Regina Jeffers - Vampire Darcys Desire

“It is all right, Sweetling. Later, you will tell me exactly what was said, so we can determine what to do next, but none of that is what really matters.” Darcy kissed her upturned nose and tried to give her a smile of assurance. He tightened his grip about her. “What I need for you to understand, Elizabeth, is that Seorais is the Scottish name for George. Seorais Winchcombe of the story of Lord Thomas and Lady Ellender is George Wickham.”

He heard her gasp and felt her shudder as the truth washed over her. “Fitzwilliam, Fitzwilliam, the woman…the woman was the brown girl! ” Her arms searched his body, trying to find security.

“It was a warning, Elizabeth, to me, and now to you.The brown girl of the song simply had brown hair. Wickham chose this woman for symbolic purposes. I will explain it all in detail later—when we are alone—but I need for you to know, I managed to get to Georgiana in time to save her, although Wickham tried to seduce her at Ramsgate. He nearly killed us both in a house fire.”

“He said he was in Kent of late.”The truth of what Darcy said now made perfect sense.

He did not look at her as he spoke. It was impossible for him to break the aura of implied danger. “Elizabeth, Wickham tried to seduce Georgiana to take revenge on me—on the Darcy name. He has done so with each generation. I fear if he knows of us, you will become his target. It is best I stay away, best for you.”

“No!” she demanded.“I cannot face this without you!”

“If I withdraw,” he insisted, “you will not have to face any of this. I will take my evil with me.”

Anger flared in her and, without thinking, Elizabeth struck his chest with her fist.“You are not evil and I will not hear you speak as such! Fitzwilliam, I will not permit it!”

By now, Longbourn loomed on the horizon. “We will talk it out later. For now, we will tell everyone a wild dog chased you.We cannot hide the death, but it will all be coincidental.” Elizabeth nodded in agreement. “I will stay and help you until everything

“Thank you, Fitzwilliam.”

He stopped the horse far enough away that those in the house could not make out their forms.“I missed you,” he said quietly.

“Of course, you did,” came her retort. Elizabeth snaked her arms around his neck and tried to pretend nothing had changed. “Now, kiss me before I must face my family.”

He considered shoving her away, but a heartbeat later, he groaned and pulled her to him.The kiss made time stand still; it was what he needed—what she needed. Otherwise, there was no sense left in the world.

Darcy had other concerns, which he did not want to deal with, but he would do so. As he rode into the entranceway to Longbourn, the other issues consumed his thoughts. He must get back to the woman’s body and destroy it without anyone’s knowledge.

“ Elizabeth! ” Mary called from the open doorway.Alerted by the housekeeper, Mrs. Hill, her family, all chattering at once, poured from the house.

“Mr. Darcy, what means this?” Mr. Bennet demanded.

“Miss Elizabeth met with an unfortunate accident of some consequence.” Darcy’s voice boomed over the clatter, and they all fell silent.“We will explain once we get her into the house.”

Mr. Bennet reached for Elizabeth to help her down as Darcy lifted her from him. “Come, Lizzy,” her father insisted as Jane and Kitty rushed forward to help her.

A few steps towards the door, Elizabeth stopped suddenly. “Papa,” she called over her shoulder.“Have Mr. Darcy come in; he saved me today and we owe him our gratitude.”

At her insistence, Mr. Bennet reached for the reins of his horse. “Come in, Mr. Darcy. Pray, come in.”

Darcy dismounted and followed the others into the parlor. Bingley had called there before, but Darcy had not. Although comfortable, the furniture seemed worn and a bit frayed. But that

Again, silence and inquiry filled the air.“Of course, Miss Elizabeth, if it allays your fears.”

“Lizzy, may I get you some tea?” Jane fussed with Elizabeth’s hair. “My!” she gasped. “You have leaves entangled in your curls. Would you not wish to freshen up before we discuss why you are so disheveled?”

Elizabeth laughed and accepted the tea. “Possibly, Mr. Darcy would like some port, Papa.”

Mr. Bennet did her bidding. The rest of the family huddled together; miraculously, no one spoke. They allowed Elizabeth to orchestrate the situation. Darcy wondered if she was always in charge; he could imagine her in the role. When Darcy held his drink, Elizabeth cleared her throat. After the earlier fright, she was thoroughly enjoying the situation.

“First of all, I want to assure you I am well, physically—despite how I might look. I went to town this morning to see if Aunt Philips needed any help for this evening’s gathering. On my way back, I heard something unusual. I do not know what it was, although Mr. Darcy here seems to think it might have been a wild dog or even a wolf. ” She actually reached out and patted the back of his hand as it lay on the seat between them. Darcy thought about catching it and holding her hand close to him, but propriety overruled the impulse.

“Anyway, I thought whatever it was came in chase, and I took off running. In hindsight, it was a silly thing to do, but I was afraid.”

“Of course, you were, my dear,” her mother consoled.

Prolonging the drama, Elizabeth took a sip of her tea before continuing. “I ran towards Thompson’s barn; I thought I might seek shelter there.” Suddenly, Elizabeth lost her nerve. She glanced at Darcy, and her lips began to tremble.“Would you…Mr. Darcy?”

Darcy knew of what they agreed, and he began the tale from there.“Mr. Bingley and I were out riding.”

“Mr. Bingley?” Jane looked around, wondering where he was.

