Jack and Moe helped Manny to sit up on the butcher block, as Elizabeth and Daphne returned to the group, both relieved that he was more lucid. They all began discussing the next course of action while Daphne went to the pantry in search of the promised cookies. Elizabeth had already placed the call to Villanova and the van in the woods would be handled by a clean up crew from the Agency. Jack would take care of the mess in the kitchen while Moe packed and stowed the gear in the car, and then, as soon as Manny had his legs under him, they would head back to town. Richard gave Manny an inquiring look, and he returned it with a small, affirming nod. They had finished bugging Elizabeth’s apartment.

Elizabeth looked around the room, aware that something was missing.

“Hey, where’s Seth?”

“Oh, I cleaned him up and sent him home. Gave him the usual ‘You tell anyone what you’ve seen tonight, we’ll hunt you down and kill you’ speech.”

Daphne, having returned with the cookies, tensed at Jack’s statement, her earlier fears reemerging.

“He’s kidding, Daphne. He told Seth what we’ll tell you. In the interest of national security, we request that you do not discuss anything you have seen or heard tonight with anyone who is not in the room with you now. It protects you as well as us.”

Daphne smiled a little and relaxed as she approached Manny with her stolen confections. They spent the better part of an hour getting to know each other as Jack and Moe went about the business of cleaning up. Richard pulled Elizabeth away and got a full briefing, then sent her off to bed.

Elizabeth, making it to her room unseen, closed the door and leaned against it, the last dregs of her energy seeping from her. What a ride, she thought as she forced herself to remove her gear and clothes and stow them back in the black bag. She threw on a tank top and some flannel pajama bottoms and fell into the bed, too tired to even turn off the light.

William sat in the dimly lit wine cellar, trying to come to grips with the evening’s events. Slowly he turned Elizabeth’s steel pins in his fingers, following the intricate carvings with his eyes. Everyone else had gone off to bed hours ago, and still he sat here, thinking, staring, twirling. He marveled at the sharpness of the points, pondering what madness it was that she wore these in her hair, so close to her scalp. Everything about her was dangerous: the tessen, the pins, the sword fight, the dress tonight. He stood up and looked at his watch. Three a.m., he should go to bed. He put the pins in his breast pocket and left the cellar, making his way to the staircase that lead to the second floor and his bedroom. Four large rooms, each with its own bath, made up the guest wing that lay to the right of the stairs. William paused on the first step and looked down the hall, thinking of her. A light shown from under her door. She was still awake, maybe he should return the pins. Maybe they could talk about tonight. Maybe they could just pick up where they left off.

He moved down the hall and put his hand on her door, giving himself one last chance to change his mind. Slowly, it swung open, making the decision for him.

“Elizabeth, excuse me, the door wasn’t shut. I just wanted to return…”

Click.

William froze, fear seizing his heart with an iron fist. A wild woman sat before him, next to the dresser with her back pressed to the wall and a gun pointed right between his eyes. Hair hung over most of her face, but he could make out one wide, feral eye staring at him. Her breathing was ragged and shaky, but the gun was steady in her hand.

“Elizabeth?”

His voice was a choked whisper, but it sank in. A small light of recognition in her eyes became a beacon of returned sanity as she came fully to her senses. She looked at the gun in her hand and quickly put it down to her side, trying to hide the offensive object under the dresser.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t know it was you.”

William was at a complete loss. Elizabeth rose slowly, pushing her hair back from her face. The hem of her shirt had ridden up a little, and William’s eye caught a glimpse of a scar across her abdomen before she pulled it down. He took a deep breath.

“I saw your light was on and I thought you were still awake. I have your pins.”

“I forgot to turn the light off before I fell asleep.”

“Is that how you sleep?” He was incredulous.

“Its not how I start, but its always how I end up.”

“Why?”

Elizabeth laughed nervously and looked away, feeling very vulnerable. William took a step forward.

“Why, Elizabeth? What are you afraid of?”

“The dark.”

“The dark?”

“The dark hole, the daily beatings, the starvation…” she swallowed hard.

He had her in his arms before she even knew what hit her, and held her as the dam broke behind her eyes. She made no sound, she just shook and cried as he stroked her hair and held her. When he felt her tension subside after some minutes, he led her to the bed and sat with her.

“When was this?”

