Chapter 8

Patrick was in his home study reading the message his butler delivered. Unfortunately, silly Molly did not have any news for him, and she only reiterated what he had already known. His late cousin's son had not yet arrived from Kent, even though his coachman and valet had done so five days before.

Patrick always hated and envied George Darcy and transferred to his cousin's son when he died. George had had it all just because he was the eldest son of the legitimate heir, while he had had to settle for being the poor relation's son. While his cousin George inherited an estate that produced more than ten thousand pounds a year and was also the most beautiful in the country, he inherited a small one that no one knew of or was interested in visiting.

Besides, his income was only two thousand pounds, allowing him to afford almost no luxury he thought he deserved. He had married the daughter of a country squire, while his cousin George had married the daughter of an Earl with a large dowry and impeccable connections. But as if that was not enough, George was admired for his intelligence and ability to do everything well, while he was just a fool that no one would ever come to admire.

The only thing that had always encouraged him and kept him hopeful was that the Darcys were a small family and that he ranked below Fitzwilliam and Georgiana in the line of succession. The previous summer, he did everything he could to get Georgiana out of the way by contacting a reprobate who wanted revenge on Fitzwilliam Darcy.

Sadly stupid Wickham had failed his task. George's will was clear and stated that if Georgiana married without the permission of her legal guardians, she would be automatically disinherited.

'I shall wait a few more days, and if Darcy does not return, I shall contact Wickham to finish the work he left undone,' Patrick mused hopefully.

P&P

After several days of chasing the thieves, Glover and Mallory finally found a clue that would help them locate Mr. Darcy and Miss Bennet.

"Are you certain the men the innkeeper mentioned are the ruffians we seek?"

"Of course, I am sure, Mallory. He told me that the men who stayed here registered under the names Smith, Cole, and Jack," Glover explained.

Archibald Mallory and John Glover had served for several years in the military, and now they worked as investigators and protection of wealthy people. When Colonel Fitzwilliam asked for their assistance, they both immediately agreed to help him, even though he could not offer them as much as their important clients. Both deeply admired the brave Colonel, who, despite being the son of an Earl, always treated them with respect and dignity.

"I think we have found them at last. But we must be cautious about how we question the innkeeper to avoid raising unnecessary suspicion."

"Then you better ask the questions, Mallory. I do not know how to be subtle, and I am so eager to find those ruffians I can talk much more than necessary," Glover said.

"Alright, I shall do it then." Mallory approached the innkeeper and began small talk with him to gain his trust.

After half an hour of pleasant conversation, Mallory dared to ask questions about the ruffians. He got a lot of information, but only some of what he needed to find Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth.

"So those three men were taken prisoner after damaging your neighbor's bar?" Mallory asked tentatively.

"No sir, only two of them went to jail. The older one, named Smith, was not involved in the fight, so he left early in the morning the next day."

Mallory asked other questions and discovered that the criminals had arrived on horseback, not by carriage, so he assumed the prisoners had been abandoned somewhere nearby.

"And what happened to the horses?" Glover asked. He had a description of them and wanted to confirm his suspicions.

"The magistrate awarded them to Fat Moe to pay for the damages caused by those troublemakers. He sold them to a merchant who is always in this area and lives in Scotland."

The innkeeper went to serve some wine and bread to some customers, giving Glover and Mallory a chance to chat in private. They decided that the following day they would get up very early to go around and see if they could find the abandoned carriage.

"Mr. Conrad, just one last question," Mallory said as the innkeeper came over to refill his glass with wine.

"Ask all you want, sir. I greatly respect and admire all those who have fought to defend our country."

"Thank you, Mr. Conrad. I would like to know if there are any towns near this one," Mallory asked.

"Yes and no, sir," the innkeeper replied with a smile.

"How? Is there or isn't there a town nearby?" Mallory and Glover asked in surprise.

"There is one, but it is not on any map. It is a very small town. Or rather, it is a den of thieves."

"And where exactly is that place?" Glover asked curiously.

"A few miles to the southeast. But do not bother going there. There's nothing, just a miserable inn and shop."

"Thank you very much for all the information you have given us," Mallory said.

"Are you looking for someone?" asked the innkeeper.

"Something like that," Glover replied.

The innkeeper, who knew it was unwise to ask more questions than necessary, excused himself and went to the kitchen to help his wife with the stew for dinner.

Mallory and Glover continued talking about everything they would do the next day. Their primary mission was to send a message to Colonel Fitzwilliam and find the carriage because they were sure that Mr. Darcy and Miss Bennet must be there waiting for help.

P&P

Before dusk, Mr. Darcy awoke feeling much better. Elizabeth was asleep, curled up in a small chair. He sensed she must be exhausted, so he stood quietly, covered her with a blanket, and fell asleep again.

