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Within minutes, Colonel Fitzwilliam was trotting up the front steps as the footman opened it. Stepping into the foyer, he tipped his hat and bowed. Instantly, Jane’s expression fell.
“I-I expected Mr. Darcy to escort me to the courthouse.”
Trying not to smile at the scowl on Lady Morgan’s face, Richard quipped, “He might have done so, had his own carriage not already been filled to the brim.”
“Oh?” Jane replied. “Who is riding with him?”
“Well, Georgiana decided to attend, so naturally Mrs. Annesley had to accompany her. In addition, Miss Bennet decided she would like to attend, so that left no room for you ... or me. Therefore, Darcy commandeered me to escort you and Mrs. Wickham.”
When Jane did not reply, he continued. “We had best be off if we are to get there before they call your case to order.”
Thus, Richard escorted two ladies to the court proceedings—one who smiled like she knew better than anyone what would happen, and another who could not keep from scowling. Also along for the ride, at William’s insistence, were Marshall and Harrigan, just in case James Morgan decided to cause trouble.
The courthouse
The jurist in charge of Jane’s case wasted no time polling Mr. Graves and James Morgan’s solicitor regarding any new evidence they might like to present to the court before a ruling was made based on the evidence presented to date. Both men declined, so he got straight to the point.
“Being laid up with my knee for such a long period was both a blessing and a curse. Though I did not always feel up to reading the evidence in this case, I was intrigued by it. Therefore, I studied all the testimonies and evidence that had been presented thus far, and it is the judgement of this court that the child born to Lady Morgan this past month is his father’s heir and should receive all the accoutrements that title entails. Moreover, the ‘last will’ Mr. Morgan introduced to this court has a sufficient number of errors, including misspellings and altered dates to easily label it a fraud. That alone will allow Lady Morgan to sue him for expenses incurred in fighting his claims.”
The whispering in the room grew noticeably louder and the judge called for order, slamming the gavel down as he threatened to clear the room. Once order was restored, he continued, “Moreover, the signed affidavit from Martin Golding, the long-time clerk employed by Morgan Warehouses who was fired six months after Lord Howard Morgan’s death—has convinced the court that James Morgan began keeping two sets of ledgers after he took charge. The sole purpose of having two sets of ledgers, according to Mr. Golding, was to defraud Lord David Morgan of his percentage of the sales proceeds as ordered by their late father’s will.”
There were even greater gasps about the room and murmurings began anew, only to be gavelled quiet once more.
“It is the order of this court that James Morgan surrender all the ledgers—those seen and those hidden since Howard Morgan’s death—to an auditor chosen by Mr. Graves. This auditor will examine the records to ascertain the correct amounts that should have been paid to Lord David Morgan before his untimely death and afterwards to his family. Said auditor will then submit a report directly to me, at which time this court will reconvene and render a judgement on the amount due. Meanwhile, in lieu of serving time for his crimes, James Morgan is ordered to continue to run the business under supervision of this court, in order to assist Lady Morgan and her children. However, should he attempt to continue his former conduct, this court reserves the right to sentence him to prison.”
Then the judge addressed James Morgan directly. “I expect your compliance regarding the dual ledgers within a fortnight, Mr. Morgan, and advise you not to drag your feet. I am being lenient with your sentence only for Lady Morgan’s sake and shall not hesitate to put you in prison for your crimes if I see fit.”
Though James Morgan wore a scowl, he was eerily quiet the entire time, and once the case was gavelled to an end, he hurried out a door on the right side of the room. Meanwhile, William and Mr. Graves stood and shook hands whilst Lady Morgan approached them with a wide smile on her face.
“Mr. Darcy, Mr. Graves, I do not know how to thank you both. Moreover, I hope to speak to you this afternoon, Mr. Darcy, regarding what our next steps should be.”
Suddenly, Richard appeared at her side. “Come, let us clear the building, Lady Morgan. This space must be cleared for the next case to begin.”
With that, he held out his arm and waited for Lady Morgan to take it. She hesitated, staring at Darcy in the hope that he would offer to escort her. Instead, William said, “Thank you for escorting her, Richard. As it is, I cannot leave until I have spoken to Mr. Graves.”
Having no alternative, Lady Morgan allowed the colonel to escort her from the building, along with Mrs. Wickham. William glanced about to find Elizabeth smiling at him, so he asked Mr. Graves to wait for him at the concrete pillars where the walkway to the courthouse entry began. Once Graves left, William noted that Marshall was escorting Georgiana and Mrs. Annesley out the door on the right and Harrigan was waiting to escort Elizabeth.
“Please wait on the walkway for Miss Bennet,” William instructed Harrigan, who instantly did as he was asked.
Hurrying to Elizabeth, William took both her hands and brought them to his lips for a quick kiss. “I pray the verdict will soften your sister’s heart, my love. In any case, I intend to petition her soon to let me choose whom I wish to marry.”
Elizabeth’s expression became anxious. “I do not think I could live without you now.”
Her declaration made his heart soar. “You shall not have to live without me, nor will I let you. We have waited too long to acknowledge our feelings to turn back now.”
William quickly scanned the room to be certain no one was watching before he framed her face with his hands and kissed her passionately. “Remember that I love you and always will.”
“I love you, too, forever and always.”
A large number of people were milling about the courthouse, enjoying the unusually warm temperature as they slowly strolled across the lawn. Consequently, because of the crowd, it was not easy for Elizabeth to keep sight of William amidst the crush.
After she and Jane reached their carriages, which were parked side by side, they remained outside the vehicles, whilst Colonel Fitzwilliam stood between them. Though neither spoke, they both pretended to enjoy the air whilst waiting for Mr. Darcy to conclude his business with Mr. Graves and, hopefully, ride home with them.
As they watched, Graves waved to an unknown man who joined them, and the three formed a small circle at the concrete pillars. That was when Elizabeth became distracted by something troubling.
It was obvious that James Morgan, who had left the building on the far side, was arguing with his solicitor by the expression on his face and the way he gestured wildly with his hands as they walked towards the carriages. His carriage was parked several vehicles away from Darcy’s, and once there, Morgan stopped to shove his solicitor, causing that man to throw up his hands and stalk away. Afterwards, he opened the door to his carriage, but instead of entering, he set about searching for something inside. At length, he pulled out a greatcoat and donned it, though the weather was far too warm for it. Next, he inspected a long-barrelled pistol he pulled from underneath the seat, before grasping it and sliding his hand beneath one side of the greatcoat. Finally, he turned and began searching for someone.
Instantly, Elizabeth knew whom he was searching for and she began to walk hurriedly towards where William stood, ignoring the colonel’s advice to stay close. Given the number of people crossing the lawn, at first Morgan did not see Elizabeth, and it was only when she began to run that she caught his interest. Stepping up his pace, Morgan headed straight towards William and did not stop to aim until he was within thirty feet. Elizabeth crossed Morgan’s path just as he lifted the pistol to fire at William.
