The Only Way: A Tale of Pride and Prejudice

by Ola Wegner

  "That is unfortunate," Darcy said.

  "On the contrary, we were quite worried that he grew no teeth at all for a long time. It is high time for him to get some. His siblings had all cut several teeth by his age."

  Darcy nodded politely, not being sure what to say. The man seemed to be very much involved in the child's upbringing. Such behaviour was not something common, Darcy believed. He was quite certain that his own father, though caring deeply for him and Georgiana, had rarely visited the nursery, or played with them when they had been babies. Darcy's first clear memories of interactions with his parents had been from the times when he had been much older, five or six, being taught horse riding by his father.

  "So, Mr. Darcy," Mr. Gardiner began to speak, his tone uncompromising, "you wished to speak to me privately. I hope that you will explain this situation to me. I come home to find my dear niece earlier than she was expected, delivered by two men who have, to my knowledge, at least, no relation to our family."

  "I perfectly understand your apprehension, sir," Darcy assured.

  Mr. Gardiner cocked his eyebrow. "Do you?"

  "Certainly. I am a guardian to my sister, who is more than ten years my junior."

  The man did not comment on that, but continued, "You are the friend of the infamous Mr. Bingley then?" he enquired.

  "Yes, sir, as Miss Bennet has already explained, I was introduced to your nieces last autumn while I was a guest at my friend's house." In short words, he explained how his admiration for Elizabeth had grown from almost the first moments of their acquaintance. He talked about their accidental meeting in Kent and how all his feelings for her had returned with double force.

  "I realized then that I could not see my future life without her by my side, and proposed yesterday afternoon, just before she received the news about Mr. Bennet's tragic death," he finished his tale.

  Darcy could see that the older man seemed much calmer now, but was still cautious in his attitude.

  "As my brother-in-law, Elizabeth's father, is sadly not among the living, I feel entitled to ask this question," Mr. Gardiner paused, his eyes narrowed. "What can you offer my niece? Can you support her and ensure her safety? You must know that she has no dowry to speak of, and she will not receive any money, especially now, when Longbourn will go to the Bennets' cousin, Mr. Collins."

  "I am well aware of that, Mr. Gardiner. I do not care for her dowry. I love her, and wish to marry her," he answered simply.

  Mr. Gardiner leaned back into the chair, a thoughtful expression on his face. "What is your occupation, Mr. Darcy? I can see you are a gentleman, but may I know more?" he asked in a lowered voice, clearly because his son looked sleepy, his eyelids drooping.

  Darcy knew that Mr. Gardiner was asking specifically about his income, but he was delicate enough not to enquire directly.

  "I have an estate in Derbyshire which gives me around ten thousand a year. Moreover, I have savings and some investments which give profit up to five thousand a year."

  "Derbyshire, you say?" Mr. Gardiner spoke with sudden interest. "My wife was born and raised there. Have you heard of a small town near Matlock, Lambton?"

  Darcy nodded. "Yes, sir. It is but five miles from my home."

  "Your home?" Mr. Gardiner's eyebrows lifted high on his forehead. "Are we speaking about Pemberley?" he asked incredulously.

  Darcy's chest rightfully swelled with pride. "Yes, sir."

  "Darcy… yes, of course. I knew that your name sounded familiar… but I could not remember where I had heard it. I would have never thought that someone like you would…" Mr. Gardiner shook his head, frowning. "Forgive me, Mr. Darcy, but you come from one of the oldest families in the country, you own half of the county, people come to tour your home, and you wish to marry my niece, a girl without a penny to her name and no connections to speak of."

  "Yes, sir. I admit that I hesitated for a long time before I made her an offer. I was very attracted to her from the beginning, and even tried to forget about her, distance myself from her, but to no avail. I love her, and I cannot imagine my life without her. Even more now, when she suffers so much from her father's death. I hate to see her in such distress. I believe that she was very close with Mr. Bennet."

  "Yes, she was his favourite, in many ways like the son he never had," Mr. Gardiner confirmed.

  "I want to help. I have not yet discussed it with Miss Elizabeth, but I plan to secure her mother and sisters."

