“I did not come here to talk about a doll,” he said. “I have just spoken to Captain Merriweather and discovered that, despite what I said this afternoon, you saw fit to disregard my wishes and insisted on having your own way.”

“I am sorry if it upsets you, but I will not have my children subjected to such brutality.”

“The children would not have been subjected to it. I had intended to arrange with Merriweather that it would take place when they were ashore tomorrow. But they cannot be shielded from all the unpleasantness in the world, Elizabeth, and you had no right to tell the captain how to run his ship. Aboard this vessel, his word is law.”

“I do not notice it being law when you have a request to make,” Elizabeth said, growing angry despite herself. “You have often asked him to change things to suit your fancy. I, at least, had a good reason to ask him to change his mind—which he was happy to do, I might add.”

“A request is one thing, but you did not request that he should reconsider the punishment; you demanded it, and since he did not wish to offend the wife of his employer, he had little choice but to acquiesce. I told you we must not interfere…”

“Am I your servant, then, to always do as I am told?”

“No, you are my wife,” he said, his eyes darkening at the interruption, “and when I tell you not to interfere, I expect you to obey me. I believe that is what you agreed to do on our wedding day.”

“And you agreed to honour me, but I do not see much honouring at the moment. No, say nothing more,” she said, brushing her hair savagely. “On this we must agree to differ.”

She turned to the mirror and, in the absence of her maid, began to dress her own hair.

“We have not finished,” he said. “Do I have your promise that you will not disobey me in this way again?”

“Where the welfare of my children is concerned, all I can promise you is that I will always do that which I think right.”

“Then perhaps tomorrow, madam, you should consider returning to England. Immediately.”

He spoke the words in a low growl, and though Elizabeth felt the blood drain from her face, she refused to let her fear show.

“Perhaps I will,” she said equally coldly.

“Very well. And you can make arrangements to take your mother with you.”

Elizabeth rose from her seat. “I see you wish to be rid of all the Bennet women then, sir,” she said with as much dignity as she could muster.

He scowled. “Only those whose behaviour offends me.”

And with that he left the cabin, the door banging behind him.

Elizabeth stumbled against the stool, almost unable to believe what had just happened. She and Darcy disagreed often but argued rarely and never to such lengths. It seemed impossible that they had just exchanged such harsh words. It was almost as if some malign force had seized hold of them and driven them on.

She clutched at the table, forcing herself not to collapse on the floor in a flood of tears. For several minutes she stood immobile before moving toward the open porthole and taking in great gulps of bracing salty air.

Gradually, she felt sense return to her thoughts. And as she replayed the scene in her mind she could not discount the uncomfortable feeling that he had, in part, been right—that she should not have gone behind his back. Darcy had never been the kind of man who demanded unquestioning slavish obedience; she would not have married him if he had. And the fact that he had intended to make an alternative arrangement for their children during the punishment showed he agreed with her. If she had shown a little more faith in her husband’s judgement, this would not have happened.

She finished dressing, then went up on deck, where she saw her mother gossiping with Sophie—though Mrs Bennet was doing all the talking and Sophie was doing all the listening—and where the children were engaged in their various activities. Beth waved to her but then turned back to Mr Inkworthy. They were bending over a tablet of paper, and it was clear that he was instructing the girl in the finer points of sketching and that Beth did not wish to be disturbed. The boys were with the first mate, who was demonstrating how to use a sextant. No one, it seemed, had heard their argument. Relieved, Elizabeth looked round for Darcy.

It took her some time to find him but at last she saw him, standing at the prow of the ship, his coat slung over the side and his white ruffled shirt billowing in the breeze. His hair stirred, too, and she longed to touch it. She could not bear to be out of sorts with him, and so she walked over to him.

“Darcy…” she began hesitantly. He turned round and looked at her, his eyes no longer dark with anger. “I should not have gone behind your back; you were right to be angry,” she said. “I should have talked to you about it again, and we should have come to some agreement.”

