Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth

by Greer Boyd

  “Injured nurse?” Elizabeth groaned with a look of growing concern on her face.

  “Nurse Lauren had obviously been struck by the intruder and was unconscious when we intervened,” acknowledged Richard. “Mrs. Reynolds will know more of her current condition.”

  “She is in her bedchamber and should be fine in a few days, but I asked the doctor to come upstairs a few moments ago to verify her condition,” responded Mrs. Reynolds, her face pale, but her voice firm. “He said he will return to the ball immediately as well to squelch speculation.” Then she turned to Edgar Bailey with a look of utter disappointment verging on contempt.

  No sooner had Mrs. Reynolds finished speaking than the doctor entered the nursery. “Nurse Lauren is awake now. She will have a bad headache for a couple of days. I asked her to stay in bed until her head is better, but she should be able to return to her duties in a few days. Unfortunately, she will have a pretty nasty bruise for a few weeks.”

  Turning to Annabel, he said plainly, “Young lady, I will ask Mrs. Reynolds to prepare a soothing cup of tea for you to drink before you go to bed.” Then, a bit more sternly, “And I would suggest that you get to bed soon.”

  Aunt Eleanor looked at her daughter one more time before turning to the rest of the party saying, “The meal will be over within a half hour, and the remaining dance sets in a little over an hour longer. Darcy, you and Elizabeth please return here as soon as the final note has faded.”

  Looking to both Richard and David, she implored, “You two will have to go back to the table immediately. Your father and I, and Darcy and Elizabeth will return a few minutes after.”

  As soon as his aunt had finished speaking, Darcy turned to Mr. Proctor and spoke in a firm, authoritative voice that betrayed only a bit of a plea, “Sir, I am entrusting the safety of my family to you this night. Please . . . please do not fail in your duty.”

  “Mr. Darcy, Lord Pemberley,” countered the magistrate, “I will be taking a few of your footmen and all of the groomsmen that can be spared. I fear that the hardest part will be keeping Mr. Collins safe until he can be prosecuted along with Mr. Bailey here.”

  “If I get my hands on him, I fear that you may be correct,” retorted Darcy coldly.

  Turning to take Elizabeth in his arms, he begged, “My love, can you bear it another hour and a half?”

  “As long as you are beside me, I will do what is necessary. But I will not be away from Thomas one minute beyond what is required,” she answered with a stiff determination in her voice, as she stood to her full height and assumed an almost regal mien.

  “And I will not ask it of you.”

  They departed from the nursery just after Richard and David and were then followed in short order by Uncle James and Aunt Eleanor.

  “Master Nathan,” implored Mrs. Reynolds quite calmly, “please escort Lady Annabel to the door of her bedchamber. There you must relinquish her to me and return to your parents for the remainder of the night.”

  “Of course, Mrs. Reynolds,” answered Nathan as he drew the young woman closer to his side and together they began to leave the nursery. “Come Annabel. We must get you to bed my foolish, courageous, silly hoyden.” Then for her ears only, he added, “My love.”

  Mrs. Reynolds smiled to herself. She liked Nathan very much and saw nothing but promise for his future, but his whisper was not so softly spoken that she did not hear. Georgiana had been correct to assign a companion to Annabel as well as to the rest of the ladies.

  The remaining duration of the ball was torture for Elizabeth. She drew from her wealth of inner strength and held on to the end. But, true to her word, she did not stay one moment longer than necessary and went immediately to the nursery, with Darcy and Katie following closely on her heels.

  Richard and David had quietly circulated through those attending the ball and arranged for all of the family and soon-to-be family to meet in the library as soon as the last guest had departed. Those friends staying at Pemberley House were considered extended family and were also asked to come to the library. When they were all assembled, Richard and David began to describe the intrusion that had taken place in the nursery. Knowing that Jane, Mary, and Georgiana would be the most affected by what had happened, David had taken the precaution of having them seated before he and his brother began.

