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“We were told that Gerard died in action,” she said. “I have always wondered about the particulars.”
“He died bravely,” Lieutenant St. Clair said. “We were escorting two merchant ships back to England when we encountered a French frigate—the Dangereuse—traveling with a sloop of war. Her ca
Darcy knew St. Clair was leaving much unsaid. War was a brutal business; Andrew St. Clair and Gerard Fitzwilliam had lived the violence merely summarized in the battle accounts published for public consumption in the Naval Chronicle. While Darcy appreciated the officer’s discretion—the horrors of battle were no subject for ladies’ ears—he himself longed to hear more. He had no taste for gore; rather, he wanted to fully understand his cousin’s final moments. For all of Darcy’s responsibilities, many of them settled upon him at an early age, his own life seemed sheltered and safe compared to Gerard’s and that of Colonel Fitzwilliam. Darcy had faced danger, but only when it came looking for him—he had not deliberately committed himself to a profession that actively sought it, as his two cousins had.
“Did Gerard suffer a great deal of pain?” Georgiana asked.
“I did not see him take the shot; I came upon him afterward. By that time he had lost consciousness. A seaman and I carried him down to the surgeon, but we had scarcely laid him on the table when he died.” He paused. “This may seem small consolation, Miss Darcy, but the final expression of his countenance was peaceful, so I believe he was insensible to pain at the end.”
“I was under the impression that my cousin’s request to you regarding his sea chest had been a deathbed wish,” Darcy said.
“No, he had asked me some time earlier, after we lost two of our midshipmen in another engagement, and a number of seamen to fever, all within a se’
It was just as well that Darcy’s travel plans had coincided with Lieutenant St. Clair’s arrival in Lyme, for the Earl of Southwell—Darcy’s eldest Fitzwilliam cousin—was not the most tactful individual, nor did he hold the navy in particularly high regard following his youngest brother’s death. His reaction upon receiving Gerard’s sword and other effects forwarded by the navy had been acrimonious; Darcy winced to think of what Southwell might have said to Lieutenant St. Clair upon receiving the chest in person.
“It is amazing to me that you have been so long from England,” Georgiana said. “Is it usual for a ship to be away for such an extended period, even during war?”
“I have served on numerous ships,” St. Clair said, “and been appointed to them at the will and convenience of the Admiralty. Some of the transfers occurred in foreign ports; on other occasions my new ship was leaving so soon upon the arrival of my former that there was no time for shore leave.”
“You must be grateful, then, to finally stand on English soil once more,” Elizabeth said.
“I am, indeed.” He set his wineglass on a side table. “Mr. and Mrs. Darcy, Miss Darcy—I appreciate your kind interest in my history, but no doubt you would much rather examine the accoutrements of Lieutenant Fitzwilliam’s career than politely endure an account of mine.”
“I assure you, our interest is not feigned,” Elizabeth said. “But if you have another engagement…?”
“I am entirely at your disposal, madam.”
“Then I beg leave to quiz you awhile longer, for we have no other acquaintance in the navy, and are intrigued by that life.”
“I shall do my best to offer intelligible replies. However, my society has been limited to shipmates for so long that I ca
“You have acquitted yourself perfectly well thus far,” Elizabeth assured him. “Now, do present duties bring you to Lyme, or are you here by choice?” Though Lyme boasted a shipyard, it was not a naval base. The navy, however, maintained a presence along the entire south coast. Lyme appeared to have a higher naval population than Darcy had anticipated; he had also seen a number of marines.
“I expect to remain here until joining another ship.” St. Clair glanced at Gerard’s sea chest. “And when I do, I imagine I shall feel strange not bringing that chest aboard with my own possessions. After traversing the world together, at least one of us is finally where it belongs.”
“I can scarcely comprehend the distances you have traveled,” Georgiana said. “Lyme is as far as I have ever journeyed from home.”
Darcy regretted the truth of that fact. His sister’s life had been more circumscribed than he would have wished for her, and as her guardian he felt keenly this gap in her education. Georgiana longed to see more of the world; for that matter, so did he. However, circumstances beyond any individual’s control had prevented fulfillment of that desire. Though the rest of Europe stood but a brief sail across the Cha
Napoleon’s recent defeat, however, had made the seas safer and travel possible once more. He hoped, after the political climate stabilized further, to take his family to the Continent. Elizabeth and Georgiana both possessed natural curiosity and strong intellects that would be stimulated by exposure to the art, music, and culture of other countries, and even Lily-A
“Now that England is at peace, perhaps we shall travel abroad,” Darcy said.
“Truly?” Georgiana’s eyes lit at the prospect. Elizabeth, too, appeared very pleased by the suggestion.
His sister was still smiling when she turned back to Lieutenant St. Clair. “My brother knows how much I would enjoy that. I have long wanted to visit other places, to see people and landscapes and buildings I have only read about. Has your naval service taken you to the Continent?”
“Which one?” he asked in good humor. “I have seen more of the American continents than ‘the’ continent of Europe. Most of my time in the New World, however, has been spent among the islands.”
“I have not read as much about the New World as the Old,” Georgiana confessed. “What do they look like—the West Indies?”
“Like no other place you have seen. The sea is different there—not the cold grey of the Cha
“I had always envisioned that part of the world as quite wild,” Georgiana said, “but you make it sound enchanting.”