Lady Alexandra's Hunt Chapter 5, a pride and prejudice fanfic

Thank you for your comments and support.

I know it is a common theme in my books, but I am a great believer in women knowing how to defend themselves. You do not have to be a hard-core martial artist to learn a few basic things to help you survive. It is amazing what a simple low heel-kick can do to a man's ankle, and it can be performed even when wearing a long dress and soft dancing slippers.

btw to the Guest who said "Starting on where to kick a man to do the most damage". I hope you meant the shin. It is much easier to hit, and just as effective, especially when wearing shoes with a hard sole, or heels which you can drag down the shin. The other kick takes years of practice, and even then is relatively easy to avoid. And I am told that corking a man's thigh, usually makes him angrier.

Enough of that. I hope you enjoy the new chapter.

~~H~~

Letters

While Lady Beatrice was in mourning for her husband, it allowed her and her nieces to avoid overly curious neighbours.

This gave Lady Alexandra time to grow into her role as Countess of Herne, Master and Mistress of Herne Hyde.

Contact to the outside world was mostly limited to correspondence from family and friends. In the case of Alexandra, more of the former, while her aunt received more of the latter.

One of the letters Alexandra received was from her great-aunt Felicity, who had been the younger sister of her grandfather. The previous Earls of Herne had avoided her company as much as possible. Based on the correspondence Alexandra was reading, she could understand the reason.

Dearest niece

I hope this letter finds you in good health.

It has come to my attention that your aunt Beatrice has taken over guardianship of yourself and that you have gone to live at Herne Hyde. Far be it from me to question the decisions of both your father and the Earl of Marven, but your great uncle, Viscount Durham, feels it would be more suitable for you to move into our home until your marriage, an event I feel certain you will not delay, since the line of Herne must be preserved.

To that end I have several suggestions of suitable young men for you to consider. Foremost among them is my husband's dear nephew Randolph, who is the second son of the Earl of Braxing. He is eminently suitable to take over the reins of managing the estate, allowing you to take your rightful place as the Mistress of Herne Hyde and mother of the future generation of the earldom.

I agree with my husband that you should marry as soon as possible, to prevent Herne Hyde from deteriorating, for lack of a master to firmly hold the reins. You will require a new Earl to bring the estate back to its former glory. The Viscount has already spoken to his nephew, who has declared himself willing to take on the responsibility of the Earldom.

Living with us until your seventeenth birthday, will give you the opportunity to get to know your future husband with the utmost propriety. Then you can be presented as the wife of the Earl of Herne, and nobody will question your title as his Countess.

Since your father always claimed you were a sensible girl, I am certain you will see the advantage of this arrangement. Therefore, please confirm your date of arrival as soon as possible, so that I can have your room ready for your occupation.

Your great-aunt

Lady Felicity Stone, the Viscountess of Durham

Alexandra was torn between amusement and fury when she read this epistle over breakfast that morning. The nerve of that woman, whom her father and grandfather had detested as the most stupid and grasping woman in all of England, to think that she could order her great-niece's life to her own advantage.

Alexandra was aware from her father's complaints that the Viscount of Durham was a poor manager of his estate and always in debt. She therefore suspected that Lady Felicity would expect her nephew to recompense her for the introduction and sponsorship of the match.

Then the humour of the situation won out. Dear Aunt Felicity thought she could be pressured into marrying in just six weeks. It was preposterous.

Lady Beatrice, who shared the meal with her niece, noticed Alexandra's distraction and enquired to the cause.

'It seems Cousin Frederick is not the only one interested in making a match with myself,' replied Alexandra, looking at her aunt with wry amusement. She passed the letter to her aunt. 'I wonder how many others will have similar ideas.'

Lady Beatrice quickly scanned the letter and smirked. 'They expect you to be an ordinary girl of six and ten. In other words, they think you have been trained to think only of feminine accomplishments, fashion, and how to catch a husband as quickly as possible. They also think you to be easily led – preferably to the altar by the man of their choice.'

After a moment's thought Lady Beatrice said to her niece, 'this comes at an opportune time. I have been meaning to speak to you about your potential marriage and your coming out in society next year.'

'Aunt, please do not push me to get married just yet. I am still learning to run the estate properly. I do not have time for a husband,' protested Alexandra.

'Quite the contrary, my dear,' laughed her aunt. 'I wanted to warn you to be careful and not to rush into anything.'

Alexandra was stunned. 'Everyone from grandmother down, has been telling me that I must get married as soon as possible and produce an heir for Herne.'

'I am fully aware of that. But I believe they do not consider the situation properly. You are in an almost unique position. I know of only one other woman, Henrietta Godolphin, the second Duchess of Marlborough, who was a peeress in her own right, just as you are a Countess in your own right. That brings with it a great deal of responsibility, the least of which is to produce an heir.'

Lady Beatrice smiled at the mixture of disbelief and relief on her niece's countenance.

'All those clucking hens seem to forget that you are responsible for hundreds, if not thousands, of people. They see a pretty young girl and think of their own youth and expectations. Marry and have children.'

Lady Beatrice chuckled when she remembered all those missives which she had received from various family members, imploring her to encourage Alexandra to enter society immediately and to marry at the earliest opportunity.

'I sincerely hope that you will marry and have children – eventually. But you must find a husband who is content to have a minor role in the business of the Earldom. Even when you marry, the title is yours. Your husband will not share in it. Considering the law of the land, which effectively makes slaves of women...'

'I know things are bad for women, but we are not slaves,' Alexandra interrupted.

'When they marry, women become the property of their husbands. If a person is property, that, by definition, makes them slaves. Even her property becomes his. As long as a man does not kill his wife outright, at least not in an obvious manner, he has the right, by law, to do whatsoever he wishes – force himself on her and turn her into a broodmare, even lock her up and beat her.'

