Chapter 6
"Mr. Darcy, what a pleasure to see you!" announced Sir William Lucas as Darcy stepped into his study. "Please, do have a seat. Can I offer you a drink?"
He sat down, but declined the drink, citing the early hour.
"What can I do for you?" Sir William asked, helping himself to a generous glass of brandy.
"I have heard some concerning rumors, lately," Darcy replied, "and wished to discuss them with you. I understand that you are the local magistrate?"
"Indeed I am. I promise you, Mr. Darcy, that I shall do everything within my ability to help. Will you tell me what concerns you?"
"It is an old friend of mine from childhood by the name of Wickham. It appears that he has accepted a commission in the militia here. I am given to understand that he has been accusing me to the local population of some truly shocking actions."
Sir William nodded. "I have heard such rumors as well. Never believed them for a minute, of course! I was just telling Lady Lucas last night- 'Who is this Mr. Wickham whom we know nothing of, that he expects us to believe such slanderous stories about an upstanding man such as Mr. Darcy, who is well-known about the neighborhood as a genial and respectable gentleman?'"
"I thank you for your trust," Darcy said, bowing his head.
"Not at all, not at all! Any person of sense would think the same thing. Lady Lucas agrees with me completely, I assure you, and she is not the only one. My Maria told me that when Lucille Long told her mother about it, Mrs. Long very near boxed her ears for spreading such vicious gossip."
"I have not been in the neighborhood long, Sir William, and so I do not take your defense of me for granted. I came here to assure you that I pose no danger to the people of this town."
"Completely unnecessary, my dear fellow, though I do appreciate your concern. I will admit that, as in any town, there may be a few embittered biddies here who take delight in thinking ill of their neighbors. And perhaps a girl or two who took umbrage at your refusal to dance with anyone but Eliza Bennet, and are now resolved to think you ill humored. Ridiculous nonsense, of course! It is only natural that when a fellow is enamored with a lovely woman, he should have eyes for no other. No need to blush, Sir, I've seen the way you look at her! In any event, you need not worry about anyone important hereabouts thinking ill of you."
"Nevertheless," Darcy continued, trying to ignore Sir William's wink, "If there are some people whose minds still need to be set at ease, I should wish to give my own account of my dealings with Mr. Wickham."
Sir William protested that it was unnecessary, but Darcy could see the ill-concealed curiosity on his face, and so continued.
"Mr. Wickham is the son of a man who served for many years as my father's steward. As children we were close friends, though we have since lost touch. Mr. Wickham's claims that there was a living intended for him should he chuse to take orders are true. After my father's death, however, he wrote to me saying that he did not wish to take orders, and felt that his talents would be better suited to studying the law. Knowing his disposition and habits I agreed with him, and so gave him a sum of three thousand pounds in lieu of the living. This was some four years ago. I can, of course, provide documentation of this transaction."
Sir William again hurried to assure him that no such proof was necessary.
"I would not be able to provide it now in any case, but I can bring it from London if you feel it would be helpful to you," Darcy continued. "Now, if I may address the second allegation Wickham leveled at me- of my being responsible for the crime that cost him his eye. This is not the first time he has accused me so. On the days following his injury I was approached by the constables who were investigating the crime and had been pointed my way by him. As I had been nowhere in the vicinity when it occurred and could provide the names of several persons who could attest to such, the matter was dropped. That is how I know, however, that the timing of the injury, which occurred last summer, coincided in no way with our dealings in Derbyshire regarding the living. One of the constables mentioned that Mr. Wickham had been robbed after being attacked, which I believe constitutes sufficient motive for the crime. If you wish to confirm these facts, you may write to the relevant officials at Ramsgate."
Darcy then had to brace himself to do something distasteful. Thoughts of his sister, though, and other innocent girls like her steeled his resolve, and he persisted.
Adopting a sorrowful tone of voice, and lowering his head in a show of regret, he continued: "I am ashamed to admit, Sir William, that my first thoughts upon hearing his accusations were that my old friend wished to extort money out of me somehow with these allegations. It pains me to confess that I thought the worst of him. Months have passed, though, since he first accused me, and I have received no threat or appeal for money from him. Then, when I happened upon him in Meryton the other day, and you can imagine my greeting to him was much cooler than it would have been a few months ago, he paled with fright at the sight of me. Fear can be feigned, of course, but I do not know that a change of color can.
"I began to think that perhaps Wickham truly believes his own accusations. Whatever delusions he has relayed to the constables at Ramsgate and the local populace may, in fact, be very real to him in his paranoia. In my worry over my old friend's sanity, I find myself wishing that he was simply a villain trying to extort money out of me, for that thought would be less painful."
"A very disturbing notion indeed, Mr. Darcy," agreed Sir William with some excitement. "To think- a madman in our midst! Or, a potential madman. We must not yet rule out the notion of villainy with some other ulterior motive. Spreading nasty gossip is hardly proof of madness, after all, or half of society would need to be locked up, haha!"
Darcy inclined his head. "I understand, Sir. I merely ask that you keep an eye on him. It would give me great comfort to know that this delicate situation was being monitored by the magistrate of the district."
