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That same morning, Mr Collins walked the familiar path from the parsonage to the manor house with hesitant steps.

Lady Catherine was slow to rise from her bed, and Mr Collins sat alone in the hallway for a long time before being summoned to her apartment for an interview.

Her lady’s maid remained present the entire time, repairing a seam in a gown while the headstrong lady and her parson discussed uncomfortable topics.

Later, the chambermaids at Rosings Park gossiped about one loud exclamation from Lady Catherine when the parson counselled the noblewoman not to attract the attention of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Collins argued, “Lady Catherine, I cannot…we cannot call the banns without Mr Darcy’s explicit approval.”

The formidable woman was displeased for her parson to contradict her commands, but she actually listened to his advice.

Upon reflection, Lady Catherine admitted that she did not wish for any visit by the archbishop or his underlings to her parish.

Before one of the clock, her ladyship and Mr Collins descended the stairs for luncheon with Miss de Bourgh and the daughter’s companion.

The small party spent the afternoon considering options to attract Mr Darcy’s attention to Miss de Bourgh and her fortune.

“I do not want the de Bourgh estate and fortune to leave the control of the Fitzwilliam family,” Lady Catherine said, explaining her determination to see her daughter wed to Mr Darcy.

“When my nephew marries my daughter, their eldest child will inherit everything. But Darcy will not obey me…obligations of family are not important to him.”

Forced to agree with Lady Catherine, Mr Collins asked, “What will sway him, ma’am?”

“Gold,” Lady Catherine replied immediately. “All men are slaves to gold!”

After a moment of silence, Collins asked, “Lady Catherine, as unpleasant as it might be, there might be a way to capture Mr Darcy’s attention.”

“What are you muttering about, Mr Collins?”

“It is something that we shall never speak of aloud…something that will remain private,” the parson explained. “But an investment in a business has come to me, and I have begun to build my future fortune upon that solid foundation.”

“Business! A gentleman never deals with business!”

Collins bowed and said, “Forgive me, Lady Catherine, but your nephew spends all his time dealing with business and his lands. Several times, he has spoken to me about investing in what he calls ‘safe businesses’ to provide additional income.”

“Darcy? Does my nephew have business dealings?”

“He does indeed, your ladyship,” Collins revealed. “The income people mention–ten thousand pounds–is not the true extent of his wealth.”

“And he has not shared this with me! His nearest relation!” Lady Catherine thundered and threw an empty teapot against the wall in her private sitting room. The porcelain pot shattered and scattered wet tea leaves on the wallpaper.

