Page 32 of Brighton Rescue (Pride and Prejudice Variation #23)

Mary Bennet glowered into the mirror and said, “Lydia, Kitty, I do not care how I look. After all, the Holy Word says, when speaking of a woman’s beauty, ‘let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, or of wearing of gold, or of putting on apparel…’”

“Yes, Mary,” Lydia agreed with spurious meekness, “but was not Queen Esther handsome? Her beauty was a gift which led her to become queen, which in turn resulted in the salvation of the Jewish people. Surely, being pretty can be used in a way that honors God.”

Mary, thoroughly taken aback by this argument, sat in silent consideration while Lydia hastily braided and curled her hair in a more attractive style, and Kitty rapidly stitched white lace on Mary’s overly severe day dress.

When their elder sister emerged from her reverie, she found herself stepping out of her dressing gown into a more attractive dress and her face, softened by her new hairstyle, looked quite pretty.

“Mary, Mr. Bingley is here!” Mrs. Bennet shrieked from the lower floor.

“Do tell me if Mrs. Audley has had her newest baby, Mary,” Kitty requested .

“I will,” Mary answered, shooting an incredulous glance at the mirror before hurrying out the door. “I am coming, Mother!”

Kitty waited until Mary was safely downstairs before turning an admiring look on Lydia. “That was very clever to speak of Queen Esther.”

“Was it not?” Lydia boasted. “I woke up very early and spent three hours looking through the Bible for examples of beautiful women. I decided Esther was the best one to talk about today, and perhaps I will speak of Rebekah tomorrow, who combined beauty with diligence in her tasks – she took care of camels! Sarah is not a wonderful example, I fear; she was so beautiful that a king snatched her and put her in his harem.”

“No, Mary would not like that,” Kitty agreed wholeheartedly.

/

“I am sorry, Madam, but there was no turbot to be had for love or money,” the Cook informed her mistress.

Mrs. Bennet groaned and massaged her forehead with one unquiet hand. “Very well, we will be forced to have chicken for dinner; have one of the men butcher two young ones. Do we have peas?”

“Yes, Mrs. Bennet, delightful, fresh peas.”

“Very good. Do make fresh macaroons as well. Mr. Bingley promised to attend dinner with us tonight and must be made to feel welcome! It cannot be so very long until Jane returns, after all; I have no doubt once he sees her exquisite countenance, he will fall in love with her again!”

“Yes, madam,” the cook said patiently, glancing hopefully toward the door. She had a great deal to do for dinner, and her mistress’s chattering was preventing her from getting any work done.

There was a sudden, most welcome hullabaloo of noise from the outer hall, including cries of excitement from Lydia and Kitty. “Jane, Elizabeth! You are home!”

Mrs. Bennet flew out of the kitchen in a frenzy and arrived in the front vestibule to discover that yes, her two eldest daughters had arrived, in company with Mr. Darcy, of all people, and a well-dressed gentleman who was, oddly enough, missing his left arm.

“Elizabeth, Jane!” she exclaimed in delight. “Oh, how thankful I am that you have returned!”

“We are delighted to be here,” Elizabeth answered, embracing her mother with surprising fervor. “Mama, you remember Mr. Darcy, of course? May I please introduce Mr. Hartford? We stayed with Mr. Hartford and his mother, Lady Amelia Hartford, in Brighton.”

“Welcome, welcome!” Mrs. Bennet said hospitably, leading the party toward the drawing room.

Once inside, she glanced hastily at the clock on the mantelpiece and relaxed.

Mr. Bingley, Mr. Bennet, and Mary had departed only a half hour previously and would be gone for at least two hours, probably three.

She had plenty of time to speak to Jane about the return of her suitor.

“Is Father here?” Elizabeth asked once the party had settled into chairs.

“No, Mr. Bennet is visiting the Simpsons along with,” and here she peered intently at Jane, who was seated next to the one armed man, “along with Mr. Bingley.”

“Is he indeed?” Elizabeth inquired in some disappointment. “Do you know when Father will return?”

Her mother stared at her in some perplexity. “I daresay it will be two or three hours. Mr. Bingley has agreed to stay for dinner. Is that not wonderful, Jane?”

“It is of no concern to me,” Jane responded composedly. “I do not have any quarrel with Mr. Bingley, but his presence or absence is a matter of entire indifference to me. ”

Mrs. Bennet looked as if she would faint at these traitorous words, and Elizabeth hastily leaned forward to pat her mother’s hand. “It is Father we very much want to see, Mother. You see, Mr. Darcy wishes to speak urgently to him.”

Mrs. Bennet stared at her second daughter in bewilderment, then at Darcy, and then back at Elizabeth. She, who spent her waking hours scheming and plotting to find marriage partners for her daughters, had not so much as considered the possibility that…

“Are you … are you saying,” she quavered, “that…”

“Yes, Mrs. Bennet,” Darcy said gently. “I admire and love your daughter Elizabeth, and plan to make her my wife.”

This provoked a soft squeal from the lady of the house, who promptly collapsed back against her seat and lifted her handkerchief to her eyes. “Ten thousand pounds a year! Oh, wait until I see your father, Elizabeth! To think that it was Mr. Darcy courting you. Oh!”

