Conceit & Concealment: A Pride & Prejudice Variation Read online

  “Your, er, sister has been very worried for you, since the last news she had of you was that you were in French custody. I suggested leaving a letter at your townhouse, but she was quite insistent that nothing should be put in writing.”

  He wished Georgiana had not been quite so good about following his instructions. He might have found them much sooner. “We had planned for circumstances like these, although I never considered the possibility that I might be arrested for something completely unrelated to her. Where is she?”

  “The two of them are staying with a widowed friend of mine in London who believes they are survivors of a fire that killed their parents. I would be happy to take you to them when we return to London tomorrow.”

  William pulled his shoulders back. “I would be greatly appreciative of that,” he said evenly.

  Kit might not have seen his brother much in the last six years, but he knew that look. “By which, Mr. Gardiner, my brother means, ‘I have barely been sleeping from worry all this time and devoting every minute to finding my sister, and you want me to wait until tomorrow?’”

  “Kit,” said William in a warning tone. “Mr. Gardiner has done us a great service, and it is kind of him to offer to escort us there.”

  Mr. Gardiner looked at William and then at Kit, the corners of his mouth twitching. “Mr. Darcy, on this occasion I think I must choose to believe your younger brother. I cannot return to London sooner than tomorrow, but if you truly wish to mount your horses and ride pell-mell to Town straight away, I will tell you how to find the house. Your sister will not object; she has been losing sleep, too. I understand she is not accustomed to being separated from you for such a length of time.”

  William's smile was self-deprecating. “I fear I have been somewhat overprotective of her.”

  “Under the circumstances, who could blame you? Someday I would like to hear the story behind how such a young man ended up with this responsibility. Your sister attempted to explain it to me, but it was a bit garbled. But now I must go back inside before my wife starts questioning my absence.”

  “My deepest thanks to you. You cannot know how you have relieved my mind,” said William.

  “Oh, I imagine I could guess!” Mr. Gardiner told them the address, adding, “They are employing the names of Miss Elizabeth Gardiner and Miss Georgiana Gardiner. I imagine we shall be meeting again. Elizabeth knows how to contact me.”

  “I assume your wife is not aware of the situation?”

  Mr. Gardiner cocked an eyebrow. “She is not. She is quite trustworthy, but it is safer for both of us this way.

  Kit said ruefully, “You and my brother are going to be very good friends. I only know of it because he needed my help in hunting for them.”

  “A painful decision for him, no doubt, but the correct one,” said Mr. Gardiner with a bow. “And now I will wish you both a good day, gentlemen.”

  As Mr. Gardiner walked away, Kit came to stand beside his brother. Adopting a tone of mock sternness, he said, “We can leave quickly if you wish, but not without taking our leave of Mr. and Mrs. Bingley first.”

  Darcy gave him a sidelong glance. “Well, if we must,” he grumbled. “Let us get it done, then.”

  ***

  Kit eyed the townhouse at the address Mr. Gardiner had given them. It appeared prosperous but was located in an unfashionable part of town. An excellent choice, since no one would look for Miss Georgiana Darcy in this sort of place, much less for Princess Charlotte.

  William straightened his waistcoat before knocking at the door. Kit had suggested changing clothes rather than presenting themselves at a stranger's house covered with the dust of the road, but his brother would not brook any delay. It was not how Kit would prefer to appear when calling on any lady, much less a royal one.

  When a doddering butler answered the door, William said crisply, “Mr. William Gardiner and Mr. Christopher Gardiner to see the Misses Gardiner.”

  The butler smiled delightedly, apparently not having been taught that butlers should show no emotion. “Come in, come in! They will be most delighted to see you. Miss Georgiana has spoken of you often.” Definitely not trained as a butler.

  After he announced them, Kit allowed William to take the lead going into an overdecorated sitting room. Two young women in black sat near an elderly lady in a Bath chair whose hands were heavy with rings, but he had no time to notice anything more because the girl with flaxen hair shrieked, “William!” and ran across the room, heedless of obstacles, to cast herself into William’s arms.

