If Only In His Dreams (22 page)

“So you will take the word of a known liar over mine?  You would choose to believe him over me?”

“Indeed, Father.” Matthew stepped forward and faced his father.  “You have lied to all of us for quite some time.  Your gambling debts that you have kept hidden until recently.  Your attempt to gain control o
f Rosings and Anne’s birthright,
with false claims of an arrangement between de Bourgh and Uncle Gerald.  Shall I continue Father?  Shall I continue listing your lies and deceit?”

“I
cannot believe that I sired you,
you weak willed fool.  You have no notion of what loyalty is.” Lord Matlock exclaimed.

“Well, Father, I would rather be considered a weak willed fool than be like you.  I side with my brother and my cousins on this matter.”

Lord Matlock was
determined to not give in to their accusations.  “And what do you think that you can do to me?  I have a seat on the House of Lords.  I am an Earl.  What could you possibly do to me?”

Darcy stepped between his eldest cousin and Lord Matlock.  Facing his uncle, Darcy looked the man in the eye.  “You will turn over your title to Matthew.  You will never have any dealings on behalf of the Fitzwilliam family, as you have never had any rights to make decisions for the Darcy and the de Bourgh families.  Matthew, Richard and I will make all future decisions for our families.”

“And why would I be such an idiot as to do as you demand?”

“Because, Father, if you do not, I will have you declared incompetent and have you placed in an asylum.  If you do as we say, you will only need to live out your days in exile.”

“Exile?  And just where will I be sent to spend out my remaining years?”

“Scotland.” Richard stated.  “Near the nort
hern territories of the country,
far from civil
ization,
and unable to cause any further harm.  We will tell everyone that you have left the neighborhood for your health, as you have been quite ill.”

“Anyone who knows me will know that I am not ill.  They will come looking for me.”

“I doubt that very much,
as most people of the Ton find you ridiculous.  So, it is time for you to decide.  Bedlam or Scotland?”

Lord Matlock knew that he was trapped in the web that he had created.  “And may I i
nquire as to my sisters and your…
wife?” he asked as he looked at Darcy.

“My wife is well;
she only suffered from the violence of the attack. My mother has a broken leg and a cut on her face.  Aunt Catherine was stabbed
in the shoulder and has a head wound.  The surgeon has seen to all of them.  Be grateful that you are not facing criminal charges for attempting to have them killed.”

“I would never have tried to have my sisters killed.” Lord Matlock said defiantly.

“But you would my wife, is that not true?” Darcy’s fury was growing by the moment.

“That chit would
have deserved whatever she got;
she has ruined so many plans and preparations.”

The next thing Lord Matlock was aware of was lying on the floor with blood running from his very painful mouth.  Sitting up carefully, Lord Matlock realized that he had two teeth missing from his mouth.  “How dare you strike me!” he shouted at his nephew.

“Say one more word and I will do far worse.” Darcy growled.  “Do not ever speak of my wife in such a manner again.”

Matthew stepped over to his father and offered him his hand.  “Father, I advise you to keep such opinions to yourself and to determine your fate as to where you will spend the rest of your days.  If you will not, Richard and I have already decided what we will do.”

“You would never mistreat me.  I am your father, and the Earl of Matlock.  I demand you treat me with the respect due me.”

Richard moved directly in front of his father.  Looking him straight in the eye, Richard did not flinch.  “Then Bedlam it is.
Or we could always have you transported.  Spend the rest of your life as a slave in Australia.  Your choice, but you have one moment to make your choice or I will.  I have no difficulty in making this decision, not after what you have done to my family.”

“I am your family, not your aunts, and especially not that chit your cousin married.”  Again, Lord Matlock found himself on the floor, another tooth missing from his mouth.  “Darcy, enough of
your vulgar behavior towards me,
I am your uncle and you owe me respect.”  Darcy pulled back his arm, ready to punch his uncle in the mouth again.  Richard stepped between the two, looking at his father. 

“If you cannot refrain from speaking ill of Elizabeth, then I will step aside and allow Darcy to do as he pleases.  Then I will make the decision as to where you will be spending the rest of your life.”

Spitting blood from his mouth, Lord Matlock took his handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his mouth. “I will go to Scotland.”

“No, Henry, I told you that your choices are Bedlam or transportation.  You have given up the opportunity of living comfortably in Scotland.”

“You said I could go to Scotland.  I choose Scotland.” Lord Matlock stated, frustrated with how this day had turned on him.

It was Matthew’s turn to speak his mind.  “Father, Richard and I gave you the option and you refused choose.  So we made the decision for you.
  We will take you to Bedlam this very day.”

Richard looked at his father with a look of disgust.  “I believe it is too easy for you.  Transportation would suit my fury at the moment.”

“I will accept the decision of Bedlam.” Lord Matlock said, as he looked at his feet.  He knew that his sons were united and were not afraid to allow their cousin to have his way.  There was no other alternative.  At least in Bedlam he would not be forced into servitude.

“Very well,
Father, we will leave immediately for Town. Darcy, your carriage is ready for us, is it not?”

