The Guest | F. Darcy

Chapter 9: The Night They Couldn't Sleep

The first thought that came to Darcy's mind was how twisted a man could be. What the second thought was, he wasn't sure. There was a confused numbness setting in. He already knew that he was horrified, but he did not know how to feel. But he was sure that he needed a little time to process things. 

He was glad he excused himself from the evening's entertainment and decided to eat alone. His eyes shifted as he thought about things. What must have Adele felt? How desperate for her sister's happiness she must be? How did she even cope?

He sighed loudly and massaged his forehead. He was thinking too much but still not enough. He had already paced a hole in his bed chamber and was very tired. So he sat at his writing desk and did one thing at a time. He needed to come clean with the one Wickham had influenced before. Miss Elizabeth. He was grateful that the lady helped him by giving him the letter and the already broken seal indicated she had read it herself. It meant, given that she was already perceptive, she already knew that Wickham had not been a victim, and never was. He wrote a letter to her about Wickham and then about how and why he was against a union of her sister and his best friend. 

By the time he was done, it was near dawn and he hadn't slept. He wanted to get make arrangements. He needed to find Miss Elizabeth as soon as it was time for her to walk and give her the letter. And then, he needed to find Richard.

Adele couldn't sleep all night. Her thoughts were afloat and a misplaced feeling of shame was setting in. Darcy had walked away from her and she couldn't decide if that was for the best. Nonetheless, she knew she was not going to provide him with a retelling of the incident and that she was going to leave at the same time that she had planned a week ago i.e. today. Charlotte was the only one who knew about her plan to leave. Adele had begged her to not be cross with her and then not to say anything to anyone. Her initial plan had been to get the letter she had written for him delivered to Darcy by Richard most possibly and then disappear in Lady Marshall's carriage. The noble lady had received this request through an express letter and had agreed to provide the carriage if Adele thought her actions to be just. 

Now, Adele was grateful for the carriage ten times more than her past self. She needed an immediate escape and the carriage coming to get her could take her anywhere she wanted. She had already packed her cases the night before when she felt too restless and agitated to go to bed. All she needed now was the will to get out of bed, dress and tell people about her plan to leave. She would let Charlotte handle most of it, which her friend would after seeing how bad she looked. 

She buried her face in her pillows and groaned loudly. God help her.

After a light breakfast that would agree with his queasy stomach, he decided it was time to walk to the cottage. If Elizabeth wasn't already out for a stroll, he could always invite her to have one with him. He winced as his head ached. He should have at least napped a few minutes he had before breakfast. He wasted them idiotically by letting his thought wander to all the negative things.

Fortunately, he found Miss Elizabeth strolling or rather pacing a little distance from the cottage on the path that Adele took. He eagerly stepped towards her but it seemed that she was looking for him too. 

"Mr Darcy," she anxiously said, forgetting the civility.

"Miss Elizabeth," he bowed, "Good morning."

She curtsied back with a light blush of embarrassment but the frown remained. "Thank you for the letter, ma'am. You should know that yestereve, I met your sister when you all were at Rosings. I confessed my love for her and she told me about," he hesitated and blushed lightly, "about her lack of chastity. I was too confused to say anything and met unceremoniously."

"Mr Darcy," she interrupted, "I was there when that happened. I heard everything."

He nodded, a little flustered, and extended his hand to her to take the letter, "Here, I write to you to clarify Wickham and my situation as well as about my intervention between Bingley and Miss Jane. I hope you would forgive me for the latter as well as for not treating your sister respectfully yesterday."

She nodded meekly. "and what about Adele, Mr Darcy?"

"I would like to come by the cottage a little later to meet her and give her the courtesy that I did not give yesterday."

She abruptly looked at him, "But Mr Darcy, Adele already left Hundsford."