Chapter 11—Fitzwilliam Darcy has an Epiphany and Mary is Made Anxious
Lizzy and Samuel had just crossed the stile in the fence that bordered the two estates when she spotted a rider coming in her direction. Mamma will be furious if she finds out I was seen all covered in mud, Lizzy thought. Well, I am discovered and must make the best of it.
The two continued to work their way through the field, avoiding puddles and mud as they could. It was not an entirely successful endeavor. More mud still managed to splash up from puddles hidden by the grass and Lizzy's boots were not fit to be seen. The horseman drew closer and stopped in front of the pair. It was Mr. Darcy, of course, thought Lizzy. The dapper and always well-turned out Mr. Darcy was staring at her. Mamma would have ten fits if she knew, Lizzy amended as she sighed.
"Good morning, Mr. Darcy," she greeted cheerily. "Are you enjoying your ride?"
"Good morning, Miss Bennet," he intoned. "Where are you bound?"
"I am to Netherfield, sir. We were sent a note that Jane is ill and I have brought my remedy basket to see if I can help her and determine if she is well enough to return home this morning. Mr. Jones would have left directions for her care and I am certain they would contain what I have here." Lizzy lifted her basket slightly. "And this is Samuel who is helping me by carrying some clothing for Jane and another pair of boots for me!" Lizzy smiled broadly at the gentleman on the horse.
"I did not know that Mr. Jones was called. I left the house before seeing anyone this morning. If you give me your things, I can attach them to the saddle and accompany you to the manor myself. It would free your man to return to his duties." Darcy waited expectantly for her reply.
Lizzy hesitated. She could see the manor in the distance and would certainly move faster without the encumbrance of the basket. She may be as impertinent as her mother called her, and somewhat unconventional, but she would never breach propriety. Finally, Jane's welfare won over her concerns.
"I am concerned for the propriety, sir, but as we are in full view of the house and I can ask Samuel to wait here and watch until we arrive, I think all will be well. I appreciate the offer. It will get me to Jane's side sooner. I thank you." Lizzy extended her basket to him as he dismounted.
Darcy attached it and the small valise to his saddle and leading his horse, began escorting Lizzy toward Netherfield. "At least you were not alone in your walk today, Miss Bennet," he noted.
"I am not, Mr. Darcy. None of us have left the house unescorted since the incident. Samuel is armed with a pistol and I believe you might be also?" She looked at him in question, a smile upon her lips.
Darcy again felt the day just became brighter somehow. "You are correct, Miss Bennet. I am armed and happy to see you are not out without an armed escort. We still do not know if all is safe. It has only been a short time, after all."
He gestured to the bags on his horse. "What medicines do you bring that Mrs. Adams does not already have. She mentioned last night that she had a store of your remedies on hand to begin to dose your sister. Mrs. Adams seemed to hold your family in high regard."
"I would guess she has at least some of what I bring, but I do not know if she has all or enough. She may have used the remedies on her staff since we last spoke." Lizzy went on, "Mrs. Adams is a dear lady and has been at Netherfield long enough to watch me grow up. I helped her to pick apples from her trees by climbing up and tossing them to her basket. It was great fun."
"And I presume to guess it has not been so long since you did such a thing with Mrs. Adams," he teased.
"Oh, Mr. Darcy, you have caught me out!" Lizzy turned a bright smile and sparkling eyes to Mr. Darcy and as he watched her, he finally realized that Miss Elizabeth Bennet, whether she was being protective of her family, determined to be independent, impertinent in her conversation, or just teasing him while walking in the fields in her muddy boots, was a very great danger to him. It was definitely Elizabeth who was everything the London misses were not and she did not care one bit about impressing him, want anything from him, or, very likely, catching him. She was just real, flaws, attributes, and all. Lud, what was he going to do?
Lizzy was thinking only of Jane and planning how to care for her. She briefly thought she was happy the man at her side was still inclined to be friendly, and, that she had taken Jane's advice and changed how she viewed him. Lizzy looked up to her older sister and was inclined to take her advice.
At their arrival at the manor, Lizzy turned and waved to Samuel who started the return trek to Longbourn and his chores in the stable. Lizzy almost made for the kitchen, her usual entrance, when Mr. Darcy steered her around the corner toward the stables to leave his horse and retrieve her things.
