11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

D arcy was sulking. It was not a state of mind he was accustomed to, but for once, he was giving in to that undignified emotion. Happiness had been just within his reach when it had been snatched away, and now they were going to travel away from Pemberley instead of towards it.

What was even more aggravating was that most of the mages did not believe Napoleon was going to attack. It was galling to think that his dream of going to Pemberley had been interrupted by an event which few people – besides Lord Matlock – even took seriously.

Yet considering how dismissive most of the Council members were of the imminent danger, everyone seemed to have very strong opinions about what should be done about it.

Devereux had started the meeting by advocating that the French were deliberately sending misleading information to set up a trap.

"It would be foolish to send some of our best mages when we suspect it is a trick."

"What do you suggest then," countered Darcy, irritably. "That we send our worst mages and have them be decimated?"

That seemed to throw the cat among the pigeons, as several of the mages tried to speak at once.

Darcy leaned against his hand and wished he were somewhere else. He knew the details needed to be ironed out, but he would have preferred for the Prince Regent himself to tell them what he wanted. He was heartily sick of attending Council meetings. People were set in their ways, sticking stubbornly to certain minor points as if their lives depended on them, and digressing instead of concentrating on what was important.

"It has not escaped my attention that this may be a trap," said Lord Grayson, "but—"

"—but we cannot organize our defense of the coast by making unfounded assumptions," Darcy interrupted. "The Prince Regent has given us orders to prepare for the arrival of a large group of enemy mages. Our role as Royal Mages is to obey the prince's orders. We cannot second guess him. We can take precautions in case it is a trick, but we cannot lose sight of what we have been asked to do."

Expressing it this way helped him accept why his plans had to be changed. He may not like it – and he certainly didn't – but he had his orders. One simply did not disobey a Royal command.

"Thank you, Darcy," said Matlock. "You have phrased it very succinctly. Arguing about the whys and wherefores is not what we are here for. Our task is to work out the best way to organize this as efficiently and safely as possible."

Darcy's intervention turned out to be useful. As if by magic, the discussion took on a more practical direction. Everyone quickly agreed that sending a very large group was impractical on many levels, and quickly shifted to the best mages for the job.

"Miss Bingley must go because she has several Talents. She is a Conjurer, an Elemental and a Healer."

"And we must take Miss King and Mr. Bennet because they both are knowledgeable in Arcane magic, and may be able to counter some of the French mages who use it."

"Then we have Warders – the Janus mages: Darcy, Mrs. Darcy and Redmond – as well as Mr. Bingley. That should defend the coast from attack."

"And we need at least one Healer."

"Miss Bennet should go," said Lady Hazelmere. "She is a strong Healer who can work independently, but she could also form a Healing Circle with Miss Bingley and Mrs. Darcy if necessary."

"We need more Elemental Mages," said Grayson. "You cannot expect just the two of us to launch an attack if the French reach our shores, even if we are Janus mages. What if one of us gets injured?"

"I will go," said Matlock. "I am a strong Elemental Mage."

Loud objections greeted his statement. "You cannot leave. You are needed here."

"If Napoleon is attacking, I need to be there, not here, cowering behind four walls."

"I thought we were in agreement that Napoleon is not attacking."

It looked like another argument was going to begin. Darcy jumped in.

"We have already gone over this. We are going as a precaution. The Prince has required our presence on the coast and that is what we are doing. Obviously, if we were certain it was a full-scale invasion, we would all be heading to the coast to fight."

"And if it is a trick?"

"Then you must have faith in our ability to destroy the enemy," said Matlock. "If that is the case, then this would be the perfect opportunity for us to be rid of those vexatious Imperial Mages who have been slowly wearing away our defenses. If they all gather in one place, they are also exposing themselves to discovery and defeat."

Everyone seemed satisfied by that statement, and the discussion turned to more practical arrangements: who should travel with whom, how to arrange the different routes, how to make sure they are not followed. They decided to appoint Colonel Fitzwilliam in charge of a group of messengers to stop at each of the relay towers and update everyone with the latest information. Then there was a great deal of fuss about who was to fit in which carriage, and rules of propriety, and a thousand other small complications.

"We have to have a Warder and an Elemental Mage in each carriage."

"The single ladies must not spend hours in the company of a gentleman."

Darcy covered his head with his hands and groaned inwardly. This was going to be a very long day.