She turned to her parson and demanded, “How can I capture Darcy’s attention? What source of gold do you have?”

~~~

In London, George Wickham chaffed while dealing with Miss Bingley’s need to discuss the latest scandals and social ruin reported in the newspaper’s gossip columns.

He dreaded her gleeful recitation of the gossip each afternoon.

Mrs Young, Caroline’s lady’s companion, suffered the harridan’s complaints about her family, former friends, and the servants during the morning and then had to bear with the gossip during the afternoon visits.

But the confederates were determined to maintain the fiction of enjoying Miss Bingley’s company until such time as George obtained Miss Bingley’s signature on the papers that would release funds from her dowry to purchase stock in the New World Tea Company.

Wickham’s problem was that Miss Bingley was unprepared to depart with any portion of her wealth.

Every week, there remained the possibility of Mr and Mrs Hurst returning to London, or worse, the intelligent brother, Charles Bingley, appearing and asking questions.

Thinking of the man portraying Lord Campbell in their escapade, George frowned and realised, ‘Phillip Bounty will not send any letters to Caroline while in Ireland. A gentleman cannot write to any unmarried woman, but Miss Bingley will expect me to hear from ‘Lord Campbell’ and share the news with her.’

Frowning, George decided, ‘I must compose letters from Lord Campbell that I can share with Miss Bingley. I shall not declare his love for her. Only his great admiration and desire to introduce her to his brother, the Earl of Argyll.’

With inspiration from memories of letters from Mr George Darcy that Wickham received while at university, the swindler wrote three letters that he would share with Miss Bingley and Mrs Young as business letters he had received from Lord Campbell while on his roads in Ireland.

‘Lord Campbell’ wrote of the dreary weather on the smaller island, and the number of cattle and sheep sold to increase the Count of Argyll’s wealth. In each letter, the author included a reference to Miss Bingley’s beauty, sense of fashion, or elegance.

Remembering his godfather for a moment, George Wickham considered the prospects he had cast aside in his reckless pursuit of the wealth of other persons.

He was handsome and popular in the village where he was born and raised.

As the godson of one of the wealthiest men in Derbyshire, his future appeared bright–he would receive an education unavailable to his peers.

With a renowned British university degree, he could choose a profitable profession–as a lawyer or a clergy member, George would have secure employment and a comfortable life for all his years.

But George wanted more.

He coveted what he saw as the opulent and carefree life of his godfather’s son, Fitzwilliam.

Sharing the classroom with Fitzwilliam inside Pemberly while they were young, George found himself resentful of his classmate's fine clothing, the gifts he received, and the horse presented to the youth when Fitzwilliam was ten and four.

Unfortunately, George overlooked the extra lessons and additional books handed to Fitzwilliam.

At ten and seven years, the two young men went to university.

While they both did well with their studies the first year, George discovered that women in the taverns and inns of the town around the university were free with their favours for a few coins.

Distracted by drink, women, and then gambling, George spent his allowance freely and often made use of Fitzwilliam’s allowance.

He managed to continue his studies into his third year but then was sent down from school after a dalliance with the daughter of a professor.

Mr George Darcy allowed his godson to blame his problems on his grief following his father’s death that spring.

The older Wickham had served as George Darcy’s steward for almost thirty years.

He further indulged young Wickham by providing him with a small allowance that allowed the young man to wander about England that summer without any responsibilities or future plans.

When autumn arrived, and the weather began to turn cold, George Wickham returned to Derbyshire and lived with his eldest sister and her family.

The brother-in-law worked directly for Mr Darcy, so he had to deal with his employer’s godson living under his roof.

By spring, there were complaints from two tradesmen in the town about compromised daughters–Mr Darcy paid for quick weddings with other tradesmen and lectured George Wickham severely about his liaisons.

At the end of the interview, George Darcy suggested his godson look for employment away from Lambton.

The young man agreed with his godfather and concluded, “I shall go to another school and complete my studies to become a clergyman.”

Pleased by this answer, Mr George Darcy wrote a letter of introduction for his godson to a friend at another university.

He procured admission for his godson to complete his studies and then take orders with the Church of England.

That spring, the pounds spent were barely noticed in Mr George Darcy’s balance sheets.

“When you complete your studies and become a clergyman, I shall help you find a parish where you can preach and rise in the church hierarchy, George,” Mr Darcy said.

“In point of fact, if you hold holy orders whenever Mr Clyde in the parsonage at Kympton passes away, I shall give you that parish as your appointment.”

“The bishop will allow you to appoint me?” asked George, unable to hide the surprise in his voice.

George Darcy smirked, “The position of pastor in Kympton is mine to do with as I please. Mr Clyde is old and feeble. Complete your degree, and I shall give the living to you as soon as he passes on.”

Wickham knew he should never be a clergyman–the life of preaching and acting as an upstanding character in a countryside village did not suit his character in any way.

After two terms at the second university, George wrote to his godfather that he was leaving university again but travelling to Canterbury to study with the priests at that cathedral.

Again, George’s dalliances with young women forced the man from the university.

He imposed himself on serving girls too regularly for the tavern keepers not to notice, and worse, George made improper advances to a married woman.

Unfortunately, her husband caught the couple in bed, and the scandal rocked the small university town.

For almost two years, there were only occasional letters between George Darcy and his godson.

The young man called at the Darcy home in London during the summers and received a purse of coins each time.

Then in the autumn of that second year, Mr George Darcy died just after returning to Pemberley.

George Wickham did not learn of the death of his godfather until he read the news in a discarded newspaper in London.

With urgency, Wickham made his way north, called at Pemberley to speak with Fitzwilliam for the first time since leaving university years before.

During the meeting with Fitzwilliam, George agreed to relinquish his claim to the living at Kympton in return for a large sum of money.

He signed papers that were witnessed by solicitors and when he left the great house, George had cheques for four thousand pounds in his pocket and enough coins to return to London by coach.

Thereafter, there was no contact between the two young men until the schemes with money–other people’s money–brought George Wickham into contact with Fitzwilliam Darcy.

The previous autumn, George appeared in Hertfordshire and established a reputation in the village of Meryton.

Refusing to insert himself into the situation, Darcy said nothing to the other people in Meryton concerning George Wickham’s character.

This reticent on Darcy’s part displeased Bingley and emboldened Wickham, though for once, George did not pester the serving girls, daughters of gentlemen, or their bored wives.

Darcy left Meryton before the local people fell completely under George’s spell. At the wedding of Mr Collins and Miss Charlotte Lucas at Christmas, the gentlemen of Meryton handed over a portion of their incomes for shares in Wickham’s New World Tea Company.

Months later, George and his confederates had gained the confidence of Miss Caroline Bingley, who was left alone by her relatives with Mrs Young as her lady’s companion.

After a boring winter, the new salons and gatherings of the spring season lifted Miss Bingley’s spirits.

A confederate of Wickham’s, Phillip Bounty, had been introduced as Lord Campbell, the heir of the Earl of Argyll.

The man’s marked attention to Miss Bingley during the evenings and afternoon calls led Caroline to believe she would become Lady Campbell, and someday, she would be introduced as the Countess of Argyll.

The trap was set, and George considered his next steps. Now in her majority, Caroline Bingley could hand over fifteen thousand pounds from her dowry as an investment in the New World Tea Company, thinking it would permanently attach ‘Lord Campbell’ to her side.

‘I should have tried this scheme of a fictitious company with fabulous profits earlier,’ George realized.

As soon as he had the funds, George intended to disappear with Mrs Young and Phillip Bounty, the fellow playing the role of Lord Campbell. Edith Young had long been a proven partner in George’s escapades, and he valued her opinions and skills.

But then in a moment of greed, George questioned himself, ‘ Do I want to share these funds with Phillip? He has played the role of Lord Campbell well, but if he is not around to take his share, I should have all the money.’

George made his way toward Olive Street and plotted how to rid himself of ‘Lord Campbell.’ He also began to consider disposing of Edith Young. ‘Why should I share with anyone? It is my gold. Thirty thousand pounds will set me up for life.’

~~~