Page 8 of The Next Mrs Bennet
“M ama, Janey and I want a sister,” almost four-year-old Lizzy insisted. “And I am sure if Mary was older, she would agree with us. We already have one brother,” she pulled her nose up at her twin, who was playing with some toy soldiers his cousin Rich had gifted him, “and I am sure we do not need another one.”
Becca, Bennet, and Beth were seated in the drawing room. The latter had Mary on her lap as she watched her other three grandchildren.
“Lizzy, you know that it is God who determines the sex of the babe. Your Papa, Grandmama Beth, and I will be overjoyed no matter the sex, as long as he or she is healthy,” Becca told her precocious daughter.
“That and to be certain your Mama is well as well,” Bennet added.
It was close to the end of January 1795, and although Becca was swollen with child, her belly was not nearly as large as it had been when she had carried the twins. Her parents, Aunt and Uncle Fitzwilliam, and Connie and Harry would arrive on the morrow. Since the manor house had been almost tripled in size in the past few years, when family was visiting, they were hosted at Longbourn. As Netherfield Park was not used like it used to be, it was leased out using Frank Phillips as the agent. Connie was with child with her and Harry’s first, but she had only felt the quickening a few days ago. Since Rosemarie’s birth, Marie had not been in the family way again.
Knowing it would distract her second daughter, Becca said, “Do not forget that Grandpapa William, Grandmama Anna, Uncle Reggie, Aunt Elaine, Uncle Harry, and Aunt Connie all arrive on the morrow.”
It had the desired effect. Lizzy forgot all about the sex of her soon-to-be sibling. “Why are Aunt Marie and Uncle Will not going to come as well?” Lizzy pouted.
“Because Aunt Marie is helping her mother as they get ready for Uncle Sed’s wedding, which is in less than three weeks,” Becca explained—not for the first time.
“And why are Andy and Rich not going to be at Longbourn?” Lizzy demanded.
“Because my dear heart, the final term at Eton began, and they are both at school,” Becca related patiently. Lizzy could ask questions all day if one indulged her.
“Will we ever meet their cousin, the one from Pemberley?” Lizzy enquired.
“Lady Anne Darcy has not been well, so they keep to themselves. Young Fitzwilliam will join Rich at Eton in the next year or two,” Becca related.
“Do Henry and I have to wait until we are seven to get a pony like Janey will in a year from May?” Lizzy questioned. Hearing his sister mention a pony, Henry looked up hopefully from his game of soldiers.
“Surely I do not have to wait as long as my sisters to get a pony, do I, Papa?” Henry appealed to his sire.
“That would not be fair!” Lizzy insisted as she stood glaring at her twin with arms akimbo. “I am bigger than you, Henry, so if anyone should get a pony sooner, it should be me, not you!”
Neither parent wanted to inform Lizzy that although she was about an inch taller than Henry at that moment, in just a few short years, he would be much taller than she would be.
Bennet decided to put the argument to bed. “Neither of you will receive a pony before you are seven, and as you are twins, that means it will be the same day, so it will not be one before the other,” he told his twins firmly.
“Yes, Papa,” they chorused churlishly.
His firm reply had the effect of ending Lizzy’s stream of questions. She went and sat with Jane while Henry went back to his game. Sometimes he forgot they were not quite four yet. Bennet had employed a governess for Jane when she turned five. A few months ago, the twins had demanded they be allowed to join the lessons. Because they both displayed a keen intelligence, he had agreed that they could begin lessons with the governess. Although they could not read more than very rudimentary words, Bennet was confident they would be reading at the level of much older children in the next year or so.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
On the eleventh day of February, after less than three hours of labouring, Thomas Cavendish Bennet, the heir to Netherfield Park, was born. He had tufts of hair as dark as his sister Lizzy’s and was the longest of all of his siblings at the time of their birth. He was also almost a pound heavier than any of them had been when they were born—if the midwife’s scales were to be believed.
Rather than complain she had a second brother, Lizzy was happy that Mama and Tommy were both hale and healthy. It did not hurt that Aunt Connie was present to distract her. All of the Bennet children loved their Mama’s sister, but for some reason, the bond between her and Lizzy was especially strong.
A letter with the good news was posted to the Collins residence in Petersford, Worcestershire. This time the letter was written by Collins’s almost ten-year-old son—who it seemed had learnt to write, unlike his sire—and none of the invectiveness or bitterness was edited out. Bennet threw it into the grate after reading the first sentence.
