The Trials: A Pride and Prejudice Story

by Timothy Underwood

  At last she said in a sharp, irritated tone, one that he’d never heard from her before, “Why didn’t you tell me when our aunt threatened you with this?”

  “I am still your guardian. It is my duty to protect you, and I am failing. I can’t—”

  “You haven’t failed at all,” she snapped.

  “When Lord Chancey finds out—”

  “Fitzwilliam! Do you really believe I would have accepted his proposal without first telling him the entire story?”

  Oh.

  Georgiana hit him on the chest. “You...you…you…featherwit. Andrew is right. I do think much better of you than you deserve. Clodpole. I could never marry Andrew without telling him that bit of my past. A rather minor and silly bit of past as Wickham never had the interest and opportunity to give me more than a small kiss.”

  Darcy coughed. “I see.”

  “Why did you not tell me this before?” She put her hands on her hips and glared with narrowed eyes.

  She was no longer the helplessly shy girl he remembered who had been unable to see him as anything but perfect.

  “I didn’t want… You would feel guilty if you knew I planned to marry Anne to protect you.”

  The way Georgiana continued to glare at him showed that was not in her opinion a good enough excuse.

  “It is my duty to protect you.”

  “Did you never consider talking to Andrew yourself?”

  “Georgie…this shall be a serious scandal. Everyone will talk, and she will have manufactured evidence for what she claims, and—”

  “If Andrew doesn’t care for me enough to stand next to me through such a crisis, I would far rather know before the wedding.”

  Darcy could not disagree with that.

  “So no more of this.” Georgiana stamped her foot. “You are not to marry meanie Annie—”

  “What!”

  Georgiana giggled. “That’s what cousin Frederica and I called her when we played during visits to Rosings as a child.”

  “You are an adult now. And it was quite inappropriate then.” Darcy giggled. “Lady Catherine’s young ward, a relation of her husband’s, also calls her that.”

  “Richard told me that she’d taken in a quite wild little girl.”

  “No, no, Emma is a darling… I played with her a great deal. And with…” Darcy trailed off, preparing to bring up Elizabeth.

  “You ignored your bethrothed and spent your time playing with a child? I pity Cousin Anne a little for her choice of suitors. Will she be devastated?”

  “Did you know Anne and Richard are in love, but Anne will never do anything to oppose her mother’s wishes?”

  Georgiana gasped and put her hands to her mouth. “No! Richard and meanie Annie! I mean Cousin Anne — you still planned to marry her?”

  “I had not known when I asked her to marry me. Even if I had… Georgie, you are right, I should have spoken to Chancey. But the matter seemed full of disaster; things went quickly—”

  “You need to inform him about the scandal you shall create by jilting your cousin. And about Lady Catherine’s likely rants.”

  Georgiana sat down with a frown. “If she comes to town, and if she says all of that to everyone — I can imagine what she might say if she is angry — it will be a great scandal. Everyone will stare at me and Andrew. They’ll talk about it for months. Some people will believe everything horrible that Aunt Catherine says and…”

  Darcy sat down and took her small hand. Part of him was almost glad to see her actually distressed and taking the situation a little like he’d expected. “I should have protected you, and I feel my guilt—”

  “Dear God!” She rolled her eyes towards the ceiling and pushed him away. She shook her head in disgust. “None of that! Do you enjoy finding opportunities to feel guilty?”

  Did he? His life was such a tangle now that he would feel guilty about something no matter what.

  Georgiana exclaimed, “I will be with Andrew, and it will all be well, and people do not actually keep talking for all that long unless you make an effort to maintain the scandal — like Byron and his sister.”

  “Georgie! Who told you about that — the story is probably false.”

  “I hope so — a brother and sister together! — it is terribly disgusting.” Georgiana moved away from Darcy and theatrically wrinkled her nose as though she’d smelled something terrible. “Even if they are only half siblings, and only met after reaching adulthood — I hope it is false…”

  “I feel guilty, even if you think I should not.”

  “Lady Catherine will be a far greater object of mockery than I.”

