After walking for awhile, she finally managed to calm herself down. She was already at the small park near the house, and though it was not Pemberley’s park, she could pretend she was alone, breathing fresh air and enjoying the cool breeze of the afternoon.
She had been so distracted with her own thoughts she failed to realize the night was falling and that there were no other people at the park.
Chapter Twelve
A chill ran down her spine and she turned around to return to the house.
She had only taken two steps when a man came out from the bushes and stood in front of her. “Elizabeth Bennet?” the man asked.
Startled, Elizabeth looked at the man’s sloppy appearance and his low-class accent. She tried to walk around the man, ignoring his question, but suddenly another man grabbed her from behind, and before she could do anything or even yell, a hand had covered her mouth and she had been dragged away from the trail and taken through the trees and bushes.
Elizabeth struggled and squirmed, trying to free herself, but the man holding her was extremely strong and it was almost impossible for her to move.
After a few minutes, she was shoved inside a closed carriage and the man that had been dragging her climbed after her, gagging her with a dirty cloth and picking some ropes from the seat to quickly tie her up, as she lie on the floor.
She had no idea how long they travelled in that stinky carriage, before they stopped and carried her out of it and into a small shed. She could tell they were in an isolated area, and that meant nothing good for her.
They took her inside and dropped her over a small bed in a filthy room before they left locking the door behind them.
Elizabeth struggled with the ropes restraining her, but it was no use. The knots did not budge.
She was left there for so long she was starting to feel numb, and so tired her eyes closed against her will.
All of a sudden, the door was opened and one of the guys appeared, making her stand and dragging her to what looked like the main room of the shed. He forced her to sit down at a table and removed the gag from her mouth.
She was about to demand some answers when the main door was opened and Lady Catherine herself entered the shed.
“Well, well, well… no more sassy attitude as I can see.” Said she, with a scornful scowl.
“I should have guessed you were behind this.” Elizabeth said, showing all her despise.
“I told you to leave, but you were too greedy.” The old woman replied, justifying her actions.
“What do you expect to gain with this? Unless you are thinking about killing me, I am still married to your nephew.” Elizabeth kept her tone as calmed as possible. She was not showing fear to those people.
“There is no need to go that far, but I would, do not doubt me.” her tone was so ruthless, so cold, Elizabeth was sure she would go that far.
“Then I really do not see the purpose of this charade.”
“Oh, but you will.” She turned to look at one of the men. “Untie her right hand, she has a letter to write.” Ordered she, before she turned to look at Elizabeth again. “You are going to write a farewell letter to my nephew, telling him that you decided to accept my generous offer and leave him. You shall tell him to follow my advice regarding your marriage and its annulment and make sure to let him know your only interest was always his money and his luxurious life, but since I have provided you with both, you see no reason to continue enduring a marriage you never wanted.”
Elizabeth was mesmerized at the cruelty coming out of the older woman’s mouth. She must have lost her mind, there was no other explanation.
“And may I ask why would I write that?”
“Because if you do not write it, your body shall appear floating in the Thames, a few hours from now.”
“What guarantee do I have that you will not kill me either way, after I write the letter?”
“I shall give you my word. After Darcy is married to my daughter, these good men shall release you and you will be free to go back to your family.” She assured her. “I have no interest in killing you, but I will, if I have to, in order to fulfill my wishes.”
Elizabeth considered her options. Refusing to write the letter was equivalent to signing her own death sentence. On the other hand, if she wrote it, she would be gaining time, and giving Darcy time to find her.
She was sure he would not believe the words written in that letter and he would do all in his power to find her. It would also buy her time to think of a way of escaping that dreadful place and returning to the loving arms of her husband.
She had no other choice.
“Very well, I shall write the letter.”
“I knew you would understand my position.”
Elizabeth snorted and said nothing more, as she picked up the pen and started to write the letter.
“My dear Darcy,
By the time you read these lines, I shall be far away from London. Lady Catherine finally convinced me I was better off without you and this marriage that has meant nothing more than problems since the beginning. She has provided me with enough money to last me a couple of lives, and since that was always my main goal, I see no reason to continue with this marriage.
Your aunt is a very intelligent woman, you should follow her advice on how to end this senseless marriage, so that you can marry your cousin Anne. I am sure you will be very happy together with the child she is expecting.
Forgive me for all the lies, but I am sure you will be able to recognize them and accept this is for the best. Do not follow me, there is no point, since I have nothing more to say to you.
Have a good life,
Sincerely,
Elizabeth.
Lady Catherine took the paper out of her hands and quickly read it. “Hmm, I would not have written it this way, but I guess it is acceptable.”
“I am glad you are pleased.” Said Elizabeth, oozing sarcasm through every single word.
“These men shall keep you well, until Darcy is married to Anne. After that, you shall be free to go back to the hole you came out of.” With those words, the woman left the shed, slamming the door after her.