She started off slowly, telling him only the parts that would not give her away. A flash of guilt ran through her as she gave the official version of her trip to Turkey, how she went there to write an article about the local food, how there was a misunderstanding and of her subsequent incarceration. She couldn’t tell him about Yushenkov, she rationalized. But she shared everything about her time in the prison with him, things she had told no other living soul, and he listened.

They sat in silence for a few moments after she finished her story, then he rose and looked at her. He removed his dinner jacket and tie and laid them on the end of the bed. His shoes and socks were next. She watched him apprehensively, not understanding what he was up to. He moved to the other side of the bed and laid down, propping his back against the headboard.

“Come here,” he stretched his arms out to her.

“What?”

“Come here.”

She crawled over to him and he drew her into his chest.

“Tonight, you will sleep in a bed, as you deserve. You will wake in the morning as you fell asleep in the night, in bed.”

She pulled back and looked at him. His smile was a comfort, and she laid her head back down and fell asleep to the gentle rhythm of his heart beat and the stroke of his hand on her hair.

The early morning light stole into the room, edging its way across the floor. Elizabeth’s eyes opened and she took mental inventory. Dresser to the right, door to the left, bed beneath her. Scratch that, devastatingly handsome man beneath her. She lifted her head to look at him.

“Good morning, princess.”

“Good morning, knight in shining armor.”

He kissed the tip of her nose and smiled. “I’ve never had a woman so desperate to get out of my bed before.”

“Did I keep you up all night?”

“It was a torture I’d gladly suffer again and again.”

“Damn your pretty words.”

He ran a thumb along her cheek bone. “Are you alright now?”

“Sure. It only hurts at night.”

He watched her, his eyes troubled. She suffered and yet she laughed. He suffered and he buried himself in work to hide from the world.

“You worked a miracle, William. Months of therapy could not do for me what you did in one night. Thank you.”

“It was my pleasure.”

“Now, the true test will be seeing where I wake up tomorrow morning.”

Faster than lightening he kissed her. He kissed her long and hard, until all sense left her head. Her heart danced a jig in her ribcage, her blood quickstepping through her veins. He rolled her to her back, pinning her hip with his hand. Slowly he let up.

“Up the stairs, first hall to the left, last room on the right.”

Now was the time when a woman of the world would say something equally seductive and inspiring.

“Huh?”

A smug smile played at his lips. Finally, she was as worked up and empty headed as he had been for weeks. He rose from the bed and gathered his things, looking at his watch.

“Breakfast is in an hour, Elizabeth. Mrs. Reynolds doesn’t like it when people are late.”

She chucked a pillow in his general direction.

“I guess I was safe last night after all. You are a terrible shot.”

The second pillow hit him fully in the face. He ran from the room before she could hurl another, laughing to himself all the way to his room.

Mrs. Reynolds watched as William climbed the stairs two at a time, happier than she had seen him in ages. She had noticed that he had come from the general direction of the guest wing. So, that darling Daphne had managed to bring a smile to his face once again. Good, she thought with contentment. What a wonderful addition to the family that girl would be.

Daphne pulled William aside after breakfast, asking him for a moment alone. They took their cups of coffee and moved upstairs to the drawing room where they could talk in private for a little while, as everyone else seemed to be engaged downstairs. They sat together on the sofa before the fireplace with the easy comfort of old friends. Daphne took advantage of that closeness to jump right to the point.

“William, I think you and I have been friends long enough that we can be completely honest with each other. Do you agree?”

“Yes, Daphne, of course.”

“Then I think I can speak for both of us when I say that the time we have spent together recently has been a sort of testing of the waters, to see if there was anything left there from before.”

William shifted uncomfortably. He felt a pang of guilt that could only be explained by the fact that he had not given Daphne a moment’s thought since the last time he had been in this room. And now he was going to be called on the carpet for it, with no idea how he would be able to explain his sudden case of inattentiveness. She noticed his discomfort.

“Don‘t worry, William. I have no intention of making some kind of claim on you. We both knew after lunch at the club that we had changed and drifted. I will always love and admire you, Will. You are one of my very dearest friends. But I think that you and I have outgrown each other in the romantic sense. And besides, I think your eye has been caught by someone else.”

His mouth opened and closed like a swinging door, a hundred sentences dying on his tongue before they even started. Daphne continued, full steam ahead, not wanting to lose her momentum.

