Chapter 1

Darcy quietly sat in an armchair in the darkest corner of the room. Before claiming his seat, he had turned the chair toward the wall. It made the space feel smaller which reminded him of the comfort he had felt as a child reading great adventures while huddled under a pantry table or within the small confines of a hastily constructed blanket fort. He had found this type of calm, small spaces helped to counter the frightening worlds created by his favorite authors and coming to life within his mind. He could not claim that sitting in a dark room, of an unfamiliar estate, facing a wall was normal, but he had thrown normal to the wind moments before. And right now he needed to do what was required to calm his racing heart.

Just as he had in his youth, he held a book, and just as before, the magic of the words provided him with the much needed distraction, transporting him to another place, another time. So engrossed was he in its contents that he did not hear the soft squeak of the door's hinges. He did not hear the gentle footsteps of Elizabeth as she glided into the room in her satin slippers. Nothing, not even the shutting of the door, drew him out of the pages of his book. Nothing, that is, until the porcelain vase hit the floor shattering into a hundred pieces while a bloodcurdling scream escaped Elizabeth's mouth.

It was sheer shock that prevented him from immediately reacting and he quickly recognized his good fortunate.

"Elizabeth!" Mrs. Bennet shouted as she burst through the door, "What has gotten into you?"

"I am sorry, Mama. I…"

Mr. Bennet's footsteps could be heard as he entered the room with purpose. "Leave us, Fanny." After a hurried rustle of skirts, the door shut and Mr. Bennet continued. "What have you done with him?"

"I do not understand. With whom?"

"Mr. Darcy. I had suggested he wait and speak with you after you and I had finished our discussion. Where is he?"

"He was not in the room when I entered, Papa."

"This is indeed a stroke of luck. Perhaps he chose to take a turn in the garden." The relief in Mr. Bennet's voice was palpable.

"You had promised you would not agree to this unless you had found a worthy man. How can you judge Mr. Darcy's character so throughly with so little interaction?" It was clear Elizabeth's hot temper that had just been on display still lay active just below the surface.

"Elizabeth, this is not about me or Mr. Darcy. You have chosen, of your own volition, to agree to this courtship. I have simply informed you of the man's offer and my own approval. If you feel the offer so distasteful, you may still decline."

"Is it truly my choice, Papa? You dangle my sisters' future over a precipice and tell me that they might be saved if I sacrifice my own happiness and freedom. I would not call that a choice but blackmail."

"No one is asking you to marry the man, Lizzy. All you must do is allow him to court you. Essentially, you would simply need to spend time with him and manage to behave yourself." The tinkle of ceramics wafted in the air as Mr. Bennet swept his foot along the floor gathering several shards of the vase into a small pile. "It seems this could prove to be a greater challenge than I had anticipated."

"If I am to act the part of a perfect lady, do you not believe we are deceiving the man? Besides, to what purpose would Mr. Darcy make this request? I feel certain he has an ulterior reason."

"As do you. Regardless of Mr. Darcy's rationale, I believe that beneath it all you two would make a splendid match. If he hides his reason for his actions, I cannot feel guilty that you do the same. I can assure you, you will not act the role of a perfect lady. You will simply be practicing keeping your anger in check. In this way, he will see the Lizzy that you show to your family on nearly every occasion. Perhaps once you have each seen the other's true character, you will reveal your motives." Darcy listened intently, but could find no clues as to why the conversation ceased. But after a brief silence, continued, "Come, my dear. Let us take a stroll around the garden. It will do your heart good and perhaps we will find your gentleman caller."

Darcy remained in his chair replaying the past few moment. This was the woman he had committed to calling on, escorting to social gatherings, and introducing to his inner circle. The horror at what he had just done - what he had agreed to - began to swelling. He remembered the look in her eyes. The look that had convinced him to act. There had been a fire burning behind her dark chocolate orbs. Now he had seen first hand the release of her passion. He felt a torrent of mortification building but he also felt it washed aside by a wave of intrigue and excitement. This was a woman like no other he had seen. She flouted convention and the rules of society in her. She was not one to shrink from challenges but to face them head on with determination and fury. Like a wild and powerful horse, her potential could be monumental if she could simply be broken. But, he wondered, did he have it in him to succeed.

"I asked the cook to make your favorite,"Mrs. Bennet beamed at her husband. The aroma of the roast had filled the room. Normally, Lizzy's mouth would be watering much like Lydia's seemed to be, but the sight of the feast reminded her of the last time her mother had served a roast. It had been two months before the Meryton assembly which was meant to provide Jane with the opportunity to come out.

"Papa, it is simply not fair!" Lydia and Kitty exclaimed in unison. The family had finished grace and Mrs. Bennet raised the topic of the upcoming assembly. Lydia turned to her mother, "Please, Mama. It has been nearly two years. Can you not convince Papa his preposterous rule will only result in all of us becoming old maids?"

