A/N:Thanks for reading and commenting. I am glad that the story does not appear to you to be dragging out unnecessarily. I, on the other hand, was really weary of Lady Catherine's vitriol. Anyway, she will not be able to aggravate people for a while. Lizzy also shows that she is not a pushover like some of you worried she might have fallen victim to the Fitzwilliam clan's seeming disregard of her feelings.
The influence of novels on Anne begins to show in this chapter. Without self-help books or Youtube channels to resort to, what other options would be left a young sheltered woman during the Regency to deal with situations in life?
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Their awkward silence was broken by Colonel Fitzwilliam who came up to them to say, "The doctors are examining Lady Catherine now. She has not come to. I fear that this does not bode well for her as it has been at least half an hour since she lost consciousness. The doctor who came with Seymore, my father's personal physician, said that he in fact saw Aunt Catherine earlier today at Rosings after she almost fainted over another rather heated confrontation. She refused to heed his advice to rest and be easy on herself and insisted on coming to London. It is to his credit that Dr. King did not bear her a grudge and came immediately with Seymore when he heard that Aunt Catherine was in trouble again. Seymore and Dr. King are both experts on apoplexy. If Lady Catherine lives, it would be because of the timely treatment by these doctors. There is nothing to do now. Let us go and finally have dinner. Mother and Anne have already preceded us to the dining room."
Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth looked at each other quickly and sheepishly, thinking that they were so caught up with each other that they missed all the goings-on around them in the last half hour.
Dinner was a somber affair. Anne was sullen, blaming herself for causing harm to her mother and was rethinking taking over Rosings. The Earl counseled her that she should move forward with the petition to be the sole mistress because her mother might be incapacitated in some unpredictable way, and it was best to secure the well-being of Rosings now when there was still time. The Earl turned to Elizabeth and asked, "Miss Elizabeth, I do believe that you will play a significant role in Rosings' future. Could you detail your experience in estate management?"
Elizabeth started at this question and said, "Sir, my involvement with the running of my father's modest estate is confined to visiting tenants. All five of my father's tenants have been with Longbourn for at least one generation. They watched me grow up as I often accompanied my father during his rides around the estate. While my father began retreating more and more into his bookroom, I have continued to visit the farms. The tenants trust me, and I can usually resolve their occasional disputes as they come up. When one tenant has a good idea about planting, vermin treatment or other farm business, I let the rest of the tenants learn about it. That is all. I am certain that I do not have the wherewithal to assist Miss de Bourgh in managing such a grand estate as Rosings and had only agreed to help her deliver her request to your lordship, which I have accomplished, I believe." After a pause, she added, "My Lord, I am not seeking employment."
"Forgive me, Miss Bennet, for phrasing the question like a job interview. Sometimes I carry my parliamentary manner home during tumultuous times. The Fitzwilliam family is indebted to you for being a true friend to our Anne.
"As it turns out, Darcy has a system in place for the actual running of Rosings with the steward, who appears to be capable. So long as Anne agrees to let this system remain, then Rosings will fare reasonably well. Many masters of prosperous estates know far less about their tenants and other estate business than you, Miss Bennet. Many estates fail not directly from poor management, but from the irresponsible behavior of the wastrel masters and heirs, who may also be prone to be deceived by scoundrels and thieves. Anne needs a discerning and trusted friend who could counsel her on how to relate to the dependents of Rosings and how not to be cheated. Would you consider being this friend to Anne?"
"Sir, if my assistance is deemed useful to Anne, I shall gladly render it as a friend. However, there are practical matters that must be considered as well. My home is in Hertfordshire, which is fifty miles from Rosings. As you just heard, my father relies on me to take care of some estate business," answered Elizabeth.
"Fifty miles of good road is not any distance to worry about. Besides, your father should not assume that you will be always at Longbourn, as marriages must be the surest way to take daughters from home. You and Anne should be thinking along those lines as well."
"Uncle William, I will never marry!" interjected Anne.
Lord Fitzwilliam turned to Anne and asked quizzically, "Why ever not, Anne? You are the end of the de Bourgh line. Rosings needs an heir."
Just then, a footman announced that the doctors had finished their examination of Lady Catherine, and they were ready to inform the Earl and Miss de Bourgh of their diagnosis.
The Earl excused himself immediately and led his niece out of the room. The Countess also excused herself while apologizing profusely that she had to rearrange household affairs in the face of the current emergency. She had also planned to leave for the north in the morning to see her newborn grandson but had to postpone the trip until Lady Catherine's fate was made known. Colonel Fitzwilliam too made an excuse to leave the room.
Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth were again left alone. However, with several footmen at various stations in the room, they remained in silence. Finally, Mr. Darcy, out of the need to break the awkwardness, said to Elizabeth, "Miss Bennet, it is good of you to offer help to Miss de Bourgh. She does not have many friends."
Elizabeth looked at Mr. Darcy, and for the first time since Lady Catherine's mishap, noticed that the gentleman, instead of his usual haughty mien, appeared shy and diffident, which made him exceedingly handsome.