“She’s beautiful and smart. I like her a lot. But, William, I don’t think this one is going to sit around and wait for you to take the plunge. If you like her, and from everything I’ve seen since I’ve been here I am sure you do, then you better snatch her up now before its too late.”

She smiled and patted his arm, then left the room to let him think about what she had said. He sat, fused to the sofa, not exactly sure what hit him. Mrs. Reynolds found him here several minutes later as she came in to air our the room.

“Oh, William dear, I didn’t see you. What are you doing in here all alone? You should be down with your guests.”

“Mrs. R, do you remember the necklace that Grandmother used to wear? The small cameo? Do we still have that somewhere?”

“Yes, dear, its with your mother’s jewelry. What brought that to mind?”

“I need it. I am going to make a gift of it. Could you bring it out for me?”

She left the room and returned a few moments later with the mahogany box containing his mother‘s jewels. She then sat on the sofa next to him, handing him the box, her heart full of joy at the news. He was finally going to move on with his life and pursue some happiness.

“I think that would make a lovely gift, son. You know, your grandmother told me the story of that necklace long ago, and being the old softy that I am, it always stuck with me. Your grandparents met at a party at the house of a mutual acquaintance, and had fallen into easy conversation. And over the next few weeks they had spent time together and become friends. But she was promised to another, and your grandfather was going off to war. So they agreed to stay in touch, but nothing more. Well, not long after he shipped out, she discovered her intended was dallying with another woman, so she broke it off. She gave some long hard thought to her life and found that she loved your grandfather, and wrote to him, telling him so. But she never heard back. She didn’t know if she had scared him off or if something bad had happened to him. Either way she was heartsick about it for several months. Then one day there was a knock on her door, and there on her step stood your grandfather. He had been wounded and in the infirmary for months and had not been aware enough to write. But here he was if she’d have him. And then he took out that necklace and gave it to her. He told her he had bought it over there because the face in the cameo reminded him of her, and he had kept it in the pocket of his uniform, near his heart, always. Then he pointed out the dent in the rim of gold and told her that it deflected some shrapnel from a mortar bomb and had probably saved his life. They were married a week later.”

She dabbed a tear from her eye as she finished the story and patted his arm. “Its my dearest wish that you and Miss Daphne will have a love as deep as that.”

William started at her statement. “Daphne?”

“Why yes, boy. I saw you come from her room this morning. I am happy to see you renewing that relationship. She’s a good girl, and I heartily approve.”

“Not Daphne.”

Her face pursed into a frown, not liking where this may be leading.

“William, you’ve been raised better than to be pursuing the wife of your best friend. Surely you don’t mean my Jane.”

“NO! Of course not!”

Her look became black. That left only one other.

“No. Not the dark haired one.”

He breathed deeply, preparing himself to finally voice aloud what he had been feeling.

“Yes. Elizabeth.”

“I don’t like her, William.”

“Why ever not?”

“I can’t quite put my finger on it, but she’s not what she seems.”

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

“Well, she can look like a lady on the outside, but she has a very sassy mouth, and I swore I saw her running down the hall in that dress she had on last night. And, well, I just have a feeling.”

“A feeling?”

“Yes, just a little something in the pit of my stomach every time I see her that says “Bess, she’s come to take your boy away from you.’ Why can‘t you just settle on Miss Daphne like you ought? She‘s perfect for you.”

William chuckled and put his arm around her. “Wouldn’t it be great if I could just marry the perfect woman and have the perfect family and we all live happily ever after in our wonderful fairy tale life?” She smacked his arm, “Yes, actually, it would and you could have that life if you would just put that vixen out of your head and do your duty. Do you think you are the first powerful man to be tempted by the idea of a simpler life and the swish of a curvy hip? No. Your own father had just such a temptation before he settled on your mother. Think how different everything would be if he had chosen a fleeting romance over his duty to his family. And he and your mother were very happy together. You can have the same, William. Don’t let a little flirtation sway you from your responsibility to your family.”

