Page 57 of Second Chances (Passion and Perseverance #2)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

“What? I don’t understand,” Beth replied, overwhelmed with confusion.

If she needed money, why couldn’t they just pay her?

Unless it would involve paying her for the rest of her life, but regardless, why did she need Darcy for money? There were a thousand other people who didn’t hate her whom she could ask.

“First, I want you to know that I’m on your side - I’m always on your side, which is why I’m sharing this private information with you.

I won’t lie to you, Beth, the thought of her disgusts me, but purposefully trying to get this information from Charles last night made me sick to my stomach; the fact that I was keeping something from him… ” Jane shuddered at the remembrance.

God, she hated putting Jane in this position; she was too naive, too pure. She could never wrap her head around a person like Caroline; it just wasn’t in her nature.

“In spite of everything that she has done, please use what I tell you with caution because it’s not just her that you could end up hurting,” Jane finished, pleading with her sister.

“I know, Jane. I know. I’m so sorry. I promise you that Darcy is going to tell Charles soon and I promise you that whatever you tell me, stays between you, me, and Darcy; I promise we will use whatever you tell me responsibly, but we need to know, otherwise I’m afraid of what Caroline might do next,” Beth responded, with an urgent empathy.

As much as she felt for Jane, all her brain could focus on how Darcy was tied to Caroline’s money.

Beth watched her sister nod in resignation, before beginning her tale.

“So, you know that Caro’s parents wouldn’t support her style of art all those years ago, and that’s why she left and went to Italy?”

Beth nodded. Where she should have stayed …

“Her parents wouldn’t pay for that, so her grandmother did. Well, not directly, her grandmother left her an inheritance, that was given out as a monthly allowance, that she used to fund her work and, ultimately, her move to Italy,” Jane began.

So, that’s why Mrs. Bingley made that comment about Caro’s house not really being hers.

“However, the terms of the inheritance stipulated that Caro would get a certain amount until the age of thirty-three, as well as some other things, like the house she is living in now. However, after that point, she would only receive the rest as a wedding present for her and her husband to use. If she didn’t marry, everything would go to Caroline’s parents, to do with as they see fit whether that meant giving it to her or not. ”

Seriously, what age was this woman living in? My mother probably would have gotten along great with her…

“I know, it sounds ridiculous, but their grandmother was from a different generation. Caroline was always free-spirited; well, with a dash of recklessness. Throughout school, her wanting to pursue art put a strain on the relationship between Caroline and her parents. When Victoria, her grandmother, saw how reckless Caroline was becoming, and how much damage it was starting to do to the relationship between her and her parents, her grandmother decided to give her this money with the hope that it would ease the tension between them. She hoped that with some support, Caroline wouldn’t feel the need to be so extreme in her rebellion.

This was before Caro really got into the type of art that she does, otherwise, that might have changed things. ”

Beth listened intently as Jane continued to reveal Caroline’s history .

“It was better for a little while, but then Victoria passed away and Caro’s behavior became more extreme.

She desperately wanted her parents’ support for her art, but not in the way that you would think.

Charles said that she seemed to want their support only to prove that she had the upper hand, that she had finally won the invisible struggle for power going on between them.

When they refused, in the ultimate act of spite, that really backfired against herself, she used the money her grandmother had left her to leave for Italy, instead of using it to really fund and promote her art here.

” Jane paused here to take a sip of water.

“So, Caro has to get married in order to get the rest of this money?” Beth clarified.

“Not exactly,” Jane continued, “Victoria was still very concerned about Caroline when she made her will. Charles said that even then, his grandmother could see that how Caroline was acting could have just been for show. So, according to Charles, to make sure Caroline didn’t do anything incredibly rash, Victoria tried to limit her access to the inheritance in two ways.

First, her parents have the ability to waive that stipulation if they see fit.

However, they still disagree with the style and scope of her art and think that she would be wasting the gift her grandmother gave her in order to pursue that. ”

“Yeah, I don’t see that happening…” Beth interjected sarcastically.

