Aunt Madeline and Jane fussed over Lizzy's bruises, but in the end they agreed they would heal on their own, even the nasty one on her back from the branch stub. Her aunt was more worried about Lizzy's state of mind.

Lizzy told her, "I will admit, if we were still at Longbourn, I would not even consider sleeping tonight for fear of waking the house with screams. Here, though, I feel safe. Truly safe. I have hopes of sleeping the night through without so much as a whimper to disturb Jane's peace."

"Whimper all you like, Lizzy," Jane said. "I will understand."

"Thank you, Jane. You can tell me in the morning how I did."

Lizzy did wake up a few times in the night feeling frightened and angry. Fortunately, a few minutes of quiet breathing were enough to calm her mind each time so she could close her eyes and drift back off to sleep. She did feel safe in her uncle's house. In the morning, Jane said she had not been disturbed at all. She might even have been telling the truth.

Lizzy handed the packet of papers to Uncle Gardiner at breakfast. "Papa said everything you need should be here," she told him. "He also included a letter for you."

"Thank you, Lizzy. I am running a bit late, so I will take these with me to my office and look them over when I have a chance. If anything looks questionable, I will want to send a messenger to Mr. Phillips right away."

"That would be best. I do not think Papa has much longer and he may be using the opium heavily from here on out," Lizzy replied.

"Guilt?" Uncle Gardiner asked.

She nodded. "A lifetime's worth."

"Well, he did the right thing at the end, although if he had done the right thing long before none of this would have been necessary. At any rate, I am off. I have an important meeting this morning." He stood and walked over to kiss his wife. Turning back to the young women he said teasingly, "Try not to run away before I get back. I know you want to find that little establishment of your own, but it will be best if I help you. I administer the funds, remember."

"Yes, Uncle," Jane and Lizzy said, laughing as they did. "I hope your meeting goes well," Jane added.

After a few more quiet words with his wife, he headed out the door. Aunt Madeline looked at them all.

"There is no need to leave right away," she said. "I have a storage room that can be fitted out into a bedroom for Kitty. We can easily make all three of you comfortable."

"We know, Aunt," Lizzy said. "However we want to start as we mean to go on. We do not like feeling we are a burden of any kind on you…although we know you say we are not. Still, we have the funds for a pleasant little place of our own that will not interfere with how you run your household. While we do not need to work anymore, Jane and I, at least, have done so for so long we would not know what to do with ourselves if we did not. Kitty has things she wants to learn and all three of us will still want guidance from you, not to mention your escort to occasional social events where we may or may not make a good match."

"Oh, you," Aunt Madeline said fondly. "Well, if you are determined to carry on working, I will tell you that I received a message from Madame Gaillard yesterday morning. She has a commission for someone important and she was hoping you could fit it in even if it takes more time than usual. She was willing to send it and the instructions wherever needed."

"That sounds interesting. If I can borrow Amy and the carriage in a little while, I would like to go get the details and get started. In fact, I was hoping we could possibly hire Amy away from you when we go. I feel very safe with her and Jane has said the same." Lizzy replied. Jane added a nod of agreement for the plan.

"Amy is a good worker and I will be sorry to lose her, but I agree she would be the best person to look after the three of you. I know you want a small establishment, but that should include a cook who can also act as housekeeper and one maid of all work. Amy would take on the role of lady's maid and companion at a bit of a rise in salary. Of course, I still think that we can quickly find you good matches at those events you mentioned attending, making all of that unnecessary."

"Oh, no, Aunt," Jane said, laughing at her aunt's exuberance. "We will not be rushed into anything, even if our uncle can now approve whatever match we find. Mrs. Bennet may think, and I quote, 'a husband is a husband', but we want more than just whatever man will take us."

"And I want more than that for you as well. Never fear, Jane. I will not push you to accept anyone but the man to whom your heart calls out." She must have seen the same look Lizzy saw briefly cross Jane's face, for she added, "Or have you already found him?"

Jane blushed slightly at the question. Her blush deepened as Kitty blurted out, "Jane likes Colonel Fitzwilliam."