  Kit stabilized a wobbling side table the girl had knocked against in her headlong rush. This was not how he had anticipated the princess would behave, and seeing her clinging to his brother, her shoulders shaking with silent sobs, gave him a queer feeling in the pit of his stomach. It was one thing to imagine William taking charge of the girl, rather in the manner of a stern schoolmaster, but this! Surely William would step away to greet her with more propriety. But instead William was speaking quietly in her ear.

  Kit swallowed hard, produced his handkerchief and slipped it between William’s fingers, taking excruciating care not to touch the princess’s black-clad back.

  The chestnut-haired young woman came towards him, her hands held out to him with a warm smile beneath her striking dark eyes. “Christopher, I am so happy to see you,” she said as she put her hands in his. To his embarrassment, this complete stranger leaned forward and pressed her lips against his cheek. Before she withdrew, she whispered, “Lizzy.”

  It was clever of her to give him the hint since she could not be certain if he would know her name. He squeezed her hands. “What, so formal today, Lizzy? I cannot recall the last time you called me Christopher. What happened to ‘Kit, do this! Kit, do that! Kit, do not pick mother’s flowers! Kit, I will tell father what you did!’” He looked across the room at the beaming older lady. “I was a very henpecked brother.”

  Lizzy said, “Mrs. Landon, may I present my brother Kit?”

  Kit made an extravagant bow over Mrs. Landon's hand. “I am charmed to meet you. I understand I must thank you for opening your home to my sister...sisters.”

  Lizzy was quick to cover his slip. “As for my other brother, he is that vague shape behind Georgiana. I will introduce you if Georgiana ever releases him.”

  “No need to worry about that, my girl,” said Mrs. Landon. “After hearing so much about him from dear Georgiana, I already think of him as part of the family.”

  In a loud whisper meant to be overheard, Lizzy said to Kit, “I fear Mrs. Landon has guessed our family secret – that compared to William, you and I are but distant seconds in Georgiana's affections!”

  Kit glanced backwards. Were their antics providing enough cover for William’s unbrotherly behavior? At least now his brother had stepped back and was drying the eyes of the girl who was not Georgiana. For some reason, applying his true sister's name to her seemed wrong.

  William whispered something in the girl’s ear, and she spun around to face the others. “Kit!” she cried. “I did not even see you there!”

  And then Kit was nearly bowled over as she ran into his arms, just as she had earlier with William. Instinct made him put his arms around her as he would anyone else in that situation. Still, she was not anyone else. Even if she were not royal, Kit would never embrace a lady he was not related to.

  But she did not feel like a princess. He was quite certain that princesses were not supposed to feel so warm and soft in his arms.

  At least she released him quickly, before he could think about how men had once been beheaded for doing the sort of thing he had just done. Perhaps it was just as well that William had not told him the truth about her until now. If meeting her could knock him off balance this easily now, he would indeed have had difficulty managing it six years ago.

  He was certainly never going to admit even to himself that he had liked the way she felt in his arms.

  She returned immediately to William’s side like a puppy that
would not stray too far from its owner, but now her cheeks were pink beneath her golden curls. She gazed up at William while he made conversation with Mrs. Landon.

  Sweat prickled at Kit’s brow. Good God, were they going to have to sit in this overcrowded room for half an hour and talk pleasantries? The idea had not troubled him before. Now it sounded like torture.

  A hand touching his arm made him jump. It was his other brand-new sister, Lizzy, the one who did not terrify him.

  She leaned close to him and said softly but with an emphasis on each word, “Just an ordinary fifteen-year-old girl. Nothing more. An ordinary girl, and young for her age in many ways.”

  “Am I that obvious?” he asked, attempting to sound amused.

  “To someone who went through the same thing less than a month ago? Yes.”

  He looked back at the girl. Georgiana. Her name was Georgiana, and she was just an ordinary girl. Perhaps if he repeated this to himself a few thousand times, he might even start believing it.

