Warning: M- domestic violence. If you wish to skip it then skip the first section below.
Fanny was all astonishment as Penny continued to weave her tale. Penny did not hold any detail back and Fanny began to get more horrified as the story continued. She gasped when Penny recapped her Father forcing Mr. Wickham into marriage, "Did he really bring a pistol? But how could Wickham even consider getting out of the commitment? You must have needed to release him. I wonder that he did not just flee!"
Penny wondered that as well but just the same the next week they were wed and at what seemed like an appropriate time later, to outside eyes, Penny began to grow with child. From the start her marriage was just a facade. Once it was available to him, Mr. Wickham added her dowry to his remaining funds from Mr. Darcy and then was rarely seen at home. When he was home he railed at Penny that her housekeeping was inadequate, her appearance slovenly and her love for him obviously lacking. His abuse was mostly of the verbal form. He manipulated her into walking on egg shells. She was convinced that everything she did was poorly done. All of the finishing of Mrs. Annesley's star pupil could not override the constant barrage of insults that George slung at Penny.
She tried diligently to meet his demands. When she was six months pregnant and getting big with the weight of the baby her home was spotless and she cooked three meals a day just in case he was at home to partake. All day she slaved over being a better wife and demonstrating she loved him and yet her effort seemed only to make him angrier. The situation escalated one night over dinner when George threw his plate, food and all at her as she sat at the table. She tried to shield her face with her arms as best as she could but she was covered in stew and Mr. Wickham sneered and said, "There, now you appear the dirty whore that you are. You disgust me. I am going out this evening." In tears she fled from the room glad that her baby was not harmed and sought refuge in her Bible and chastised herself for not doing a better job with dinner.
The next time she saw him was late at night two days later when she was retiring for bed. He had not visited her since their union before their marriage and he had a glint in his eye that terrified her as she stood to greet him. She began by apologizing for two days previous and he laughed as if she had said something incredibly funny and then without saying a word he slapped her face, turned her around and bent her over the bed and had his way with her. He was rough and it took what seemed like forever to her and she cried out to him that he would hurt the baby, that he must not, but he continued unrelenting and painfully held her in place. When he finished he said nothing and only picked up his maniacal laugh.
In his absence at home, two weeks later, Penny heard a pounding on the door and when she got there she found one of her younger brothers in tears. He was speaking gibberish and running on and on about a fight and a drowning and Penny had to get him to calm down as he dragged her through the streets to their home. When they got there he was still not coherent but Penny understood immediately when she saw the body of her father, cold and blue on the living room floor. The local magistrate was there and he was asking Penny's mother questions. Mrs. Mills was devastated and Penny nearly threw up at the sight of her father. She gathered the remaining children to her and walked them back to her old room and they sat there and cried together as a family. It was a long afternoon and evening and before she could go home the magistrate asked for her address to visit her in the morning for interrogation. He was gentle with her but he told her it was his job to rule out foul play.
When she walked heavily over the threshold of her home with the burden of the last couple hours on her heart she saw her husband sitting next to the living room fire. He walked towards her, grabbed her face in his two hands and squeezed hard and menacingly said, "Penny, last night we were together. You will say that to the magistrate when he comes. If you do not say it I will kill you and that bastard child of yours in your sleep. Make no mistake about it. I will drown you as I drowned him for forcing me into this union. You are worthless to me and he represented that you would be a good wife. Now he is dead like you will be if you don't keep your mouth shut." Though he held her face in place roughly her eyes darted for a place to hide. This man had just confessed to murdering her father. Her child's father was a cold blooded murderer. He consigned her to her room for the night and locked her in.
She heard him preparing to go to the bar or no doubt a gambling house later and Penny thanked the Lord for His Mercy. She had long held a copy of the key to her room. She would flee tonight. She waited for the door to shut and then sprang into action. Packing several band boxes and her small purse of funds that she kept from her husband she left the house in darkness and went to the one place that she knew she would be safe.