"Kitty!" Jane said, but she did not deny the accusation.

Aunt Madeline smiled at the news, but she did gently admonish Kitty, "A comment like that is only to be made within the family circle, you know that, do you not, Kitty?"

Kitty blushed as well. "Yes, Aunt Madeline. At least, I do now. I truly meant no harm."

"We know that, Kitty. You just have to remember that if you embarrass your older sisters now, they will pay you back in kind later."

"I had not thought of it that way," Kitty said, and then she grinned, "I suppose I will have to be very careful not to say anything about Lizzy and Mr. Darcy."

"Kitty!" Lizzy said, exactly as Jane had done.

'I never had a younger sister," Aunt Madeline said with a smile, "But I now see what I have heard is true. They can be equal parts annoying and helpful."

All three sisters broke into a laugh. Aunt Madeline looked back to Kitty.

"Just so you understand fully, the main reason to avoid even speculating about possible attachments outside of your immediate family, and only carefully then, is to prevent any damage to reputations. I have heard that your sister Lydia is prone to blurting out anything that comes to mind no matter what company she is in. You have chosen not to follow her example in other things. Avoid following it in this as well."

"Yes, Aunt Madeline," Kitty replied. She looked like the message was getting through to her.

"Very good. Since it is just us here, I feel I need to learn more about these budding romances." Aunt Madeline looked to Lizzy and Jane.

"There is not much to tell, Aunt Madeline," Lizzy said. "You know how Mrs. Bennet is. We could not spend time in discussion with either gentleman when she might have found out. Although, when Mr. Darcy learned that was the reason I was avoiding him, he seemed very happy. Still, we are here now, and they are not."

"You really should have come downstairs on Friday," Kitty said, "We had a good long talk with Colonel Fitzwilliam. He was kind to me, although he was really interested in talking with Jane. Mr. Darcy was very quiet, but when he chose to speak he was very kind as well."

"As you know, I had embroidery to work on and did not wish to be distracted."

"I wish you could have seen the gown, Aunt Madeline," Jane said. "It was quite lovely. Mary cried, she was so pleased about it."

"I am certain it was gorgeous, with all of you working together on it. Perhaps one day I will get to see Mrs. Bingley wear it."

"I am sure she will want to meet you, Aunt Madeline. I wish we had known you all along as we were growing up." Kitty appeared almost embarrassed by her own comment, but very happy as well.

"I wished the same, Kitty, but you know your mother did not want anything to do with our family."

"I know that, but I never understood why. She really did not pay attention to any of us except Lydia when we were growing up, but she always disliked Jane and Lizzy. Lydia said it was because they were inferior but I know that is not the truth."

"We have no way to know what is really in your mother's mind. My own guess is that she was trying so hard to produce a son that she became ever more bitter and somehow, illogically, blamed Jane and Lizzy for her failure. People do things like that even when they do not make any sense."

"I suppose," Kitty said doubtfully, then she brightened again. "Can I go with you to pick up your new commission, Lizzy?"

"Only if you promise not to say a word while you are in the shop with me. Madame is very easy to offend. You should also know that Jane and I do our work under the Gardiner name, so you should not appear surprised or object when she refers to me as Mademoiselle Gardiner. We did not wish to chance any word of our activities getting back to Longbourn. I will introduce you as Catherine Gardiner. Curtsy, but only speak if she asks you a direct question. Then, keep your answers simple and polite. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Lizzy."

"I think I will still send Amy with you for safety," Aunt Madeline said. "Have you girls thought about how you will travel without our carriage?"

"As long as we never travel alone, we should be fine hiring a hack. I would prefer to have our own little vehicle, but that involves the cost of it and someone to care for it and the horse."

"That is true. Just be sure you always travel in groups of two or more." Aunt Madeline looked serious.

"Is it dangerous to take a hack?" Kitty asked.

"For a woman alone, it could be. The driver could take you anywhere and do anything to you. You should also never walk alone on London's streets."

"There is safety in numbers, Kitty," Jane said. "We will look out for each other and depend on Amy to help."

