PP

AU NON-Canon GENERAL REGENCY

NOTE: For those who have not followed my other stories... yes, I am aware of Mr. Hurst's age (or implied age) in the books. I always push it down for my storylines.

Longbourn's Secret

Previously:

The church, bathed in the soft glow of spring, seemed to bless the unions that were soon to be, or at least it shed its light on one couple; the other was, strangely, left out of most of the light.

Surprise Meeting

CH. 16

It had taken longer than anyone would have liked for the colonel to be able to get over to Longbourn, but in-between two weddings and his own military obligations it took a bit. Finally, the gentleman had time and he and Janet were only a few hundred yards from Longbourn when they were stopped by the buggy of none other than James Hurst who was anything but drunk. In fact, the gentleman appeared healthier, and happier than he had since they had known him. So, much so Colonel Fitzwilliam felt as if he were meeting a whole different gentleman.

"What happened Mr. Hurst, why the change? Do not get me wrong, I like what I see, but this..." Richard looked him up and down. "Is not what I expected to see and, by the way, where is Louisa?"

"Louisa passed away shortly after we left here, she had not been well for quite some time. We simply had not told anyone that." James then turned to the subject of his change. "Woke up shortly before she passed away and realized I did not like who I had become, realized what time I had wasted with my wife. What we could have had if I had not been at the bottom of a bottle. So, I took every single bottle of alcohol in the house and took it to a man I knew; one who had been encouraging me to quit for some time, and we emptied every single of one those blasted bottles down an unused well. I then went to a deserted church and sat on the back pew, had a private chat just between the Good Lord and myself. Told him if he would have me, I would have him. I have not had a drop of alcohol since, and -to my surprise the idea of sitting down at a game of chance now makes my stomach churn. After that, I was hired by another good friend who noticed I had a sharp eye for detail, and I have been busy every since."

"Ever been tempted to go back?"

"To drinking? Well, I have had men turn their backs on me, tell me I am no fun to be around anymore; if you call that being tempted then, some will say, yes, but no, not really. And when it comes to the urge to drink? Honestly, since I sat down on that pew, had that talk -and was serious about it, no, that urge has not come, well, not in the manner it used to. And when it does; I turn to men who- like me- have battled the same thing and come out on top. However, that subject is not why I stopped you." James bit his lip and the spoke slowly. "I was talking to the Bennets earlier, left them with something I found on a visit to a friend in London. I found it a bit...odd... thought, maybe, it might mean something to them; after all, we know how trustworthy Mr. Collins Sr. is."

"Now if that is not spoken in dripping sarcasm, I do not know what is." Janet rolled her eyes.

"They said you were going to the Collins' today to offer to see if they had anything of value to sell at the auctions the Johnson family loves to be involved in. Is that true?"

"Yes, why?" They responded guardedly.

""Colonel, there are things in my own family line that if you knew would surprise you. So, listen carefully...when you are in the Collins' attic, keep an eye out for old ledgers, account books, or anything along that fits those type of records. There is a chance, small as it may be, there could be financial transactions discrepancies revealed. Look for any correspondence, especially letters between William Collin Sr.'s family members or with other parties discussing the inheritance or the court case. Legal documents, things like old wills and such, could easily be tucked away, and -if any court papers were forged, finding the original versions would prove that."

"Anything else?" Richard liked this side of Mr. Hurst far better than the one ate up with alcohol.

"Be on the lookout for official seals or stamps that could have been used to authenticate forged documents." James kept the reigns in his hands and his eye on the colonel. " Diaries of any kind, or journals could easily contain entries about any plans that had been made. Word in my family was that the Collins had a habit of hiding important papers in unusual places. I would think that would mean places such as inside hollowed-out books or behind false panels in furniture. If you find any maps or plans of Longbourn, they might indicate hidden compartments where documents could have been put away from prying eyes."

"Exactly what do you do for a living now a days?"

"Nothing illegal I promise you. It is an honest living. Simply was not local, I traveled quite a bit; however, I have been fortunate; my boss sold his other estates and opted to downsize to just one. And it is an estate closer to Netherfield so my traveling days are over, my position is still firmly in place." He then continued on and wrapped up with his final bit of advice, including give him some names and dates from history. "Pay attention to specific dates and names I have mentioned and look for distinctive marks or seals that could help you identify authentic documents. If you fortunate to find anything connecting to any kind of bill of sale connected to forgery, find any receipts or bills of sale for services related to the forgery, those could be more important than you realize. And finally, if you come across any old photographs or portraits, check for notes or inscriptions that might provide clues about the true lineage for my gut instincts says Mr. Bennet's grandfather was not just talking out of a hole in his head."

"Thank-you, Mr. Hurst, we appreciate the advice."

"You are welcome, now, I have a young lady to meet up with, seeing as I now have permission. And I just dropped off quite a collection of books for her father to go through; I promised them both I would return to go through them."

