As they were in the parlor of the school, waiting for Georgiana and hopefully, Wickham, to appear, Vollenbrook said, “You said you are willing to pay Wickham off, but might not he just continue to demand money from you.”
“I think I can persuade him, if he does not keep his word, Richard will kill him. I am afraid, if Richard were here, that is exactly what he would do. As you might expect, war has hardened him, and I have little doubt he has ways of making Wickham disappear without trace. In fact, I believe, if Richard had not had to go back to the war, and we had been able to find Wickham, I could not have prevented him from making Wickham disappear permanently. I am only sorry I cannot convince myself to solve this problem in a comparable manner, both because we were childhood friends and because, as incongruous as it may appear, I think Wickham believes himself to be a true gentleman. I believe, if I can convince him to give me his word as a gentleman he will not inflict further pain on the family, he will keep his word. However, Mrs. Younge is another matter. I am still trying to decide what to do about her.”
“She is a nobody and a woman. I do not think she would be believed if you denied all she said. There might be some rumors, but I do not think they would last. Besides, I suspect threats would work much better against her than against Wickham. I think he is your only true problem, and I must admit, I can sympathize with Richard’s point of view. If someone did it to Penny, I think I would have no compunction in killing him.”
About ten minutes after that discussion, they saw Georgiana enter the door with Wickham and Mrs. Younge, but they were seated where they could not be seen. As soon as the incoming party was past them, Vollenbrook stood and went to the door to make sure no one tried to exit suddenly, and Darcy walked quickly toward Wickham.
“Wickham,” he said in a steely voice, “I believe I need a word with you, and Georgie, I want you to go to your room, pack your clothes, and prepare to leave with me.”
Wickham had a startled look on his face and looked toward the door, where Vollenbrook, with a smile on his face waved to him. Mrs. Younge looked terrified, and Georgiana looked crestfallen. Seeing no way to avoid the confrontation, Wickham put a forced smile on his face, and said, “Darcy, imagine seeing you here. I will be happy to speak with you.”
“Will, why are you here?” asked Georgiana. “How did you know? Why are you not in Hertfordshire?”
“We will discuss that later. Now, I need to speak with Wickham and Mrs. Younge. Do as I say. Pack and be prepared to leave while I talk with your friends.”
“I will not leave. I have a right to hear what is said.”
“No, you do not. You have demonstrated you should have no rights at all. Do as I say.”
She looked as if she wanted to resist him, and then started sobbing, turned around, and ran up the steps. Vollenbrook moved toward them as Wickham, Mrs. Younge, and Darcy went to the corner of the room where Darcy and Vollenbrook had been seated.
Darcy pointed to the couch and said, “Sit down. Both of you.”
“I have no intentions of taking orders from you, Darcy. If you want me to sit, you will have to make me.”
Before he could move, Darcy, looking around and seeing no one watching them, punched Wickham hard in the stomach so he doubled over and then forced him to sit. “I could beat you to a pulp if I wanted, Wickham, but I am feeling magnanimous at the moment. Tell me what you have been doing with my sister.”
Wickham was still gasping, so a cowering Mrs. Younge said, “We have not harmed her. We have taken her to my boarding house each weekend and then to church Sunday morning, where the banns for her wedding to George have been read. Today was the third time.”
Darcy looked at them questioningly. “How would you dare have the banns read? How did you know there was no one in the church who would recognize your names? And, given your history of debts, how did you know one of those to whom you owed money would not hear about you and come looking for you?”
“Simple,” said Wickham. “We used the names George Makwich and Georgie Cardy. Georgiana is so naïve, I convinced her we could rearrange the letters in last names to Makwich and Cardy, and the wedding would still be legal. I told her members of the gentry did it all the time to hide their true identities. Since, no one in the church knew me or Georgiana, no one questioned us.”
So, you were actually going to marry her. What made you think I would ever give you the £30,000 dowry? It is only hers if I approve her marriage, and I can assure you, I would not approve of her marrying you.”
“If you did not, I would tell the entire world what she had done. I believe I could have convinced you to give me the money to keep me quiet. But as it worked out, it is just as well. Everyone here knows she has been going with us every weekend, and as soon as it is known what she has done, the Darcy name will be ruined. Therefore, I believe my purpose has been achieved without having to go through a sham marriage.”
Darcy turned to Mrs. Younge. “Why are you involved in this?”
As she started to speak, Wickham said, “Do not say a thing, Theresa. He has nothing on you and there is no way he can force you to confess.”
Darcy shook his head as he looked at her. “I cannot understand you, Mrs. Younge. I must believe you are in on this because you care for Wickham, but I know of few women who willingly let their man sleep with another woman.”
“He did not sleep with her! He promised she would not be hurt.”
“Theresa, shut up!” said Wickham, as he grabbed her arm.
“No,” she said, as she pulled her arm away., “I want to be done with this. I have gone along with your schemes, but they have never worked. We are never going to have a happy family life if we do not start. Let us be truthful and see what we can get.”
“You want to start a family with him? Do you truly believe he will marry you?”
