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As he never had in the past, Lord Hertford had not asked her to dance, and when she passed him, she had slipped , hoping he would catch her.

He had stepped back, and she had fallen, landing on her derriere .

Before she could draw attention to herself, the Duke, who had seen all, had two men escort her to the parlour in which they were now seated.

She hated being berated. Then, things got worse.

The Duke had summoned her pater. Lord Matlock entered the parlour.

She did not scare easily, but the look on her father’s countenance did not bode well for her.

Ignoring Lady Catherine, Hertfordshire and Hertford told Matlock what had occurred.

The latter’s colour deepened with anger and mortification as he heard what his daughter had attempted.

“Please accept my apologies on behalf of my family, Your Grace, Lord Hertford,” Lord Matlock requested contritely.

“I promise you that my daughter will never attempt anything so dishonourable again. Leave her with me; I will take care of this.”

Lord Hertfordshire and his son nodded. The Duke stood and strode out of the parlour, the Marquess following. Neither man looked back before the door was closed behind them.

“Catherine Bertha Fitzwilliam! What on earth did you think you were doing?” Seeing his daughter was about to attempt to justify her actions, Matlock held up his hand.

“No, Catherine. You will be silent until I give you leave to speak.” Catherine sat back and closed her mouth, although it was easy to see she was not pleased about it.

“I will arrange a marriage for you with the first man willing to take you, even if it is only a gentleman farmer!

Until then, you will remain at home in your suite. Now you may speak.

“I will refuse to marry someone so low,” Lady Catherine blustered.

“If you do not marry the man, that is if I find one willing to take you, I will remove your dowry and cast you out of my house.”

Lady Catherine Fitzwilliam had no doubt her father was determined to follow through with his threat. She had a choice, but it was no choice at all. She gave a tight nod of her head and bit down on the fury building in her chest.

On Wednesday, the final day of March, six weeks after her failed compromise attempt, Lady Catherine was married to a lowly knight, Sir Lewis de Bourgh.

Although he had the lowest of all titles, he was titled. He had a prosperous estate in Kent and owned a house on Berkeley Square in London. With her husband being titled, in her mind, she had done better than her younger sister.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Fitzwilliam Alexander Darcy, who was called William by all but one, the same one who refused to call her brother Reggie, was born on the ninth day of January 1784 to Lady Anne and Robert Darcy.

The two were ecstatic to have a son and heir.

Thankfully the new mother recovered from the ordeal of childbirth as would be expected.

A little more than three years later, Lady Catherine de Bourgh delivered a daughter in June 1787.

She was named Anne. Lady Catherine named her after her sister even though she did not respect, or even like, Anne Darcy.

Her reasoning was simple. She thought that her younger sister would be so flattered that she would agree to engage Anne de Bourgh to the Darcy heir.

The Darcys refused.

When he was sent a copy of the letter she sent to the Darcys, Sir Lewis forbade his wife from broaching the subject about a childhood or any other type of betrothal again.

She was most displeased that no one would fall in with her plans. She was aware she would have to bide her time before she could bend them to her will.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Meryton October 1787

Meryton was a small market town, like hundreds dotted across the realm.

It had one main street on which were shops of different stripes on either side.

Except for some who lived over their business establishments, most others lived on the edges of the town.

In addition to those who resided in and around the town, there were about four and twenty landed families whose estates were the lifeblood of Meryton.

The largest was Netherfield Park, owned by Sir Garfield Morris. It was on the western side, about two miles from the town. Next in size and prominence was Longbourn, to the east, about one mile.

Normally life was unvaried in this little hamlet.

This was not a normal time. Lots of residents loved to gossip, and usually there was nothing of note about which to do so.

That was until the local solicitor’s daughter decided to elope with a captain in the Oxfordshire Militia regiment, which was encamped just south of the town.

The militia had been guests in Meryton since May of that year.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Elias and Jane Gardiner had three children.

The oldest, Hattie, the middle child, Edward, and their youngest and most wilful, Frances, called Fanny by all.

She had not behaved too terribly until the militia regiment had marched into the town.

At barely sixteen she had decided that a man in uniform would be the only one for her.

She had begun to flirt outrageously with the officers, and nothing her family told her discouraged her pursuit of a man in a scarlet coat.

Fanny was, in her mind, blessed with great beauty. She was pretty, but what she never understood was that it was her flirtations which attracted men to her, especially officers. Her father, mother, and older sister did everything they could to discourage her from chasing the officers.

Her brother had just begun his studies at Oxford, so he was not home to help curtail Fanny’s behaviour. Edward was one of the few to whom she would pay heed; hence, she would not read his letters.

They explained over and over again that if she married an officer, she would live on almost nothing, have no servants, no money for new clothing, and no entertainment.

She dismissed it all as nonsense and, from Hattie, jealousy of her having fun.

Her parents attempted to lock her in the house, but she would climb out the window.

The house was on a single level attached to the back of the Gardiner law practice’s offices, and there were no bars on the windows.

