The Elizabeth Conspiracy by Jennifer Joy

Author:Jennifer Joy [Joy, Jennifer]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-12-14T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21

Elizabeth paced in her room until well past dark. She treasured her freedom too much to allow someone like Lady Catherine de Bourgh to jeopardize it. Who did she think she was, acting like a Newgate guard? And then there was Mr. Darcy. Elizabeth did not believe for a moment he had murdered his venomous cousin merely to escape from an unwanted match.

For one, intelligent individuals would never murder someone after a verbal dispute with witnesses — and Mr. Darcy was no fool. Second, had he held so little value for life, he would have found a way to dispose of Mr. Wickham and forever silence the blackguard.

The fact that Mr. Wickham was still alive was, in Elizabeth's mind, a strong testimony to Mr. Darcy's innocence.

Well, Lady Catherine could regard them with all the suspicion she dared (which was quite a great deal given her blunt speech after services), but Elizabeth refused to twiddle her thumbs while her independence and reputation stood in the balance. The great lady may be content to watch her nephew hang to appease her own grief, but Elizabeth would not stand for it. She had a plan.

Donning her darkest dress, she grabbed a hairpin and crept down the pitch black corridor toward Miss de Bourgh's bedchamber. If Lady Catherine would not provide any clues, Elizabeth saw no other option but to find them herself.

Running her fingers over the wall, she felt for the intricate carvings on Miss de Bourgh's door and then the cold iron of the knob. Carefully, she twisted it only to have her suspicion confirmed. It was locked. It would be imprudent to leave a door unlocked with murderers in the house, Elizabeth thought saucily.

But she was prepared. She had a hairpin. What she would give for a candle. Fumbling in the darkness, every scratch and scrape echoing down the empty hall, she wished she possessed the same level of talent her younger sisters had when they broke into rooms they had been told to keep out of. No matter how many times Cook changed her method of securing the pantry, Kitty and Lydia always got the last of the treats hidden within.

"What are you doing here?"

Elizabeth pounced up to a standing position at the sound of the low baritone behind her and lashed out at the speaker with her hands.

It was not until her hairpin-wielding hand made contact with something solid that she realized who the intruder was. He was close enough, his sandalwood and leather scent flirted with her senses.

"Mr. Darcy, you startled me," she said, retracting her hand from his person before she embarrassed herself further. It was not proper for a maiden to think of the contrast of a gentleman's chiseled form beneath the soft linen over which her fingers had brushed. Just the thought sent a shiver down her spine and momentarily shook all intelligent speech from her brain.

"I apologize, but that does not answer my question. What are you doing here?"

She was grateful for the darkness disguising her hot cheeks.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.