The entrance of Mr Darcy and Emily's wish to get a fresh pot of tea interrupted their conversation, and there was no other opportunity to return to it before it was time for the Darcys to leave.
***
Back at Pemberley, Elizabeth could not help turning it all over in her mind. She remembered well enough Rebecca Tate's distraught state when her own daughter Josie had been deceived and cruelly used by a man whose smooth charm had hidden a multitude of misdeeds. Indeed, his iniquity had destroyed not just Josie, but had very nearly ruined the life of her husband, Julian Darcy. It was not a matter his mother was likely to forget.
Elizabeth, having watched the disintegration of Julian and Josie's unhappy marriage and all of the subsequent sorrow their families had endured, was not therefore entirely unsympathetic to Rebecca's concerns and decided she would make a serious effort to ascertain the facts about Mr John Adams. Deciding not to trouble her husband about it just yet, she wrote that night to their nephew Jonathan Bingley, confident that he would be able to give her the information necessary to set all their minds at rest.
The occasion of the birthday of one of the Bingleys' children afforded her the opportunity she needed.
She wrote, My dear Jonathan, and following the customary greetings and enquiries about the health of all the members of the families at Netherfield and Longbourn, continued thus:
We have recently been hearing a great deal, mainly from Mrs Tate, about the work being done at Rosings by the new curator, Mr John Adams. It would appear he is a very gifted and pleasing young man and has been paying quite a lot of attention to Rebecca's young niece, Lilian Harrison.
Now, while I do not wish to jump to any conclusions, in view of the fact that Lilian and her mother no longer have the benefit of Dr Harrison's counsel and support, I wondered if you would help us with some information about Mr Adams.
I have no doubt, and Mr Darcy assures me of this, that he came to you highly recommended for his work, but what more do we know of him? Who exactly are his family? Where is his home? I ask, Jonathan dear, not in order to interfere or make trouble for Mr Adams, but rather to reassure ourselves and particularly Lilian's mother Catherine, if need be, that there is no cause for concern in his friendship with her daughter. Your assistance in this delicate matter would be greatly appreciated.
Jonathan Bingley's response reached Elizabeth some ten days later. He apologised for the delay in writing, blaming it upon business and his desire to obtain as complete an answer as possible to her query about John Adams.
He had searched through his papers, he said, to discover if he held any personal information about the gentleman concerned, but had found none. He wrote:
Mr Adams, in his letter to me applying for the position of curator at Rosings, made no mention of his family, except to say they had lived in Europe for several years, during which time he studied art. He was also briefly at Cambridge but did not complete his studies there, owing to the death of his father.
His previous employer, Sir ___, spoke very highly of young Adams in relation to both work and character, but again there was no reference to any other members of his family.
Dearest Aunt Lizzie, it does seem as though that is all the information I am able to provide at the moment. However, if you wish me to continue my enquiries, I shall do so discreetly and keep you informed of my success. I might mention, for what it is worth, that since his appointment to Rosings there has never been a single complaint, nor even the slightest aspersion cast upon him. He appears to perform his often difficult duties well and conduct himself in an exemplary fashion.
Elizabeth was greatly relieved, though not entirely satisfied with her nephew's response.
She sent a further short note to Jonathan Bingley, thanking him for his efforts on her behalf, and suggesting that he make some enquiries in confidence about the sojourn of the Adams family in Europe.
I have no desire at all to be prying into his life, but it would be good to know who his parents were exactly and why they were living in Europe. Was his father a diplomat, perhaps? Some definite information would be invaluable.
No more was heard on the subject for some weeks, and with the onset of a busy Summer at Pemberley, Elizabeth almost forgot about Mr John Adams and Lilian.
***
As the Summer wore on, it had become clear to Mrs Harrison that Mr Adams was paying a very great deal of attention to her daughter.
He called at the house two or three times a week, often on some pretext or other, but occasionally without any reason at all, except to drink lemonade and walk with Lilian in the garden. Sometimes, when Lilian went for a ramble in the woods or down to the village, she would meet him there and he would accompany her home.
So frequent had these visits become and so much did the couple have to say to one another that Catherine began to wonder whether it was time to ask Lilian if Mr Adams and she had reached some understanding. It was a question that was beginning to tease her mind day and night.
Then one afternoon, returning from the village, she found them sitting in the parlour, inexplicably indoors on a perfect Summer's afternoon; it was most unusual.
Mr Adams, who rose as Catherine entered the room, looked rather dejected, while Lilian clearly had tears in her eyes—of that her mother had no doubt.
Having greeted her with much less than his usual cheerful manner, Mr Adams proceeded to inform her, in an apologetic tone, that this very evening he was to leave Rosings and travel to London and thence to Paris, to be at the bedside of his mother, who was gravely ill.