Mrs. Bennet sighed. She had spent the better part of the past two years attempting to do just that. What had started as a quarrel between herself and her eldest daughter, Lizzy, had ended with her husband's proclamation: None of the Bennet girls would be permitted to enter society until their eldest sister, Elizabeth, had accepted an offer to be courted by an appropriate suitor. Mrs. Bennet had found long ago that her husband was not to be swayed, at least not by her. But she squeezed the hand of her youngest with reassurance hoping that a quick word with Elizabeth after dinner might help solve this challenging impasse.

Miss Bennet had an even stronger desire than her younger sister's to convince their father of the error of his ways. She did not feel Kitty or Lydia were ready just yet for the scrutiny and pressures of society, but her guilt at keeping her sister, Jane, confined at Longbourn was great. The dispute with her mother began on the morning she refused her cousin's offer of marriage. As her father's rightful heir, Mr. Collins had made his offer to the eldest daughter in the name of honor. His shock and offense at having been refused was so great the gentleman lost all airs of refinement, politeness, and civility. His loose tongue would have caused any woman offense, but Lizzy was not just any woman. While Jane might have colored in the cheeks and asked the man to leave, Lizzy, who never fully comprehending why she was not afforded the same freedoms and rights as men, forgot herself and told Mr. Collins some cold, hard truths.

"Mr. Collins! Even if you were not a pompous, self-righteous braggart, I would be forced to refuse your offer. Your intellectual facilities leave everything to be desired and I should die of boredom within a year if I were ever to agree to marry a man as dull as you. Even though you insult my family, my birth, my manners, and all else I hold dear, I would have felt at least the pangs of pity for you had you not so clearly demonstrated just now your complete disregard for my right as a person to hold an opinion counter to your own."

Mr. Collin's face had grown red and his hands balled into fists. The next moments were a blur. Later, Lizzy would recall having seen a fierce, glint of anger in his eyes that could have suggested he might strike her in anger. But had this been a possibility, her reaction had occurred so swiftly it left no opportunity to confirm or deny her suspicions. Mr. Collins version of events would differed from Miss Bennet's in all but the most material of facts. And it was not until after the excitement subsided the other witnesses would enter the room. It was, in fact, the sound of a vase crashing against Mr. Collin's skull that brought the rest of the Bennet ladies into the small parlor.

"Lizzy! Mr. Collins! What happened?" Mrs. Bennet had at least enough sense to suspect in that moment that the morning events may not result in the joyous celebration she had been expecting.

Mr. Collins reached up to his head and felt a warm moist substance mixed in his hair. This moisture turned out to be blood. He was not permanently or seriously injured by the incident, but the damage done to his confidence was irreparable. "Your daughter, Madam, is a wild animal who deserves to be caged! The moment this estate transfers into my hands, you will all pay the price for her foolish and violent decisions." He walked to the door, took possession of his hat, and left Longbourn that very hour.

It came as no surprise to anyone in the Bennet household that Lizzy soon found herself in her father's library behind locked doors. "I did not attack him, Papa," she explained emphatically, "I simply picked up the vase anticipating he would step forward and bump the stand on which it sat. Then, it simply slipped out of my hands."

Mr. Bennet looked at his daughter. He hoped he had managed to control his features and appear stern in spite of his amusement. "Now Lizzy, you do not think I would believe a vase slipped out of your hands onto a man's skull do you?"

"No….but he is not the tallest of gentlemen," Miss Bennet looked at her hands folded in her lap while her father suppressed a smile. "But he was angry, Papa. He might have tried to hurt me."

This was too much for the man. A hearty laugh escaped. "My dear, that weak and fidgety man has about as much of a chance of hurting my daughter as the wind has of hurting Buckingham Palace. If you had been born male I would have the mind to send you off to France, for I would know you could single handedly defeat Emperor Napoleon himself."

Lizzy shuffled her feet and avoided making eye contact. He father was right. She might have sensed Mr. Collins's intent to act, but she had the strength and means to respond once an attack had been launched. If she were entirely honest with herself, she would admit she broke the vase on his head because he was a terrible little man who deserved it. This assessment was not based on his proposal alone. Rather, Lizzy had been studying the man's character during his week long visit leading up to the morning's events and had told herself he was someone who might just benefit from a bit of humiliation. Even if he did not, the events of the morning had given her great satisfaction. Lizzy looked to her father, "Surely, you could not have wanted me to marry him."

