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“I am glad to hear that,” Elizabeth said, eyeing her sister with a knowing glint in her eyes.

“And I wish her well in her new situation.” It was the least she could do.

Once Caroline Bingley was married, she doubted they would see much of her.

She sighed and linked arms with Jane. “You are so magnanimous, Jane. Much more patient than I. If I had been in your shoes, I think I would have had a row with her.”

“Charles took care of everything,” Jane said softly.

Though she hated conflict, Jane had grown stronger of late.

She supposed becoming a mother to a whirlwind of a boy, adorable as he might be, drew it out of the most docile of women.

“I believe that she only acted out of desperation. She said many a time that she was in danger of ending by being on the shelf, but she did not want to lower her standards .”

“Well, from what I could see, she thought very highly of herself, indeed.” Mrs Gardiner chimed in. “I only hope her poor husband does not have to pay the price.”

Jane held up her hands, and Elizabeth could see the discussion of her sister-in-law was upsetting her.

Elizabeth did not want to cause her any further alarm, not in her tender state.

She had handled Caroline’s pettiness with all the grace and compassion anyone could have offered, but that was no reason Jane’s patience ought to be tested further.

“Yes, Jane is right,” Elizabeth therefore said firmly.

“She has made her choice and we can only hope that she will be well settled. Now, let us speak of more happy tidings. I hear Georgiana came to visit you in London when you were there a few weeks ago. How is she? We have missed her terribly this spring.”

“Ah, she is a vision. Love suits her,” Jane said, smiling to herself. “Lord and Lady Dalton have taken Georgiana and Henry under their wings, and I believe she is blossoming as a soon-to-be bride. She cannot wait to be married,” Jane replied.

“Yes, she is always quite eager, from the sound of her letters. I cannot believe the wedding is only a few months away,” Elizabeth said.

They would soon travel to London for the grand affair, and she was glad that they had opted to wait for her to be delivered of the baby before they went ahead with their plans, although it had not been necessary.

In a way, she felt a little guilty for being the one to delay their plans.

But she was grateful, too. She would have been terribly disappointed if she had been forced to miss out on Georgiana’s wedding.

“Well, she could not have found a more doting fiancé, I can tell you that,” Jane smiled. “Mr Dalton wrote to her every day she was with us. It was very sweet to see how he cares for her.”

“I am glad to hear it,” Elizabeth replied.

She sighed, and her attention was drawn away by the gentleman coming to join them.

No doubt Darcy had given their daughter to the nanny so that she might take the sleeping bundle inside, out of the breeze that was starting to pick up.

“We are all grown up, aren’t we? It seems like yesterday that we were all dreaming of what our lives would be, and who we would marry.

And it has all turned out so much better than I could have imagined. ”

Jane smiled and held her hands out to her husband, as he was the first to draw near. “It certainly has,” she said and kissed Mr Bingley on the cheek.

“What certainly has?” he asked.

“Oh, we were just saying that it is wonderful how we are all grown and married to such wonderful men,” Elizabeth piped up, linking her arm through Darcy’s.

Mr Gardiner chuckled. “Are we grown up now?” he asked, turning to his wife with a broad smile. “I wondered why I was starting to feel so creaky in my bones of a sudden!”

They all shared a laugh and continued their stroll through the gardens. “How is Melissa?” Elizabeth asked.

“Perfect,” Darcy replied. “Do not worry. Nanny said she needed to have her bath before she laid down for the night.” He cleared his throat, and they all halted around one of the many fountains that were sprinkled throughout the gardens.

“I have some news, though, that I thought all of you ladies would find interesting.”

Elizabeth raised a brow. “Hmm? How curious. You are not usually one to spread gossip, my love.”

“No, well, you know how I detest wagging tongues, but this will be of particular interest, since we have all had run-ins with this gentleman.” He paused for effect and looked at each of them in turn until Elizabeth could hardly bear the suspense. “I have had some news about George Wickham.”

Elizabeth’s stomach dropped. What had he done now, she wondered? “And?” she pressed.

“As you know, it has been three years since my agents have heard of him. I have long wondered how he could be so well hidden, and at last we have the answer. My agents could not track him because he has not been in England at all. Three years ago, Wickham fled to Australia.”

A collective gasp circulated through the ladies. “Really?” Jane asked. “How awful. I thought he was in the militia? How did he escape a court martial?”

“It seems Wickham took my threats of having him thrown in debtor’s prison seriously — so seriously that he was willing to leave England to escape them.

He slipped away as his regiment was transferring to Brighton.

” Darcy shook his head. “It is rather amusing, in a way. I have often feared Wickham might try to reappear in our lives, only to find out he has long been on the other side of the world.”

Elizabeth shook her head. “I confess I am relieved, and yet I fear for the people he is no doubt attempting to cheat in Australia even now.”

Darcy kissed her forehead and covered her hand with his, his comforting warmth spreading through her. “I agree. But there is little we can do about it now. He has made his choice, and his escape. I doubt we shall ever see hide nor hair of him again.”

“Perhaps he has seen the error of his ways and turned over a new leaf,” Jane said hopefully.

Sweet, pure-hearted Jane , Elizabeth thought. There was little chance that such a scoundrel could reform, short of a miracle. But she chose not to speak her doubts aloud.

“Well, I say good riddance,” Mr Bingley said, and a hearty “hear, hear!” echoed round the rest of the circle.

Elizabeth soon forgot all about Mr Wickham, for she had little reason to think of him. She spent each day delighted by the happiness of her circumstances, and each hour falling deeper and deeper in love with Mr Darcy.

Though Elizabeth never thought of Mr Wickham, she would have been astonished to know how often he thought of her.

Mr Wickham, who left before the truth of Elizabeth’s supposedly vast inheritance was brought to light, was to spend the rest of his life regretting the fortune he had lost by failing to make her his wife.

Even in an embittered life filled with frequent disappointments and reversals, it was not the least among his many regrets.

THE END