A Royal Bennet (9 page)

“Yes, Miss Elizabeth was concerned with using
what few coins she had to pay for the express, but she
felt it was important to send the information quickly.”

“I am eternally grateful for your kindness to Miss
Elizabeth and, I believe the maid is named Lucy.”
Darcy stated with a warmth about him. “And I wish to
cover any debt the ladies left behind, as well as
whatever cost was accumulated in moving them.”

“Miss Elizabeth stated her family would assist in
paying the funds, but it is not that great an expense.
Miss Elizabeth would not hear of adding to the bill,
keeping everything as simple as possible. I would not
stand for her and Lucy having only bread to eat, it
would do them no good to take ill from no proper
food. They did not have anything necessary to take
care of themselves. Why, Miss Elizabeth even tried to
refuse my offer of a hot bath. Like it would be such a
great burden. No, what I have done for the young
ladies was a gift from me and my husband. We are
firm believers in when you do good things, good
things come back to you. Someday, we might be in
need of assistance, and hopefully someone will be
there for us.”

“You will always find a friend in me, if ever you are
in need, Mrs Barkow. No matter what the problem or
need, you will be welcome to contact me.” Darcy
handed her one of his cards, with his address at
Pemberley and in Town on it, along with a pouch of
coins. “Can you tell me where they were being taken
to?”

“Mr Miller was taking them to Bluecoat School. He
has a friend who works there, and they would be able
to hide the ladies in the basement.”

“I can take you there, Mr Darcy.” Mr Barkow
stated.

 

~~ ** ~~

Mr Gardiner came out of the Rose and Crown inn.
“They said that Mr Darcy and his men are out at the
moment, and they do not know when they will
return.”

“Do they have rooms available to rent?”

“They do. I have paid for two rooms. Let us go
inside and order some food. We can wait for Mr
Darcy to return.” Mr Gardiner assisted his wife down
from the carriage, before turning to assist his brother
in law. “How are you feeling, Thomas?”

“As if a herd of horses have trampled me a dozen
times.” Mr Bennet stated as he shook his head. “I
have some laudanum in my bag. After I have eaten, I
will take a small dose.”

The trio entered the lobby and were directed to
the dining room. They ordered some roasted beef,
potatoes, bread and dessert. The food arrived and
they all enjoyed the repast.

Just as they finished the meal, they heard a
commotion from the lobby. Moving to the door, the
trio was met with a disturbing sight.

~~ ** ~~
“Are you certain the black beast was involved?”
Caspen took hold of one of his men by the front of
their shirt. “You allowed him to trick you while the
chits escaped? That man is known for hiding slaves.
And you let him fool you. We need to start searching
where there are darkies and those who protect them.”

One of the older men spoke up. “There is some
darkies working at the poor school, that Bluecoat
place. I seen them with that Miller fella a few times.
That would be a good place to hide them ladies.”

“I will go with you to check out the school.” Caspen
replied. “You two check the darkies’ church over by
the canal. And you two go to the church by the stables
on Park Street. There are lots of darkies who go
there.”

The men separated and went on their way, in
hopes of finding the ladies. It had become clear to all
the men, Caspen had no desire to sell the ladies any
longer. His desire was to see them pay for making
him appear weak. He could not allow the humiliation
to continue.

Caspen and Fred entered the rear entrance of
Bluecoat School. They silently looked about the main
level, before they began searching the basement.
With the servants’ quarters in the basement, it was
natural the servants would be hiding the ladies.

The first room they came upon was the kitchen.
Inside the room, preparing items for the following
day’s breakfast for the children, was the head cook,
Mrs Firth. The men startled her, making her drop the
dish in her hand.

Caspen moved towards her, placing a hand over
her mouth as Fred took hold of her arms. “Where are
your darkies? They be hidin’ some ladies, and we
want them.”

“We have no darkies here.” Mrs Firth replied,
though unconvincingly.

 

“I know you have some darkies, and I demand you
take me to them now.”