The date of their departure was fixed. It was to be two days later. Elizabeth was grateful that someone else was taking care of all the details. Her intense work with Mirror magic had taken its toll, and she found herself languishing. Besides, there was an air of unreality about the whole undertaking, and Elizabeth could not quite come to grips with the strangeness of the whole thing. Was Napoleon going to attack, or was it all some kind of hoax? It was impossible to know how to feel about it.

It did not help that she could not share her feelings with Darcy. He was intensely disappointed. His heart had been set on Pemberley, and this new drawback had hit him hard. Since her feelings about going to Pemberley had been mixed, she hesitated to discuss the issue with him. It was unfortunate that they did not quite see eye to eye on this, but she knew in time they would be able to talk about it more openly.

Instead, she turned to her sister Jane. Now that she was no longer training with Riquer, she had some time to spare, which meant she was able to join her sister for breakfast in the Great Hall.

As usual, Jane was pleased to see her, but when Elizabeth sat down, her sister gave her a worried look.

"You are looking very tired, Lizzy. You need some rest."

"Well, we were supposed to rest in Pemberley," she replied tartly.

"You cannot pretend it doesn't matter by being facetious, Lizzy. You know it was very important to both of you, even if you were uncertain. How is Mr. Darcy taking it?"

"Badly, of course. It is a bitter disappointment. And to make things worse, I don't know what to say to him. I was relieved I did not have to make a decision in the end. As it were, the Council made the decision for me." She gave a little laugh. "As usual, they are against us."

"You know you are being ridiculous, Lizzy."

Elizabeth grinned. "I admit I cannot blame the Council this time. But do you not think it a strange coincidence, that it should happen just as Darcy was about to address the Council."

"No, I do not, and neither do you. I do not understand why you are being so giddy."

"I am exhausted, Jane. It has been a difficult time for me. I am relieved that I was able to accomplish what was required of me in terms of Mirror magic. I honestly did not think I would acquit myself. I am worried about Riquer, but I am not supposed to talk about that. And I have spent many sleepless nights thinking about Pemberley. It has been resolved, but I do not want Darcy to be unhappy." She ran her hand over her face. "Too many things to think about."

"Well, it has been sorted out now," said Jane. "So you no longer have to agonize over it."

Elizabeth nodded. "Yes, but I do not know what would have happened if the Council gave permission for us to leave. Would I have gone? I don't think going to Pemberley would have been a good thing. Not under these circumstances. I love Darcy very much, but his plan wasn't realistic." She paused. "Still, it was nice to dream for a while."

Now that she had unburdened herself to Jane, she felt a powerful pang of regret for something that was not meant to be.

Jane threw her arms around Elizabeth, embracing her tightly. "I know. Poor Lizzy." She gave her a hard squeeze, then pulled away. "But it would have been no good, you know. If it is true that France intends a full-scale invasion, you could never have stayed at Pemberley in any case. You would have been recalled, and then you would have been compelled to travel back immediately."

"A few days of bliss with Darcy might have been worth it." Perversely, she was playing devil's advocate.

"What if you were with child?" Jane blushed and looked around in embarrassment.

Jane had quietly put her finger on the source of the problem. All of their problems were centered around this one thing.

"I know. If only there was a certain way to prevent it—." That was the stark reality. Darcy had informed her of it before they were married. It was not as if it was something new. She sighed heavily. "It is infinitely frustrating being in love with someone and not being able to act on it."

"I know exactly what you mean." Jane said absently, casting a sideways look at Bingley. Elizabeth hid a smile. The two of them had been throwing glances at each other when they thought the other was not looking.

Elizabeth sighed. Why were relationships so complicated? It was obvious that Jane and Bingley were in love, but their situation was not something easily resolved. Unfortunately, their characters were too similar. Elizabeth did not blame Mr. Bingley for his reticence. He had already proposed marriage to Jane and had been rejected. He was modest by nature, and he did not want to risk being snubbed again. Meanwhile, Jane was an expert at hiding her feelings, which was hardly likely to convince him to approach her. His diffidence would never allow it.

If no one intervened, they would pine for each other for years and do nothing.

"Perhaps you will have a chance to see Mr. Bingley more often when we are on the road."

"Do you think so?" Jane replied, dreamily. Then, realizing she was giving too much away, she straightened up. "I meant it would be good to get out of the Hall for a while."

