Disclaimer: Don't own, not mine, All rights to Jane Austen, etc.

Summary: See Previous Chapters

Chapter Six

The carriage was not well-sprung, and bracing herself against every bump and pothole gave Lydia all the excuse she needed to press back against the seat, hidden beyond easy recognition. The charm Kitty had given her was pressed between her fingers, ready to act as a locator at the first hint of need. They reached the edge of the socially acceptable part of Brighton, fine holiday townhouses giving way to boarding houses and small cottages, not quite slums, but dwellings of shop-boys and servants and fishermen.

Another few minutes went by in silence, as the houses became fewer and farther between, giving way to storehouses and barns. Judging it safe, Lydia leaned forward. "Where are we going?"

Wickham's charming demeanour fell away like the mask it was, and he leered at her, "We are going to an Inn in Dover, near a smuggler's cove. You'll write a letter to your sisters claiming that we are to Gretna Green, and if you are very good to me, I'll take you there after I tell my Continental friends the Militia's plans and stations for the next six months."

Treason! Treason of the greatest kind, short of assassinating the royal family! Pray, let her sisters be scrying as they had promised! Lydia squeezed the charm Kitty had made her, ready to break it with just a hint more pressure. "How would any invasion force of note get past the Navy?"

He smirked, so smug and satisfied that he did not realise what his gloating revealed. "Sea Monsters are not just legends, my dear. If your sister had not married Darcy, you might have made an excellent sacrifice to pacify and bribe them to keep the navy busy, but you have a greater use now."

She did not need the answer, Wickham had already damned himself, but the longer she kept him talking, the less time he had to fully realise the words he spoke. "Why would you want to marry me?"

Wickham shrugged carelessly, "You're a pretty thing, and marrying you would make me brother to Darcy. He'd hate it, which is reason enough by itself, but he is too self-righteous to see his sister in poverty, even his sister-by-marriage, and I would be able to bleed him forever."

Horrid, wretched man! The carriage jolted over a pothole, and Lydia broke the charm in her hand.

The carriage sped up, and Lydia wondered if Colonel Fitzwilliam would be able to keep pace. Lydia could defend herself, but in the confined space, Wickham had a distinct advantage in size, weight and strength. The last of the farmhouses gave way to low, rolling hills and fields, and Lydia braced herself. Soon, but not yet.

Wickham leered. "Now, my pretty Lyddie, I'll give you a taste of the life you can expect..."

Out of the corner of her vision, mostly hidden by the carriage, three figures on horseback were approaching at a gallop. Wickham reached for her, and Lydia decided that whether the riders were her family or Wickham's contacts, there was no point in hiding anymore. She shouted her transformation phrase, triggering the usual light-show, and Wickham fell back with a pained yell, covering his eyes.

Lydia had only seconds before he recovered, and strength against strength, she would lose a direct fight. Aside from spell-books, Mary had a great fondness for tacticians, and an even greater care for lecturing her sisters on the subject. 'If your surroundings are favourable to your enemy, change them.'

A lifetime of country dancing bred excellent leg strength, especially when one danced as much as Lydia did. She grabbed the baton from her valise, shattered the door-latch with a single kick, and flung herself out of the carriage, rolling as she hit the ground to lessen the impact.

The three riders were clearer without the rear wall of the carriage in the way. The figures resolved themselves into Elizabeth (never an enthusiastic horsewoman, thank the powers that both riders were slight of figure!) riding double with Georgiana, Mr Darcy, and Colonel Fitzwilliam. The Colonel was leaning down in his saddle, one hand extended. He had mentioned being a cavalry officer, had he not?

Relief flooded her; she would not be facing this threat alone! Gauging the distance, Lydia jumped, catching the Colonel's hand and allowing the momentum to swing her up behind him.

It was not the most comfortable seat, even with a pillion saddle, but Lydia pressed herself against the Colonel's back and tried to match her movements to his as they pursued the carriage toward Dover. Over the wind in her ears, she could hear Georgiana. "The horses will not last much longer, even with my help! We must end this soon!"

Lydia's baton hung from her wrist. It was clumsy, as a projectile, but Lydia was not aiming to hit a person. With as much aim as she could manage from her current position, Lydia flung it at the wheels of the carriage.

By some miracle of luck, it hit, the cord tangling in the spokes long enough for the baton to fall beneath the wheel, dangerously unbalancing the carriage. Wickham flung himself free before it overturned, and climbed to his feet, his face a mask of fury. "You've meddled in my plans for the last time, Fitz. Next time, you won't be around to get in my way."

Elizabeth's sword was already in her hand. "It is bold of you to presume that there will be a next time."

Lydia's spell still held, and she danced it again for good measure, "Tell us everything you know, Wickham."

It all spilled out of him, even as he roared and lunged at her, met by the combined force of Elizabeth, Mr Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam. A treasonous conspiracy meant to hand England over to Napoleon and set Wickham up in a life of comfort somewhere in Europe. Deliberately stirring up supernatural trouble in an attempt to expose other Gifted. Plans that would be implemented if Wickham failed to appear in Europe by an appointed time.

At the end of it, Wickham lay dead on the grass, with Lizzy's sword through his heart. Georgiana went to check on the driver, while Colonel Fitzwilliam cut the horses free of the wreckage.

Mr Darcy looked down at the body, and let his transformation drop. "I should feel sorrow at the death of someone I have known almost all my life, but I am only relieved."

Lizzy followed suit, allowing her own sword to shimmer into ethereal sparkles that faded on the wind. "It is ill-done to rejoice in death, but I doubt anyone would blame you for not mourning him, after all the harm he caused you and others."

Georgiana rose to her feet, shaking her head. "His neck broke on impact, poor soul. What shall we do?"

The carriage horses, miraculously, were fine. Colonel Fitzwilliam led them over. "Back to Brighton, then to London and Dover. We have three days before Wickham's companions will suspect something went wrong, and the War Office needs to know."

Lydia had been stretching the limits of hospitality, anyway. "I suspect that Mrs Forster is finding the trial of being a permanent hostess as well as a Colonel's wife more draining than she expected. I'll apologise and say that a family emergency requires our presence."

Elizabeth nodded, tucking another of Kitty's runestones back into her reticule. "Kitty and Mary are making preparations, and as long as we do not keep the same breakneck gallop, I believe I can tolerate riding alone long enough to return to Brighton."

The lack of side saddles would be a problem, but Lydia had enough energy left for a quick illusion. There were a surprising number of dances that had something to do with horses, and the steps were not complicated. She gave the illusion a moment to settle, then mounted up herself. "Try not to make any sudden movements, but the illusion should hold."

Mr Darcy moved closer to Elizabeth's horse, keeping the animal between him and Georgiana, both mounted on the former carrriage horses. "Someone will happen along the wreckage eventually, but we should not be here when they do."

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A/N: Ugh, this chapter did NOT want to be written, I swear...

Hopefully the next one won't fight me quite so much.

As ever, comments, critiques and criticisms are appreciated. Flames are not.

If you get bored between chapters and want to check out my other work, links are in my profile.

Thanks

Nat