by P. O. Dixon
“Well then, perhaps you should have thought of that before you decided to accept anything from the gentleman,” Elizabeth said.
“Oh, Lizzy! What are you saying? Who in my position would not accept such lovely gifts? Perhaps if you had not been so miserly since Papa’s passing, I would have had no need to accept Mr. Coble’s presents. You know how much I like nice things!”
“In Lydia’s defense, she did receive some very nice things,” said Kitty, nodding her head.
“Where are these nice things, Lydia?” Elizabeth asked.
Kitty sprang to her feet and hurried to a large wooden trunk in the corner of the room. She threw open the lid. “Here they are!” She began rifling through the assorted garments. “Come and see for yourself, Lizzy! Are they not beautiful?” she added, holding one against her body for her sister’s inspection.
“Kitty!” Lydia exclaimed. “You have no right. You know this was meant to be our secret.” She scurried from the bed and tried unsuccessfully to seize the emerald-colored gown. “Give it to me!”
Elizabeth walked over to the trunk and started picking through Lydia’s treasure. And what a treasure it was. Silken gowns, though not of the latest fashions, their value was patently obvious. Also included were combs, brushes, and assorted trinkets. Whiffs of bottled perfumes assaulted her senses. Elizabeth was appalled.
“Lydia, what have you done? What were you thinking? Why even you ought to have known the man would expect something in return for his generosity. But that is beside the point as I will see that everything he ever gave you is returned so soon as we can pack it all up.” She slammed the lid closed with a resounding thump as a means of displaying her revulsion.
Elizabeth regarded Lydia pointedly. “Unless you want to risk being forced to wed that horrible man, you will do as I say and not breathe a word of any of this to anyone.” She glared at Kitty. “The same goes for you, Kitty. This must be our secret if I am to stand a chance of extricating Lydia from this dreadful situation. Do I have your words?”
Both young ladies agreed that they would speak to no one of Mr. Coble’s proposition, realizing rightly or wrongly that doing so might be the means of Lydia’s death.
Oh, to find oneself responsible for two of the silliest girls in all of England, Elizabeth considered, even though a part of her knew that this was no trivial matter. She had no idea if her plan to return the gifts to Mr. Coble would be enough. In fact, she rather suspected it would not be. But she would be terribly remiss if she did not try.
“Now that we are in agreement regarding this secret, let us make haste in getting all these things back to Mr. Coble where they belong.”
“Everything?” Lydia cried.
“Yes, everything! That is unless you indeed plan to accept the gentleman’s terms, which of course, you will not. Mr. Coble is not a man to be trusted. A man of his standing who preys on the young and foolish is a low life, someone who is beneath contempt.”
“La!” Lydia exclaimed. “I resent your description of me in such disparaging words as that.”
“If not foolish, then what? How did you find yourself in such a position, Lydia? You are far too young to move about in the same circles as that gentleman.”
“Lydia dined at Mr. Coble’s home,” said Kitty. “It happened when you and Mary were in Kent!”
“You did what? The man is old enough to be your father! How did you find yourself a guest at his home?”
“It was her particular friend, Mrs. Forster. She invited Lydia to accompany her and her husband, Colonel Forster, to Mr. Coble’s home. That is when Lydia first caught the gentleman’s notice.”
Elizabeth was aware that her youngest sister was a favorite of the young lady whom the colonel of the local militia had recently married. She had hoped the other woman would have been a good influence over Lydia. Apparently not.
“Yes, but it was entirely innocent. I was never alone with the gentleman, not even once.”
“Oh! But what about the time you went for a ride in his carriage?” Kitty asked. “I seem to recall your saying the two of you were alone then.”
The younger girl grabbed a nearby pillow and tossed it at her sibling. “Oh, hush, Kitty!” Lydia exclaimed with energy.
“No, Kitty. On the contrary,” said Elizabeth. “It seems you have a far better recollection of Lydia’s involvement with Mr. Coble than she does.”