~o~

Lizzy had enjoyed watching Kitty's excitement as Uncle Gardiner's carriage rolled through the crowded streets. She had grown used to the city over the years, but it was all new for Kitty, who had never seen so many people in all her years combined. Amy seemed to be hiding a smile at the younger girl's excitement as well.

The carriage pulled up at the usual place and Lizzy and Kitty got out. As they walked to the small side door the employees used, Lizzy gave Kitty a final reminder.

"No matter how excited you are, remember to be quiet and only speak if Madame Gaillard specifically asks you something."

"Yes, Lizzy," Kitty said with that same look she had worn when they read Charlotte's description of her wedding plans. Lizzy hoped she would not regret bringing her.

The doorman recognized Lizzy at once and allowed her in when she knocked. He looked questioningly at Kitty.

"My sister," Lizzy explained briefly. The man nodded and closed the door behind them, re-locking it. He pulled a cord next to the door and Lizzy heard the familiar ring of the bell in the back area of the shop. An assistant quickly came to meet her.

"Ah, Miss Gardiner. Madame was hoping you would be by soon. Come to the workroom. I will tell her you are here."

Kitty quietly followed Lizzy to a room where a group of women were sewing at various projects. They stood in a corner and waited, although Kitty looked like she was about to start bouncing at seeing all the beautiful fabrics, trims and reels of colored silk and cotton thread in the room. Lizzy remembered her own first time there and the feeling that it was some kind of fairyland. That was before she knew how very much work went on hour after hour in that room.

"Mademoiselle Gardiner. I am glad you got my note and came so soon. Are you back and able to work?" Madame Gaillard said as she approached them.

Lizzy curtsied deeply. "I am. I understand you have an important commission for me."

"It is for one of the customers who helped me when I first started in business," Madame Gaillard said. "She has seen the embroidery you did on Duchess Montgomery's gown and wants one something like it. We have already completed the primary gown. Only the embroidery on the gown and the over-skirt remain."

"I shall be happy to do the work," Lizzy said.

"I will show you what is required then. Who is this you have with you?"

"My younger sister, Catherine," Lizzy said. Kitty offered her deepest curtsy.

"Is she also interested in the work?" Madame asked.

"She does not yet have the skill, but she is learning and asked to come see what such work entails."

"Ah, I have a rush job that needs plain-sewing and all my girls are busy. I had hoped you brought someone who could manage the work I need."

"My older sister is also in town with me and available to work. You have seen her plain-sewing before. She is quick and neat at her work."

"Ah, yes, the lovely blonde girl. If you are certain she will accept the work, I will send it with you. The job must be done quickly. By tomorrow afternoon if possible."

"We will not fail you," Lizzy said confidently.

Soon, she and Kitty exited the shop, each carrying a bundle. Lizzy had her special commission, and Kitty carried the work for Jane.

~o~

Jane and Lizzy sat side by side on the sofa, each doing their own special project. It felt so good to be working together, out in the open and without any fear of discovery. Jane had been delighted to work with more fabric as lovely as that they had used for Mary's gown, and working for Madame Gaillard paid better than making shifts.

On the second sofa nearby, Kitty sat with Aunt Madeline, who was teaching her how to start making bobbin lace. Lizzy had transferred the work on one of her pillow frames to sit alongside the other and had given the empty frame and her set of spare bobbins to Kitty. The young woman was having trouble getting the feel for twisting and manipulating the threads, but Aunt Madeline was patient. So long as Kitty did not give up, she would learn.

Uncle Gardiner came in from his office, completely unsurprised to find them all hard at work. It was normal. He settled comfortably in his favorite chair by the fire with an air of satisfaction.

"I read the documents your father sent," he said to Lizzy and Jane after watching them all for a while."Everything appears to be in order. I am now the official guardian for all three of you and I have authority to administer the trust funds for each of you once they are completely set up. Mr. Phillips included the specific details and the timeline along with a promise to be in touch once his part of the work is done."

