Mr. Darcy's Forbidden Love-kindle (10 page)

Now standing out front of the impressive, red brick facade of Darcy House, Richard did what he had always done—stopping to look up and admire the grandness of the full three stories. Spying the third floor balcony, he recalled the many times he and William had slipped up there as boys and tossed small pebbles onto the pavement in front of unsuspecting people. All had gone well until they had almost hit George Darcy’s steward. He smiled at the memory of his uncle holding Darcy accountable for them both, the smile quickly fading at the recollection of the punishment his own father had inflicted when he was informed of the incident.

It is time!
Taking a deep breath and he steeled himself and threw back his shoulders.
You have faced bigger foes than this. Best get to it!

Taking the steps two at a time he was pounding on the beautifully carved entrance door in seconds. It was opened almost immediately by a footman who stepped out of sight as the butler and housekeeper came forward. Richard observed that the usually talkative couple were abnormally sombre. Mr. Barnes only nodded as he took his coat and hat, while Mrs. Barnes silently held out her ring of keys, the one to the study noticeably separate from the others.

“You say he has not been out of the study in three days?”

Mrs. Barnes eyes fell to her shoes. “No, sir. He has slept in the study on several occasions since he returned from Netherfield, but never for a number of nights in a row—until now. He barely eats, and he has had several bottles of brandy sent up from the cellar.”

“Once I am in the study, bring us coffee—plenty of coffee.” 

She nodded as Richard took the key from her hand and headed towards the study, the housekeeper on his heels. After unlocking the door, he handed the keys back to Mrs. Barnes and motioned for her to leave, which she seemed eager to do. Slowly opening the door, he stuck his head in to ascertain exactly where William was in the large room.  Finding his cousin in the chair behind his desk, feet propped upon the edge and eyes closed, he entered the room as noiselessly as possible.

Making his way to William, he noted an empty bottle of brandy on the edge of his desk, a half-empty bottle on the corner of the liquor cabinet and a full glass sitting in front of him. A few papers were stacked neatly on the corner of the large mahogany desk, as though he had not touched them in some time. As a rule, the entire top of his desk would be a miscellany of papers and folders, each piled upon the other, as well as numerous pens and ink. It did not take much evaluation to determine that William’s primary goal of late had been drinking himself into oblivion.

“Am I interrupting anything, Darcy?” Richard asked loudly, dropping smoothly into the chair in front of his cousin.

William, who had indeed been dozing, startled at the sound of his cousin’s voice. Promptly turning to put his feet down on the floor, he sat up straight, a pronounced frown on his unshaven face. Richard’s impertinent smile instantly reminded him that he was not in the frame of mind to be amused.

“Would it matter if you were interrupting? And where are my servants? That door was supposed to be locked.”

“To answer your questions—no, but I enjoy it so much more if I am interrupting —and I sent Mr. and Mrs. Barnes back to their duties.  The door was locked, but I had Mrs. Barnes open it for me.”

“So my servants answer to you, do they? I suppose then that you should be paying their salaries instead of me.”

“Do not be angry because they are concerned for you, Darcy. It does not become you. Besides, if I had money for servants, I would gladly hire Mr. and Mrs. Barnes away from you!”

Ignoring his quip, William rubbed the stubble on his face, realising that his head was aching once again. “To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?”

“Oh ho! Pleasure is it now? The last time I was here you berated me for keeping you from your business and lamented the fact that His Majesty’s army could do very well without me for weeks at a time.” Richard’s lips curled into a smirk.  “I have never felt so unloved and unwanted.”

William picked a paper from the neat stack on his desk and pretended to read. “You do not have to stay and be humiliated. You may leave now.”

“Very well, if I am only going to be insulted, it is time for you to confess. How has Gisela embarrassed you now? Made a spectacle with Lord Attenborough again? Fallen down drunk at Vauxhall Gardens?
3
Or perhaps she tried to enter your townhouse for the hundredth time, when you have strictly forbidden her to do so.”

William just shook his head resignedly as he concentrated on whatever apparently fascinated him on the paper. Richard noted that his hand trembled slightly.

