A/N: For the purposes of this story Rosings Park is about six hours by carriage from London. So, the carriage ride can be completed in one day.
Elizabeth remained in her silent state for over an hour and refused to open her eyes. Darcy chuckled quietly at her immature behavior. "If it will make you feel better Miss Bennett please continue with your petulance. I however, came on this journey determined to speak to you and I shall. It may be even easier to accomplish if you pretend I do not exist as you will not interrupt me." Darcy said hoping to goad her into communicating with him.
Elizabeth glared at him and said, "What could you possibly have to say to me at this point? Your behavior is unpardonable. You are taking advantage of the fact that I am in great distress over my sister's health. Had I been thinking properly I would have taken the post from Hunsford as was my original plan. In fact, I would have you stop the carriage and I will walk to Hunsford and continue on by myself. We cannot be that far away."
"Absolutely not Miss Bennet! That would be highly dangerous not to mention inappropriate."
"And you consider this situation appropriate?" She argued. "I most certainly do not and I demand you stop this highhanded behavior and let me out of this carriage!"
He was becoming more and more impatient with her attitude. He assumed after her initial shock she would eventually appreciate his efforts on her behalf. After all, he did give her over an hour to compose herself and he felt this was most generous. Darcy had taken advantage of time to gaze upon her countenance intently. So, the hour that passed was not wholly wasted.
"So, you really do not want to get to your sister as quickly as possible?"
"Not like this!" Elizabeth insisted. "How could I possibly explain this to my aunt and uncle? We will be in this carriage together for hours without a chaperone. No, you must stop at once!"
"Not to worry my dear, I will explain it all. I am sure your family will be delighted in the end!"
"How convenient for you," Elizabeth growled. "I hope you know I will not go along with your ill conceived plan. I will tell them the truth at once and live in disgrace if necessary. It will be far better than the alternative and I am not your dear!"
Darcy went pale at her last remark. What was wrong with her? She would rather be disgraced than be married to him? Didn't she realize what he could give her, money, status and his devotion? Obviously, she did not. It seemed his letter did nothing to lessen her ire. At that moment, his anger got the best of him and he hissed words at her he would later wish unsaid.
"Miss Bennet I am afraid you have no choice in the matter. We will continue on to London in this carriage and I will take you directly to your uncle's home. Then I will handle any difficulties that arise without any verbal contribution from you. If you do not follow my instructions, I will ensure that your sister never sees Mr. Bingley again even if she does happen to recover."
"You are truly reprehensible How could you say such a horrid thing?" Elizabeth cried out as tears streamed down her face.
As soon as Darcy saw her tears he wished to take back his words but she had infuriated him. He was used to others taking his word as law and Miss Elizabeth Bennet would not listen to anything he said. He decided however, that her tears were a better alternative than her yelling and continued his monologue regarding their plans in what he felt was a more kindly manner.
"Miss Bennet when we get to London I will ensure that Mr. Bingley knows of your sister's condition and location. That is as far as I am willing to interfere. If he wishes to continue the acquaintance it is in his own hands."
"If you had not interfered and left his heart in his own hands earlier none of this would have happened!" Elizabeth retorted angrily.
"I did what I thought was best and I am rarely wrong. In this case, I will concede I judged quickly, perhaps too quickly but with your mother's display at the Netherfield Ball what else was I to think of your family's intentions towards my friend."
"You are completely insufferable and I cannot wait until we are in London so I never have to see you again." Elizabeth huffed and stared at the floor trying to contain her angry tears.
"I'm afraid that will be impossible. For you see, I will only speak to Bingley if you promise me your hand."
"Absolutely not, how many times and in how many different ways must I decline. I will contact Bingley myself if I must. I don't require your assistance."
"Do you really believe Bingley's sisters would let you anywhere near him. They would do everything possible to prevent the possibility and since time is of the essence your suggestion is quite impractical."
"I will do what I need to do to make it happen without your help."
"Obviously, you are unwilling to do what you need to do. I see you do not care for your sister's welfare as much as you proclaim to Miss. Bennet. You are eager to declare your love for your sister but when you are called upon to act in a manner that may ensure her well-being you refuse. I am quite disappointed. I expected better of you," he stated haughtily.
Darcy knew this was a despicable thing to say but she was pushing him to the edge of sanity with her cantankerous behavior. He knew she treasured her sister and would do anything for her but he had to provoke her into agreeing to his offer.
"And I would expect better from you than to try and coerce me into marriage by threatening the health of my sister. Why in the Lord's name would you want to marry a woman who holds you in contempt? Are you so used to getting what you want that you feel the need to act without regard to morality when you are deprived? You should be heartily ashamed of yourself. This is not the action of a gentlemen. It is the action of a scoundrel!"