"That is such a relief," Jane said. "I have been afraid that if Papa died suddenly without some document of the kind, Tony or even Mr. Collins might claim to be our guardian."

"Either would have been a disaster," Lizzy added.

"That was always a possibility," Uncle Gardiner admitted. "Although I would have fought them tooth and nail over it."

"Now you do not have to," Aunt Madeline said with satisfaction.

"Uncle," Lizzy said. "Yesterday evening you made several comments about the Darcy family that made me think there is some deeper story or connection to them that you might know. Would you be willing to tell us?"

Uncle Gardiner asked, "Did your father mention anything about already knowing the Darcy name or having visited the library at Pemberley? I know you have said he avoids talking about your mother, but has he ever mentioned how they met or why they married?"

"He has always changed the subject when I brought it up, but in that last interview with him, he said something about having been essentially tricked into marrying her and told me that even though he was saved the need to find a wife on his own and enjoyed the increase to his income from her dowry, he resented her and later he resented me and Jane because we were girls and could not satisfy the entail."

"Oh, that entail! So much fuss and heartbreak has been caused by that little clause requiring a male heir!" Aunt Madeline said bitterly. "Those so-wise men want to protect their property from being broken up or sold off by future generations and to do so write these binding agreements, assuming their sons will also have sons while never once considering the fate of their wives, daughters or granddaughters or the effect the pursuit of a male heir will have on them."

Uncle Gardiner reached over and took his wife's hand. "Calmly, Madeline. I know it is a sore point for you."

Kitty seemed to sense the comment was about more than Longbourn. "Why is it a sore point? You all seem to know, but I do not."

"Aunt Madeline's family estate was also entailed to heirs male," Lizzy explained. "She had a brother, but he died very young and so, when her father died in a hunting accident when she was a little younger than you are, she and her mother were thrown from their home with almost nothing to sustain them. They survived by making and selling lace until Uncle Gardiner returned to Lambton, married our aunt and brought her and her mother here. Aunt Madeline taught me the pattern I use for my lace, just as she is teaching you now."

"Lady Anne Darcy purchased Aunt Madeline's lace," Jane said.

"And she convinced others to do so as well," Aunt Madeline added. "She was a very kind woman and would sometimes find other ways to make our lives easier without humbling us with outright charity."

"Which leads us back to the Darcys and your mother," Uncle Gardiner said, looking between Lizzy and Jane.

"I know your family estate was fairly close to Pemberley," Lizzy said, "so our mother would have known the Darcys just as Aunt Madeline's family did. But why and how would they be involved in Papa's marriage and what was he doing visiting the library at Pemberley?"

"Ah, the chance to see Pemberley's library was what drew your father to visit Derbyshire. You know my brother bankrupted Oakbrook and it had to be sold. Fortunately for him, there was no entail to prevent it. When my sister Clarissa married Sir Roger Morton the impending financial disaster was still not obvious. Hugh paid a first installment of Clarissa's dowry and had promised the rest after the harvest. What none of us knew was that Hugh had already used up the remainder of Clarissa's dowry and all of Dorothea's trying to stave off disaster. I was here in London at the time, just starting out in my business and did not know what was going on back at Oakbrook. Hugh knew he needed to get Dorothea married before news of his financial situation got out. When the Darcys invited Hugh and Dorothea to a house party, my brother asked permission to invite a friend. Your father had a little more energy back in those days and had maintained a correspondence with a few people he had met during his time at Cambridge, my brother being among them. Using the lure of a chance to visit the exceptional library at Pemberley, Hugh convinced Bennet to attend, all the while intending to make a forced match between him and our sister."

"He arranged a compromise at Pemberley?" Lizzy exclaimed.

Uncle Gardiner looked grim. "Yes. Dorothea would never tell me exactly what happened, only that it was very public, very embarrassing and completely ruined her reputation. I could have killed Hugh when I found out months later how the marriage had come about, but by that time, he had already essentially done himself in and there was no point. At any rate, she was compromised, and Bennet had been Hugh's lucky victim. Your father reluctantly agreed to marry her but then tried to back out of it when Hugh told him he could not pay her dowry. That was when the current Mr. Darcy's father stepped in. He could not stand to see an innocent woman dishonored, especially not when the incident happened in his home."

