by Robin Helm
Darcy smiled. “At once. I agree.”
Elizabeth swallowed. “Thank you, Father. I will do as you ask.”
I may be married within a week if I cannot convince Charlotte to help me.
She glanced at Darcy, admiring his dark good looks.
Marriage to such a man could be very pleasant. I can imagine much worse things.
And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.
Luke 6:31
Darcy was up before sunrise the following morning, hoping to catch a glimpse of Elizabeth as she took her customary walk to Oakham Mount. Before half an hour had passed, he was dressed, mounted on Xanthos, and galloping towards his goal.
Seeing Elizabeth and her sister climbing the hill, he dismounted and tied the horse’s reins to a tree. Soon, the gentleman was striding towards the ladies.
Upon reaching them, he bowed quickly, then turned to walk with them, placing himself between the sisters.
“Good morning, Miss Bennet, Miss Elizabeth.”
Jane was serene. “Good morning, sir.”
Elizabeth was busily trying to stuff her curls under her bonnet. “I am not fit to be seen,” she muttered.
“Leave it,” he said softly. “I have seen your hair down on several occasions. ’Tis quite beautiful.”
She glanced up at him, colouring. “’Tis quite improper, you mean.”
“After the first time I saw your lovely hair unbound, catching the sun as you ran down the hill, I tried to be here morning and night, hoping for the same view again. How could something so magnificent be improper?”
Jane’s quiet laugh caught his attention, and he was unsurprised to see her smiling. She increased her pace to walk a little distance ahead of them.
He dipped his head, whispering to Elizabeth, “Have you told your sister?”
She nodded, flashing her green eyes at him. “I practiced on her.”
Darcy chuckled. “Practiced?”
“I must speak with Charlotte this morning, and I wanted to fix in my mind what I should say.” She blew out her breath. “Our situation is most unconventional, so I wished to prepare myself for her inevitable questions. Jane played the part of Charlotte. She was a great help, for she knows us both very well.”
“Will you tell her all? I would have her know I am your suitor.”
“Good, for I see no other way to waylay the rumours. To Charlotte, at least, my intended must be flesh-and-blood. She can be more convincing in defence of my honour if she knows the facts in the case.”
Darcy lowered his voice. “I should like to pay you a visit this afternoon or evening to learn the results of your conversation with your friend. We would be chaperoned, as Bingley is most willing to accompany me and talk with your sister.”
Elizabeth glanced up at him, her eyes narrowed. “Would you use your friend to entice me into agreeing with your plan?”
“Not at all,” he replied calmly. “My friend enjoys the company of your sister. I rather think he is using me more than I am using him. He has offered his services more than once.”
“And you have no objection to a match between them?”
He raised a brow. “That would be rather hypocritical, would it not? If I have offered for you, I obviously do not object to connecting your family to mine. How could I then justify disapproval of a marriage between Bingley and Miss Bennet?”
“I cannot think you held that opinion even last week,” she said, shaking her head. “In fact, I overheard a servant saying you warned Mr. Bingley that a union with my sister would damage his sister’s marriage prospects.”
Darcy cleared his throat. “I will always endeavour to be honest with you. I believe my first words in that conversation were that your sister is lovely, kind, and all that a gentleman’s daughter should be. When pressed, I did say it was possible a marriage between the two of them might damage Caroline’s chances of making a good match. However, after I observed how much Bingley truly admired Miss Bennet, I told him Caroline’s fortune could secure her a match with one of the large number of impoverished noblemen we know. I also told him I would have nothing further to say on the matter, and I have kept my word. Do you believe me?”
As they were in view of Longbourn, Elizabeth stopped and turned to him. “I do,” she replied, gazing at him. “You are the most honourable man of my acquaintance.”
She trusts me. He was much encouraged. “May I come to you later today?”
“I think Charlotte will visit during the morning hours, but I cannot be certain. We are close friends and do not always follow the rules of society with one another. She may come this afternoon instead, if she has something else she must do first.”
The gentleman remained silent, bowing his head, trying to hide his disappointment.
After a moment, he heard her sweet voice. “You know Jane and I walk in the evenings as well as the mornings. Meet us at Oakham Mount just before the sun sets, and I shall tell you what you wish to know.”
“So, you have changed your usual time to walk?” he asked, lifting his face to hers. “I was hoping you no longer walked in the darkness. ’Tis dangerous, especially if anyone unscrupulous should notice your habits, as I have.”
“You must not worry so,” she replied with a smile. “You will develop wrinkles, and I have no wish to marry a man who looks older than my father.”
“But you shall be careful?” His dark eyes caressed her face. “If the sun sets before we finish our conversation, will you allow Bingley and me to escort you ladies back to Longbourn?”
She nodded as she extended her hand to him, and he bowed over it, kissing her fingers.
When Darcy straightened up and released her, she ran to catch her sister, and her waist-length hair flowed freely behind her. He heard their laughter as they hurried to Longbourn, and he thought it a beautiful sound.
