Page 28 of Darcy in Distress (Pride and Prejudice Variation #17)
Beaumont House
Russell Square
London
“What happened?” the Earl of Matlock snarled, his fists clenched in fury.
Nurse Mildred cringed at the anger in her employer’s face and said meekly, “She must have switched her lemonade with mine, my lord. I grew strangely tired and fell asleep for many hours. When I woke up, Lady Anne was gone.”
The earl stared at the woman. “How could you have been such a fool as to permit my sister to switch the glasses? Were you not watching her at all times?”
Mildred twisted her hands together miserably and said, “No, my lord, I did not and neither did Deborah. Lady Anne was sleeping most of the time. Indeed, I do not understand how she could have been cognizant enough to do something like this! It seems entirely impossible.”
“And yet, this is the situation in which we find ourselves. Where is my worthless son? ”
“He is gone, my lord. It seems that he accompanied Lady Anne to Darcy House.”
The Earl of Matlock turned to stare down at the hapless nurse. “Darcy House? Are you certain?”
Mildred licked her lips and said, “The stableboys told me that Mr. Fitzwilliam ordered the carriage driver to go to Darcy House.”
The earl glared at her for a moment longer and then began pacing up and down the scarlet and blue carpet where Lady Anne had been standing only a few hours previously.
“Darcy is still in Hertfordshire,” Matlock said finally. “Darcy’s servants will not bar the door of Darcy House to me. We can retrieve my sister, and this time, we will take her to Matlock House and install her there, where there is no chance of escape. Come along!”
“Yes, sir.”
/
Longbour n
“I demand to see Mr. Bennet, at once!” Lady Catherine bellowed as she stepped into the front hall of Longbourn. “At once, do you hear?”
“Yes, Madam,” Mr. Hill replied with icy calm. “The master has asked that you and Mr. Collins join him in the library upon your arrival. This way.”
Lady Catherine stamped angrily along the corridor toward the library in the wake of the butler and, once the door was opened, stepped into the room only to stop in surprised dismay. “Richard! What are you doing here?”
Colonel Fitzwilliam, who was leaning casually against the mantle of the fireplace, lifted one dark eyebrow and said, “Why, I thought it best to warn Mr. Bennet that you were coming from Netherfield and were quite disturbed about his daughter’s marriage to Darcy.
Mr. Bennet, my aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh.
Lady Catherine, Mr. Bennet, father of Mrs. Elizabeth Darcy. ”
“Darcy is not married to Miss Elizabeth Bennet!” snarled the current mistress of Rosings, walking forward to loom over Mr. Bennet, who remained seated behind his desk, his expression carefully blank.
“Darcy is engaged to my daughter, Anne de Bourgh, heiress of the estate of Rosings, niece of an earl on her mother’s side, daughter of a scion of an ancient, gentle family on her father’s!
This wedding must be annulled immediately, do you hear, Mr. Bennet?
It is entirely against the law of God and man that such a travesty was allowed to take place. You should be ashamed of yourself!”
“Indeed, Mr. Bennet,” Mr. Collins burbled from his position behind his patroness.
Mr. Bennet noted, with appreciation, the growing black bruise on the rector’s jaw where Darcy had struck Collins with one mighty fist. “Cousin, I insist that you accompany us to Netherfield immediately and put an end to this absurd fantasy. My cousin Elizabeth is engaged to me, and I am still willing to marry her, though given her insolence in attempting to steal Mr. Darcy, I will find it necessary to…”
Mr. Collins trailed off and cringed as Bennet, shorter and at least twenty years older than the parson, rose to his feet and glowered at him with such anger that Collins felt slightly scorched.
“Lady Catherine, Mr. Collins,” the master of Longbourn said evenly, though his fists were now clenched in anger.
“I will speak to you now on this matter and then you will both leave immediately. Elizabeth is married to Darcy, and nothing you can say, nothing you can do, can change that. I have no more to say. Now be gone, both of you, or I will have you thrown from my house.”
“I am heir to the estate!” Mr. Collins squealed, while Lady Catherine, who had been treated with fawning respect by men like Mr. Bennet for decades, could only stare with her mouth hanging open .
“And I am master of this estate!” Bennet boomed, his face now dark with fury. “Until I die, neither of you will pass across the threshold of this house, do you hear? Get out, both of you! Hill! Hill!”
