2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

R iquer winced and raised his hands in a dramatic gesture of surrender. "I would rather you did not kill me," he said wryly.

Darcy did not drop his Ward. He regarded Riquer coldly. "Then you had better have a good explanation. What were you doing? Why are you out here, sneaking around in the dark?"

"I could ask the same of you." The light from the candles outside the door lit up Riquer's face. He was grinning.

This was no laughing matter, confound it! "I am not using a mirror to communicate with an adversary." Darcy's patience was stretched to the limits.

Riquer's nostrils flared. "You have never liked me, have you? Unlike your admirable wife, you have been suspicious of me from the very beginning." There was no humor on his face now. "May I remind you that my purpose in being admitted to the Royal Mages is precisely that — to spy on Napoleon's mages? How do you expect me to do so from here? Conjure up a few Imperial mages in the air?"

Darcy examined Riquer, trying to assess the situation. If he lowered his Wards, would Riquer attack? There was nothing in Riquer's manner that suggested it. He considered what Riquer had said. His words were logical. It did not mean they were true.

He thought of Elizabeth. She worked with Riquer day after day. Could he trust her judgment?

The two men eyed each other. It was a stalemate.

Riquer spoke up. "Darcy. Consider this. I detected your signature the moment I came out of the Hall. I could have attacked you any time. I knew you were listening." He gave a gallic shrug. "Why would I have waited until you were close to the door, if I intended to get rid of you? You could have raised the alarm by shouting. It would have been far easier when I was hidden by the trees."

It was a perfectly reasonable argument. Darcy had not hidden his signature. In retrospect, it had been foolish. He sighed. Very cautiously, he lowered the Wards around him, watching Riquer intently.

Riquer nodded. "Wise decision. I do not wish to fight you. And I suspect Mrs. Darcy would not have liked it." Again he smiled ruefully. "If you wanted to know what I was doing, you could have just asked me."

"Do you really expect me to take your word for it?"

"I know you do not like me nor trust me, Darcy. I do not blame you. I would feel the same in your position. What will it take to believe in my good intentions?"

Darcy considered the man's statement. Nothing . "Unfortunately, only time will tell."

Perhaps he was being too harsh. There must be a reason Elizabeth trusted him. "The fact is, I hardly know you. Unlike Elizabeth, I have spent very little time with you."

"Then perhaps we should set aside some time — work together, perhaps. I could teach you Mirror magic."

If Riquer thought he could charm Darcy into believing that he was harmless, he would discover it was not quite so easy. Darcy still intended to report what had happened to his uncle. They could not afford to risk the Prince Regent or the Hall.

"Perhaps," said Darcy, vaguely. He hated subterfuge, but with a spy in their midst, it was necessary. "Now, if you will excuse me, I need to return inside."

"Of course," said Riquer. "I will remain here for a few minutes longer."

"Suit yourself."

Darcy strode back to the Great Hall and looked towards his uncle. Lord Matlock was preoccupied with the Prince Regent. He could not approach him without disrupting the exhibition.

Darcy considered his options, looking around for a solution. His gaze fell on his cousin, Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam. Richard was a military man, trained in this kind of situation. Richard could tell if they were facing a threat, and he would be impartial. Darcy could count on his cousin to assess all aspects of the situation and give him an honest answer.

Darcy just had to hope it would not be too late.

As the other exhibitions were about to begin, the apprentices surrounding Elizabeth scattered to their seats. Now that no one was talking to her, the fatigue she was holding at bay hit her with full force. A wave of dizziness seized her, and she swayed on her feet.

A touch on her elbow steadied her as Mary took her arm and led her to the closest empty chair.

"Here. This will help." Mary handed her a plate of food she was holding.

Elizabeth took it gratefully. "Thank you, Mary. That was very thoughtful."

"Oh, it was not my idea," said Mary, with her usual bluntness. "It was Mr. Darcy who sent a footman. He knew you would be needing it. I am simply delivering it."

She felt a rush of love for him. He knew exactly what she needed. She looked around for him, longing for him to join her.

"Why did he not give them to me himself, I wonder?"

"Perhaps because he is jealous," said Mary, in a matter-of-fact manner.

Elizabeth stared at her sister in astonishment. "Jealous? Of what? My Mirror magic?"

Mary considered the question seriously for several moments. "No. Not that. He is jealous of Riquer."