He wanted to hold her abundant curls in his hands and bury his face in them. He longed to touch her face with his fingertips, kiss her tenderly, hear her sigh, breath in her scent, make her laugh.
Darcy could deny it no longer.
I love Elizabeth with my whole self, and I will never love another woman the way I love her.
Having gone to his chambers to make himself presentable, Darcy hurried back down the stairs, eager to have his breakfast.
He stopped short at the side table which held the mail.
What is that?
Recognizing the penmanship, the gentleman picked up the sealed note left in the center of the salver.
Who did this?
He held the folded parchment for a moment before he slipped it into his pocket and continued to the dining room.
Bingley was already seated, enjoying his meal.
“Darcy! You left earlier than usual this morning. You knew I intended to ride with you, so I am most put out.”
Darcy served himself from the sideboard and sat across from his friend.
“If you persist in being late,” he answered evenly, “you cannot expect that I shall wait for you. I have been riding out early enough to be at Oakham Mount just before sunrise in the mornings and sunset in the evenings.”
Bingley glanced towards the door. “I shall accompany you this evening, then.”
“You must be certain to meet me on time for our ride, as my friend is expecting you to be with me.”
“Your ‘friend’?” The younger man grinned. “Will your ‘friend’ be alone?”
“No, but my very dear friend requires that you be there, too.” Darcy smiled broadly. “A member of my friend’s family will meet us, as well.”
“Capital!” Bingley exclaimed. “I shall be in the courtyard on my horse early.”
Darcy nodded and ate his eggs while the note in his pocket seemed to take on weight until it felt like a boulder.
What shall I do? If I give her this letter, I may lose her.
He chewed slowly as he thought through the problem.
There is only one course open to me.
What if Miss Lucas refuses to help?
What if Elizabeth is upset and chooses not to walk tonight?
More than anything else, he wished to break the seal and read the note. Perhaps I should burn it and be done with it.
He shook his head. I cannot in good conscience act with so little consideration of the privacy of the two people involved. It would go against every noble feeling.
His mind began to travel in a different direction.
Why did the note disappear and reappear?
Finally, he thought of a most curious aspect of the mystery.
Who took the note originally, and why did the thief decide to place it back on the salver? Who would stand to gain the most?
The puzzle intrigued him.
The only people who were at Netherfield both when Beckett left and presently are the members of Bingley’s family, me, and the servants. I most certainly did not do it, and I cannot think Bingley would have taken the note only to return it. The servants have no apparent motives. In fact, perpetrating such a scheme would cost them their employment, if they were found out. Since they well know that, I think it extremely unlikely they would do so.
Darcy watched the clouds move slowly across the sky as he pondered the mystery.
Only Caroline, Louisa, and Hurst remain under suspicion. Hurst cares nothing about intrigue. He is far too indolent to engage in such chicanery. That leaves Bingley’s sisters. Louisa would be a thief only if Caroline wished for her to act in such a way.
Darcy knew without a doubt that Caroline had been pursuing him for as long as he and Bingley had been friends.
She could have replaced the note, hoping Elizabeth would marry Beckett, leaving me to pay my addresses to her, but why would she have taken it in the first place?
He smiled.
She may have decided to marry Beckett herself after she found that he was noble and wealthy. When he did not return, and Bingley and I dined at Longbourn, she likely reversed her course, hoping to thwart any chance of my wedding Elizabeth.
The gentleman sighed as he turned to walk back to the manse.
I must remember that Caroline’s deception is a possibility – not a proven fact. To accuse her without proof would be quite wrong.
Darcy and Bingley arrived at Oakham Mount half an hour before sunset and were rewarded for their punctuality by the sight of ladies approaching the bottom of the hill. After the gentlemen dismounted, tying the reins of their horses to a nearby tree, they walked down the incline to meet the ladies.
Once they regained the crest of the slope, Darcy and Elizabeth walked towards the trees, leaving Jane and Bingley to talk a good distance away.
She glanced up at him. “Should we be so far from Jane?”
“We shall stay within sight of your sister and Bingley. Come.” He held out his hand to her. “I wish to show you something.”
“A surprise?” Her voice held excitement as she put her hand in his. “For me?”
“Yes. For you. For us.”
A few steps farther, just beyond a massive oak tree, Elizabeth found his gift – a lovely carved bench, embellished with roses on the sides of the armrests. The seat was strewn with comfortable cushions, and small tables sat on either side.
She stopped short, holding her breath, dropping his hand.
“You do not like it?” he asked as he searched her face.
“’Tis wonderful,” she whispered, looking up at him. “No one has ever done such a lovely thing for me before.”
He offered her his arm, speaking quietly. “Perhaps no one has ever adored you as I do.”
They walked to the bench in silence and sat down.
“Did Miss Lucas visit?” he asked, releasing her arm with reluctance.
“She did,” answered Elizabeth, eyes glistening.
Is she trying not to cry?
“She refused?”
Elizabeth smiled, and his heart soared.
