Chapter 11

P ushing the horse until he sensed it had no more to give, Wickham rode in a north-westerly direction from Brighton. He was relatively sure there were no pursuers following him. As he rode, he was cursing his bad fortune. It seemed if it was not for the bad kind, he had no luck at all!

However, that did not change the facts. He was in the middle of either Sussex or he had crossed into Hampshire. His flight had been too intense to pay attention, and besides, he was not keeping to well-travelled roads where one would expect to see a sign here or there. Add to that, he had less than a pound to his name. All he had was his wit and his charm. He could try selling the baron’s horse, it was a fine animal, but for that it would need to recover. He rode into a stand of trees where within there was a stream flowing and plentiful grass.

He allowed the horse to drink, but not too much before he tied him to a large fallen branch which would permit it to munch on the grass for a while. In about an hour or so, he would see to it that the animal would drink again.

Going back to Kent was not an option. If he showed his face at Henderson’s estate, the Baron would have him shot on sight. In fact, Wickham was not sure where he could go. Damn the interfering woman who had run out into the road and pushed Prinny’s daughter out of his reach before he was able to pull her up onto his saddle. From what he could tell, the three sacrificial lambs had done their job, otherwise the guards he had seen running towards the target would have reached her in time. He was not sure he had done so, but Wickham hoped he had ended the meddlesome woman’s life. How dare she thrust her nose into his affairs as she had.

He did not know how, but somehow he would escape, and then he would discover who had cost him so much money. If he had not ended her with the horse, he would finish the job by other means. At least with the other men dead, and his face being obscured by a mask, Wickham was sure he still had anonymity on his side.

For now, he sat on the ground, rested his back against a fallen log, and soon fell into an exhausted sleep.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

While her maid was packing her trunks, and Mrs Annesley was stowing her own items in her valises, the other servants began the process of closing up the house. Anna sat at the escritoire in her sitting room and wrote to William about the events of the day and informed him of her new direction.

As soon as her letter was ready and sealed, she gave the letter to Thompson who handed it to the courier, who was on his way north with immediacy.

As William had not left a carriage with her—she had told him not to bother as everything she wanted was within easy walking distance—Anna and Mrs Annesley waited for the Gardiner carriage and the enormous coach the Regent had insisted on providing.

In their house in Privet Street, the Gardiner children were understandably upset about Lizzy being hurt. Thankfully at the moment of impact, the horse and rider had been between the two eldest Gardiner offspring and Lizzy so they had not seen her get bowled over by the animal. Afterwards, before they were able to see their cousin prostrate in the street, Gardiner had herded them into the closest tearoom and away from where she had been lying.

Leaving Nurse and the governess to supervise the children and their packing, Madeline sat down and composed a letter to Thomas and another to Jane. She had a feeling the two would arrive in Brighton in not too many days.

Within two hours all was ready. When Peter saw the Prince’s coach waiting behind his father’s carriage, Lizzy was forgot for the moment as he was fascinated by the gilded coach pulled by a team of six white horses. Eddy was also very interested to see the Regent’s coach, but Lizzy and her health were constantly on his mind. Lilly was very quiet, which for the normally bubbly girl, was an indication of the level of her concern for her older cousin. May was very worried for Lizzy, but it was not real for her as she had not seen her cousin yet.

They made a stop at 39 Coast Road and collected, much to his delight, Peter’s faiwy pwincess . With Miss Darcy, her companion, and the Darcy servants spread between the conveyances, they made their way towards the Pavilion.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

The Gardiner’s and Anna were more and more awed the further they walked inside of the Pavilion. Opulent did not begin to describe what they saw. The Gardiner parents were shown to a suite by one of the housekeepers which was right next to one of the nurseries. Anna followed another housekeeper to the suite she and Mrs Annesley would be sharing, which was not very far from where the Gardiners were located.

