North by Northanger (A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery) Read Online Free PDF Page A

took advantage of Lady Dalrymple’s arrival to excuse himself and Elizabeth, citing a wish to take some air.
    “I will expect you in Camden Place on the morrow, Mrs. Darcy,” Lady Catherine said as they departed. “We have important matters to discuss.”
    The crisp air proved refreshing after the closeness of the Pump Room. They walked slowly, passing the abbey and crossing the churchyard to Cheap Street. The road teemed with carriages, horses, and carts, and they were some time waiting to cross it. Indeed, merely standing on the pavement, they found themselves quite in danger of being run over by a gentleman doing a rather poor job of driving four-in-hand, and swearing at his “deuced beasts” for their slow pace. Eventually, however, they traversed the thoroughfare and continued past the guildhall to amble over Pulteney Bridge.
    Shops lined both sides of the stone bridge. Though they pausedbefore several windows to admire the wares for sale, they found little to tempt them. The only shop that captured Elizabeth’s attention was one displaying gentlemen’s walking sticks.
    “Darcy,” she said, pointing. “That cane on the right appears very similar to yours. Did you purchase it here?”
    “Mine was a gift from my father when I left home for Cambridge. I do not know who made it.” Darcy lifted his walking stick and held it across both palms. It was beautifully crafted and one of his favorite possessions; he carried it nearly everywhere. A cinquefoil, recalling the Darcy coat of arms, adorned the head of its silver grip, which ended at a wide band engraved with smaller cinquefoils. He kept its length so richly polished that he could almost see his reflection in the deep red-brown wood. A slight imperfection, where the grain widened around a shilling-sized whorl, marked the cane’s sole flaw, but was scarcely noticeable unless one sought it.
    “My father sometimes came to Bath. He might have bought it here during one of his stays.”
    “Shall we go inside and ask the shopkeeper whether it is his work?”
    He shook his head and returned the cane to its usual position at his side. “I would much rather continue walking with you.”
    They journeyed only a few more yards, however, before another shop—a pastry-cook’s—brought Elizabeth to a halt.
    “Are you hungry?” Darcy asked.
    “No, but your daughter is.”
    They went within and enjoyed strawberry ices as they watched passers-by through the shop window. When they had finished, they bought hot Bath cakes to take home. Darcy took her arm as they left the bridge and passed the fountain in Laura Place.
    “I confess surprise that you chose to reveal your condition to my aunt, given her treatment of you since our engagement.”
    “She would learn of it soon enough. Meanwhile, admitting her into our confidence seemed the best means of making amends with her. She is one of your few remaining Fitzwilliam relations, after all.”
    The maternal branch of his family tree was indeed a small one. Lady Catherine was his mother’s only sister. Catherine and Anne’s brother—Lord Hugh Fitzwilliam, Earl of Southwell—had died not long after Lady Anne, leaving the earldom to his eldest son, Roger. Hugh’s second son was a colonel in the army. A third son, a naval officer, had died at sea.
    Darcy appreciated Elizabeth’s willingness to forgive the many insults Lady Catherine had heaped upon her. The breach with his aunt had weighed more heavily upon him than he cared to acknowledge. He considered family connections of utmost importance, relationships to be preserved except in cases of dishonorable conduct that blackened the family name. In their commitment to protecting the family’s reputation, he and his aunt agreed. They differed, however, in their definition of discreditable behavior. Darcy defined it as willful disregard for the legal and ethical rules of society; Lady Catherine, as disregard for the opinions of Lady Catherine.
    “What caused you to believe