Page 115 of A Life Diverted
Once the celebration of Jane and Andrew’s wedding was over and the guests departed, only the four Rhys-Davies remained at Netherfield Park with the extended family. “Not seeing Jane here with her sisters and brother will take some getting used to,” Fanny reflected as she watched her family.
“That it will,” Bennet agreed. He had no doubt Jane was with the man she was supposed to be with, but that did not stop him from feeling a small part of his heart was missing.
“Elizabeth, you remember you met the Duke, Duchess, and Marquis before we departed for the church, do you not?” Fanny reminded her daughter.
“Yes, Mama, I do,” Elizabeth replied.
“Lady Rose is a cousin to your grandmother,” Fanny did not miss that Elizabeth bristled, assuming the wrong grandmother, so she added quickly, “Your paternal grandmother, Queen Charlotte.”
Elizabeth relaxed visibly. “It is good to make the acquaintance of more cousins, your Graces,” Elizabeth allowed.
“The pleasure is ours, Your Royal Highness,” Lady Rose returned. Elizabeth had tried not to think too much about her rank, but it was at that moment she assimilated the fact that in society at large she was ranked higher than a duke and duchess.
After hearing of the musical prowess of the family, Lady Rose requested the young ladies exhibit for her. The Rhys-Davies and Wes, listening to their performances, realised their abilities, if anything, had been understated. The singing, especially Elizabeth’s, was sublime.
“Your mother will enjoy her granddaughter’s accomplishments greatly, Cousin,” Lady Rose remarked to the Prince.
“I cannot but agree, Cousin Rose,” the Prince said. “All I can hope is that my parents are not too angry with me for hiding their granddaughter’s existence from them for so long.”
“I agree with your opinion. His Majesty will have parliament remove Elizabeth from the line of succession; therefore, it is my opinion that the King and Queen will not be too put out,” Bedford surmised with a small smile for the princess.
“Will you bring your daughter with you when you travel to Buckingham House on the morrow?” Lady Rose asked.
“No. If my parents want to meet her—as I assume they will—I will send an express to Bennet and he and the whole family will travel to London,” the Prince averred. “Once her existence becomes public knowledge, the royal guard around her will no longer have to be disguised as footmen and outriders.”
“I have a suggestion,” Darcy stated. “Why do we not all travel to London? The Bennets can stay with us at Darcy House or across the square at Matlock House, or Holder House is available for their use. This way their Majesties will not have to wait the length of a day to meet their granddaughter if they request it.”
“Unless there is an objection,” Bennet replied thankfully, “we will take you up on your invitation, Darcy.”
“What about your aversion to Town, Papa?” Elizabeth challenged; her eyebrow perfectly arched to convey her expectation.
“I will survive, Lizzy. I know Darcy House’s library is not Pemberley’s, but if I know my friend here, it is impressively stocked and will provide me adequate reading material,” Bennet told his daughter.
“As we are to travel, I have much to arrange,” Fanny stood and was followed out by Ladies Elaine and Edith.
“We are for Town, but as soon as you know the schedule of events with the royals, let us know as we would enjoy having you all for dinner at Bedford House on Russell Square,” Lady Rose invited.
Not long after, the Rhys-Davies departed for London, Wes De Melville with them.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“Sarah, I am sure our children will relent,” Lord Jersey told his wife with confidence as they sat in their lonely house. It had been many months since they had received an invitation or even a response to one they had issued.
“How can you be sure they will?” Lady Jersey asked. “Why did you force us to break with Priscilla? Look where it has left us; you were so worried about society and now your cruel decision has made us pariahs.”
“I was sure I was doing the right thing to protect our social position and look at where we are now. How can the Ton treat me, the Earl of Jersey, thusly!” Lord Jersey spat out.
“Wes was correct; we are now reaping what we sowed. I should have found a way to contact our daughter regardless of your wishes. I will never forgive you for separating me from my daughter,” Lady Sarah stated in rare open defiance of her controlling husband.
Lady Sarah knew from the very beginning what her husband had done to their daughter when she needed their support the most was neither moral nor correct, but even if he now realised this, her husband would never allow himself to admit it to her, never mind anyone else.
If Lord Jersey were pressed to be honest, he would have admitted there was a determination in his younger two children.