“I do not have to believe it. We are already married and have been since just after he left Cambridge. Furthermore, we have a child – a little girl. I was Mrs. Younge when he met me, but I am now, in fact, Mrs. Wickham. Our marriage was fine when he had all his inheritance money, but he spent it too freely and after we had our daughter and he could not find any work he was willing to do, he decided he needed to find a way to get more so we could bring her up as a gentlewoman. Unbeknownst to me, he went back to you, and having no success with you, started gambling again and lost most of what we had left. I left him and went home to my parents. He lost his way for a long while, and, in his misery, he came up with schemes for getting more from you. Being sure I still loved him, he came to me with one of his schemes, and I let him convince me to help him try to get the money from you, with his assurance he would not physically compromise your sister and if you gave us money, we would go to America and start over. Our daughter is three years old now and has been living with my mother for months. I cannot stand it without her, and I will do anything to get her and George back with me and start a new life. If you will help us, I promise you, we will go away and never bother you again. I know he loves Mary Beth and will do better if we can just get a better start.”
Darcy looked at Wickham. “You have a daughter and you would do this to a girl who was as a sister to you. How could you do that? How would you feel if someone did what you did to Georgie to your daughter?”
Wickham shrugged. “I would probably kill him. But what can I say. I am desperate. I have a Cambridge degree, and it has done nothing for me. I was taught to live like a gentleman, and I cannot. I have a beautiful daughter I cannot support as I should.”
“You could look for honest work.”
“Not in England, I cannot. I have too many outstanding debts which I incurred after Theresa left and took Mary Beth. Any number of men, if they caught me, would either kill me or throw me in debtor’s prison.”
“What is it you want?”
“He wanted to ask you for Miss Darcy’s dowry,” said Mrs. Younge, “but I would be happy with just a few hundred pounds to allow us to emigrate to America and start
a new life. I think, with his intelligence and abilities and education, he could get a decent job in America if he tried.”
“But he has a gambling addiction. How can you cure that?”
“He quit gambling once he had lost it all, after I left him. He tried to find work but kept having to leave when someone he owed money got too close. Since he returned to me, we have been having to avoid persons who still have his notes, which is why I am using the name Mrs. Younge instead of Mrs. Wickham. He has been spending the last several weeks working odd jobs for me at the boarding house and not showing his face in public much. I know it is driving him crazy, and we need to get away.”
As she was saying this, Mrs. Roberts came into the room, and seeing them, came over to them. “I just saw Miss Darcy, who was visibly upset that she had to leave. Is something wrong? Was I wrong to let he go with Mr. and Mrs. Wickham?”
Making a quick decision, Darcy said, “No, Mrs. Roberts. I was upset because I had not seen my god-brother for years and we had parted on less than friendly terms. It upset me that my sister would visit them without telling me. We are clearing things up. However, I feel I must take Georgiana out of school for a while as punishment for not telling me about her visits or asking my permission. She will probably return in a few weeks.”
“Oh, what a relief. I was feeling quite badly. Miss Darcy is one of the best piano students we have ever had, and we would be sorry to lose her.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Roberts. I will be in touch with you again in a few weeks.”
After Mrs. Roberts had left, Darcy said, “You were wise not to say anything, Wickham, and you are lucky Richard is not here with me. You can imagine what he might do to you.”
Looking distinctly uncomfortable, Wickham said, “Yes, I can imagine I might suddenly disappear. May I assume he is still in France?”
“He is in Spain, but he will be returning soon. I would suggest you not be in the vicinity when I tell him what has happened. I am feeling quite magnanimous and feeling in more control, now that I know you have a daughter, whom, I assume you would wish to have a happy life.”
“I would. I hate to beg, and I truly do not want to ruin Georgie’s name, because I have always had brotherly affection for her. Will you help me by at least buying us passage to America and giving us a little living money? I promise you as a gentleman and in the name of my daughter, I will let Theresa control the money.”
Darcy looked at him a long time, before saying. “Wickham, two weeks ago, I would probably have said no, but a young woman I recently met has changed me. I know she would wish, for your daughter, I offer you a way out of your situation. Therefore, for this woman I intend to marry, I will buy you and your family first class tickets to America, and I will loan you £500, at no interest, for which you must sign a note. In return, I expect a report sent to me twice a year, with some kind of proof, of what you are doing with the money and information about your family. And if you ever get to the point you can start to pay back the loan, I will expect you to do it, in whatever manner you can. Will you accept my offer?”
Neither Wickham nor his wife seemed to know what to say. “You are willing to trust us with so much,” said Mrs. Wickham. “I do not understand. This young woman you wish to marry must be someone extraordinarily special.”
“She is. She is one such as I thought I would never meet, and she makes me want to live up to her lofty standards. I want you, Mrs. Wickham, to bring Mary Beth to Darcy House, because I want Miss Bennet, my fiancée, to meet you and Georgiana to see your daughter. Otherwise, I fear she may never believe what I will tell her about you. If my fiancée, after meeting you, agrees we should do as I promised, we will arrange to give you the money and tickets. I will then have someone escort you back to your boarding house. I will also have someone watching your boarding house to make sure you leave as scheduled and board the ship. Is that acceptable to you?”
