Pride and Prejudice FF

Unbreakable Bonds

Previously:

"I think you need to go gather the men in the family to the parlor and have the servants get their weapons and stand guard. We need to make a plan…" Mr. Bennet looked at Mahalia's father. "I need to ask Miss Andrea to stay with my wife."

"Will do."

Preparation and First Round

Ch. 29

No noise, other than Colonel Fitzwilliam's voice, could be heard in the Longbourn Library as Mr. Bennet, Mr. Rhy, and any servant not posted on watch listened to what the gentleman was telling them. "We need to secure Longbourn. I do not think Mr. Tyler is bringing many men; however, we had best be prepared. And, what is more, I do not want any of the women here; at least not Mrs. Bennet, her grandmother, or Mrs. Rhy; not even Miss Andrea."

"They will expect them to be here, it is Mrs. Bennet's home" Mr. Bennet stated what he thought to be the most obvious.

"I do not like the idea; I will not fight the servants staying to fight if they so desire, but Mrs. Bennet, her mother and Miss Andrea need to leave." The colonel told Mr. Bennet, Mr. Preston, and a handful of men to get at least those women to another home on Longbourn. "Stay away from the northern forest that appears to be the one Tyler's men are traveling through. We will work on fortifying Longbourn and we will create a chokehold, forcing them to go round back."

"Using the garden's gate as a natural funnel," Mr. Darcy spoke up, his mind already drawing the funnel Tyler's men would have to go through to get to the back door.

Mr. Bennet, Mr. Rhy, and Mr. Preston, among a few others, went and got Mrs. Bennet and the other women listed and headed in the opposite direction of where they hoped Mr. Tyler's men would be coming.

As Mr. Bennet took his wife and small group through the woods, in his mind, he could hear the distant sounds of battle at Longbourn fade into a haunting silence. He did not know if that meant it was actually going on, or if stress was causing him to hear things. However, Thomas focused only on getting his group to safety.

Colonel Fitzwilliam, Mr. Darcy, and the remaining men, however, kept their attention solely on scanning the horizon for any sign of Mr. Tyler's forces. Their tension was palpable when the unexpected sound of hoofbeats and carriage wheels broke the quiet. From the direction of the main road, a cloud of dust rose. Colonel Fitzwilliam would have rung a bell of alarm only he recognized the local magistrate riding at the head, so he unlocked one of the windows.

"Gentlemen," he greeted them with a nod. "Your timing is impeccable. Mr. Tyler is heading this way to attack Longbourn, he is wishing to harm Mr. Bennet's wife." The colonel was surprised to see Mr. Hartung among the group, a man he recognized by Mr. Bennet having given him a description of the Rhy's groundskeeper. "What are you doing in here?"

"I wanted to see the men taken down who I am now convinced tried to frame Mr. Bennet for all the annoying stunts like taking down the sign going to the lake, or smashing all the pots by my office."

Mr. Darcy's cousin turned his attention to the magistrate and informed the gentleman of everything that was going on. The man, a stern figure, dismounted and approached the colonel.

"We were able to capture all the men involved on the Scottish end of things. However, when it came to Tyler?" The man shook his head. "Frustratingly enough, none of them would give his name up. However, we did not give up on getting him. Therefore, we came back down from the borders and have been tracking Tyler's movements for quite some time." he explained. "When we heard he was heading this way, we hoped we had received the news in time to intervene, though I do wish you had kept everyone in one spot."

The lawman ordered his men to join the ranks of the defenders, their presence bolstering the spirits of the men who were genuinely concerned about how many ruthless characters might be coming their way. With renewed vigor, they fortified their positions—the garden gate now a stronghold against the approaching danger.

Back in the forest, Mr. Bennet led the group with quiet determination, guiding them away from the northern forest and towards a secluded cottage on the far side of the estate. Mahalia was still being supported by her husband but Mr. Preston's place had been taken by her father.

So, while the lawmen's arrival had shifted the tide as to any odds at Longbourn—a fact Mr. Bennet would have been grateful for—he might have questioned why it would have been necessary to make this run into the forest. If he had seen a particular group of men who had slipped in among that group of lawmen, he would have said a prayer of thanksgiving. Not only had he taken the women away from Longbourn, but he had also switched paths without telling Colonel Fitzwilliam.

The air was thick with tension as the men, and women who had refused to leave, took their positions. The Colonel, and the lawmen with their combined years of training or experience, worked together to turn the estate into a strategic stronghold. The servants had been swift, barricading doors and reinforcing windows, while the men stood ready with whatever weapons they could muster.

The sound of approaching horses signaled the onset of the confrontation. Mr. Tyler's men, a ragtag group of ruffians, appeared at the edge of the property, their intentions clear in their grim expressions. The first wave crashed against Longbourn's defenses like a storm against a cliff, but anyone fighting on behalf of Mr. Bennet kept their resolve firm.

The fight was chaotic, a whirlwind of clashing steel and shouted commands. The women, not to be underestimated, stood their ground, some wielding kitchen knives with surprising adeptness.

Amidst the fray, Colonel Fitzwilliam moved with purpose, his eyes scanning for the unseen threat he knew lurked within their ranks. It was then he spotted him—a man whose movements were too calculated, too hesitant.

"You see it too?" whispered the local magistrate, who was not in a position to get at the man.

"Yes." The colonel moved so swiftly that the mole had no chance of getting away; he pinned him against the wall.

"Speak now or you die," Colonel Fitzwilliam demanded, his voice low and dangerous. "Who sent you? What is your purpose here?"

The man's eyes darted, panic evident. "Tyler," he gasped. "Came in disguise...he and three others. They slipped in behind these men and did not show their faces; never joined in the fight either; they fled into the forest. They had to have heard what you said, for they are now after the Bennets and the Rhys."

The news hit like a thunderclap. The forest, supposed to have been a place of refuge, had unfortunately turned into a battleground. Colonel Fitzwilliam's gaze turned to the magistrate's, and in that shared look, they understood the gravity of the situation. The fight at Longbourn needed to switch gears. Colonel Fitzwilliam counted it a blessing that Tyler's other men had no real loyalty to their boss and buckled rather quickly after the mole shouted for them to surrender if they did not want to take the fall for Mr. Tyler.

"Get them out of here; we need to go after Tyler."

"Will do." The magistrate and his men took charge of the criminals, and one of the lawmen went with Colonel Fitzwilliam and other men back into the house. They would leave at the crack of dawn in the hope they would find Mr. Bennet and his family in time to save both families.