One hour later, he woke again, but he felt so much better this time. Although his head hurt greatly, he felt he could think and reason coherently. The fever had disappeared entirely, but he felt frail. He remembered they had managed to escape from the ruffians that kidnapped them and were in an inn in the middle of nowhere. He went to the small window and looked out, trying to find some detail in the landscape that would help him know where they were.

After several minutes, he turned and looked around and saw that Elizabeth was nowhere to be found. He immediately became very nervous and tried to go looking for her, but at that moment, Elizabeth walked into the room.

"Mr. Darcy, please go back to bed. It was hard to lower your fever, and I do not want you to get ill again," said Elizabeth, but she instinctively lowered her gaze.

Mr. Darcy noticed that he was only in pants and had his shirt open, revealing much of his bare chest. "Please, I beg you, excuse me, Miss Bennet. It is just when I could not find you in the room, I was concerned for your safety," said Mr. Darcy, covering himself with one of the blankets.

"Since you were sleeping so peacefully, I took advantage of leaving the dirty lunch plates in the kitchen," Elizabeth said, trying to focus her attention on anything but the man in front of her.

For his part, Mr. Darcy took the opportunity to dress. "Tell me where I can freshen up, Miss Bennet. I need to change these clothes and know where we are."

Elizabeth was going to protest, but she realized it was impossible because Mr. Darcy was on his feet and ready to leave the room. She had no choice but to do as he asked. She also told him her impressions of that place and what she had to do and say to sound convincing. "You were not well, so I had to make decisions without consulting you."

"You did well, Miss Bennet. Please do not worry. So we got married in Scotland, and we are William and Lizzy Gardiner?" asked Mr. Darcy with a slight smile. Even though he tried to pretend that he was well, Elizabeth could see on his face how haggard he was.

"Why did you choose the name Gardiner?" asked Mr. Darcy.

"Because it is my uncle's name," replied Elizabeth.

"Your uncle who lives in London?"

"Yes."

"I see," said Mr. Darcy seriously.

Elizabeth did not like Mr. Darcy's reaction and thought she understood the reason for his silence. "My uncle is a man admired by all who know him. It is an honor to say that I bear his name. Although, I do not know why I bother explaining all this to you when I know your opinion of my family very well."

"One day, I told you that you have a vexing inclination to misunderstand me. Now, I must add that you also always assume the worst of me. I was only thinking about my new name because my mother used to call me William, that is all." Afterward, Mr. Darcy left the room and went to wash himself and change clothes.

Elizabeth could not help but feel guilty, but she knew that her distrust of Mr. Darcy was not unfounded. Ever since they met, he had insisted on showing her his less amiable side. But at the same time, Elizabeth realized that she had to put all those thoughts in the past because now she knew that Mr. Darcy was totally different from who she thought when she first met him.

Mr. Darcy did everything as quickly as possible and returned to the inn. He acknowledged that everything Elizabeth had observed was correct and knew they were not safe there. But he still felt fragile and helpless, so he thought it best to stay in their room most of the time until they were sure of what they should do.

Immediately upon entering the inn, two men approached him and started making vulgar comments about him and Elizabeth. He felt like telling them everything they deserved, but he knew it was better to ignore them.

"When shall we be fortunate enough to see your beautiful wife again, boy? Although I must tell you that if I were in your place, I would also stay locked with her all day," said the older man while his companion laughed heartily.

"As my wife explained, we had an accident in the carriage we were traveling in, and we had to walk many miles before we arrived here. We need to rest before continuing on our journey," explained Mr. Darcy, and he immediately withdrew.

Doris listened to the entire exchange of words and was filled with even more doubts. Who was that gentleman, and why was he there? Was the story that his supposed wife had told true?

When Mr. Darcy reached the room, he asked Elizabeth to lock it. He put the gun on the small table next to the bed and asked Elizabeth not to leave the room alone and not open the door if he was not awake.

Mr. Darcy had managed to wash and change clothes, but the effort had exhausted him, so he threw himself on the bed and inadvertently fell fast asleep.

Before dusk, Doris told a servant to help her bring something to eat for the newlyweds. She preferred that Elizabeth stay in her room to avoid conflicts. Most men were drinking, and when they got drunk, they were not always courteous with the ladies.

Elizabeth was thinking about getting something to eat when Doris and the maid arrived. She thanked them very much for her kindness, and they left.

"Mr. Darcy, wake up. Dinner has arrived; I think it is good that you eat something, and then you can go back to sleep," Elizabeth said, a little worried.

"Thank you, Miss Bennet," Mr. Darcy replied, trying to hide his embarrassment. He had to protect Elizabeth, and all he had done in the last few hours was sleep.