What her parents were unaware of was that Fanny was enthralled and believed herself in love with the handsome and charming Captain Peter Millar. Not only that, but they had no idea she had begun to lift her skirts for the man, and he had, with no compunction, accepted what she was willing to give.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Fanny had just allowed her captain to have his way with her again. It was the second Monday in October, and they were in the old unused barn, about three hundred yards from the edge of town, lying in the hay.

As she buttoned her dress, she turned to the man she loved. “Peter, we are to be parents,” Fanny stated matter-of-factly. “We need to marry.”

Millar had no intention of marrying the chit, but decided this may present an opportunity for him.

He had more debts to his fellow officers than he could come close to covering, so it was time to get away and leave his regiment.

As there was no war currently, he would not be sought too diligently, and if caught, he would not be shot.

Then he remembered he had been in Lucas Mercantile and heard Mr and Mrs Lucas speaking about how Miss Gardiner and Miss Fanny had five thousand pounds each.

If he went to the father, being a solicitor, Millar had no doubt her money would be tied up out of his reach.

However, if they eloped…yes, the chit was too silly to realise the peril of eloping and having no settlement.

“Fanny, I love you, but I have always dreamed of marrying over the anvil in Scotland.” He affected a sad look. “Unfortunately, I am short of funds to make that journey, and we are moving to Oxfordshire soon, so I will not be here to marry you.”

“I have a little pin money left, and I know where Hattie has her money hidden. She has saved almost twenty pounds. If I am able to acquire the money, will we have enough to travel to Gretna Green?” Fanny asked keenly. She waited with bated breath as her beloved seemed to be weighing the options.

“Yes, I believe that will be enough to make our way to Scotland and marry. Will you be ready to depart just after midnight? I could wait for you outside your window. If you give me the coin you have now, I will rent a gig for us,” Millar proposed.

The chit nodded keenly and handed over the coins she had.

It was more than enough to begin their journey. “Remember, not a word to anyone.”

Fanny nodded her understanding. They kissed one more time and then parted.

As hard as it was not to crow about her good fortune to Hattie, Fanny remembered her beloved’s admonition and said nothing.

She followed her regular routine that evening and went to her bedchamber at the normal time.

Knowing Hattie would only come to bed in an hour or so, Fanny crept into her sister’s chamber and relieved her of the money she had been saving.

She had always disdained Hattie’s saving, but now that it benefitted her, it seemed like a good idea.

She sat on the chair before her dresser and wrote a letter. When her captain softly knocked on her window, Fanny handed him the two valises she had packed, and placed her note on the pillow upon which she would never rest her head again.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

The next morning when the Gardiners rose, no one was surprised to see that Fanny was not up as early as the rest of them; it was the same every day.

She tended to get out of her bed just in time to join the family to break their fasts.

When the three Gardiners were halfway through the meal and still no Fanny, the patriarch sent Hattie to wake her sister.

Not many minutes later, a very concerned-looking Hattie returned with no Fanny. “Mama and Papa, Fanny’s bed was not slept in, the window was partially open, and I discovered this,” Hattie lifted the missive, “on her pillow.” She handed the pages to her father.

Jane Gardiner began to cry even before her husband read the letter. She feared that her daughter was lost to them.

Gardiner read the letter to himself first. “That stupid girl has gone and eloped. Her dowry will be that useless man’s, as she has no protection.

As soon as he presents proof of their marriage, I will have to turn it over to him,” he lamented.

“Hattie dear, I will replace the money your sister pilfered from you.”

He handed the letter to his Jane, who sat next to Hattie as they both read it.

Even though her father had just pledged to replace her stolen funds, Hattie was furious at Fanny’s blatant disregard for propriety, her not caring a whit for the feelings of others, and her abject selfishness. While she was angry, her mother had tears running down her cheeks.

“Elias, our girl is lost to us! How could she? And look at how she writes like this is all one big joke. If she thinks we will welcome that seducer into our home, she is sorely mistaken. She is with child and felt the quickening already!” Jane Gardiner wailed.

“Let us pray things will be better for her than we think.” Gardiner shook his head.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Six days later the two were married over the anvil in Gretna Green.

Millar sent the proof of marriage to his father- in-law.

Within a month he had the lightskirt’s dowry.

He had found some rooms in Newcastle for them.

They were not very comfortable, and he always promised, without delivering, better accommodation.

Until the money came, her husband had been reasonably considerate of her.

Not long after, Fanny very rarely saw him.

A daughter was born on the seventeenth day of February 1788.

By the time she gave birth, she had not seen her husband for a month.

He came to the rooms a fortnight after the birth and looked at his daughter briefly.

Millar told Fanny that fathers had no use for girls.

After leaving some money for food and paying the rent for the next quarter, he was soon gone again.

Until May of that year, he appeared every now and then. Towards the end of May, Fanny was notified that her husband had been discovered in another man’s wife’s bed and was dead.

The aggrieved party had discovered them in flagrante delicto in his wife’s bed .

He had retrieved his weapons and shot Millar, then his wife, before reloading one of his pistols and turning the weapon on himself.

Of her dowry, only about two hundred pounds remained.

She was told that her late husband spent the money on gaming, women, and entertainment.

Once her money was almost gone, Fanny took her beautiful one-year-old daughter and began her travels back to Meryton.