“No, she does not. Kitty is simply jealous. She is upset that Mrs. Forster is my particular friend, and hence she is simply telling falsehoods to discredit her.”
“I am not the jealous one. You are the jealous one!” Kitty shouted.
“No! You are the jealous one. You have always been jealous of me because I am the tallest of all my sisters and the prettiest!”
“Pray, cease your silly bickering this instant. Time is of the essence! We must get rid of these things before the rest of the family returns.”
What a most unenviable position in which to find oneself, Elizabeth was forced to concede. Were this information widely known, the Bennets’ reputation would be ruined.
Mrs. Bennet’s absence, as well as Mary’s, proved to be a blessing. As for the former, Elizabeth was not sure her mother would not celebrate the idea of her youngest daughter getting married. She might suppose that even being forced to wed a monster would be better than not marrying at all. Elizabeth would like to think her mother would not wish to see her youngest daughter subjected to such a cruel fate, but she did not want to risk it.
As for Mr. Collins, Elizabeth feared the threat of such a scandal on the horizon would surely frighten him off. And then where would her family be? Telling Mary was not an option either, for she might be compelled to confide in her intended. Mary was much too righteous minded to do otherwise.
No, the fewer people who know about this abominable situation, the better.
Chapter 20
Without drawing too much attention to herself, Elizabeth had made her way to Mr. Coble’s home. Not wishing to be alone with him for too long, she had a loyal family servant accompany her – the same servant whom she had entrusted to pack up all the gentleman’s property and bring it along.
Her conversation with the man, however, required the utmost discretion, and thus she stood in the parlor, staring him face-to-face. It was just the two of them. Her goodwill gesture had failed to impress the horrible man. His lewd manner appalled her.
“What do you mean, sir? I saw to it that everything in my sister’s possession was returned,” Elizabeth declared.
A tall, thin man, Coble towered over her. One who did not know him might mistake him for a proper gentleman. He looked and dressed the part. Elizabeth knew better. His shifty expression and wily voice gave him the aura of a sly fox.
Shaking his head, he said, “Not everything, I fear.”
“What else is there?”
“There is a matter of the missing jewelry?”
“What jewelry?”
“It would seem your sister failed to mention that. I cannot pretend to be surprised. She would have had to confess to being a thief.”
“I do not believe you. My sister may be a lot of things - young and impetuous being chief among them, but she is most certainly not a thief.”
“Perhaps you ought to question her before you ascribe her such virtuousness.”
Elizabeth was sure that had any jewelry been involved, Kitty would have mentioned it. Both girls swore that every gift from the gentleman had been cataloged and returned. Heaven forbid Lydia had lied. She really could not be sure of anything at that point.
“Sir, as I have said, my sister is not a thief,” Elizabeth cried with as much conviction as she could muster.
“There is one way to settle this matter. I might have the constable search your home. Imagine what your neighbors would say.”
No! That would never do. Such a stratagem would surely shine a light on Lydia’s foolishness. The secret she forced her younger sisters to abide by would be exposed for all the w
orld to see. Mr. Collins would find out!
“What do you want from us, sir? Are you so determined to have my sister that you would ruin her and her entire family in order to have your way?”
He scoffed. “Your sister owes me, which effectively makes her my property. One way or another, I will be satisfied.”
“I am sure a man of your stature can do far better than settle for someone like Lydia. She has no fortune, no connections. What can possibly be your reason for targeting her?” Elizabeth immediately regretted her choice of words. She meant to retract what must surely be interpreted as an accusation, but she was too late.
“I had meant to be reasonable, but in the wake of your accusation, I am no longer of a mind to do so. My offer to marry your sister is rescinded. As you said, a silly girl with no fortune or connections does not warrant such consideration. Instead, I believe I will have her as my mistress. After all, a man can only have one wife - at a time - that is to say, but he may have as many mistresses as he chooses at his disposal.”