Mrs Firth was shaking as she felt herself being
pulled down the hallway. She was fond of Jenny and
Ruby, and feared for their safety. Knowing the men
were not to be trusted, Mrs Firth thought of how she
could warn them. Down the hall, a door opened and
one of the young men who worked for the school
stepped out. “Franklin, what are you doing awake?
You are usually the first to fall asleep.” She asked,
motioning with her eyes towards the man holding her
left arm.

“I thought I heard something breaking, and was
coming to make sure all was well.” He frowned at the
men with Mrs Firth. “Who are these men?”

“They be lookin’ for Jenny and Ruby, though they
refuse to tell me why. Have you seen the girls?”

Knowing Franklin was standing near the door to
the sisters’ room, and that he realized something was
wrong, Mrs Firth took a steadying breath. Franklin’s
voice rose in volume. “I have not seen either Jenny or
Ruby for several hours. I would have thought them be
in the kitchen, helpin’ as they posed to do.”

“I was giving them an evening off, as there is not
as much preparation to be done tonight. The dough is
rising and porridge can wait until the morn.” Both
knew the sisters would not be to work until sunrise,
but the discussion was enough to alert each other of
the problem, not to mention waking Jenny, if she was
asleep, for she was a light sleeper.

Jenny woke her sister, placing a hand gently over
her mouth so Ruby would not speak. Ruby’s eyes
grew large with the voices outside their door. Jenny
moved to the other bed, waking Elizabeth and Lucy.
Fear was overwhelming Lucy even more than usual.
She could not be moved by those in the room with
her, as she remained stiff as a board on the bed.
Quivers of fear raced through her body, spasms
against the stone into which she had turned.

It was obvious that Elizabeth was not going to be
able to escape with Lucy by her side. Thoughts
flowed through her mind, finally settling on hiding
Lucy under one of the beds, and Elizabeth causing the
men to see her and follow after her, allowing the
sisters time to move Lucy to safety.

Hearing Franklin shout at the men to release Mrs
Firth and leave the school, Elizabeth knew she had to
do something before anyone was injured. She opened
the door a crack and saw that Franklin had moved
closer to the men and the cook, and was now standing
between the men and her. Moving quickly, Elizabeth
dashed out of the door and down the hallway, praying
the men would follow her and ignore Lucy’s absence.

Shouting ensued, and screams. Elizabeth feared
for the safety of those who were protecting her, and
she was prepared to stop when she heard a voice
which she recognized, though she believed herself to
be imagining it.
He could not be here. Why would I
think it is his voice?

Turning about, Elizabeth heard the sound of a
pistol firing, screams, and of someone being struck
repeatedly. She moved towards the skirmish,
prepared to surrender, wishing to protect all who
were innocent. Seeing a man in a red uniform, and
several others, attempting to subdue the men who
had kidnapped her and Lucy, Elizabeth noticed
someone on the floor.

Quickly, Elizabeth moved to the person, who was
lying on his side. Rolling his body so that she could
see where he was injured, she took a quick gasp.
I am
imagining things, this cannot be true.

The man she had rolled over was none other than
Mr Fitzwilliam Darcy. Elizabeth was sure she had lost
her mind in all the confusion, and that there was no
reason for Mr Darcy to be at the school. She knew her
life had been stressful, but could not determine why
she would imagine Mr Darcy, of all people, to be her
rescuer.

Two of the men who were struggling to subdue
Caspen lost their grasp on the man, who was holding a
knife in his hand. He plunged it into the arm of one of
the men who was fighting him, and then grabbed hold
of Elizabeth’s arm, pulling her with him as he backed
down the hall, his knife held at her throat.

“Put the knife down.” The man in uniform
growled. “And release the young lady.”

 

“If I do, you will kill me, so I think not. She will be
my protection as I leave here.” Caspen sneered.

“You will not be leaving here of your own free will.
You will be accompanying your friend to the
magistrate. But if you harm the young lady, I will save
you the trouble and run you through here and now.”

The man was vaguely familiar to Elizabeth,
somewhat favoring Mr Darcy.
What is happening to
me? First I imagine Mr Darcy on the floor, now I find
this soldier is similar to Mr Darcy. I must be dreaming
all of this. That is the only possibility. But why would I
be dreaming of Mr Darcy?

