Lizzy quickly made her way to the music room. To her surprise, only Jane and Mary were there.

"Where is Kitty?" she asked as they looked up at her entrance.

"Tony returned," Jane explained quietly. "Kitty saw him arriving through the window. Not long after, one of the militia officers rode up, probably Lieutenant Denny, although he was far enough away we could not tell for sure. Kitty slipped out to try and find out what they are planning. She thought she would have a better chance to get within hearing distance and Tony is less likely to hurt her than he is to hurt me."

"Oh, I hope she will be safe. Papa surprised me. He already had the paperwork prepared to allow Uncle Gardiner to become our guardians. He included a provision for Kitty if she wishes to come with us. Mr. Hill is ordering the wagon prepared for us right now, Jane. We can leave as soon as our trunks are packed and he is sending a maid and groom in addition to the driver to keep us safe all the way to London. I do not like leaving you here alone, though, Mary."

"I will be fine. Once you leave, I will go up to my room and stay there until it is time for the wedding tomorrow. I will have Mrs. Hill assign one of the maids to stay with me until I leave."

"Be careful even as you travel to the church," Lizzy suggested. "It is hard to say what Tony's friends might do, even if he would not..."

She broke off as Kitty burst into the room. Almost before she was inside she was talking excitedly.

"Lizzy, you told me when we walked to the village that sisters help each other even if they are not very close. Does that hold true even if we do not really like them?"

"Of course, Kitty. Is Lydia in danger?"

"No, well, not right now anyway. Would you say that sisters by marriage are included in that as well? I mean, after tomorrow, Miss Bingley will be Mary's sister. Even if we do not really like her, we should help her, right?"

"You are frightening me, Kitty, but yes, even if we do not like her and she is not Mary's sister yet, we should help her if we can." Lizzy was trying to remain calm, but Kitty was so agitated it was hard not to pick up her mood.

"Tony and Lieutenant Denny met out in the folly near the corner garden, just where I thought they would be. When Lydia and I were little we used to sneak out and spy on him when he and his friends would go out there to drink and plan their mischief. I was able to get up close enough to hear them talking. The Lieutenant has been trying to find a way to force a marriage with Miss Bingley because she has a good dowry. He learned of a way, but is not willing to brave the consequences, so he is giving the information to Tony in return for some money if Tony succeeds. Tony plans to sneak into Netherfield and forcibly compromise Miss Bingley so she has to marry him or Mr. Bingley has to pay the amount of her dowry to keep him quiet. Lieutenant Denny has been over spying on the estate and confirmed that Colonel Fitzwilliam was seen riding away from Netherfield and Mr. Darcy has been gone for hours, so Tony is going to try his plan right now."

Mary quickly spoke up, already taking on the strength needed of the mistress of Netherfield. "This is my situation to handle. Jane, Lizzy and Kitty, it is time for you to quickly go and pack so you can be out of here before Tony gets back. I will write a note to Mr. Bingley and send one of the grooms over immediately so he can stop Tony's plan. Go."

"Where are we going?" Kitty asked in confusion.

Jane responded. "Papa is sending us to London under the guardianship of Uncle Gardiner. You are included if you wish to be."

"Will Mr. Gardiner be willing to take me? I am not his niece."

"But you are our sister," Jane said firmly. "We do not intend to stay with the Gardiners long in any case. Lizzy and I will have our own small establishment and we would be pleased to have you with us."

"Yes," said Kitty breathlessly. "If you are sure you do not need me, Mary."

Mary was already writing a note using paper and pencil from a supply kept with the sheet music. She looked up. "I told them earlier and I tell you now, Kitty – I will be fine. Go pack! I want all of you somewhere safe as soon as may be. If Tony fails and gets away he will be in a murderous mood."

Jane, Lizzy and Kitty each gave Mary a very gentle hug. Mary smiled when some of Lizzy's bits of branch fell on her.

"You can take that with you, Lizzy," she said, holding up a piece of bark. "I will have the gown to remember you by."

"I forgot about the forest in my hair," Lizzy said. "Wear the gown knowing we love you."

"Take care of yourself, Mary, and be happy. We will write to you when we are settled," Jane said.