  Mr. Gardiner looked astonished once again. "That is more than generous. Not many would decide to do something like that."

  Darcy shrugged his shoulders. "I know that she would not be happy knowing that her closest family lacks comfort and security. I was thinking about buying a house for Mrs. Bennet, and settling Miss Bennet and the younger sisters with suitable settlements to ensure their future. I will ask my solicitor to draw the necessary papers, reviewing them with you, if you allow."

  Mr. Gardiner was silent for a longer moment, his expression thoughtful, before he spoke again, "I must say that my niece is very fortunate in securing your devotion, especially now, in her current situation. You have my blessing, and I am sure that my sister, Mrs. Bennet, would also be pleased with Elizabeth's engagement to you."

  Darcy breathed out in relief, some of the tension leaving his body at Mr. Gardiner's acceptance of his suit.

  "Will you and your cousin stay for the dinner, Mr. Darcy?" Mr. Gardiner asked more cheerfully, standing from his chair, placing the baby on his shoulder, careful not to interrupt his sleep.

  "I thank you, sir, but I believe that it would be too much of an imposition. We do not wish to invade your privacy more than we already have. Moreover, it is quite late, and it has been a long and eventful day for all of us I believe."

  "As you wish, Mr. Darcy," Mr. Gardiner agreed easily. "I will call for Elizabeth so she may say goodbye to you."

  "There is no need for that, sir," Darcy said quickly. "She must be very exhausted. However, I will call round tomorrow, if you will allow it."

  His conversation with Mr. Gardiner had gone very well, and he did not wish anything to spoil the good impression he seemed to have given the man. Elizabeth must be tired, grieving, exasperated with him. In summary, not in the mood to see him again today. The best proof was that she had left their company so suddenly, without attempting any kind of explanation. He knew that he would have a better chance to come to an understanding with her tomorrow, when she would be well rested.

  "Yes, of course, feel welcome to visit us tomorrow," Mr. Gardiner smiled, holding out his left hand, as the right one was supporting his son. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Darcy."

  Darcy took the man's hand, and returned the firm handshake, replying sincerely, "Likewise, sir."

  They returned to the drawing room where they found Mrs. Gardiner, Colonel Fitzwilliam and Jane, having tea. Elizabeth was nowhere in sight, which only convinced Darcy that his decision not to speak to her again tonight was a good one.

  Darcy thanked Mrs. Gardiner for her hospitality and apologized for the intrusion. She repeated her husband's invitation for Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam to stay for dinner. He refused, as before, but was thankful for her welcoming manner. Both Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner proved to be sensible and kind people. He had great hopes to gain allies in them on his matter. Elizabeth liked and respected them. She obviously relied on their opinions and wished for their approval.

  As the front door was closed behind them, and they were waiting on the street for their carriage to arrive, Colonel Fitzwilliam asked a rather unexpected question.

  "Is Miss Bennet the lady whom you forbade Bingley from marrying?"

  Chapter Four

  Seated in one of the guest bedrooms, which Jane had claimed as hers since the beginning of her stay at the Gardiners' house in the first days of January, Jane took her sister’s hand in hers. "You cannot be serious, Lizzy." Jane exclaimed, staring at her sister with wide eyes. "Mr. Darcy proposed to you yesterday?"

  "Belie
ve me, Jane, I can hardly believe it myself," Elizabeth responded dryly.

  The older sister blinked her eyes, a confused expression written over her pretty face. "But how…? He always seemed so cold and distant. You always claimed that he disliked you the same as you disliked him."

  "Exactly," Elizabeth cried, standing up from the sofa, and began pacing the room. "He denied my good looks from the first moments of our acquaintance. He made it perfectly clear that he disapproved of me and my ways. He rarely spoke to me, and when he did, it was always to disagree with me."

  "Yes, I remember how we talked about his particular behaviour more than once." Jane nodded thoughtfully and then frowned. "I do not comprehend one matter though. From your recent letters, I understood that he was engaged to his cousin, Lady Catherine de Bourgh's daughter. Anne is her name?"