Anna’s breath was taken away when she and Mrs Annesley entered her bedchamber. She had thought her room at Pemberley was large, but it was dwarfed by the size of the chamber where she would be sleeping. There was a shared sitting room between the two chambers in the suite, which itself was the size of one of the mid-size drawing rooms at her brother’s estate.

Mrs Annesley’s chamber was only slightly smaller than her own. Once she was on her own with just her maid who was beginning to unpack her mistress’s clothing in the cavernous closet, Anna studied the décor of her chambers. The walls were painted with a light mauve, satiny feeling paint. About two feet from the floor ran a thin strip of white painted wood, and below it to the floor was a patterned wallpaper which had gold as its base colour. In the centre of the one wall was a huge fireplace. It was framed by white marble, which was the material of the mantle as well. On the mantle were a few figurines carved from ivory, and in the centre there was a clock embedded in a very pretty and intricately carved piece of white marble with some black veins.

There were various paintings on the walls, of which two were by the late Thomas Gainsborough, one by John Constable, and another by J M W Turner. If these were the types of paintings in some of the bedchambers, Anna could not imagine what she would see in the palace’s galleries.

The bed was the largest four-poster she had ever seen. It was even bigger than William’s at both Pemberley and Darcy House. Gold curtains were tied back at each post, and curtains on the windows, which looked out towards the sea, matched the ones on the bed. Suddenly Anna felt guilty she was admiring the way her chambers were decorated when somewhere in this mansion Lizzy was lying, for all she knew, fighting for her life.

The Gardiner parents, like Anna, could not believe the size of the suite they had been assigned, however, they would only use one bedchamber as they had shared a bed since the day they married. Gardiner estimated the suite had as much space as the floor of their London house where all the bedchambers were located.

“As fascinating as this all is, I want to go to Lizzy,” Madeline informed her husband. “Will you supervise the children and make sure they are settling in the nursery? Some nursery it is! The room for each child is the size of our bedchamber at home!”

“Of course, Maddie. I would feel much easier if one of us is with Lizzy,” Gardiner agreed.

Madeline kissed her husband’s cheek and exited into the long hallway. Luckily there were footmen in royal livery, stationed every few yards. She approached the nearest footman. “I would like to visit my niece, Miss Bennet,” Madeline informed the man.

He gave a courtly bow. “Please follow me, Madam, I will show you to the sickroom she lies in.”

As soon as the man began to lead her down the one hall, another man stepped into his place and was soon standing at attention like all of the others they passed. After some twists and turns, and what seemed like they had walked a mile, the footman led her to a door which had footmen standing on either side. Before she could say a word, one of them opened the door for Madeline.

It seemed the Regent liked the colour gold. The chamber Lizzy was in had gold patterned wallpaper from floor to ceiling, like her own chamber, there was a large fireplace with a white marble surround. Lizzy was lying in a bed which was higher, but smaller, than a four-poster bed, which was placed with one of its long sides along the back wall of the room. It was situated thusly to make it easier for the physician or surgeon to have access to the patient

The doctor, with his white hair, was standing close to Lizzy, looking at writing on a sheet of paper, which Madeline guessed were some notes he and the surgeon had made. A maid wearing a black dress with a white apron and white cap stood to the side. Madeline could not think about the fact she was wearing a simple green day dress. At least her mobcap was lace.

Lizzy was lying in the bed, eyes closed, still unconscious, for the most part, her curly tresses were free of blood, as they had been cleaned, while a bandage was on her head. There was another on her right wrist, Madeline had not realised she was injured there as well. Her left leg had been splinted and was slightly raised with some plush pillows below it.

As soon as the doctor had finished reading what was on the paper and looked up, Madeline began her questioning. “Has my niece regained consciousness at all?” she began.

“You must be Mrs Gardiner. I am Mr Winthorpe, his Highness’s chief physician.” He paused and consulted the page again. “No, your niece has not regained her senses yet. She was writhing in pain when Winklevoss set her leg…” Winthorpe saw the questioning look. “That is the surgeon’s name, also one of the best in the realm. The good thing is that his assessment it was a clean break was correct. We did give Miss Bennet some drops of laudanum with an invalid feeder. It should allow her to sleep more peacefully. For now, as the body fights to heal itself, it is not a bad thing she is not awake.”