"To Paris?" Catherine said, uncomprehending. "Your mother lives in France?" to which he said, "Indeed, Mrs Harrison, my mother has lived in France for most of her life. She has, unfortunately, been unwell recently and since the death of my father, I am her only male relative and must attend her at once. I received yesterday an urgent message by electric telegraph from my younger sister, who begs me to come directly, else I may not see my dear mother alive again," he explained as Lilian stood by, clearly distressed. "I have already spoken with Mr Burnett and sent a message by telegraph to Mr Jonathan Bingley explaining my circumstances. Mr Burnett and Mr Benson have very kindly agreed to make good my work whilst I am away and will assist you and Miss Lilian in any way possible. I came over particularly to reassure you and Miss Lilian on that point and to say my good-byes."
Catherine, having offered her sympathy and expressed her hopes for an improvement in his mother's condition, asked, "Are you travelling alone? And how long do you expect to be away?"
He answered unequivocally, "Indeed I am, I have no other family in England and only two sisters and a brother-in-law in France. As for my return, I confess it is not in my power to predict, for it will depend upon my mother's health. Were it to improve, as we earnestly hope it will, I should be back within a fortnight. On the other hand, if it were to decline, I may well be delayed longer."
Both ladies nodded, understanding the difficulty of his situation, and when he finally parted from them, they sent him on his way with every good wish for his journey.
Afterwards, Lilian went upstairs to her room and that evening seemed not to want food or company until dinnertime and even then, she was very quiet and said little except in answer to her mother's questions.
Despite Catherine's desire to comfort her daughter, who was quite clearly distressed, no opportunity arose for her to do so, mainly because Lilian chose not to seek it.
Catherine wrote that night to her sister.
Dearest Becky,
I write to give you some unhappy news—at least it is unhappy for Mr Adams and in consequence has made us, Lilian and me, somewhat despondent too.
Having related the gist of the story, she told of her surprise at discovering that Mr Adams had no family in England and his mother had lived all her life in France, where it appeared his sisters also were settled.
I did not feel comfortable asking too many questions—one does not have the right to pry—especially at such a tim
e as this, which is why I was unable to ascertain if his mother was French. Perhaps she is from an émigré family? Which would explain a lot of his own qualities of gentleness and charm, I think. Do you not agree, Becky?
Rebecca did not entirely agree. She had always found Mr Adams to be somewhat different—in his manners, which were certainly impeccable, but also in his bearing, which Becky had thought rather superior.
"It must be the French in him," she said, putting her sister's letter away.
It was the first clue she had had.
Determined to discover more if it were possible, Becky decided it was time to visit her friend and recent mentor, Lady Isabel Ashton. There was very little Lady Isabel did not know and if she did not, she would find out, since she had an astonishingly large circle of friends and acquaintances.
Rebecca summoned her maid and asked that her trunks be packed. They were going to London, she said, and went upstairs to write a little note.
***
Lady Ashton lived in a very desirable part of town, in a terrace house she had received as a wedding gift from her doting husband. There she entertained her many and varied friends, of whom Mrs Tate had recently become one. In fact, she had become quite a favourite with her.
Sir William Ashton, many years her senior, was a diplomat and businessman whose title had been a reward for services to the Tory party, rather than his country. Some few years ago, through a fortuitous coalescence of their business and private interests, he had become an associate of Mr Anthony Tate, and consequently, their wives, being thrown together on many social occasions, had also discovered a mutuality of interests.
Rebecca had admired Lady Ashton's style and envied her endless capacity for social manipulation, while Lady Ashton, who had few pretensions to education or culture, enjoyed having Rebecca around to answer her queries. It was useful to have an obliging and educated friend who could interpret from the French and Italian when one went to the opera or remind one which of Mr Dickens's characters appeared in a particular novel, when attending a book reading.
Best of all, Rebecca was herself a writer albeit of slight reputation, and Lady Ashton could use her modest achievements to stimulate conversation at her soirées and coffee parties. Many of her guests had never heard of Marianne Lawrence, the pen-name Rebecca had adopted when she first began to write for her husband's newspapers and journals, but were prepared to be impressed by a real live author in their midst.
It was therefore a mutually advantageous association in which neither woman made demands that were too onerous upon the other and each was tolerant of the other's foibles.
Preceded by her note, Rebecca and her maid arrived in London and took up residence at the town house that Mr Tate leased in a fashionable street, not far from Lady Ashton's somewhat grander establishment. The servants, though a little surprised at her sudden arrival, coped well with her requirements. The absence in America of Mr Anthony Tate meant that Rebecca was free to come and go as she pleased, beholden to no one and having to give no explanations for her activities.
Upon arriving, she sent a little note and a bouquet of flowers round to her friend Lady Ashton, and within the hour an invitation to afternoon tea was delivered to the door.
