Incognito

8

The past: Angelica Roslin

"A fifteen year old versus a nineteen year old is not fair."

"You are practically still fourteen and I am not nineteen for a month yet. And besides, the last five rounds have been completely fair." Darcy leans against his fencing saber enough that it bents under his weight.

Angelica wipes the sweat from her face with a towel and slips off her slippers. "Darcy, I'm exhausted."

"One more," Darcy pleas. "We both know the only reason you agreed to this is because you hate having Talia poke you through with needles."

Sighing, Angelica lifts her saber into position and grudgingly pulls on her shoes. "One," she begins as Darcy darts forward. "I just adore fencing and you know it." Darcy gives a quick, short laugh at her sarcasm. "Two, I do not know why I must be tortured with another fitting. I can wear a dress I already have for Elizabeth's gala." She hooks Darcy's arm with her saber and stabs him in the flesh. "And three, you totally just let me win." She lets her saber fall.

Darcy puts his hands up in mock surrender. "Touche."

As Angelica reaches for her towel, Darcy snatches it away. Angelica lounges but he lifts it over her head. "Come on, Gelica. We both know that you want a new dress." He playfully creeps closer and wraps his arms around her. "You want to  meet a handsome young man who will sweep you off your feet," Darcy swings her through the air and mockingly begins to waltz with her, "and shall dance with you all night." Angelica rolls her eyes and forces a blank expression onto her face as Darcy pulls her across the ballroom floor. Darcy waggles his eyebrows at her. "And then, when dawn arrives, he'll take you into his embrace," hugging her close he dips his head downward, "and whispers in your ear." Angelica's squirming dries down as she listens hard to hear his words as warm air drifts to her ear. "Darling," he drawls, "I shall think of your face each time I urinate."

Angelica gags and laughs out in shock and slaps the dashingly handsome boy in the head as he guffaws. "No wonder no lady-"

The thick oakwood doors bang open as Elizabeth runs in crying. She flies into Angelica's arms and sobs, "I hate him! I hate him!" Darcy met Angelica's and mouthed, "That is why I don't get romantically involved." She watches his back as he strides off with their sabers and she mourns the playful side of her brother that she wouldn't see for a while or ever. He had new friends like Richard and rarely interacted with Angelica in that manner anymore.

Angelica patted the back of Elizabeth's head and shushed her until the sobs silenced. Asking what was the matter triggered more tears, however. 

"Gelica, it was awful. After my fitting, I went into town to shop for the trip to Reretha and I was over there and, sweet cannolis, Angelica, he was gorgeous."

Angelica smiled to herself. "What did he-"

"He had golden hair that outshone the sun, broad shoulder, muscular, ivory skin that I swear was sun-kissed," she sighed dreamily. "His eyes, Angelica, you have to see his eyes. A deep blue, bluer than the ocean with light laughing sparkles in them and speckles of aquamarine." She gasped excitedly. "He was tall, too, Angelica. Can you believe it?"

Chuckling to herself, Angelica nods. Leave it to Elizabeth to swoon when her sister bade her to tell a story.

"He was poor, Gelica, so I had to. Then he caught me..."

"Who caught you, Eliza?"

"The man I stole from! Haven't you been listening?"

Solemnly Angelica shakes her head. "Oh, Eliza..."

"I offered him my whole purse, Gelica," Elizabeth wailed. "But, but." The second Roslin daughter silenced.

"Eliza." Angelica's tone warned that Elizabeth better not leave her hanging.

"He pinned my hand to the table and he got out a knife. Angelica, it came so close to my wrist." Tears pooled in her eyes and she absentmindedly rubbed her wrist. In a startling flash, Elizabeth was back to the story. "But he punched him!"

"Who punched who?" Angelica asked in an exasperated, anxious tone.

"The cute guy punched the bread shopkeeper, grabbed my hand and we ran off. Angelica, sometimes I worry about you."

Angelica laughed. "A baby does something to you." She stood and walked toward the door with Elizabeth in her shadow. "But I don't understand. You ran in screaming that you hate him. He just rescued you."

Elizabeth sighed. "We walked all over town, even inside that romantic bell tower by the river, remember it? Gelica, it was perfect until about an hour ago. He obviously knew who I was and over bread, oh Angelica, he's such a great kisser. But he had to go home, so I asked where it was and Gelica, he pointed at the castle." She broke into tears as they approached the bedchamber. "I am such a fool. Stupid, idiotic, spoof."

"Now that is no way to speak of my sister," Angelica reprimanded as she opened the door and ushered Elizabeth inside.

"Angelica, he was the duke's son!" With a satisfied plop onto her bed, Elizabeth let out a waterfall of tears.

Angelica moved to her wardrobe and popped out the hidden backing and smuggled baby Prosper out. "The duke's son? Are you sure?" She had seen the Duke of Averie's son and she couldn't believe that he could be passed off as a street boy.

"I got swindled by Brooks Holden and I swear I will never utter a word to him again."

With a sign, Angelica plopped on her bed just as shouts rang out. Something poked her and, as she slipped the baby under the bed, she found a small card on her bed. She flipped the small white card over in her hand and read it.

𝐼 𝓌𝒾𝓈𝒽 𝐼 𝒹𝒾𝒹𝓃'𝓉 𝒽𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝑔𝑜. 𝒢𝑜𝑜𝒹-𝒷𝓎𝑒.

A maid knocked quickly before barging into the girl's room. "Have you seen Mister Darcy? He has been drafted into the king's army."

Angelica had a sinking feeling she would never see her brother again as she shook her head and the maid disappeared.