"I will write back, now go!"

Lizzy picked up her box from the table where it had lain undisturbed while she had spoken with her father. Tucking it back under her arm, she went with Jane and Kitty.

Near the top of the stairs they met up with Mr. Hill. "I just brought a trunk to Miss Kitty's room in case she needed it," he told them. "I know you already have your own, Miss Jane, Miss Lizzy. Ring the hall bell when you are ready for us to bring them down."

"Yes, Kitty will be going with us. Also, Mary is going to need a fast messenger to carry a very important note to Netherfield for Mr. Bingley," Lizzy said. "She should have it ready to go any moment now down in the music room."

"I will see to it at once," he said and slipped around them so he could move quickly down the stairs.

"Do not worry about packing neatly, Kitty," Lizzy said. "We can get wrinkles out of gowns later on. I do suggest putting the heaviest items at the bottom, of course. Jane and I will come help as soon as we are done. We have had a great deal of practice packing and will not take much time."

Kitty nodded and ran off to her room. Jane looked at her sister as she unlocked the door to their room.

"We need to get you cleaned up, Lizzy."

"We can just give my hair and clothes a quick brushing. That will be sufficient."

"But there are stains on your pelisse and I think even a tear at the back of it."

"It is not worth worrying about, Jane. We are about to make the trip to London in the back of a wagon. We will all be looking more than a bit disheveled when we arrive in Gracechurch street."

"Your throat is starting to bruise, Lizzy. Do you have any other injuries that need to be treated?"

Lizzy had unlocked her trunk while Jane was speaking. She set the metal box inside it, shifting the remaining sewing supplies in it to make more room.

"They are just more bruises. Come along, Jane. We need to pack and get out of here."

"I will check on you when we get to the Gardiner house," Jane insisted.

"As you wish," Lizzy said, going to the corner to retrieve the other metal box from its place under the floor boards.

The two of them quickly packed all the evidence of their life at Longbourn. The things most important to them were already in London, but they did keep the portion of their wardrobe that was acceptable to Mrs. Bennet at Longbourn so they could save the room in their trunk for their supplies. As Lizzy had recommended to Kitty, they did not worry about packing carefully. The shifts Jane had completed were already carefully folded and in her trunk.

"The latest shift I was hemming is still down in the mending basket," Jane suddenly said.

"Leave it. Mrs. Bennet or Lydia can keep it if they find it there. Or you can tell the maid who is escorting us about it and when she gets back she can retrieve it for herself. We do not want to chance either of us running into Tony alone and we need to help Kitty."

"I suppose you are correct. It is only one shift and it is no longer as important as it was to sell it. I should go say farewell to Papa."

"I will tell you about my interview with him on the trip. He asked that you not stop in. He said he was taking his dose and would not be awake anyway. I think he took a little extra just to be sure of it."

"Was it that bad?"

"Yes, it was. For both of us."

Lizzy started to pack away the box with her hairbrush and other personal items, but Jane stopped her. "We need to get those twigs out of your hair. It will bother me the whole trip if we do not."

Lizzy sat on the chair while Jane quickly undid the simple hairstyle her sister normally wore. She brushed out the slightly tangled hair, leaving a shower of bark, spruce needles and tiny twigs on the floor. Working quickly, she wound Lizzy's hair back up and pinned it in place.

'I know you will not change yet, but that is much better," Jane said, putting the hairbrush back in the box which she then handed to Lizzy.

"Thank you, Jane. I will admit it feels better. Now, I just have a few more small items and we can lock these up and go help Kitty."

"I am almost done as well."

Both women made a visual sweep of the room, checking under the bed and in the tiny closet they had shared. When they were satisfied they had everything they needed to take, they locked their trunks and helped each other carry them into the hall just outside the door. Lizzy closed the bedroom door and almost locked it by habit. Jane stopped her. Instead, the reopened it and each looped the ribbon holding their key over the inside doorknob. After that, they closed the door and headed over to Kitty's room.

