“You know more about these sorts of things than I. I just hope your judgment is on the mark, Fitzwilliam.”
“It is decided then. We must get going, cousin. We have no time to lose. We must leave before dark tonight. I do not envy any of us the task of telling their ladies.”
Chapter Twenty
An hour later, the younger children were put down for naps. Bingley instructed Miss Paige to take the older children out on an impromptu picnic in Butterfly Orchard, so that the adults might have their privacy.
The adults were gathered into the drawing room where they gave the colonel their rapt attention. He explained the situation to them all, with gasps coming from the shocked ladies at some of the details he imparted. On concluding his oration, he said, “This information is extremely confidential. We must never speak of it outside of these walls. I know it sounds dramatic, but I assure you it is absolutely necessary.”
“So you see why I feel determined to assist the du Pont family,” Darcy added, looking directly at Elizabeth. Her eyes met his and she nodded in understanding. “To think of those kind, innocent people as prisoners with such a horrific fate looming over their family… what kind of world are we living in, Darcy? I only wish there was something I might do as well.”
“You are already doing it. Thank you for understanding.” Darcy smiled at his lovely wife, unable to keep emotion from entering his voice.
Fitzwilliam added, “Bingley and Mr. Collins could not help but overhear our conversation and have both offered to join us in our rescue attempt. Perhaps it would be best if each of you speaks to your wives privately, gentlemen.”
Though all instantly felt undeniable fear at the prospect of the dangerous mission, three of the ladies held a familial connection to Georgiana. That Georgiana’s new family would meet this terrifying end without the quick intervention of their men was enough to allay the objections of those who claimed a relation. Mrs. Collins held no such connection. Her heart went out to the poor souls in France, but her first concern was for her own family.
Fitzwilliam saw the color drain from his intended’s face. “Kitty, will you join me outside?”
“Excuse me, Colonel,” Mr. Gardner said. “May I offer my services as well?”
“And I,” added Mr. Hurst.
“Thank you both for your courageous offers, but our quota is filled,” Fitzwilliam remarked. “You will be needed here more than ever to carry on and to distract the children during our absence.”
“Yes, please make it your aim to allow the children a wonderful holiday. Just in case,” Darcy said with foreboding. “Elizabeth and I will be in our rooms if anyone should need us. We can meet back here in one hour?”
Everyone agreed to the suggestion, with the Bingleys and Collins’s each retiring to their private rooms.
Once alone in their quarters and able to speak privately, Charlotte Collins wasted no time in expressing her concern and began to pace nervously. “My dear, what are you all about, volunteering to join in this, this perilous undertaking? You are not a man of action! Do you even know the first thing about wielding a sword? I cannot believe Colonel Fitzwilliam or Mr. Darcy would even consider putting your life at risk in this manner. If anyone will meet his end, it will surely be you! And then what will happen to me and your children? The others have the means to carry on if, God forbid, anything was to happen to their husbands, but we are not in the same position!”
“My dear, do not worry so! My role would not be one who to carry a weapon, but as one who is quite the opposite. The colonel believes I will be useful as such, since no one would expect me to be party to such a rescue attempt.”
“William Collins, you have three children! What are they to do if something happens and their father does not return to them?”
The usual pleasant look on Mr. Collin’s face was replaced by a serious one that his wife had rarely seen outside of the pulpit. “I do not want that, to be sure. But if it did, then they would always be proud of their papa. I could live with that, Charlotte.”
“But my dear… the point is, there is a very real possibility that you may have to die with it,” she said quietly.
“If that were my last thought, I could,” he said. He walked to the window and looked out in the direction of Butterfly Orchard, where his children were at this very moment. “I did not choose my profession because I had no other options. I chose it because I genuinely wanted to be of use to my fellow man. It is not something I take lightly, you know. When I heard Mr. Darcy say his conscience would not allow him to stay behind and do nothing, I knew then that I must go as well. Perhaps I am not a man of action, as you say, but I am a man with a conscience, Charlotte. And I want my children to know that. My own father was not exactly the kind of man his children could be proud of, you know. I want my children to be proud of me and to think of their papa as one who taught them by example.”
Charlotte walked over to stand by him at the window. “That is admirable, my dear. Is there no other reason for your going? If you are doing this is for Lady Catherine, I cannot accept it.”
“My dear, do you think I would risk my life for anyone besides my own family?”
Charlotte looked at him with raised brows and smiled.
“Well, I admit it would be an added bonus,” her husband confessed. “But I assure you it would not have been enough to persuade me. It was my conscience that first motivated me.”
