Author's Note:
Hi, guys! Here's the second (and last) part of Darcy's confession. Since this chapter is short and you already know most of what he will say, I'll post again tomorrow.
You already know about Wickham and I hope I'm not repeating myself too much, but I wanted to tie up some loose ends about their relationship and I thought Mr. Darcy deserved to know the whole story, as painful as it is. So, Darcy will deal with his past in this chapter, and with the future in the next.
Stay safe!
Jen
"If that is how you act towards a lady you admire, it is no wonder my sister still has hope," Bingley said, dryly.
Fitzwilliam covered his eyes with his hand, his guilt, shame, and sorrow were more overwhelming when he realised he deserved Elizabeth's ire.
"You are right," he finally said. "It was extremely ungentlemanly of me. My feelings have changed so much since the period you have just alluded, that I can hardly believe I said it and I cannot but look back on such behaviour with pain and shame."
"Do you..." Bingley hesitated. "Do you wish to speak about it?"
"Not really, but there is something else I would like you to know if you are going back to Hertfordshire."
10.
"I will only tell you this, Bingley, because you are my closest friend and I trust you implicitly," Fitzwilliam said, before he began.
"Thank you," Bingley replied, intrigued. "I shall honour your trust."
"You already know that Wickham and I have a history."
Mr. Darcy was surprised to hear his godson's name, but he wished, and suspected, that the whole story would finally come forth.
"Yes, you told me he was not to be trusted."
"I did, but I did not explain why."
"You did not need to. You are my friend and I trust your judgement," Bingley said and a second later, added: "most of the time."
Fitzwilliam was not blind to the irony that the only person who had believed him over Wickham before he had even explained himself was the same person whom he had hurt the most with his advice.
"I thank you for that, but I shall tell you now my history with the man. As you know, George Wickham was the son of my father's stewart. He was raised alongside me and for most of our youth, we were like brothers. I was truly very fond of him and my father even more so. Ever since we were boys, we were always very different people, George and I. He was lively and charming, while I was more serious and silent, but as we grew, our differences started becoming more pronounced. He got me in trouble more times than I can count and somehow, I was always blamed while he got away with everything. It was obvious to me that he was the acknowledged favourite of my father. I admit I grew more reserved and responsible, which I suppose is part of being the heir, while Wickham had all the privileges of being a gentleman with none of the responsibilities. His enjoyment for drinking, gambling, and... wenching started getting out of control."
"Did no one try to stop him?"
"His mother was as selfish as he is and his father was not a very assertive man. My own father was blind to his faults and George was careful to hide that side from him. While he was with my father, he was a perfect gentleman, but I saw his debauchery. By the time we went to Cambridge, George's morals were atrocious. He did not care how much money he owed or how many girls he ruined. He used his connection to the Darcy family to obtain more credit from shops and entrance to events from the ton. I suspect he even used my name as his own more than once. So you might understand why we were not friends anymore. I could not condone such behaviour."
"Of course not," Bingley said in awe, his astonished face matching Mr. Darcy's.
"I covered his mistakes for many years—paid his debts, made peace with the people he angered, and took care of... the women he used, from servants to gentlewomen, and their illegitimate children."
"All this behind your father's back?" Bingley asked the question that Mr. Darcy wanted to make.
"My father was never the same after my mother's death. George made him laugh and I could not take that away from him. I tried to tell him but when he did not believe me, I did not insist and took care of George's mistakes. When my father died and I became Master of Pemberley, George's days of taking advantage of the Darcy name were over. He came immediately to receive his inheritance, though he had not come when my father was sick and was not even here for his funeral. Still, my father's attachment to Wickham was to the last so steady, that he recommended a valuable family living be bestowed to him. I paid Wickham £3,000 in exchange for the living and another £1,000 that was on my father's will and then I washed my hands off of him. I told him our acquaintance was at an end."
Mr. Darcy was truly shocked, not only had he been completely blind to Wickham's depravity, but he had forced his son to deal with the consequences. Fitzwilliam had taken responsibility, that was not his, but Mr. Darcy's, to amend for Wikcham's behaviour while protecting his father from pain and disappointment.
He had been so immersed in his grief and so happy for the relief that Wickham offered with his levity that he had not seen any of this. He had been selfish and self-absorbed. George had not even come to his funeral while Fitzwilliam had taken responsibility for his estate and his daughter at the age of two and twenty.