They found Kitty nearly finished as well. Her trunk was tightly packed since she had more gowns, ribbons and furbelows than either of the older women. Jane shifted a few things in the trunk around while Lizzy helped their sister do her own sweep of the room. They quickly finished the task and Kitty's locked trunk soon joined the other two in the hall. Jane rang the hall bell as Mr. Hill had instructed.

The older man quickly appeared with three of the other serving men. "Miss Jane, you and your sisters should follow us down. Your stepbrother has left again, but we want to take no chances with your safety. The wagon is ready for you. We will take these two trunks and come back for the other one."

As they walked down the stairs behind the men with the trunks, it finally hit Lizzy that she was leaving Longbourn for the last time. There would be no returning or anything to return to. Her father would soon be gone and the house would belong to Mr. Collins. This was not her home, even in the minimal sense it had been for the last decade.

Jane appeared to be having the same thoughts. Kitty had more the look of someone heading out on a great adventure and probably was not thinking about anything else. Of course, the younger woman had never been out of Meryton before, so even taking a wagon to London was going to be an adventure to her.

The men had done their best to make the deep wagon comfortable. Straw had been spread thickly on the half of the bed nearest the driver's bench and blankets stacked atop that. Cushions were stacked up to give them something to lean against and a heavy canvas tarpaulin was stretched as a cover over that end of the wagon bed.

The two trunks were quickly loaded in the back half of the wagon bed. One of the grooms set a footstool in place and then helped the three sisters climb into the back along with Polly, the downstairs maid who would be traveling with them. Polly brought a basket full of food that Mrs. Fowler had packed for them and her own small overnight bag. The third trunk was put in place, effectively turning the front of the wagon into a little covered private room where the women could crouch together without being visible to prying eyes as they traveled through Meryton and beyond. The groom climbed up on the bench with the driver, and the trip began.

Lizzy quickly decided the presence of the maid would keep her from talking privately with Jane. Her sister seemed to understand as well. They knew there would be time for a discussion of the interview with their father later. After the day she had suffered through, Lizzy was very tired. Before long, she curled up against one of the cushions and closed her eyes. For a while she listened to Jane and Kitty quietly talk, but soon she fell asleep.

Once she dozed off, Lizzy slept until they stopped about halfway along to rest the pair of horses. The three sisters and the maid crawled out past the trunks and spent a few minutes walking around the inn yard before they returned to their places. They enjoyed the food and drink Mrs. Fowler had packed for them and passed the groom and driver their share as well. The stop was as brief as the driver felt would suffice and they were soon on the road again.

During the last half of the trip, Jane and Lizzy took turns answering Kitty's questions about the Gardiner family, what the sisters would do and where they planned to live. Jane and Lizzy knew their aunt and uncle would willingly open their hearts and their home to all three of them, but they also had a growing family of their own, so the older sisters were determined to set up a modest establishment in as safe a location as they could afford, while in all other things looking to their uncle as the head of their family. Edward Gardiner would guide them in matters financial while Madeline Gardiner would help them in matters social.

Even though the their existing fund coupled with the interest from the trust fund would relieve them of the necessity of work, Jane and Lizzy had both decided that they would continue to take on some commissions. They would be pickier about what work they chose and would probably do much less of it, but neither liked to be idle. In between their work and with the help of Aunt Madeline, they planned to expose Kitty to the skills and manners she would need as the wife of either a successful tradesman or minor gentleman. Those were the kind of men all three would be introduced to through Uncle Gardiner's contacts. The same skills would be useful even if Mary's new connections led them to men even higher on the social scale. Lizzy had more than a few moments of regret that she would probably not be considered good enough for Mr. Darcy to pursue because of her low family connections and Mrs. Bennet's poor behavior. They did not speak of it, but she wondered if Jane was feeling the same about Colonel Fitzwilliam.

The trip by wagon was slow, but not much slower than a trip by post would be. It had the added advantage of taking them right to the door of the Gardiner's house, a good thing when arriving after dark. As the driver pulled to a stop, the groom jumped out and ran up the steps to knock at the front door. Only a few minutes later, the men were helping the four women out of the back.

The sight of the familiar house on Gracechurch street cheered Lizzy, driving away some of the lingering weariness and fear from the day. As her aunt rushed down the steps to greet them the remaining fear dropped away, replaced by a strong sense of security and love. This was home.

