Mary kept her eyes on the boy and responded as though he had answered her directly. “Well, I am sorry to hear that and I hope your aunt makes a quick recovery.”
She turned to see the others approaching with Vulcan trailing behind; Richie perched on his back and grinning from ear to ear. Janet and William ran in front while Mr. Fitzwilliam carried Beth and Patience; his daughter’s arms wrapped so tightly about his neck it appeared he might have difficulty taking a deep breath.
As they drew near, a smile began to spread across the gentleman’s countenance and he lowered Patience to the ground. “Ah, Miss Bennet, you are a sight for sore eyes. I cannot express the joy I feel in anticipating an evening of unguarded conversation, where my only concern is of insulting your high expectations. Shall you reprimand me for my absence? I fear I will agree with you in that. I should never have rushed off.” He glanced about, noticing the blanket set upon the ground and a basket nearby. “Ah, but you have all escaped the house, I see. A picnic on such a day, is it?”
His address startled her at first, but Mary remembered herself quickly. “Welcome back, General Fitzwilliam.” She curtseyed before straightening and meeting him with a challenging eye. “The high temperatures were causing disquiet in the nursery and we decided to seek out a breeze. Unfortunately the only ones we found were out of our reach,” she glanced upward toward the rustling leaves.
“Yes, Pa, we wanna climb the tree, but Willie isn’t tall enough,” Richie called from his spot upon the horse’s back. “Will you lift me up?”
Laughing, Richard looked between his son and the branch hanging just inches above his head. “I do not believe you require my assistance, Richie. Look up.”
In the next moment, everything seemed to happen at once. The child’s eyes grew to the size of saucers as he followed his father’s instructions and spotted the illusive branch so near. Reaching up, he wrapped his fingers about the limb and pulled. As his bottom left the saddle, Vulcan spotted a fresh patch of grass and moved forward to enjoy a treat, leaving the young boy dangling in mid-air. Richie looked down and realized he was higher than he had ever been before and began giggling with joy, causing his fingers to lose their grip.
General Fitzwilliam still held Beth, but stepped forward in an attempt to somehow catch his son. A blur caught his attention and he turned in time to see Adam and O’Toole step in front of him and catch Richie between them.
“Wee! Do it again!” Richie yelled as the servants lowered the child to the ground.
“I think not, Richie,” Mary said harshly. As he turned wounded eyes toward her, she forced a nervous smile. “I fear my nerves could not sustain it,” she said as she fanned herself.
The adults laughed at her imitation of Mrs. Bennet, and Mrs. Hampton stepped forward to take charge of her ward.
“I believe you should thank Mr. O’Toole and young Adam, Richie. If they had not caught you, you might have found yourself injured and unable to climb trees for quite some time.”
Laughing, Richie turned to the servants and thanked them as instructed, but it was clear he doubted such a thing would have occurred. A moment later, he was searching for some other means of scaling the ancient maple.
“Come, Richie,” called the General. “Take up your things so we might fold the blanket. I believe it is time to return to the house.” He looked over Beth’s head and winked at the ladies.
Huffing out a sigh as he crossed to them, Richie picked up his bat and ball. Mary and Mrs. Hampton made to take up the corners of the blanket, but Janet rushed forward.
“Oh, may we do it the way Mama does?” The adults looked at her questioningly and she continued. “William, you take that corner,” she pointed to the one nearest him. “Aunt Mary, you take that one,” she pointed to the next. “I shall take this one, and, Cousin Richard, you take the one beside Aunt Mary."
When Beth was on the ground and everyone was in position, Janet looked to Patience who smiled and sang out in her young voice as though she were calling a dance. The participants were instructed to step together and apart, bringing corners together and taking up newly created ones until the blanket was small enough that only Richard and Mary remained.
“Now kiss!” Patience cried out as she clapped her hands.
Mary’s eyes grew large and a heated blush rushed across her countenance as she turned away, dropping the blanket on the ground. “I beg your pardon?”
“No, Patience, that’s what Mama and Papa do.” Janet looked slyly at the adults as she turned toward her younger sister and took her hand. “Come on, let’s go find them.” The girls began running toward the house, but slowed quickly as the day remained sultry.
Mrs. Hampton and O’Toole exchanged an amused glance as they gathered the remaining children and herded them toward the house, leaving Mary and the General alone.
In an attempt to gather her equanimity, Mary knelt and straightened the blanket.
“Quite an interesting way to fold a blanket, would you not say?” General Fitzwilliam asked as he crossed to the basket. “I believe I should question my cousins on how the practice began.” He placed the remaining objects inside, closed it, and placed it upon his left arm before returning to Miss Bennet’s side and offering her the other.
Shyly, she slipped her hand about his elbow and they began their trek back to the house. After several moments of silence, she decided she was being foolish and raised her eyes to look at him. At her movement, he turned to meet her gaze.
“Did you have a pleasant stay at Matlock, sir?” she asked, grasping the first thought that entered her mind.
He visibly stiffened and a grimace pulled at the corner of his mouth. “It was what I have come to expect of the ton. As I said before, I am pleased to have returned to Pemberley and more agreeable company.”
