Page 41 of Conundrums & Coincidences

Just days prior, he had been determined to claim Miss Armstrong’s legacy of a country house and fifty thousand pounds. But in the gardens the previous day, although disguise was his abhorrence, he had decided to secretly cease trying to win the tournament. Miss Bennet’s need to do so trumped all his own aspirations.

For appearance and curiosity’s sake, he had continued to seek his series of puzzles and their solutions. Therefore, he knew the prize was ‘in a clock’. If Elizabeth and Mr Hadley were hurrying towards the same location, it most likely meant they were in a head-to-head race for the ultimate reward.

No longer able to keep the competitors under observation from above, Darcy quietly descended to the bottom of the staircase. Holding a forefinger against his lips, he silently warned Alfred to not reveal his presence as he slipped behind the parlour door. Barely daring to breathe, he peeked out.

Elizabeth and Mr Hadley stopped at the same instant in front of the vestibule’s walnut pendulum clock. The timepiece’s trunk had beautifully rendered carvings of birds, and there were side viewing windows on the square hood that enclosed the clock’s mechanisms and delicate face. Darcy assumed the deed to Oakwood Manor and the key to the money box—if, indeed, they were in that clock—would be hidden within a secret compartment in the base’s footed plinth.

Use that clever mind of yours, Elizabeth. There should be a disguised spring mechanism somewhere—an unseen lever or button—that will release a concealed door, drawer, or panel.

Although restless, Darcy remained stock-still, not wanting to draw attention to himself. Conflicted, he wanted Elizabeth to win for her and her family’s sake. Yet a selfish part of him wanted her to lose. Then he would provide for her and, if necessary, all the Bennets.

She, however, would gradually have to become intimately acquainted with all his strengths and weaknesses and learn to love him despite the flaws in his character. He was well aware that she would not marry for financial security alone, nor would he want her to do so.

The tournament was ending, and there were few opportunities for private, uninterrupted conversations. He was running out of time to win the lady’s heart.

Darcy recalled his first offer, the horrid one made at Hunsford. He had asked whether she expected him to rejoice in the inferiority of her connexions or to congratulate himself on gaining relations whose condition in life was so decidedly beneath his own. At such audacity and arrogance, he nearly groaned aloud in mortification and shame.

Then there was his fear that if Elizabeth won the tournament and he made her another offer, she might suspect he was doing so only because of how utterly her situation had changed. Worse, if he admitted he had forfeited the competition for her sake, she might accept him out of a sense of gratitude.

He was the architect of every conundrum he faced.

Meanwhile at the clock, Mr Hadley had tried to open the hood. Then he joggled the lower door in which the weights and pendulum were housed. Both doors were locked, and a key was required to gain access.

All the while, a variety of polite remarks and civilities passed between the two contestants.

“Oh, I beg your pardon, sir.”

“After you, Miss Bennet.”

“That was clever of you, Mr Hadley. I am sorry it was to no avail.”

“Good heavens, madam, I did not mean to touch you there!”

The young man, evidently thinking it best to distance himself from her, then stood on the left side of the clock and poked at the carved birds while the lady did the same on the right. They reminded Darcy of two lions facing one another with raised forepaws.

Crouching low, Elizabeth examined a wide, carved moulding on the base’s footed plinth. Clever creature. Darcy had suspected there might be a secret drawer concealed within that decorative strip of mahogany. Such would demonstrate not only the cabinetmaker’s ingenious skill, but it would be a perfect hiding place for papers and a key.

Mr Hadley also stooped and pressed a forefinger along the moulding on his side.

A loud, sharp, metallic sound made the four people in the vestibule startle. But only two or three of them had witnessed the moment the secret button, a bird’s eye, had been pressed by Elizabeth. The clang was followed by an elaborate six-note melodic chime pattern that resounded throughout the entryway and public rooms. Then, while Mr Hadley stood scratching his head, a secret drawer flew open and struck his shinbone.

Coming from behind the door, Darcy kept an eye on the young man lest he cease moaning and hopping about on one foot long enough to claim the drawer’s contents. No, Hadley is an honourable gentleman.

With measured tread, Elizabeth rounded the clock, her eyes wide and singularly focused on the open drawer and the legal document within. Darcy doubted she had even noticed him.

The words ‘This Indenture’ were writ large upon the top of the page, and red wax seals authenticating the deed had been affixed along its bottom. A key with an attached ribbon rested upon the paper. Falling to her knees before the drawer, Elizabeth reverently reached for her prize with trembling fingers. Holding the deed and key to her breast then, she wept what Darcy assumed were happy tears. Behind her, he surreptitiously brushed his own eyes.

“Alfred,” called Mr Hadley, “kindly fetch Mr Monroe.”

“No need.” The smiling attorney stood in the library’s doorway. “I was summoned by the clock’s unique chime.”

“Miss Bennet has been the most skilful competitor, sir,” cried Mr Hadley. “She has won the tournament!”

“Indeed, she has.” Still smiling, Mr Monroe helped the winner to her feet and bussed her hand. “Congratulations, my dear.”

Turning to the others gathered round—which by then included the entire household—the attorney declared Miss Bennet the victor and called for a round of applause. As the clapping diminished, he beckoned the butler. “Mr Atwater, a bottle or two of wine, if you please, to celebrate our winner’s sweet success. Now, young lady, if you will excuse me, I have an express to send to your father.”

Elizabeth’s eyes were bright, sparkling, and Darcy suspected she was overpowered by wonder of a most gratifying and delightful sort. Rooted to the spot, she beamed and cried and clutched to her heart the deed and the key. Surrounded then by well-wishers, she expressed herself with becoming gratitude for the kindnesses she had been shown by everyone from the butler and housekeeper on down to the stable-boy.