Elizabeth did not know what to say or what to do in the face of such an outlandish proposal.
“On the other hand,” said Mr. Coble. “I am open to an alternative arrangement.”
“I am almost afraid to ask what that might be,” said Elizabeth, finding her voice.
“I will accept your own favors in place of your sister’s. You are a fine woman whose worth is no doubt ten times that of your sister.” He shrugged. “I will even marry you if that is your preference.”
The man’s bulging eyes crept all over Elizabeth, making her skin crawl.
“I am sure I would not marry you even if you were the last man in the world!” Elizabeth spat. “Sacrifice myself on the altar of my sister’s folly? I think not.”
He laughed in her face. “You speak too soon, Miss Elizabeth, for there is yet another bit of information for you to ponder. Instead of engaging the constable’s services and thereby causing a scandal, I believe my purposes would be better served simply by going directly to Mr. William Collins. Surely he will want to know that a thief is residing under his roof - that a thief is to be his sister-in-law.”
Once again, Elizabeth was at a loss for words. She was too furious to trust herself in such a situation. Her courage always rose at every attempt to intimidate her. But not this time when everything that meant anything to her was at stake.
“It seems, I have given you much to consider, Miss Elizabeth, and so I will leave you to mull over my proposal. I have an appointment in town that I do not want to miss. However, feel free to stay and have a look around my home. If you care as much about your family’s welfare as I suspect you do, I believe you will know exactly what is to be done.”
Elizabeth did not sleep at all that night. Tossing and turning, she did not want to close her eyes, for the memory of that despicable Mr. Coble, and the disgusting way he looked at her and spoke to her kept creeping into her dreams.
Not wanting to distress her sister Jane and yet needing to confide in someone whom she could trust, Elizabeth went to Lucas Lodge early the next day.
She did not wish to be overheard, especially by Lady Lucas, who was as excitable as Elizabeth’s own mother, Mrs. Bennet. Thus Elizabeth invited her intimate friend to have a walk outside in the garden as soon as she could.
Once alone, Elizabeth told Charlotte about all that had unfolded during the past couple of days. She described how Mr. Coble had threatened to ruin Lydia if she did not agree to marry him, how Lydia had foolishly embroiled herself with such a man by accepting gifts from him, and how he was now accusing the silly girl of stealing expensive jewelry from his home.
He had even threatened that Lydia need not marry him if she were entirely resolved against it—that he preferred to take her as his mistress instead.
“Oh, Charlotte,” Elizabeth cried. “How is such a scandalous proposition even to be considered? Young Lydia, a girl who is not yet sixteen, the concubine of a wretched man widowed three times over - a man several decades her senior! Such a fate is not to be borne. I told him as much.”
Her friend’s shock in hearing this speech was just as Elizabeth had expected it to be.
Charlotte was appalled! “And then what happened?”
“I fear my efforts were utterly in vain.” Elizabeth shook her head. “No! Worse than that. I fear I merely exacerbated the situation—only not for Lydia, but for myself.”
“What did you do?”
Elizabeth began relaying how the man had turned the tables on her. Wringing her hands, she said, “Mr. Coble has declared that he will absolve Lydia of her so-called offenses, but only if I will substitute myself for her. I have thought long and hard about this, and I fear I have no choice other than to agree to his despicable scheme. I must marry him myself.”
Charlotte gasped! “I cannot see why you would even consider sacrificing yourself at the altar of Lydia’s stupidity. I am not saying the situation is not dreadful in every sense of the word. But it is Lydia’s own doing, is it not?”
“Oh, if it were only that simple. Lydia is a fool, and her ignorance and caprice blinded her. She was bound to make our family ridiculous. She only wanted the opportunity.”
Charlotte nodded. “Those are my sentiments exactly. Lydia very well ought to reap what she has sown.”
“Again, if only it were as simple as that. However, it is not. Lydia’s stupidity does not relieve me of the responsibility my father left me. I ought to have done more to keep Lydia under good regulation. Then, she might never have garnered that vile Mr. Coble’s notice. What a despicable wretch! He does not deserve to exist in civilized society.”