“Daphne has moved on, Mrs. R., and honestly, so have I. And Elizabeth is more than she seems, I agree. But how is that a negative? She’s intelligent, and beautiful, and strong, but somehow very fragile. She’s been hurt badly, and I want to help her, I want to make it better for her. I’m not asking her to marry me, I just want to give this a chance to see where it might go. Why is that bad? And how is she a poorer choice for me than a woman like Daphne? She’s no less capable of being a corporate wife, she’s my assistant for God’s sake, who could possibly be a better partner in life for me than someone who understands what I go through at work everyday? This isn’t the dark ages, and I don’t have to marry an heiress to keep the family afloat. Can’t for just once in my life I find some happiness for myself?”

“I don’t want to see you go through any more hurt, son. You’ve been through enough for three lifetimes and I tell you, I see nothing but trouble coming from that girl. But, I love you, William, and if you have your heart set on her, I won’t be the one to stand in your way. Just don’t say you’ve not been warned. Use your head, boy, before you make any rash decisions. And if you can promise me that much, I’ll give you my blessing, not that you need it.”

She hugged him and went out, leaving him alone with his thoughts. He set the box on a table and walked out to the balcony, breathing in the fresh air and looking out across the grounds. This was his family’s ancestral home, brought stone by stone from Derbyshire in England to America by his great great grandfather who, sensing a greater investment opportunity, had moved the bulk of the family business to the states and couldn’t bear to leave the great house behind. He felt connected here, at peace. He breathed deeply and turned back to go back inside when, as he grasped the handle of the door, a dark hole in the wood caught his attention. Embedded in the hole was a metal object that he found no rational explanation for being there. Why was there a bullet in his balcony door? Again and again he looked at it, unable to make sense of it. Thinking one of the grooms may have been messing around with the hunting rifles when he was in town, he made a mental note to talk to his staff about it later.

Richard looked on as Elizabeth and Jane walk out to the garden after breakfast. He wanted to talk to Elizabeth and see how she was holding up after the pandemonium the night before. Right now she looked refreshed, and that was a good sign. He slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out a soft leather pouch. He opened it and pulled out what looked like a small black dot as he waited for the women to return from their walk, thinking the best place to hide the bug would be on the necklace she always wore. It was the final step in setting up surveillance on her, but a very necessary one. She could be a maverick, and the last thing any of them wanted to happen was to loose her again. As the women entered the house, he pulled Elizabeth aside and asked how she was feeling.

“I’m good, Richard. Nothing to report.”

“Do you feel strong, Lizzy? No cracks in the armor?”

“No cracks. A little stiff here and there but that’s about it.”

He looked down at her necklace and reached for it, gripping it in his thumb and forefinger as he pushed the bug into place on the backside of the black onyx pendant.

“Villanova gave you this, right?”

“Yes, after I finished survival school.”

“Black onyx. Is it symbolic of anything?”

“Well, Villanova said it was black to remind me of the hole they would throw me in if I ever screwed up a mission.”

Richard laughed, dropping the pendant back into place. “Typical Villanova, a gift and a threat.”

“Yes, heavy on the threat.”

“I’m proud of you, Lizzy. You are doing a good job, I just want you to know that.”

“Thank you, Richard.”

He patted her arm and walked away, sighing in relief that he had accomplished his task undetected.

The rest of the day went by without incident. Elizabeth took some time to sneak off and clean her gun, having just stuffed it in the bag with her gear the night before. She thought about the night before with William as she dismantled the weapon and cleaned it. She also thought about how they were going to keep him in sight for the rest of the weekend, in case of another attack. She was fairly sure no other attempt would be made at Pemberley since they were now on their guard, but you could never be too safe. This meant that Richard would be shadowing William for the rest of their stay, and she would be keeping an eye out for anything suspicious around the grounds and house. Maybe a quick check of his closet and under his bed was in order. Maybe a quick check under his covers was, too. She chuckled at the nasty bent her mind was taking and redirected her thoughts to the business at hand. Under his covers, indeed!

