heat in the room.

Elizabeth was wary that she was seated quite close to Mr Darcy. She tried her best not to get into any physical contact with him but she did not have much success. Mr Darcy appeared much the same to her except that when he fixed his intense stare at her, she no longer felt uncomfortable. She seemed to have discovered some tenderness in the way he looked at her. Due to their proximity, each of them were also affected by the other's scent, one of musk and sandalwood and the other of sweet honeysuckle. They only just started to engage in polite conversation when Mr Bennet called for everyone's attention.

"I would have you all know that Mr Wickham is currently missing. His absence is unaccounted for and it is now known throughout Meryton that he is a dishonourable man."

All the ladies in the household turned to look at him in amazement. Elizabeth and Jane knew of Wickham's real character but they were still taken by surprise with the news of his disappearance.

"Mr Wickham? Are you certain?" Mrs Bennet questioned.

"Yes, we are certain. Mr Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam here have known the man for many years and know of his true nature. They can vouch for his history of misconduct and have presented more than enough evidence of this."

"Is this correct, sirs?"

"I am afraid the report is correct, Mrs Bennet. Mr Wickham is indeed a man who is not to be trusted. He commits a great deal of wrongdoings wherever he goes," answered the colonel.

"What sort of wrongdoings? They could simply be misunderstandings," continued Mrs Bennet, as she could not believe that Mr Wickham was anything but a good man.

"He had accumulated debts amounting to a few thousand pounds from numerous shops from different counties. My cousin Darcy had been overly generous and forgiving of him all these years and had been buying up all his debts."

"Good Lord! I never would have expected this of him! He appears to be such a charming and respectable officer."

"There is more, Mrs Bennet. But perhaps with your younger daughters in attendance, we ought not to discuss details of such sensitive matters," the colonel hinted.

Mrs Bennet and the younger ladies all went wide-eyed and gasped in unison. The youngest, Lydia, was most disturbed by what she was hearing. She was very confused by all these revelations but would not dare ask questions as Mr Wickham asked her to keep their plan to elope a secret.

"Do you mean… surely you do not mean… has he…" Mrs Bennet could not find the right words to ask her question.

"Yes, Mrs Bennet. I imagine you know of what those other wrongdoings are."

Mrs Bennet paled and was horrified that her daughters had been exposed to such a scoundrel. She quickly turned to them and declared,

"All of you, you are not to have anything to do with that man! Do you hear me? Oh, to think that we see him so often in Meryton and converse so freely with him. Why, Lydia, you had spoken to him just yesterday when we went shopping."

"Oh, mama! Lydia also spoke to him today when we took a walk to Meryton!" Kitty revealed.

"Did you? Oh my! Lydia, promise to never again be so trusting of that man! He could ruin you! And that could ruin all of you! Oh, my poor daughters!"

"Mama, I did not tell him anything! I didn't! I swear!"

These statements caught the attention of Mr Darcy, the colonel and Elizabeth.

What does she mean – she did not tell him anything? Did she say something to Wickham that caused him to flee?

"What did you talk about, Miss Lydia?" the colonel attempted to sound casual.

"Oh… oh… nothing much. He merely asked how I was. And then he asked how Lizzy was."

Mr Darcy's breath caught at hearing this.

"And what was your reply to him?" continued the colonel.

"Oh… ahhh… I said I was well. Because I am. Well, that is. And that Lizzy is much recovered."

"And was there anything else you spoke about?"

"No. Not that I remember."

"I see," the colonel answered calmly but he felt that Miss Lydia was withholding some information.

"As your mother has ordered, none of you will have any dealings with that man ever again. This is a very serious matter and I would have none of you taken advantage of by such a cad," Mr Bennet confirmed in a solemn tone. He had been an indolent parent for a long time, so hearing him speak in this manner had a profound effect on the Bennet ladies.

As they were getting ready to leave the dinner table, an unexpected guest was announced.

"Colonel Forster! Have you some news for us?"

"I apologise for intruding upon your dinner and at such a late hour. But as you are aware, we are dealing with a very important issue and I thought it would be best that you know sooner rather than later," Wickham's superior looked around to gauge if he can discuss more details here.

"Know what precisely, colonel? Everyone present here are aware of Wickham's character now," Mr Bennet continued.

"Very well, I shall tell you. We received information that Wickham has plans to elope with a young lady. Before dawn breaks."

"How did you know?" Lydia demanded, not knowing how anyone would discover their secret plan.

"The father of the young lady disclosed it to me. The young lady confessed to her father after hearing the reports about Wickham."

"No… that cannot be true," Lydia said weakly, her eyes welling up with tears.

"Mr Bennet, if we may, can we discuss this further in your study? We need to plan our next actions very carefully," Colonel Fitzwilliam asked.

"Yes, of course. Please follow me."

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Thoughts? Ideas? Speculations? More rotten apples?

Thank you for reading! ;-)