Elizabeth bit back a laugh. Her sister was not exactly the best judge of character. "Of Riquer? Why would he be jealous of him? What an odd thing to say."

"It is not odd," said Mary crossly. "It is true."

Elizabeth could see her sister had taken offense, so she tried to smooth things over. "It is possible, I suppose. I will think it over."

Mary looked mollified. Elizabeth put it out of her mind. Darcy would not go away because he was jealous. More likely something important had come up. She kept an eye out for him. As he entered the room, she waved to him and indicated that she had saved a place for him next to her. He made a regretful face, shook his head, and headed for his cousin Richard instead.

She could not help feeling hurt. He had not come up to her to congratulate her. To be fair, it would have been difficult for him to reach her when she was surrounded by so many boys and girls.

But she had hoped he would join her. They spent so little time together. This was a perfect opportunity to be together and hold hands and bask in each other's presence. But Darcy had other plans – it was clear he needed to talk urgently to his cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam.

A few moments later, Jane came to sit next to her sisters. She was followed almost immediately by Bingley. He bowed and was about to take the seat Elizabeth had saved for Darcy. One look at the way Jane's face brightened up when he greeted her, decided the matter for Elizabeth.

"Would you mind moving up to the other side, Bingley?" she said. "I am expecting Darcy any minute."

Bingley turned red at the prospect of sitting next to Jane. "Of course. I would be more than happy—" His words trailed as Jane blushed and looked away.

There was a great deal of awkwardness as he squeezed past Jane to take a seat, each of them trying their best to avoid any contact. It was clear the two of them were very much in love. Elizabeth wished someone would address the issue and get it over with, but Jane had already turned down Bingley's proposal. At the time, Bingley had offered to marry Jane because he believed he had compromised her when he was under the influence of an enchantment. Jane did not believe that to be the case. She did not want Bingley to marry her out of a sense of misplaced obligation.

Since then, they had been hovering around each other uncertainly.

Elizabeth sighed. It was not that different from her situation with Darcy, really.

The moment Darcy entered the Great Hall, he spotted Elizabeth, and of course, she noticed him. She turned around and waved to him, indicating an empty chair at her side. He cursed his luck. Here was an opportunity to spend time with her, but once again, duty called. He hesitated, wavering between his desire to see her and the urgency of the situation.

He had no choice but to raise the issue of Riquer with Richard immediately. Darcy pointed to his cousin and mouthed that he would come as soon as he could.

Richard quirked an eyebrow at him as Darcy approached.

"Can we speak privately?" Even though Darcy was whispering, several of the tutors turned disapproving eyes on him.

"Of course. Something the matter?"

"You could say so."

Richard came to his feet at once. As soon as they were out of the hall, Richard turned to address him.

"Aren't you setting a bad example for the apprentices? I thought you were a stickler for the rules."

"I would not do so without a good reason, I can assure you. It is a matter of great urgency." Darcy set up a Ward around them so no one could overhear. "I caught Riquer outside, talking to someone through his mirror. He was speaking French."

Richard stared at him. " This is the urgent matter you wanted to talk about?"

"You do not think it is worrying, when we have the Prince Regent in attendance? Good heavens! Is everyone under Riquer's spell?"

"No one is under Riquer's spell. Have you forgotten that Ramon de Riquer is still officially a French agent? He is pretending he has been captured and feeding Napoleon's mages false information."

"How do we know that is what he is doing? What if he is a double agent?"

"And you have reached this conclusion based on what, exactly?" His voice was sharp – the voice of an officer questioning one of his men. Sometimes Richard could be just like his father.

The problem was, Darcy did not have anything specific to point to. Riquer had been skulking, true, but it could have been a show for those he reported to in France. Why had he not contacted them from his own chamber? Why creep into the shadows to do so?

Then he remembered Elizabeth telling him that it was impossible to communicate over a long distance from the inside – the wall would block the magic. It was an explanation of sorts.

"Well?"

"It is just a feeling," said Darcy.

Richard snorted. "Since when do you base such serious accusations on a feeling ?" Richard peered at him closely, then let out a laugh. "Or perhaps that feeling has to do with a certain Elizabeth? Do you think perhaps someone is just a tiny bit jealous?"

Darcy felt his ears burning. "That is absurd. Why would I be jealous?"

Richard chuckled. "Because you are a man in love who cannot — or will not — indulge in the joys of marriage."

