The Doctor was mildly amused by their change of accommodation. He met Evie at the Bennets' that night and raised his eyebrows at her, muttering under his breath about the conversation he'd had with Mr Darcy.

"I think someone has a little crush on you, Miss Jones." He joked with a wink. Evie shot him a look, showing she wasn't amused by his words, raising an eyebrow. Her reply was cut off by the front door opening and Hill, Mrs Bennet's right hand woman, ushering them into the parlour.

"Evie!" Lydia shrieked setting eyes on the older teenager. Mrs Bennet winced.

"Lydia! Show some propriety, girl!" She snapped before turning to the Doctor with a wide, simpering smile. He jumped slightly with her burning gaze fixed on him. "Doctor Jones… how nice to see you again. Come and sit down here, next to Elizabeth."

The Doctor glanced over at Evie who shot him a satisfied smirk and returned to her conversation with Lydia, Kitty and Mary. He had teased her about Mr Darcy, now it was his turn to deal with that kind of speculation.

"So?" Mary asked leaning forwards and interrupting Evie's thoughts. "You're staying at Netherfield Park?"

Evie nodded. "Yeah… Mr Darcy wouldn't take no for an answer." The two younger Bennet sisters started squealing again and Mary and Evie exchanged a look.

The rest of the evening passed similarly. Mrs Bennet seemed to be adamant that the Doctor was going to marry Elizabeth. Both, though seemingly getting on very well, were incredibly embarrassed about this. Lydia, Kitty and even Mary seemed to think that Evie and Mr Darcy would be engaged within a week. Their second favourite topic of conversation was the arrival, the next day, of their cousin; Mr Collins. Evie couldn't help grinning at the sound of his name; something which made her new friends frown. The teenager was thoroughly fed up of gossip and being teased by the time the carriage arrived to take them back to Netherfield.

"Can you hurry up and solve this little mystery?" Evie demanded moodily as they bounced along in the carriage. The Doctor shrugged.

"It's not as easy as that!" He protested. "We know what we're looking for, we just don't know who or why!"

Suddenly the girl remembered what she'd seen in the hallway of the grand house. She couldn't believe she hadn't told the Doctor before; although she hadn't exactly had much of a chance to speak to him. "I think we're getting closer, though."

"What d'you mean?"

"I saw the cloak. It was hanging on the hallstand at Netherfield."

"What?" The Doctor looked gobsmacked. Evie was either ridiculously brave or incredibly stupid. "And you still agreed to stay there?"

"Technically I had no choice…" Evie muttered. "And I'd agreed before I saw it. But this means that we can figure things out quicker, right? We can work out who it was and why."

"Why was Darcy so keen for you to stay, anyway?" The Doctor asked giving her a meaningful look.

She sighed. "I told him about the person with the cloak and he got all defensive and worried. I dunno why, but he said we'd be safer and more comfortable here. I don't think it's got anything to do with him." The teenager added quickly.

"Of course you don't." Her companion chuckled. Evie punched him in the arm, glaring. "Why do you keep doing that?" He demanded, rubbing his arm pathetically. "I'm getting a bruise!"

"Because, sweetie, sometimes I really hate you. Besides, you deserve it." She shot back with a sarcastic smile. Folding her arms across her chest she turned her back on him, gazing out of the carriage window and leaving him staring at the back of her head, his brow furrowed as he thought about her odd choice of words.

x

Later that evening, Evie was shown to a large, luxuriously furnished bedroom in the West wing of the house by the housekeeper. She glanced around in awe. The films she'd seen set in this time didn't do justice at all.

There was a firm knock on her door and the teenager jumped. For a moment or two Evie was confused, wondering who could be knocking on her door, but then she realised that it must be the Doctor. Her bad mood towards him had evaporated before they'd reached the end of their carriage ride. Grinning, she moved to the door and opened it, turning round so that her back was facing it.

"What d'you want?" She asked jokily. "You might as well un-do the back of this stupid dress for me while you're here. You have no idea how difficult they are to get out of!"

"Indeed, Miss Jones, if you wish me to." A crisp, slightly haughty voice said.

Evie whipped around and realised that it was not the Doctor, but Miss Bingley who was watching her with an air of amusement. She jumped and backed away slightly.

"I'm sorry, Miss Bingley… I thought you were…"

"Mr Darcy?" The woman asked, getting the wrong end of the stick.

"No… I…"

"I warned you before, Miss Jones. Stay away from Mr Darcy. You and he can never be." Her tone was falsely light, but underneath there was a menacing threat that made Evie incredibly uncomfortable to be alone with her.

"And I told you… I have no intention of marrying Mr Darcy." She said stumbling backwards as the older woman took a couple of steps towards her. Miss Bingley's eyes were trained on her chest, making Evie feel even more uncomfortable. The women here were obsessed!

"What's that?" She asked reaching forwards. Evie flinched as her hands closed around the teenager's necklace. She lifted the small teardrop pendant and stared at it closely. A flicker of excitement passed through her eyes as her hand closed over the jewel. The woman twitched involuntarily and Evie thought she was going to rip it from around her neck.

After a couple of seconds, Miss Bingley seemed to compose herself and let go of the pendant, stepping backwards quickly.

"Well, goodnight, Miss Jones." She said with an unnerving smile. "Sleep well."

She left, leaving Evie with a horrible feeling. Shivers were running up and down her spine and she was suddenly freezing. Catching sight of her reflection, Evie's mouth dropped open. The pendent, which had been clear (the girl had assumed it was a diamond), was now a deep, rich, blood red.

Turning tail, she fled in the direction of the room the housekeeper had shown the Doctor to as they made their way to her bedroom. He opened the door immediately and listened as she told him about the conversation and showed him the pendant which she had taken off, reluctant to have it touching her skin anymore.

"I think you'd better leave this with me." The Doctor said slowly, unable to tear his eyes away from the jewel which he was pointing his sonic screwdriver at it. She nodded, trusting him implicitly. "Go to bed. Lock the door and try and get some sleep. I think things are starting to get interesting!"