Page 17

Library

Longbourn

The Next Morning

Fitzwilliam Darcy followed Bingley into the library, his heart beating faster than usual. A note had arrived from Mr. Bennet late the previous evening, asking that Bingley and Darcy call at Longbourn as soon as possible.

This was an alarming request, and the sight of his fiancée sitting near the fire with an anxious expression on her face did not diminish his concerns in the least.

“Jane,” Bingley said, and Darcy turned to observe Miss Bennet standing next to Mr. Bennet, each of them with a grave countenance.

“Thank you for coming so early,” Mr. Bennet said. “Please, will you not sit down?”

Darcy obediently took his seat near Elizabeth and was relieved when Mr. Bennet said, “There is no great crisis, gentlemen, but we have a problem, and Jane thinks that she has a viable solution that requires advice from yourselves. ”

“Please explain,” Bingley said, and Darcy murmured his agreement.

Miss Bennet proceeded to describe the rumors in the village regarding Elizabeth’s supposed behavior at the ball, and Lydia Bennet’s worrisome remarks on the subject of capturing a husband, and she finished by suggesting that the entire Bennet family move to London for at least a few weeks to get away from rumors and the militia officers.

Darcy, listening in silence, kept his gaze fixed on Elizabeth’s profile, as she had turned her head to stare into the fire. Based on the rigidity of her form, she was distressed, though he did not know whether it was because of the scandal, or her foolish young sisters, or their own engagement.

When Jane finished her reasoned argument, there was silence for a few seconds, and then Darcy said, “Miss Elizabeth, do you wish to move to London?”

She turned toward him, and he noted the shadows under her eyes, and the grim line of her lips.

“Yes,” she said baldly. “Not necessarily because of the malicious gossip, though it is painful, but because of Lydia and Kitty. Their idiocy places them in genuine danger here, and given that Wickham is a villain, I fear he might well target one or the other, and Lydia is stupid enough to give away… ”

She trailed off and gulped convulsively, and Darcy had to restrain himself from reaching out a hand toward the lady whom he truly loved, but even he could tell that such a gesture would not be received with pleasure.

“I could lock her in her room, I suppose,” Bennet said grimly.

“Mamma would fuss and whine if you did,” Elizabeth said wearily, “and you would probably give in simply to have peace in the house.”

This was a blunt statement, but based on Darcy’s limited knowledge of Mr. Bennet, entirely true.

“I think it would be better to go to London,” he offered. “If you would like me to arrange for a rental house, I would be glad to assist in that as well.”

It was on the tip of Darcy’s tongue to offer to pay for it as well, but he stopped short, as Elizabeth was already upset, and he thought that throwing money in her family’s direction would distress her further.

“Very well,” Bennet said, “and thank you.”

“Miss Elizabeth,” Darcy said impulsively, “I would like to introduce you to my sister, Georgiana, who is currently at Pemberley, but only if you wish to do so. That is, I would be pleased to write and ask her to journey to London, but only if that would be agreeable. ”

Elizabeth looked surprised for a moment and then nodded. “I would be honored to meet Miss Darcy. I hope she will not be displeased at our engagement.”

“My sister is a shy, gentle soul, and she will love you,” Darcy declared, and he meant it. Georgiana was reserved and anxious in company, and she would thrive in the company of the lively, lovely Elizabeth Bennet.

***

Caroline’s Sitting Room

Netherfield Hall

Later

Caroline looked out the window and grimaced at the sight of dark clouds and swaying tree branches. It had been two days since the horrible news that both Charles and Darcy were engaged, and she had not left her bedchamber since, claiming that a migraine made it impossible for her to serve as hostess for her brother and Mr. Darcy.

The truth was that she currently did have a headache, though it was not so severe as to keep her above stairs. But in spite of two days pondering and thinking, she had come up with no simple, or even complicated, way of breaking up the two engagements. Darcy was such an honorable gentleman that he would not discard Miss Elizabeth, regardless of how much she deserved it. She, of course, could break the engagement, but why would she? Indeed, the second Miss Bennet had obviously been pursuing Darcy from the moment she laid eyes on him, and poor Mr. Darcy, while tall, handsome and clever, was not gifted in understanding the rapacious hearts of the ladies around him, and had fallen into Miss Eliza’s trap.

She shook her head in frustration and turned her attention to the book sitting on the side table. Even with Mr. Darcy currently bound by honor to another woman, she could not quite resist the temptation to read books that she knew Darcy liked, and he had spent many hours reading this particular one, a novel called Robinson Crusoe , which Caroline had heard of but had never read before.

She opened the front cover and impatiently paged through the table of contents before starting the first paragraph of the first chapter.

I was born in the year 1632, in the city of York, of a good family, though not of that country, my father being a foreigner of Bremen, who settled first at Hull. He got a good estate by merchandise, and leaving off his trade, lived afterwards at York, from whence he had married my mother, whose relations were named Robinson, a very good family in that country, and from whom I was called Robinson Kreutznaer; but, by the usual corruption of words in England, we are now called—nay, we call ourselves and write our name—Crusoe; and so my companions always called me.

I had two elder brothers, one of whom was lieutenant-colonel to an English regiment of foot in Flanders, formerly commanded by the famous Colonel Lockhart, and was killed at the battle near Dunkirk against the Spaniards. What became of my second brother I never knew, any more than my father or mother knew what became of me.

