A/N: As always, thank you for reading and especially those for commenting. I truly enjoy reading every one of them.
We are now at the midpoint of the story, and things are going to move noticeably faster. Hold on to your bonnets!
~ . ~
The next morning, Wickham was late getting to Rockingham House after a thrilling night at the gaming table. He had won more than two hundred pounds playing his favorite game. This windfall would greatly aid his scheme to win Miss de Bourgh's hand. Equally importantly, he had won in a coin toss the use of Viscount Westerham's phaeton for one day. This phaeton was a sight to see – a high-flyer built by the coachbuilder favored by the Prince Regent himself. If Miss de Bourgh was still as fond of driving her phaeton as before, she would not be able to resist riding in this one.
In his red coat sitting high on this magnificent vehicle drawn by a pair of smart, well-matched bays, he felt literally on top of the world. The jingling of the coins in his pocket all the way to Grosvenor Square gave him further confidence; and he decided to knock on the Earl's door and present himself as a gentleman caller for Miss de Bourgh.
His plan was to invite Miss de Bourgh to drive with him in the park and charm her into submission. She seemed such a lonely and forlorn wisp of a woman. She would surely welcome the attentions from one such as he – having the best part of beauty, a fine countenance, a good figure, and very pleasing address. She on the other hand, was completely on the shelf as she was about his own age, not to mention that her thin, angular features, though not ugly, were far from fashionable. It was very unlikely that Darcy would want her for his wife, or he would have done it long ago. If things did not work out as planned, he would just ferry her to Mrs. Younge's and force her hand. One thing was certain, the matter had to be settled this day, or else Darcy would spoil things for him again.
As it turned out, he did not need to enter the fearsome Earl's residence. Miss de Bourgh was alighting from the Rosings carriage, this time all by herself except for the coachman whom he recognized to be the same retainer who taught Miss de Bourgh to drive all those years ago.
When the phaeton approached the stopped carriage, Miss de Bourgh turned to look at the vehicle. Wickham felt that his gaining Miss de Bourgh's hand in marriage had to be foreordained judging from how events seemed to contrive to favor his suit. He lifted his hat in greeting. As soon as the horses stopped walking, he hopped off smartly from the high seat, walked jauntily to Miss de Bourgh and made a deep bow.
"How do you do, Miss de Bourgh? George Wickham, at your service. It has been quite a long time since we saw each other. I believe it must have been five years ago when we both visited Pemberley to attend the funeral of my beloved godfather, Mr. Darcy the elder," Wickham greeted prettily.
Anne looked at the soldier standing in front of her and tried to remember the George Wickham with whom she had only a very slight acquaintance, as her mother did not allow her to associate with the children of the servants. Finally, she remembered and said, "Ah, Mr. Wickham, I remember you from the time you were at Rosings watching me drive my phaeton." She then ignored Wickham and turned to talk to her coachman, "John, do you think I can drive this phaeton? It is rather dashing! It is so tall!"
John answered with obvious pride in his voice, "Of course, ma'am. You can drive any phaeton if you wish it. However, this high-flyer is only very lightly sprung, and the seat is too high up. It is not suitable for a lady to drive."
Wickham immediately interjected for fear that John would succeed in dissuading Miss de Bourgh from driving with him. "Miss de Bourgh, would you like to try your hand at driving this splendid phaeton? We could go for a ride in the park, and you can judge for yourself whether you would like to order one just like this for Rosings."
Anne was very tempted, and the idea of ordering a new phaeton as her first major purchase as the mistress of Rosings was enticing. She did love driving her phaeton, but she had been able to do it only if her mother allowed her. Now she could drive anytime she wanted – what total freedom! Compared to this superbly fine phaeton, hers was like a plaything.
She turned to John and said, "John, I do wish to drive. Accompany me in the footman's seat in case I need help. Oh, first let Farnum know to expect Miss Bennet shortly, and I shall not keep her waiting too long."
John was dubious about leaving his mistress with a stranger but did not dare gainsay her further after she had ignored his warning about the phaeton being unsafe. He eyed the soldier with distrust one last time before entering the Earl's house. For this soldier to come here with a novelty phaeton after so many years of not seeing Miss de Bourgh seemed too suspiciously convenient.
John was in the house for only a few minutes. By the time he came back outside, the phaeton was gone! He looked around for the vehicle but could see no trace of it. He hopped on the Rosings carriage which was still standing at the door and drove to the park, as the phaeton could not have been more than a street length ahead of him.
John drove around the park aimlessly as he was unfamiliar with the layout. Fortunately, he saw Miss Bennet playing with her family by the pond. Elizabeth also saw the Rosings carriage and came up to John, thinking Anne had sent the carriage for her.
When she saw John's anxious countenance, she became alarmed and asked, "John, what is the matter? You look troubled. I am ready to go to your mistress now."
John poured out his worries with as stoic a manner as he could manage. Elizabeth was alarmed by John's recitation. She asked, "Why did Miss de Bourgh agree to go driving with a redcoat? Does she know him?"
John answered, "Yes, it was Mr. Wickham. He came to Rosings many years ago with his father and mother…."
Elizabeth did not need to hear anymore. She said, "John, let me tell my sister I am leaving with you, and then you will drive me to Darcy House to see Mr. Darcy."
The Darcy siblings were enjoying a repast in the dining room when Elizabeth arrived. The butler, Mr. Ford, came into the dining room to whisper in his master's ear that Miss Bennet had an emergency to discuss with him and would be waiting for him in the drawing room. Mr. Ford of course would not just do the bidding of any young lady who demanded to see the master alone and did not want Miss Darcy's presence, but he had seen how his master stole glances at this particular lady the evening before and knew by his professional instinct that his master would want him to abide by the lady's request.