  “I know you hate the thought of her going from acquaintance to acquaintance telling the story of your seduction by Mr. Wickham.”

  “Do not put those images in my head. Not sooner than needed.” Georgiana shivered. “It is better than you marrying Cousin Anne and being stuck with her for the rest of your life — are you certain Richard is so fond of her?”

  Darcy nodded.

  Georgiana shrugged. “It is passing strange.”

  The twisting anxiety Darcy had felt before was now gone, and matters about Lady Catherine’s likely behavior became tactics. “I should talk to Chancey to tell him the story. There is also another matter, the scandal may be worse than you expect…”

  “I shall tell it to him first.” Georgiana frowned, obviously not liking the prospect.

  “You do not need to.”

  “Need to? Of course I need to. It is simply an unpleasant subject. Andrew and I always share important matters like this. Don’t you think it is important to be able to tell the man you shall marry everything?”

  “I shall not marry any man.”

  Georgiana hit him again. This time playfully. “That was terrible.”

  “Georgiana, there is something else I must tell you. I hope… There is a woman…”

  Georgiana peered at him closely. “Aha!” She jumped up and down on the sofa and clapped her hands. “You are in love!”

  Darcy reddened.

  “And you met and courted this lady while affianced to Anne. Very unlike you, brother.”

  Darcy shrugged. If he was going to feel guilty about something it would not be that…

  Georgiana laughed. “Tell me, tell me, tell me everything!”

  “It is not settled… You see, Lady Catherine is causing problems.”

  Georgiana rolled her eyes. “Beyond blackmailing us so that you marry her daughter?”

  “Beyond that.”

  “The woman you love! Tell me about her!”

  “We met years before. I must have spoken about an Elizabeth Bennet before. Her family suffered a fall in status after her father’s death, and she took a position as a governess to Lady Catherine’s new ward.”

  “Ohhhh. That is why you played with the girl so much. I remember her. I thought you might have been in love with Miss Elizabeth. But nothing ever came of it.”

  “I was.”

  “Well why did you not marry her then?”

  Darcy smiled. “I made mistakes, I made a hash of it when I proposed to her then, and I insulted her family. Which is quite absurd, since none of them were nearly so bad as Lady Catherine. Or maybe her sister — Georgie, there will be a scandal attached to my marrying Elizabeth. I will speak plainly, because you will hear others speak plainly. Her sister was seduced by Mr. Wickham, and then she abandoned her daughter with her family and since has lived with a variety of gentlemen.”

  “Oh.”

  “You cannot judge Elizabeth by the behavior of her family, any more than you ought to judge me by the behavior of Lady Catherine.”

  “No…not that. I do not believe you could bestow your favor on an unworthy woman. But it still is a…surprise.”

  “There is a further problem. Elizabeth is deeply attached to Miss Williams, her pupil, and she will absolutely not leave the girl with Lady Catherine. So if I am to marry her, I must find a way to convince Lady Catherine to transfer E
mma’s guardianship to someone else.”

  “Well, I approve of that.” Georgiana nodded firmly. “Leaving a child under Lady Catherine! Look what happened to Cousin Anne.”

  “Yes, so you see my problem. I also must find Mr. Wickham, since a joke of his led to a maid being accused of a serious theft. Lady Catherine wishes to use the law to murder a woman she knows is innocent.”

  Georgiana thought about what Darcy said. Then she stood up. “Well, I had best talk to Andrew.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Lord Chancey was a boyish young man who looked younger than his five and twenty years. He was a fine horseman, dancer, and fencer while still being tolerable when forced to talk about something other than outdoor activities.

  He also had a surprisingly intimidating scowl. Darcy had not seen it before.

  Steepling his hands in front of him, Chancey said, “Darcy…I understand hiding the story, but you took the matter far too far.”

  “Would you really have fallen in love with my sister? If you had known about her…mistake before you met her?”