One of the men made Elizabeth get up and took her back to the room they had locked her in when they arrived. Apparently, it would be her cell for a while.
Chapter Thirteen
Darcy entered the house and after handing his hat and gloves to the butler, he went looking for Elizabeth. She had been so tense those past days, he wanted to invite her out. A new play was premiering that night at the Theatre and he was sure she would love to go.
When he reached her room, he opened the door, but there was no one there. He called for Maggie, suddenly with a bad feeling.
“Did you call, Mr. Darcy?” the girl asked, looking agitated.
“Yes, Maggie, I am looking for my wife, have you seen her?” asked he, with a slight frown.
“I have not, sir, not since she decided to go for a walk at the park this afternoon. She has not returned, Mr. Darcy.” The girl was clearly worried, and her words worried Darcy as well.
It was nighttime, and the park was no place for a woman alone at this hour.
“Call Jones, I need him go to with me to the park. Perhaps, she got lost.” He said going down the stairs. He had a very bad feeling about this situation.
Maggie ran in front of him and he was about to leave the house when Jones, one of his servants, joined him. They left the house and spent the next hour searching all over the park for her to no avail. She was nowhere to be found.
Feeling a bit desperate, Darcy returned to the house and found his aunt waiting for him, in the drawing room.
“Darcy.” She called him, in her demanding tone.
“Aunt, whatever it is you need, I really have no time for it.” He warned her and was about to turn around and leave when she called him again.
“I heard you have been out looking for the Bennet girl.” Said she, in a scornful tone.
“I wa
s out looking for my wife, yes.” There was little patience in his tone.
“You should have asked me about her.” The old woman said, with a victorious smile on her face.
Darcy closed the distance between them and stood in front of his aunt, with a deep frown on his face.
“What do you mean? You know where she is?” he asked in low, cold tone.
“No, I cannot say I know where she is, but she left a letter for you.” She handed him the letter and remained in silence while he read it.
At first, Darcy could not understand the meaning of the letter he was reading. The words danced in front of his eyes and he could not make any sense of it.
He had to read it again for its meaning to really sink in him. Elizabeth had left him.
“The Bennet girl finally listened to reason and decided she was better off accepting my offer.” Lady Catherine boasted with a hideous smile on her face. “She took the money I offered her and left.”
Somehow, Lady Catherine’s words, instead of rubbing salt in his wounded heart, cured him instantly. There was no way on earth the woman he loved and knew better than himself, would accept any deal from his aunt.
Something was very wrong and he had to calm himself to find out what it was.
He read the letter once more and some of her words popped out: ‘Forgive me for all the lies, but I am sure you will be able to recognize them’
She was lying in the letter. She had not left of her own volition, she had been forced to leave and that was what she was trying to let him know.
Rage and fury rushed through his body and for a moment he wished he could explode and make his aunt confess what she had done to Elizabeth, but he knew his aunt. He knew she would die denying it and confronting her could bring harm to Elizabeth and that was the last thing he wanted.
“You had no right to do that.” He grumbled, through gritted teeth.
“Of course, I had. You failed to see the reality, that she was only interested in your money, and meanwhile you were willing to ruin our family’s future to be with her.” Said she, in a stern tone. “The only good thing you did was to marry her on my parish. I immediately ordered Collins to destroy the record of your marriage, so the only thing you have to do is to burn the copy you have and no one will ever know of that terrible mistake you committed.”
Darcy had to make a huge effort to control himself and not yell to his aunt. The woman had gone too far to obtain what she wanted.
“I cannot believe what you are saying, aunt. How could you go that far?”
“I shall go as far as I need to.” Her words were so ominous, Darcy froze where he was standing.
There was no doubt that was a threat, and if he wanted to see Elizabeth again, he had to be very careful.
“You need to marry your cousin and give your name to the little bastard she is expecting. Hopefully, it will be a girl, so there will be no harm done, and once Anne finally passes away, you will be able to marry whoever you want.”
“How can you be so cold? You are talking about your own daughter.” He shook his head, unable to believe her words.
“She has been nothing more than a disappointment since she was born. My only failure and as if that was not enough, her birth prevented me from having other children, so you will understand why I feel nothing more than nuisance for her.” Explained she, in a very cold tone.
“I shall never understand a thing like that.” He assured her, shaking his head in disbelief.
“That matters not. The only thing important here is that you marry Anne and secure her inheritance, like I have asked you a million times.” Replied she.
Darcy felt the need to shout his rejection to her plans, but his instinct told him that would not be a good idea. He needed time to find Elizabeth and to find the doctor.
That would be the only way to destroy Lady Catherine’s plans.
Without saying another word, Darcy left the room, and seconds later, he was leaving the house. He needed help to find his wife, and Jonathan was the only man he knew that might be able to help him with such a task.