When Alexandra looked like she wanted to protest again, Lady Beatrice sighed and said, 'let me finish. I was trying to make a point about the law and your unusual position.' She patted her niece's hand.

'Generally, after marriage, a woman and her property become her husband's property. This will not apply to you. You will need to find a man, who can accept that you must be at least his equal. Your property will remain yours, to pass onto your heir, as will be the responsibility to look after it. I hope you can find someone who can support you.

Many men will flock to you because they will assume that they will gain control of your wealth. They must be made aware that the patent specifies that the heir, which is you, will remain in control until the title and the estate are passed onto the next heir, at the death of the incumbent. The heir must be your child, it cannot be your husband.

You now have several options.

If you are exceedingly lucky, you will find a man whom you can love and respect, and who loves and respects you in return. A man, who will be content to be your consort and assist you in your role as Countess.

If you are not so lucky, and I must warn you that it is unlikely you will find such a man, look for a man with whom you at least share a mutual respect. A man who can give you the heir you need… after the wedding, of course.

If all else fails, you might wish to consider allocating an amount as a dowry, which you can hand over to your husband at your wedding. In return he provides you with an heir, and then minds his own business.' Lady Beatrice grinned, 'it is not called the marriage mart for nothing, you know.'

'Now you wish me to become a slave owner… by buying a husband,' giggled Alexandra.

'Not at all, you impertinent little rapscallion. I wish for you to be one of the lucky few and achieve the first option - a long and happy marriage with a loving husband and several children. I merely mentioned it as a last resort.'

'Very well, Aunt, I will be careful and not rush into anything. I will not let a pair of fine eyes and a handsome figure tempt me into an ill-advised marriage.'

'You have my full confidence to choose wisely.' Lady Beatrice smiled at Alexandra.

She then gave a mirthless chuckle. 'What do you plan to do about this invitation?'

Alexandra thought for a minute before making a decision. 'I think it only polite to respond to the letter and make it quite clear that according to the law, my future husband will not be the Earl. That should slow down the potential suitors who are primarily after my title.'

After breakfast, Alexandra penned her reply.

Dear Great-Aunt Felicity

I thank you for your kind letter and I hope my response finds you in the best of health.

I am afraid that I must decline your generous offer.

I could never ask your nephew to demean himself, if we were to be married, to be introduced as 'The Honourable Mister Stone' while I am being introduced as 'The Countess of Herne'. This is due to a change to the patent, at the request of your brother about five and thirty years ago, of which you seem to be unaware. Since then, the title is entailed to heirs of the body, rather than heirs male, and therefore, the heir always holds the title, not the husband, if the heir is female.

Because of that change, my husband will never be the Earl of Herne. Since English law stipulates that a woman is granted the courtesy title of the husband, but a husband is not granted the courtesy title of the wife, if she has the higher rank, your nephew would always be known as 'The Honourable Mister Stone'.

I am convinced that you will understand that I could not possibly ask this of your nephew, who, I am sure, has too much pride to tolerate being subservient to his wife.

I must also decline your kind invitation to visit, since I am currently engaged in learning how to manage my holdings. As I am certain your husband can testify, there is much to be learnt about the effective running of an estate. Because I must honour my father's wishes and apply myself to my education to the best of my ability, I cannot spare the time for other distractions.

Your great-niece

Lady Alexandra Hunt, the Countess of Herne

Her aunt chuckled in amusement when she was offered to peruse the letter. 'That should keep some of the hounds at bay. I wonder if she knew about the title and hoped that you did not. And I must congratulate you on your choice of words regarding the Viscount's knowledge of running an estate.'

~~H~~

Lady Beatrice's correspondence was more congenial, even though her first letter was from her solicitor.

Dear Countess Marven

I hope this correspondence finds you in good health.

I have no wish to trouble you, but I must advise you that the new Earl of Marven is trying to contest the will of your late husband.

The new Earl tried to retain my services, but I had to decline because it would constitute a conflict of interest.

You may find it of interest that, since the Earl was unable to find any staff to work at the Marven estate, he has relocated to his townhouse in London. He may find another solicitor there, but you can rest assured that your husband made certain that his will is unbreakable.

Your faithful servant

Peter Thompson. Esq

A few days later, Lady Beatrice received a letter from a friend in London, which, amongst other gossip, included some amusing information.

I have some delicious news to relate to you concerning the new Earl of Marven.

Apparently, he arrived in town last week, only to find that all the staff at the townhouse had resigned from service before his arrival. The only one left in the house was the old butler who welcomed the Earl in the foyer, handed him a set of keys, bowed and walked out the front door.

He, the butler, lives now in pleasant retirement with his oldest daughter, who married a rather wealthy tradesman.

In case you are concerned, all the former staff have found new positions in good households. I should know.

I understand that in the meantime, the Earl was able to hire some inferior help. I believe he frequently eats at his club.

Lady Beatrice chided herself for being unchristian when she could not resist a chuckle.

~~H~~

Miss Amelia Cartwright sent a letter. In her case it was to her mother

Dear Mother

I am having the most marvellous time with Daphne and Mr Harrison.

Would you believe that Alexandra had a laboratory built for our use? That is in addition to a standing order she placed with Hatchard's, to send us the latest books on science. She has even arranged for us to visit Camborne in Cornwall later this year, so that we can see Mr Richard Trevithick's steam-powered locomotive. I believe that Lady Beatrice has an interest in mining. It is amazing whom the lady knows. As you keep telling me that you have no head for science, I shall not bore you with details of our work, other than to say it is most exciting.

I am grateful that you and father consented for me to come and live at Herne Hyde. I love you even more for your understanding.

Your loving daughter, Amelia

~~H~~