“How is her head, and I see her wrist has been treated as well,” Madeline questioned.

“As much as I wish it were not so, we know very little about injuries to the head and the brain. There are certain signs we look for to see if we will need to drill a hole in your niece’s skull…” Winthorpe saw the horrified look on the woman’s face. “At this time, it is not indicated in your niece’s case. Winklevoss will only do the procedure if there are signs of bleeding internally which would apply undue pressure on the brain. The wound on the head was not extensive, but as you have young children, I am sure you are aware that a slight scratch to the scalp will bleed far more than other places on the body. There is a cut on her wrist which she got when the horse hit her, we think part of a stirrup may have caused it.

“Both locations have been cleaned, the laceration on the wrist stitched, salve applied, and then wrapped as you see. His Highness has commanded that we do whatever is needed to ensure your niece will recover, and that no expense is to be spared. ”

“If it is all the same to you, I will sit with Lizzy for the nonce,” Madeline stated.

The maid pulled a chair up, and Madeline took a seat close to Lizzy’s head. All she could do was pray that Lizzy would be well.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Gardiner was seated in the nursery watching his children playing in a subdued fashion. Peter was sitting on Miss Darcy’s lap, which he had decided it was his right to occupy any time she was near him. Mrs Annesley was seated next to the governess, and they were speaking softly to one another. Nurse was on a chair, near to where the two girls were playing with some dolls.

Eddy had found some wooden soldiers, and he was setting them up for a battle so the English could beat the French, of course.

A man who was not in livery entered the nursery and stopped and bowed to Gardiner. He was a balding, middle aged man, a little shorter than Gardiner and with a portly midsection.

“Mr Gardiner, I am Portnoy, his Royal Highness’s private secretary. The Regent requests you follow me to come meet with him,” the man relayed.

Aware one did not say no to the future King, Gardiner nodded, stood, and was about to follow the man.

“Papa? Are you leaving us?” Eddy asked plaintively. Since Lizzy’s injury all of his children had been more reserved, none more so then the eldest. That was possibly because he understood more than his younger siblings.

“Eddy, son, I will be back anon, and besides your governess and nurse, Miss Darcy and Mrs Annesley will be here with you,” Gardiner assured his son. He watched as his son nodded, stiffened his spine, and returned to his game .

Portnoy led Gardiner along a hall, up one flight of stairs, and they eventually arrived at a large, ornately decorated door. The secretary nodded, and a footman in livery opened the door for him. As soon as the two men were within, the footman pulled the door closed and returned to the position he had stood in before moving.

The study was at least twice the size of Gardiner’s sitting room at home. The Regent was seated behind an enormous desk reviewing something. As soon as he had completed what he had been busy doing, the Prince of Wales looked up and saw the two men waiting for him. Both gave him a deep bow. Gardiner sat in the chair before the desk the Regent indicated. The secretary took a seat behind a small desk to the right of his master’s.

“Gardiner, I cannot think of many men, never mind a slip of a girl like your niece, who would have displayed such bravery in the face of the such fortunately thwarted treachery. How can you explain her heroism?” the Regent asked.

“Since she was a mite, Elizabeth has always been fearless. When younger, she used to climb trees, swim, and fight with the boys, almost always winning, near her father’s estate of Longbourn.” Gardiner noticed the regent tapped a finger, and his private secretary made some notes on the paper before him. “She would never back down and admittedly, not unlike she did today, she displayed bravery from a very young age. She has always had a keen sense of justice and will stand up for those who are weaker, or cannot do so for themselves.”

“Tell me about her family, where does she fit, or is she an only child?” The Regent queried.