"Thank you for your escort, sir, I appreciate very much arriving somewhat earlier than I thought." The pair made for the side entrance to the house and Lizzy stopped to change her muddy boots. Her eventual arrival near the drawing room was noticed and Lizzy stepped in to greet Jane's host and hostess before asking to be taken to her sister.
"Miss Elizabeth, welcome. You have come to see your sister, I am certain," greeted Mr. Bingley happily.
"Yes, sir. May I please be taken to Jane" she asked quickly as she made her curtsey to the room.
"Of course, let me ring for Mrs. Adams to show you the way. She tells me she has been using your remedies to treat Miss Bennet. She has someone sitting with her who reported Miss Bennet was still feverish, though my last inquiry was an hour ago," Mr. Bingley explained as he rang for the lady in question. When upon her appearance Lizzy left with her, Darcy felt suddenly that all the life had left the room.
Mr. Collins had come to his Uncle Bennet's estate with two ideas. First, he wished to survey all that would be his as the heir one day, hopefully sooner rather than later although he was a little frustrated that his uncle looked rather hale for his age. His second reason was to find a wife, preferably amongst his Bennet cousins. Lady Catherine de Bourgh had recommended this as an avenue to recompense the family when the inheritance took place. His patroness was piqued when an inheritance deviated from the female line in general principle. It had not been thought necessary among the de Bourghs and her daughter Anne was the heir, rightly so. She had pontificated at length to her rector upon the subject and made her forceful will plain to the sycophantic and impressionable young man. So here Mr. Collins was among the decided beauties of Longbourn, ready to take his pick.
But before that could happen, two of the daughters had removed to a neighboring estate upon the illness of the oldest Miss Bennet. He settled on the third daughter, Miss Mary, if he recalled, and moved to the sofa where she was seated working on some sewing of some kind.
"Cousin Mary," he intoned pompously, "it is seemly that you are so well engaged in the most feminine of pursuits. My patroness, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, has impressed upon me a list of the tasks a refined young woman should excel in. Her daughter, Lady Anne de Bourgh, would have been a most excellent seamstress, if her health would have ever allowed her to learn. Lady Catherine is most attentive to the requirements of the accomplishments a young lady of refined birth and excellent temperament should learn. I see you also excel in this particular one. I shall be happy to report to her ladyship that there are no deficiencies in the education of my dearest cousins, who are my only remaining family. Your skill is notable among all your sisters."
Mary Bennet, shy and only seven and ten, was just as intelligent as her other sisters, only less likely to expose that side of herself outside of the family. However, it seemed Cousin Collins was family and she lost some of that reserve and gained some of her wit to respond. She looked at him for a moment.
"Cousin, I am merely mending a seam on an apron for Mrs. Hill. It requires no skill other than paying attention to my work." Mary ended pointedly.
"What true condescension! What a great nobility of character you have!" At this point Mary began to wonder if the man could speak in anything but exclamations. "You show how kind you are to the lower orders by lowering yourself to repair your servant's clothing! Lady Catherine would be most pleased!" Mr. Collins rose from his seat.
"Cousin Collins, I am none of those sentiments. I merely picked up the next item in the sewing basket to work on. Any of us could have worked on it had they reached the basket before me. Indeed, my elder sisters are more proficient at sewing than I am and frequently make clothing for others, including items that help satisfy the needs of our tenants. Even Mrs. Hill, could be working on this apron. We all work together at Longbourn." Mary responded quietly, hoping to stem the tide of the ridiculous compliments on her character. They made her uncomfortable with the attention to herself.
Unknown to her, visitors from Netherfield had arrived and were at the door listening to this exchange. Jack and Richard looked at this middle daughter, who though full young, with respect. This was no simpering schoolroom miss but a quiet and confident young lady, at least among her family. Jack was intrigued more than Richard who was merely amused at the set down his aunt's parson did not understand. Mary saw them at the doorway and rose to greet them. Mr. Collins, misinterpreting her actions, grabbed at her hands instantly, startling her and causing her to cry out in dismay, "Mr. Collins!" She struggled to remove her hand from his insistent grip.
Mr. Hill had not yet been able to announce the gentlemen as he was waiting for a pause in the conversation. He started toward Mary to affect a rescue but stopped at the bellow of the Viscount Rasdale, closely followed by the Colonel. He stepped aside to allow the two men entry and stayed to watch and ensure Miss Mary's welfare. He needn't have.
"Mr. Collins," bellowed the Viscount, "unhand Miss Bennet, instantly!"