“Charles will be here shortly,” he assured them. “Anyway, we rode along the outskirts of his property. Suddenly birds took flight in fear, and almost immediately Charles and I heard a sound of something running.When I looked in the direction of the sound, I saw Miss Elizabeth, in obvious distress, running with all her might over the crest of a hill. Instantly, Charles and I took off after her. However, before we could reach your daughter, Mr. Bennet, we heard Miss Elizabeth’s screams.When I finally found her, Miss Elizabeth was on the ground, crawling away in terror.”

“I do not understand, Mr. Darcy.” Mr. Bennet leaned forward in his chair.

Elizabeth now sobbed audibly, her eyes downcast.“Should I go on, Miss Elizabeth?” Darcy asked softly.“Would you rather retire to your room and let me speak of this incident?”

She looked up suddenly and caught his eye.“Would you mind? I will return when Mr. Bingley arrives.”

“You go,” he said. The tenderness in his voice was not lost on Elizabeth.

Mr. Bennet motioned for Mrs. Hill to help Elizabeth. No one else in the family wanted to miss Darcy’s story.When Elizabeth was safely on her way up the stairs, Darcy added, “Your daughter tries to be brave, Mr. Bennet, but she was traumatized today. As Miss Elizabeth tried to escape from the dog or wolf or whatever she thought was there, she fell as she ran. Neither Mr. Bingley nor I saw her fall, but Miss Elizabeth was on the ground when we reached her. And the fear was very real! The cause of her fall was the body of a woman lying in a crevice where the slopes of two hills meet.” He heard a collective gasp from those in attendance. Mrs. Bennet began to fan her face, as if to swoon.“Mr. Bingley rode into Meryton

“Oh, my goodness!” Jane whispered.“Poor Lizzy.”

“Did she see the woman’s body?” Mr. Bennet wanted to know.

Darcy took a drink of the port, taking time to weigh his words. “Unfortunately, I believe she did; it was a gruesome sight, especially for a gentlewoman such as Miss Elizabeth. If you ask if your daughter knew the woman, I doubt it. Mr. Bingley did not recognize the woman’s face, and her clothes and appearance would indicate she was of the working class , not likely to be of Miss Elizabeth’s acquaintance.”

Mr. Bennet mused,“I see.”

Mrs. Bennet began to cry audibly, and her younger daughters saw to her immediately, patting her hand and offering supportive hugs.

Darcy had planned what to say next.“The constable and possibly Colonel Forster will be here soon to ask Miss Elizabeth some questions. She will need all of your support,” he said with authority.

“Naturally,” Mr. Bennet said as he stood. “Jane and Mary, I believe Elizabeth could use your help.”

“Of course, Papa.”And they were gone.

Mrs. Bennet’s lament became so agitated Mr. Bennet sent his wife to her room, along with his other two daughters. “Give your mother a dose of her nerve draught,” he ordered as they led the weeping woman from the room.

When they were all finally removed, Mr. Bennet asked, “Was the woman murdered?”

“The body was badly mutilated. She did not die naturally, but I cannot say whether she died at the hands of a man or was attacked by a wild animal. She was in the middle of a field where two hills intersect.” Darcy kept his voice soft, trying to portray the seriousness of the situation.

“Was Elizabeth chased by an animal or a man?”

Darcy did not know how to answer that one. “I saw no pursuer, Mr. Bennet, but from the reaction of the birds, I would suspect an animal.Yet for Miss Elizabeth, the pursuit was very real and very harrowing.”

“Do you know where Elizabeth’s cloak might be, Mr. Darcy? She did not have it on when you brought her home; she wore your greatcoat.” Mr. Bennet made it easy for him. Darcy would use the cloak as his excuse to return to the body. He originally thought he would tell Mr. Bennet that he planned to meet the constable before the man came to question Elizabeth; now, he had a ready excuse.“Did she throw it at the pursuer?” Mr. Bennet continued.

“I cannot say, Mr. Bennet.Your daughter did not wear a cloak when I found her, but it is logical she would wear one because of the weather. It was the least of my thoughts at the time.”

“I am thankful, Mr. Darcy, that you and Mr. Bingley were there when Lizzy needed you.”Tears misted the man’s eyes.

“Mr. Bennet, I believe I will ride out and see if Miss Elizabeth’s cloak is there; I am sure the constable went to the scene first. Possibly, I can intercept him and ease the pain of the questions he will be asking your daughter. I would not want Miss Elizabeth to suffer any more distress today than necessary.”

“Thank you, Mr. Darcy.We are in your debt.” Mr. Bennet stood and Darcy followed.

“Miss Elizabeth seemed most insistent that I stay with her today, but I shall not be gone long. Simply tell her, if she asks, that I went to find Mr. Bingley.” Darcy picked up his gloves from the entrance table, needing to hurry now that he had permission to do so. “I will be back within the hour, more than likely sooner.” And with that, he was gone.

Back in the saddle, Darcy circled Longbourn House, hoping to find what he needed in the barn or stables. If not, he would have to ride to the manor house on Netherfield’s land and retrieve one of the swords.Then he saw it, resting beside a stack of firewood. Leaning down from the horse’s back, he caught up the short-handled ax with one hand and rode on.

He rode with a purpose, praying he could reach the woman’s body before Bingley brought the authorities. Seeing Elizabeth’s cloak draped over the corpse made him realize how lucky he was with both Georgiana and with Elizabeth.