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Lizzy led him down the hill, trying to move as quietly as she could. She wished she could extinguish the lantern, but they would be completely blind without it, since darkness had come upon them now, and the quarter moon was barely sufficient to light a few feet in front of them.
Already, she could see there was no campfire, and she was afraid Wickham had entirely abandoned the location, but it was the best lead they had. When they reached the bottom of the hill, she held the lantern aloft to look around and immediately saw a ribbon on a branch. She moved closer and lifted it, handing it to Darcy. “Does that belong to Georgiana?”
“I think it might.”
Lizzy lifted the lantern again, looking for some other evidence of where they’d gone, issuing a pleased sound when she saw the line of footprints moving away from the riverbed. The entire forest floor wasn’t wet enough to retain footprints, since the rain they’d had wasn’t that extensive, but it gave them a clue as to which way to go.
Darcy took the lead this time, and Lizzy stayed beside him, surprised he hadn’t insisted she remain behind, though she would have refused. In a few feet, they found another ribbon, this one looking like it had been haphazardly wrapped around a leaf hanging from the tree in front of them. It matched the one Lizzy had found while ago, and Darcy put it in his pocket in an absent-minded fashion. “I believe she might be leaving us a trail,” said Darcy.
“I thought that as well,” said Lizzy. She wondered when Georgiana had had a chance to think of the plan, and she admired her forethought in doing so.
They continued on, and at first, Lizzy thought Darcy had gone the wrong way, but then they came across a scrap of lace that looked like it’d been torn on a bramble. Lizzy wasn’t certain if it were an accidental clue Georgiana had left behind, or if she’d managed to deliberately snag her clothes on the plant.
A bit later, they saw a trail of blood that started with another bramble bush, and there were smears of the red substance every few feet. Lizzy wondered if Georgiana, unable to remove any other pieces of clothing, had made the brave decision to deliberately slash herself and then leaned against the foliage to provide markers. If so, the young woman was even stronger than she had seemed.
They ran out of the blood trail, but it was sufficient to lead them to where they needed, because they both froze at the sound of voices ahead of them. Mostly, it was one voice, though there were muffled grunts from another. Lizzy was certain the grunting voice was feminine and likely belonged to Georgiana.
“There is no point in trying to escape, Georgie,” said Wickham as they drew closer, moving as quietly as possible so he would be unaware of their arrival until the last, “And deliberately cutting yourself on the bramble was just childish. Did you think it would move me to pity and make me release you? As I told you when I took you from your room at Netherfield, once I have the money, Darcy can have you back. I have no interest in harming you more than I must, so you may calm down.”
There was a flurry of grunting and unintelligible words following his, and Lizzy was proud of Georgiana for standing up to the man, though clearly her mouth was restricted in some form. Lizzy put a hand on Darcy’s shoulder, planning to work out a strategy with him, but he was clearly beyond logical thinking. With a roar of outrage, he rushed forward, giving Wickham too much notice that he was there, and allowed the other man time to gain his feet.
Lizzy winced at the ill-conceived tactic, but she could hardly fault him for being moved by the need to rescue his sister, though she thought there would’ve been a better way. While Darcy was busy with Wickham, she rushed to Georgiana and removed the gag from her mouth. “Are you all right?”
“I am for now. I have a small slash from a bramble, but it has stopped bleeding.”
“Did you do it deliberately to leave a trail?” Lizzy tugged at the knots on the rope binding her wrists, reluctantly impressed by Wickham’s skills at tying them.
“Yes. It was the only thing I could think of after running out of hair ribbons. If he had not allowed me a moment to see to personal needs, I would not have had the opportunity to wrap the ribbons. I had to do it mostly with my teeth.” She sounded pained by that, but there was also a note of pride in her tone.
“You are brave and resourceful.”
“No, I am foolish. This is my fault.”
Lizzy scowled, unsure if the girl could see her expression in the gloom. “You cannot blame yourself for Wickham’s actions.”
“I should have spoken up.” She sniffled. “The morning you found me, when I claimed to be lost, Wickham had approached me while I was walking. I ran away, but I did not say anything. You do not know of my history with him, but it is shameful, and I could not bear to have anyone questioning why I was alone with him.”
Lizzy made a soothing sound as she continued to struggle with the rope. “I do know enough to understand why you would not broach the subject with me, but even though you did not tell us you had seen him, you are not to blame for his actions—then or now.”
It was difficult to tell in the dim glow of the lantern and the weak campfire, but Georgiana appeared to be crying. Lizzy looked up when there was a shout from Wickham, followed by a moan from Darcy.
Georgiana looked at her brother. “You must assist him.”
Lizzy frowned. “I am going to help him, but I need to get you back to Netherfield.”