  ***

  Watching Kit Darcy, Elizabeth began to understand why Mr. Darcy had been so insistent that the princess should always be thought of as Georgiana. Kit’s deferential attitude towards Georgiana would be all too easy for an observant person to notice.

  But Elizabeth could hardly claim to be behaving normally herself, not since the moment she had spotted Mr. Darcy in the doorway. When she had seen him last, she had not yet admitted to herself the strength of her feelings for him. Now the sight of his familiar broad shoulders made her heart skip a beat and her mouth grow dry. Heavens, she had even envied Georgiana who could run and throw her arms around him!

  But the most disconcerting part was that even as he embraced Georgiana, his eyes had been seeking her out, studying her with that familiar intent look. A very serious look, too – more as if she were a problem he needed to solve than that he was pleased to see her. And she felt it like a blow.

  It was a relief to banter with his purported younger brother, if for no other reason than that she no longer had to see Darcy’s eyes on her. Even then her awareness of him did not fade. Instead she felt his gaze in the prickling of her skin.

  But, oh! What a relief it was to see him free and unhurt, to hear his deep voice speaking! Elizabeth's eyes kept stealing back to him.

  She longed to ask what had happened during this month of separation, but if she did, it would only force him to make up a story. Mrs. Landon knew nothing of his arrest, and it would contradict the story Mr. Gardiner had told her.

  After the prescribed half hour for a social call had elapsed, Darcy said, “I am sorry to say my brother and I must be leaving. Mrs. Landon, you have been tremendously kind to our sisters. I did not receive word of their presence here until a few hours ago, so I have had no time to arrange lodgings for us. Would you be so generous as to allow our sisters to continue to impose upon your hospitality for a day or two until I do?”

  “I would be happy for them to stay as long as they like. They are both charming guests,” said Mrs. Landon.

  “William,” said Georgiana in a trembling voice. “Can I not go with you?”

  A shadow crossed over his face. “Kit and I are staying with a friend, and there is not room for all of us.”

  “But can we not be together somewhere else?”

  Mr. Darcy said, “I will find lodgings for us as quickly as I can, and I promise to call on you again tomorrow.”

  As Georgiana’s lip began to tremble, Elizabeth said, “Georgiana, before William leaves, would you like to show him the lovely rooms Mrs. Landon chose for us?” She almost slipped and ruined everything by calling him Mr. Darcy. How did he manage never to forget the role he played?

  “I would like that very much,” said Mr. Darcy. Were his cheeks flushed? “Come, Georgiana. Will you show me where it is?”

  A brief silence fell the over the sitting room after they left. Elizabeth broke it. “I am sorry for that scene, Mrs. Landon. It is not a judgment on your excellent hospitality but on Georgiana's nerves. She has never been apart from William for so long a time before. She hates it when he is away even overnight. Something almost happened to her during the invasion, something very bad, but William saved her from it and now, with the fire happening when he was away... Well, I suppose I should have foreseen she might have difficulty letting him go.” Most of the story was true enough even if it was worded so as to deceive the kind Mrs. Landon.

  “There is no need to explain anything, dear,” said Mrs. Landon. “Both of you have been through a terrible experience, and it is no surprise she is easily upset. But enough about that.” She beckoned her manservant. “I will leave you children to your reunion.” She leaned back in her Bath chair as the servant wheeled her out of the room.

  Elizabeth moved her chair closer to Kit’s so they could speak without being overheard. “Who are you when you are not pretending to be Mr. Darcy’s brother?” she asked him in a low voice.

  “Kit Darcy,” he said with an engaging smile. “William’s brother.”

  “Oh!” That was the one answer she had not expected. “Forgive my confusion. He never mentioned a brother to me, but now that I think on it, Georgiana did say he had one.”

  “Georgiana never met me before today, and William has been ignoring my existence for six years now. I was not party to the family secret, you see.” Bitterness tinged his voice. “But he needed my help to find you, so here I am.”

