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“That is the trouble with him,” replied Mr. Darcy.

“Wickham is educated and possesses the manners to pass himself off as a gentleman, but he never takes the trouble to prove himself worthy of the title. I have no doubt the truth of his sins is far more extensive than your sister, or even the colonel’s wife knows. ”

Elizabeth nodded, though she did not reply at once.

Though she had not considered Mr. Wickham in some time, it was the simple truth that he had impressed her as an excellent man when she first made his acquaintance.

How much of that was his handsome features, his sad tale of misuse at Mr. Darcy’s hands, or the speed at which he made himself agreeable to the neighborhood she could not now say.

What Elizabeth could say was how much she regretted believing him as she did when he spoke to her mere hours after making her acquaintance.

In that, she had been prejudicial and absurd, not making use of the sense she knew she possessed.

Yet she still did not know the truth of him, though Mr. Darcy had made a few comments that gave her an inkling.

“Will you not tell me of him?” asked she.

Mr. Darcy nodded, but he did not speak at once. Instead, he turned to his sister and regarded her for a few moments, then shook his head and again focused on Elizabeth.

“No doubt Wickham told you much of our history, though from his perspective, which is colored by his interest. Wickham’s father was my father’s steward and an excellent man, managing Pemberley for many years.

As always, Wickham possessed engaging manners and a jovial disposition, my father enjoyed his company.

“Do not suppose that I blame my father for his blindness,” added Mr. Darcy, appearing introspective.

“Knowing that my father was able to do much for him, Wickham went to great lengths to appear the dutiful protégé in his company. While out of it, however, his behavior grew worse daily, his character more set in debauchery and unrestraint. Unlike my father, he could not hide these things from me, for as I am of age with him, I saw him in many unguarded moments.”

With a sigh, Mr. Darcy sat back, glaring at the wall across the room in moody silence. “It is to my everlasting regret that I never spoke to my father about Wickham’s true character. While I have no notion if reformation was possible, much might have been different if I had approached him.”

“Why did you not, William?” asked Georgiana. “Did you fear Father would not believe you?”

“No,” was Mr. Darcy’s reply. “Father knew of my probity. I told myself that I did not wish to burden him when all the light went out of his life at our mother’s passing. Perhaps that was part of it. Now, after so many years, I do not think I can untangle the truth of my motivations.”

Mr. Darcy fixed his attention on Elizabeth again.

“I shall not bore you with a full recitation of all I hold against Wickham, for it is not relevant to the subject. However, I will say he is a debtor, a gambler, a liar and cheat, and a seducer of women. While we can have no notion of what might have happened, it is for the best that your sister did not go to Brighton, for Wickham will impose himself on any woman who catches his fancy.”

At that, Elizabeth could do nothing but nod.

Lydia, foolish and thoughtless, was easy prey for such a man, her appreciation for his handsome features making her doubly at risk.

When the invitation arrived, Elizabeth had thought about how to convince her father to deny his permission; she had always counted it fortunate that Jane’s wedding had prevented even the notion of her accepting.

After the wedding, when Lydia had agitated to go, she had known her father was not of a mind to put himself out such as to arrange Lydia’s removal to Brighton.

When the matter was not one with which he needed to concern himself, he might have allowed her, but she had not thought he would act to send her, even if it dispensed with her irksome company.

“There is little else to say, Miss Bennet,” said Mr. Darcy, drawing her from her thoughts.

“I would not advise anyone to associate with Wickham, for they are almost certain to regret the acquaintance. At Cambridge, I paid many of his debts, as I did in Lambton after he departed the last time. Wickham often speaks of the clerical living my father left to him, but the living was a request from my father to assist him in advancing him in whatever profession he chose. I hope you agree that giving him three thousand pounds for his resignation to all claims on the living besides the one thousand pounds of my father’s bequest discharged my duty. ”

Elizabeth could not believe her ears. “You gave Mr. Wickham four thousand pounds?”

A mirthless chuckle was the gentleman’s response. “I did. As I had Wickham watched in the ensuing years, I know he depleted those funds within two years of receiving them.”

“That is astonishing, Mr. Darcy,” said Elizabeth, not knowing what to think of such a wicked man. “And yet, he has no compunction at all about defaming your name.”

“It is the same wherever he goes.”

“Thank you for telling me, for it is clear now how much he misled me.”

“Brother,” said Georgiana, “do you not suppose we should tell her all?”

The sharp look with which Mr. Darcy speared his sister told Elizabeth that what she had heard was nothing compared with the truth of the man’s sins. When he did not speak, however, Georgiana turned away, her words shocking Elizabeth even more than they already had.

“What my brother has not told you is that Mr. Wickham attempted to elope with me.”

For a long moment, Elizabeth could not speak for the astonishment that beset her. Mr. Darcy regarded her, his expression no less than grim, but Georgiana exuded calm, though her manner of carrying herself suggested anxiety. It was this last that nudged Elizabeth from her silent state.

“Then I no longer wonder at Mr. Darcy’s antipathy for him. Indeed, that you tolerated him to the extent you did is of far greater wonder.”

At last, Mr. Darcy appeared to relax a little from the tension that beset him, though he still appeared coiled like a spring. “I thank you for that, Miss Bennet, though it is of little comfort.”

“When did this happen?”

“Last summer about this time,” said Georgiana. “I was holidaying in Ramsgate with my companion when Mr. Wickham came by chance, or so it appeared. Within two weeks, he had convinced me to elope with him.”

“I arrived a day or two before the intended departure,” said Mr. Darcy. “I had wished to surprise my sister with a visit. As it turned out, I was surprised by what I found there.”

“I can well imagine it, sir,” replied Elizabeth. “What of your companion, Georgiana? Mrs. Annesley does not strike me as the sort of lady who would allow Mr. Wickham to importune you.”