His wife could not help but laugh at his admission, and soon he was laughing as well. “Mr. Collins, I expect you to return safely to us. To me,” she said before she came close to him and laid her head on his shoulder. “Now I think it would be best if you gave me some direction on what I should do if things do not turn out as we hope.”
“Well, actually, my dear,” he replied sheepishly, “Lady Catherine has all the details and necessary papers in case of such an eventuality. She thought it best that a family man take no chances and made sure my affairs were in good order. I have been a careful man all of my life, and after my father died, I came into a tidy little inheritance. It will take care of you and the children until Clifford comes of age.”
His wife looked at him and sighed. “I am glad to know it. Is there anything else you think I should know, my dear?”
“Just that I am glad I married you. You have been the best wife I could have ever hoped for.” He kissed her then and they remained standing at the window in silence for some time, with their arms wrapped around each other.
Chapter Twenty-One
Kitty’s eyes were already brimming with tears as Fitzwilliam escorted her out onto the lawn and down to the pond.
“Please understand, my love. I wish there were another way, but we are their only hope.”
The tears began to spill over onto Kitty’s cheeks then as she struggled to keep them at bay. She smiled through her tears and said quietly, “I know, I know,” before she lost control of her feelings and began to weep in earnest.
He wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly while she cried. “It is going to be alright, my darling. You will see. We will be home before you know it, and I will soon be gazing upon your lovely face as you walk down the aisle towards me.”
“I know, I know. I am proud of you. You are a good man. That is why I love you so much, Richard.”
She had never before used his given name in such a loving and tender voice. On hearing her speak to him that way, Fitzwilliam felt a pull on his heart which he was unprepared for.
“I love you, my sweet Kitty,” he responded quietly. “More than you can imagine.”
***********
It seemed like the hour Darcy had suggested they each spend with their loved one was over before it had barely begun. The children were sent for and brought to their parents for a private moment before saying their goodbyes.
All the adults put on their best smiles, and their fathers said they needed to help Fitzwilliam with a business matter but would soon return. They encouraged their children to enjoy
their time with Uncles Hurst and Gardiner, who assured them they would take care of everything. Darcy hugged his daughter and told her to have the best time ever, while he was gone. On releasing her, he gave Elizabeth a final embrace before the men got into the waiting carriage and waved goodbye.
When Wendy turned to go back inside the house, she saw Harry looking at her with a worried look on his face. He stopped her as she passed him and whispered, “It will work out. I will keep your secret.”
She gave him a half smile in appreciation for his being a decent sort of cousin, but she did not know how she would manage without her papa.
*****************
When she went back to her room after they had seen their men off, Kitty found a letter waiting on her bed.
My Dearest, Sweetest Love,
When I am aboard the ship to France, I will be thinking of you and how I first noticed how blue your eyes were on the night of Georgiana and Alex’s wedding. From that moment on, whenever I would look into the sea, I no longer thought that it was the most beautiful blue I could ever see. Your delightful eyes beat every other beauty that I have ever known.
I am always thinking of you, and I hope that I traverse your mind as often as you do mine. I can assure you of this: I have just left you, and yet I long to return to you. I trust you understand why I had to go.
Wait for me to come home.
Yours,
Richard
Kitty’s hand trembled. Richard had written her a love letter! She wept out of both happiness and fear.
Chapter Twenty-Two
An aristocratic type, dressed in London’s latest fashion slowly made his way into the grand hotel and was quickly shown to his private table near the back of the room. Darcy, along with everyone else, noticed the dandy, who walked with purpose and appeared to be bored as he looked around. The waiters were quick to accommodate his every look and even the slightest beckoning of his hand. He was shortly joined by a large party of elegantly dressed men and women. Obviously just coming from the theater, their laughter grew louder with each remark from the dandy. With his concern for the lives of others as well as his own weighing heavily on his mind, Darcy’s face betrayed his dissatisfaction with the noisy group of revelers.
“I hope dinner was to everyone’s satisfaction,” said Fitzwilliam to the other three gentlemen in his party. “Shall we retire for the evening to Darcy House now?”
“Yes, that suits me very well,” answered Darcy, ready for the quiet comfort of his own serene accommodations.
The four men got into the awaiting carriage, but Darcy soon determined that they had missed a turn. “What is your driver about, Fitzwilliam? Does he not know his way around the streets of London?” he asked with some irritation now detectable in his voice.
“He knows exactly what he is doing, Cousin,” Fitzwilliam said with a smile.
The carriage came to an abrupt stop in a dark alley, the door opened and none other than the dandy from the restaurant joined them.
After shaking Fitzwilliam’s hand, he nodded cordially to the other gentlemen accompanying the colonel. “Thankfully, I still have use of my shaking hand,” he said.