"You already declared that I am not gentleman so why should I pretend. I can also ensure you that do not despise me Miss Bennet."
"Don't assume to know my mind. I do despise you and the more time I spend in your company the worse it gets. This is complete madness. I could never make you happy and you could not make me happy either. Our marriage would be a constant battle. I have no desire to live in a state of war for the rest of my life. If you are so desperate for a wife, please ask Caroline Bingley. She will consider it an honor and has been waiting for your proposal for years. You will do well together. I cannot think of someone better suited to you. You have my blessing."
"I thank you for your suggestion for my future happiness but I must decline. If I wanted a wife who insincerely simpered and fawned over me I would have had one by now. I certainly do not require your blessing for anything Miss Bennet. When you are in a more reasonable state of mind you will see the benefits of a match between us but even if you do not I will not be dissuaded. I require your answer now. Will you marry me and ensure that Bingley is given a chance to reunite with your sister or not?"
Elizabeth sat motionless staring at brocade blinds of the carriage. She knew what she must do but could not make the words come out of her mouth. She was condemning herself to a life of misery but she had no choice it seemed.
"Fine, Mr. Darcy I will become your wife albeit most unwillingly," Elizabeth said in a whisper.
"You will not regret it my dear." Darcy said with a smirk.
"But you may Mr. Darcy."
The rest of the journey was made in almost complete silence. Darcy wisely judged that he should refrain from baiting her any further. The one stop they made at a coaching inn to change horses made him a bit leery. He feared she would try to run away from him and proceed to London on her own. His fears were groundless however and she returned to the carriage after refreshing herself without a word. She would not accept his hand to enter the carriage and he let the slight pass without comment.
It was far past nightfall when the carriage arrived outside Gracechurch Street. As soon as the carriage stopped Elizabeth jumped out and ran to her uncle's door not giving Mr. Darcy a backwards glance. When the door opened, she rushed inside into the arms of her aunt. Her aunt was taken aback by her arrival but quickly ushered her up the stairs to see Jane.
Mr. Darcy entered the well-appointed home and asked the footman to see the man of the house. He realized he had neglected to ask Elizabeth her uncle's name. He knew the uncle was a tradesman and had not deemed it necessary for him to inquire more about her London relations in the past. He regretted his decision now because he was determined to make a good impression on these relatives at least. Mr. Darcy was shown into a good sized library and was welcomed by a very gentlemanly looking man. Mr. Gardiner greeted him cordially but with curiosity. When Darcy explained that he had accompanied Miss Bennet from Hunsford Mr. Gardiner's expression was immediately one of suspicion.
"Mr. Gardiner please forgive my appearance on your doorstep uninvited but the circumstances left me no other choice. Miss Elizabeth felt to the need to come to London immediately to attend to Miss Bennet and there was no time to make other arrangements."
"This is quite unusual and not something I would expect from my niece. I am assuming you had a maid or servant with you in the carriage Mr. Darcy?" Mr. Gardiner questioned sternly.
"No, sir we did not. I apologize for the impropriety of the situation but considering that Miss Elizabeth and I are engaged it is not so terrible a breach of decorum."
"Engaged? I was not aware of any connection between you and Elizabeth or any mutual admiration. I do not believe her family is aware of this association either. We would most definitely have been informed if a sanctioned engagement had occurred. Her father granted his permission to this match?"
Darcy had the grace to blush at this question. "No sir, I proposed yesterday. I was planning on riding to Longbourn to see Mr. Bennet when Miss Elizabeth received an express telling her of Miss Bennet's condition. It seemed there was no time to delay." Darcy answered truthfully but omitted some very important information.
"I see. I cannot say that I am pleased with this situation but I do know Elizabeth must have been desperate to see her sister. They are very close to one another. I must insist however that you remain properly chaperoned from this point forward."
"Of course sir, and I thank you for your forbearance. How does Miss Bennet fare?"
"She is improving but we are still very concerned. Having Elizabeth here will be a balm to her soul. I thank you for bringing her here safely despite the particulars of the journey. Can I offer you some refreshment after your long trip?"
"No thank you sir. I must be off at once. I want my personal physician to come and examine Miss Bennet. He is an excellent man and I have complete faith in his abilities. I will speak to him tonight and have him here first thing in the morning. Then I will head to Longbourn to speak to Mr. Bennet. I have a favor to ask Mr. Gardiner. I don't want anyone to know of the engagement before I speak to Mr. Bennet. Please keep it our secret until I return in a few days' time. It would seem untoward if we spoke of it before obtaining her father's permission."
"As long as no one knows of the means of her transportation to London I do not believe that is an issue. I will not speak of it until your return."