"Collins, Miss Bennet is obviously distressed by your hands on her person. Move away or I will move you. Now, sir" Richard spoke more quietly but Mr. Collins, who had turned at the Viscount's call, focused on the hand covering the hilt of the Colonel's sword.
Still clutching Mary's hands as she tried to pull them from his grasp, Mr. Collins responded, simpering. "Sirs, you misunderstand us. I am merely complimenting my lovely cousin and she, in her maidenly modesty, was most gratified hear them illustrated given the alacrity with which she rose to respond." He smiled, first at the men and then at Mary, still trying to pull her hands away.
Mr. Bennet was in his study and heard the commotion. He stood quickly and moved to the drawing room in time to see several things happen at once.
Viscount Rasdale growled and moved across the room to where Mary seemed to be in the hands of Mr. Collins and in great distress about it. He spun Collins around, releasing his daughter who was steadied by the Colonel, and pulling back his fist, punched the idiot in the face, probably breaking his nose but definitely knocking him to the floor.
"How dare you force your attentions on a young lady? What kind of brute are you, Collins? Did you think she was unprotected? Did you believe that no one would stop you?" Jack looked down at the sniveling man, bleeding on the floor and just missing the rug with his mess. "I should call you out!" He turned at that moment, saw Mr. Bennet, gave him a slight bow and turned his attentions to Miss Mary. He looked directly at Richard who stepped back and moved to stand over Collins, still on the floor and making no effort, at least not while being watched, to rise again.
"Miss Mary, are you well?" he asked gently, "is there anything I can get you for your present relief? May I obtain a glass of wine perhaps, or some water or tea? Do you desire a member of your family to attend you? That blackguard will not touch you again, I promise. I will not allow it. You are quite safe." He offered his arm forgetting that Mr. Bennet was watching the scene, and continued, "May I escort you to the other side of the room away from this miscreant? I will not allow him near." He extended his arm and Mary shyly accepted his escort, still unable to speak.
When she was seated, she looked up at the viscount and whispered, "Thank you, sir," and little louder, called across the room, "Thank you, also, Colonel." At that moment she saw her father standing at the doorway surveying the scene and watching, most particularly, his daughter. "Papa!" she cried out.
Both men looked at Mr. Bennet but neither moved from their position. Colonel Fitzwilliam remained at guard over his cousin and the viscount's stance was also one of someone ready to defend his middle child. He sighed and thought, what is this new tendency for my daughters to need rescuing by the gentlemen of the neighborhood?
"I would appreciate an explanation from someone, please. And, Collins, do not bleed on my wife's favorite rug as it will distress her no end." Mr. Bennet looked questioningly at the occupants of the room. Predictably, Collins was the first to begin to speak but was stopped as the Colonel's boot moved to hover over his throat and the man merely looked down at his captive and said, "Shh, Mr. Collins. Please do be quiet. You would not want me to silence you." Collins shook his head, then nodded, and ultimately, decided to be still.
"Papa," Mary started but quickly became a little overwhelmed and began to cry. Mr. Bennet crossed to the sofa and sat down, putting his arm around his daughter. He looked up at the Viscount, still in an aggressive stance in front of them and told him, "You may stand down, sir. I believe the Colonel has Collins under control."
Jack looked behind him at the pair on the sofa and relaxed but grew concerned when he saw the young woman's tears. Still, he did as asked and moved away to join Richard while watching the father comforting his child. No, not exactly a child, he thought, a young woman struggling to remain composed in light of the past few minutes.
Giving her his handkerchief, he asked the room, "Now, can someone please tell me what Collins did?"
Jack spoke first. "Sir, we had called to visit and were about to be announced by your man when we saw Miss Mary stand AND Collins grab her hands tightly in his. She began to struggle to remove them but to no avail, he is much stronger than she is, after all," this last was directed more to Mary than to her father. He watched her hesitate and then nod slightly. Jack continued his recitation of events, "When we saw what was happening, I persuaded Mr. Collins to release Miss Bennet and sought to remove her from his presence."
"Most forcefully, I see," Mr. Bennet murmured.
Jack shrugged and continued. "Fitzwilliam remained to assure himself that the bounder would not attempt to accost her again. I chastised the man and then you entered."
"Actually, I saw most of the action in my drawing room, sir. I thank you, Viscount Rasdale, and you also, Colonel Fitzwilliam, for the care and defense of my daughter. Mr. Hill and I almost joined you but you both seemed to have resolved everything before we could." Mr. Bennet went on, "How is your hand, sir, does it need tending?"