"What did he do?" asked Kitty. She had been listening wide-eyed as if hearing a fairy story or watching a play.

With a brief smile at her enthusiasm, Uncle Gardiner said, "Hugh had already sold off a good part of Oakbrook's lands and now he was trying to find a buyer for the rest of the estate so he could satisfy his creditors. Mr. Darcy offered to purchase the estate at a fair price, instead of the bottom-rate one he was likely to get at that point, on condition that it be done in two parts, with two separate payments. One was equal to the dowry my father had specified for Dorothea and would go directly to Bennet to ensure the marriage. The remainder of the purchase price went to Hugh to pay off whatever creditors he could. Of course, that was the start of the bad blood between Bennet and Sir Roger. Bennet received the full amount of your mother's dowry while the remaining amount due for Clarissa's was lumped in with all of Hugh's other creditors and Sir Roger had to whistle for it."

"That is why he hates our father," Lizzy said. So many things were now making sense that had not before.

"Yes, he cut all connections with both Bennets, not that there had been much before, and insisted that Clarissa cut them as well. She was able to send a few letters to our sister and her gifts for Jane and Lizzy when they were born through me. Of course, the time she has spent with you girls since then has always been without Sir Roger's knowledge."

Kitty spoke up again. "Lizzy told me that Sir Roger disapproves of you and Aunt Madeline as well."

Both Gardiners laughed. Uncle Gardiner explained, "Sir Roger has always been very conscious of rank and title. It turns out that his primary reason for marrying Clarissa was her dowry and my mother's connections to a wealthy and titled family. After he found out that our maternal grandparents essentially cut their connection to the Gardiners because they felt my mother had married beneath her, he began to look down on Clarissa and all the rest of us. Then, I had the temerity to turn to trade for my livelihood, which disgusted him even more. Since Madeline's family lost their property due to the entail, he felt that she and her mother had no claims to status either. Even if you were not a Bennet, Kitty, you would not be considered good enough for him to bother with."

"What about someone like Mr. Darcy? He has a great deal of money."

"Not so much since he bought Papa's book collection," Lizzy muttered, causing a general laugh.

"Mr. Darcy is definitely wealthy, even if he did just buy a room full of valuable books," Uncle Gardiner said with a smile. "However, his real attraction for someone like Sir Roger would be the connection to the Earl of Matlock and the rest of the Fitzwilliams through his mother."

"Colonel Fitzwilliam is the son of an earl?" Jane blurted out.

"Yes, he is, dear," Aunt Madeline replied. "Did he not mention it?"

"Not a word. Oh, but that puts him in a completely different social sphere." Jane looked terribly disappointed and Lizzy understood. Just like Mr. Darcy, the Colonel was now a little out of their own realm and unlikely to become a serious suitor.

"Honestly, you girls!" Aunt Madeline said. "There is no need for those glum faces. I do not know why you persist in thinking yourselves of such low status unless it is all those years of hearing Mrs. Bennet speak poorly of you. Both of you have exceptional dowries and as the daughters of a gentleman, even without rank or title, you would be courted by earls and dukes should word of your dowries be spread. So what if Mr. Darcy is wealthy and Colonel Fitzwilliam is the son of an earl? They are both just gentlemen and your dowries would make you their equals even if nothing else did. Cheer up."

Mr. Gardiner smiled broadly. He did not seem surprised to hear either of their names linked to the two gentlemen. "I expect they will both be calling here one day not too long from now. If they are not willing to enter the house of a tradesman to track you down and call on you, then they are not worthy of you, girls. Now, it seems you both have work to do. That will keep you occupied until your suitors come to call."

Nodding, Jane and Lizzy resumed their sewing, although Lizzy was still not convinced. Kitty picked up two of the bobbins, looking questioningly at Aunt Madeline. With gentle guidance, their aunt took her through the next twist and knot in the lace.