The dinner hour came and everyone assembled in the dining room, as resplendently attired as the night before. Except for Elizabeth, who was noticeably absent. William sat at the head of the table, dreading a repeat performance from the previous evening, knowing that if she sauntered in wearing another dress like the black one, dinner would be over and no one would see either one of them for the remainder of the weekend. But the minutes flew by and still no sign of her. Neither Jane or Richard had seen her since that morning. Finally the butler moved to William’s ear and asked how long they should hold the first course. William instructed them to begin serving his guests, but excused himself to go find her. He passed a maid on his way to the guest wing and asked if she had seen Mrs. Reynolds, but was answered in the negative. Now he was worried. Had Mrs. Reynolds decided to take matters into her own hands and have a talk with Elizabeth? He found himself outside her door, his hand poised to knock, when he heard raised voices from within. Forgetting propriety, he threw the door open and stared at the sight before him in disbelief. Elizabeth and Mrs. Reynolds, cackling like a couple of hens, were trying to get a pair of muddy boots off Elizabeth’s feet, which was no small task as Elizabeth was coated in mud from head to toe and Mrs. Reynolds was getting dirtier by the minute in her effort to help. Yet, neither woman seemed to care about their appearance as they laughed and laughed at their predicament. Elizabeth was the first to notice their unexpected visitor.

“Oh, William, sorry. I’m just… we’re just… do you think I’m dressed enough for dinner?”

The women fell into peals of laughter again, each cracking wise about the state of her attire for Christmas Eve dinner. William couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight before him.

“Here, Mrs. Reynolds, I’ll do that, you get cleaned up and look after dinner. I think I can handle a pair of boots.”

Mrs. Reynolds wiped the tears from her eyes and looked him up and down. “I’m sure you can, but you’ll ruin your good dinner jacket with all that mud.”

“Then I guess I’ll have to buy a new one. Besides, there’s no way she’s going to be ready before dinner is over, so please fix her a plate in the kitchen, and bring mine in there as well. And, please, tell everyone that we’ll meet them upstairs after.”

She nodded her head and left the room, her shoulders shaking in barely suppressed laughter.

William turned his attention back to Elizabeth. “Good Lord, woman, what have you done to yourself.”

“Well, now that’s a funny story. You see I went out for a ride..”

“You went for a ride? I didn’t know you knew how. You should have found me, I would have been glad to go along.”

“Well, yes, but you were busy upstairs and I just wanted to take a look around the property…”

“Oh,” he frowned a little, “well, that’s too bad. I would have liked to have shown it to you myself, to see how you liked it.”

“Well, maybe we can go tomorrow, because to be honest, all I paid attention to was the first hundred feet or so outside the stables. I went into the barn and asked one of your grooms if I could go out for a ride, and, well, see the one named Seth must have thought I was a better rider than I actually am, because he gave me a horse that likes to jump around a lot…”

“Seth gave you Diablo?”

“Oh, no, don’t blame him. I think he thought I could handle that big, black devil. You know, you should race that sucker, he’s really fast. Anyway, Seth saddled your demon horse for me and I climbed up, and well, everything was fine for the first hundred feet outside the stable. That’s when the bear came out and scared us…”

“Bear! What bear?”

“The big black shaggy thing you call a dog, but the rest of humanity calls a bear.”

“Fredrick?”

“Okay, if that’s what you want to call it, but for the purposes of this story, its name is bear. So, big, black and jumpy wasn’t expecting a visit from big, black and shaggy any more than I was and he decided to show me just how high he could jump. Up he goes and back I go, the only thing keeping me on is my solid grip on the saddle horn. Good thing I insisted on a western saddle and not that scary English thing. Well, your demon horse comes down and takes off, a hundred miles an hour, and I’m hanging on for dear life, gripping the saddle horn and trying to throw a leg back over, and just as I have myself almost pulled up, hell horse skids to a stop and jumps to the right. And so, as I’m flying into the air, I’m thanking the sweet Lord Jesus that the horse pulled up as short as he did and I only landed on the muddy bank of the pond and not in the freezing water. By now Seth and three other men from the stable are coming our way and grab the horse before he takes off again. Then, just as I’m getting up and checking myself for any broken bones, down I go once more because the bear decides that I am certainly not dirty enough. You really need to put him on a diet, he weighs a ton. So much for my ride around the property, though I must say your pond is very pretty. Of course, the whole embarrassing situation would not be complete without an audience, which, besides all your staff from the stable, was witnessed by Mrs. Reynolds who watched the whole thing from the kitchen window. She helped me back into the house, and we had a good laugh over it as you saw for yourself. But I’m still stuck in these damn boots. Do you think you could quit laughing your ass off and help out here?”

