20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

E lizabeth was thankful at least that they did not have to share a carriage with Lady Catherine. They were gloomy enough company without her, even now that Bingley was gone. They all had too much on their minds. Elizabeth was preoccupied with Jane, but also with Riquer's message and what she could do next time to make her magic stronger.

After a long period in which nobody spoke, however, she could take it no longer.

"Who was it that claimed we would be more cheerful without Bingley?" she said. "Was it you, Papa? I cannot imagine three gloomier people. We shall suffer in silence all the way to Walmer Castle."

Darcy put his arm around her. "I will not allow it," he said, in his most arrogant tone.

A few months again, Elizabeth might have thought he was serious. Now she simply laughed.

"And how do you intend to stop me?"

He cast a quick glance at Mr. Bennet. "I suppose I could tickle you." He gave a little demonstration. Elizabeth giggled.

"Now, now, children. Remember I am here." Mr. Bennet wagged his finger at them, as though they were indeed children, but he regarded Darcy with a mix of amusement and surprise.

How very different Darcy was now from that statue she had encountered on her first day at Founder's Hall! It delighted her to see that being together had made him more spontaneous and livelier, despite all the troubles they had encountered.

Taking a leaf from his book, Elizabeth began to tickle him back. He writhed and chortled, and Elizabeth found it a truly wonderful sight to behold.

They could not tickle each other all the way to the coast, however.

"Do we have a deck of cards?" she said, "or something else to amuse us?"

"I have something," said Darcy, with a flash of humor in his eyes. He searched under the seat and promptly produced a copy of The Compendium of Spells .

Elizabeth groaned loudly. "From the frying pan into the fire! I wish I didn't say anything!"

Mr. Bennet regarded the book with mock distaste. "Not that fusty old manual! Throw it out of the window, Lizzy!"

Darcy smiled ruefully. "I know, I know. But it would be a good idea to revise some of the spells." He looked at Mr. Bennet. "Especially since by your own admission you have forgotten some of them."

"I still think we should throw it out of the window," Mr. Bennet declared.

Elizabeth gave Darcy a resigned look. "I suppose you will hound us until we do it," she said. "Papa, we may as well give in with good grace. When it comes to The Compendium , Darcy will never back down."

Her words were proven true when it turned out that Darcy, in his usual methodical way, had already earmarked some of the spells that might be useful to Ward against Napoleon's mages. There were Confinement spells, Restraining Spells and Repelling spells.

They covered them, prompting Mr. Bennet when he tried unsuccessfully to recall them. She had to admit it was a helpful exercise, and she resolved to practice the ones her father did not know with him. In the heat of battle, it might be crucial to know the same ones.

Then, to her astonishment, Darcy turned to the back of the book, where he had written in a new spell. As he read it out, she realized it was the spell Elizabeth had used to smother the fireball that had almost destroyed Founder's Hall.

"How did you know it?" she said.

"You told me, when I asked."

She did not recall doing so, but it flattered her to think he had gone to the trouble.

"It is your very own spell. You should give it a name."

"Snuffing Spell," said Elizabeth, readily.

"That evokes the image of someone snorting snuff," said Mr. Bennet. "The effect would be to make someone sneeze."

"Very well. Let us call it the Smothering Spell."

This time it was Darcy who objected. "That suggests it can be used to smother an enemy."

Elizabeth grinned. "Very well, then. How about a spell for Stifling Fire?"

The objections were even louder this time. After that, everyone tried to come up with a name, but none of them seemed to work. In the end, all three of them threw up their hands in surrender.

"I would never have imagined coming up with a name was so difficult," said Elizabeth. "I wonder how the mages were able to come up with all the original names."

"Many of them were monks in monasteries with plenty of time on their hands," replied Mr. Bennet. "They probably contemplated for months before deciding on each name."

They all laughed.

"To come back to Elizabeth's spell – which shall remain nameless – perhaps we should all memorize it."

Elizabeth reflected on the fireball she had managed to stifle. The French mages had built it up very slowly before stoking the fire inside it.

"I do not believe that spell will be particularly useful. I used it on a very large fireball that hovered over the Hall for a while. If the French attack the beach, they will be more likely to use something fast-moving. I think our best option would be to use Containment Wards for those. The spells are short and take effect quickly."

They discussed which spells would be most useful for some time, until the scenery changed and the view outside occupied their attention.

As their party drew closer and closer to the coast, Elizabeth's glum reflections shifted to anticipation. She had never seen the sea, and she could barely contain her excitement that she was finally going to fulfill a childhood dream of hers.

"Have you been to the sea?" she asked Darcy.

"I went twice to Ramsgate when my parents were alive," he replied. "And I went another time with a group of other mages to Brighton."

"Is the sea truly impressive?"

He chuckled. "I'm not sure what you mean by impressive, but on a sunny day, it can be considered beautiful."

She gave his arm a little shove. "Why can't you give me a straight answer for once? Tell me what you think."