"Jane...Lizzy...I am so glad to see you both!" Madeline Gardiner said as she reached the small group of women standing on the sidewalk. "When I heard nothing beyond the report that Lizzy had reached Longbourn safely, I began to worry. Do come inside where I can welcome you properly."

She stopped short, looking at the third trunk in the back of the wagon. She turned towards Kitty, who had stepped to the side with Polly and was trying to make herself look small. Lizzy could see her aunt running through several possibilities in her mind. Abruptly, Aunt Madeline turned to Jane.

"Has your father..." the question trailed off.

"He still lives, but Lizzy, Kitty and I needed to leave for other reasons."

"We should probably discuss matters inside," Lizzy said. She looked up at her uncle, who was just descending the steps behind his wife."That is, if we are welcome, dropping down on you like this."

"Of course, you are welcome!" Aunt Madeline declared. She caught first Jane and then Lizzy in fierce hug. Then she turned to Kitty and gave the frightened young woman a hug as well.

Following his wife's example, Uncle Gardiner hugged the older two as well before giving Kitty a welcoming smile. He then turned to the driver and groom to direct them on bringing in the trunks and taking the wagon and horses to the mews for the night.

"Welcome to our home, Kitty," Aunt Madeline said. "If I may call you that?"

"Of course, Mrs. Gardiner," Kitty replied. She looked like she thought she should curtsy but after the welcoming hug that seemed too formal.

"Call me Aunt Madeline, dear, just like your sisters do."

Kitty smiled with relief. "Thank you, Aunt Madeline," she said.

The older woman herded her nieces inside the house, followed by the maid. Uncle Gardiner completed giving his instructions before coming inside behind them.

Aunt Madeline acted more like a whirlwind than Lizzy had ever seen before. Of course, all her previous visits had been planned. Her aunt was intelligent and had already figured out that not all was well at Longbourn. This visit was likely to be very different from any previous ones.

She first addressed the familiar maid who came to take the young women's wraps. "Amy, once you have those hung up, give orders for a fire to be lit in Jane and Lizzy's room. We need to take the chill off it. Find a place for their maid to sleep tonight." She turned to Jane, "Will she be returning to Longbourn tomorrow?"

Jane nodded. There was no need to explain more yet.

Mrs. Gardiner turned back to Amy and continued, "There are also two male servants who will need a place to sleep. Kitty, do you mind sharing a room with the nursery maid tonight? We can make other provisions for you tomorrow."

"That will be fine, Aunt Gardiner," Kitty said with a nod. She appeared glad just to be welcomed into the house.

"See that the extra bed in the nursery maid's room is made up and that the correct trunk is delivered there. Oh, and girls, have you eaten yet this evening?"

"The cook sent a basket of food with us for the journey. We are fine," Jane said.

Aunt Madeline gestured to Amy that her orders were complete. Amy bobbed a curtsy to her mistress and nodded a welcome to Jane and Lizzy before rushing off to set the preparations for their stay in motion, taking Polly with her.

Shooing the young women before her, Aunt Madeline said, "Come to the sitting room. You can tell us what has brought the three of you here so late. Lizzy!" she exclaimed suddenly, "How did you get those bruises? And what has happened to your gown? Oh! To the sitting room at once!"

"If Bennet's inaction has allowed that young wastrel to harm you, he will not have to wait for the cancer to take him," Uncle Gardiner growled.

"This was done by a different wastrel, Uncle," Lizzy said. Somehow the horror of the experience had left her in this safe place, and she could even chuckle about it. "We will tell you all, but I would like to do it from a proper seat. That wagon was as comfortable as a wagon could be, but that is still nothing to a well-upholstered sofa."

The Gardiners exchanged worried glances, despite Lizzy's attempt at a joke, but they made no objection to her plan. A few minutes later they were all seated in the warm, cheerfully-lit sitting room.

