Elizabeth left her father in his office after their long discussion. Peter said that he needed to get some work done, but that he would talk with Edward and her together later. Elizabeth made haste toward the library; she knew that Edward would be beside himself for news by now.
Elizabeth felt heavy with the knowledge of what Charles had done to her mother, but she tried to move that to the back of her mind for the moment. She wanted to feel the joy of telling Edward that her father had agreed to their courtship. There would be time afterward to feel the anguish of Lydia's situation.
She slowed as she came to the door to the library, pulling it open just a crack to peek through and watch Edward, wondering how rattled he would be. She smiled to herself; he was pacing the floor, mumbling to himself and glancing up at the clock on the fireplace mantle often.
Be still my heart... My, but isn't he handsome...
Finally, she decided to put an end to his torment and enter the library. His head jerked up and he halted when he caught sight of her. Their eyes met and locked for a moment, she could tell he was trying to read her expression for some kind of hint as to what had happened with her father.
In seconds he had crossed the room and was standing in front of her, holding her hands, his eyes searching hers. "Elizabeth? What did he say...?" His voice was low and breathy.
She looked up into the deep blue sea of his eyes. She could wait no longer; her face broke into a radiant smile. "He has given us his blessing, Edward!"
Edward grabbed her around the waist and swung her around, holding her tight. Elizabeth squealed and he laughed.
"Praise the Lord above!" He grinned like a schoolboy as he set her down on her feet again.
Elizabeth wrapped her arms around him as he brought his hands up to cup each side of her face. He stared down into her eyes, smiling, and brought his lips down to hers, letting them linger softly.
She had never known such happiness as in that moment. She tightened her hold on him, relishing in the closeness of him.
Edward pulled away from her just enough to gaze into her eyes again. "I have never been made happier than on this day. I will treasure you always, Elizabeth."
Elizabeth stood there, staring back at him, the joy in her heart overflowing. "Oh, Edward... You have made me so happy, thank you for not giving up when I, when I was so off-putting."
"My darling," Edward grinned down at her, "from the moment I saw you descending the staircase, wild bears couldn't have kept me away from you." He laughed, "My father tried, but he never had a chance." He moved one hand down to her neck.
Yes, how ironic it is that someone as vile as Charles is actually in some ways responsible for my happiness, that my kind and wonderful Edward could possibly be his son...
Elizabeth felt her heart racing in her chest, betraying her reaction to his touch. It was so hard to think with his fingers resting on the soft curve of her neck. But she had so much to tell him still.
She reached up and took his hand from her neck, holding it in hers. "Edward, I have so much to tell you, so much I've learned about my mother."
He brought her hand up to his lips, kissing her fingers. "By all means, please do enlighten me," he grinned at her, sending her stomach to her knees.
"Uh, um..." she tried to focus, closing her eyes for a second. "Well, last night, I was reading more in my mother's diary, and there was an entry about a confrontation she had with your father, then the following entry was torn from the book, with just a few distressed sentences remaining. It had an air of foreboding to it... I decided I would question my father to see what he knew about it, and he explained to me what had happened between Charles and Lydia that day."
Elizabeth paused for a moment, glancing up at Edward. He was watching her intently. A little too intently; he almost had a smolder to his gaze.
"And what did your father tell you?" Edward's eyes were still sparkling, like deep blue waters reflecting the sun. He looked as though he was struggling to keep a straight face, like his luminous smile was threatening to break free at any moment.
Elizabeth couldn't help but half smile at him. "I'm not sure you're ready to hear it right now..."
Edward could hold back his smile no longer. He lifted a hand to caress her cheek, "Forgive me my dear, but I'm still over the moon... Please, just let me kiss you once more," his voice trailed off into a whisper as he leaned in, kissing her cheek softly. He trailed his lips gently down to her neck, just below her jaw line, before returning to her lips.
Elizabeth closed her eyes, the fluttering in her stomach rapidly increasing. When he pulled away from her, she opened her eyes and murmured, "I think that was more than once."
He grinned, "Please don't be put out with me; I couldn't help myself."
Elizabeth smiled and blushed slightly. Oh those shining blue eyes...
"Alright," Edward composed himself. "Tell me about what happened with your mother and my father."
"Are you sure you want to hear it?" Elizabeth hesitated. "Your father did some awful things..." A feeling of apprehension came over Elizabeth.
What if Edward doesn't believe what my father said?
"Elizabeth," Edward's eyes softened. "I hardly think you can tell me anything that would surprise me. I know well my father's less than stellar qualities." He reached out and took hold of her hand.
"Alright," Elizabeth blew out a breath. "Papa said that your father bribed him with a lot of money to stay away from my mother. He told Papa that my mother belonged to him and he was going to marry her. Papa took the money; he said his father was struggling financially, and that your father threatened repercussions if Papa didn't comply."
"That is quite typical of my father," Edward said, furrowing his brows. "It sounds as though you were right when you said that he was in love with your mother."
"Well, I think your father believed that he was in love with her, but love is not what he showed her," Elizabeth lowered her eyes.
Edward ran his thumb over her hand. "What do you mean?"
"Oh Edward, he..." Elizabeth shook her head. "Wait, I'm getting to that... Papa was miserable with his decision to take the money, for he had realized he was in love with my mother and couldn't live without her. So he headed straight for Mama's house to tell her, he said he couldn't just let your father have her without trying, without telling her how he felt. When he arrived, he saw, he saw..." Elizabeth's voice faltered and her chin trembled.
"What did he see, Elizabeth?" Edward's voice was barely a whisper. He reached out and brushed his fingers across her cheek. "It's alright, darling. Take your time," he said softly. His eyes watched her tenderly.
Elizabeth fought to hold back her tears. "Edward, your father... Mama had refused his affections and it enraged him...he had her out in the garden; he had her by the throat, he slapped her down, down to the ground..." she breathed hard, sucking in air in gulps.
Edward drew his brows together, scrunching his face in disgust. "Oh, Elizabeth, I, I'm so sorry..." He pulled her into his arms, hugging her affectionately. "How dreadful..."
She held onto him, tears sliding down her cheeks. "Papa fought him off. Edward, I can't imagine... I can't understand how he could claim to love her and...and hurt her so..."
Edward rubbed his hand up and down her arm as he held her. "Elizabeth, I'm not entirely sure that my father is even capable of loving anyone but himself. He must have been motivated by infatuation, jealousy, and a desire to possess Lydia; maybe even to keep your father from having her. I imagine that Lydia's refusal enraged him, for he is accustomed to getting his way, as I'm sure you have noticed. Of course, that's no excuse for treating her so brutally."
Elizabeth pulled back to look up at him, wiping her tears. "Edward, what can we do to stop him from hurting more people, like Matthew and his father? I told Papa that maybe between all of us, we can find a way to confront him or talk him out of this madness."
Edward nodded, considering her suggestion. "Yes, perhaps we should all come together and discuss a solution. I, myself haven't come up with much in regards to stopping him, short of knocking him silly." Edward half grinned, but it was devoid of humor. "I hate to say this, but I fear the only effective way to put a stop to my father is going to be to turn the tables on him, to threaten him with some sort of incriminating information. But what that is, I don't know."
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I want to thank all of you dear readers for following my story through to this point. I appreciate all of the votes and the comments so very much! I can't tell y'all how much the support means to me!
This is a first draft, as I am still in the writing process, and I intend to tweak and add a few minor things upon completion. I will be sure to let y'all know about those changes in case any of you want to check those out later.
Thank you again for everything! :)