“Lizzy is the second of five daughters born to my sister, Mrs Frances Bennet, and my brother-in-law, Thomas Bennet. She has been educated almost as her father would have educated a son as her intelligence and ability to learn are in no way less than one of the male sex. She loves books, a trait shared with her father. It is unfortunate that my sister does not understand her which has created a little tension in the house.”

“Explain,” came the succinct command.

“As much as I love my sister, I recognise she can be rather vapid and is of mean understanding. Lizzy does not look like her, rather she looks like the Bennets. My sister, Fanny, measures beauty by those who look like her—blonde, and with blue eyes. She thinks all a girl needs is beauty and some flirting to catch a man. Thanks to Lizzy’s intelligence, Fanny does not and cannot understand her, and rather than learning to do so, she ridicules what she cannot grasp.” Gardiner did not miss each time the Prince tapped his one finger.

“Is the estate profitable?” the Regent wanted to know, “and are the daughters dowered.”

Although he was not comfortable discussing this information, he was seated before the de facto King of England. Hence, Gardiner did not believe he could be anything less than completely honest.

“My brother has not expended the effort he should have, at least until very recently, to increase Longbourn’s profits. He never tried to control my sister’s spending, which has led to his daughters having no dowry besides an equal share of their mother’s five thousand pounds when she passes away. Just before we came on this holiday, he began to make changes.” Gardiner saw almost continuous tapping as he spoke.

“Why did your brother not want to increase the profits of his estate?”

“Because it is entailed to heirs male, and the heir presumptive is not a very intelligent man. He is a distant cousin who is currently a rector in Kent.” There was furious tapping. “In this, at least, my sister’s fears have substance. She is petrified of what will become of her and any unmarried daughters when Bennet goes to his final reward. Her worry for the future has led her to push each of the girls out at fifteen. In her words, she and her daughters will be left to starve in the hedgerows when her husband is called home.”

“Dreadful things, entails,” the Regent commented. “Personally I do not ascribe to the hogwash that females have less mental acuity than men.” He smiled. “If you want to feel the Queen’s wrath make a comment in that vein in her presence.” The Regent looked to his secretary who nodded he had completed writing. “What is the estate’s income?”

“Two thousand pounds per annum,” Gardiner replied.

“What are the ages of the girls?”

“Jane is three and twenty, Elizabeth is one and twenty, Mary is twenty, Kate—Catherine—is seventeen, and the youngest, Lydia, is but fifteen, she will be sixteen in August. I should tell you that the youngest who used to flirt outrageously, thanks to bad education and encouragement from my sister, recently underwent a fundamental change. Bennet is finally asserting himself, and the two youngest are back in.”

“From what I can see Miss Elizabeth is a pretty girl, what of her other sisters, and have none of them been courted previously?”

“You would go far and not find a beauty to rival Jane. She was being courted…” Gardiner related an abbreviated version of Bingley’s raising expectations and then abandoning his niece.

“We have heard of that shrew of a sister of his at court. From what I hear, the harpy has been removed from polite society,” the Regent grinned.

“Miss Darcy has told us the same.”

“The Darcys hail from Derbyshire, so how is there such a strong connection between our heroine and Miss Darcy?” the Regent queried.

A quick history of the Darcy and Bennet connection was related. Gardiner, however, left out the part about the insult in Meryton. The regent smiled when Gardiner told of how Elizabeth and Miss Darcy met in Brighton. “My wife sent an express to Longbourn, so it is quite possible my brother and his eldest daughter will arrive in the next day or two. I still have the lease…”

The Regent raised his hand. “Anyone connected to Miss Elizabeth is more than welcome to stay in my house. Mrs Fitzherbert will echo that sentiment when she is willing to part from Emma for a few moments. She and her eldest, Mary Anne, have refused to move from Emma’s apartments since we returned from the aborted kidnapping.”

“That is perfectly understandable, your Highness.”

“Now, Gardiner, I am told you are very successful in your trade, tell me more,” the Regent queried. The men spoke for two more hours, with the Regent tapping much, and Portnoy filling up pages of notes.