“How are you, Bayard?” asked Fitzwilliam, to the surprise of his confused associates.
“Could be better, my friend. It has not been easy hiding a broken arm and ribs, nor an incision in the shoulder from a pistol wound. But that is neither here nor there, is it? Let us get straight to the point, shall we? This particular rescue is more difficult because there are five people who need our assistance, which is trickier than the usual two or three. On the positive side, it could be somewhat easier because they are being detained in less guarded accommodations.”
Taking out several papers, including maps, he then laid out his instructions. We only have two sets of identification papers. They are very valuable. Use them wisely.”
As he spoke, his eyes seem drawn to Darcy’s hands. “Mr.…?”
“Darcy.”
“Mr. Darcy, I see you have one splendid piece of jewelry there. And it could easily become a dangerous weapon.
“I do not think that was my wife’s intention when she was choosing this ring as a present for our wedding anniversary.”
“No doubt,” Bayard said with a friendly smile. “One must improvise in these dangerous times. Tell me, is it the sort that has a hidden compartment?”
“Indeed it is. In fact, my brother-in-law here,” indicating Bingley, “has a similar one given him by my wife’s sister, if that would be useful as well.”
Looking at Bingley’s outstretched hand Bayard said, “Excellent! I will put some of the sleeping powder into the lovely rings your wives gave you. It will do the trick for one of the most crucial parts of our plan. Would you both be so kind as to expose the compartments?”
As he removed a vial from an inside pocket of his jacket and began carefully dispensing the white powder, Charles Bingley took the opportunity to speak for the first time since being joined by Bayard. “Mr. Bayard, do you think the four of us will be able to successfully make your plan come alive?”
“As a matter of fact, I think the four of you will do a marvelous job, but we are not going to risk failing this mission where there are innocent people walking the path towards the guillotine…. That is why I have my men set all around to help when needed.”
“How will we know who they are?” asked Mr. Collins.
“You do not need to, my dear man. They will know who you are. In fact, some of them were getting familiar with your features as you dined tonight. Now, it is time to put the plan into action. I wish you God speed, gentlemen, and a safe return!”
With those parting words, Bayard descended from the carriage and was soon going through a back door of a closed shop in the dark alley. That led to another back door and to another, until he quietly slipped back into the door adjoining his private table, still occupied by his rowdy guests, or accomplices, as the case may be. The other patrons were unaware that he had ever left his party.
Chapter Twenty-Three
As they slowly rowed the small boat ever so quietly into the area that had been designated by Bayard, Fitzwilliam glanced at those with him. Even in the darkness, he could detect the fast breathing of both Bingley and Collins. He drew a deep steadying breath himself and gave each man a firm pat on the shoulder.
“It is time,” he said, producing the brown wig to cover Bingley’s fair shade, which was not often seen in these parts. He smiled at his cousin’s padded belly, covered by a soiled and torn shirt. “Keep in mind that you walk with a hutched back,” he reminded.
Collins, Bingley, Fitzwilliam and Darcy split up into pairs as they had to make their way through the town square in order to reach the stronghold where the du Pont family was being held as prisoners. There were men setting up the guillotine and trying the blades out by cutting a watermelon.
“What is it in people that make them find amusement in public executions?” Darcy asked rhetorically.
“I suppose,” began Mr. Bingley, “that seeing one at his worse, makes them feel better about themselves. I do not trust there could be any other kind of logical explanation.”
“Maybe it is so.”
Fitzwilliam and Collins stopped for but a moment behind their friends. Interrupting their reflections, Fitzwilliam said for their ears only, “We need to focus, gentleman. Remember do not allow your faces to betray your true feelings about all of this. The guards are changing their shifts right about now, if Bayard’s predictions are right, and he has never failed in being right by far.”
A haggard old man pushing a cart with potatoes approached them. “Good evening, gentlemen. I hope the weather is working in your favor.”
Mr. Collins smiled politely and responded, “Thank you, my good man, but we are not in need of potatoes.”
“I am feeling generous today,” replied the old peasant.” I will offer a deal if you take a half bag.”
Fitzwilliam laughed and handing a few coins to the
man said, “I will take you up on your offer.”
“Well, well, here you are then,” he replied, as he chose a bag and handed it to Fitzwilliam.
“What business do you have with these strangers, old man?” asked a burly citizen who had been observing the exchange.
“Just trying to make a few pennies to buy my missus a piece of bread, for she has been feeling down these days. I did my duty and donated the first of the crop to the cause. I just handed those out yesterday to some here. I cannot be expected to give away all I have!”
Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy and The Scarlet Pimpernel Page 10