As she spoke, Lizzy finally managed to untie the rope around Georgiana’s wrists, and now the girl grasped her hand. “I can make my own way back, and I shall get help.”
She hesitated only a second, weighing Darcy’s wishes versus his needs. No doubt, he would wish for her to accompany Georgiana, but he seemed to need help. “Make noise, as much as possible, for there are many people out searching for you. If you go up the hill and back to the road, Goliath should still be standing there waiting.”
Georgiana got to her feet, moving away but pausing as she looked back at Lizzy. “Should you come with me?”
“I do not think it would be wise to leave your brother alone to fight Mr. Wickham on his own.” In normal circumstance, perhaps Mr. Darcy would’ve been able to overpower Wickham, but since he’d given the man sufficient notice of his arrival, and he was acting under the influence of passionate anger rather than cool logic, she doubted Mr. Darcy’s faculties were at full capacity at the moment.
With only a brief hesitation, Georgiana nodded and ran in the direction they had come, holding the lantern Lizzy had given her aloft to light the way for herself.
It was darker without the lantern, but Wickham had a small fire going, and that helped provide some illumination. It also provided a branch, and she bent down to heft it, though it was sturdier than she would’ve liked. With a deep breath, she entered the fracas.
She thought she had her objective lined up well, and she brought the branch forward, aiming for Wickham. Before she could connect, the men changed position at the last moment, and she accidentally hit Mr. Darcy’s temple in the process, along with grazing Wickham’s shoulder.
That caused the two of them to fall, and Darcy appeared to have borne the brunt of the impact. Wickham was over him in a second, punching Darcy in the face. She let out a cry of dismay when Darcy slumped to the ground, clearly unconscious. No doubt, he would think she had deliberately aided Wickham when she’d only been trying to help Darcy.
Wickham must have reached the same conclusion. “I knew you liked me, Lizzy.” As he spoke, he kneeled casually beside Darcy.
She moved closer, holding out the branch. “Keep your hands off him. I will not allow you to hurt him further.”
He grinned up at her, smirking. “You have certainly handled the lion’s share of injuring him yourself, my dear.”
She shuddered. “Do not call me anything so familiar. You must know I was trying to hit you, not Mr. Darcy. You changed positions.”
“I did because I saw you with the branch, and the opportunity was too great. I thank you for your assistance, no matter how reluctantly it was rendered.” His tone was mocking as he waved to her in a gallant fashion. Then he reached into Mr. Darcy’s waistcoat.
Lizzy frowned. “What are you doing?” Did Mr. Darcy have a pistol? What would she do if Wickham tried to use it on the other man?
“I am liberating him of enough funds to leave the area. Once again, the man has foiled my attempts. I should kill him where he lies.”
Lizzy rushed forward, bringing up the branch and whacking it across Wickham’s shoulders. “I will not allow that.”
He surged to his feet, dropping Mr. Darcy’s billfold on his chest as he did so. He stuffed the money in his pocket, and he looked enraged as he took a step toward Lizzy.
She trembled under the weight of his fury, certain if he could get his hands around her throat, he would throttle her. She did her best not to show her fear as she held out the branch, trying to keep him away.
“If I had time, I would teach you a lesson, Miss Bennet. Alas, I must flee again. Once more, Darcy has ruined everything.”
Lizzy glared at him. “I helped.”
His rage seemed to be fading, and he grinned a little. “You did. It is most unfortunate you did not have a sufficient dowry, because I would have enjoyed having you as a wife, at least until I grew bored of you.”
She grimaced. “I never would have accepted your proposal.”
His amusement was obvious. “You were practically panting for me, Miss Bennet. Lie to yourself if you want, but I could have had you at any moment. I could have you now if I wished. In fact, you could come with me.” His voice sounded coaxing.
Lizzy wasn’t at all tempted. She poked the branch forward, ensuring he did not come closer. “Get out of here while you still can.”
“Such a pity.” Despite his words, he clearly bore no pain that she wasn’t coming with him and wasn’t interested in doing so. Without another look at to her, he turned and ran.
As soon as he was far enough away that she felt confident to do so, she started shouting, “Help. Help us. Follow my voice. Mr. Darcy has been injured by Mr. Wickham, and he is fleeing even now.”
She continued to shout for several minutes until she heard a groaning sound as Mr. Darcy started to come around. She dropped to the ground beside him, touching his shoulder. “Mr. Darcy, are you all right?”
“My head is pounding dreadfully, and your shouting is not helping, but I shall live.” His eyes blinked open, and he looked confused. “Where is Georgiana?”
“She ran to get Goliath and return to Netherfield for help. I am certain she is safe.”