Jack looked down at his fist, still curled as he looked at the sniveling fool on the floor. "No, sir, it is well. I work out at Gentlemen Jackson's regularly and can use my fives without injury." He startled and looked at Miss Mary. "I apologize for using cant before a lady. Fives is another word for fists, madam."
Mary looked up with a small smile and replied, "I know."
Jack's eyebrows elevated and he returned the smile. This was not a missish miss of the ton. Any of them would be posturing and wailing, seeking more attention and trying to convince everyone of how affected they were by the events, possible not leaving their rooms for days. But, it seemed, not her.
"May I rely on you both to guard my cousin until I return? I would like to remove my daughter from the room while we deal with him. Mary, would you like to go to your room?" Mr. Benner queried.
"No, Papa. May I just go out into the garden for a short while? I will dress warmly. I feel it would allow me to regain my composure to sit in the sun. I will return inside after you are," she hesitated, "done here and then find a book to settle myself." A panic stricken look appeared. "Papa, you will not tell Mamma, will you? If you do, it will be all over Meryton in an hour and my reputation will be ruined and my sisters along with me! Please, Papa!" Mary truly distressed at the idea.
He looked over at Collins on the floor who suddenly had a smirk on his face that Mr. Bennet did not like at all. He would have to be careful how he did it, but his man would be out of his home today.
"Do not worry, my child, you and your sisters will be safe."
After she left the room, the colonel finally allowed Collins to stand but stood close by.
"My dear Cousin Bennet," Collins began, "this is all some terrible mistake. I was not doing anything untoward with my cousin. I was just paying her the compliments due to her as a gentlewoman when, she, quite overwhelmed with my attentions, jumped up to let me know how much she enjoyed my attentions. I took her hands only in order to assure her of my strong affections." Collins looked around at all of the men from his vantage point on the floor, certain of his version of the events. "I was then grievously assaulted by those men. My nose may very well be broken! Lady Catherine de Bourgh will be most displeased!" He added the last as his primary chastisement to those responsible for his condition.
Before Mr. Bennet could respond, Colonel Fitzwilliam drew himself up to his full height and in his most aggressive stance, schooled his aunt's miserable parson. "My aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, will definitely be most seriously displeased when I inform her what happened here. She will not be happy that one of her favorite nephews, along with another of her dear acquaintances, Viscount Rasdale, was forced to rescue a gentlewoman from the unwanted and forceful attentions of her parson. I know livings are given for life, sir, but they can also be removed from the beneficent for cause upon appeal to the Archbishop, who happens to be one of my Cousin Darcy's relations on his father's side."
The man's eyes widened in true alarm and he reassured Lady Catherine's nephew of his silence. "I would not say a word to anyone of what happened here today…" he started.
"Mr. Bennet, are your cousin's bags being packed?" Mr. Bennet looked at Mr. Hill, who nodded slightly.
"Yes, sir, they are."
"Mr. Collins, the Viscount and I will be happy to escort you to Meryton and stay at your side while you wait for the stage back to Kent. We want to be certain you are not interrupted by any of the local residents before you leave," the colonel offered significantly. "The viscount and I will ride alongside the conveyance Mr. Bennet feels is suitable to bring you and your luggage into Meryton."
Mr. Collins looked from one man in the room to the other before returning his gaze to the colonel. "I appreciate it, sir. There will be no cause for anyone to speak to the Archbishop on my account, I give you my word. Um, may I go to my room and dress for travel?"
Three responses of "NO!" silenced Collins.
"Capital! Jack, are you ready to go to the stable and check on our horses?"
With a large grin, Jack agreed and a short time later, the two escorted their charge to Meryton and executed their promise. Jack whistled on the ride back to Netherfield. He had been very impressed with the middle Bennet daughter. Full young, of course, but with some very fine attributes he appreciated, and none of them involved how she looked. That thought startled him.
Mr. Bennet was pleased by Colonel Fitzwilliam's way of protecting Mary's reputation. Some thirty minutes later, his wife and two other daughters returned home from visiting the neighbors, none the wiser. He explained to them that this cousin had received a letter by express mail and departed immediately. At Mrs. Bennet's question he related that he had no idea what caused his cousin to leave but in truth, was happy enough he was gone. With a smile, Mr. Bennet returned to his study to resume reconciling the estate accounts.
