by Zoë Burton
Elizabeth gasped at Wickham’s words, turning her eyes to Darcy. “What is this?” she cried.
Darcy glared after the man running across the street, but dared not leave Elizabeth after what she had heard. He turned to her, grasping her hand in his when she would try to withdraw it from his arm. “I am not engaged to my cousin.” He looked around them. “Is there a place of privacy where we can speak? I would not have this story overheard.”
Elizabeth’s eyes searched his face. “I am sure my aunt will let us use my uncle’s study. Come, she lives here, and my sisters have just now entered.”
She led him up the stairs and into the house. Aunt Philipps greeted her with a kiss and curtseyed to Darcy. As expected, she granted her permission for the couple to use her husband’s study for a few minutes.
Elizabeth led her betrothed to the small, book-lined room and shut the door behind them. Once there, Darcy explained the whole of his acquaintance with Mr. Wickham, as well as the engagement that existed only in his Aunt Catherine’s mind.
“Mr. Wickham convinced Georgiana that he was in love with her? How horrible! The poor girl!”
“She was inconsolable for weeks.”
“How could someone, who was so close to you as a child, and so favored by your father, despite his position as the son of Pemberley’s steward, turn against the very family who supported him?”
“Wickham has shown tendencies toward profligacy since he was a child. My father never saw it, for it was only displayed when we were away from the house. Wickham’s own father did his best to rein his son in, but Mrs. Wickham was a spendthrift, and since he spent more time with her than with his father, my childhood friend learned to want more than what he could afford. It grew much worse when we were at Eton. By the time we went on to Cambridge, I was forced to distance myself from him, though it was always me who cleaned up his messes and paid his debts.”
“Why did you not allow him to be exposed?”
“For my father’s sake. Papa was never the same after my mother passed away. He grew more and more ill. I was afraid he would not survive the shock of discovering that his favorite was not what he thought him to be, nor would he survive if scandal was attached to the Darcy name. Then, he passed away, just as I was finishing my studies. I had no reason to continue to ease Wickham’s path; I wanted to be done with him. So, when he told me he did not want to take the orders that were the condition of his receiving the living at Kympton, I was happy to give him monetary remuneration for it. I knew he should not be a clergyman.”
“And he went through three thousand pounds?”
“Four, and in less than two years.”
“And then he had the audacity to ask for more!”
“Yes.”
“Well.” Elizabeth was uncertain what else could be said about the man…she could not in good conscience call him a gentleman…that she had met today. She turned her thoughts to the other, more weighty matter. “And…your cousin?”
Darcy sighed. This was even more difficult to explain, because it was positively mortifying. “My aunt, Lady Catherine De Bourgh, has stated, often and loudly, that my cousin Anne and I are formed for each other. She claims it to be the wish of my late mother that I marry Anne. I do not know how my cousin feels about it, but I never had any intention of marrying her. Where I believe I have failed is that, instead of confronting my aunt with the truth, I simply ignored her. I should have made it plain long ago that I would not tie myself to my cousin.”
Elizabeth nodded, taking the information in and considering it. “Is there a particular reason you did not wish to marry her? She is far higher in consequence than I, and likely has a handsome fortune.”
“That is true, on both counts. However, aside from the simple fact that I do not love my cousin and cannot think of her in the position of my wife, Anne has nothing to recommend her. She is of a sickly constitution, and has never learned the accomplishments that a gentlewoman of our sphere should. She has no conversation and her countenance is perpetually sour. My aunt declares that Anne is the image of my mother, but I do not see the resemblance. My mother was delicate, but she enjoyed a good turn about the gardens and had a healthy glow to her skin. Anne does not.”
“You prefer a lady who enjoys her exercise?”
Darcy took a step closer. “Indeed, I do, and one who reads and is capable of intelligent discussion.”
“You are not engaged to her, then, and have no desire to be?”
“No and no. I only wish to marry you.”
“What is your aunt going to say when she learns of our engagement?”
“I care not. I do not answer to Lady Catherine, nor to her brother, the earl. I am my own man.”
“What does the earl say about it?”
“I do not know; I have not spoken to him. I do, however, expect a letter soon. I wrote to him the other day announcing my engagement and removal to Hertfordshire. I also wrote to Lady Catherine.”
Elizabeth considered these words, as well. “Very well. I love you and do not wish to give you up. If you are certain that your relatives cannot separate us, then I will put them out of my mind.”
Darcy pulled her into his arms. “I am certain.” Before he could kiss Elizabeth, as he dearly wished to, there came a knock on the door and the sound of her sister, Kitty, calling for them. They pulled away from one another with looks of regret.
The door opened and Kitty stuck her head in. “Lizzy, are you coming? Aunt is ready to serve the tea!”
“We are right behind you. Thank you for coming to get us.”
“You are welcome, but hurry! I am hungry!”
~~~***~~~
The first days of Darcy’s visit to Hertfordshire were filled with dinners and teas celebrating his engagement to Elizabeth. Darcy, who was never comfortable with strangers, thought it a trial, though he greatly enjoyed watching Elizabeth flit around the room, speaking with everyone and lighting up the place with her smile. Through her presence, he found himself able to easily bear the intrusive inquiries of the neighborhood into his life.