“It is a good thing that she is clearly barren, or she would have had some cad’s bastard by now and tried to pass it off as yours.”

William groaned, laying the paper down and ceasing all pretence of interest. Closing his eyes, he lifted the glass of brandy and ran it back and forth across his forehead as if to cool his brow. Studying William’s haggard appearance, Richard said sympathetically, “I apologise, Darcy. I know that you believe you can do nothing about your situation at this time. It is just that I hate how that woman embarrasses you.”

“Gisela’s antics are not the source of my present misery, though she is part and parcel of all my despair.”

“Then why do you not tell me what is bothering you? I may not be able to do anything but commiserate with you, but at least I can do that.”

William downed the rest of the contents of his glass and stood to pour himself another drink just as there was a knock at the door. Before he could say anything, Richard opened the door to Mrs. Barnes, who held a tray with a pot of hot coffee and cups. He stood back to give her room to enter, and avoiding meeting her employer’s eyes, the housekeeper set the tray on a nearby table, bobbed a curtsey and turned to leave.

“Mrs. Barnes?” Richard called. The elderly woman stopped and turned slowly.

“Darcy and I shall break our fast in the dining room as soon as you have food prepared.” 

A small smile played at the corners of the housekeeper’s lips.  “Very well, sir. I shall send word as soon as it is ready.”  With that, she bobbed again and vanished out the door.

Richard walked over to William and took the empty glass from his hands. “No more brandy, Cousin. It is time you sobered up and ate something besides biscuits.”

Richard handed him a cup of black coffee, and he took a sip before taking it with him to the large floor-to-ceiling windows. For a long time, William stared into the gardens while drinking the soothing liquid. Richard watched him in silence, noting that he was a good bit thinner than when last he had seen him.

“There are two things weighing heavily on my mind,” William stated at last. Looking back to see Richard nod, he continued. “I hired a retired solicitor to investigate the joint venture that my father began years ago with Lewis de Bourgh and Jackson Montgomery—I think I told you about the stock in the mills.” Richard nodded again. “With my father’s death, I am now partnered in the enterprise with Lady Catherine and my
dear
wife, since I allowed her to keep all her assets when we married.”

“I never understood your reasoning for doing that, especially in light of the fact that she inherited Lord Montgomery’s vote.”

“I did not want our lives joined in any aspect. Besides, Montgomery was her father, and he left it to her in trust. I wanted nothing that belonged to her, and she has nothing that belongs to me, except my name and an allowance to support her dissolute habits.

“In any event, the income from the venture has steeply declined these last two years. While that income is not paramount to my portfolio, the supplementary loans have grown significantly. I questioned extending loans to the mills for more equipment until we analysed each mill’s viability, but of course, I was over-ruled, as Gisela always votes with Aunt Catherine. I am beginning to think that there is more to this than meets the eye, so at my solicitor’s advice, I retained Mr. Lowell to investigate the finances. While I was in Meryton, he asked me to return to London for a conference. When we met, he asked my permission to expand the investigation to include visiting the mills to trace the expenditures for equipment.”

“What will our aunt say when she learns of this? Or Gisela for that matter?”

“I care not what either one thinks. They have overruled all my objections, so I am under no obligation to inform them.”

William held fast to his vigil at the window, his eyes searching the horizon as though somehow the answers he sought were out there. When the silence continued, Richard ventured, “And the other matter?”

William’s shoulders visibly slumped, and with his free hand, he gripped the window frame as though it were necessary to keep him upright. His knuckles turned white with the effort. “I met someone.”

No further explanation was necessary. Those words could only mean one thing—Darcy had fallen in love.  This was a significant development, possibly disastrous, and Richard could not, would not, make light of it. All of his bravado disappeared and he stood mute as his cousin continued.

“She is entirely unlike any woman I have ever known. She is intelligent without being haughty, full of merriment without being ridiculous and refreshing as a spring rain in her innocence. And beautiful. So beautiful I can only compare her to a painting of a woman I saw on my tour of the Continent.”

For a moment William seemed lost in thought, so Richard ventured, “Does this paragon have a name?”

“Elizabeth … Elizabeth Bennet.”