“Oh,” she looked back toward the manor house and they walked in silence a few more minutes.
“Miss Bennet, would you play for us this evening? I believe I am need of the restorative powers of Heir Bach’s soothing melodies.”
A slight smile danced across her features as she nodded. “Georgiana brought a new piece with her and we have been practicing it as a duet. I am certain she will agree to play tonight also.”
Any tension that had filled him prior seemed to slip away as they continued toward the house, and they conversed easily regarding the children and their activities of the previous evening and morning. Once inside, the General took the blanket from Mary and handed it, along with the basket, to a servant before bowing to his companion and excusing himself to go in search of Darcy.
Mary stood a moment longer in the hallway, watching after him. A strange longing seemed to fill her, but she knew not what to call it. Shaking herself, she hurried up the stairs to the music room in order to practice for that evening.
Chapter Fourteen
Darcy’s arms folded about his wife, drawing her to his side as he stared up at their bedroom ceiling. Elizabeth rested her head against his shoulder and released a soft sigh as she did every night, causing Darcy to hold her a bit closer, if such a thing were possible. Just as he believed her to be drifting off to sleep, she spoke, drawing him from his nightly routine of mentally running through his expectations for the following day.
“Did you notice anything unusual this evening?”
“Unusual?” he asked before brushing a kiss across her forehead.
She traced a finger along the open neckline of his nightshirt in a teasing manner. “It appears the awkwardness between Mary and Richard has … changed.”
“In what manner?” he asked as he took her hand in his and lifted it to his lips where he placed a kiss upon the tempting digit.
Shrugging her shoulders, she lifted her head in order to see him better. “For a time, it appeared as though there was a bit of tension between them.”
Darcy nodded his head slowly as he contemplated her words, still holding her hand in his. “After the day she confronted him about his children, it seemed as though sh
e were frightened to speak to him, and he was trying very hard to make things right.”
“Yes,” Elizabeth leaned forward excitedly. “And then the outings with the children began, and they would return smiling and laughing.”
“It did appear they were very comfortable in each other’s company.” Darcy thought back to earlier in the evening, in an attempt to recollect what might have caught his wife’s attention.
Elizabeth continued, “But tonight Mary was quieter than she has been in some time. Just as I was becoming accustomed to my more talkative sister, she becomes a silent puzzle again. And did you notice how frequently she blushed?”
“I cannot say that I did.” He rubbed a hand absent-mindedly up and down her back as he pondered her words. “Did you note any specific change in Richard?”
Elizabeth considered for a moment before shaking her head. “I do not believe so, though he appeared very relaxed this evening. Did he partake of an increased amount of port?”
Shaking his head, Darcy told her they had consumed little before re-joining the ladies. “After his time at Matlock, Richard was anxious to hear Georgie and Mary play.”
“Really?” Her brow knitted together. “How odd.”
“Why would you say that? Mary’s playing has greatly improved, and Georgie has been a proficient for years.”
“Oh, I was simply remembering that Mary was practicing very intently earlier today. I stood in the doorway for some time, but she did not see me. She appeared resolved to perfect every rough area.”
Darcy kissed her forehead again in an attempt to smooth the lines which had appeared there. “I believe Mary always rises in a most tenacious manner to any occasion when she is determined to master a challenge set before her.”
“Do you think she was doing so for Richard?” Elizabeth asked, her head tilted ever so slightly and a puzzled look upon her countenance.
A smile slowly crept across Darcy’s lips as he pulled her closer and began placing light kisses about her brow and cheeks. “Mary and Richard? Elizabeth, you require a distraction; your imagination has run off with you.”
Pushing him away, she laughed. “No, I am quite serious. I shall have to watch her more closely.”
“You may begin doing so tomorrow.” Darcy raised up on one elbow as he pushed her back onto the mattress. “Tonight I require your full attention.”
Elizabeth slipped her arms about his neck, a welcoming smile crossing her lips, as she began to reply; but Darcy covered her mouth with his own before she could respond.
***********
The oppressive heat which had held Pemberley in its clutches, sapping the energy of all within, was finally broken by a thunderous storm which lit the rooms and rattled the window panes. Once the storm passed, the rain continued for several days. By this time, it had become Miss Bennet’s routine to spend approximately one hour each morning in the company of the children, prior to their studies. She would then return for afternoon tea, and afterward they would partake in an activity of some sort. Unfortunately, the weather placed rather large restrictions upon what could be done, and by the third day they were lost for ideas.
Having completed his work with Darcy and being unable to ride, Richard seized the opportunity to join the children for tea. As he entered the nursery, he spied the long faces and recognized the reason behind them as Janet slouched in the window seat looking longingly outside.
“Come now,” he called, having entered without their knowledge, “are you not pleased to see me? I shall have to return below and take tea with the dreary adults.”
“Pa!” Richie called out and ran to his father. Even his greeting did not display his normal overly boisterous self.
As he lifted the child to his shoulder, Richard shook his head. “You truly are displeased with the weather. Well, we shall have to find something for you to do.”
