OUT OF THE BLUE CLEAR SKY: (A PRIDE AND PREJUDICE VARIATION)

by SANDRA P. HIGGINS

  On the following day Darcy’s cousin, Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam arrived at Netherfield near noon. A few days earlier Darcy had told Mr. Bingley that his cousin would soon return to town and Mr. Bingley asked Darcy to invite the man to join them at Netherfield.

  Immediately upon his arrival the cousins went outside for a walk.

  “So Wickham is back to his old tricks?”

  “Yes, Richard, and Georgie is beside herself and wants to return to town. My friend Elizabeth Bennet spoke with her and told her to be strong and stare down the coward Wickham. I believe Georgiana now agrees with Miss Elizabeth.”

  “Darcy, I cannot believe he joined the militia. You know the man. He will not last but a few weeks before the other officers turn on him. If he falls behind in paying his gambling debts, he will be ostracized. Furthermore, if Wickham does not pay his debts to the merchants, the regiment might be blacklisted in all of Meryton and then Wickham will be skewered.”

  “Richard, our friend is now in Meryton and will alert the shop owners about Wickham’s history with younger girls and will warn them to keep him away from their daughters. But that is not the full plan, for he is also alerting the shop owners of Wickham’s history of not making good on his debts and I now have all the papers needed to send him to debtors prison.”

  “That is your ace in the hole Darcy. If you play that card, George Wickham will be finished.”

  “But Richard, my question is will the militia allow him to go to debtors prison or will they punish him?”

  “Darcy, I think Colonel Forster would tear up Wickham’s commission and turn him over to the civil authorities. Any opportunity he has to cut paperwork will be taken.”

  “But Wickham will attempt to leave if the pressure gets too great, so would the militia want him to escape so they could wash their hands of him?”

  “No, Darcy, Colonel Forster would prefer to turn the man over to the authorities and send Wickham to debtors prison or even worse if it can be proven he committed rape. The army is well aware of the need to have the respect of the public and this starts with the officers. Wickham just does not past muster.”

  CHAPTER 7

  By now Wickham had spun his stories to tell others how horrid Darcy was and he thought the locals would turn on the man but they did not.

  He attempted to secure credit for a purchase at one of the shops but the owner refused him. The man’s much younger daughter was working alongside him as the man told Wickham if he ever saw him with his daughter that he would kill him.

  Others nearby looked on in shock as Wickham demanded an explanation, but the man asked him about his fascination with young girls and said he had raped two girls in Derbyshire. Wickham soon had the same reaction everywhere he went and he was thoroughly shunned. When he entered the local tavern he was told that his fellow officers could stay but he was not allowed inside and was refused drink.

  The man who Darcy had helped days earlier with his cart overheard the exchange and approached Wickham.

  “You are not accepted here anymore and will find that the people of Meryton will turn their backs on you. We support Mr. Darcy so you would be wise to watch your backside. Now it is best you leave and stay away from the young ladies, or should I say girls?”

  Two women walked by and one called Wickham out as a rapist while a man began posting notices to all Meryton to be aware of the rapist Lieutenant George Wickham. Two boys laughed at Wickham and threw a rotten apple and hit Wickham in his arm.

  Colonel Forster saw what was going on and asked his officers to escort Wickham back to camp.

  At the militia camp that afternoon Colonel Forster asked that Lieutenant Wickham be brought to see him and he also requested that his aide sit in on the conversation.

  “Come in Lieutenant and have a seat. It seems that everyone in Meryton and nearby want you gone. Is it possible that you can explain what has happened?”

  “Yes, Colonel, I believe it is because Mr. Darcy is behind all of this. You see, he is a very jealous man and I used to live in his father’s house in northern England where my father was his steward. Mr. Darcy never got over the fact that his father loved me more than him, and since his father died four years ago he has tried to ruin me including withholding the living that his father promised to me before he died.”

  “And you were going to give sermons at a church, is that so?”

  “Yes, that is true.”

  “I find you untruthful so far. If old Mr. Darcy loved you more than Mr. Darcy, he would have provided for you much better than a small church. But there is another point that I would like to make and that is that you are without morals and are unfit to take a church. If it is true that you have raped young girls and committed all kinds of debaucheries, then you certainly cannot be a man of the cloth and you are also not suitable to be an officer and I question the references you gave for your commission for I just learned that neither person could be found.”

  “Captain Hopkins, please put Lieutenant Wickham under house arrest and post a guard. Because I believe the man will try to escape from here, I want him in leg irons.”

  “Yes, sir”

  “And Captain, there is another thing. I would like for you to deliver an invitation at Netherfield for Mr. Darcy and his cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam, to meet me here tomorrow morning at ten to discuss the matter of what to do with Lieutenant Wickham.”

  With that matter behind him Colonel Forster went out to speak with his other officers about Lieutenant Wickham.

  Most of the militia officers who were in Meryton were now back in camp and came to speak with the Colonel in his tent and others nearby were moved out of hearing range.

  He explained the situation as he knew it and asked the officers to respond to a few questions and asked that the answers be given as a yes or a no and to indicate the answer with a simple Y or N beside the number. “I mean, for instance, that a yes could mean you like the man more than you dislike him. Is that understood?”

