There was a knock at the door, which meant it was Mr. Townsend. Mrs. Brown never did knock. He entered and primly bowed for her and Jane turned her gaze away, refusing to acknowledge him as he did such a thing. "We'll be moving tomorrow. The carriage is prepared," he informed her brusquely. His mood seemed dour, and she hadn't an idea why.
Jane just kept her gaze down on the sheets, so resplendently white and beautiful, trying to guide her mind to something far more positive than the thought of being taken somewhere else. Perhaps it would be even farther than she was now and Charles would never find her. A flutter of panic coursed through her at the very thought and she tried to suppress it before it encouraged about bout of sickness.
He studied her pallor and nodded the once. "You look improved."
"I do not feel it," was all she said in return. "Perhaps it is because I am being held prisoner for my child."
He barely smiled in return. "Such things do happen."
He left with another bow and Jane did wish she had something with which to throw at the door. She also wished she had the temperament that would encourage her to throw things. As it was, she merely sat in place and repressed all the horrid feelings trying to find their way to the surface. She did believe that he would get his just payment in the end for what he and Mrs. Brown were doing to her family.
She simply had to believe.
She overheard the sound of the bell ringing and wondered at what was happening. The sound of shouts came next and after that, the panic in her stomach quickly swarmed and overwhelmed her from head to foot.
Bingley returned with Mrs. Townsend at his side at the early hour of six in the morning. Nearly everyone in their party was very much groggy, but Mrs. Townsend seemed chipper, against all odds. "A good cup of coffee," she advised to Elizabeth, who was yawning away and trying to pull herself from her dream of her husband and son. She had dreamt that they were reunited and Jane was perfectly safe. "It is the best remedy."
The four of them sat in Bingley's townhome and Bingley paced back and forth, unable to remain still. "Sit," Mr. Bennet instructed firmly and as though it were a magical word, he did just that. He did so, all the while looking about the room with a look on his face as though he was wondering if he was being chastened, not unlike a little boy. Elizabeth merely rubbed at her eyes and sipped at her tea, trying to rouse herself to alertness. It was a very important day. Mrs. Townsend had agreed to ring the door of the manour and distract the occupants of the house while Bingley rescued Jane from the back door, Elizabeth stood watch, and Mr. Bennet manned the first of two carriages. One was to be a decoy sent to the market while the other went back to the townhome.
Elizabeth rose when her tea was through and the clock struck seven. "We had best get moving," she advised, her nerves daring to play with her, as if dissuading her from the plan of the day. The group of them had decided against the gun that Bingley kept for hunting in the townhome. The thought of resorting to that kind of violence sent chills down Elizabeth's back and she was grateful that Darcy was not around for this.
She hoped he was safe at the Bingley home, for she could not imagine experiencing this horrid ordeal without being able to return home to him and William, both safe and sound.
Bingley rose to his feet once more, running both hands through his hair. He had an anxious look on his face and he nodded. "By noon, she'll be back in my arms," he promised.
Mr. Bennet watched the conversation and grasped his jacket. "All this talk," he remarked. "I am beginning to think we shall never be away."
It was he that led the group out of the home, Elizabeth last to lock up the townhome with the high hopes that Bingley was truly right when he said that within the short span of several hours, Jane would once more be with them.
The carriage ride to the Windsors was shorter than she recalled and she watched the sky as it passed, her thoughts turning back to Darcy as they were wont to do. She thought of the way his hair mussed so completely after a good night's sleep and the tendency he had of speaking in his sleep, soft mumblings of his day. She missed his kisses and the way he held her at night, palms splayed softly against her stomach.
The yearning for her husband was becoming an ache in her stomach and it only drove her to become more determined to rescue Jane. If she missed Darcy this much, she couldn't begin to think how it must be for her sister.
She turned to Bingley as they pulled up before the Windsors home and she laid a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "She'll be back with you soon enough," she promised, giving her brother-in-law a kiss upon the cheek as she was helped out of the carriage by her father and they parted in different directions.
It was time.