Mrs. Annesley was sleeping lightly when she heard the rap on her door and saw it open to a vision of a scared looking Penny Mills. No, it was Penny Wickham now. Penny embarrassingly explained all to Mrs. Annesley who rapidly replaced shock with fuming ire. How could someone take advantage of this sweet and naive girl? When she got to this evening Mrs. Annesley protested and told her that she must stay, she must tell the truth and she must see him convicted. Penny protested that she could not. It would be the word of a woman against a man. She felt strongly that her neighbors would side with his account. They had heard Wickham mistreat her before. Perhaps they believed that he would not behave that way unless her incompetency were true. They also had to know that she was home that evening. She had walked next door to borrow her neighbor's smaller cast iron pot. Why would she cook a meal requiring extra pots if she had been alone? She felt hemmed in on all sides but mostly she was terrified of his retribution. Mrs. Annesley tried to press her and she continued to refuse until she gave up and asked her what it was that she did plan on doing and how she could help.
Penny wanted to be hidden. Did Mrs. Annesley know of a place that she could hide herself under another identity. She did not care about the arrangements or how people would view her given her pregnancy. Mrs. Annesley recommended to her a small mining operation about fifty miles inland from Ramsgate. They had requested a lady in their remote mining area to do the washing and cooking for the camp. The pay was meager and the job was beneath notice for one of her girls- she was going to reply in the negative. Now she thought it might do the trick for Penny and she suggested it as a possible solution. Without a second thought Penny agreed.
That very night she left Ramsgate with a signed and sealed letter of recommendation for a Miss Penny Tillar from Mrs. Annesley and her scant possessions. She kissed Harriet goodbye with tears in her eyes and gave her a note to be delivered to her mother that said briefly,
Mother,
I love you dearly. Know that I would not leave you unless it was absolutely necessary. One day I hope to see you again and we shall both see dear Papa again in heaven.
Yours, most sincerely,
Penny
When she arrived at the camp the men were none too keen on her family condition but she left them no choice but to settle on her when she immediately took over the cooking and the laundry and without complaint began to work tirelessly for them. At about two weeks into her position the foreman, a large man with dirty blond hair and a full beard approached her with some awkwardness and said, "'We can't but 'ha noticed Miss Tillar, that ye are in what we call the family way. We have a man 'ere what can 'elp with that when your time is near. 'E ain't no midwife or all but 'is dear departed had ten urchins 'e brought in the world hisself." The man looked nearly the color of a beet when he finished and Penny had the good grace to accept the name of the man and then change the subject to that evening's dinner.
Penny met this surrogate midwife, Mr. Spencer, the next day and was surprised to find that he sounded more educated and refined than his partners and it seemed to her that he had experienced great hardships and heart aches and sought the labor of the mines to erase his memories. His dearly loved wife was gone and eight of his ten children had not survived childhood. Both of the other boys had been lost at sea serving on the same vessel. He offered his advice and expertise to her willingly and stated that it would be his greatest privilege to help another child into the world. Though she was less trusting of humanity before, she trusted Mr. Spencer because she had no other choice.
When her waters broke several weeks later while the men were working she took to her small temporary hovel and dealt with her pain as best as she could. When she heard the men start walking back home after their work and then when they saw that she was not in her usual station next to the camp fire or down by the stream they sent a man to come looking for her. She covered herself and between pants said, "I am so sorry. I believe that my baby is ready to arrive. Dinner will have to be leftovers from lunch." The man's eyes got big and ran from the hovel to get Mr. Spencer who was already walking that way since he had guessed her time must have arrived. He stooped into her small living area and questioned Penny about the count that he had trained her too keep. He taught her that with each of his own children his wife insisted on not being confined to the bed. It was unconventional but he allowed her to pace, to bend, to squat in her pain. He kept his encouragement steady and dabbed her forehead with cold water when she asked. When the time came that he described as the "great pressure" he directed her that she was to push with her lower abdomen as best as she could in whatever position was most comfortable for her. She chose a squat as she held on to her small camp chair for balance and Mr. Spencer did as he did many times before her, he prepared to catch the child. When the lusty screams were heard Penny cried in disbelief while Mr. Spencer wrapped the small child in linens, announced it was a girl and explained to her that she needed to lay down so he could clean up the area and so she could feed the child and bond. He suggested that she stay bed-ridden for at least two weeks but she refused and said, "If I can walk tomorrow I shall and I shall execute my duty to you all."