“No, indeed. My friend is very happy for me. She said she noticed weeks ago that you looked at me a great deal, so she was pleased to say she was right. Charlotte has agreed to help us.”
Darcy attempted to return her smile, but his heart was heavy as he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the letter. He held it out to her.
“Yesterday, I told you Beckett left a note for you, but it disappeared. This morning when I returned to Netherfield, I found it on the salver. Someone must have taken it and decided to put it back.”
“I do not want it,” she said. “I have made up my mind.”
“Please take it. I wish for you to read it.”
“Why? I told you it would make no difference to me.”
He tried to memorize her face at that moment. “If you refuse to read it, you will never know whether or not it would have changed your answer to me.”
She took the letter from his hand, placing it in her lap. “I think you wish me to read it for you. Not for me.”
Darcy’s lips formed a crooked smile. “Perhaps you are right. I have no inclination to wonder throughout our marriage if you would have chosen him rather than me. I will marry you either way; however, I would like to know.”
She raised her eyebrows. “You would marry me, even if I said I preferred Mr. Beckett?”
He nodded solemnly. “I would, unless you changed your mind and wished to call off our arrangement.”
“Why? You can marry any woman you choose.”
She knit her brows, and he longed to smooth the concern from her forehead.
“No,” he replied shaking his head. “I love you with my whole heart. I will marry you, or I shall not marry at all.”
Elizabeth lowered her eyes, looking at the letter. “Very well. I shall read it, only because you asked me to do so.”
“Then I shall meet you here in the morning. The sun is setting; it quickly grows dark. You must return to Longbourn. I shall walk with you until we see the house. Then I will watch until you are safely inside.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“Thank you?”
“For keeping me safe,” she answered, looking up at him.
“I am a selfish being, Miss Elizabeth. ’Tis what I want to do, after all.”
I wish to keep you safe for the rest of our lives. I wish to make you mine.
She is more precious than rubies, and all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.
Proverbs 3:15
As soon as she was back at Longbourn, Elizabeth hurried to the room she shared with Jane, her mind occupied with the missive in her hand. After she closed the door, she leaned back against it, looking at the writing on the front of it, wondering if she would waver in her resolve once she read it.
I do not wish to read it. He broke his promise, and I cannot easily excuse that. He is not who I thought he was. Was I taken in by his beauty and manners? Did I like him because he was handsome, intelligent, and polished?
A few moments later, she took a deep breath, turned the letter over, and broke the seal.
Dear Miss Elizabeth,
I would much prefer to stay at Netherfield and further our friendship, but I am called away on urgent family business which cannot be delayed. I have no choice.
I will return to Hertfordshire as soon as I am able to do so.
Please forgive me for not keeping my word.
Your servant,
Thaddeus Beckett
She read it through over and over again, trying to understand his secrecy. Could he not have given some explanation other than “urgent family business”? Why could he not have taken a few moments to come to my room and tell me of it in person? Writing the note likely took more time than he would have spent in telling me face-to-face.
Hearing a light knock at the door, Elizabeth refolded the paper and
placed it in her desk drawer.
“Come,” she called.
Jane opened the door. “We must change for dinner. Mama said we have to be there, properly attired, in fifteen minutes.”
“’Tis your room as much as it is mine. Why did you knock?”
“I saw the paper in your hand and assumed it was a letter from Mr. Darcy. I thought you would rather read it in private. Was I wrong?”
“Not fully,” she replied with a sigh. “Yesterday Mr. Darcy told me Mr. Beckett left a note for me at Netherfield. He thought I had received it already, but I corrected his mistaken assumption. When he returned to Netherfield this morning, he found it on the salver. Someone had taken it, only to return it. Mr. Darcy gave it to me at Oakham Mount.”
Jane’s face showed her concern. “Have you read the note?”
Elizabeth nodded as she retrieved the letter and handed it to Jane.
After quickly scanning it, Jane looked up at her, tilting her head. “What do you make of what he says?”
“I know not what to think. Mr. Beckett was called from my room at Netherfield the day he left, but he promised he would return. He told me to wait for him, and I did – all day. You know the circumstances. I was already compromised by his actions. Leaving me a private letter on the salver where everyone could see it might make matters worse. He has ruined my reputation and made me the subject of gossip, yet I have had no control over any of it. In fact, I seem to be finding out everything about my disgrace after the fact. How could he be so thoughtless?”
Elizabeth’s eyes filled with tears.
Jane embraced her, saying, “You are stronger than this. Dry your eyes and go down to dinner with me, for Mama and Papa will ask questions if you do not. Remember, if Papa thinks any stain attaches to you, he will require you to marry at once. Is that what you want?”
“No. I do care for Mr. Darcy a great deal, but I cannot trust myself to be a good judge of any man’s character after I was so mistaken in Mr. Beckett. I wish to know him better before I agree to be his wife. Besides, though the letter was left in a public place at Netherfield, no one knows for certain who wrote it except Mr. Beckett, Mr. Darcy, you, and me.”