Being the third son of the family and not bred to any trade, my head began to be filled very early with rambling thoughts. My father, who was very ancient, had given me a competent share of learning, as far as house-education and a country free school generally go, and designed me for the law; but I would be satisfied with nothing but going to sea; and my inclination to this led me so strongly against the will, nay, the commands of my father, and against all the entreaties and persuasions of my mother and other friends, that there seemed to be something fatal in that propensity of nature, tending directly to the life of misery which was to befall me .

With a huff of frustration, Caroline closed the book with more force than entirely necessary. The last thing she wanted was a novel involving the misery of a fool, determined to abandon a very good situation. She was miserable enough because of recent absurd and dreadful complications, which were in no way her own fault.

There was a tap at the door, and she looked up as her sister entered the room.

“How are you feeling, Caroline?”

“Oh, my headache is still very bad,” she said in a pathetic tone. “I simply am not capable of managing the household and must depend on your good will.”

“Of course, but Charles returned from Longbourn only a few minutes ago, and we are returning to London as soon as possible.”

Irritation gave way to incandescent joy. “We are leaving Netherfield Hall?

“Yes.”

“Oh, how wonderful!” Caroline exclaimed, leaping to her feet. “What has happened to cause Charles and Darcy to break their engagements? ”

Louisa frowned and said, “Nothing, Caroline. Both Darcy and Charles are still engaged. The Bennets are also moving to London for at least a few weeks, ostensibly so that the elder two can purchase bridal clothing, but doubtless it is really because of the scandalous gossip.”

Caroline’s spirits were dampened at this news, but only slightly. She was sick and tired of Netherfield and Meryton and the families who made up what was considered society in this backwater, and she could hardly wait to return to Town. Moreover, surely both Darcy and Charles would realize how unsuitable their fiancées were when exposed to the delicate refinement of true society women.

“When are we to depart?” she demanded, striding back and forth on the floor without so much as a hint of a headache.

“If possible, tomorrow morning.”

***

On the Road to Longbourn

Two Days Late r

It was a cold, crisp day, with a few puffy clouds and the pale winter sun shining down on the militia officers as they marched down the driveway to Longbourn.

George Wickham was looking forward to the ensuing visit to the Bennets. In spite of Darcy’s offer to Elizabeth Bennet, or perhaps even because of the engagement, the scandal continued to spread throughout Meryton. Wickham was very pleased at the effectiveness of his remarks in the Pig in the Poke pub, and in the various houses where the militia officers were welcomed. He had not said much, of course, certainly nothing worthy of a slander charge, but he was adept at the vague comment and thoughtful question which allowed others to assume much that was not true.

He hoped that he would see Miss Elizabeth herself today, though she might be hiding in her bedchamber, away from prying eyes. In any case, he would make good use of his time with young Miss Lydia, who was almost certainly feeling neglected by the families who would no longer darken the doors of Longbourn due to the scandalous behavior of her older sister. He smiled unpleasantly as he looked forward to his attempts to take advantage of her loneliness.

Captain Denny climbed the stone steps of Longbourn with his four fellows in his wake, knocked on the door, and stepped back, while Wickham used the ensuing thirty seconds to straighten his red coat and black shako hat. When the door swung open, it was to reveal Mr. Hill, the butler of Longbourn, who said, “My apologies, gentlemen, but the Bennets are not home to visitors today.”

“Oh, what a pity,” Denny said with easy charm. “May we leave our cards?”

“Of course, sir,” Hill replied, holding out a silver tray. Wickham took his time extracting a card from his case as he strained his ears in hopes of hearing feminine voices within. There were none, which was odd, as Miss Lydia was usually overly noisy.

Hill bowed, retreated, and closed the door firmly, leaving the officers to descend morosely down the steps and begin walking back to Meryton.

“Well, that is a great pity,” Smythe remarked. “Do you suppose that they are hiding because of the rumors regarding Miss Elizabeth?”

“It seems likely,” Pratt said gloomily, “though it is unfortunate. We do not care about the gossip, and I daresay the Bennet ladies are feeling friendless and isolated.”

“It will blow over in time,” Colonel Denny said cheerily. “Now, shall we enjoy some ale and food at the pub? ”

Wickham agreed with alacrity and then remained silent for the rest of the walk back to Meryton. He was unhappy about being barred from Longbourn and turned his thoughts to other ways to punish Miss Elizabeth for daring to accept Darcy’s offer of marriage.

***

Elizabeth’s Bedchamber

Longbourn

Elizabeth stared out through the filmy curtains of her chamber at the retreating red coats and then turned to her companion and said, “I am sorry that I will likely miss your wedding, Charlotte.”

“I am sorry as well,” Charlotte replied from her seat by the fire, “but I understand your need to leave for London. I know this despicable gossip must be painful.”

Elizabeth huffed and walked over to sink down on a chair near her friend. “I never imagined in my wildest dreams that something like this could happen to me. I have tried to live in an honorable, respectable, virtuous way, and I will not lie; it hurts me greatly that so many of our fellows seem willing to assume the worst about me.”

“The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly,” Charlotte murmured.

Elizabeth turned a confused look on her friend and then nodded in understanding. “That is from Proverbs?”

“Indeed, and it describes this situation well. People like to believe the worst of their neighbors, unfortunately, especially when those neighbors are both beautiful and clever.”

“Jane is the beautiful one.”

“You are lovely as well, Eliza, and you know it. But come, enough discussion of your troubles here. Where will you be residing in London?”

“I have no idea, but Father is in London staying with my uncle and aunt Gardiner, and he is searching for a rented house with the help of Charles and my fiancé.”