"He is talking about Kitty!" Jant exclaimed, not sure if she was shocked or not.

"Well, she is nineteen and he is not much older than I." Richard replied. "Seeing as how he is no longer a drunkard, gambler and clearly has a steady income; that kind of buggy the man is driving is not inexpensive, so, I do not think we need to spend time worrying about it. I suggest we get to Collins as they have accepted my offer to go through possessions and you to meet Priscilla."

The Fitzwilliam couple walked up the steps to Longbourn and were shown into its parlor. Priscilla was waiting for Janet, while the Colonel was shown up to the attic. William Jr. opened the door, "Feel free to put anything you find of worth in the middle of the room. My younger brother will come later to see how things are going."

Colonel Fitzwilliam nodded, relieved the Collins' had gone for the idea of Richard looking over their items, and deciding which ones to sell. He ascended the narrow staircase, the wooden steps creaking under Richard's footsteps. As he reached the attic, he paused for a moment, taking in the sight before him. The large window, now uncovered, allowed sunlight to flood the space, illuminating the dust particles which were dancing in the air. The attic was a treasure trove of forgotten items, he hoped at least one would tell the secrets of Longbourn, or at least one of them.

He rolled up his sleeves and began his search, his eyes scanning the room with the precision of a any bird of prey would when seeking its meal. The scent of aged wood and old paper filled the room, a reminder of the history kept confined within the attic walls. Fitzwilliam moved from trunk to trunk, carefully examining each item. His primary goal was to find valuable antiques for the Collins family to sell at auction, but he also had a personal mission—to uncover any evidence that could help the Bennets reclaim their rightful inheritance. Time marched on as he searched through the attic's treasures.

Among the items, his attention was caught by the sight of a dark-brown, leather-bound book. The cover was in surpringly good shape, although its pages were yellowed with age. Fitzwilliam's pulse quickened as he realized this could be the family diary of Mr. Collins Sr.'s grandfather. It had to be for the name Thaddeus W. Collins was in gold italics on the bottom right hand corner. Could it possibly be a potential key to settling the question in regard who belonged at Longbourn once and for all?

Just as he reached for the book, he heard footsteps approaching. Quickly, he closed the chest and stood up, appearing totally nonchalant. The attic door creaked open, and Andrew Collins stepped inside, his eyes narrowing as he saw the colonel.

"Colonel Fitzwilliam, how is the search going?" Andrew asked, his tone polite but curious.

Fitzwilliam smiled and wiped his hands on a handkerchief he had pulled from his pocket. "It is going quite well. You have quite a collection of interesting items up here. I believe we might find some valuable pieces for the auction. I found a silver snuff box and a very nice ivory lettter opening. Both of those should bring in a pretty penny."

Andrew's eyes fell onto the items and then lingered on the chest Fitzwilliam had been examining. "That is good to hear. My father will be pleased if we can raise some funds, especially given our current financial difficulties, the farming season has been hard on everyone this year."

"Indeed," Fitzwilliam replied, noticing where Andrew's eyes had gone to, casually gestured to a nearby shelf filled with old trinkets. "I was just admiring these curiosities over here. Some of these items hold potential to bring good prices at auction. Especially that porcelain vase. And some of those books next to it might be worth something."

Andrew nodded, though his expression remained guarded. "We do have some old family records and diaries, but they are mostly of sentimental value. Nothing of great historical significance, I am afraid." He was-as far as the youngest Collin boy knew- was not lying.

"Sentimental value can be quite significant," Fitzwilliam said, hoping to keep Andrew's attention away from the chest. "Family histories are often the most intriguing though I do understand it would not help your family any at the auction, I will not bother looking through them if you do not wish for that to happen.."

Andrew stepped closer, curiosity getting the better off him as he looked at the chest. "What were you looking at just now, Colonel?

Fitzwilliam's mind raced, searching for a plausible explanation. "Oh, just some old books. I did not find anything particularly interesting, guess my time would have been saved if you had come earlier and told you had me there was nothing of historical value."

Andrew's curiosity eased up. "Well, if you find anything you think might be valuable, do let us know. We are always open to selling some of the old items if they can fetch a good price."

"Of course," Fitzwilliam agreed, relieved that Andrew had not pressed further. "I will be sure to let you know."

With that, Andrew turned and left the attic, leaving Fitzwilliam alone once more. The colonel let out a breath, returning to the chest as soon as no footsteps could be heard. He carefully retrieved the book, opened it -read a few pages; was stunned by what it said but, the book, was too thick to take it out of the attic without just case. So, he did the next best thing; Richard turned the Collins' own table on them.

Looking around Richard grinned when he saw a space in one of the walls, close to the floor. Sliding the book inside, the colonel was pleased the chest in front of it was already a natural barrier to the now hiding place of a book he hoped to recover later. He then turned back to finding items that could truly be sold at an auction. There was no way he could just leave, even with what he had just read, that would raise too much suspicion.