Elizabeth was brought back to reality when she
felt the knife’s blade scrape her neck as Caspen
started to pull her backwards with him. Suddenly, she
stumbled over something on the floor, feeling
something wrap around her ankle. She screamed as
fingers took hold of her ankle, and she fell to the floor.
The blade of the knife cut along the top of her
shoulder, as her body made its way down, finally
landing in a heap on the floor. Caspen’s face
registered fear as he watched the soldier advance on
him, his sword in hand. The tip of the sword was soon
plunging in the front of Caspen’s body, near the center
of his chest. Collapsing, Caspen was shouting
vulgarities as he landed on the floor near Elizabeth.
There were other people moving in the hallway,
servants from the school who had been awakened by
the commotion and who came out of their rooms to
determine what was happening.

Elizabeth felt herself being lifted from the floor in
the arms of someone she had never seen before. The
pain in her shoulder was great, and she knew she had
been bleeding, as she could feel the wetness on her
gown. She noticed the man who she thought to be Mr
Darcy was being picked up by the soldier, while
another man was coming from the bedchambers of
Jenny and Ruby, carrying a bundled up Lucy.
Elizabeth’s eyes grew heavy and she felt exhausted,
even though she valiantly struggled to keep awake so
she could learn who her rescuers were. The last thing
she remembered was being carried outside and
placed on a wagon. Then everything went black.

~~ ** ~~

Having received word from the Barkows as to
where ladies had been taken, Darcy and his cousin led
the men to the Bluecoat school. It was evening, and
most of the occupants of the school had retired early,
as was common for them. The use of candles
throughout the building was only done when
necessary, for candles were expensive. So it was
common for the children and staff to keep to their
rooms in the evening, and wake earlier in the day,
utilizing the sunlight to illuminate the rooms.

The men made their way inside the building by
way of the front doors, being directed by the servant
to the head mistress’s office at the end of the hallway.
Darcy allowed his cousin to carry the conversation
with the lady, as he was far too anxious to make sense.
He knew the men were still searching for Elizabeth,
and he could not feel comfortable until he knew she
was safe.

The head mistress was surprised to learn of the
situation. “My staff know they are not to bring anyone
from outside the school to their rooms. The situation
you are describing is potentially dangerous, and I
cannot tolerate such behavior in my school.”

“Mrs Langdon, I understand your concerns, but we
do not wish to cause trouble for your staff. We are
grateful for their kindness to the young ladies who
were in need of assistance.”

“But they have broken our rules, so they will be
terminated from their employment with us. I cannot
allow such circumstances here.” Mrs Langdon
declared.

“Then the servants will have employ through me,
Mrs Langdon.” Darcy stated. “I will see they are
compensated for their efforts and are provided with
anoccupation which will treat them better than you.”

“Mr Darcy, I am not trying to be difficult. I am
thinking of the welfare of the students who are under
my protection. I cannot have servants disobeying the
rules in such a manner.”

“That is not important at the moment. What is
important is finding the ladies and moving them to
safety.”

Mrs Langdon was displeased with the attitudes of
the men before her. “Very well, let us go downstairs.”

As the group reached the bottom of the stairs, they
could hear Mrs Firth and Franklin speaking. Mrs
Langdon was confused by what was being said, but
Richard was instantly at the ready. His years of
military service made his senses keen, and he was
aware the men in the hallway with the servants were
the very men who had kidnapped the ladies.

Richard and Darcy moved quickly behind the men
and Mrs Firth, and a fight ensued. Hearing the sound
of a pistol being fired, Richard saw his cousin wince
and double over. He pulled his sword and held it
tightly in his grip, as one of the villains took hold of
Elizabeth’s arm and raised the knife to her throat.
From the way the man spoke, Richard was certain he
was the leader of the band of misfits, and the man
would not go down without a fight. What the man did
not think of was the fact that they had to step over the
prone figure of Darcy, who was doing a tremendous
imitation of being unconscious. When Elizabeth
stepped over him, stumbling slightly, Darcy’s hand
reached up and took hold of her ankle, pulling her
down. Darcy hoped he was pulling her to safety,
allowing his cousin to advance on the crook and finish
off the blackguard.