William obliged and soon had her feet free from the filthy things. He brushed himself off, then pulled her up from the chair she was slumped in and started to help her unbutton her shirt. Neither realized what he was doing until he had it half undone and the sharp outline of the scar on her abdomen was visible. Elizabeth quickly pulled the shirt closed and took a step back. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t thinking. I just wanted to help you get out of those dirty clothes,” William stammered.

“No, its okay, I know. I can do it, though. I don’t need any more help.”

William lowered his eyes and blushed a little, embarrassed by his overly familiar actions. But a burning question kept him from leaving immediately.

“The scar on your stomach, is that from Turkey?” He posed the question quietly.

“No.”

“No?”

“No.”

He thought to himself that he should leave it at that, but he couldn’t. The scar was long and looked like the injury had been deep. He could not fathom what kind of pain this woman had been through in her life, to bear this kind of mark.

“Can I ask where you got it?”

“I’d rather you didn’t right now. Maybe we can talk about it another time, but not now, please.”

He smiled and nodded, letting that be enough for the moment. “I’ll wait for you in the kitchen. Just come there when you are all cleaned up and we’ll have dinner.”

He opened the door to leave.

“William.”

He turned.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” he smiled as he left the room.

Elizabeth walked into the kitchen, as fresh as a daisy, half an hour later. William waited for her at the table, glass of wine in hand. He poured another glass for her as she took the seat across from him, and Mrs. Reynolds brought their dinner. It was a pleasant meal, and they chatted comfortably about family and growing up. Elizabeth shared stories about her father and his love of people watching, and how he had a job that took him all over the world.

“What kind of work is your father in?”

“Well, he was an analyst, but now he’s retired.”

“An analyst, that sounds interesting. What company did he work for?”

‘The CIA.”

William blinked. That wasn’t a phrase you heard every day.

“Okay, wow.”

“Yeah, well, from what he’s said, the job itself was far less glamorous than it sounds. He always told us that the only reason he stayed with it was because he got to travel. My father loved going to other countries and sampling other ways of life. That’s how he met my mother.”

Mrs. Reynolds came and took their empty plates as William took off his tie and swung another chair around to put his feet up on.

“I’d like to hear that story.”

“Well, my father was stationed in England in the late sixties, and there was a pub near his flat that he liked to frequent after work. He would sit at a table in the back with his journal and a pint of cider and scribble notes and sketch faces as the people would come and go. Man, how I used to love looking at his journals when I was a kid. He’s witty, my dad, and quite the artist. He really missed his calling there. But, I digress…“

She broke off her story as Richard entered the kitchen.

“Hey, you crazy kids, I thought you were going to meet us upstairs after you ate? Its been over an hour.”

“Oh, sorry. Elizabeth was just telling me about how her parents met. Do you know this story?”

“No, but it sounds interesting. Mind if I join you?”

William motioned for him to pull up a chair, and Richard joined them after loosening his tie and pouring himself some wine.

“So, anyway, my dad noticed one day that he had spent a lot of time watching a certain blond and buxom waitress at said pub, and much to his chagrin, drawing her. And he really knew he had it bad when he reread the sap he had been writing about her…”

Again she paused as Daphne entered the kitchen.

“Oh, so I see that the party is in here and I wasn’t invited. Such snobbery.”

“Here Daph, have a chair and a glass. Lizzy’s talking about how her parents met,” Richard motioned to another empty chair. Daphne took the chair, kicked off her shoes and poured herself some wine.

“Dad noticed that the woman of his dreams would only give him the time of day if there were no men in uniform on the premises. So, on a Tuesday night, a night when the pub was usually dead, Dad decided he was going to get up the nerve to ask her out. But, as luck would have it, a group of RAF boys popped in for a drink…”

“And you can imagine what kind of apoplectic state our mother was in with so many uniforms before her,” Jane’s laughter rang out as she and Charles joined the group. They seated themselves as well, grabbed some wine and made themselves comfortable.

“I love this story, Lizzy. Go on,” Jane prodded.

“So, Dad waited until the flyboys stumbled out the door, which was many hours later because those guys can drink. Then he called Mom over to the table and said, ‘You know, Fanny, a man doesn‘t have to wear a uniform to serve his country.’ And then Mom said…”

At this point Elizabeth raised her eyebrow at Jane, who broke out in a perfect English accent and dead on imitation of her mother, “Oh, and just what is it that you do that’s so important?”