“I know, her grandmother’s set of beliefs was pretty well instilled in her daughter, Charles’ mom.

Caro tried to convince them when she first got back, but once their excitement of having her home wore off, she realized their minds wouldn’t change.

That is what Charles has been dealing with these past few weeks - the constant arguing over the art and the inheritance,” Jane admitted.

“So that leaves Caroline with the only other option: to get married,” Beth inferred, “but, why not just marry some Italian or something? Why come back here and harass Darcy? ”

“Well, that’s the thing. Getting married would give her access to the rest of the funds but, to make sure that Caroline wouldn’t do something – or marry someone – just to gain the inheritance, Victoria included a clause that said the money would be released in marriage only if Caroline’s parents approved of her intended husband; her thought being that Caroline’s parents would never approve of something that they didn’t feel was respectable or someone whom they didn’t trust.”

Oh, no…

“So, knowing that she can’t change her parents’ minds, why wouldn’t she just try to find someone to start a relationship with and marry? Why go to Darcy, who she must know hates her?” Beth asked, incredulously.

“Her birthday is in two months, otherwise I’m sure that she would; see, she was never told about the clauses in the will.

She didn’t know what happened when her money supply stopped coming in, but it was right around the time we announced our engagement so, she came back for that, but more so to find out what was going on with her funds.

She confronted Charles’ mom about it and that’s when they told her that there were provisions attached to the will in order for her to get the rest of the funds. ”

“I’m sure she was thrilled about that…” Beth interjected sarcastically.

“Anyway, I can’t say for certain, but knowing what I do about her parents, and her, and what her parents think of her and how she acts…

I can’t see them believing any relationship that leads to marriage in two months is real,” Jane asserted.

“If it were Charles, that would be a different story. His personality is so different but hers… she’s done too many conniving things over the years for her parents to trust her like that. ”

“So, that’s why she needs Darcy; she knows that he’s the only one her parents are guaranteed to accept; he’s the only one to guarantee access to those funds,” Beth replied, in shock at what Jane had revealed, “and not just those funds, Darcy’s money, too.

“Yes,” Jane replied softly, her head bowing down to look at her hands fidgeting in her lap .

“Why doesn’t she just do something else?! I don’t understand,” Beth said desperately, her emotions threatening to completely overwhelm her.

How does that matter, Beth? If she wanted to do that, she would have, but she clearly wants to win this battle on her own terms.

“I don’t know… It’s why Charles gets so frustrated. He’s tried to talk to her but all she wants to do is maintain her quality of life while making her art, her way; she refuses to look at any other option. He says it’s about being in control, and giving in to her parents is giving up her control.”

“And why would she ever think that Darcy would even agree to this, even if I wasn’t in the picture? She has to realize that he hates her and he doesn’t need the money. How can she think she’d be able to get him to go through with this?”

“I don’t know… Maybe she’s hoping that by forcing you to leave him, it will propel him back to her? Maybe with you gone, she has some other way to blackmail Darcy into marrying her?” Jane suggested.

Like what? Unless she knows how to go after Georgiana…if George Wickham could figure out a way to blackmail him, Caroline definitely could.

“God, I just can’t believe she is trying to use him like this again.

How do I even stop it? Aside from paying her whatever her inheritance would have been…

except she still wouldn’t get the house and whatever else was included,” Beth said, her mind thinking out loud as she closed her eyes and covered her face with her hands.

Too much. It was all too much.

“What if her art doesn’t take off here?” Jane asked.

“What do you mean?” Beth responded, perplexed with her question.

“What if no one wants to buy her art and makes her feel that in order to be successful, she needs to switch her subject to something that her parents would feel is more ‘appropriate’? ”

Beth took a second to let the thought sink in. If, Caro was convinced by her audience that they preferred some of her other, more modern works, over her classical nudes, then maybe Jane was right; maybe her parents would feel that is something that they could support.

“I mean, it could work… But how would we even do that? And how do we accomplish our plan before she does something drastic to further hers?”

Two months was not a lot of time, which meant Caroline was definitely feeling the crunch.