Page 51 of Till Death Us Do Part: Book 2
Longman shrugged. “She did not start riding at first, in the winter, but she always came by the stables with a kind word and the occasional treat for the horses. In the beginning, I think she was looking over her shoulder for monsters.”
Darcy frowned but nodded to encourage him.
“After a while, she started to settle in, and she was looking for something to occupy her mind or fill her time. She knows every horse by name, and the hounds as well.”
As Longman paused, he chewed on the side of his lip thoughtfully. “She was looking for—a place, or a purpose—I think. She wanted to know where she fit in.”
Both men pulled the horses from the water and let them crop a bit of grass, while he continued.
“After your uncle came, I think she was looking for something else. I have no idea what. I would be tempted to say a sign of kindness from someone who was not her staff.”
“Was the staff at least kind to her?”
“Except for Knight.”
Darcy grunted. “I vacillate on that one. One minute I want to sack him, and the next, I can hardly chastise him for acting on what I told him.”
Longman continued, “Not my business,” but he did not need to say that sacking came closer to his desires than not.
They thought a minute, then the groom continued, “Miss Bingley’s visit, oddly enough, cheered her up. She seemed almost—not happy, but less unhappy—after that.”
Darcy frowned. “And then? I assume you are working your way up to Lady Catherine?”
“Ah, your lady aunt! I believe she said somethingtruly shocking and terribleto your wife. I assume you heard what was shouted?”
“Some of it.”
Longman sighed resignedly. “It was what was saidbeforethat, privately, that you should worry about. Of course, I do not know the details, but she weathered the Matlocks’ storm with hardly a raised eyebrow. Lady Catherine must have told her something truly awful, and if I may speculate—”
“Pray, do.”
The groom paused for quite some time, then kneed his horse into a slow walk, which Darcy followed. “Mrs Darcy would not say a word about it, but after that—”
He took a deep breath and continued, “—I think, as much as she hated Lady Catherine, she surmised there wassome truthin what your aunt said. After that, I believe she was looking forsomethingto convince her she had not left one horrible family to land in an even worse one. Unless I am mistaken, which is entirely possible but not likely; not a single blood relative said a single good or kind word to her during your entire marriage. Unless you said something kind to her before your wedding, she would be entitled to the opinion that she fell into a pit full of venomous snakes.”
Such a frank assessment was uncharacteristic in a groom, but Darcy had always believed in surrounding himself with men who said what he needed to hear, whether he wanted it or not.
He sighed. “I did not.”
“I suppose you will need to work on that.”
“I will, given the chance.”
The men continued to Lambton, not saying much more. They had any number of things they should discuss, but both knew it would be entirely pointless.
By the time they arrived at the village, Darcy quite liked Omega, but he was unwilling to venture an opinion about whether it was because he liked the horse, the horse had been improved by association with Elizabeth, or he just wanted to feel close to her, and the horse was the closest he was likely to get for a while.
19.Bartlet’s Folly
Darcy and Longman entered the bookstore to see Mr Bartlet guiding two carters carrying boxes of books towards the back. They waited patiently for him to finish, and once the men set the boxes down and left, Bartlet turned to them with a bow.
“Mr Darcy, welcome back. I have been expecting you.”
“Good day, Mr Bartlet.”
Longman and Bartlet just nodded to each other.
Bartlet walked over and turned the sign around, then locked the door. “Tea?”
