Page 38 of The Shades of Pemberley
“She has always had a way with them,” said Mrs. Bennet. “I shall not sport with your intelligence and say I do not struggle to understand my second daughter—but I have never doubted her abilities.”
“Lizzy is exceptional,” said Jane.
As Darcy knew of the sisters’ close relationship, he knew Jane had mixed feelings about the coming separation through marriage from her dearest sister. Jane would never envy Elizabeth’s good fortune, but as the elder sister, Darcy knew she had wondered if she would find happiness.
“This morning, I wrote a letter to my friend Bingley. As I know he regretted leaving Netherfield, he will wish to return at the earliest opportunity.”
Miss Bennet colored as Darcy intended, while her mother appeared contemplative. “We shall welcome his return, of course,” said Mrs. Bennet. “Jane enjoyed his company; she is eager to renew their acquaintance.”
“As I thought,” said Darcy, unable to keep the self-satisfaction from his tone and face.
Darcy’s mother distracted Mrs. Bennet at that moment, and Miss Bennet turned a glare on Darcy, though she was so sweet and obliging that it was a poor attempt at best.
“You, Fitzwilliam Darcy, have spent so much time in my sister’s company that you have become a tease.”
“Yes, Jane; she has taught me to great effect.”
After a few moments of regarding each other, they burst into quiet chuckles together.
Had Darcy not been enamored with Elizabeth from almost the first moment she entered society, he could have imagined esteeming Jane very well.
Given Bingley’s obvious interest in her, it was perhaps fortunate that matters had turned out as they did.
Bingley would make Jane Bennet a happy woman, and Darcy did not suppose he was at all putting the cart before the horse.
AT LENGTH, THE BENNET ladies said their farewells and returned to Longbourn, leaving Darcy in the company of his mother, Georgiana, and Mrs. Younge.
The afternoon proved a trial on his patience, for a matter arose where he did not expect vexation.
As he had been absent from the estate for some time, Darcy made his way to the study after luncheon, intending to go over a few matters laid out by his steward.
Not long after, he heard a knock on the door.
To his surprise, when the door opened, it revealed the stern figure of Mrs. Younge. The woman sat at his invitation, leaving the door ajar for propriety’s sake as any good employee would do, and when he asked after her business with him, she did not hesitate to make her case.
“Mr. Darcy, I regret the necessity, but I have a matter of some concern to discuss with you.”
“Yes?” asked Darcy, curious about her meaning.
“Miss Darcy is a young girl who has inhabited a certain level of society all her life—she is unaccustomed to the company she now keeps.”
Darcy frowned. “Are you suggesting that my betrothed and her family do not merit Georgiana’s company?”
“I do not mean to offend, sir,” said she, appearing anything but sorry, “yet I cannot but tell you the truth. Miss Darcy is lowering herself by associating with the Bennet ladies; I cannot suppose such associations are at all advisable, considering her future position in society. If their unrestrained behavior affects her manners, it will be a detriment to her prospects.”
“That is nonsensical, Mrs. Younge,” said Darcy, the woman’s charges displeasing him. “The Bennets are a respectable and gentle family. Though they are not of the first circles, if you recall, I was not of the first circles myself until recently. There is nothing the matter with them.”
“On the contrary, Mr. Darcy,” said Mrs. Younge, “their manners are not fashionable, which will lead to difficulties for Miss Darcy. The level of society in which she will move has certain standards of comportment she cannot meet if she continues in this fashion.
“Please understand that I am not trying to disparage your future family; I am only telling you the truth.”
“The truth as you see it,” snapped Darcy.
The woman shrugged, but she made no more attempt to make that point. Instead, she pivoted to a subject she had already raised and more than once.
“It is the perfect time for Miss Darcy to separate herself from your future family and engage in a little reflection about her future. As such, I suggest taking her to the house in Ramsgate to stay for a time—as you know, it is a notion I discussed with her brother before his untimely passing.”
“I might wonder, Mrs. Younge,” said Darcy, “why you have pushed this Ramsgate scheme with the zeal you have. Is it so important that Georgiana go there?”
“As I said—”
“I am well aware of what you said and do not need you to repeat it.”
Silenced, Mrs. Younge did not retreat, her flat glare mutinous. Darcy waited for a moment to see if she would attempt to make her case, and when she did not, he addressed her again.
“As you appear to have forgotten, I shall remind you.
Georgiana is to stay with me. For the moment, she will remain at Netherfield in my company, and when I marry, I suspect she will move to London to stay with the earl and countess.
This may not meet with your approval, but you had best get used to it, for it will not change.
“I am not interested in hearing any further attacks concerning my betrothed and her sisters.”
“I did not attack them.” The woman appeared almost offended.
“Perhaps not in so many words, but it is clear you disapprove of them. Let me be clear, so there is no misunderstanding. It is not your place to disapprove of anyone of a higher sphere than you inhabit yourself. You are a companion, Mrs. Younge, a woman hired to see to Georgiana’s education and help her move in society.
You should recall that I am to be married in two weeks; once I am married, I might consider your services unnecessary, for I do not think anyone could help my sister move in society so well as my wife. ”
Though Mrs. Younge did not release a verbal sign of her disdain, she felt it. “I am Miss Darcy’s companion, Mr. Darcy. You do not have the power to dismiss me.”
“While that might be true at present,” retorted Darcy, “I am soon to be Georgiana’s guardian by law, and that gives me at least half of the authority over her concerns. Your wages come from Pemberley’s coffers. Did you forget that?”
The glare with which the woman regarded him told Darcy she had not forgotten, little though she wished to acknowledge it. When she did not speak, Darcy continued her instruction, unwilling to listen to her any further.