Darcy nodded his head.  The Fitzwilliam brothers escorted their father out of the house and to the carriage.  Once the carriage was on its way, Alex walked over to his brother and placed a hand on his shoulder.  “Come, Darcy, let us return the ladies and see to their comfort.”

Chapter 23

Elizabeth was standing in the doorway of the room where Lady Anne was sleeping.  Her husband quickly took hold of her hand and escorted her down the
hall.  “Dearest, I thought I made it quite clear that you needed to rest.”

“I wished to check in on Mother, as I have been concerned for her.  I could not have rested properly until I had seen for myself that she well.” Elizabeth replied.  “I know that you are concerned for my health, but please do not worry.  I am well and there is no need for me to be in bed.  I wish to be at Mother’
s side to be sure that everything that can be done is.”

“Lizzy, please, my love, do not make me worry over you.  If you do not rest as Mr Jones has insisted, I will be fretting constantly every moment.  You are fatigued; I can see that much in your eyes.”

“Very well, I will rest for a little while.  But only if you will tell me what happened in Alex’s study.  I heard the voices, the men arguing.  Do not attempt to tell me that it was nothing.”

“Let me tuck you into the bed and I will explain what all
has
happened.” Darcy led his wife to her room. Once her head was on the pillow and the coverlet pulled over her, Darcy placed a gentle kiss on her lips.  “Now, the voices you heard were my cousins, Richard and Matthew, as well as their father.”

“Lord Matlock is here?” Elizabeth became nervous at the thought.

“No, my love, he is gone.  And you will never have to deal with him again.  We confronted him with the truth of what happened with Wickham.  He
did not deny hiring Wickham to harm you.  He was not pleased to learn that you survived.”

Elizabeth knew that Lord Matlock was heartless; she had survived his attempt to rid himself of her.  “Did the injuries sustained by his sisters cause him any grief?”

Darcy shook his head as he spoke. “No, he has no regrets for the situation.  Mother and Aunt Catherine being injured did not matter to him.”

“What will happen to him?” Elizabeth took hold of her husband’s hand and squeezed it tightly.

“His sons are taking him to London to be placed in Bedlam.  Richard will return afterwards, as he does not wish to be far from Anne and Aunt Catherine.  He told me that Anne has been tiring easily of late, so he does not wish to be away from her for more than a few hours.”

“I pray that she is not becoming ill.” She replied to her husband.  “You have told me that she has always been of a frail nature.”

“I know that she will not stray far from her mother’s side until her husband returns, as I am certain that Anne will not listen to me if I were to tell her she needs to rest.  As your husband, I have standing to convince you to rest. 
As her cousin, I can only suggest that Anne rest.” 

A chuckle escaped Eli
zabeth.  “My poor, dear husband,
Master of Pemberley and yet surrounded by strong willed women who do not listen to you.”

Darcy placed a kiss on his wife’s forehead.  “Rest, my vixen, and I will check on you in a little while.”

“Tell Mother that I am thinking of her and praying that she recovers quickly.”

A smile graced his face.  Hearing his wife so kindly thinking of his family after all that she had been put through since meeting him warmed Darcy’s heart.  “I will make sure that she knows.  Now, close your eyes.”

Later that day, Alex came to check on his sister’s recovery.  “Lizzy, I must say that I wish that we had met William years ago.  I would never have believed you would be so willing to remain in bed for a full day.”

“Very funny, Alex; I despise being here.  I should be down the hall being of comfort to my mother in law.”

“She is resting.  Jane said that she had some more laudanum after having something to eat.  Lady Catherine is resting as well.  Her daughter has been at her bedside constantly.”

“There have been no signs of her taking a fever?” Elizabeth asked anxiously.

“No, no signs yet, though the surgeon is staying close until we know that she is out of danger.”  Alex sat on the side of his sister’s bed.  “Are you feeling up to eating something?  Mrs Hill asked if you wished for some meat and cheese brought up with some bread.”

“That would be pleasant,
Brother.  Tell Mrs Hill I appreciate her kindness.”

“You know how important you are to her.  She could not love you more if you were her own child.  If you would like, after eating, Mrs Hill stated she would have a bath drawn for you.”

Elizabeth nodded her head.  “Thank you, Alex.”

“Oh, I thought I would read you a letter that I received today, for I believe it will bring you something to laugh about.”  Reaching into his coat pocket, Alex pulled out a letter.

To Mr Alexander Bennet,

I am your father’s cousin by my dear father being brother to your own grandfather.  Many years ago, before your birth, our fathers had a disagreement which brought about a
break in our family.  My dear father passed away just
two months ago and I am determined to heal the wound that separated our families for so long.

I understand that you have two sisters and you have not married as yet. Without an heir, if something were to befall you, your sisters would be left without protection.  I pray that I will be able to offer them comfort
as I would inherit the estate. 

I have recently taken orders and am awaiting being given a valuable living in Kent.  The new heir of that fine estate has recently married and has been occupied with his new duties to finalize the offer which had been hinted to be mine.  His dear wife’s mother and I have spoken often and she was quite taken with me, and was only waiting for the position to be open to award it to me.