Elizabeth raised her eyebrow. "Then you will enjoy the company of Miss King and Miss Bingley, as well as Redmond, who will be accompanying you in the carriage."

"I really do not see why Lord Redmond has to ride with us. Miss Bingley is chaperone enough. She was Mistress of Maidens' Hall at Netherfield. "

Elizabeth agreed with Jane, but the reasoning of the Council was clear. They did not want any of the single gentlemen traveling with the single young ladies. However, there was general agreement that a male was necessary to take charge in case anything happened on the road.

"I think both Miss King and Miss Bingley would be more useful if something unexpected happened. However, neither you nor they are Warders. If you are followed and attacked, he will be invaluable."

Jane sighed. "I suppose so. At least you get to travel with Darcy and Papa. Why can I not travel with the three of you?"

It was unusual for Jane to complain. She and Darcy were not the only ones tired of this war that dragged on and on, forcing them from place to place and putting them at the mercy of forces beyond their control.

"It will just be for a few days. Just think of our destination. We are going to the coast. You and I will see the sea for the first time. It is an adventure. We have always wanted to go to the seaside."

"Please do not think I am ungrateful, Lizzy. I am just being peevish this morning. I hardly slept last night."

"You are no more peevish than anyone else," said Elizabeth with a laugh. "Look around you. We are a group of curmudgeons."

Elizabeth pointed out several of the mages around them who were brooding. By making faces and imitating their expressions, she was able to bring both Jane and herself out of their ill humor, and before long, the two of them were laughing again.

The night before they were supposed to leave, Elizabeth was on her way to her bedchamber when Mary stepped out from the shadows.

Elizabeth jumped. "Mary, you frightened me!"

"I have thought about it, and I know you are not going to Longbourn. Why would you suddenly decide to go all the way for no particular reason? Only Mama and Kitty are still there. And why would you not take me with you? It makes no sense."

Elizabeth looked around her uneasily. It was supposed to be a secret. "Hush, Mary. The walls have ears."

Mary nodded her head in acknowledgement. "If you are on a mission," she said in a half whisper, "you should take me with you. You might need me, just as you did last time."

Mary had played a heroic role in defending the King against Rogue mages after discovering that she had a special Talent.

"Mary, you should have raised this with Lord Matlock several days ago. It is too late to change the arrangements. You cannot believe how much discussion has gone into setting up who travels in which carriage."

"Surely you can convince him I am needed. You are dismissing my Talent yet again, just because I do not have the same magic as you do."

Elizabeth sighed. "Mary, of all the mages here, I am the one who understands best what it means to be different. I would never diminish your importance. You have already proven that your magic is not only useful but vital. No one can deny you had a crucial role in saving the King."

There was no way she could explain where they were going without giving away too much. She hesitated, then decided she could count on Mary's discretion. Mary had never been a person who indulged in gossip. Still, before speaking, she reached out a few tendrils of magic to see if she could detect anyone else who could overhear them. There was nobody.

"You must not breathe a word of what I tell you to anyone. Promise?"

Mary nodded earnestly. "Of course."

"There are rumors some of Napoleon's mages are planning a landing. It is up to us to make sure that does not happen. It is vital that we depart in absolute secrecy to prevent anyone from following us, which is why we're taking the fewest possible mages in the fewest possible carriages. I have no idea what is awaiting us on the coast, but if Napoleon attacks, we are just a handful of mages trying to hold his mages off. We have been chosen because we have very specific roles to play."

"But no one can do what I do."

"True," Elizabeth sighed. "but the fact remains that you can't defend yourself if you are attacked."

"So you think I would be a liability. Jane is going, and she cannot fight."

"Jane is a Healer. We will need Healers to be on hand during an attack."

"She is still a liability."

"Jane has clear instructions to stay out of the way unless she's needed. Hopefully she will not, but we know exactly how she would be useful. We cannot know that in your case. I'm really sorry, Mary. It was not my choice to leave you behind. I was not involved in any of the decisions. I am simply following orders."

To Elizabeth's astonishment, instead of arguing more, Mary leaned over and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. "Stay safe, then, Lizzy."

Elizabeth threw her arms around her sister. "I'm planning to do my best. I shall miss you, Mary. Keep up your research. You might find something useful."

Watching Mary walk away, Elizabeth felt uneasy for the first time. Until now, she had not believed they could be facing danger, but saying goodbye to Mary had struck an ominous note.