"I am not good at this, Elizabeth," said Darcy. "I could never be a poet. Surely you have read many descriptions of the sea by writers far more capable of describing it than I am."

"But I want your opinion. If I asked you to describe Pemberley, would I be satisfied with a historical account?"

"That is not the same, and you know it. Very well. I will do what I can." His brows furrowed in concentration. "I find the sea disconcerting and changeable. On a calm day, it is smooth as a lake. Then a few hours later, it turns gray and turbulent. I distrust it." His eyes wrinkled. "There, I have told you what I think. Are you satisfied?"

Elizabeth was pleased that he was at least trying. It would not hurt to push him, surely. "What about the sand? Are the grains as fine as they say they are?"

He sighed. "I see you are determined to torment me. It depends on the beach. At Ramsgate, I would not say the sand was fine. I remember it being coarse and brown. It rubs against your skin and steals into your boots and clothing. But I loved building sandcastles and splashing in the water, so I was happy."

It was a rare glimpse into Darcy's childhood with his parents, and she wanted to take it further. "Did your parents object to the sand?"

"The nursery maid usually cleaned me up before I was ushered in to see them," he said.

"They did not come down to the beach with you?"

He shot her a puzzled look. "Why would they?"

"I thought that is why they went to Ramsgate. What did they do there, then?"

"They walked along the promenade in the evenings during the fashionable hour and attended balls and card games. Mama had milky white skin, and I remember her fussing when she was exposed to the sun. She did not want to acquire freckles."

Elizabeth had a sudden picture of a lonely boy playing on the beach with no other company than the nurse-maids.

"Wickham went with us, once," Darcy said, as if in response to her thoughts. "He kept kicking down my castles every time I rebuilt them."

"That is exactly what I would have expected," she said, thinking of that little boy, stoically building a new castle only to have it kicked down.

"But in Brighton, there is no sand. The beaches are shingle, with round pebbles of different colors."

"No sandcastles?"

Darcy smiled. "I was too old for sandcastles when I went. I was there to build wards for the Prince Regent's palace."

The intrusion of the Prince Regent on the conversation changed Elizabeth's mood. She had not forgiven herself for being too na?ve to see what the prince was up to, and she did not want to go back to considering her shortcomings in Mirror Magic. She preferred to look forward to the sea.

"I have always wanted to go to the sea. When I was a young child, I used to imagine that a dolphin would come to the shore and carry me away on some grand adventure."

Mr. Bennet chose this moment to wake up. "If I knew you were longing to see the sea so much, I would have arranged for us to take up lodgings in Ramsgate," he said.

"You would not, Papa," she replied, playfully. "I begged you many times, but you always refused to leave your library. You have always avoided travel whenever possible. You only go to London when you have business, or in order to acquire a book."

Mr. Bennet shrugged. "There is something to be said for the comforts of home." He looked out of the window. "I hope for your sake the weather is sunny when we arrive there. But I doubt it. Clouds are rolling in from the northwest, and the wind is picking up."

"How do you know?" said Elizabeth, surprised. "Do you have some Arcane ability to predict the direction of the wind?"

"No, merely the powers of deduction." Mr. Bennet pointed to a weathervane. "And I can tell you from now. There is a storm coming. I doubt you will be able to see much of the sea."

His words were prophetic. To Elizabeth's dismay, as they drew closer to the coast, the weather took a turn for the worse. The wind began to gust, shaking the carriage as if in fury. Mr. Bennet set up a protective spell to encompass the carriages and prevent the dampness from seeping inside. She pressed her nose against the window to catch her first glimpse of the sea, but she could barely see anything with the rain lashing at the window. A barrier of gray obscured her view. Vaguely, she caught a glimpse of white froth that she supposed were the crests of the waves.

When they stopped at The Three Kings Inn in Deal to freshen up and change horses, they had to run inside to escape the rain. Their traveling companions were already there, as were Lord Grayson and Lord Harcourt, who bowed and inquired about Jane's health.

They gathered around a fire, which had been lit for the purpose of drying their wet clothes, exclaiming over the howling storm.

Then Elizabeth heard a voice she had hoped never to hear again. Lady Catherine walked in, followed by another lady who looked wretchedly familiar. Lady Alice Enright.

There was a stunned reaction. Redmond did not know how to react to the sudden appearance of his aunt. He turned red and kept his eyes on the floor.

Lord Matlock was the first to recover. "What are you doing here?"

"I am here to see my nephew," she said, indicating poor Redmond, who looked as if he wished the floor would swallow him up. "Am I not entitled to see my family? Even a prisoner is allowed visitors."

Matlock turned to Lady Catherine. "This is your doing! What were you thinking? This woman is wanted for treason."

"Arrest her!" said Darcy. He remembered only too well his last encounter with her. She could have killed him. He cast a look at Elizabeth, who nodded, ready to do battle.