“Yes, you should,” he said, adding with a smile, “but then you would not be Elizabeth. I did not marry a meek woman, and I have no right to complain that you do not behave like one after fifteen years of marriage. And you were right, too. It was a difficult situation and one which needed careful handling, but I am glad you are so protective of the children. They are still young and the girls especially should not be subject to such things, particularly Margaret. She has a very vivid imagination, and I think this journey is already sending it down rather macabre channels. Egypt is a strange and unknown place, and the ancient Egyptians were in many ways a gruesome people. Laurence has been regaling her with stories of murderous crocodiles, and Jane has been telling her of musty tombs and ancient curses. Then, too, she has heard us talking. It is perhaps no wonder that she tells so many grisly stories to her doll.”

“She does seem to talk to it rather a lot,” said Elizabeth.

“Do you think we ought to take it away from her?” asked Darcy.

“No,” said Elizabeth, after a moment’s thought. “It would only provoke a storm of tears. Better to let her tire of the thing herself, as she soon will. On board ship she has little to amuse her, but once we reach Cairo there will be more for her to see, and I will make a special effort to find her a suitable replacement. In fact, I believe I will buy her one even if nothing special catches my eye. Then we can quietly remove Aahotep.”

“I defer to your counsel, my love,” he said and she smiled at him.

“Then you do not wish to be rid of me?”

“I never wish that. I cannot believe I ever said it. Do not, even for one moment, ever think that I do,” he said taking her in his arms and kissing her. She returned his embraces, glad that they were hidden from the rest of the ship by the billowing sails.

“I feared that tomorrow I would have to find a ship to return home,” she whispered.

“I feared that I would have to continue without you.” He nuzzled her ear, before drawing back. “Your mother, however…”

Elizabeth laughed as she shook her head.

“I’m afraid there is no hope, my dear. Mama will not move from my side if there is a chance of new adventures. Come, you must dress or we will be late for dinner with the Consul.” Taking his hand she led him back toward the ship’s cabins.

“We could offer her a new wardrobe and a trip through Italy. I’m sure the Consul must know of some genteel companion who would be pleased to escort an elderly English lady back home in style and comfort.”

“By all means, suggest it,” Elizabeth said, wanting to laugh even louder at the hopeful look on his face. “But don’t be surprised when she says no!”

***

From her seat on the aft deck, Sophie watched Darcy and Elizabeth longingly. She had been looking for just that sort of love and companionship all her life but had despaired of ever finding it. And yet, perhaps… She looked at her new parasol, which lay furled on the deck beside her. It was very pretty, but it was more valuable to her because of its origins. She knew that Edward had asked Elizabeth to buy it for her and thought it was typical of his chivalry. She bent down to pick it up, for although it was early evening, the sun was stronger than she had expected and it was hot on the back of her neck. But as she reached down she gave a start and her blood ran cold. Margaret’s doll was lying there, and she could have sworn she saw it turn its head to look at Darcy and Elizabeth as they walked past on the way to their cabin. And she could have equally sworn that its eyes were glowing brilliantly with undisguised malevolence.

She drew back in shock.

“Is anything the matter?” came a voice beside her.

Looking up, she saw Edward.

“No, of course not,” she said, more to reassure herself than him, thinking, It could not be. It is impossible.

“Are you sure? You are shaking,” he said, his voice full of concern. “A touch of heatstroke, perhaps?”

“Ah, yes, that must be it,” she said, grasping at the idea with gratitude. “I have had too much sun. I have been sitting here without a head covering, and I have been seeing things.”

“It is not to be wondered at. You should use your parasol at all times, or at least wear a bonnet. Sunstroke is not to be taken lightly. Would you like me to escort you to your cabin? Perhaps you will feel better after an hour lying down.”

“Yes, I think I will,” she said, for she was still feeling shaken.

He offered her his arm, and she was about to take it when she remembered Margaret.

“Have no fear. Here is Miss Margaret’s grandmama.”

He hailed Mrs Bennet, who was looking for somewhere to hide from Laurence in a boisterous game of hide-and-seek.