They ate in absolute silence, not knowing what to say. Elizabeth wanted to talk about everything she had discovered reading that letter, but she did not want him to be upset with her for having read it without his permission. At the same time, Mr. Darcy was trying to remember what had happened the day before and how they had slept since there was only one bed.

"I must tell you, Mr. Darcy, the food in this place is quite good. It is simple but well-prepared, do you not think?

"Yes, I agree with you, Miss Bennet," replied Mr. Darcy, and they were both silent again for several minutes until he dared to ask a crucial question.

"Forgive me, Miss Bennet, but I would like to know why you did not do as we agreed. It would be best if you said we are siblings, tried to hire a carriage and a maid, and traveled back to London. The owners of this place would have understood that I needed to stay a few days until I recovered."

"I could not leave you alone, Mr. Darcy. Not after all you have done for me. Yesterday you were ill and needed someone to take care of you," Elizabeth replied.

"Miss Bennet, I assume you understand the consequences for both of us when you decided to say you were my wife in front of so many witnesses."

"Mr. Darcy, please do not be concerned. No one knows us here, and I am sure we shall be able to hide all of this and return to our normal lives sooner than we think."

Mr. Darcy stood, went to where the small window was, and without looking at Elizabeth, said. "Miss Bennet, do not ever say something like that again. You and I have spent almost a week alone, we have slept together, and you have cried in my arms while I kissed you. Please do not ask me to act like a scoundrel and, after all that has happened between us, pretend that I have no duty or obligation to you. Regardless of your low opinion of me, I am an honorable gentleman and always shall be."

"Mr. Darcy, I did not mean to offend you... it is just that..."

Mr. Darcy did not allow Elizabeth to continue speaking. He did not want to hear that she did not love him and would rather face ruin than be his wife. "We shall leave this place as soon as possible and go straight to Scotland to get married. On the way, I shall send a message to our families so they do not worry. Then we shall spend a day or two at Pemberley to return to face our families."

"You have everything well planned, Mr. Darcy," Elizabeth said in surprise.

"Yes, I am an organized and studious person who leaves nothing to chance."

"Our families will know the truth, but what will we tell our friends, acquaintances, and the rest of society?"

"We shall tell them we were in love and did not want to wait to be together," Mr. Darcy said in a voice so cold he seemed to mean the opposite. "Miss Bennet, I am tired, and it is time to sleep. Please use the bed, and I shall settle on the floor."

"That is not necessary, sir. You have been ill…."

"Good night, Miss Bennet," Mr. Darcy said sharply. His headache had returned, but Elizabeth's constant rejection hurt even more.

With some blankets, his coat, and a pillow, he made his bed on the floor and tried to sleep but could not stop thinking about how he could fix everything without forcing Elizabeth into a life of misery with him.

For her part, Elizabeth was pained. She knew Mr. Darcy was honorable and thanked him profusely for acting like a gentleman. Although she knew that her husband-to-be had risked his own integrity in order to save her, she did not wish to have such a marriage. She would rather be a spinster than have a husband who did not respect her or the ones she loved the most.

Inadvertently, Elizabeth began to sob uncontrollably. So many terrible things had happened to her in so few days, and that was the only way she managed to ease all the anguish she felt in her heart.

Mr. Darcy heard Elizabeth sobbing and noticed how she was trying to suppress her crying so as not to disturb him. But he could not bear the thought of his Elizabeth feeling so miserable. So he stood, took the covers from the floor, and lay beside her.

"Miss Bennet, please stop crying; you better sleep…."

Elizabeth said nothing. She just snuggled into Mr. Darcy's arms and allowed him to kiss and hold her the same way he had done a few nights before. "Good night, Elizabeth."

"Good night, William," Elizabeth replied, and she fell fast asleep.

P&P

"What is wrong, Doris? Why are you so restless?" Amanda asked her friend.

"An hour ago, I went to the Gardiners' room to bring them food, and I heard Lizzy say to her husband, 'Mr. Darcy'."

"And why does that worry you so much?"

"Because that means that gentleman could be the son of Lady Anne and George Darcy. That is why his face seemed so familiar to me."

"And why do you think that distinguished gentleman brought that girl to a place like this?"

"I do not know, but I am going to find out. Amanda, I need your help."

"Of course! Please, tell me, how do you want me to help you?"

"I need you to help me protect that poor innocent girl from that horrible man who is taking advantage of her," Doris said, explaining her plan to her friend.

P&P

Thanks to everyone who leaves comments and enthusiastically follows the story.

In the next chapter, Doris and Amanda will try to rescue Elizabeth from the influence of the man who is using her.

I'm going on vacation for two weeks, and I won't have access to my computer, so I won't be able to post new chapters.

See you in two weeks!

Saludos,

Yo

P.S. In the meantime, if you're interested, you can read "The Heir" by Miranda Flan on K or KU.