  Chancey waved his hand about. “I damned well would have. It was four years ago and Georgiana is so… she looks so…” Chancey trailed off seeming to remember that he was speaking to Georgiana’s guardian. “Ah, the first time I saw her…” His eyes grew distant and a little wider. “I certainly wouldn’t have been bothered by a silly bit of youthful nonsense.”

  There was something fatherly in Darcy’s attachment to his little sister that made him uncomfortable to see the evident ardor in her betrothed. To hide his discomfort, Darcy took a long drink of the cool ale that had been brought up from the cellar. He still felt the exhaustion and sort of weakness that came from being able to sit in a shaded place after spending hours sweating on the road.

  Chancey continued, “You were right to hide the story, of course — but when your aunt… Darcy, what the deuce have you been thinking? Did you believe I had so little affection this would make me jilt Georgie? Good God! You’d given me permission to marry her. Did you think so little of me, of her, of your own judgement?”

  Darcy pulled at his sleeve, feeling like a chastised schoolboy. Almost. It was an unusual sentiment, and one he’d never received from conversation with a younger man. “You are right. I…”

  “Yes,” Chancey prompted after a pause.

  “I was ashamed to admit my failure. My duty was to protect Georgiana, and I have always felt deeply shamed by my failure. If it was my failure, it was my duty to see it did not harm her.”

  Chancey shrugged. “You are rather focused upon yourself — in a kindly way.”

  Darcy winced. “I attempt to pay attention to the feelings of others.”

  “You are not very skilled at it.”

  Darcy drank the rest of his ale and stood up. He had already told Chancey the story of how Lady Catherine wished to execute a maid for accepting a gift from Wickham. “I need to go off and see if the address I have for Mr. Wickham is correct.”

  “Let me come with you. I am eager to meet him. Georgie’s story fascinated me.”

  Darcy frowned at his future brother-in-law. He sounded completely mild. But still… “We do not wish to hurt him. His cooperation may be necessary to protect the maid from Lady Catherine.”

  “What are you speaking of?”

  “You said that you were eager to—”

  “Oh! That! No. No.” Chancey looked genuinely shocked. “Darcy! Now I wonder what else you might think of me. I am a civilized man. I would never try to exact some punishment upon a story from Georgie’s past. One which she learned a useful lesson from.”

  “No?”

  “Of course not. I simply wish to meet Mr. Wickham.”

  Darcy looked at the young man for a long time. At last he sighed. He owed Lord Chancey some consideration since he had not trusted him before.

  The place was in central London just a few blocks from their club. Wickham was staying at a large fine inn with rows of imposing windows and several uniformed footmen at the entrance. They went up to a clerk who was present to greet those who arrived at the small building.

  Darcy put his hand on the desk. “Is Mr. Black present in his rooms?”

  “Mr. Black?’ The clerk grimaced with disgust. “Do you have business with him?”

  “We do. Which room?”

  They received the direction and went up to the room. Before knocking Darcy looked at Chancey. “I can trust you not to say anything which will make matters more difficult.”

  Chancey shook his head. “I really do wonder at your mistrust.”

  Darcy tested the door to see if it was locked. It was not and swung open easily. Both gentlemen stomped in.

  Wickham lay on a divan. A busty young woman who was bare from the waist up lay on top of him, and another girl who was bare from the waist down was kissing his feet.

  At the sound of other men entering the room, the girl on Wickham’s lap shrieked in surprise, while the one at his feet looked at the two men with a seductive gleam in her eye. Wickham opened his eyes which had been closed while kissing the girl in his lap, and he blinked lazily at Darcy.

  “How did you find me, old friend? And who is your friend?”

  “Wickham! Did you visit my aunt yesterday?”

  He laughed. “You know you can’t get such answers out of me for free.” Wickham pinched the ass of the woman who was hiding her face against his chest. She shrieked and giggled and wriggled closer to him. The other woman blew Darcy a kiss.

  “This is no amusing matter. A woman’s life depends upon it.”

  “Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration? Your cousin is likely to die if she becomes with child, but I can’t believe you really intend to give her a tumble.”

  “Wickham! I will not play games. Your prank with the maid.”