The butler, who had been waiting outside the door, opened it immediately and stepped into the library, flanked by two husky servants.
“Escort Lady Catherine and Mr. Collins out immediately!” Bennet ordered.
“You cannot dare to…!” Lady Catherine began, and then squealed as both servants grasped her firmly by the arms and began hauling her out of the room. “Unhand me, you rogues! How dare you! I will prevail, Bennet, I assure you! I will prevail! I will have the law on you!”
Mr. Collins, now looking like a particularly furtive rabbit, took one last look at Colonel Fitzwilliam’s grim countenance and Mr. Bennet’s enraged expression, and retreated toward the door, though he mustered up the courage to say, “When you die, your wife and daughters will be thrown from this house, Mr. Bennet! Do you hear me? Within the hour!”
Bennet advanced on him dangerously, and Collins turned and ran, slamming the door behind him. The master of Longbourn listened with narrowed eyes as Lady Catherine’s loud voice continued to complain and harangue until the front door slammed shut and all was silent.
The father of the new Mrs. Darcy unclenched his hands and turned toward Colonel Fitzwilliam, who was still standing by the fireplace.
“I apologize for my discourteous speech to your aunt,” Bennet said in a controlled tone. “That is to say, I do not regret my words or actions, but it was not ideal that you, as a family member, were here to witness it.”
“Not at all,” the colonel replied, gazing upon the older man with awe.
“Lady Catherine deserved every word you spoke and more. I do confess to some surprise. I have never known my aunt to be thrown from a house, though she has deserved such a response to her autocratic behavior many a time. I misjudged you, sir; I thought you too amiable and easygoing to take such a stand.”
“I likely would not have done so if Mr. Collins had not insulted my daughter,” Bennet retorted, his forehead creased with anger. “He dares call my Lizzy a harlot? He is fortunate that I did not have him dragged outside and horsewhipped!”
“If it is any comfort, sir – if he repeats such a slur, I am certain that Darcy will do the whipping personally.”
This provoked a reluctant chuckle from Bennet, who nodded and said, “I am gratified that my new son in law is eager and willing to protect my dear Lizzy’s fair name.
It speaks well for their prospects of happiness.
Now I had best go to speak to my wife, who is probably anxious about the shouting of these last minutes.
I can, at least, bring her great joy in informing her of the marriage of her second daughter to an eligible gentleman.
If you would care to stay and rest here, you are welcome to do so. ”
“No, I will ride back to Netherfield immediately,” Richard replied, his eyes now dancing with merriment. “I have no doubt that Darcy and the others will wish to hear of your victory over Lady Catherine and Mr. Collins as soon as possible!”
/
Drawing Room
Netherfield
For the second time this day, Mr. Allen found himself presiding over a wedding.
In all his days in service as a parson, he had never conducted a wedding using a special license, which were expensive, rare, and difficult to obtain.
Today he had conducted two weddings with special licenses, both of them hastily arranged, and the second between a man and woman who barely knew one another .
He had been uneasy at the latter prospect. It was true that many a man and woman married with little knowledge of one another, but it was also true that some arranged marriages, such as the one between the Prince Regent and his disdained wife, the Princess Caroline, were utter disasters.
Nonetheless, after an hour’s discussion with Miss de Bourgh, Mr. Darcy, Miss Darcy, and Mr. Wickham, Mr. Allen felt much more at ease.
He was slightly acquainted with both Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham, and both seemed sober, honest, faithful men.
Having been present at the eruption of Lady Catherine into the house, Mr. Allen knew that Miss de Bourgh’s mother was a pompous, autocratic sort of woman who, based on her daughter’s description, looked upon her child more as a lackey or a possession than as a beloved daughter.
Based on all that, Mr. Darcy’s glowing testimony, Wickham’s solemn promise to take care of his wife, and Anne de Bourgh’s earnest desire to marry, he agreed to immediately conduct the wedding of Mr. George Wickham to Miss Anne de Bourgh.
When the ceremony was completed and the bride and bridegroom had signed the registry, Mr. Wickham embraced his new bride and kissed her gently. The former Anne de Bourgh flushed in delight, her face far more beautiful in her happiness, and Mr. Allen was at peace .