“She was not my companion at the time,” was Georgiana’s quiet response.

“Later, when interrogating her based on something of what Georgiana told me, I discovered a previous connection between them.”

“Then it was all a ruse to gain your dowry,” said Elizabeth, understanding flooding in at once, accompanied by not a little rising anger.

“That it was,” said Mr. Darcy.

For some time thereafter, the three occupants of the room sat in silence, lost in thought.

Elizabeth, for her part, considered the account Mr. Wickham had related to her, fitting in the pieces the Darcys had clarified into his tale and separating the truth from fiction.

As a woman who had always prided herself on her ability to sketch characters, Elizabeth could not help but confess that her estimation of Mr. Wickham was a complete failure, perhaps the worst she had ever made.

She had been gullible to have believed him so implicitly without even the sense to question such a communication by a new acquaintance.

This led Elizabeth to other thoughts, to wonder why she had allowed herself to be taken in with such ease.

The truthful woman in her could do nothing but accept that her antipathy for Mr. Darcy had influenced her response to Mr. Wickham’s account.

Eager to learn of his failings and justify her opinion of him, Elizabeth had not taken the trouble to practice the cynicism for which she was renowned, and she had paid a heavy price in the blow to her pride.

It was fortunate that the price was only that, for if Elizabeth did not think she would have succumbed to Mr. Wickham’s seduction, her sisters were the man’s natural prey.

“Then Mr. Wickham will pay the penalty for his wrongdoing,” said Elizabeth at length, breaking the quiet that had fallen between them.

Mr. Darcy seemed to have a sudden thought, for he turned to his sister, his expression was wry. “It will disappoint Fitzwilliam when he learns he was not a part of Wickham’s downfall.”

“Mr. Wickham will face army justice, will he not?” asked Georgiana. “Anthony is a colonel, after all.”

“Yes, perhaps you are correct,” chuckled Mr. Darcy, though it was clear he felt no mirth.

“He would be much obliged to you if you informed him of the situation.”

“Yes, I suppose he would. Perhaps I shall write to him.”

The Darcys, noting that Elizabeth was watching them amused at their exchange but not understanding the details of their banter, hastened to explain.

“Anthony is my cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam of the cavalry,” said Georgiana.

“He is my uncle’s second son,” added Mr. Darcy, “and he disliked Wickham long before I saw the deficiencies in his behavior. Fitzwilliam has often urged me to take action against Wickham; now that he has run afoul of the army, Fitzwilliam would take immense satisfaction in contributing to his punishment.”

“We must be sensitive to Anthony’s feelings,” said Georgiana, a false note of piety in her statement.

The siblings descended into mirth at her statement, in which Elizabeth joined. The revelations of the day were of such seriousness that she welcomed the ability to laugh.

“Then I do not suppose that we need discuss Mr. Wickham any longer, for he is a most disagreeable subject.” Elizabeth offered Mr. Darcy a saucy look. “I am surprised to see you here today, Mr. Darcy, for what would your guests think?”

“Speaking of disagreeable subjects,” drawled Mr. Darcy.

“When are you to depart for the lakes, Elizabeth?” asked Georgiana, changing the subject.

“We leave tomorrow,” replied Elizabeth. She offered them a smile and said: “Though I will regret leaving such excellent friends behind, I am eager to see the lakes.”

“They are well worth the effort,” replied Mr. Darcy.

The gentleman’s manner suggested disappointment at her upcoming departure, but not so much as Elizabeth expected, given his open declaration of interest. Then again, he had all but promised to go to Hertfordshire with Mr. Bingley when he returned to the south in the autumn, so their parting would not be for a long duration.

“I hoped,” said Georgiana, “that you would consent to visit Pemberley today. As I am to be denied your company, I should like to keep it for as long as I am able.”

“Do you suppose it is safe to visit Pemberley?” asked Elizabeth. “I should not wish to introduce disharmony to your home.”

“There will never be any question as to your welcome, Miss Bennet,” said Mr. Darcy, everything sincere. “If others do not wish to be in your company, they must remove themselves.”

“That is a great comfort, Mr. Darcy,” said Elizabeth, not without irony.

Before they exchanged any further words, the door opened to admit Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner.

One look at them told Elizabeth that they had known about the Darcys’ presence before they entered, likely having heard from the maid of their arrival.

The greetings between them were affectionate, though they both appeared rather knowing about the situation.

That was not unsurprising, Elizabeth supposed, given how clear Mr. Darcy had made his interest in her.

“I see you could not restrain yourself from my niece’s company, Mr. Darcy,” said Mr. Gardiner, winking at Elizabeth. “It is fortunate that I secured a suite with a sitting-room.”

“That it is, Mr. Gardiner,” replied Mr. Darcy.

“I was as much a force behind today’s visit as was my brother,” said Georgiana. “It was on my mind to invite Elizabeth to visit us at Pemberley.”

Mr. Gardiner looked to his wife, who did not hesitate to speak. “Other than this evening when we have a dinner engagement, there is no reason Lizzy could not join you if that is her wish.”

The pleading expressions on the faces of both Darcys set Elizabeth to laughing, and she could not disappoint them. “What time do you wish me to return, Aunt?”

After settling on a time, Elizabeth excused herself to join the Darcys for their return to Pemberley, knowing that her aunt would insist on hearing all about her day there.

For Elizabeth’s part, she was pleased to once again see the estate and pleased to be in the Darcys’ company.

Whether she would see it again after she left was still an open question in Elizabeth’s mind, but she knew that if Mr. Darcy had anything to say on the subject, she would call it her home one day.

How strange it was that matters had changed so completely in only a short time!