  "It was my impression they were engaged," Elizabeth explained. "Mr. Collins talked about it often. It was implied that their union had been arranged by their mothers when they were children. However, neither Mr. Darcy nor his cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam, ever confirmed it."

  Jane was silent for a moment, before asking, "Did Mr. Darcy pay you any special attention while at Kent?"

  "No, he did not." Elizabeth answered instantly, but then hesitated. "I thought his behaviour bizarre at times. Charlotte even attempted to suggest that he was interested in me, but I rejected such thoughts at once. I did not believe her. I laughed at the idea of Mr. Darcy having any feelings for me."

  "What caused her to think that he was interested in you?"

  "He paid me visits at times when he had to be aware I was all alone in the parsonage. He asked some unconnected questions, like for instance whether I would prefer to live close to my family or not in the future, and what was my opinion on Charlotte's marriage. I met him often during my walks. I told him specifically which my favourite spots were so he could avoid them, still he returned to them time and again. He walked me back to parsonage quite often, but he was quiet, not initiating conversation. At the time, I found it all very strange, but I could not come up with a reasonable explanation for his behaviour towards me."

  "Mr. Darcy has been in love with you all this time," Jane marveled, shaking her head, "perhaps even since last autumn. We all thought that he did not like you though, even Mama."

  "Yes, it is so…" Elizabeth paused, lacking the right words, "unexpected, impossible." She brought her hands to her head and rubbed her temples. "I still cannot wrap my mind around it all."

  "Lizzy," Jane directed her blue eyes at her sister, demanding her sole attention. "What did you say to him when he asked you to become his wife?"

  "Oh, Jane, do you have to ask?" Elizabeth cried, outraged. "I refused him, naturally. What else could I answer? You know how much I dislike him. His manners, his arrogance, his rudeness, his selfishness… the fact that he did everything in his power to remove Mr. Bingley from Netherfield, not to mention the matter with poor Mr. Wickham, how unfairly he treated him."

  Another heavy frown appeared on Jane's forehead. "If you refused him, why did he bring you here in his carriage?"

  Elizabeth stepped back to her sister, standing in front of her. "I had no other choice, he forced me to do that," she said simply.

  Jane's eyes widened. "Are you implying that he put you in the carriage by force, with him and his cousin? That is horrible! I have always thought him a gentleman."

  "No, no, I came willingly, but… oh, Jane, I had no other choice," Elizabeth sat down next to her sister, and in short words she explained what had happened since early morning that day.

  "Oh, Lizzy," Jane spoke compassionately. "You indeed had no other choice if it was the last post departing for London."

  "I could choose to go with him or spend the night in the inn. I decided to go with him, hoping that the presence of the maid, and good Colonel Fitzwilliam, would guarantee that he would not try to do so something completely against my will, like taking me to Gretna Green for instance."

  "You think that he would be able to do something like that?"

  Elizabeth leaped from her place to her feet and began pacing again. "I do not know what he could do." She let out an exasperated sound, resembling a growl. "Oh, Jane, I am so angry with him! He does not listen to me!" she exclaimed, gesturing wildly with her hands. "I tell him how I feel, and he disregards it as if I was a child and did not know any better. He gets something in his head, and he does what he wants, not looking at the other people's wants and needs. He all but forcibly invited himself into this house. I left him there with Aunt Madeline alone, because I knew that one minute longer by his side, and I would start screaming at him, or worse, slap him. I had to excuse myself from the company, or I would not be able to control myself."

  Jane saw that her sister was extremely agitated, clenching and unclenching her hands, still walking the length of the room back and forth. She waited a moment before saying the next sentence, which she knew would upset Elizabeth even farther.

  "Mr. Darcy spoke with uncle for quite a long time."

  Elizabeth froze. "He did?" she whispered, pausing, biting her lip. "I should have guessed that. I do not want to think what he told him." She covered her face with her hands.

  As soon as she said the words' there was a knock on the door, and their aunt and uncle walked in.

  "Lizzy, can we talk?" her uncle asked, holding little Fred to his chest.

  Jane rose smoothly, making her way to the tiny boy in her uncle's arms.

  The boy smiled widely at her, all his three teeth showing, reaching to her with his pudgy arms.