  “You will be given a piece of paper with numbers and you must write your answers as I proceed, and there will be no talking. And do not provide your name.”

  Soon the men were provided paper and pencils and the man began to ask his questions.

  Question 1

  Do you like the man?

  Question 2

  Is he reliable?

  Question 3

  Will he make a good officer?

  Question 4

  Does he sometimes cheat in cards?

  Question 5

  Does he prefer young girls over women?

  Question 6

  Has he bragged about sexual contact with young girls?

  Question 7

  If your life was on the line, would you trust Lieutenant Wickham to help?

  Question 8

  Do you think he should be removed from the militia?

  Question 9

  Will Lieutenant Wickham attempt to escape from the camp?

  Question10

  If you were me would you remove Lieutenant Wickham from the regiment?

  “Thank you men. That will be all for today.”

  With that, Captain Hopkins collected the papers and delivered them to Colonel Forster.

  * *

  Darcy and his cousin were inside the house at Netherfield when the captain from the militia arrived and asked to see Mr. Darcy. He was let inside and both Mr. Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam agreed to meet with Colonel Forster at the appointed time.

  They had not seen for themselves the results of Darcy’s campaign to turn the people of Meryton against Wickham but this request was a good sign that Colonel Forster wanted to resolve this problem before it grew worse.

  Darcy had a feeling that Colonel Forster would favor turning Wickham over to the local magistrate but Darcy wanted Wickham gone for good and knew that the army had sometimes assisted the authorities and forced criminals onto ships sailing to Australia and he contemplated doing just that.

  The next morning welcomed a
dense fog and the cousins took their time getting to the camp.

  “Richard, I saw you riding through Meryton yesterday. How are you doing?”

  “Thank you for asking, Frank. I am doing well. Of course, we still have not captured the little general but it will not be too long.”

  “I thought you would have retired by now but I see that you are hanging on. So will you return to the continent anytime soon?”

  “Now that I have been assigned to the General Staff in town, I believe it will be my last assignment. Excuse me Frank, this man is my cousin, Fitzwilliam Darcy.”

  “Yes, I met him recently at a small party in Meryton. I am glad to see both of you men again. Mr. Darcy, this seems like an unlikely place to find you. Do you not miss being in town?”

  “It is much better here than in town. I have friends here.”

  “Yes, I must agree. Lieutenant Wickham should be so fortunate. He is now ostracized from the good people in Meryton and is toxic.”

  “He did it to himself, I have to believe,” said Mr. Darcy.

  “Gentlemen, Lieutenant Wickham has told me things that are untrue but I would like you to tell me more about him if you can give me an accurate summary of your dealings with him? Mind you, I care not for details and want you to highlight things for my understanding.”

  Darcy began in the beginning and told of the man. He also showed Wickham’s unpaid debts and letters that Wickham had forged to extort money from him and others and finally Darcy told that Wickham had raped young girls and he told of the girl who died with her child during childbirth.

  “Then why was he not caught and tried for these crimes, Mr. Darcy.”

  “The man always ran away. He never stays in one place too long and gambles and when he starts losing, he cannot manage his debts and moves on. Everywhere he goes he chases skirts and preys on young women who are innocent and then he brags about it.”

  “When Colonel Forster next asked the question of Wickham being refused the church, Darcy showed the man the signed letter whereby Wickham was given three-thousand pounds in lieu of the living.”

  “Thank you, for I need to hear no more.”

  He next told of the questions he asked his officers and the results, and said Wickham must go. “He already has the officers against him and he has been here barely over a week and has already not settled his gambling debts.”

  “What are your options Frank and which might you choose?”

  “Your cousin has sufficient evidence to send him to debtors prison, so that is one option. Because he has been in the militia only for a few days I could tear up his papers but since he is suspected of criminal acts I would have to turn him over to the authorities, meaning the local magistrate, and eventually there would be a trial and it is likely the man would be found guilty and be hanged.”

  “I have given you my thoughts but now you must tell me what you wish to do?”

  Darcy finally broke the silence. “I do not want to see the man hanged, and neither do I want him sent to debtors prison, and I believe he would agree. In conclusion, I propose he be put on the next ship to Australia.”

  “Good Darcy, I know for a fact that the next ship leaves in two days, for before I left town we took a miscreant to the wharf and put him aboard that same ship.”

  “And cousin, what do we need to do to provide the necessary paperwork and get Wickham on his way?”

  “All that is needed is a sworn statement signed by all three of us and Wickham that the individual agrees to be placed on a ship and transported to Australia and will agree to remain in that country for his remaining years. It is that simple but Lieutenant Wickham will have to sign it.”

  “Frank, if this is the decision that everyone agrees to, we must leave today to bring the prisoner to town and I will be pleased to accompany the prisoner and your men to make it official.”

  “Well, then, if we all agree, let us speak with Lieutenant Wickham.”

  The men nodded their heads and entered the tent where Wickham sat with leg irons on. The man screamed at Darcy and cursed at him and Colonel Fitzwilliam.

  “I will get even with you, Darcy. And that little chit sister of yours will soon share my bed.”

