Dinner had been dreadful.

It was always a terrible bore with Anne and Lady Catherine. About half the nights some guest had been invited, most often Mr. Hawdry the local magistrate, who was a close friend of Lady Catherine. Her guests were usually quite old, and they thought like Lady Catherine and admired her excessively. Dinner with Lady Catherine's friends bored him almost as much as dinner with Anne and Lady Catherine.

He'd been ordered by his aunt to stay at Rosings until the wedding, and he would stay. He would elaborately display that he had stayed at dinner each night.

Richard's presence added awkward to boring. Richard tried to keep conversation going, but it was desultory. He and Anne looked at each other constantly, sometimes without bothering to hide their gaze from Lady Catherine. Lady Catherine took the silence of everyone else as a fine reason to lecture Richard about his dress, about how best to manage his regiment, and about how they had made a terrible mess of things by exiling Napoleon again instead of executing him.

"Mark my words! I do not care that he is stuck on an island in the midst of the vast ocean, and guarded by the whole fleet of Britain. That cunning creature will find some way to gain the loyalty of his jailors, and then he will take a ship back to Europe and raise another army and this time he will win. Wellington said Waterloo was a close-run thing — next time we'll lose, and he will cut all our heads off."

Richard rolled his eyes. "The crown hardly asked my opinion — though I would never have suggested he be executed. He broke his parole, but in every other respect he proved to be an honorable opponent. He had no need for blackmail to achieve his purposes. He built up his family. He did not care who was the eldest and who was the second son. In some families people care for their relatives only if they are first sons and rich. But Napoleon gave his brothers responsible positions and kingdoms."

"Boney is a despicable grotesque parvenu. He disordered everything. I can stand anything but disorder."

"When Napoleon came back and faced the army of Marshal Ney sent to execute him, do you know you what he did? He opened his shirt to display his naked breast to the army and said, if any of you shall shoot your emperor, do it now. That is a man. A true man. Not some coward hiding behind a woman's rights."

Anne said softly, "But it is the place of a woman to be a woman."

Darcy pushed his mind to remember Elizabeth's soft hand on his shoulder. He would not let the anxiety set in once again. It would do none of them any good for him to feel miserable.

Richard spent the remainder of the dinner sharply disagreeing with every piece of advice Lady Catherine offered, which made his aunt sneer at him in a knowing way.

When dinner ended and they proceeded to the drawing room, Darcy looked at the piano and the window through which the reddish dying sun shone. He looked at the thick red rug on the carpet. He looked at the empty fireplace. He looked at the painting of Lady Catherine and Sir Lewis above the mantelpiece.

Anne sat quietly at Lady Catherine's side, while Richard sat next to her. He and Lady Catherine started to argue about policy once more. Lady Catherine said, "Come here, Darcy. You are to be my son. Explain to your cousin why he is wrong."

"I quite would prefer not to."

"You should be more obedient."

Darcy's face hardened. "I am no dog you can call to heel."

"Hahahaha." Richard slapped his leg. "Here is some of the Darcy spirit. You are not yet a dog for our aunt to play with. But do not worry. You will come around to obeying in good time."

He needed some way to change the tone of this evening. "I wish some entertainment. Miss Bennet is present in the house, and I recall she has a fine skill with the piano. I would also like to see Emma again. She is a sweet girl who I've taken to. Do have them called in from the nursery."

Lady Catherine shrugged. "As you wish. Your memory deceives you as to Miss Bennet's talents, they are poor, but I have not quizzed that child on her studies for some days. She is entirely recalcitrant. But it would be improper for her to have too great accomplishments. She should not outshine a noble girl such as my Anne, even if Anne is limited by her ill health."

Anne looked pale and grey now. But when she smiled at Richard while Lady Catherine turned away from them to pull the bell and call the servant, there was a little of a glow in Anne.

Rather than wearing her hair down in the pretty curls she'd worn on Sunday, Elizabeth had pulled her hair into a tight severe knot, which pulled her skin back and made her look strained and unhappy. Darcy frowned a little at her. It was the look of a shrewish governess, not the beautiful young woman she was.

"Well, Miss Bennet!" Lady Catherine's thundering voice brought Elizabeth and Emma to her side. "What have you been doing with your charge of late?"

"We have been working on the standard accomplishments. Emma drew a pretty picture for you, and I am teaching her to net a screen, and we have worked on the piano a great deal." Elizabeth gestured towards the instrument. "If you wish us to demonstrate."

"The kings of England, in order."