He responded, "Just like my Bess you are. Having a baby one day and hollering at me the next." After some more advice and ministrations he left and Penny began to bask in the first true happiness that she had experienced since learning that her father was dead. She spoke to the baby, "Yes. Grandpa would have loved you. We will call you Emma after his mother. My beautiful Emma."
Penny and Emma stayed in the small tent city for another year and a half before the mine dried up and was dissolved. She continued to work with Emma strapped to her and the men doted on the little baby and loved to hold her and entertain her at meal times. She truly brightened the life of the camp and Penny was heartened to know that her little dear had twenty fathers who spoiled her. She wrote letters to Mrs. Annesley as a "P.G. Tillar" requesting her to look for a different station when she learned that the mine was soon to be completely exhausted and that is when Mrs. Annesley connected her to Miss Albright and suggested that she take her small savings from the mine and move to the town of Meryton.
Fanny was sitting down by the time that Penny brought her tale back full circle. She had wavered between intense hatred of Mr. Wickham and admiration of this seemingly delicate girl before her. She thought that Penny must possess an incredible inward strength but the poor girl continued to sell herself short.
"Penny, what were the contents of the letter? Will you tell me now?"
"Yes. It was a letter from Mrs. Annesley warning me that Mr. Wickham is here. In Meryton."
"I have known that for some time. In fact, Mrs. Annesley asked me to report that information to her. I wish she would have told me directly. I suppose it was your secret to keep. But surely he does not know you are here! He is with a regiment that was assigned here out of any number of places. Besides I do not know how he was even able to leave Ramsgate. You must have attracted more attention to him with your escape. How did he get away with murdering your father?"
Penny sighed, "I have it second hand from Mrs. Annesley but in his public testimony he declared that he was home with me and the neighbors corroborated that alibi because they did not know any better and because I always prepared dinner for two. He was of course asked about my whereabouts but he was able to say that I was in my confinement with family in the country and my trip could not be delayed due to complications. My mother, after reading my letter must have been manipulated into agreeing with him. I am almost afraid to know how he must have used her in her grief."
Fanny asked, "So they never revisited Mr. Wickham as being complicit in the crime after that testimony?"
"No, as I have heard, the investigation was dropped and no evidence of foul play was found. They concluded that he must have stumbled into the water and was not a strong enough swimmer to swim against the current."
"Well, we must protect you and keep him from learning you are here. You will stay in my protection until things blow over. Where is Emma?"
"She is at her nanny's home. I have asked the Overton family to host her for a couple of days because of the Netherfield ball ostensibly but I would not have imposed had it not been for Mr. Wickham's presence here."
They heard some commotion on the other side of the door and Fanny quickly ended with, "Ask Mrs. Reed if you can stay here for the next two nights- she will have room enough for you down here. If you do not see me or hear from me later this evening stay here until tomorrow. Do not go out of doors."
Penny nodded agreement and then Fanny in a loud voice opened the door and said, "Yes indeed Penny, my deserts will be the talk of the party!" She looked after Fanny's wake and murmured agreement She would not dare leave Netherfield hall. If worse came to worse she could always attempt to beg an audience from Mr. Sharp to see his master and explain her situation. Surely Mr. Darcy, knowing what he did of her from Mrs. Annesley would help protect her.