The week after their arrival, there was a ball scheduled at the Assembly Hall. The ladies that inhabited Longbourn were mad with glee, for all of them who were in residence loved to dance. They spent the entire week preparing, remaking gowns and practicing the steps. Mr. Darcy, Mr. Bingley, and even Mr. Bennet were called upon to assist the ladies with the latter. Finally, the night of the dance arrived.
Darcy assisted his betrothed out of the carriage, escorting her inside while Mr. Bennet handed the rest of the family down.
“Fitzwilliam, where is Mr. Bingley? I thought he might come with you.”
“Ah, Bingley rode back to town today.” Darcy’s smirk intrigued Elizabeth.
“He did? Why?”
“Because, as he put it…” Here Darcy changed his voice to one slightly higher that closely matched Bingley’s tone. “I long for Miss Bennet’s company far too much to be easy attending an assembly without her. I would much rather be by her side.”
Elizabeth squeezed his arm as she laughed. “Oh, do tell! I am so happy to hear that. Jane will be delighted to see him.”
“I rather expect to hear of an engagement between the two of them soon.”
“Oh, I hope so! Two more closely matched people I have never seen. They are both so easygoing!”
“Yes, and if they do marry, they will likely be taken in by their servants and not have the heart to do anything about it.”
Rosings Park, Kent
Lady Catherine De Bourgh accepted the post from her butler with a stiff nod. Shuffling through the pile, she saw that she had received a letter from her favorite nephew. It was rare for him to write, and so, dropping the rest of the mail, she broke the seal and swiftly unfolded the missive. She anticipated a clear statement of his intent to set a wedding date with her daughter. She was, however, angered to read that he had engaged himself to someone else.
Bennet? She thought to herself. Bennet?? I know of no
family by that name. She rang the bell to call the butler back as she reread the letter.
“My lady?”
“Order my coach readied for a trip to,” she looked at the missive again, “Hertfordshire. We shall leave tomorrow morning. I will require a boy to deliver instructions to the inns between here and town, for I will be stopping there for the night. Oh, and go to the library and find my copy of Debrett’s and bring it here.”
“Yes, ma’am.” The servant bowed before turning to complete his assignments. Lady Catherine immediately sat down to write letters of her own, arranging for horses and breaks at inns along the way, and for her townhouse to be opened for her use and that of her daughter.
“Mama, what are you doing? The servants seem to be running about in a frenzy. Mrs. Jenkinson has ordered my maid to pack a trunk for me. Are we going somewhere?” Anne De Bourgh was made uneasy at the thought of travelling. It was not something she and her mother did often, and it generally meant a great deal of discomfort. Anne was a lady who liked her comforts.
“We are indeed going somewhere. I received a letter from Darcy in today’s post. It seems he has engaged himself to someone. Someone who obviously is not you.”
“Really?” Anne’s relief in this news displayed itself in a delighted smile. She had no desire to marry anyone, especially not her cousin. He was a good looking gentleman, solid and well-built in all the right places, but he was also frighteningly tall and large. She always tried to make herself as small as possible so as to escape his notice when he visited. He never disagreed with her mother about the supposed betrothal between them, and Anne had taken that to mean he would eventually get around to asking. She hated to disappoint anyone, and hated more to be at odds with her mother, but she would have turned him down. Every Easter for years she had marshalled the arguments she would use with him and with her mother for her refusal, because she knew it would take all of her strength and energy to stand her ground.
As quickly as her reaction showed on her face, Anne masked it. It would not do for her mother to see it. She would save her energy for later, when she would have to support Darcy’s decision.
The next morning, as soon as Anne had broken her fast, she and her mother boarded the coach. The trip was short, only half a day’s journey, but Anne’s delicate health required that they stop for the night in London and leave again the next morning.
So it was that, two days after she received Darcy’s letter, Lady Catherine and her daughter entered the village of Meryton. Her instructions to her coachman were to find Longbourn, for that was the name of the estate she had found in the peerage register. Her shock had been great to discover the connection to the peerage that the Bennet family could claim. It was unexpected; however, her daughter still retained a prior claim to Darcy. She could not let this supposed engagement stand. She held the strap as her coachman brought the equipage to a stop. Out the window, she could see three young ladies about to enter what appeared to be a seamstress’ shop.
‘Hello, Miss!”
All three Bennet daughters turned at the sound of the coach stopping and the driver hailing someone. Realizing he was calling to them, Elizabeth stepped forward. “Hello, sir!”
“Could you tell me where to find an estate called Longbourn? The Bennet family?”
Taken aback, Elizabeth glanced at Kitty and Lydia, who had moved to stand at her left side, and then back to the coachman. Before she could utter a word, Lydia spoke, pointing her finger toward the road.
“Why, Longbourn is our home. It is just down the way here.”
The driver’s face showed surprise. “You are Bennets? All of you?”
“We are.” Kitty giggled at the man’s look.
Turning to the groom beside him, the driver spoke. “Get on down there and tell the mistress we have found some Bennets.”
“Yes, sir.”