He lifted a hand, touching his head, which was sticky with blood. “What happened to me?”
Lizzy thought about not telling him, but if he remembered later, she didn’t want him to think she was being dishonest. “I was trying to help.” She sounded as miserable as she felt when she said the words.
He frowned as he started unwrapping his cravat before bringing it to his temple to staunch the flow of blood. “I do not understand.”
“I had a branch, and I intended to hit Wickham with it. I guess he saw me at the last moment, because he changed positions, and you bore the brunt of the impact. Truly, I was not trying to injure you, Fitzwilliam.” Lizzy realized she was clutching his hand in her earnestness, and she’d slipped into using his first name, but she couldn’t bring herself to let go. “You must believe I have no affection for the man, and it was an accident.”
He groaned, but his hand didn’t pull away from hers. “I believe you. Having witnessed some of your clumsiness, I can well imagine how the situation played out.”
She wanted to deny the allegation, for she was not excessively clumsy, but she was too distraught, though relief filled her that Mr. Darcy was in possession of his faculties well enough to be speaking to her and understand what had happened. He was unlikely to bear permanent injury from the evening. “He got away again. I thought about trying to stop him, but I was unsure I could do so.”
His hand tightened around hers. “I would not wish you to risk yourself just to keep him from fleeing now that Georgiana is safe. I will hire Runners to find him.”
“First, you must get back to Netherfield. Surely, we will be found shortly, for I have been shouting for a while, and there were so many people looking for Miss Georgiana.”
“I believe I shall rest my eyes until they come.” As he said that, his lids drooped, and he appeared to lose consciousness again.
Lizzy was frantically shaking his shoulder when she heard footsteps behind her. She looked up and saw Mr. Bingley and her father approaching, along with a few other men from Meryton. “He was injured in the fight with Mr. Wickham. He was awake a while ago, but he has lost consciousness again. Likely, he will need Mr. Jones, or perhaps a surgeon. There are no physicians in this area, Mr. Bingley.” She sounded far calmer than she felt.
“We shall see to him,” said Mr. Bingley in a gentle tone. He bent down and helped Lizzy to her feet, handing her off to her father like she was made of glass. Lizzy was uncertain why he was treating her as though she were so delicate until she realized she was shaking. Reaction was setting in, and she was also dreadfully concerned about Mr. Darcy, much as she hated to admit it.
When her father drew her away, she wanted to protest, wanting to remain with Mr. Darcy to ensure he was all right, but she had no right to do so. Despite their combined efforts to rescue Georgiana, there was still nothing between them that would justify her demands to be at his side. She couldn’t even explain the desire to herself, knowing how he disapproved of Jane, so she suppressed it as she leaned against her papa, who held her gently as he walked her home.
“I believe he shall be well, my dear,” said Thomas as they drew closer to Longbourn.
“I am sure he will. I feel badly though, because part of the injury is my fault.” She quickly told her father what had happened.
Mr. Bennet laughed a little. “I am sorry, but that is quite amusing in its own fashion, my dear, since he appears none too injured from the outcome. I understand you did not do it on purpose, and he seems like he will be in good health soon enough. You have done more than anyone could ask from a fine young woman by providing him assistance with finding Miss Darcy. I do not approve of you traipsing out in the woods alone with him. It was far too dark and dangerous for you, but I understand you are moved to do the right thing.”
“I was, Papa. If I had not been certain I knew where Wickham had been camping, I would not have inserted myself into the search, of course.” Lizzy sounded entirely confident of that, though she wasn’t wholly certain she believed it herself.
It was clear by her father’s twinkling eyes that he didn’t necessarily believe the words either. Clearly, he recognized Lizzy enjoyed a good adventure, though there was nothing enjoyable about Wickham having kidnapped Miss Darcy.
“Is Miss Darcy all right?”
“My understanding is she is quite well. Our party ran into her as she was riding to Netherfield on that black beast, and after ascertaining your location as well as she could describe, Mr. Bingley sent her on to Netherfield in the accompaniment of a couple of men who were part of the search. I am certain she arrived safely.”
“I must call in tomorrow to check on her,” said Lizzy. She stifled a yawn, suddenly exhausted. Perhaps it was more emotional than physical, but all she wanted was to curl up in her bed and get a good night’s sleep.
“You shall certainly endeavor to do so tomorrow. I will even be kind enough to keep your mother and younger sisters home from the social call, for goodness knows, Miss Darcy has suffered enough.”
Lizzy chuckled at her father’s words even as tiredness made it seem impossible to complete the last few steps into the house and drag herself upstairs. She managed to do so, collapsing on her bed without bothering to undress and succumbing to the exhaustion sweeping over her.