  Darcy would have struck the man if Colonel Forster had not intervened.

  “You are no good for the army or the militia, Lieutenant Wickham, and you have few options left. I have learned your true story and I must say you are an extraordinary liar, as well as a pervert, a con man, a rapist and a poor gambler and the biggest fool I have ever met.”

  “Mr. Darcy, I will look the other way if you wish to settle things with the lieutenant after his remarks about your sister.”

  “No, Colonel Forster, he knows he is telling an untruth. Besides, we have not yet explained his options, or perhaps I should say our options for we can choose and he really has no say.”

  “Quit the blabbering, Darcy and get on with it.”

  Colonel Fitzwilliam then went over the various options they were considering.

  “Well, Lieutenant Wickham, what is your preference?”

  “Come now, do you take me for some stupid man who cannot think straight? Of course I will go to Australia.”

  “Funny you would mention that, Wickham. I most definitely think of you that way.”

  The guard nearby could not help but laugh at what Colonel Fitzwilliam just said.

  “Is that all, you stupid jackass?”

  Colonel Forster stepped back and laughed. “Now gentleman, here sits a foolish reprobate who is disliked, not reliable, lazy, cheats in cards, prefers young girls and brags of his conquests, and who no officer in the regiment would trust in combat, and every officer wants to see gone.”

  Next Captain Hopkins brought the papers for the gentlemen and the prisoner to sign and as soon as this was done Wickham appeared to smile.

  “I will be back to see you, Darcy, so do not look so smug.”

  “Wickham, you must be pleased with your choice to be free of your leg irons.”

  “Yes, I cannot wait to have them removed.”

  “Then I am sorry to tell you that you will wear those leg irons for the entire trip and if you give the crew a hard time you will be thrown over and you will drown and your name will never be mentioned again, so keep your mouth shut and try to survive.”

  Following that meeting Colonel Fitzwilliam , a guard and Wickham left for town to get Wickham aboard in time to sail half way around the world.

  * *

  The next afternoon Colonel Fitzwilliam arrived from town and was smiling widely as his cousin came to join him.

  “He has left, Darcy and it looks like for the first time in many tears we are rid of the scoundrel.”

  “I believe you are correct. Was he any trouble on your trip to town?”

  “He griped of course, but he was mostly in pain because of the leg irons. I almost felt pity for him because he will be wearing them for many weeks and judging by the countenance of the crew, I am near certain there are some of the crew who would just as soon throw him into the drink if he gives them any cause. I told him these things again and I hope he listened.”

  “But there is much more to tell you and I can hardly believe it myself. You will not believe what I have to tell you.”

  “Try me Richard and give me the drum roll and cut to the chase. Remember, I can tell when you are speaking the truth and when you are not.”

  “I suppose you are right, but you must guess who has funded Mr. Wickham’s joining the militia. You will never be able to guess.”

  “Be out with it, cousin.”

  “Darcy, Wickham learned that the militia would be encamped in Meryton and that you were planning to visit here for several weeks at least. You have a lady spy living at Darcy House who found a letter that you sent to Georgiana when you first arrived at Netherfield. She showed Wickham the letter and he went to Rosings and met Aunt Catherine and convinced her that he would do everything he could to prevent an alliance between you and Miss Be
nnet. He told our aunt that he would do so by compromising Miss Elizabeth in such a way that she would forever be ruined, so that you and Anne would marry. Our aunt then gave him the money and he returned and purchased his commission in the militia. Our aunt also gave him an additional five-hundred pounds. He told me that his intent was to ruin Miss Elizabeth and our aunt agreed and smiled when he said that would have been his greatest accomplishment in life and would have destroyed you.”

  “Did he say who found the letter?”

  “Yes, she is Nellie and she is the niece of Mrs. Younge.”

  “This is so astonishing. Thank you cousin. We will talk about this later but I think you need a bath and need to change into some clean clothes. Later, we have some drinking to do tonight but before then I have a surprise for you.”

  Darcy always knew that George Wickham was a miscreant who lived on the fringes but he had never in his life heard of anything like this. Of course it was his fault that he hired Nellie to begin with but when he interviewed her she acted so innocent and appeared angry that this Mrs. Younge would do such a thing to Mr. Darcy and his sister. “Darcy, Nellie also has a twin sister who is a servant at Rosings.”

  For the moment Darcy resisted telling anyone about this news. It would be to his advantage to be able to use this information in the future to perhaps expose others who might have been involved and he definitely would have a private talk with his housekeeper Mrs. Hughes when he returned to town.

  * *

  The last few days Darcy had been so involved in this business with Wickham that he had almost neglected Elizabeth entirely. Thanks to his cousin and the stupidity of his Aunt Catherine, he now felt the way was clear to make Georgiana whole again and it would start at dinner, but first he and the others would visit Longbourn.

  It did not take long for his cousin to wash and dress and when he returned downstairs he learned of Darcy’s surprise.

  “Cousin,” replied Darcy, “I know this is a lot to ask of you since you have been on the road for so long, but I would like for you to come with me to visit Miss Elizabeth Bennet and her family at Longbourn.”