Richard began pacing down the middle of the room, apparently deep in thought, as the small boy rocked on his shoulders, ducking the ceiling pendant which lit the centre of the large room each time they passed until he dissolved into giggles. A smile played about the corners of the father’s lips at his son’s obvious joy with this simple distraction. He turned in time to see a complimentary look cross Miss Bennet’s countenance as she watched their game. When their eyes met, the colour rose in her cheeks and she quickly turned away.
“Perhaps there is a game we have not considered,” she said as she crossed to a cabinet and began looking within for ideas.
“We have played all the games,” Janet stated petulantly. “I wish we could find a new game.”
“Find,” Miss Bennet said softly as she tapped a finger to her cheek. “Yes, perhaps we may.”
She turned toward the nurses who were helping the younger girls wash their hands in preparation for their tea. As Mrs. Southerland patted her charge’s hands dry and instructed her to take her seat, Miss Bennet stepped to the lady’s side and whispered in her ear.
Richard watched, his head cocked in an attempt to overhear their conversation. He thought he detected a bit of a mischievous sparkle in her eye as the nurse nodded her head enthusiastically and turned to Mrs. Hampton. As the servants left the room, heads bent together conspiratorially; Richard returned his gaze to Miss Bennet who was now urging the children to find their seats so she could serve the tea.
Once the tea was poured and all were enjoying the Shrewsbury cakes, Richard leaned a bit closer to Miss Bennet. “I do not suppose you would tell me what you are conspiring with the nurses?”
She glanced about at the older children who sat nearby, trying not to show their interest in the adults’ conversation. “No, you will have to be surprised with the children.” The corner of her lips twitched as though she suppressed a smile.
He was about to retort when the door opened and Mrs. Hampton entered the room. She exchanged a glance with Miss Bennet before nodding once and crossing to the writing table in the corner. Richard watched as she sat, took up a pen, trimmed it efficiently, and began to write.
Highly intrigued, he looked again to Miss Bennet who refused to meet his gaze, focusing instead upon Patience and Beth who had grown bored and were crumbling their cakes. After wiping their hands with a serviette she had dampened, she brushed it lightly over their lips to remove any remaining crumbs and sent them to the corner where they had left their dolls. Richard watched as she then turned her attention to Richie who had begun playing with the remains of his sister’s cake. After cleaning him up, she turned him toward his father and gave the boy an encouraging nudge.
Richard, realizing he had not been doing his part, accepted his charge and began bouncing his son on his knee. The lad’s giggles caused the girls to abandon their babies and come begging for a ride as well. As a dull ache began from the three children riding upon his knees, he glanced up to find Miss Bennet and her mysterious smile watching him once more. He was about to address her, perhaps to learn how he might extricate himself from the game he had begun, when Mrs. Hampton stepped to her side and handed her several slips of paper.
She read them over, smiling and nodding, before turning her attention to the children. “Is everyone ready for a new game?”
Excited young faces turned her direction and a cheer was sounded. Once they were settled again, Miss Bennet opened her eyes wide and a look of excitement crossed her countenance as she leaned toward them. “Mrs. Southerland is missing!” she said in an excited whisper. “We must find her before something terrible happens.”
The children’s eyes rivalled the size of their dishes as their jaws dropped open. Mrs. Hampton covered her mouth as she turned away to hide her amusement. Taking the remaining pages, she slipped from the room while the others prepared for the game.
Miss Bennet lifted the papers she had been given and shook them ever-so-slightly. “Mrs. Hampton has given us the facts as they are known. I believe it best if we divide into groups in order to work most efficiently.”
“I shall lead a team,” cried William.
“And I,” Janet said as she stepped forward, not to be outdone by her slightly older cousin.
“No, me!” cried Richie.
Richard looked up to find Miss Bennet biting her lip. It was clear she had not anticipated the choosing of captains would cause a problem. Standing taller, he stepped forward to rescue the situation.
“Perhaps it may be best if Miss Bennet and I be the leaders.” A sparkle entered his eye as he winked at his youngest son. “We could play girls versus boys.”
Had he not been watching, he would have missed the exchange which quickly passed between the eldest two cousins just before they each began insisting the other be captain opposite Richie. He turned to see Miss Bennet also watching them suspiciously, then glancing about at the other children.
“Oh dear, it appears there is another situation I had not considered. We do not have an even number of participants. The teams will not be fair.” Miss Bennet looked to him for suggestions on how to proceed.
Picking up on the theme of the game, Richard answered brusquely, “Miss Bennet, we must set that aside. Mrs. Southerland is somewhere in the house, and she must be found.” He turned so only she could see and smiled before putting on his best commander’s face and addressing the troops. “I believe in this trying time, it would be best if there were at least one gentleman on each of the teams, to protect our fair ladies from a similar fate as that of Mrs. Southerland.”
William and Richie looked to each other and nodded. Each of them stepped forward and saluted their father. Richard returned the salute and pointed for them to take a place on either side of him.
Looking back at the remaining girls, Richard noticed Janet struggled to hide her pout. “Janet, I believe Richie would benefit by your years of experience and knowledge of Pemberley. You shall be his assistant.”
A wide grin split her face as she stepped forward to stand beside her younger cousin.
Mistress Mary and the General: A Pride and Prejudice Inspired Story Page 11