Between them, Jane and Lizzy outlined the events at Longbourn from the time Lizzy had returned. Kitty sat silently while the older women spoke. Lizzy could see she was sometimes confused by hearing of events from Jane and Lizzy's perspective. While Kitty had made strides in seeing how Lydia's behavior was wrong, she had not thought very deeply about the way others around her were behaving. Some of the information was also entirely new to her. To her credit, she did not object or argue over their depiction of events.

When Lizzy described Mrs. Bennet's manner of compromising Mary and the fall she and Mr. Bingley both took, Aunt Madeline exclaimed indignantly, "That poor girl! Why is she not here with you as well?"

Uncle Gardiner smiled at his wife's response. "I imagine she is awaiting her wedding, if it has not already happened. Mr. Bingley is a friend of Mr. Darcy and, as we know, the Darcys of Pemberley are honorable men who will not see a respectable woman shamed if they can help it."

Aunt Madeline calmed herself at his words. Lizzy could tell there was a story behind her uncle's comment, but she decided to continue her own tale first. She would request an explanation later. "Yes, Mr. Darcy is an honorable man and so is Mr. Bingley. No sooner had Mr. Darcy helped him to his feet than Mr. Bingley silenced the jeers and rude insinuations of the crowd by loudly announcing that he wished to hear no disrespect towards his betrothed. He insisted Mary was not to blame for the 'accident' even though it was obvious he was fully aware Mrs. Bennet had tripped him. Since then his behavior has been everything kind and gentlemanly towards Mary."

Lizzy went on to describe Mr. Darcy's actions and orders to help them leave as quickly as possible and how Mr. Bingley had seen to Mary's comfort despite having been injured in the fall himself. She also told of Charlotte's secret wedding and how much of a relief it had been not to have Sir William present during the incident at the Parker home.

When she told of Mary's dowry and the hiding place in which it had been kept, the Gardiners were both surprised. Uncle Gardiner could hardly believe what she was saying.

"Wine? Her dowry was wine from a hidden wine cellar?"

"And expensive brandy, too," Lizzy said. "Papa said most of it had been there as long as he had been alive."

"That was an exceptional dowry. I wonder if Mr. Bingley will sell it or drink it?"

"Perhaps Mary will find out and tell us," Jane said with a chuckle.

Kitty suddenly said, "Does this mean Mary was not included in the trust funds? Or does she have that in addition?"

"What trust funds?" Mr. Gardiner asked. "Has your father actually done something for you all?"

"I was about to come to that," Lizzy said. "You might say that he has, although it is probably more true to say that Mr. Darcy came to the aid of us all and Papa simply went along with it." She explained the sale of the books and the condition Mr. Darcy had demanded as a part of the sale. "I do not think a trust was set up for Mary because she had already received a fine dowry. At least that was the impression I had from Papa," she finished.

Again she received hints of another, probably older, story about the Darcy family as her aunt and uncle both commented on the goodness of Mr. Darcy in making the purchase offer. They both also expressed relief that her father had actually been willing to make the sale.

"Of course, the library at Pemberley is already a place of wonder," Uncle Gardiner finally said. "I cannot think of a more appropriate destination for Bennet's collection. And I expect that if Mr. Darcy said he was offering a fair price, then he did, but he probably also feels he came out of the interaction as a winner."

"I do not know the total price he paid," Lizzy said. "Papa included information about the trust funds for the three of us along with the transfer of guardianship he gave me to pass on to you."

That comment ignited another small firestorm. Both Gardiners were amazed and relieved to hear that they finally had the legal right to look after their nieces. Aunt Madeline wanted to see the papers right away, but subsided when Lizzy explained they were in her trunk.

"So, I imagine there is more to explain your sudden arrival today, since these financial negotiations took place last Thursday and Friday," Uncle Gardiner said once he and his wife had calmed a bit.

"Yes, Uncle," Jane said. She briefly mentioned the announcements in the church and the gown they made for Mary before quietly stating, "Tony returned to Longbourn today."

"And he brought a friend?" Uncle Gardiner asked, looking suspiciously at Lizzy.

"A friend came with him as far as the Green Sow in Larchton," Lizzy confirmed. "However, after I stopped Tony from trying to steal from Mr. Darcy, he pointed Mr. Wickham in my direction with some probably unnecessary encouragement to attack me. Mr. Wickham is a vile man and I suspect he makes a habit of attacking women even when there is monetary gain to be had from it."

