Page 50 of Till Death Us Do Part: Book 2
Darcy took a deep breath. “I understand I owe you a large debt of gratitude. You took care of my wife when I did not, and for that, I am eternally grateful.”
The gentleman thought there was little point in belabouring how Mrs Darcy came to be at Pemberley without proper support, or whose fault it was. It would belittle both men’s intelligence to pretend it was not entirely the fault of the master, and neither was very inclined towards prevarication.
“Your wife is kind to horses.”
Many people assumed, much to their peril, that Mr Longman was not especially astute, since he did not read very much, nor did he like to talk a lot. Others assumed he was overly simplistic in his opinions, since they mostly related to horses. Neither view was correct. In fact, Mr Longman was a keen observer ofhuman nature, who knew far more than anyone thought he did. He only liked to boil it down to its essence. When he evaluated people, they either abused horses, were kind to horses, or were indifferent to them. He felt no need to add any nuance to that assertion, even though someone who knew him well could map a person’s entire personality from those words and the inflexion used with each.
Darcy nodded. “I feel I was not kind to her horse.”
Longman frowned. “I will not disagree.”
That said, the two men, with a dozen or two words, understood each other perfectly, so Darcy asked, “I understand she rode Omega. I suppose that was your suggestion?”
“It was, indeed. If you will pardon my saying so, your wife needed something to cheer her up, and your uncle needed a bit of comeuppance. He is closer to a mule than a horse in temperament—perhaps a donkey—but I do believe he understood the message. It was too late, and he was too stubborn to correct course—but somewhere, rattling around in his head,he knowshe did her wrong.”
Darcy chuckled. “I heard she rode by him like a Valkyrie.”
“That she did. You are a lucky man.”
“A stupid man!” Darcy exclaimed in disgust.
“You can be both.”
“I suppose you have worked out that she left without a trace?”
“I thought she might.” He stared at the nearest fence for a minute, and added, “She spent quite a lot of time talking to Omega that last day. I suspect she was saying goodbye and possibly asking advice.”
Darcy did not even ask Longman if it had occurred to him to dissuade Mrs Darcy from leaving or mention his supposition to someone who would. Longman would never do such a thing, but not for the reasons most would assume. He did not leave the ladyto her own choices because she was the mistress of the estate, or because she was his social superior, or because she was better educated than he in some ways. He left the lady to her own choices because she was a woman grown and had no need foranyman to tell her what to do. Mrs Longman was a fine example of a woman who took no guff from anybody, and Longman could not abide any man who wanted a weakling wife. If Mrs Darcy thought she should be elsewhere, it was not his business.
Darcy paused a bit before continuing, knowing the groom would tell him whatever he chose.
Longman continued, “She was not happy—not by a mile. She liked riding; of that you can be certain. She was smart as a whip but never lorded it over people. She was as nice to her young maid, who could not even read when they met, as she was to Mrs Reynolds or your neighbours. I think she liked Reynolds and Jennings.”
“You know it is my fault she was unhappy.”
Longman only laughed. “When a wife is unhappy, nine times out of ten, it is the husband at fault. Forgive me if I just assumed that.”
“Did you know the story?” Darcy asked in genuine curiosity.
“Enough of it,” Longman said, then he thought a minute. “You made a right mess of it, but I feel in my bones that she will be back—she belongs here. Of course, as Mrs Longman will no doubt tell you, I have been wrong before and will be again.”
“As have I, Longman—as have I.”
“You should ride your wife’s horse. You need to talk to Bartlet, and it will be interesting to see if the beast has been changed by association with Mrs Darcy.”
“Of course.”
“Go fetch him, if you please. Bring him into the stable. Feed him an apple. Maybe he will go easy on you,” Longman replied with a chuckle.
Darcy grinned along with him and went to fetch his wife’s horse.
Twenty minutes later, both men were walking down the front drive towards Lambton. Darcy obviously did not need a groom to come along, but he thought his old friend might give him more clues as they went along, or he might be useful in interpreting whatever Bartlet had to say.
The first mile or two they walked the horses and occasionally trotted. Longman pointed out a trail that Mrs Darcy preferred because it had a field of flowers, a tree, or a stream she liked. He pointed out a fallen log in the middle of a meadow that had served as her introduction to jumping. He pointed out a trail winding up to the moors that Mrs Darcy had ridden astride instead of sidesaddle. He pointed to a bench by a stream where she would stop to read for a few hours, while the groom went back to Pemberley alone, assuming she would get herself home.
They paused a couple of miles out to allow the horses to drink at a stream. “You know, she was always looking for something.”
“What do you mean?” Darcy asked, genuinely curious for something-anything that would tell him a bit more about Elizabeth.