As he suspected, Jonathan was still in his office, despite the late hour.
“Darcy, what are you doing here at this hour?” he asked, as he guided into his office.
“I could ask you the same question, Jonathan. Life is more than just work.” Replied he, with a tired tone.
“Yes, I am starting to see that, but you did not come here to talk about my working hours.”
“No… I came here because I am desperate.” He explained the whole story to Jonathan, including the part of his cousin and the doctor they were still looking for. “I am sure she did something to Elizabeth.” He ended his story.
“Are you absolutely sure of it?”
“Yes, she would never accept money from my aunt, she would rather beg on the streets.” Darcy ran his hand through his hair the millionth time. “She would have left me, if she was convinced she would be saving me from a tremendous scandal or from ruining my life, but never because of money.” Explained he.
“Yes, I can see her doing that. She looked at you with love in her eyes, I am sure of that.” Jonathan accepted.
“Do you think we can find her?” there was despair in Darcy’s tone.
“Nothing is impossible. But it will not be easy.” He let out a deep sigh. “What is the last thing you know about her?”
“Her maid told me she left the house to go for a walk in the park and was not seen ever since.”
“Then we shall start there. Someone might have seen something helpful. And since you suspect your aunt is behind this, I shall put a man following her and find out what she was doing at the time Elizabeth disappeared. That might lead us to where they have Elizabeth.”
“Of course she is behind this. She even had the letter Elizabeth wrote.”
“Are you sure it is her handwriting?”
“Yes, I am.”
“So, there are two possibilities here: or Lady Catherine picked the letter herself, or it was brought to her, from wherever they keep Elizabeth.”
“God, yes, you are right.” A tremulous smile cracked Darcy’s face. “You should have stayed in the army. You have a gift for this.”
His friend let out a loud laugh. “I have to admit I miss it sometimes, but I am better off as a businessman.”
“I am glad I can count on your help.”
“It is a pleasure for me to help you in any way I can. I just dread the circumstances.”
“Yes… me too.”
“Have faith, I shall send a man to the park at once, and you must find out if Lady Catherine left the house this afternoon and how she did it.”
Darcy got up. “Of course, I shall get to it right now.”
“Just be discreet, there is no use alerting her.”
“Of course.”
“I shall be in contact. The good thing is that the ship we have been expecting should be docking in a few more days.”
“Yes, I know. Hopefully, we will solve this nightmare soon.”
Darcy returned home and with Jones’ help he soon discovered his aunt had indeed left the house alone, that afternoon. She had not taken one of his carriages, preferring to hire one from the street, but she had asked his butler to get it for her.
The man always asked the same group of coachmen that parked their carriages on the nearest square and he remembered well which carriage had taken Lady Catherine.
Darcy immediately sent Jones to find out if the man was still working, but his colleagues told him the man had left London for a few days. Apparently, his family lived in a small village on London’s outskirts, and he had gone visiting them.
Jones asked them to warn the house as soon the man returned and they promised to do so.
That only increased Darcy’s level of frustration, especially when Jonathan warned him, he had not been able to find out anything on his investigations at the park.
It was very hard for him to control his feelings, especially in fro
nt of Lady Catherine, but he knew it was essential, if he wanted Elizabeth back, safe and sound.
He did his best not to think of what she might be going through, but it was incredibly difficult.
Chapter Fourteen
Elizabeth braced herself in the small bed. The night was cold and they had not given her a blanket to cover herself. Fortunately, they had untied her completely, though they replaced the ropes for a shackle attached to the wall, and around her ankle. She was not going anywhere.
They had not given her anything to eat and her growling stomach was another thing keeping her awake, and in those long hours in the darkness, conjured her greatest fears: what if Darcy believed the words in the letter and followed his aunt’s advice? What would become of her? Left to live the rest of her life alone, without him? Would she be able to bear that?
Tears filled her eyes, but she pushed them away, determined not to fall into the claws of self-pity. She was stronger than that. And if his love proved to be the weakest kind, she would survive that too.
The sunlight finally lit the room where she was being held prisoner, and soon she was able to hear the men moving around in the other room. She prayed they would give her some food, but she would not ask for it.
Fortunately, she did not have to. One of the men brought her a loaf of bread and a piece of cheese with a cup of the worst tea she had ever tasted. Even so, she ate and drank it as if it was the most delicious feast she had ever had.
“Please, sir, is there a chance you could get a book for me to read?” she asked, in a humble tone. There was no use in offending or provoking the men that held her life in their hands.
“A book? Why the heck would you want a book?” the man asked, astounded.
“I am not used to just laying around with nothing to do.” She explained, in a pleading tone.
“Then you should do something more useful, than reading.” The man grumbled.
Elizabeth's Ordeal Page 9