Elizabeth gave her sister a wink and repeated her father’s words, “I could tell you, but I’d have to kill you.”

“And then he smacked her on the bum and walked out the door,” Jane continued.

“I can just imagine your mother’s reaction to that,” Charles sputtered.

“Mr. Bennet!” Jane and Elizabeth screeched in harmony.

Everyone at the table burst into laughter.

“Ahhh,” Elizabeth sighed as she wiped the tears from her eyes, “Dad didn’t end up asking her for a date that night, but she asked him the next, and well, the rest is history.”

Several more hours were spent with good wine and happy conversation. Elizabeth soaked it up, enjoying the best Christmas holiday she had had in a long time. Unlike the night before, she finally felt a part of the group, and she liked it. Funny how much can change in a day.

As the hour grew late and everyone rose to head toward bed, William held Elizabeth back. When they were alone, he looked at her, not sure how to say what he wanted to say. All evening, in the back of his mind, he had been trying to work out what his next move should be. And now, as they stood together, he still was no closer to a solution. So, he opted to say nothing, instead he just placed her hand in the crook of his arm and lead her out of the room, up the stairs, first hall to the left, last room on the right.

William must have been a very good boy that year, because Santa had rewarded him handsomely. He smiled as he woke with the early morning light, relishing the comfort of the soft and fragrant pillow beneath his head, until the pillow shifted and squirmed.

“Good morning, Princess.”

Elizabeth smiled and ran her fingers through his tousled curls.

“Good morning, Prince Charming. I see you‘ve managed to keep me in bed once again.”

“You didn’t seem so opposed to it this time. May I even venture a guess that you actually enjoyed it?”

“Oh, yeah, baby.”

William laughed as he stretched across her to open the drawer of his nightstand. He drew out a package wrapped in an iridescent tissue and handed it to her.

“What’s this?”

“Merry Christmas.”

She looked at the box, a little startled that he was giving her a gift.

“I wasn’t expecting a gift. I have nothing for you.”

“Oh, I think you gave me just what I’ve been wanting for awhile now.”

She slapped him playfully on the arm and then went about opening her present. Slowly she drew out the fine gold chain of the beautiful cameo. Her breath left her in a small, light gasp.

“Do you like it?”

“Its beautiful.”

He toyed with a lock of her hair as he told her the story behind the necklace, pointing out the small dent in rim of gold. Elizabeth’s lip trembled as she laid the necklace back in the box and closed it.

“I can’t take this, William.”

“Of course you can.”

“No, I really can’t. This is a family heirloom, and it needs to be given to the woman you intend to marry, like your grandfather did, not to me.”

He didn’t speak for a moment, he just looked intently at her face, taking it in and weighing her words against the stirring in his heart. ‘the woman you intend to marry… not me’.

“When my grandfather gave this to my grandmother, he had no hope that she would return his feelings, he thought she was still promised to another. He just needed to tell her how he felt about her and let the chips fall where they may. Richard told me about the other man in your life, but I’m here anyway, Elizabeth, letting the chips fall.”

Her heart tripped along with the sweetness of his words, until that one phrase sank in. ‘Richard told me…’

“Richard told you what?”

“About the man that you’ve been caught up with for the last eight years. I saw you with him at that ungodly club we were at. And I’m okay with it, Elizabeth, if you would be willing to put him completely to the side while we give us a try.”

Richard had told William about Yushenkov? And William thought Manny was the man in question. Bloody hell.

“Tell me exactly what Richard told you.”

“Well, he said there was a man that you had an on again off again relationship with for the last eight years, and that you couldn’t seem to ‘catch him’, so to speak. And that you couldn’t let him go either, that you were… obsessed with him. I assume it was the man I saw you with at the club.”

“That bastard!”

“Who?”

“Richard, that sneaky bastard. What can I possibly say to that? What can I possibly say to counteract that?”

William looked at her in confusion . She had risen from the bed and was pacing the floor, wearing nothing but a frown. He couldn’t help but admire her well toned form, even in his agitated state. She was lean and strong, her only flaw the large scar running diagonally across her abdomen. Still, she was perfect in his eyes. Yet he needed to know where he stood with her before he let himself fall completely over the edge.

But, Elizabeth needed an answer that only Richard could give. She grabbed her clothes and started pulling them.