When Mr. Darcy came into the drawing room, he saw Elizabeth pacing and wringing her hands. Her countenance was pale, and her brows were knitted. He could not help himself, but he went up to her in two quick steps while stretching out his hands as if to grab hers but checked himself just in time – imposing intimacy where it was not welcome could be most embarrassing.
"Good afternoon, Miss Bennet," Mr. Darcy greeted after composing himself. "You look perturbed. Is anything the matter? Your family? My cousin?"
"Mr. Darcy, it is Anne! She was spirited away by Mr. Wickham, most likely not of her own free will! We must go find her. There is not an instant to lose!" Elizabeth spoke impetuously.
Mr. Darcy was so mesmerized by those enchanting eyes brightened by excitement that he almost forgot to answer. However, the name Wickham never failed to rouse him into action. He invited Elizabeth to sit down and explain to him the circumstances. Elizabeth was reluctant to lose any time but acquiesced because, although she was so agitated, she understood that Mr. Darcy needed to know the details.
She spoke hurriedly, "About an hour ago, Mr. Wickham showed up at the Earl's house in a dashing phaeton to lure Anne away. Instead of waiting for John, Rosings' stablemaster, to accompany her on the drive, Mr. Wickham drove away with Anne on board purportedly to the park, but we could not find them there. You know very well that where there is an heiress, there is a scheming Mr. Wickham playing his mischief. And I was going to tell you that Anne must be warned to stop giving away her fortune so freely! It may already be too late. Mr. Wickham might already have swindled the whole Rosings fortune out of her. Mr. Darcy, we must make haste if we are to prevent any irreparable damage to Anne!"
Mr. Darcy rose, paced for a moment, and said, "Miss Bennet, thank you for so untiringly looking out for my cousin. I have a fair idea of where to find Wickham when he is in town. I have been watching his oft co-conspirator, Mrs. Younge, ever since… last summer. Wickham always stays at her boarding house whenever he is in London. Why don't you go and join my sister for luncheon while I send a note to the Bow Street Runners in my employ to meet me and my men at Mrs. Younge's."
"Mr. Darcy, you must allow me to accompany you to go rescue Anne!" Elizabeth implored.
"Miss Bennet… there could be danger involved in this confrontation. It is not advisable for a lady to be present," Mr. Darcy explained.
"No, Mr. Darcy. Anne will be there, most likely. She will need me to comfort her through this ordeal."
Mr. Darcy thought for a moment and said, "I cannot refute your rationale. Let me send the note now, and we will go directly. Do I have your promise that you will stay in the carriage until Miss de Bourgh needs your assistance?"
"Thank you, Mr. Darcy. I promise to be careful and not get in your way," assured Elizabeth while Mr. Darcy wrote his note.
After the note had been dispatched, Mr. Darcy asked for the carriage to be readied. Elizabeth interjected, "Mr. Darcy, John is outside with the carriage. Why not just take the Rosings carriage? That way we do not have to wait. I am anxious to go to Anne as soon as possible."
Darcy could not help admiring Elizabeth's purposeful enthusiasm, and her steady and faithful friendship for his cousin. It reminded him of her walking three miles in the mud to tend to her indisposed sister at Netherfield. That was the first time that he started feeling drawn to this caring and artless young woman.
He nodded and asked Elizabeth to excuse him for a minute when he went into his study to fetch something. When he came back, she saw him straighten his jacket and she could just see a corner of a pistol before it was completely concealed. She had seen her uncle Gardiner placing a pistol on his person just like that when he needed to go out after dark. London was not very safe at night, but this was broad daylight.
"Are you carrying a pistol, Mr. Darcy?" Elizabeth asked with some curiosity.
"Yes, Miss Bennet. Since we shall be riding in Rosings' carriage, I think it is prudent to carry a weapon on my person. I do not know whether there are any firearms in that carriage. Where we are going is not the best part of the city. I just want to be prepared for the worst."
"Do you think Mr. Wickham dangerous? I have never imagined him to be violent even after I have found out his villainous deeds."
"In Ramsgate, I warned Wickham not to get close to my family or bear the consequence. It is difficult to predict how he would react when confronted. Let us hope that nothing untoward has happened to my cousin, and Wickham really meant to drive her around town to show off his phaeton."
A footman carrying a small basket of food and a maid followed Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth to the carriage standing at the door. Elizabeth saw that John was sitting on the box and was enjoying some lunch as well. Another footman came up and told his master that the Darcy coach would be following him in a few more minutes with two grooms and two footmen. She could not help thanking Mr. Darcy silently for taking care of things so thoroughly.
Mr. Darcy handed Elizabeth and the maid into the carriage and went to sit with John on the box. And then they were off.
Elizabeth felt a small quiver of her heart when Mr. Darcy did not sit in the carriage with her. She then reasoned that it was for the best as the awkwardness would have been unbearable within such a small, confined space. Her mind was occupied with finding Anne as soon as possible in any event. She knew it was absurd to think so, but she could not help blaming herself for not warning Anne about Wickham – she who knew what a blackguard that man was should have done something!
Elizabeth took a small bread roll from the basket to nibble while looking out of the window absentmindedly. Just then a splashy phaeton was coming toward them on the other side of Piccadilly, and high up on the seat was none other than the heiress she was going to rescue. She could hardly believe her own eyes, but it was indeed Anne who was driving the bays, and beside her was Mr. Wickham! Elizabeth felt like a fool. Anne was never in any danger – it was all in her imagination! Or could it be that she and Mr. Darcy were already too late – Anne had fallen into Wickham's trap?