Elizabeth glanced nervously at Darcy and was relieved to see him smiling a little. “Miss Bennet,” he said, rising to his feet, “I remember from my previous visits that you have a lovely little wilderness behind Longbourn. Perhaps you could show it to Mr. Hartford and me? ”

Jane rose with alacrity. “Yes, that is an excellent idea. Elizabeth, do you wish to accompany us?”

“I will stay with Mother,” Elizabeth said, smiling gratefully at her fiancé. Far better to have Darcy and Hartford elsewhere during Mrs. Bennet’s initial ecstasy over her daughter’s engagement to a rich man!

Mrs. Bennet, who had been longing for a daughter married since Jane was fifteen, hardly noticed the departure of all but Elizabeth.

When she finally lowered her handkerchief, it was to reveal a countenance of bewildered ecstasy.

“My dearest Elizabeth!” she exclaimed. “Mrs. Darcy, how well it sounds! What pin money you will have! Ten thousand pounds a year! You will be mistress of Pemberley! Oh!”

/

“I appreciate your assistance today very much, Miss Mary,” Bingley said as the carriage turned into the drive which led to Longbourn. “I believe the Audleys were far more comfortable in my presence since they already know you quite well.”

“It was my pleasure,” Mary assured him, and then was taken aback at her willingness to speak.

She had always been uncomfortable around eligible gentlemen since she knew that every one of them was comparing her to her more handsome sisters.

Instead she felt confident of her position today; Mr. Bingley was interested in his tenants, not her personal appearance, which was strangely freeing.

“I am also most grateful to you, Mr. Bennet, though I confess to some feelings of inferiority after meeting the Simpson family. They are truly a race of giants, are they not?”

Mr. Bennet chortled and said, “Yes. I know I am not a particularly short man, but when I stand alongside the Simpson sons, I feel quite Lilliputian!”

Mary, who had been gazing absently out the carriage window, now stiffened in surprise as they approached Longbourn. “Is that not Jane?”

Mr. Bingley found himself shifting rapidly to the other side of his seat to stare longingly out the window. If Miss Bennet had returned already to Longbourn, perhaps her fledgling courtship with Mr. Hartford had come to an early end?

A moment later, hope turned to despair. There were two gentlemen escorting Miss Bennet, and while they were both turned away from him, he clearly observed the empty left sleeve of one of them.

Mr. Hartford had followed the lady to Hertfordshire, which could only mean that the courtship was proceeding apace .

He was dimly aware of the carriage stopping, dimly aware of Mr. Bennet stepping outside, dimly aware of the father assisting his daughter onto the carriage way.

Only when Bennet’s confused stare landed on his face did Bingley break free from his bemused state.

He climbed, a little shakily, down from the carriage and forced himself to stand tall, to wipe the disappointment and sorrow from his face.

It was not Miss Bennet’s fault that he had abandoned her almost a year previously.

For her sake, and for his own sense of pride, he would behave like a gentleman, even if he was merely the son of Mr. Peter Bingley, tradesman.

Jane had not noticed the presence of her former admirer, consumed as she was by the sight of Mary and her father. “It is so very good to see you both!” she cried. “Mary, how well you look!”

“I am glad to have you home as well, Jane. Where is Elizabeth?” Mr. Bennet asked.

“She is with Mother in the drawing room,” Jane explained with a smile. “Mary, you already know Mr. Darcy, of course, but I wish to introduce you to a new friend of ours, Mr. Hartford. We stayed with his mother when we were in Brighton. Mr. Hartford, my sister Mary.”

The lady and the gentleman made appropriate curtsies and bows, and then Mr. Darcy asked, “May I speak to you, Mr. Bennet, at your convenience? ”

Bennet looked up into the taller man’s face and nodded, “By all means, Mr. Darcy. Is now a suitable time?”

“It is.”

The two men strode off to a side door which led to the library and Jane, her eyes still fixed on Mary’s face, asked, “I understood from Mother that you and Father were visiting the Simpsons this morning? Are they well?”

“They are very well,” Mary said, feeling nervous in the presence of an unknown gentleman, and a disabled one at that. “Mr. Bingley wished to meet them so that some of their sons could assist the Audleys; Mr. Audley is still not able to move around well after breaking his leg.”

This alerted Mr. Hartford and Jane to the presence of Bingley, and both watched as the latter walked over and bowed. “Miss Bennet, Mr. Hartford, it is good to see you again. I hope you are both well.”

Jane’s smile was serene and beautiful, but her eyes no longer looked upon him with affection. He had lost his chance with her, thrown it away, due to his own foolishness. “We are very well, Mr. Bingley. I hope you are well too?”

He was not well. He might never be well again.

Still, he said bravely, “Yes, Miss Bennet, I am very well. Thank you. I found my time with Mr. Bennet and Miss Mary to be most useful. I must return to Netherfield now; would you be kind enough to give my compliments to Mrs. Bennet and tell her that I am, regrettably, unable to attend her dinner tonight?”

Mary looked startled, but Jane only nodded. “Of course, Mr. Bingley. I hope that you can join us for dinner another time.”

“Thank you,” he said and, taking a deep breath, turned to Gabriel. “Mr. Hartford, may I inquire where you will be staying while in Hertfordshire?”

“Mr. Darcy and I have taken rooms at the Pig in the Poke in Meryton,” Gabriel answered, his eyes watchful.

“I would be honored and pleased if you and Darcy would stay at Netherfield Hall, sir.”

Gabriel blinked at the other man in surprise and then said, “Thank you for your kind invitation. I will speak to Darcy on the matter.”