Emma blinked at Lady Catherine's order. "Start. This is the sort of matter I consider of more importance than any other for her. She will never be a true gentlewoman, but through the study of history she may gain some moral grounding. It would be wrong if by acquiring false accomplishments — for without distinguished breeding she shall never have true taste in drawing or music — she might appear to outshine a lady such as my Anne by a facile facility. However the moral lessons of history are true. Recite the kings of England in order."

Darcy felt acid burning up his stomach as Emma gnawed on her lip, while Elizabeth fidgeted nervously, looking every direction but at him. She wrung her hands together.

Emma at last said, "Alfred the Great was the first king."

Lady Catherine put her hands in her lap and leaned forward, watching Emma's face like a hawk closing in upon a mouse.

"Very good," she cooed in a sugared voice, full of menace. "And the second king?"

"His son Edward the Elder. And then his son Aethelstan. And then…" Emma paused and swallowed. She paused for a long time.

Lady Catherine's eyes seemed to slowly light up as the last rays of the dimming sunlight shone on her.

Emma burst out, "Edward the Martyr."

Crack. Before Darcy could move Lady Catherine had slapped Emma hard across the face. She then looked at Elizabeth. "Miss Bennet, you have been remiss in the teaching of history. I shall expect next time I speak with your charge that she have all our noble monarchs memorized. She also ought to have the line of the Roman Emperors memorized. Mr. Darcy wished for you entertain him. Music, I believe."

Lady Catherine waved her hand absently.

Darcy stood angrily. Even as Elizabeth curtsied to his aunt he bit out, "This is unacceptable. I will not accept this. Madam, any agreement between us — I will end any agreement if I ever see any indication of you behaving in such an unacceptable manner again. A child! You struck a child."

"My dear nephew, I hope when you have children—"

"You shall never see any children I have. You shall be my inveterate enemy if you behave in this manner. I can accept much, but this, this I will not accept. Without delay speak to your lawyer and transfer the guardianship of this girl to Anne and I. If you do not, I shall not…I swear I shall not accept your other demands — to slap a child over such a matter. That is too far."

Lady Catherine snarled, "You do not give me orders. Not about children. Not about any matter. You are to serve me! I am the one to give orders to you. I know how you raise children. I know what comes when a child is in your care."

"Madam! We are in company."

"So you wish me to remain silent. Miss Bennet has no one she can tell. Everyone else here is family. If you wish silence, you will obey me. Obey, and be silent."

"I will do the thing you asked. I will submit so far. I am not your dog. If you ask more, if you refuse me this…I will not accept it. If you harm this child further…" Darcy swallowed. Something his cousin had said earlier in the day rose to his mind. "Push a man too far and he will snap. When you slapped this girl… Give me protection of the girl, or I shall refuse everything. When Anne and I marry, Emma shall come to live with us. You are no fit guardian for a child."

Lady Catherine and Darcy glared at each other.

Darcy's heart beat fast. His chest was tight with rage and resentment. His muscles were tight with the repressed desire to fight.

Darcy watched Elizabeth's pale face as she observed the confrontation. It possibly was wrong, but he would throw even his sister's reputation away to protect Emma because Elizabeth loved her.

Lady Catherine rose with a disgusted grunt. "Enough. Emma is a filthy girl. Ignorant and savage. I am done with you all tonight. Done. Nephew, you are a fool. You shall end what slender hope I had for reforming this filthy girl's character. She will be a sinner. She will be filthy like her filthy whore mother. But I'll give the filthy creature to you. I hope you learn to beat her."

The old woman haltingly stepped her way out of the room while everyone watched in silence. She slammed the door behind her.

Anne snorted. "I have no interest in the brat. Why do you want her — Oh! Very clever. I had thought better of you, but very clever. You have arranged a mistress right under my nose. Miss Bennet, I also thought better of you. Your sister is in the same profession. I should not be surprised that you turn to it as well."

"I do not—" Darcy began.

Anne rose. "I do not care to hear your denial. It is obvious you like her vastly more than me. I wish you would not flaunt it."

She left the room.

Richard looked at Elizabeth with a speculative frown.

Elizabeth looked away from the three of them and studied the painting over the fireplace. She had deep red spots in her cheeks.

He now could protect Emma and Elizabeth from Lady Catherine, but Darcy was not sure if this evening was a disaster or a victory. He pulled in a deep breath. "Miss Bennet, I assure you; I would never act in a dishonorable manner."

Elizabeth nodded coldly and did not look at him.

"What's a mistress?" Emma asked in her high-pitched child's voice.

There was a long moment of silence and Darcy winced, fearing that Elizabeth would never speak to him again.

She laughed. "Dear, it is time for you to go to bed. Goodnight, Mr. Darcy, Colonel Fitzwilliam. Goodnight."