  As they told of Annabel’s part in preventing the kidnapping, they were assaulted by a rich combination of pride and fear, knowing what could have happened had Annabel’s speculation been incorrect about the intruder.

  The runner from the magistrate had come only three quarters of an hour after they had returned to the ball and told them that Mr. Collins had been captured easily. He would be held in the jail in Lambton chained to a wall, while Edgar Bailey would be chained in another part of the jail. Mr. Collins and Edgar apparently were a bit the worse for wear. It appeared that the staff of Pemberley House had been rather demonstrative in their show of dislike for anyone trying to harm the Darcy family or extended family.

  As the brothers finished their tale, Jane took Mary’s hand and left the library immediately to go to the nursery, with Georgiana close behind. Jane flew to Jonathan’s crib and softly cried as she placed her hand over his small body. He quietly slept . . . too young to even be aware of the drama that had played out around him this night. She quickly wrapped him in one of the small blankets from the crib and sat in one of the rocking chairs holding him tightly to her body. Mary went to Elizabeth where she sat in the overlarge rocking chair clutching Thomas and humming softly.

  When Georgiana entered the nursery, a look of quelled terror played across her face. Elizabeth quietly handed Thomas to Mary and took Georgiana by the hand. Together, they walked to Annabel’s room, where they found Aunt Eleanor still comforting the shaken young woman.

  “Aunt,” inquired Elizabeth softly, “may I take her with me for a while?”

  “Of course,” came the quick reply.

  As Elizabeth reached for the young girl’s dress robe to put on over her nightgown, Georgiana helped Annabel with her slippers, then said, “I will be with you in a few minutes,” and hurried to her room.

  Elizabeth led Annabel up to the nursery and seated her in one of the oversized rocking chairs. Taking Thomas from Mary’s arms, she handed him to Annabel, then quickly gathered Anne Elizabeth in her arms and very carefully handed her to Mary. “Georgiana will be here in a few minutes,” she informed her. Mary simply nodded her head, settling the little bundle in her arms.

  Quietly, Elizabeth blew out all but one candle at the far end of the room. She departed the nursery for less than a quarter hour to change from her ball gown to her night clothing. When she returned, she took Thomas back into her arms, laid him carefully across her breast up to her shoulder, and sat in the rocking chair beside Annabel, as she placed her other arm protectively around the young woman’s shoulders and drew her close.

  “Thank you for protecting my son,” she uttered with a quiver in her voice, as a lone tear coursed down her cheek.

  Over the next few minutes, Anne Elizabeth and Jonathan were passed between the two remaining sisters and Georgiana until all had changed from their ball gowns and had returned to the nursery. Jane clutched little Jonathan closely as she sat in a rocking chair between Elizabeth and Annabel as they held little Thomas, and the chair where Mary and Georgiana held Anne Elizabeth. None of them would sleep the rest of the night, but each took solace in the presence of the others, deepening an already formidable bond of “sisterly” love and regard.

  Early in the morning, Jane rose to take Jonathan to the changing table, and there removed his napkin, and redressed him. She returned to her rocking chair, where she began to feed him before his demand to be fed could awaken the other two children.

  As Annabel listened to the soothing hum that Jonathan made while he nursed, she realized why Elizabeth had brought her to the nursery after the incident with the intruder. She quickly understood that bad things, beyond her control, would alway
s happen, but that life would go on and that she could not live her life in fear. Annabel would not lose her joie de vivre (joy for life), but would embrace life instead.

  “Poor Mama,” she thought to herself as she smiled, “I hope that I do not prove to be too much of a trial for you.”

  That same morning following the ball, Messrs. Grove, Georges, and Fleming made it their personal duty to see that Mr. Collins and Mr. Bailey would never harm another member of the Darcy-D’Arcy- Bennet-Mills-Bingley-Gardiner-Fitzwilliam family. In a matter of mere days, the three men had seen that both planner and perpetrator were tried, convicted, and sentenced to the maximum number of years of hard labor that was possible. They were to be transported to Newgate Prison outside London until they could be placed on the next ship sailing directly for Australia.