No matter what he told his wife, and regardless of the bravado it was proclaimed with, Lord Cyril De Melville had the feeling they had lost their two remaining children.
His over developed pride would not allow him to admit how great an error he had made.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
The carriages arrived at Darcy House just after midday on Tuesday. The Killions, Darcy House’s butler and housekeeper, were waiting at the entrance to the house by the time the footmen placed the steps and opened the doors.
It was the first time the Bennets had visited Darcy House.
They were impressed at the understated elegance of the décor and furnishings of the house, along the lines of what they had seen at Pemberley, which the master credited to his late wife’s excellent eye for decoration.
There was no doubt that everything was of the best quality, but like Pemberley it was designed for comfort, not for display.
“Uncle Robert, your house is wonderful,” Elizabeth exclaimed when she returned from her bedchamber after washing and changing.
By the time she arrived in her assigned chambers, Jacqui had almost completed unpacking.
As he always was—and now Elizabeth understood why—Mr. Taylor was in a suite towards the end of the hall on the family floor.
“Thank you, Lizzy; it was your Aunt Anne’s mission to make a comfortable home for all of us to live in, and she took much pleasure in so doing,” Darcy shared wistfully as he thought about his beloved wife. “She would have loved to see everyone here, and your pleasure in it even more so.”
“When will we hear from Father?” Elizabeth asked. She was full of frenetic energy and would not be able to relax until she knew one way or the other.
“He should have arrived at Buckingham House about the same time we arrived here,” Fanny informed her daughter. “It will not be too long before we hear something.”
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“You requested to see us,” the King intoned. The King, Queen, and the Prince of Wales were in a parlour with Frederick.
“Yes, Father, Mother, and George. I need to inform you of something. There is something I have kept from you on the strength of my late Priscilla’s request. You remember some years ago I told you my beloved had passed after birthing a stillborn son?
” Frederick reminded his parents and eldest brother.
“Yes, Son, we remember your telling us,” the King replied carefully, unable to fathom the turn of conversation. “Why do you bring this up now?”
“The account I gave you was not entirely factual,” Frederick owned.
“You would never have lied about your ex-wife’s death, so that means the son lived,” the Queen reckoned.
“Not quite. Priscilla did not birth a stillborn son; she gave birth to a healthy and beautiful baby girl,” Frederick revealed. “She has been raised as the daughter of my Priscilla’s best friend—her sister of the heart—since she was born.”
“Are you telling us that a royal Princess was kidnapped? That is treason!” the King pronounced.
“No, father, that is most certainly not what I am telling you. Priscilla made the Bennets our daughter’s guardians, so they have done nothing except fulfil her and my express wishes,” Frederick explained.
“In fact, I issued the Bennets a royal indemnification certifying that my daughter was placed with them with my full agreement.”
“Why did Priscilla not want her daughter—your daughter—to know her grandparents?” the Queen asked, having had a moment to digest the news. Her hurt was undeniable. She was a queen, but she was also a loving grandmother who ached for the child she had long been denied.
“That is a complicated question. She did not object to your knowing Elizabeth; she only wanted her to have a chance to grow up in a loving family and not in a country house with the coldness of governesses and tutors,” Frederick explained.
It was easy to see his parents understood the implied rebuke in his words, and both winced at the facts so boldly stated.
“Did you know from her birth?” the Prince of Wales asked, insightfully.
“No, I was not to be told until she was eighteen to make sure she was allowed to be raised as Priscilla desired, however…” Frederick told of the reasons for the disclosures more than eleven years ago.
“So now we understand why you spend so much of your time in Hertfordshire,” the Queen stated, more to herself than anyone. “Has your daughter ever been in London?”
“No, Mother. Today is her first day in town. She is the splitting image of her mother, which is what led the late Lady Anne and then Lady Elaine to know whose daughter she was. It is less than a sennight since my daughter was told of her parentage. She is extremely angry—almost as much as I am—at her maternal grandparents and has no desire to know them.” Frederick paused to internalise his anger at the Earl and Countess of Jersey before it boiled up again.
“Brother are you telling me your former wife’s parents do not know their daughter has been dead these sixteen years?” the Prince of Wales asked in utter disbelief.