“Congratulations, Mrs. Wickham,” Elizabeth exclaimed warmly, surging forward to embrace her new cousin by marriage. “Mr. Wickham, congratulations!”
“I am very happy for you both,” Darcy agreed heartily, whereas Georgiana, who felt she could legitimately take some credit for both weddings, beamed joyfully.
As for Mr. Bingley, if there had been another special license lying about, he might well have requested Miss Bennet’s hand in marriage at that moment, but alas, there was not.
In any case, based on the soft adoration in Miss Bennet’s eyes when she looked upon him and his own love for the lady, he was confident that they would wed very soon indeed.
It was in the middle of this babble of voices and kisses between the two sets of newlyweds, the door to the drawing room opened and a familiar, much loved figure appeared and exclaimed, “Fitzwilliam! Georgiana!”
Darcy and Georgiana turned, full of astonishment, and then both rushed forward to embrace their mother, and both were in tears.
“Mama!” Georgiana cried out, “Oh, Mama! Thank God you are safe!”
/
Mrs. Bennet’s bedchamber
Longbourn
Mrs. Bennet lay against her bed, her face pale against the yellow silk pillows.
“Lizzy is truly married to Mr. Darcy?” Mrs. Bennet quavered. “You are not teasing me, are you, Mr. Bennet?”
Mr. Bennet peered sadly at his wife. He had discovered within a year of his marriage that Mrs. Bennet was not a good match for his own sardonic wit and considerable intelligence.
He had spent the last twenty years either teasing or ignoring her, and now, with the news that her greatest desire had been realized at last, he was sorry that she could not even trust him to speak truthfully on the matter.
“I promise you, my dear, that I would never dream of jesting about such a thing. Yes, Mr. Darcy proposed to Elizabeth yesterday, rode for Longbourn last evening to ask for my permission, and married our precious daughter this morning by special license at Netherfield.”
His lady’s formerly pale face flushed with delight. “Mrs. Darcy, how well it sounds, does it not? Is it true that Mr. Darcy has an income of ten thousand pounds a year? Were the settlements generous? ”
In fact, such was the need for haste that Darcy and Bennet had not so much as discussed the marriage settlements, but Elizabeth’s father was confident that he could trust his daughter’s new husband to treat the Bennets more than fairly.
“Darcy is a fine, wealthy man,” he assured her, avoiding the need to answer the question, “and our Lizzy is mistress of one of the greatest houses in all of Derbyshire.”
“Oh, Mr. Bennet,” his wife said, and began sobbing. “Oh, Mr. Bennet, how thankful I am. My dear Lizzy, to capture such a prize. I can die at peace now.”
“You are not going to die, Fanny,” Bennet said sternly even as he stroked her arm affectionately. “You will give birth to a fine son, and Mr. Collins will be cut out of the inheritance, and all will be well.”
This provoked a perfect storm of crying, and Bennet, feeling entirely helpless, was quite relieved when Mary bustled in and embraced her mother.
He stood back and waited awkwardly as his third daughter rearranged the covers, pressed tea into Mrs. Bennet’s hands, and then, rather to his surprise, turned around and demanded in a forbidding tone what he had been saying to his wife to upset her so.
“Your father has such wonderful news, Mary,” Mrs. Bennet said in a wobbly voice, wiping her eyes with a handkerchief. “Elizabeth is married to Mr. Darcy! But oh husband, you know this child will be another daughter, and I will disappoint you again!”
Mr. Bennet berated himself inwardly as he moved forward to clasp his wife’s hands in his own.
“My dear, I will welcome either son or daughter, I assure you. Now come, today is a day for thanksgiving. Even if Mr. Collins inherits Longbourn, you have a fine new son who will take care of all of my womenfolk.”
“That is true,” Mrs. Bennet agreed, and now her face was calm. “Yes, we are saved. We are saved indeed, even if this child is another daughter.”
She leaned back against the pillows and yawned, and Mary carefully smoothed the blankets around her mother’s form, walked over to close the drapes securely, and then turned and said to Mr. Bennet, “Father, Mother must sleep now.”
He nodded and obediently passed out of the room, his mind flitting between Elizabeth’s marriage, his wife’s acceptance that she was indeed pregnant, and Mary’s quiet determination and authority. It had truly been a day of surprises.