  The fact that there was never a mention of the unusual happenings the night of the ball, beyond that of an intruder being found on the grounds of Pemberley Estate, was due to the love and watch care of the Pemberley staff and servants for all those living in Pemberley House. Darcy and Elizabeth quietly gave each person in service a £20 gift with a simple “thank you” for their care of the family.

  Later that morning after the women left the nursery, Elizabeth had gone to check on Nurse Lauren and found her to be a bit battered, but joyful that the abduction had been foiled. When she first came to work for Elizabeth to watch over little Thomas after his birth, Jerome and Elizabeth had established a retirement settlement of £10,000 for her. As with all of the settlements provided by Elizabeth, it had been invested and was earning a sizable return and would continue to grow until Nurse Lauren decided to take her retirement. As a reward for her selfless action trying to protect Thomas, Darcy added another £10,000 to the settlement.

  But . . . how were they to reward Annabel? Much like Elizabeth’s actions regarding George Wickham, Annabel’s actions regarding Edgar Bailey had been foolhardy as well as immensely brave, but ultimately laced through and through with love. Darcy knew that, between him and Elizabeth, Annabel would receive anything and everything that she could ever want.

  ∞∞∞

  As the family slowly began to put the incident in the nursery behind them, Mr. Grove and Mr. Georges met with Darcy and Piers; Richard, David, and Uncle James; Mr. Fleming, and Mr. Denny to work on settlement agreements for the five betrothed couples. In addition to the £30,000 dowry he had established for each of the seven women under his charge, Piers had given a fortune of £1,000,000 to each of his sisters and to each of his cousins. The fortunes were solely for their benefit and set up so as not to pass to their husbands upon their marriages. He had also provided £100,000 for the maintenance of his elderly aunt and also for Gabby and her sister’s mother. Invested wisely, the fortunes could be more than ample to assure the elderly women lived most comfortably for the rest of their lives.

  Since Richard and Charlotte were to marry first, Mr. Grove, with the assistance of Mr. Georges, had gone to work immediately on the settlement for Charlotte and the structuring of the vast fortunes inherited from Anne.

  As Piers had done for his sisters and cousins, Charlotte had established a generous dowry of £50,000 for her sister Maria, plus a separate fortune of £500,000 was set up for her whether or not she should ever choose to marry. She also gave fortunes of £500,000 to each of her three younger brothers. Her brother Martin, the heir to Lucas Lodge and the attached estate, was given access to an additional £150,000 for maintenance of their parents throughout the remainder of their lives, and upkeep and improvements to Lucas Lodge. All of her siblings were offered the opportunity to invest their fortunes, but she determined that decision should rest with each individual. She had given each of them their fortune, but it was also left up to each of them to maintain it . . . or squander it.

  ∞∞∞

  Two weeks before Richard and Charlotte’s wedding, everyone decamped from Pemberley to Darcy House in London for Richard’s recognition and the bestowment of Thomas’ ducal title during their presentation before the king.

  Gabby and her sisters had worked diligently on the attire for Thomas to make sure it was a duplicate of Richard’s. Darcy was still in mourning and Richard’s attire was much more colourful. A miniature sword, that was an exact replica of the one that Darcy would wear, was given to Thomas a few days before the presentation, so that he could accustom himself to wearing it without injury to himself or to others.

  The London season had ended almost a month earlier, and the Little Season would not officially begin until November, more than two months away. However, the crowd in the presentation chamber, where the King would recognize Richard as the new Earl of Rosings and bestow the title of Duke of Eivanmoor on Thomas, was as much of a crush as it had been when the Darcy and D’Arcy family had been bestowed their titles.