Rebecca took great care in her preparations for the visit. She was still a very handsome woman, and with the generous allowance her husband allowed her, she was well able to dress to impress anyone she pleased. She had fine gowns and jewellery in sufficient quantities to outshine any society lady, but Mrs Tate was also sensible enough to realise that it would do her no good at all to appear to compete with Lady Ashton. Which was why, when they were seen together, Rebecca chose quite deliberately to dress with a degree of modesty, ensuring that Lady Ashton was always the centre of attention and the cynosure of all eyes.
Moreover, despite Her Ladyship's constant urging, when they were together, Rebecca never took the liberty of using her first name in the presence of the servants or indeed any other person. Whether Lady Ashton understood the reason behind this behaviour or not is unknown, but she certainly approved of it, seeing it as a mark of the respect accorded her by her new friend.
Rebecca arrived at Lady Ashton's house to find that there were only two other ladies invited, neither of whom could be considered particular friends of Her Ladyship.
"I was sure you wanted to talk to me about something in particular, dearest Becky, or you would not have written in such urgent terms. The others will be gone within the hour, and we can then retire to my boudoir and you can tell me everything! There, is that not a good scheme?"
Rebecca agreed that it was an excellent scheme and could not wait for the other guests to depart. She was quite sure that when Lady Ashton had heard her story, she would understand her concerns and almost certainly she would suggest the means by which they might be best addressed. She knew no one who had such influence, nor such access to information in society, as Lady Isabel Ashton.
Thus, unbeknownst to Catherine, Lilian, and Mr Adams, Rebecca prepared to lay before her friend her apprehensions concerning her niece and the young man who was courting her. These concerns were such that, when communicated to Lady Ashton, they were likely to coincide with her own views exactly. Had Rebecca known what might be uncovered and how it would affect Lilian and her mother, it is possible she may have had some misgivings about the course of action upon which she had embarked.
As it happened, so convinced was she of the correctness of her motives, she never gave another thought to the possible consequences.
After the two ladies had left, Lady Ashton led the way upstairs to her private boudoir, where, over hot chocolate and truffles, Rebecca related the circumstances of her sister Catherine Harrison and her daughter Lilian.
Lady Ashton had once shown some interest in young Lilian Harrison. Lilian and her mother had been in London, before Christmas, and Rebecca had succeeded in introducing them to Lady Ashton at a soirée, after which she had remarked that it was good to see a young girl "who was both pretty and accomplished, yet apparently uninterested in flirting with every man she met."
"I am quite vexed by these 'modern' young women, who seem to think it is their prerogative, simply because they are single, to monopolise every eligible male in the room. I noted that your niece Miss Harrison is happily not afflicted with a similar condition."
"Indeed she is not, Lady Isabel," Rebecca had responded, realising the import of her words, "my niece Lilian is a very good girl, well brought up and God fearing. She has absolutely no interest in flirting."
This time, Lady Ashton listened as Rebecca reminded her of Lilian's virtues and proceeded to tell the tale.
"You will recall my niece Lilian, Lady Isabel, who is such a good girl. Well, she is being courted by a young man, a certain Mr John Adams, and I must confess I am very anxious about her."
"Why?" asked Lady Ashton, "is this John Adams a man of ill repute?"
"Oh no indeed, there is no evidence of that, Lady Isabel, in fact the problem is no one knows anything at all about Mr Adams, his parents or his family… where they lived and what they did… it is all a mystery."
Lady Ashton frowned and seemed puzzled. "Has not her mother made some enquiries about his background?"
Rebecca explained that her sister Catherine, recently widowed, seemed averse to doing so.
"Which is why I feel I must do what I can to assist, young Lilian is my goddaughter, I feel responsible…"
"I am sure you do and it is to your credit, Becky dear, and I shall do whatever I can to help," said Lady Isabel. "In cases such as this, where the mother is incapable or unwilling to play her part, it is essential that friends intervene if necessary to prevent what may be an unfortunate mis-match. Later, they will thank you for it, Becky, mark my words."
Rebecca was immediately encouraged to continue, "My feelings exactly, dear Lady Isabel, and I had hoped you would agree with me. In addition to my earlier misgivings, I have heard just this week that Mr Adams has gone to France to atten
d his mother, who is very ill. My sister is uncertain whether his mother is French or merely lives in France for some unaccountable reason."
Lady Ashton had many English friends who lived in France and did not see this of itself as a serious drawback and said so.
"And do we know where in France his mother lives?" she asked.
Rebecca persisted. "I do not have an address, but it is possible Catherine will be able to obtain one from Mr Burnett. Shall I write to her tonight?"
Lady Ashton was quick to respond. "No, it would be unwise to do so at this point. If you wish to discover something about this young man, it would not do to alert your niece to your intentions. She may resent them and work actively to prevent you achieving them. She may even attempt to turn your sister against you by arguing that you are interfering in her life."
"What then must I do?" asked Rebecca, getting rather desperate.
Recollections of Rosings Page 9