"I thank you. I have one more request and you may find it to be a bit odd. Please don't tell Miss Elizabeth that I sent a physician to Miss Bennet. I do not wish her to know." Mr. Darcy said with a hint of discomfort in his voice.
"I don't understand. Why would you not want my niece to know of your kindness to her sister?"
"It is a delicate matter Mr. Gardiner. I beg your cooperation and your secrecy in this matter."
"I will agree for the time being but we will speak more about this once you return with Mr. Bennet's answer. I believe there is far more to this story than you have shared with me. Tell me Mr. Darcy, do you know my brother in law well?"
"No, not well. We have been introduced but that is all. Why do you ask?"
"Elizabeth is his favorite daughter and he will not want to give her up. His consent may not be easy to gain. You will have to prove your worthiness to him before he will let her go. I am not talking about pin money or your position in life. You will have to demonstrate to him that you truly value his dearest girl. He also may take great pleasure in sporting with you." Mr. Gardiner said with a chuckle.
Mr. Darcy smiled broadly at this statement which was very unusual for him. "His daughter takes great pleasure in sporting with me so I am quite used to it. I thank you for the advice sir and will see you in five days at the latest."
After leaving the Gardiner' home Mr. Darcy reflected on the meeting. He was impressed with the house and its owner. Mr. Gardiner was an intelligent, well-spoken, discerning man. It seemed almost impossible that he was Mrs. Bennet's brother. Perhaps Mrs. Bennet was a foundling. He had his coach head directly to the home of Doctor Peterson. As soon as he explained the situation to the doctor he had his promise to call on the Gardiners in the early morning and examine Jane. He provided the direction and then headed out after pledging himself for payment.
Darcy thought about what he would say to Mr. Bennet. He never imagined there would be any opposition to the match from Elizabeth's family. He assumed he would present the proposal and would be gratefully acknowledged as a wonderful match for Elizabeth. He would have to rethink his strategy in order to ensure his success with Mr. Bennet. Perhaps he should approach Mrs. Bennet. She would immediately agree then probably climb a tree and shriek about the engagement to all of Meryton after doing a jig in the middle of the street. The thought both amused and disgusted him.
Darcy was physically and mentally exhausted but he was not done for the day. He headed for Mr. Bingley's home and said a silent prayer that Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst would not be present. When he approached the house, he saw Bingley walking towards the door from the street.
"Bingley," he called out.
"Darcy, so good to see you. What a surprise. I did not know you were back from Kent. What are you doing out and about so late?"
"I needed to see you on a matter of some urgency. Tell me are your sisters home?"
Bingley chucked, "No, they are at the opera this evening with Mr. Hurst. Please come in and we will have a quiet drink with no interruptions or talk of marriage proposals."
"Please don't speak of marriage proposals to me. I have heard enough about them today." Darcy replied with a shudder.
After they were situated with a glass of port Darcy began his explanation. "Bingley first I must apologize to you for acting in a way that I have come to regret. I believe my advice to you regarding Miss Bennet was erroneous. I have discovered that she did indeed have feelings for you, far deeper feelings than I ever imagined." he confessed.
"What? How? However did you come across this information? You and my sisters were convinced that she had no feelings for me beyond friendship."
"I had the information from a very good source, her sister Miss Elizabeth Bennet."
"Why would Miss Elizabeth ever share such a personal thing with you? Darcy, the woman does not even like you."
Darcy grimaced at this. "Apparently, I was the only one not aware of her dislike. However, she did, while berating me for my interference, tell me her sister was in love with you and has suffered greatly in your absence. Miss Bennet is bereft and not in good health because of her distress."
"Oh, no, I must leave for Netherfield at once. I cannot let this go on any longer. Miss Bennet is suffering for my indecision and lack of fortitude. I will be gone at once. I need to fix this. If she will even see me that is," he said as he hurriedly rose from his chair and headed for the door.
"Bingley, slow down. She is not at Netherfield. She is in London at her Uncle Gardiner's home in Gracechurch Street. She has been there these past three months at least. I am afraid that is another one of my mistakes. I knew of her presence in town and did not inform you. Please forgive my presumption. I thought I was acting in your best interest. I never meant to harm you or Miss Bennet."
"Darcy I am shocked. I am not a child and don't appreciate being treated like one. It was not your place to keep that information from me. I do not have time now to think about how this will affect our friendship but know I am not pleased with your lack of honesty. I must get to my Jane, I mean Miss Bennet."
"I know you do not want my advice about anything right now but it is far too late to call and Miss Bennet is ill. There is a physician going to the Mr. Gardiner's home tomorrow morning. Why not wait to call until after he does his examination. I don't believe they will allow you to see Miss Bennet in her current state."
"Darcy how do you know all this? Since when are you privy to the private concerns of the Bennet family?"
"That is a very long story and one for another time." Darcy answered grimly.