  “My prank?” Wickham somehow leaned further back into the couch and said to Chancey, “Since our mutual friend is too irate to introduce us, we must do the honors for ourselves. I am George Wickham, late of Derbyshire.”

  “Andrew Patterley, Lord Chancey.”

  “Lord Chancey?” Wickham sat up with interest, dislodging the woman on him, who he then grabbed to keep near. “You are to marry Miss Darcy?”

  “She told me a fascinating story about you.”

  “Whatever Lady Catherine tells you, I swear I never took anything from her. She was silly and in love, but Miss Darcy knew what she owed honor.”

  “I know.”

  “I intended to come to you privately if Lady Catherine ever made her rantings public. Miss Darcy is an excellent young woman. She was a sweet young girl and it was easy for a man like me to fool her into thinking she was in love. If you hold that against her, you do not deserve her.”

  “You thought you deserved her?”

  Wickham laughed. “Not I! Zounds, no! I would not have let that stop me. I was desperate to gain a fortune then. There are better ways to get on. I am a leaf blown by the wind, yet I somehow always find fortune.”

  “Like a leaf borne by the wind? I envy you that. Only a little, but… I know what my life shall consist of, and while it will be prosperous and happy…sometimes I wish for the adventure, and the uncertainty.”

  “Many gentlemen wonder. Not everyone should be a stick like your new brother. But if you are bored, you might waste your fortune and travel Europe fleeing your creditors. Write poetry like those admirable fellows: Byron, Shelley.”

  Chancey laughed. “Do I look like a poet?”

  “What is wrong with you?” Darcy exclaimed looking at Chancey in confusion. “Wickham, did you give a maid by the name of Pamela Evans — she has brown hair, and a mole where her neck meets her ear on the left side—”

  “Goodness, what have you been doing with my Pamela?”

  “You remember her? I thought it likely you’d not remember the name, so I memorized some physical features you would remember.”

  Wickham drew back looking honestly offended. “I always remember the name.”


  The girl who’d been on his lap scrambled away and pulled her chemise up. Wickham pointed at her, “Harriet.” He then pointed at the other girl who had seated herself on a chair and spread her legs wide to show both gentlemen an ample view of her female parts. “Lutecia.”

  Harriet giggled and nodded.

  Lutecia spread her legs wider and gyrated. “It is not my real name.”

  “Did you give Pamela a brooch that you’d somehow gained from Lady Catherine?”

  Wickham giggled. “That is what this is about? Why on earth would you come all the way to ask me about that? I thought you would beg me to stop blackmailing you. I can’t. I’ve given Lady Catherine signed statements from both myself and Mrs. Younge attesting that I took your sister’s virtue. She also has a bloody sheet from when I slept with some virgin — actually an acquaintance of yours, a Miss Lydia Bennet—”

  In a shocking movement Darcy rushed across the room and punched Wickham in the stomach.

  Wickham jumped away from Darcy, holding his hands in front of himself to defend against any more attacks, while Chancey grabbed Darcy’s arms in a firm wrestler’s grip. “You told me not to hurt the man unnecessarily.”

  “Hahahaha.” Wickham’s laugh ended in a cough as he held his stomach. “Damn, you have a fist on you, Darcy. I can guess — I’d thought it was Miss Elizabeth you held a tendre for — I fear Miss Lydia never thought a lick about you.”

  “You ruined their lives.”

  “I will not accept the blame for the behavior of an unsupervised girl who would throw herself into the bed of anyone wearing a red coat on the flimsiest pretext.”

  “Their father died searching for you both.”

  “Did he?” Wickham frowned. “There was little money in the family. So have you seen Miss Elizabeth recently — you are in love with her, aren’t you? An engaged man.” Wickham laughed. He turned to the shyer girl standing against the wall. “Darcy is always good for a great laugh. He is so stiff, but he still gets into such dishonorable situations.”

  “The hairpin. Wickham. The hairpin. That girl has been accused of theft by Lady Catherine and shall be put on trial for grand larceny. Did you give her the hairpin?”