He had always loved his son immensely, but never as much as he did now when he realised that Fitzwilliam was a better man than he had ever been. His own son had struggled to protect him.
And the worst part of this confession was that Fitzwilliam spoke as if he believed that his love for Wickham was stronger than his love for his own son! It was definitely not! Had he truly been more attentive to a rascal than to his own son?
"Well, no wonder you cannot stand the sight of him!" Bingley's voice brought him back to the conversation.
"That is not all. The amount of £4,000 could have settled him for life if he knew how to invest it, but he wasted the money away in three years."
"Three years?!" Bingley jumped from his seat. "£4,000 in three years!"
"Yes, it is quite amazing. He came back and demanded I give him the living. Not only had he been compensated for it, but he was most certainly not suited for the life of a clergyman, so you cannot be surprised that I refused to give him the living and told him that he would not receive another farthing from me. He was seething with anger and promised to revenge himself on me. I, of course, was not frightened, for what could he possibly do to me?"
"What did he do?" Bingley asked, afraid of the answer.
"Last summer, Georgiana went to Ramsgate with Mrs. Younge, her companion. I did not know that Mrs. Younge was a friend of Wickham's and together, they tried to persuade Georgiana to elope with him."
Bingley gasped. "But she is almost a child!"
"That is hardly enough to stop him. I know for a fact that he prefers them young, for they are easier to manipulate."
"The cad!" Bingley exclaimed, quite enraged. "How did you stop him?"
"By mere chance. I arrived a few days earlier with the intention of surprising Georgiana, and unable to support the idea of grieving a brother, whom she looked up to, almost as a father, she acknowledged the whole plan to me at once. You may imagine what I felt, and how I acted. Wickham relinquished his object, which was, of course, my sister's fortune and his revenge upon me."
"Darcy! He must be called out! We cannot allow such a man to continue... oh, the Miss Bennets! Have you thought that there are five lovely Miss Bennets in Hertfordshire?!"
"I am not worried about Miss Bennet, Miss Elizabeth, and Miss Mary. I know they would never consent to an elopement, but I confess that Miss Kitty and Miss Lydia might be his perfect targets."
"But they have no fortune, they must be safe, then."
"Remember that it is not only money which moves Wickham," Fitzwilliam argued, and on seeing Bingley's confusion, he added: "As you have just pointed out, all five Miss Bennets are quite lovely."
"You think he might try to seduce them?"
"Yes, and with the youngest two, he might succeed."
"We must protect them!"
"Do not worry, Bingley. I shall take care of Wickham as I have done all my life. Only that this time, it shall be definite."
Bingley's face paled in concern. "You shall not kill him?"
Fitzwilliam could not help but smile. "No, I shall not kill him."
"But... you shall... take care of it?"
"Yes. Do not worry, Bingley. I only wanted you to know so you were alert if you go to Hertfordshire. I do not know if he remains there, but forewarned is forearmed."
"Very well. I shall write immediately to my housekeeper to have Netherfield reopened and will ride tomorrow morning."
"So soon?" Fitzwilliam asked, surprised.
"Would you not leave immediately if you thought you might have a second opportunity with the love of your life?" Bingley asked, unaware of the pain his question would provoke.
"Yes," Fitzwilliam replied, almost in a whisper. "I would."
"You know this means I will not be able to come to Pemberley for a prolonged visit in July as we had planned?"
"I understand. You can come whenever you want and I wish you good luck with Miss Bennet."
"Thank you."
"Dare I hope I am forgiven?"
Bingley smiled. "I might send my sisters to Pemberley in July on my behalf. Caroline will be delighted."
Fitzwilliam's eyes bulged and he swallowed hard but remained silent, accepting his fate, until he heard Bingley's laughter.
"Oh, I would not punish you so, Darcy. Do not worry. Besides, I shall have a long talk with them. You admitted you were in the wrong and apologised, but I know they will not. Moreover, I know that their motives were not to stop me from loving a woman who did not love me, but to stop me from marrying someone who is not high born enough for them."
"What shall you do?"
"I do not know yet. For now, I shall ride to Hertfordshire and beg Miss Bennet's forgiveness."
I do not own any Pride and Prejudice properties, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story.
Characters and situations, created by Jane Austen, are taken from Pride and Prejudice and from the Pride and Prejudice (1995) adaptation created by Simon Langton and distributed by BBC.
This story is released under the GPL/CC BY: verbatim copying and distribution of this entire work are permitted worldwide, without royalty, in any medium, provided attribution is preserved.