“That is all the more reason for you to steer clear of him. You ought not to underestimate the danger in dealing with such a man. If nothing else, you ought to tell your uncle Mr. Phillips about Mr. Coble’s threats.”
“No!” Elizabeth cried. “I fear the surest way of having the scandal exposed is to go to my uncle - either of them.”
“But why?”
“Doing so would cause a fate that I deem even worse than my marrying that vile man. Mr. Coble has threatened to go to Mr. Collins if I do not do as he says. From what I know and suspect of Mr. Collins, he would not wish to align himself with a family embroiled in scandal. He is now the master of Longbourn. He will toss my mother, my sisters, and me into the hedgerows.”
“You cannot know that for sure.”
“I know I dare not risk it.” Elizabeth covered her face with both hands, wanting to rid her mind of this picture of her family. Resuming her speech, she said, “Mary’s happiness, which is all but assured, will be snatched away from her. Then there is Jane to consider and her budding relationship with Mr. Bingley. You know his pernicious sisters too well to suppose they would allow their brother to align himself with a disgraced family. They can barely countenance his affection for my sister as it is.”
By now, Elizabeth had spent enough time with both ladies to know that of which she spoke.
Miss Bingley’s disdain is always on display, and Mrs. Hurst’s indifference is barely disguised.
“Oh! Charlotte, this is dreadful. Either my family will be destitute, and Mary and Jane will be heartbroken, or I will spend the rest of my life imprisoned in a loveless marriage - the fourth wife of a nefarious scoundrel, or far worse. One who preys on the young and the helpless.”
“I suppose I understand your reason for not telling your uncles about the man’s threats, given all that is at stake, but it is not as though you are entirely without protection.”
“What do you mean, Charlotte?”
“Mr. Darcy is not a man without means. What would be the harm in confiding in him?”
“No, I do not dare say a word to him. What am I to tell him? That once again, I face the possibility of marrying a man whom I do not love–cannot love–for the sake of my family? That unless I commit to Mr. Coble’s scheme, he will subject my family to destitution with no place to go and a reputation in shambles?
; “I do not know that his good opinion of me would not suffer a severe blow if he knew what I am contemplating. No, I dare not say a word of this to him. That goes for you too, Charlotte. You are not to breathe a word of what I have confided to you to Mr. Darcy. This is our secret.”
“Not breathe a word to me about what?”
Both ladies turned in unison. Mr. Darcy himself stood not four feet away.
“Mr. Darcy!”
Chapter 21
“What must you be thinking in, once again, placing your own happiness at risk for the sake of your family?”
And this was his response? This is what Mr. Darcy felt most compelled to say after listening to Elizabeth pour her heart out to him about her family’s dire situation and her plans for extricating them and thereby mitigating the disaster.
“Sir, you cannot tell me that were you in my place that you would not do the same for your family.”
“What I can tell you is that, in this case, you do not have to make such a sacrifice. There are other means of dealing with men of Coble’s ilk.”
“How is such a man to be worked on? We have no fortune, no connections, indeed nothing to persuade him to abandon his evil scheme. I do not dare involve my uncles, who, no doubt, would seek legal remedy, for I fear the law is on that scoundrel’s side.
“In a court of law, as well as the court of public opinion, it would be his word against Lydia’s. And if I am honest,” Elizabeth added in a yet more agitated voice, “even I cannot be certain of my sister’s innocence–not after what she has done. My family’s reputation would be ruined!”
“You are mistaken, Miss Elizabeth. You may be without fortune, but you are certainly not without connections.”
“Pray, you are not speaking of Mr. Collins? From what I know of him, he will do anything but allow his own name to be tarnished. He will break the engagement with my sister in a heartbeat, and who would blame him?” She burst into tears as she alluded to it, and for a few seconds, could not speak another word.