  "I will leave you alone," Jane said, cuddling the baby to her.

  "Thank you, Jane," Mrs. Gardiner smiled at her. "Can you please see that the children finish their dinner?"

  "Naturally," Jane agreed, and with one warm, reassuring look at her sister, she left the room.

  "Lizzy," Mrs. Gardiner was first to speak. "I think that we should talk about what happened today, about Mr. Darcy."

  Elizabeth nodded. "I owe you both an explanation," she agreed. She knew how bad it looked, her arrival with not one, but two strange gentlemen.

  "Mr. Darcy left not so long ago," the older woman continued gently. "Your uncle tells me that he did not wish to say goodbye to you, claiming that you must be exhausted. You excused yourself from his company as soon as you could. Forgive me for asking, but am I guessing right that you had a misunderstanding and argument?" she enquired gently.

  Elizabeth's heart sank in worry; her aunt was speaking in a way as if she was sure that there was something between Darcy and she, some kind of close connection.

  "It was more than a misunderstanding," she acknowledged, trying to keep her voice even. "He does not listen to a word I say to him; he only does what he wants to do," she repeated what she had said earlier to Jane.

  Mr. Gardiner stepped closer. "Let us sit down, Lizzy." He motioned the woman to the sofa and himself chose a nearby chair. As they all were seated, he started speaking again, leaning forward. "What was your meaning when you said he did not listen to you?"

  Elizabeth looked straight at him. "Uncle, can you tell me what Mr. Darcy told you? Jane mentioned that you talked for a long time."

  "Mr. Darcy explained the circumstances in which he brought you here. We talked about your engagement and your future together."

  "There is no engagement," she interrupted him.

  Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner exchanged astonished looks.

  "We are not engaged," Elizabeth said firmly.

  "He did not propose to you?" her aunt asked. "He said that he did."

  "He did, that is true, but I refused him."

  "You what?" they cried simultaneously, staring at her as if she had grown another head.

  "I said no to his offer of marriage," she repeated firmly.

  For a moment, there was a perfect silence in the room, as if all of them had stopped breathing.

  "Lizzy, are you out of your mind to refuse this man?" Mr. Gardiner asked first, his voice
raised. "You know who he is? It is a miracle that you even had an opportunity to meet him."

  Elizabeth blinked her eyes at him, surprised with the man's attitude. Her uncle was usually so calm. "Uncle, you do not know him as well as I do," she defended herself. "He is selfish, arrogant, and prideful. He fancies hurting people who did nothing wrong to him."

  "Are you certain that he is all that, Lizzy?" Mrs. Gardiner asked slowly, concern painted all over her face.

  "Yes, I am quite certain." she answered, trembling. "I have known him for some time, and I saw how badly he can behave."

  She was more than hurt. She had not expected such a reaction from her aunt and uncle. She had never doubted that that they would show an understanding for her decision and support her on that.

  "When I was a little girl," Mrs. Gardiner spoke, taking Elizabeth's hand, gazing at her fondly, "I knew Mr. Darcy's parents, not personally, of course, but everyone knew them around our little town. They were exceptional people. My father did business with the Darcys, and he never said a bad word about them. Do you know that Mr. Darcy's mother, Lady Anne, started an orphanage in Lambton?"

  Elizabeth shrugged, speaking indifferently. "I do not know much about his family. I know that he has a much younger sister. He did not speak much about his parents, only that he was devastated when his own father died."

  Mrs. Gardiner squeezed her hand. "I cannot believe that their son could be as bad as you describe him."

  "But I know him better," Elizabeth insisted with fierce conviction, looking at her aunt and uncle. "Do you remember Mr. Wickham? The officer of the militia

  Darcy refused him the living that his late father had promised to him. Mr. Wickham could not become a clergyman, and he had to make his own way in the world."

  "How do you know about this, Lizzy?" Mr. Gardiner wanted to know.

  "Mr. Wickham told me himself. He confided in me about his misfortunes at Mr. Darcy's hand. He suggested that Mr. Darcy was jealous of his father's affection for him, and did this on purpose, as revenge."