“And she hails from Hertfordshire, I presume?” William nodded absently. “Knowing you,
Mr. Duty and Honour
, I am perplexed as to how you were able to form an acquaintance, given how attentively you avoid being in company with women.”

Without turning, William began to recount how he had met Elizabeth in the bookstore and again at the ball. Then he explained how Providence had placed him in the role of her protector. Leaving out the finer details of their night spent together, he quickly moved on to his meeting with Mr. Bennet and the decision to leave Meryton straightaway.

A low whistle preceded Richard’s reply. “I knew you would not raise her expectations cold-heartedly. And I will not ask what transpired during your stay in the cabin, as you have so studiously avoided telling me that part of your story, but it is obvious that you have strong feelings for her.”

William’s eyes hardened. He drained his cup, then in one motion turned from the window to fling it into the hearth, where it shattered into tiny pieces. The ferocity of the gesture caused Richard to flinch. 

“Duty and honour!” William shouted. “Why must I be the one held to such a standard?” His voice grew louder and he began to pace. “Why must I suffer when I was not the one who carried on an adulterous affair? And why was it left to me to spare my mother and sister from the embarrassment of my father’s lust?”

William stopped pacing and stood with his hands covering his face as Richard hurried to him. Sliding an arm across his shoulder, Richard could feel him shaking with fury.

“Because, my brave cousin, you were man enough to step in to protect those you loved. That is more than I can say of Uncle George.”

William threw up his hands in frustration, laughing mirthlessly. “I often wonder if it was worth it. Had I known that father and mother would die soon after…” His voice trailed off, as his thoughts returned to what might have been.

“I know you too well, Cousin, and you would have gone through with it regardless. You were always fearless when it came to protecting your family, whereas I would have likely refused, as I am not so fond of mine.” Richard replied dryly.

William slumped down in a nearby chair, and for a time he ran both hands through his hair, something Richard has seen him do since they were children whenever he was distressed. Finally, his hands stilled and he murmured roughly, “I was afraid that if I stayed one more day, I would confess my feelings and if I had—”

“Do not torture yourself, Darcy. You are only human. And you deserve more than the misery that has been your lot. Perhaps it is time to put this matter to rest and explain to Georgiana about her birth.”

William’s head swung slowly side to side.  “I cannot. Not when I have no idea who her real father might be.”  He took a deep breath and sat up straighter. “Do not concern yourself for me, cousin. I have another two days until I have to face Georgiana and pretend all is well. I shall persevere.”

“And what will you do if the one woman who has managed to touch your heart is no longer available should you decide to extricate yourself from Gisela?”

William stared into space for some time before answering. “I suppose I shall just have to accept that she was never meant to be mine.”

Just at that moment there was a knock on the study door. “Come!” William called and he and Richard watched as it slowly opened, and Mr. Barnes warily stuck his head inside.

“Come in, Barnes,” William offered, knowing full well that he had not been the kindest employer since his return from Hertfordshire. Mr. Barnes stepped towards him, a silver salver in his hand and a letter upon it.

“This was delivered a moment ago. It came by express so I thought it might be urgent.”

William stood and took the missive. “Thank you, Barnes. You are most perceptive.”

“Thank you, sir. And Mrs. Barnes asked me to relay that the dining room is prepared and you may eat when you wish.” 

As Barnes turned to leave, William added, “Would you tell Mrs. Barnes that the Colonel and I shall also dine together tonight?”

Mr. Barnes smiled slightly, his eyes meeting Richard’s before settling on William. “I will be most happy to do so, sir.” 

Richard’s brow furrowed as he turned from watching Mr. Barnes exit the room, to see the scowl on his cousin’s face. “What is the matter now, Darcy?”

William kept reading for a moment before he looked up to meet his cousin’s gaze. “This is from Mr. Carter—the investigator hired to look into Bingley’s lost shipment. He has written that another of his ships has apparently been lost at sea. Carter thought I might be able to locate Charles without delay, as he sent a letter to his townhouse but has not received a reply.” William shook his head tiredly. “I told Charles to notify his solicitor when he was not going to be in residence in London, but I imagine he forgot as usual.”