Bennet was in his early thirties and had begun to get grey streaks in his hair. Becca told him she liked it that way.
About two months after Tommy was born, Bennet received a letter from Edward Gardiner. Like he did with everything, as they had no secrets between them, he had Becca join him on the settee in the study, the one in front of the two windows. He held the missive so they would both be able to read it together.
16 April 1795
23 Gracechurch Street
London
Bennet:
The above address is the house I just purchased where I, and hopefully the woman to whom I intend to propose, will live for many years to come.
I have met a wonderful lady, Madeline Lambert, who used to hail from Lambton in Derbyshire. Her father was a clergyman in the town, but when she was in London visiting her aunt and uncle, there was a smallpox outbreak in the neighbourhood, and her family all perished. She is twenty, and I have been courting her for some months. I plan to propose soon.
That is not all I have acquired of late. In the past, you and I have discussed my situation here, where I worked for Mr Arthur Bingley. I had mentioned how I believed Bingley was short-sighted, and his business could be so much more than he had envisaged.
I had raised the subject of buying his stake in the business a few times, and he had always been intransigent in his refusal to consider selling.
That changed recently when he came to me and enquired whether I was still interested in the purchase. As much as I was, I did not want him to see too much hunger in my eyes. You may be asking: how is it I have the funds to do this?
Do you recall I told you that my father gifted me with a legacy in the amount of ?10,000? You will also remember I told you about investment opportunities, ones Mr Bingley was not willing to make. Well, I invested my legacy, spreading it over four separate investments. They all came in and I nearly quadrupled my money. Rather than rest on my laurels, I invested more than half again, and again I had picked well. Over the last 4 years, I have accumulated more than enough to purchase Bingley’s business.
The reason Mr Bingley is selling now is that his wife and youngest daughter (who is not 7 yet) are adamant he should leave trade and return to Scarborough. He is not willing to leave the business world altogether, so he will join his brother in the family shipbuilding business he helped to found. With his own funds and what I paid him, he will have more than enough to buy an estate. (He will leave that up to his son, who he will have educated as a gentleman.)
I will name the new concern ‘Gardiner and Associates’ even though it is only me. I am confident I can make this so much more than just importing and exporting and turn profits many times those which were earned under Bingley.
I am willing to sell you a quarter ownership stake (as a silent partner.) If you are interested, let me know, and we will arrive at an amount with which we are both able to live.
Please give my love to my niece and regards to your mother, wife, and other children.
Gardiner
“What think you, Becca?” Bennet queried.
“I think we should speak to Edward and see if we have enough ready capital to purchase a stake in his company. Like you and I are facile with languages and academic subjects, Edward is gifted in seeing potential in investments.” Becca was positive that if they did not have enough funds available, her father would loan them what was needed. She did not say that to Thomas because she was well aware that he was not comfortable with her father assisting them financially after, as he termed it, Papa had already done so much. In addition to everything else, he had dowered each of their daughters with five and twenty thousand pounds. Besides, if Papa added funds, they would pay him more than his capital from the dividends they would earn from Edward.
“I agree, I will write to him and tell him we are interested,” Bennet stated.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Over the years, the secret of who the Devons were had been well protected, but that all changed when, in the autumn of 1796, Their Majesties were on the way back to Buckingham House to prepare for the upcoming little season. They decided to break their journey in Meryton, and when Mr William Lucas, the current mayor of the town, heard about the royals being present, he made a flowery and very complimentary speech before the King and Queen.
The Sovereign was so flattered that he knighted the man on the spot, which made him Sir William Lucas.
Becca and her four eldest children had taken tea in the confectionery shop found on Meryton’s Main Street. Had Becca been aware of who was present, she would have walked in the opposite direction, but she was not paying attention as she was cleaning the last few remnants of a messy treat off Lizzy’s face when she heard the last voice she would have expected outside of one of the royal palaces.
“Lady Rebecca Cavendish, how is it we see you here?” the Queen enquired. “Of course, we heard you married a local gentleman. Are these your children?”
“All but one, Your Majesty,” Becca responded as she sank into a curtsy. Henry gave a bow, and Jane and Lizzy gave creditable curtsies, but poor Mary who at three was rather shy, hid behind her Mama’s skirts. “Our youngest is at home as he is but one.”