Darcy looked around him, embarrassed, even though no one could hear them because of the Ward. "Must we always come back to this conversation? I have made my sentiments very clear."

His cousin had pointed out many times that there were ways to enjoy Elizabeth that would not make her conceive.

"I still do not understand. Why do you torture yourself? Is it because you doubt that Elizabeth reciprocates your feelings?"

He knew Elizabeth wanted him just as much as he wanted her. He saw it in her eyes every time they met.

"That is not the issue, and you know it very well."

"Are you testing your iron control, then?"

It was quite the opposite. Giving in to his longing would strain his control to the limits. He was much more worried about losing control. Not the first time, perhaps, not the second time, but there would come a day when he could not stop himself, and if Elizabeth conceived on that night — the consequences would be dire.

"You have not answered my question, Darcy. Are you holding back out of some misguided sense of nobility or is it pure self-flagellation?"

Darcy shook his head angrily. "I am holding back because it is the right thing to do. Have you read the stories of the dire consequences of having a magical child controlled by enemy mages?"

"I have not."

"Well, I have. I have poured over every text ever written about the subject. I can assure you, the consequences are terrible."

"But it need not come to that. You do have a great deal of self-control, Cousin. Why do you think you will lack it on the marriage bed?"

"Because, when it comes to Elizabeth, it is either all or nothing."

The words surprised Darcy as much as they surprised his cousin.

"Well, you have always been a stubborn old thing, Darcy. There is nothing more to be said about it, if that is how you feel. But you might want to reconsider such a strong stance and save both you and Elizabeth some suffering." He clipped Darcy's shoulder. "I'll leave you with that thought. And as for Riquer, if it will give you some peace of mind, I will keep a closer eye on him."

At least he had handed over responsibility for dealing with Riquer to his cousin. That was one problem he did not need to deal with.

As Richard moved away, Darcy was left with a stronger sense of turmoil than before. Confound it! His cousin's words had made him question himself. Darcy was sorely tempted to give in to his longing to be with Elizabeth. His reasons for resisting were growing weaker by the minute. But he knew he was right to resist.

Back in the Great Hall, he searched the room for Elizabeth's magic signature. It was so bright he could have found her blindfolded. He was drawn in her direction like a drowning sailor to the shore. He slipped into the seat next to her and reached for her hand, reveling in her closeness. This is where he belonged, by her side.

The knots in his stomach began to untangle as her touch sent warm waves of happiness through his body.

"I wanted to tell you how wonderful you were," he murmured. "But you were surrounded by admirers."

Elizabeth chuckled softly. "Little boys and little girls who are fascinated by an unfamiliar magic."

"What you did was already a huge accomplishment in itself. You should not be modest."

"Not really. I am as willing as the next person to boast of my accomplishments. In this case, unfortunately, I fell short of what I had wished to achieve. But I have promised myself that next time I will meet my goals."

"Are you certain you are not pushing yourself too hard?"

She sighed. "Do I have any choice?"

The words suddenly took on a meaning of their own. Darcy realized it had always been like this. She had not chosen to marry him, either.

His earlier frustration returned. They were at the beck and call of forces outside themselves. Did any of them have any choice about anything? Sometimes he felt like their lives were not their own.

"There will come a time when we will have to make choices," he said, his voice deepening with feeling.

She gave him a questioning look. "What does that mean? Do you have something in mind?"

He did not know what he meant, only that things could not go on this way.

"Not yet," he said, "but I will think of something."

Just then a footman approached and handed Elizabeth a note. She opened it and sent Darcy a look of apology.

"What is it?"

"The Prince Regent wishes me to sit with him. And he wants me to join him for dinner."

Darcy wanted to object, to tell her to stay, but how could he? The knots in his belly returned twofold. He had hoped they could dine privately in his bedchamber for once.

"Well, then. You must obey his request."

"Will I see you later?"

Darcy shook his head. "You have been asked to dine with the Prince, and after dinner, I will be on duty maintaining the Wards with Redmond. The Prince Regent's presence puts us all in danger."

Elizabeth sighed. "Tomorrow, then. I have missed you."

"I have missed you too, my love."

He watched Elizabeth as she went up to the dais and curtsied to the Prince Regent before she sat on a velvet-lined chair. He was pleased that she had won the Regent's favor, but it was a double-edged sword.

Then Riquer joined her, and the knot became a tangle that was choking the life out of him.