The ride had become smoother in recent hours and Darcy took that as a sign of hope. He'd broken his reverie, thinking of precisely how he would kiss Elizabeth when they were reunited, and turned his attention to the horizon.
"How long now?" he inquired.
"Two hours at the outside, sir," his servant informed him.
Darcy settled in for the last bit of the long haul, already planning to go directly to the Bingleys townhome to offer moral support and if it was necessary, whatever brute force he could offer in defending his family from harm.
Mrs. Townsend approached the door with a little bit of lift in her step. She had not seen her wayward husband in nearly twenty-two years. While he had kept his job, she had lost hers and had needed to build up her life from scratch. It was not impossible, but it was not something she had chosen.
She rang the bell and waited quite patiently, her back to the door.
When it opened and she turned to see who it was, her smile widened. "After twenty-two years," she remarked, pushing inside the house. "I found you. I think, my dear, that it is finally time that you and I had a talk."
Mr. Townsend simply gaped, shouting for Mrs. Brown to join them.
It seemed they were not expecting company.
Bingley slipped in through the back door and hurried out when a maid came his way and he cursed as his plan seemed to shatter. It was Elizabeth's ingenuity that saved them both in the end as she pointed to the trellis and sent him climbing up to the room with the open window, wherein he could traverse through the house from that room.
He climbed and avoided the thorns of the roses growing on the trellis as best he could, but still, he found himself pricked. He would be injured a thousand times over for Jane, though, and so, kept climbing without pause.
He swung himself over the windowsill and found himself crashed upon the floor of the room. Wincing, he picked himself up, hoping that the residents of the house did not hear him. It appeared though, that there was enough shouting happening in the foyer to keep them distracted.
He stood, frozen in place, for there was his wife at the door, peering through a crack to see what all the commotion was about.
"Jane!" he exclaimed, dashing over to her side and picking her up in his arms, hugging her tightly as he twirled her about and kissed her firmly on the lips without waiting a single moment. He did love her so thoroughly that he could not bear to delay it.
She appeared ill, however, and she clung tightly to him. Had they been mistreating her? A flash of anger coursed through him at the mere thought and he picked her up in his arms so she would not need suffer any longer.
"Charles!" she remarked, with just as much enthusiasm and relief. "Oh! Charles, I have wonderful news."
"Jane," he whispered, warning her as he crept into the hall, descending the back stairs and keeping out of sight. All the while, he held her close in his arms and stole kisses at every opportunity. "We must escape, we may talk later."
"Charles! I…"
Her sentence was swallowed by another kiss as he hurried out the back door, shouting to Elizabeth to ready the second carriage. He only hoped that Mrs. Townsend would make it out safely, but she had assured him earlier that she would and that Bingley was not to worry about her for a moment.
He set her down on her feet and looked her over, beaming widely. He had his Jane back and it was simply the very best of days. He promptly swept her up into another tight embrace, keeping her near before her vehemence demanded that he step back. "Jane?" he inquired, now truly concerned. "What is the matter?"
"You must listen," she insisted, eyes wide. "Charles," she announced, a delighted look on her face.
"Bingley!" Elizabeth shouted from the carriage. "We have to leave. Now!"
Bingley turned back to Jane and took her hand. "Come," he urged, already running off. "We have to leave, before anyone gets injured. Your father is…"
"Papa!" Jane exclaimed with worry, interrupting him.
"…already on his way. It will be all right. We are meeting at the townhome." He kissed her once more for good measure as they hurried along towards Elizabeth and he wondered at just what was so important that Jane had been so insistent to let him know. It would wait, however.
First, they needed to seek safety.
tbc
Hey all again. Thank you to DJ Clawson, Mrs. Dom Masbolle, glabolah, angelofopera, aquamum, BubblySpirit, Dingy and Dolphindreamer for reviewing! I have about three or four parts left to this. For Dingy, that will be revealed as things continue! As I previously mentioned, I do have the AU. When exams finish, I may just debate juggling starting that one with finishing this one.
Thanks again for reading!