"We did not realize Mr. Wickham was anywhere near, or we would not have allowed Lizzy to go out alone to collect her lace-making supplies after Tony left," Jane said, looking nearly ready to cry at the thought of having failed her sister. Kitty was looking at her sisters in confusion at the mention of lace.

"It was not Jane's fault," Lizzy insisted. "I was determined to go and they were still working to finish Mary's gown. Once I got there, I realized it was probably the last time I would sit in my little work hut, so I took a bit of time to save a good memory. Then, as I stepped out of the woods, I was trapped in what will be a bad one. Mr. Wickham must have been waiting for me nearby, probably expecting me to come along the path. He grabbed me before I knew he was there. I tried to use the defensive moves you taught us, Uncle, but he was expecting them. I kept fighting, though, until he tried to choke me by pressing his arm against my throat. It was Mr. Darcy who saved me. Jane had sent him off after me when he had stopped by Longbourn while tracking Tony, Mr. Wickham and one of the militia officers. He went off after Mr. Wickham again once I was safely close to home."

"Are you well, Lizzy? Do you have any other injuries?" Aunt Madeline asked. Her husband looked ready to go seeking Mr. Wickham himself, with murderous intent.

"I just have some bruises," Lizzy said. "It was more the surprise and fright that bothered me than anything else. Between my struggles and Mr. Darcy's timely arrival, he was unable to do me any lasting damage."

"Be that as it may, I will be taking a good look at your bruises to make sure they are nothing more serious before you go to bed, young lady," Aunt Madeline insisted.

Lizzy nodded, knowing there would be no way to get out of it. She continued the tale. "I went to Papa and told him what had happened, intending to demand he give you guardianship over us. He had already prepared the documents I have for you, Uncle. He said he had intended to send us off with them tomorrow, after Mary's wedding. On learning that Tony was not acting alone, he insisted we leave at once. Mrs. Bennet had not yet returned from whatever visits she has been making to avoid being in the house lately, so he sent us in the wagon instead of the carriage. Just before we left, Kitty learned that Tony intended to forcibly compromise Mr. Bingley's well-dowered sister. Mary insisted she would deal with that and sent us on our way with all the grace and strength needed of the new mistress of Netherfield. She promised she will keep a maid with her constantly until the wedding as protection against anything Tony might do."

With the bones of the story told, the Gardiners both asked questions to flesh out their understanding a little more. Knowing the young women would need to get some sleep soon, they did not press for too much.

As the conversation seemed ready to close, Kitty suddenly asked, "What did you mean about your lace-making, Lizzy?"

Lizzy had to laugh at the indignant sound of Kitty's voice. "I forgot that you did not know about that. Do you remember when Mary explained about the three of us saving our allowances?"

Kitty nodded. Lizzy continued, "In addition to saving our allowances, Jane and I have been working and selling our work with the help of Aunt Madeline."

"Jane sews things and you do embroidery," Kitty said, making the connections with what she had seen over the previous few days.

"And I make lace," Lizzy added.

"So you made the lace you gave me to sew onto Mary's handkerchief?" Kitty asked with awe in her voice.

Lizzy nodded and Jane said, "If Mrs. Bennet had known what we were doing, she would have demanded we do the work for her or give her the money we earned. We have been keeping it as secret as possible for years, which is why Lizzy had a hiding place in the woods where she would work when everyone thought she was on long walks."

Gears and cogs seemed to be clicking into place behind Kitty's eyes. She excitedly said, "Will you teach me?"

"What?" Lizzy asked.

"All of it!" Kitty insisted. "I want to learn. Mary's dress was so amazing and that lace was beautiful. Even if I am never good enough to sell the work, I want to know how to do it."

"That is a discussion for tomorrow," Mrs. Gardiner said before Lizzy or Jane could answer. "Now, I think it is time we all retire. I want to check on Lizzy's bruises and all of you girls need some sleep."

"Yes, Aunt Madeline," the three Bennet sisters said in unison, prompting laughter all around.