Both Lady Catherine and Anne had been listening to the exchange. Anne had shrunk down in her seat as far as she dared as the door opened.
“Ma’am? These here ladies are Bennets.”
Elizabeth was confused, as were her sisters. She could see from the design of the carriage that it did not belong to anyone she knew. Suddenly, a voice floated out, harsh and angry.
“Which one of you is Miss Elizabeth Bennet?”
Elizabeth took one step forward. “I am.”
“Come in here so that I may speak to you.”
Now, Elizabeth was not at all worldly, but neither was she stupid. “Thank you for asking, but I would rather not. We have not been introduced, and I do not enter the carriages of strangers. You may present yourself to my father at Longbourn. I will give your coachman directions. Good day, madam.”
Elizabeth looked up to the coachman as Lady Catherine railed at her, and explained to him how to find the estate. She then gathered her sisters and entered the shop without looking back.
Lady Catherine was left sputtering, with no method of releasing her anger. Anne had watched the entire proceedings with delight. Why, the lady had treated her mother as though she were as common as a tree. Not many people attempted that, much less got away with it, so Anne was enjoying it while it lasted. She hid her laugh behind her hand, turning her head to the window.
Chapter 5
For all that Elizabeth was done with the imperious woman in the elegant carriage, that woman was by no means done with her. Lady Catherine’s anger was at full boil, and when the step was let down in front of Longbourn’s door, she marched up the steps and knocked herself, not waiting for her servant.
“I am Lady Catherine De Bourgh. I demand to see Mr. Bennet immediately.”
Mrs. Hill, Longbourn’s housekeeper, jumped at the visitor’s tone. She curtseyed, opening the door wider. “Please come in. He is in his book room. If you will wait here, I will tell him you wish to speak with him. He has another guest with him right now.”
Lady Catherine, however, was not one to consent to cooling her heels in anyone’s hallway, and followed the servant to a wood-panelled door all the way at the end of the hall. When the door opened, Lady Catherine pushed past Mrs. Hill before the housekeeper could announce her. Her anger only grew to see her nephew in the room with an older gentleman who could only be the one she had come to see.
Rising at her entrance, the gentlemen both bowed to her. Darcy spoke before she could get a word out. “Lady Catherine, it is a surprise to see you here.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Why should it be a surprise? Surely you knew when you sent your letter that I would respond?”
“Well, yes, I did, but I expected a reply in kind, not for you to venture forth from Kent to congratulate me in person.”
“Congratulate you? Why would I congratulate you? I see no reason for it, unless you break this farce of an engagement.”
“I have no intentions of ending my engagement, Aunt.” Darcy’s tone was severe, but the words were quietly spoken.
“You must. You are engaged to my daughter, and have been since your infancy. It was the greatest wish of your mother for the two of you to join together. For you to reject her now is cruelty in its highest form, for Anne and for the young woman to whom you have proposed. Both will be ridiculed, my daughter for being jilted and Miss Bennet for reaching above her station. Your friends will reject you, and she will never be admitted to society.”
“Funny how my mother never told me about any understanding she made with you. Nor did my father. Ever. In his effects were no marriage contracts between Anne and me, no settlement articles.” Darcy’s voice became hard as flint. “Any engagement between myself and my cousin was a mere figment of your imagination, Lady Catherine. I should have spoken to you about it years ago, and I apologize to you for that failure. However, my friends and anyone else who actually cares about me will neither ridicule me nor reject me, or my wife, whoever she may be. Those who love me best will desire my happiness and will embrace the one who makes me so.” He stepped closer to her before he continued. “Any rejection will come about as a
result of the machinations and slander of those who do not care for me, and will be met with the excision of those people from our lives. Do I make myself clear, Lady Catherine?”
For a full minute, the great woman was speechless, having never expected such harsh words from her favorite nephew, delivered in such a hard manner. When words did return to her, they spewed forth in language so very abusive, especially of Elizabeth, that Darcy was hard pressed not to grab her and toss her out the window. Thankfully, Mr. Bennet intervened, ringing for Mrs. Hill, who had already heard enough of the din through the door to summon the footman along with the grooms from the stables. The servants quietly entered the room, taking up positions all around Lady Catherine.
“Enough!” Mr. Bennet roared the word in a tone not heard in the house in at least a decade. Pointing at the lady, he informed her in no uncertain terms that he would not tolerate abuse of his family from anyone and that she had the choice to leave on her own or to be escorted out.
His words startled her into awareness of her surroundings and, finally seeing the gathered men edging closer to her, she raised her nose in the air, turned around, and exited the room. She muttered all the way to the door, leaving no one in doubt of her feelings.
Finally, the house was quiet again. Darcy, still red with rage, took a deep breath. Turning away from the door and facing his betrothed’s father, he spoke. “I apologize for my aunt, sir. She had no right to come here to accost anyone, and less right to denigrate Miss Elizabeth.”
Mr. Bennet sighed, still angry himself, but drained from the emotion. “Thank you, but the apology should come from her. Apparently, being a peer does not guarantee proper behavior in a person.”
“No, indeed, it does not, which is why my father taught my sister and myself to judge people on their actions and not their position in society. Never have I been more grateful for that lesson.”