  An uneasy feeling ate at Elizabeth's stomach. Would Jane and her father feel the same sort of anger when they discovered what she had hidden from them? “I am sorry. I fear I have done much the same to my own family, abandoning them without a word and leaving them to worry about me. But I cannot see anything else I could have done.” She swallowed hard. “It is a very bitter price to pay, choosing between my country's needs and the family I love, and I wish to God no one else should be put in this position.” The words came out more fervently than she had meant them to be.

  Kit nodded slowly. “William told me some of your story.” He began to say something else, then stopped, and started again. “It surprised me to see, er, Georgiana’s reaction to William,” he said cautiously.

  “It is disconcerting, is it not? But when you think of what she has been through...” Elizabeth leaned closer and spoke in a whisper. “She was an enormously indulged child who knew the entire country adored her and saw her as their best hope. Then one day, everyone she cared about disappeared, and she never saw them again. She was taken from the only home she had ever known and placed in the sole care of a stranger who had to teach her quickly to be reserved and withdrawn for her own safety. He has been the only person who knew the truth about her, at least the only one she ever saw, and he has been her sole dependence for years. If she lost him, she lost everything.” She shook her head. “Poor girl. Sometimes the indulged, willful child returns for a few minutes, but at the slightest criticism, her confidence disappears.”

  “I see,” he said slowly.

  “Until now, she has had no woman in her life to teach her how to be a lady. Throwing her arms around an unknown young man, indeed! She and I will be having a discussion about that, I assure you.” But she said it with warmth to lessen the impact of her criticism.

  “I think she was just attempting to greet me in the same way she greeted William, to keep anyone from suspecting she had no idea who I was.”

  She smiled at his readiness to defend Georgiana. “I know. But while we have a moment, may I ask you what happened after your brother was arrested? Did my uncle tell you where to find us? Oh, I have a thousand questions!”

  “I will happily answer what I can, but I am not fully in William’s confidence.” And it clearly pained him to admit it.

  ***

  When Darcy and Georgiana did not emerge after a quarter of an hour, Elizabeth followed them upstairs to provide reinforcements. Much-needed reinforcements, apparently, as she found him helplessly watching while Georgiana sobbed into a handkerchief.

  Elizabeth w
aved him aside and put her arm around the girl. “Come now, if you continue this way, your brother may start to think you are sorry the French did not hang him! Did he tell you what happened? Kit explained it to me. He said your brother was arrested for the only crime in the world he had not committed against the French. Once his friend here in London knew about it, he was released in a trice. Then he managed to trace us as far as the inn at Oxford, the one where we asked directions. We were too clever for him after that, though. You should tell him where we spent that night.”

  Georgiana sniffled, but she lowered the handkerchief a few inches. “We slept in a hayloft.”

  Elizabeth laughed. “Oh, just look at your brother's expression! He is thinking he made a terrible mistake in entrusting you to me!”

  Now Georgiana giggled. “If Charles II could hide for a day in an oak tree, I can sleep in a hayloft! The nicest old couple helped us. They were so good to us, even sharing their food when they hardly had enough for themselves. And they took us in for no reason except that the French were chasing us.”

  All color faded from Darcy's face. “The French were chasing you?” He sounded half strangled.

  “Yes, but we did manage to get away!” said Elizabeth with more than a hint of impertinence.

  “They were no match for your greys,” said Georgiana.

  Darcy covered his face with his hands.

  Elizabeth said in a loud whisper, “I think we are frightening your brother.”

  “Good!” retorted Georgiana. “After the way he scared us, he deserves it!”

  “I quite agree. Now I suppose we should let the poor man leave, but I am warning you, Mr. Darcy, that tomorrow you had best be prepared to tell us all the details about Jane's wedding, including every last bit of lace she wore. Is that not right, Georgiana?”

  “Yes.” But her voice had lost all spirit again.

  “And I will be here with you every minute until he returns,” Elizabeth said firmly. “I promise.”