Darcy and Deception

She stood quickly and slipped from the room. Few people noticed, and the conversation continued unabated. The front hallway was empty as she rushed out of the door and onto the street.

Fortunately, Mr. Wickham had not traveled far. Lifting her skirts, Elizabeth hurried after him, catching his elbow to get his attention. “Mr. Wickham, I had a thought! Perhaps I can come with you and help you nurse your poor friend. I am certain he would improve with a woman’s touch.”

The officer hastily concealed his initial impatience with a smile. “That is a very generous offer, but I do

n’t believe it would be appropriate to have a young lady accompany me there.”

Conjuring an image of Lydia at her most flirtatious, Elizabeth pasted on a coy smile. “But I will not be any trouble at all. I will help!”

Although Mr. Wickham seemed a bit dazzled, he shook his head. “You are generosity itself, but the colonel would not be pleased if I spirited you away without his permission—and Knox does not live in a neighborhood that is appropriate for young ladies to visit.”

Elizabeth pouted and gave a reluctant nod, allowing Mr. Wickham to march away from her with a determined stride. In truth, she had not expected that ploy to be successful. However, the officer’s determination to refuse her company rather confirmed her suspicion about whom he was meeting.

She waited until he was several streets away and began to follow.

***

A series of unfortunate delays caused Darcy and Richard to arrive later at the colonel’s house than they had planned. When the housekeeper opened the door, they found a distressed and hurried Colonel Forster donning his hat in the front hallway.

“Mr. Darcy.” He gave a short nod. “I am afraid I have urgent business, but my wife is in the drawing room if you would like to—”

Darcy suppressed a flicker of irritation; he could not imagine that any business of the colonel’s could be more pressing than theirs. “We must speak with you immediately,” Darcy interrupted. “This is Colonel Fitzwilliam, currently on assignment with the Home Office.” The last words had their desired effect; the colonel stilled and stared at Richard.

“Is there somewhere private we may talk?” Darcy’s cousin asked.

“Of course.” Colonel Forster led the way to his private study where he positioned himself behind the desk. Nobody sat.

Richard carefully closed the door before speaking. “I am in Brighton seeking a French agent who infiltrated the Home Office and escaped with sensitive information. We believe he is in Brighton and will try to contact Wickham for help in crossing the Channel.”

Colonel Forster exhaled. “You are aware of Wickham’s treachery.”

“Yes, but I did not know you were also pursuing Wickham until Miss Bennet informed us yesterday.” Darcy hoped the colonel would not inquire as to how or when they had spoken with Elizabeth.

The other man slammed his hand on the desk. “Damn the Home Office! They cannot coordinate even the simplest things.”

Richard smiled with no warmth. “I don’t disagree. However, at the moment my purpose is to locate Wickham. If I follow him, perhaps he will lead me to Harrison.”

Colonel Forster ran fingers through his thinning hair. “There is a dilemma. Wickham was here on a morning visit with some other officers, but he received a letter—supposedly about a sick friend—and departed rather abruptly. At the time I barely noted it, but now I believe the odds are good that it pertains to Harrison.”

“Blast!” Richard said. “If only we had arrived a little earlier.”

The colonel shook his head rather frantically. “You don’t understand. Miss Elizabeth was in the drawing room as well.” A cold feeling started to grow in the pit of Darcy’s stomach. “She slipped out of the room immediately after Wickham left and did not return. When you arrived, I was preparing to go in search of her.”

“She went with him!” Darcy exclaimed.

“Or she is following him,” the colonel said.

Darcy silently agreed that was the more likely explanation.

“Do you have any conjectures as to where Wickham might have gone?” Richard asked.

The colonel sighed. “No. If the note was from Harrison, they could be meeting anywhere in Brighton.”

“And Elizabeth with them!” Any number of ghastly outcomes occurred to Darcy. Wickham had probably killed once; he would not hesitate to do so again. Darcy wanted to pace, but the room was too cramped, so he found himself shifting restlessly on his feet.

The colonel regarded him with narrowed eyes. “Pardon my curiosity, but what precisely is your interest in this matter, Mr. Darcy?”

They had no time to waste on idle curiosity! Darcy suppressed an impulse to shout at the man. As Elizabeth’s guardian, the colonel had a right to know, and they would be working together. “Colonel Fitzwilliam is my cousin, and Wickham has been long known to my family—having caused us many difficulties.”