Sir William puffed up and gave him a great many assurances that he would keep an eye on Wickham, but Darcy left the house feeling defeated.
"Well?" Elizabeth asked excitedly when he re-met her on the road a short way from Lucas Lodge.
Darcy shook his head. "It was a fine idea, Miss Elizabeth, but I am afraid that even the genial Sir William is not obliging enough to condemn a man as mad based only on my word." He proceeded to tell her the entirety of the conversation he had had with Sir William.
He could hear the abject defeat in his voice when he reached the conclusion, but Elizabeth did not seem to share the sentiment. She merely nodded seriously and agreed that the outcome was unsurprising, though it had been worth the try. "I have been thinking, while you were in Lucas Lodge, over what ought to be done if we proved unsuccessful," she said. "I believe you should go to London and bring back the documentation regarding the money you gave Wickham. Sir William may not require it, but it could do no harm. If you provide solid evidence to back your side of the story, your own proper behavior will be juxtaposed with Wickham's baseless allegations and malicious slander. It would serve to alert people to the fact that he is not to be trusted, and is a man to be treated with suspicion and caution. All in all, it could prove helpful."
"There is certainly truth to that. The people of Meryton ought to be alerted to the fact that he is a liar if nothing else. I believe I will go to retrieve the documents. Bingley was planning to attend to some errands in town on the day following the ball, it would prove quite convenient to accompany him to London.
"I now must consider what I ought to do regarding Georgiana. Wickham plans to remain in Meryton, and I have yesterday received a reply from my sister telling me to expect her on Monday next. If I wish to tell her not to come I must do so now, and decide on what reason to give her for such instructions. I believe telling her the real reason would prove too distressing for her."
"I must disagree with you, Mr. Darcy. I believe that you ought to inform Georgiana of Mr. Wickham's presence in the vicinity of Netherfield and allow her to decide for herself whether she wishes to take the risk of encountering him. She is the one best positioned to make such a decision."
Elizabeth saw that Darcy had opened his mouth to protest and quickly continued. "I am aware that the last time I spoke to her, Georgiana burst into tears at the mere mention of his name, but her pain was very fresh then. A few months have passed since, and I believe she is capable of hearing him mentioned without becoming incapacitated."
"And if she is not? Would it not be better to keep information from her which would upset her?"
"If you believe that Georgiana has not spent much time thinking of Mr. Wickham simply because you have not mentioned his name to her, you are mistaken. The ordeal she underwent is not easily forgotten, and I assure you she thinks of it even without possessing any information regarding his location. We have discussed it in our letters, though in very vague and general terms. I believe that your sister is capable of deciding for herself whether she wishes to risk seeing Mr. Wickham by coming to Hertfordshire. Besides, if she wishes to come, it will take very little foresight and planning to prevent a meeting from occurring. After all, I reside in a house with some of the finest gossips our country has to offer. As the man in question is a handsome officer, I will know in advance exactly which assemblies and gatherings he will be expected to attend, and we can plan accordingly."
"I know that you would not treat Georgiana's feelings with callousness. I believe too, that she finds it easier to confide in you than in myself, so I must trust your assessment of the matter. I will go fetch the documentation from London and, if my sister wishes, I will fetch her back as well. I think I ought to go now, before the ball, so that I may be able to speak to her of Wickham face to face. I do not wish to communicate this information through letter, when she might need comforting upon being told of it."
"You are the best of brothers, Sir," Elizabeth replied. "I am sure that Georgiana will appreciate your support as well as your candor."
Darcy smiled. "I certainly hope so. I suppose I must depart as soon as possible. It ought to be the work of a moment to convince Bingley to accompany me earlier than he had initially planned. You have yourself heard him attest to his easy nature in such situations."
"I have," Elizabeth laughed. "I believe I recall him protesting our disagreement when we began to debate the merits of such a character. Well, it will certainly work in your favour in this instance. I wish you luck."
"Thank you, Miss Elizabeth. We Darcys are fortunate to have you to support and advise us."
"You would do just fine on your own without me, I am sure," she replied, feeling her cheeks heat.
"I can think of at least one instance in which your help was essential and invaluable," he replied solemnly, meeting her eyes. "There can be no words to express my gratitude for your actions that day."
"I am very glad I was able to help on that occasion," replied Elizabeth, feeling thoroughly embarrassed. She was quite unused to being so blatantly appreciated. Her father was probably her greatest admirer, and the highest praise he would give her was that she was marginally less silly than her sisters. Jane, while always very generous with her compliments, said nothing of Elizabeth that she would not say of a complete stranger. Given such a history, Mr. Darcy's frank esteem was as disconcerting as it was thrilling.
"I suppose I ought to leave now," Mr. Darcy said reluctantly. "To prepare for my departure."
"I have an errand to run in Meryton myself," she admitted with equal reluctance. "Whether or not she chuses to come, please send Georgiana my warmest regards."