  As Richard and Thomas entered the presentation chamber, they wore matching bright blue coats with tails, cream-coloured waistcoats with fine red striping, bright white shirts, gloves, and cravats, gunmetal gray trousers tucked neatly into highly polished black hessians, and brilliant red sashes and swords. Thomas was accompanied by Darcy, the Duke of Pemberley, gently holding his hand.

  The volume of voices in the chamber stilled somewhat as the trio entered the presentation chamber, to be replaced with admirable smiles, chuckles and giggles followed by “How adorable!” . . . “Who is he?” . . . “What is he to Darcy?”

  All conversation quickly faded as the three stood before the King. Together they bowed, and then Richard and Thomas both stepped forward a few more steps and knelt simultaneously on one knee. The King first recognized Richard Edward James Fitzwilliam, and his new title, Earl of Rosings. Then he bestowed upon Thomas Jerome Gardiner Mills the title Duke of Eivanmoor. As both new peers stood to back away from the King before exiting the chamber, Thomas was heard to echo Richard’s “Thank you, Your Majesty” with “Tank you, Your Madjeettea.”

  The King laughed merrily as he replied, “You are most welcome, Your Grace.” Thomas looked at his mother with a smile that almost went from ear to ear. She stood in the crowd and watched as he grasped Darcy’s hand, completely unable to stifle a giggle as all three turned and left the presentation chamber.

  Elizabeth was so proud of her son that she wanted to run to him and give him an enormous hug, but she controlled herself until the three entered the antechamber after the presentation. Having learned what to expect from the scene that occurred when he and Piers were presented, Darcy immediately picked up Thomas and placed him on his hip, with his arm firmly wrapped around the boy. Elizabeth placed her hand on the same arm, keeping Thomas safely ensconced between them. Richard followed closely behind with Charlotte on his arm. Again, Aunt Eleanor and her army of friends made a path for the family to exit to their carriages.

  Since the visit to the King had taken place in the late morning and only lasted until the very early afternoon, Mrs. Wyatt and the Darcy House cook, Mrs. Broake, had outdone themselves with a grand luncheon for the “family” and the short list of select guests invited by Aunt Eleanor to dine with them. As Thomas and Anne Elizabeth were to attend the luncheon, Elizabeth was extremely glad that the children had been having “dinner” with her for months.

  The regular table arrangement was changed for the luncheon. Instead of sitting at the head of the table, Darcy and Elizabeth sat in the middle of one side with the children situated between them, and Richard and Charlotte sat directly across from them. The more relaxed seating served to make the meal less formal and ensured that everyone was not so far away from the new Earl and the new Duke. The children were served a slightly different meal from the rest of the table, a selection of foods that they liked very much and that was extremely easy for them to eat with a minimum of mess.

  The family was used to having Thomas and Anne Elizabeth to dine with them on occasion, but having the invited guests observe was a new experience. Darcy, Elizabeth, and the guests seated close to the children conversed with them throughout the meal, an
d the children responded with the best of manners.

  After a short while and at a time designated between her and Elizabeth, Nurse Lauren entered the large dining room and sat in a chair off to the side, waiting quietly. After the children had finished eating, Darcy asked if they would like to be excused for their afternoon nap.

  “Yes - - peez,” Thomas quickly answered, followed by the same “Yes - - peez,” from Anne Elizabeth.

  Nurse Lauren came forward to receive her charges as Darcy lifted first Thomas and then Anne Elizabeth from their seats at the table. Before turning to walk from the dining room, Thomas bowed, and both Nurse Lauren and Anne Elizabeth curtsied to those at the table. As everyone broke into giggles and laughter, Anne Elizabeth and Thomas smiled brightly and chortled when Darcy bowed to them in response. Quickly Anne Elizabeth took Thomas’ hand, the rapid “tap, tap, tap” of her tiny shoes followed by the “thump, thump, thump” of his little boots heralded their departure. “The little Duke,” as Thomas was dubbed, was the talk of the town for the entirety of the London Little Season.