There was no mistaking the mouths hanging open of those Meryton residents who had been watching the now Sir William deliver his speech. Not only did the Queen seem to know Mrs Bennet, but she addressed her with a title and used the name Cavendish. Not a few were able to puzzle out that Mr and Mrs Devon were in fact the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire.
“Are Their Graces still in the country?” King George III asked.
“They were, Your Majesty,” Becca curtsied to the King. “They are on their way to Town and will arrive to visit us in a day or two.” As much as she hated the whole town discovering the truth of her family’s rank, she could do nothing but reply to the King and Queen with complete frankness.
For a moment, Sarah Lucas, now Lady Lucas, had thought she would be the highest-ranked woman in the area. She now realised that was not to be. Mrs Bennet, no, Lady Rebecca was the daughter of a duke. She, like the others in the crowd, wanted to know why subterfuge had been employed. “ Lady Rebecca , why did you not tell us who you and your parents really are?” Lady Lucas queried bitterly. Neither she nor her husband missed the distaste on Their Majesties’ countenances at her outburst.
At that moment the Queen understood that this had been the place where the Cavindishes came to escape all of the fawning, pomp, and circumstance of the Ton , and she had inadvertently unmasked her. “Lady Rebecca, tell Mrs Lucas and the rest here why you and your family kept your rank hidden in this hamlet,” she commanded.
With profound gratitude, Becca explained that it was never done to play the locals for fools, but it was so that they would be able to have some normalcy in their lives. She told them that was why she and Mr Bennet very seldom spent time in London.
By the time the reasons had been explained, most in the crowd were nodding their understanding, and Sarah Lucas learnt that nobility was far more than a title.
The Queen leaned over and spoke to the King so only he could hear her. “We issue a royal command that unless the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, or any of their family members, give permission for their true rank to be revealed, all of you will hold that information in confidence,” His Majesty decreed.
There were bows and curtsies from all who were watching in awe.
Becca looked at the Queen, who understood the lady wanted to speak to her. She inclined her head, and Becca approached and spoke very quietly to Her Majesty. The Queen nodded and then spoke to her husband in sotto voce .
William Lucas could not believe that he had been knighted and then, thanks to his wife’s bitterness, lost his knighthood moments later. He saw the King was about to address him. He prepared himself for the bad news he believed was about to be shared with him.
“Thanks to Lady Rebecca’s magnanimous request, your knighthood stands, Sir William.” His Majesty turned to Lady Lucas. “We suggest you think before you speak in future.”
The crowd was dismissed with a reminder not to reveal who the Devons were. Once they were alone, the Queen asked to be introduced to the Bennet children. It was no surprise to Becca that Lizzy was not awed by the royals, and they were charmed by her impertinence.
Once the two Sovereigns had boarded their royal coach and all of their retinue either in their carriages or on their horses, they were off. Becca knew she would have much to tell her parents when they arrived.
When she reached home with the children, Becca related the happenings to Thomas and Mother. They were greatly amused, especially at Lizzy being impertinent to the Queen and Her Majesty being charmed by her, impertinence and all.
The next day there was a stream of local ladies who called. Becca made sure they understood she wanted to be known as Mrs Bennet, and those who had been invited to use her familiar name were still to do so.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Marie and Will had still not been gifted with more children, but Connie had. Like Becca before her, she had delivered twins, but identical daughters—Felicity and Harriet—in April 1795, and a son and heir—Ian—had been delivered in October 1797.
Other than the local population being a little more cowed by the Devons , by the time the newest Bennet was born on the penultimate day of January 1798, things, with regards to how the local population related to the Devons and their family, were just as they had been before the Queen’s unintentional slip.
The sixth child to be gifted to the Bennets was a girl, and she was named Elaine Catherine for her mother’s godmother and Grandmama Beth’s late sister. She was called Ellie by all of those in the family.
As excited as they were that another sibling had been born, the twins, who would be seven in March, thought only of the pony each would receive on his or her birthday. Jane had received hers on her seventh birthday, almost two years past, and she had named her Butterfly. After almost two years of riding Butterfly, it was as if Janey had been born in the saddle.
Just like had occurred with Jane, a month before their birthday, Bennet would take Henry and Lizzy to Haye Park to look at the ponies the Gouldings had for sale, so they would be able to choose one for themselves.
As they had discussed in April 1795, the Bennets had purchased the quarter share of Edward Gardiner’s business he had offered them. Based on two years’ worth of dividends so far, they had not regretted that decision for an instant. In April of the current year, they would also receive a return for the third year.