"You can try," she said, with a smile full of malice. She turned to Lord Matlock. "I assume you are in charge here. I have come to offer my services."

"Much as we appreciate the gesture, Darcy is right." said Lord Matlock, "You have been convicted of treason and I am authorized to arrest you."

"Hogwash! You can hand me over to be tried after I've assisted you in fighting off the enemy. Rumors are that an attack is imminent." She looked them over. "What is wrong with the Council? Do they really think this bedraggled group can defeat an army of Napoleon's mages?"

"You want to join us? A traitor? Do you seriously think I will simply allow you to rejoin the Royal Mages after everything you have done?"

"I have never been a traitor to the Kingdom. I disagree with the Royal Mages's policies. That does not make me a traitor." Her gaze turned towards Mr. Bennet. "Any more than it made him a traitor. If you must accuse anyone, you would have to accuse him."

She turned back to Darcy. "You have never been a fool. If you fight with me, you may be injured. At the very least, your magic will be drained. Neither of those possibilities are desirable just before facing a battle. There are so few of you as it is, and your chances of success are slim. When Catherine told me what was happening, I decided to join her and to offer my services. I am one of the most powerful mages in the Kingdom. Perhaps the most powerful individually, Lord Matlock. Even better than you are."

She held up her hand as Elizabeth started to speak. "You do show a great deal of promise, Mrs. Darcy, but you are not my equal, not without your Twin. Perhaps once you have lived as long as I have, you may become as powerful, but it will take time."

"I was not about to argue that point," said Elizabeth. "I have no intention of trying to prove who is the greatest mage of them all. What concerns me is that you tried to kill my husband. Do you really think I would trust you to fight next to me? How do I know you will not stab us in the back, when you have already tried to destroy us twice?"

"I had good reasons. I still believe in them." She did not even pretend to be penitent. "But when it comes to fighting Napoleon, we are on the same side."

She was certainly convincing, but she had used Persuasion magic on others before. Was this what she was doing?

Lady Alice looked around at everyone in the room. "You need me. You cannot deny it. And if it helps you make up your mind, I will give you my word that I will hand myself in after the battle. You can bind it in magic, if you wish."

"If you give me your word as a lady," said Mr. Bennet, unexpectedly, "that is enough for me."

Darcy shot Bennet an angry look. Bennet had not seen the trouble Lady Alice had caused. He had not been at Netherfield. Was she weaving a spell around him as she had done with Lord Sudbury? She had stolen Sudbury's magic.

"Very well," said Lord Matlock. Clearly his uncle was taking a more easy-going approach.

"I disagree completely," said Darcy. "You are all witnesses to that. It is a risk we cannot afford."

"Do not allow your pride to come in the way of the Kingdom's need," said Lady Alice. "In any case, you cannot stop me. I will simply show up in the midst of battle and then what will you do?"

Darcy seethed, but she was right. There was nothing they could do to stop her. And as much as he hated to admit it, they really did need Lady Alice Enright.

They left the inn shortly afterward for Walmer Castle. As they took their places in the carriage, Darcy did not utter a word. Elizabeth could see he was struggling to hold his temper in check. The muscles in his jaw were moving, and his hands were gripping the edge of the seat tightly. He sat in the corner, his eyes stormy, staring outside.

She did not blame him, and she was grateful that he was doing his best not to quarrel with her father. It had all been a big shock. Lady Alice's arrival had unnerved her badly, but her father's intervention in Lady Alice's favor had made things even worse.

It was up to Elizabeth to address the matter. "Why did you do that, Papa? Why did you have to accept her word?" she said. "Do you even know what she did to us?"

"I know exactly what she did to you. Lord Matlock informed me at the time."

When Elizabeth looked surprised, Mr. Bennet gave a satisfied smirk. "Of course I kept an eye on you even when I was away. Lord Matlock has been an important ally." He grew serious. "I accepted Lady Alice's word because, despite her unpleasant ways, I know her to always stick to her convictions, no matter how bad they are. If she gives her word, she will honor it. Honor is important to her."

"How do you know her so well?"

"She was an apprentice at the same Academy I was at. We are the same age."

"And you like her?"

"No. I dislike her intensely. I would even go as far as saying I loathe her."

Elizabeth did not know what to say to that. It all seemed too entangled. Or perhaps the strain of the last few days was catching up with her.

"Nevertheless, I believe her when she says she is here to help," added Mr. Bennet.

"Enough! I no longer want to discuss the matter," said Elizabeth. "I was so looking forward to glimpsing the sea, but it has all gone very wrong."

She fought back the bile in her throat. After everything that had happened with Jane and Riquer and now Lady Alice, she did not want to fight her father as well.

Sensing her distress, Darcy unfolded himself from his seat and came to sit next to her.

"I am sorry your first experience of the sea has been unpleasant, my love. As you may recall, I did say I did not trust the sea," said Darcy.

Elizabeth had the feeling he was talking about a lot more than the sea.