“Even if I cannot dismiss you by my word alone, if I speak to Fitzwilliam, he will agree with me as I am to have primary responsibility for her care. Do not test me, Mrs. Younge, or you may find yourself seeking a new position.”
In truth, Darcy had rarely seen a woman so proud as Mrs. Younge among the servant class.
Then again, he had never had to deal with such a woman himself for obvious reasons, and as companions were more than servants though less than family, he supposed a certain measure of self-confidence was understandable.
It was fortunate for her continued employment that she did not appear inclined to belabor the point.
“Very well,” said she at length. “Please, Mr. Darcy, do not suppose that I intend any slight on the Miss Bennets, for I know no harm of them. Though candid, my opinions are honest—Miss Darcy’s brother always respected and appreciated this.”
“I expect he did,” said Darcy. “However, I am not him. Georgiana suffered significant losses in her brief life, and her most recent loss was only three months ago. By her own account, she appreciates the joy my fiancée’s family has brought into her life.
For the foreseeable future, she will remain with us and with her uncle in town.
Please accept that this is the best for her. ”
The nod the woman offered was curt, and she soon excused herself thereafter.
So disturbed was Darcy by the encounter that after he thought on it for a time, he summoned the housekeeper and gave her a set of instructions.
Not long thereafter, Georgiana entered his study, curious to know why he had summoned her.
“You were not with Mrs. Younge?”
Appearing nonplused by the question, Georgiana shook her head. “No, I have been in your mother’s company this afternoon. Mrs. Younge retired to her rooms with a slight indisposition not long after luncheon.”
Darcy frowned, wondering what it meant that the woman had misled her charge. “Please say nothing to your companion, but she approached me not fifteen minutes ago to again press for the holiday she suggested for you.”
Georgiana’s eyes widened. “The stay in Ramsgate?”
“The same,” agreed Darcy. “For some reason I cannot fathom, she appears intent upon taking you to Ramsgate, for this is at least the third time she has raised the subject since I have known her.”
“That is curious,” said Georgiana. “I cannot imagine why she is so insistent.”
“At the moment, she does not approve of Elizabeth and her family. She claims they are not a good example for you, that their ‘unfashionable manners’ would infect you and make it more difficult for you to move in society when you come out.”
Darcy did not miss Georgiana’s impatience to refute such a claim. “That is as far from the truth as it is possible to be. Introducing Kitty and Lizzy and all her family to me has proven my salvation.”
“Then you do not wish to go on a holiday with only Mrs. Younge for company?”
The girl shook her head in denial. “Not at all! I am enjoying your company far too much to wish for solitude.” Georgiana paused for a moment and then said in a softer voice: “When I was younger, I had as much solitude as I could endure.”
Upon seeing Darcy’s curiosity, Georgiana sighed and attempted a smile.
“I was lonely as a girl, William. Jamie was away at school for much of my childhood, and though he was affectionate and attentive when he was home, he was only home for a few weeks during the year. Though I lived with my father, he was not a warm man; he left me to my nurses and governesses, though we spent a certain amount of time in each other’s company, especially during mealtimes.
“Now that I have close friends, I have no wish to give them up. Mrs. Younge may push her scheme of going to the seaside for a vacation, but unless Kitty were to go with me, I cannot imagine I would be at all interested in it.”
“Then you will not go,” said Darcy. “Whatever Mrs. Younge thinks, she may keep it to herself. My only wish for you is that you are happy—if you are content in the company of my fiancée’s family, then that is where you will stay.”
“Thank you, William,” said Georgiana, beaming with pleasure.
“Not at all,” said Darcy. Considering his young cousin, he said: “Tell me what you think of Mrs. Younge. To own the truth, she is far more prideful than I expected from a woman in her position. Does she execute her duties well? Do you know anything about her background?”
Georgiana frowned. “Of her past, I know nothing, save that she is a widow. I have no complaint to make about the performance of her duties, for she is not a warm woman, but she is diligent and knowledgeable. I, too, have noticed a certain measure of pride in her, but it has never been a problem between us.”
“Did your brother hire her?”
“Jamie handled it, yes,” said Georgiana.
“When it pertained to my care, Jamie was far more involved because of Anthony’s position in the army.
Two years ago, Anthony was fighting on the continent, and my care fell to Jamie alone.
” The girl colored and smiled. “Those months in Jamie’s company were the happiest I ever spent with him.
He was not a man who enjoyed much society, so we spent several months together at Pemberley.
I never knew my brother so well as I knew him then. ”
“You make me quite envious, Georgiana. I have always wished to have a sibling.”
“Jamie was an excellent brother. While you have stepped into his role and performed with distinction, I cannot help but miss his presence in my life.”
“As is proper,” agreed Darcy. Then he turned his attention back to the subject at hand.
“For the moment, I shall do nothing about Mrs. Younge—if she performs her duties as she must, your familiarity with her is what matters. However, as I informed her, since you are to live with me, from a certain perspective, her services might no longer be required when I marry.”
Georgiana appeared surprised at the notion. “At our level of society, it is expected that even a girl with living parents will have a companion at least until her coming out.”
“Yes, I suppose that is for the best,” agreed Darcy. “However, she is not irreplaceable. Should she belittle Elizabeth or her sisters or continue this insistence on the Ramsgate proposal, I may reconsider her employment with us. Please keep me advised should anything arise.”
“Of course, I shall,” said Georgiana.
The discussion at an end, Georgiana let herself out of the room, leaving Darcy to his thoughts.
There was nothing on which he could pin his suspicions, but he had the distinct sense there was something about Mrs. Younge’s persistence that was not right.
As there was little he could do at the moment but resolve to watch her, he put the matter from his mind and returned to his work.