Page 49

Rosings Park, Hunsford

The sorrows of the next few days were heavy indeed, made bearable only by the friendship and love which the inhabitants of Rosings had for one another.

Charlotte Collins fell into a dead faint upon witnessing her husband’s body brought out of the church, and the earl had her transported to Rosings, where she could be properly cared for among friends.

Mr. Church pronounced that Lady Catherine de Bourgh had succumbed to the noxious vapors and smoke from the fire and had died as her lungs gave out.

Her funeral was held that same evening, and only four mourners were present: her brother, her two nephews, and Timmons, the butler.

In accordance with the custom of the times, ladies did not necessarily attend burials, and her daughter was not present.

She was laid to her uneasy rest beside her husband in the family burial ground.

The funeral of Mr. Collins was held the following Friday in the churchyard of the parish he had served, and by contrast the entire village turned out to mourn him.

The Bishop had come to officiate, and at the conclusion of the service, he informed the congregation of Mr. Collins’ efforts to clear the name of Dr. Charles Oliver.

He commended those efforts and informed the people that after his investigations, Dr. Oliver was completely exonerated of any wrongdoing.

Anne had arranged for the Olivers to be present, and they were overcome by the news as old friends and neighbors surrounded them.

Elizabeth had a tearful, private reunion with her father, who had arrived with Sir William and Lady Lucas as Mr. Collins’ only surviving relative.

At the end of that reunion, Darcy joined them, and Mr. Bennet shared the happy news that Jane and Mr. Bingley would be married in a month’s time.

Elizabeth, Darcy, and Mr. Bennet spent a quiet interval together planning the Darcys’ visit to Longbourn.

Anne, in her usual quiet way, approached Charlotte to beg her to consider Rosings her home for the rest of her life if she wished.

“You were the first person to befriend me, Charlotte, and I hope we will be friends for life,” she said.

Charlotte accepted, much to the relief of her parents, who were painfully aware that the entail of Longbourn had been broken with the death of Mr. Collins.

Hertfordshire

Elizabeth was beside herself with excitement as they traveled into Hertfordshire for the wedding, and as they drove up the lane to Longbourn she could barely sit still.

Her family assembled outside to greet her, and she embraced her mother with tears in her eyes.

“My dear Lizzy, you are come home!” was all Mrs. Bennet could say, but it was clear that a great weight had been lifted from her.

The family went inside, and Elizabeth was able to cheer her mother with stories of the wedding as well as descriptions of her clothes and jewels.

When Mrs. Bennet was finally ready to rest, Elizabeth and Jane stole off for a few minutes together for the first of many talks they would have during the visit.

Jane poured out her happiness over her forthcoming marriage as well as her fatigue and anxiety over Mary and their mother, and Elizabeth had much to share with her sister about both the horrors of her captivity and the joys of her marriage.

Elizabeth had been dreading her conversation with Mary. She would confess later that she had to overcome a great deal of annoyance over the presence of Lydia, who simply walked in and sat down as if invited to join in the confidences.

“I believe I am much better now,” said Mary. “At first I thought I should never recover from the shock, but I am learning to reconcile myself to it. ”

“Mary is my hero,” added Lydia. “She just grabbed his knife and did what needed to be done.”

Mary squeezed her sister’s hand. “I had help. It was Jem who actually finished him off.” She shivered. “I do not wish to think of it too much, Lizzy. Perhaps I will feel more like talking about it after some time has passed.”

Elizabeth reached over and laid her hand over those of both her sisters. “I feel the same way. We three have something in common. All of us have thwarted George Wickham.”

“Yes, and thanks to Mary and Jem, nobody else has to worry about him.”

Elizabeth was touched by Lydia’s watchful care over Mary and felt a breath of hope that Mary would be able to recover from her ordeal.

After their first few days at Longbourn, the Darcys moved to Netherfield to make room for the Gardiners, arriving for the upcoming wedding.

When they arrived there, they were greeted by Caroline Bingley.

She seemed much the same as ever, if a bit subdued, and she apologized for not taking them upstairs to their room.