"No! Of course not. But you sit here now not because of your refusal but because of your method of refusal." Mr. Bennet who had been pacing now sat down behind his desk. "Oh, my little tigress, what shall I do with you? Perhaps I overindulged you while you growing up. If only your sister Jane had been born first. Her mothering nature and sweet disposition would have surely made a positive impact on your temperament. She could have taught you how to control and channel that temper of yours. I dear say, I probably encouraged it. And now, you are building yourself quite the reputation." Mr. Collins had not been the first man who Lizzy had confronted. He had simply been the slowest to hear her message and therefore the first to suffer physical harm directly at her hands. "You have the spirit and intellect to make the right man very happy, but the man will need to be very brave to approach you after all of your antics. And if he does find the courage, you would have so little tolerance for the faults, I do not see how you would ever give him time to demonstrate his merits. I cannot dispute that this man was not Mr. Collins. But — a man with more gumption, insight, and fire will find you one day. The question is, how will I force you to give him a chance?"

"I have no intention of marrying, Papa. It is clear from all the men I have met, none could make me happy."

Mr. Bennet raised an eyebrow. He knew of Elizabeth's stubborn streak. She had agreed, most reluctantly, to spend time with Mr. Collins in order to appease her mother. He had thought it a bad idea, but Mrs. Bennet would not be quieted. Now after the fallout, his eldest had dug in her heals and would refuse any future brave suitors simply on principle. "So be it," he said in resignation. "But you must explain your decision to your sisters. It is only fitting, after all, that they wait their turn to come out until after you have begun at least a courtship. Since you have no interest in such things, it appears your mother and I will continue to enjoy a household of daughters well into our old age."

Lizzy looked up at her father confused and unsettled. "I applaud you, Father, for refraining from giving into Mama's demands with regards to my younger sisters. Should you need an excuse to stave off her ever increasing requests, I am more than happy to oblige; however, you clearly cannot mean to force Jane to wait to come out. She is meant to enter society in two month's time. Have you not already purchased her admission to the Assembly?"

"This is precisely what I mean, my dear. And I shall give her ticket to the Lucases." Mr. Bennet was loath to force his daughter's hand but if he hoped she would once again consider a suitor, he would need to use her affection for Jane to accomplish his goal.

Lizzy soon left the library to seek out Jane, and the moment the path was clear, Mrs. Bennet stepped into the room and closed the door behind her. "Did you tell her she must go to Mr. Collins and beg for forgiveness?"

"She will prepare a proper letter of apology and will be contrite," Mr. Bennet said without looking up at his wife.

Mrs. Bennet sat down in the chair Lizzy had just vacated, and Mr. Bennet accepted that his gripping novel would need to wait yet another half hour. "Do you think that he might reconsider and renew his offer — if she agrees to be an obedient wife?"

"I certainly hope not."

Mrs. Bennet was disappointed but not surprised. "You give her far too much freedom, Mr. Bennet. She will never find a more advantageous match. And he would probably not take her now even if we had a sizable dowery to offer." Mr. Bennet seemed to find this revelation less upsetting than his wife. "I do hope you have some plan in mind to ensure she will marry if asked again," Mrs. Bennet continued.

"Well," Mr. Bennet considered his response, "I have taken measures to ensure she will seriously consider accepting a courtship with the next suitor whom I deem worthy," he offered. Mrs. Bennet looked delighted. She clapped her hands together and a bright, cheerful smile graced her face. Mr. Bennet continued. "I told her that none of her sisters shall be permitted to enter society until she is being courted."

Mrs. Bennet's face fell. As if in a daze the words, "But why?" escaped her lips.

"Although spirited, Lizzy is a fine girl. She will make an excellent wife and I believe she will be happiest in such a role. She deserves to be happy despite her stubbornness and a few mistakes." Mr. Bennet reaches across the divide and took his wife's hands, which had been resting on the desk, into his own. "But sometimes, we fail to see ourselves as clearly as those around us. I fear that she needed some coaxing to leave her future options open."

"No!" Mrs. Bennet said jerking her hands away. "This is not what I meant when I told you she needed to marry. I want to ensure Lizzy does not become an old maid! Why, your plan will simply result in five spinster daughters!" Mrs. Bennet's mind began to race. "Should none of them marry, where shall I live after you have left me?"

"Come now, dear. Perk up. You must know the law prevents me from leaving you." Mrs. Bennet looked aghast but the twinkle in her husband's eyes assured her he had not misunderstood her meaning and was simply engaging in one of his favorite pastimes - teasing her. "And I do not think our daughters' futures are as dire as you predict. I believe I will find a suitable match for our Lizzy within six months and that her love for her sisters will soften her heart to the hopeful suitor." Mrs. Bennet gave him a look that spoke more of her doubts than words ever could. As it turned out, while Mr. Bennet's knowledge was superior to his wife's in the areas of philosophy, strategy, literature, history, and mathematics, he was not her equal in affairs of the heart. The six months came and went and Miss Bennet had not accepted a single offer of courtship — primarily as none had been made.

"Elizabeth?"

Mr. Bennet's words woke Lizzy from her memories. Elizabeth wrung her napkin in her lap. She had believed at the time that things could not get worse than they had been that day. Now that her father's plan was coming to fruition, she found she was wrong.

It had all started two weeks earlier...