"Mr. Darcy, I have not done anything to help yet. It was Anne's own initiative to order the carriage to be driven here. She even insisted on picking me up at the parsonage even though her mother was within the building wreaking havoc. You may not know, but my cousin, Mr. Collins, in his eagerness to carry out Lady Catherine's cruel order, tripped and fell, knocking his head against the banister in the process. He remained unconscious when I left. My friend Mrs. Collins pushed me out the door to join Anne so that she could hope for a more benevolent mistress who would treat all beneath her with charity. Anne has shown more courage than many, even among those in this house, when it comes to standing up to her mother."
When Mr. Darcy heard this just reproof, the shame caused by his family's cowardly behavior in the presence of a guest became even more pronounced. He said penitently, "But it was only because of you, Miss Bennet. I have known Miss de Bourgh for all her life as she is only a few months younger than I am. I must say that she usually makes herself almost invisible. What she has said today was more than I have ever heard her utter previously in my whole life.
"As for how the rest of the family always allows Lady Catherine to have her way to avoid conflict, we are indeed culpable. It is no doubt all a part of the 'stiff upper lip' culture in my circle. To be fair to her, she has never been this vitriolic and indecorous, at least not in her brother's house. Perhaps the prospect of losing control over Rosings has brought out the worst in her. And to have caused such grievous harm to your cousin, I am truly saddened and must make amends on her behalf. Please be assured that the best care will be made available for bringing Mr. Collins back to health."
The Earl came back into the dining room before Elizabeth could respond. "Miss Bennet, Darcy, I apologize for leaving you two all to yourselves." The Earl paused and watched the reactions of the young people before him. As expected, both looked uneasy and blushing. "Well, worse could have happened. Lady Catherine is still unconscious but showed some response to the doctors' prodding. There are some indications that she may have lost sensation on her right side, and according to the expert on apoplexy, Dr. King, her prognosis is not completely dire. There is not much we can do but pray that she will regain consciousness within the next hours. Your Aunt Charlotte will stay here to take care of things until Milton arrives. In the meantime, our plan to restore Rosings to Anne continues. Darcy, please be here when the solicitors bring the documents for Anne to sign. My letter of approval will be ready for inclusion in the packet for filing with the courts before I leave tomorrow. And Darcy, I hope you will not be miserly with your assistance to Anne and Miss Bennet during the transition and beyond."
He then turned to Elizabeth, "Miss Bennet, from what Dr. King recounted, this has been a most eventful day for you. I do thank you for stepping up to ensure that Anne will have a trusted friend to turn to when she assumes her duties as mistress of Rosings. As with Darcy, I hope you will be generous with your help and friendship toward Anne and work with Darcy to bring about a smooth transition for Rosings' new mistress. Would you like to return to your uncle's house now?"
Elizabeth nodded eagerly but wanted to take her leave of Anne first. A carriage was called for, and Elizabeth was led to the parlor where Anne was sitting next to her unconscious mother talking animatedly with one of the doctors. When Elizabeth approached, the doctor stood and bowed to Anne before leaving.
Anne said quite excitedly to Elizabeth, "Lizzy, Dr. King has read 'Sense and Sensibility'! I wish I had the book with me now, but I left it at Rosings."
Elizabeth looked fondly at Anne and teased, "Did you try to finagle the rest of the story out of the doctor as you did with me the whole way from Rosings to London?"
Anne clasped her hands together and said, "He did summarize the ending of 'Sense and Sensibility' for me, unlike another friend!" Anne paused and looked at Elizabeth with feigned annoyance. "But he was very kind and made sure to tell me that my mother's apoplexy could have been caused by a tumor in her head, or some other natural causes and not necessarily by her getting too angry at my disobedience. This made me feel less guilty. He then talked about the novels he had read. He said his late wife introduced novels to him and they often discussed the stories they read together during her illness. Discussing novels with other people gives him comfort, like a remembrance of his wife. How romantic!" Elizabeth marveled anew at the change in the erstwhile silent and wooden woman. "Knowing what to expect has made me more eager to read the rest of the book. I do not enjoy suspense! Perhaps I shall buy a copy here in London if Darcy lends me some money."
"Anne, you seem far more at ease now than before. Talking about novels seems to have taken away your anxiety."
"It is very true. I like to lose myself in the world of fictional characters. Out of all the novels I have read, the Dashwood sisters' circumstances are the closest to yours. I wish to do something for you to make your life easier when Mr. Collins inherits your father's estate."
"Anne, please do not worry about doing anything for me, or else I would feel uneasy about helping you. We are friends, and that should be enough. I need to go back to my uncle's house as it is getting late. I hope Lady Catherine will recover quickly, and everything will progress smoothly tomorrow with the legal procedure."
"Oh Lizzy, if not for my mother being here in this state, I would very much like to go with you. But please come back tomorrow. I seem to lose my courage when you are not near me. Furthermore, Uncle will not be here, and Darcy never looks at me."
Elizabeth thought to herself, "Oh dear! What have I got myself into?"
The butler came in then and told Elizabeth that the carriage was waiting. Elizabeth said her good night and promised to come in the morning, all the while wondering when exactly she had agreed to be an official helpmeet to Anne, especially when she thought about Lord Fitzwilliam's charge to work with Darcy closely.