Wickham and his wife looked at each other and nodded. “It is,” said Wickham. “Truthfully, I comprehend, it is more than I deserve. I still find it hard to believe it will happen.”
“Wickham, we were friends once, my father loved your father, and you have shown there is some compassion in you. I sense you truly do love your daughter, and I believe your father and mine would be happy we are giving your father’s granddaughter a chance at a good life. Remember that if you suddenly get the itch to revert to some of your old ways.”
“I assure you, Mr. Darcy,” said Mrs. Wickham, “I will do all I can to ensure he does not.”
*****
As Darcy and Vollenbrook were taking Georgiana to Darcy House, after a long period in which she refused to say anything, she finally said, “What is going to happen to George?”
“I believe he and his wife are planning on travelling a long way away from London.”
“She is not his wife. She was only pretending so Mrs. Roberts would allow me to leave with them.”
“Did you not see the wedding ring on her hand.”
“Of course, how could they pretend to be married if she did not have a wedding ring?”
“I am afraid you are misinformed, Georgie. She is, in fact, Mrs. Wickham and has been since he left Cambridge. In fact, they have a three-year-old daughter.”
“I do not believe you. George loves me. He would not lie to me like that.”
“I was afraid you would not believe me; therefore, I intend to give you a chance to meet his daughter next week. He was desperately short of money to support his family and when I refused to give him money when he asked for it, he decided he would try to get it out of me through you. His first thought was to get your dowry. He intended to pretend to elope with you and then try to force me to give him your dowry to protect your reputation. When his ploy did not work in Ramsgate, he tried it again when you were in school.”
“I still do not believe you. Why did he never try to compromise me? I probably would not have let him until we were married, but why did he not try?”
“Because he was married, and his wife would not let him. She would only go so far with the scheme. I am curious. Why, if you believe he meant to elope with you the first time, were you not suspicious when he showed up with Mrs. Younge three weeks ago?”
“He told me he sought her help because he was sure she was mad at you for firing her and she would help him take revenge on you.”
“And why, after our talk, were you willing to marry him.”
“Because I knew you were wrong. We loved each other, and he had shown me in Ramsgate, if we could get my £30,000 dowry, we could live extremely well while he became a lawyer. Then, he could afford to support me in greater style. I knew we could not live as well as we lived at Pemberley, but I would be happy just to be with him.”
“Did you kiss him?”
“Of course, I did. He would kiss me when he picked me up and when he said goodbye. Why are you telling me all these lies about him? You are not going to convince me.”
“Very well, I will say no more. You can think about it for a few days, and eventually you will understand that what I am telling you is true.”
She crossed her arms and said, crossly, “I will not!”
Chapter 16: Georgiana Learns the Truth
On Monday morning, Darcy went to the Gardiners’ house to pick up Elizabeth and Mary and take them to Darcy House, telling them on the way back to Darcy House what had transpired the night before. When they arrived at Darcy House, he introduced them to the staff and Elizabeth spoke a little with each of them. Then, Darcy and Mrs. MacGregor, the housekeeper, gave them a tour of the house. As Elizabeth had been with Pemberley when she was younger, she was pleased with the décor, finding it more feminine than she had expected and exhibiting the same superior taste evident at Pemberley. Darcy explained his mother had redecorated it sixteen years earlier and they had never found reason to change anything except for his room and Georgiana’s. She was especially impressed with the size of the library, given how massive the library was at Pemberley, an
d could well imagine, between the two libraries, no family in England had a larger private library. It was almost beyond belief to her that she was to be the mistress of all of it.
Georgiana refused to come out of her room, and Elizabeth told Darcy not to force her, to let her come out when she was ready. She had not been told about Elizabeth, and Elizabeth did not want to force their introduction. Therefore, when the tour was finished, and it was time for lunch, Darcy, Elizabeth, and Mary were the only diners.
After lunch, they walked two doors down the street to Dumont House, the home of Lord Henri and Lady Marie Dumont, Baron and Baroness of Monttard, who had been Elizabeth’s sponsor at events of the ton during the Season. Only Lady Monttard was at home and was thrilled to learn of the engagement. She had secretly wished that one of her grandsons, Matthew and Mark, might try to win the amazing Miss Elizabeth, but she was happy Darcy and Elizabeth had discovered they were so in love. She was also happy to meet Mary, who, now that she was well dressed and coifed, left a good impression with those to whom she was introduced. She was no longer the withdrawn, staid young woman she had been during her middle teen years, but, under Jane’s and Elizabeth’s guidance, had begun to blossom into the attractive, pleasant woman she was at heart. No one, on first acquaintance, would exclaim about her beauty, but she was attractive and, because of her extensive reading, probably better informed about politics, the war, and literary and musical works than most women. People who came to know her, found her to be an amiable and interesting companion. She was also a reasonably good pianist. Lady Monttard suggested she consider debuting in the ton in the coming Season, something Mary had never even considered.
The Lady of the Mount and Patience Rewarded: Two Stories of Darcy and Elizabeth Page 13