“Where are you going?”

“Richard and I need to have a talk.”

“Wait, Elizabeth. You and I need to finish this.”

“I’m sorry, William. I really am. I wish I could say what you want to hear, and give you what you want me to give you, but I can’t. What Richard told you was true, in a way. There is another man, and he will always come between us. And I knew better than to let myself get involved with you, but I did it, and I hate myself right now for it. I don’t want you hurt, in anyway, I swear. So, after I go chew Richard’s ass I’ll pack up and leave. I’ll help you finish out the Russian job and then I’ll be gone. Here,” she shoved the box into his hand, “I am so sorry.” And out the door she fled before he could get in another word.

Richard was just sitting up in bed and rubbing the sleep from his eyes when his door burst open.

“Elizabeth!”

“You prick. How could you?”

Richard immediately tensed, thinking that she had found out about the bug.

“You told William that I am obsessed with another man. You told him half truths about Yushenkov to keep him from becoming interested in me. What the hell, Richard?”

“How do you know this?”

“From the horse’s mouth, my dear.”

“I don’t even want to imagine what possible scenario happened that could lead to you two having that conversation, Elizabeth. What is rule number one? Do not become emotionally involved with the mark.”

“No, rule number one is the team is all about trust. Loose the trust, loose the team.”

Richard cringed at her vehemence. She was right, but sadly, so was he.

“Please tell me you are not emotionally involved with the mark, Lizzy.”

“Shall I put it in the same slippery, snake-like way you told Will about Yushenkov?”

“Elizabeth, you can’t afford to run on emotions here. You need to keep your head in the game. You know this.”

“I can’t help who I fall in love with, Richard.”

Her hand flew to her mouth as the words slipped from her tongue. Richard jumped off the bed and grabbed her by the arms.

“Elizabeth! No!”

She nodded slowly, her eyes as wide as saucers.

“You have to break it off now. No emotions, Lizzy, do you hear me? No emotions!”

“Can’t I have some happiness in my life, please.” Her voice was small, like a child’s.

“You’re happiness will come when this is over, Lizzy. Please don’t make me be the bad guy. You know this. You know why it has to be this way. And he doesn’t deserve to be hurt again, so just think about that.”

She lowered her head, defeated. Richard hugged her to him as she silently cried. For the first time he did not feel guilty for having her put under surveillance. She was going to need all the help she could get to make it through this.

After she pulled herself together, she told him her plan to head back to the city immediately. He agreed that this was the best course of action, and as she packed, he called the boys to come pick her up at the head of the driveway so no one would see them.

Elizabeth had been gone for hours by the time Richard found William, ensconced in his darkened study with a glass of bourbon in his hand. It was obvious this was not his first, or even second drink.

“Well, Richard, it seems I have you to thank for my continued misery.”

“Ah, Will, I’m sorry. I wish I could have saved you from this. Hell, I tried to save you from this, but you are both too headstrong to listen.”

“What business was it of yours to begin with?”

“More than you know,” Richard muttered to himself.

“Speak up, Benedict Arnold.”

“William, she’s not for you. She never was. I can understand your attraction to her, she’s an amazing woman, but Elizabeth has commitments and obligations that … well, I don’t know how to put any better than that. She’s not yours to have.”

William’s dark eyes bored holes through his cousin.

“Not mine to have. And who are you to tell me who I may have and who I may love? I am my own man, last time I checked. I answer to no one but myself and the IRS. You know, with all this secrecy, and half truth, and contradiction, I don’t wonder that you have a thing for her.”

Richard flinched. “No, William, never.”

“Then what are the two of you hiding?”

Again, Richard flinched. Tread carefully, my man, he told himself.

“Nothing, William. She’s just a girl who has been hurt, and as an old friend I feel I owe it to her to help her. You have your own hurts, too, William, and I worry about you as well. These are not good grounds for a healthy relationship.”

“Get out,” William had had enough.

“Will…”

“I said get out. As a matter of fact, vacation over. I’ll have Mrs. Reynolds let everyone know that I had an emergency at work and had to go back to town. I’m sure I need to review some contracts before the meeting with Solensky.”

“William, please…”

“Conversation over, Richard. Good-bye.”

Richard watched helplessly as William left his study, and soon there after left Pemberley. Love. It had come from both of their lips. He had failed miserably.