“My ankle is still a little weak, though it grows stronger each day.” She and Elizabeth agreed to have a long talk after dinner, and so they did.

Caroline had been quite affected by the trial and its results.

She was satisfied that justice had been done, and she took an active interest in the welfare of her footman’s elderly mother.

She also looked forward eagerly to her marriage, which would take place in the spring.

Elizabeth also had an opportunity to thank Mr. Hurst again.

She and Darcy privately thought that Louisa Hurst could not quite believe her husband’s heroics, and they both took pains to convince her that he had been instrumental in Elizabeth’s daring rescue.

It had been arranged that he would serve with a number of other gentlemen on the governing board of a school for those inmates of the Audley Street house who needed to be trained in genteel occupations in order to escape their former lives and to make their livings.

Mr. Hurst was full of plans and was looking forward to the winter, when they would get started, He spent a great deal of time discussing this with Darcy, who was keenly interested and who, with Lord Matlock and Anne de Bourgh, would be providing the funds for the school.

Of course, there were visits around the neighborhood as Elizabeth offered her heartfelt thanks to those who had been instrumental in the search.

She was enchanted by young Ezra, who was equally enchanted by her.

And she had known the Hill brothers all of her life.

Her thanks to these and other neighbors were emotional and heartfelt.

Darcy had additional plans, and he spent many hours closeted with Mr. Bennet in the library as they discussed and planned more concrete ways in which to reward those who had been instrumental in their search.

With the wedding only days away, and with Mrs. Bennet still recovering, he and Mr. Bennet agreed to a celebration in the spring, once the crops were planted, at which farmers and gentry alike would be welcome.

By then, they would have corresponded with their ideas about more concrete rewards for those people deserving of them.

At the top of their list were Jem and Tim Hill, and their thoughts ran to suitable farms in the neighborhood.

Before anyone knew it, the day fixed for the wedding of Jane Bennet and Charles Bingley had arrived.

A radiant Jane walked the short distance to the church with her father and mother, surrounded by her sisters.

There, before their closest friends and family, Mr. Bennet gave his daughter in marriage to the man she loved as her family looked on with joy and a few tears.

Pemberley

After Jane and Charles Bingley had departed for London and their honeymoon, it was at last time for the Darcys to go home to Pemberley. The three-day journey was made considerably less tedious by the fact that they were spending it together.

At midmorning on the third day, Darcy announced that if all was well, they would be at Pemberley by early afternoon.

Soon he began pointing out landmarks to Elizabeth, and before long, they passed the spot where he had asked her to marry him.

They slowed to drive through Lambton, and Elizabeth saw again the inn, the village green, and the famous horse chestnut tree, now magnificently dressed in its autumn gold against the blue sky.

The last five miles were familiar to her—then the turn down the lane to the house, the valley and river, the woods on the other side, and suddenly the prospect of Pemberley, now her home.

The coachman stopped the carriage at the top of the hill without being asked because it was customary for members of the family returning home.

Darcy, his eyes shining, took Elizabeth’s face in his hands and said, “Welcome home, my dearest, loveliest Elizabeth.”

Later that evening—after a joyful, tearful reunion with Georgiana, after a stroll in the gardens, and after a wonderful family dinner—Elizabeth and Darcy retired to the apartments that would be theirs.

Elizabeth was struck by the similarity between the bedchambers and those at the house in London.

The chief difference was that they were much larger and were separated by a beautifully appointed sitting room set aside for their own use. They settled on the sofa by the fire.

“I confess, dearest, that I still take fright from thinking of Lady Catherine. My fear of her has been difficult to shake off.” Elizabeth burrowed closer into her husband's side.

“That is only natural, Lizzie. But it is over and done with. I saw her laid in her grave, and she can never harm another soul.”

Elizabeth was quiet for a moment before her natural good humor returned. “You are right. Besides, as the new lady of Pemberley I have decided on a project that will take up a great deal of our time. It is only right that I solicit your opinions.”

“Oh? And what project is that?”

“One of great import, and one we have discussed before. But I have quite forgotten. Shall we work on a dear little girl, or a horrid little boy?”

“Both,” replied Darcy as he kissed his bride.