Mr. Darcy promised to do so and took his leave, and Elizabeth was left to contemplate her next course of action. The thought of Wickham remaining in Meryton disturbed her, and she was determined to do something about it.
After Mr. Darcy was out of sight, Elizabeth headed to Lucas Lodge for the purpose of prevailing upon Charlotte to accompany her into Meryton. She was greeted upon entering by Sir William, who informed her that she had just missed Mr. Darcy. Then, with a wink, he commented that Mr. Darcy would undoubtedly be very sorry to hear that he had missed her.
Thankfully, she was saved from the conversation by Charlotte, whom she had not seen in a full week. Charlotte took very little persuading in order to agree to go to Meryton with Elizabeth, and on their walk there, Elizabeth regaled her with the story of her unplanned stay in Netherfield last week, as well as the arrival of Mr. Collins to Longbourn.
Charlotte had already had the misfortune of meeting Mr. Collins since, as she reminded Elizabeth, she had attended the supper at the Phillipses that Elizabeth herself had begged off of. From there the conversation moved to the scandalous bit of gossip Mr. Wickham had revealed to Lydia and which had subsequently spread like wildfire throughout the neighborhood before the evening was over.
Charlotte asked Elizabeth what she knew of the affair, knowing of her friendship with Georgiana Darcy. Elizabeth was very firm in stating that there was absolutely no truth at all in Wickham's accusations, which Charlotte did not find surprising. The impropriety of a stranger to all coming to the neighborhood and immediately maligning another had not escaped her.
Elizabeth did not go into the details of how she knew that Wickham was a liar, citing the Darcy family's privacy, and Charlotte did not attempt to pry. Elizabeth furthermore did not reveal her purpose in going to Meryton, knowing that Charlotte would no doubt disapprove.
Their first destination upon arriving in the town was the home of her aunt Phillips. Knowing the woman's habit of watching the passersby through her window, Elizabeth supposed that she was the person most likely to know where Mr. Wickham could be found.
Mrs. Phillips expressed much joy upon seeing Elizabeth, speaking at length of her concern over her niece's health and her regret that she could not attend supper the night before. Elizabeth was just trying to decide upon a casual way of bringing up Mr. Wickham when her efforts were rendered moot by the very gentleman passing by under the window with some fellow officers.
Mrs. Phillips called out a greeting and an invitation to come up and dine with them, and the men accepted gladly, happy in the manner of soldiers everywhere to be offered a homecooked meal.
Soon after entering, Mr. Wickham maneuvered himself so as to be sat next to Elizabeth, and he began by very warmly expressing his regrets over her absence the previous evening. Elizabeth swallowed her bile and smiled back at him, telling him sweetly that she was happy now to reclaim the missed opportunity to get to know him better.
He was all things charming throughout the meal, and if Elizabeth had not known better, she might have been utterly taken in by his easy manner and witty conversation. She noted the particular regard he paid her and, knowing that she had no fortune with which to tempt him, gathered that she had Lydia's mistaken claim that Mr. Darcy was sweet on her to thank for such attentions.
Lydia's probably mistaken claim, that was. Was Lydia mistaken? Elizabeth reminded herself very firmly of Mr. Darcy's great wealth and consequence and concluded that Lydia must have been wrong.
It mattered not, in any case. The important thing was that the belief she meant something to Mr. Darcy had caused Mr. Wickham to focus his attention on her, which was exactly where she wanted it.
She soon mentioned that she had heard a most disturbing report from Lydia regarding Mr. Darcy, and then allowed Mr. Wickham to repeat the story she had already heard, maligning the gentleman. She made expressions of outrage and sympathy in all the right places, and tried to give the appearance of hanging upon his every word, unused as she was to deception.
"I hope," she said, after concluding her condemnation of Mr. Darcy in the harshest terms she knew, "that your plans in favour of the -shire will not be affected by Mr. Darcy's presence in the neighborhood."
Mr. Wickham was quick to assure her that he would not let himself be intimidated or threatened by Mr. Darcy and had no plans of quitting the neighborhood in the near future.
"In that case, I hope we may have the pleasure of seeing you at the ball in Netherfield next Tuesday." Elizabeth gave him what she hoped was a flirtatious look through her eyelashes. "I have heard a rumor that all the officers were invited."
Mr. Wickham frowned gently. "It might be better to avoid a meeting with Mr. Darcy at the ball," he replied, shamelessly contradicting his previous statement. "I understand Mr. Bingley to be a fine fellow, and for his sake would not wish to mar the gathering with such unpleasant scenes as may arise should we be made to spend some hours together in the same room."
"Such a sentiment is quite noble and does you credit. However, you must not avoid such a pleasant evening of entertainment for the sake of Mr. Darcy when it is not at all certain that he will even attend the ball. I do recall Miss Bingley saying last week that Mr. Darcy would not care for a ball to be hosted at Netherfield. Mr. Bingley replied that Mr. Darcy may chuse to go to bed before it began if that was the case. Besides, I have heard that he is to leave for London today, if he has not left already. Surely, he would not depart so soon before a ball if he intended to be there. I believe it would be safe to conclude, based on such evidence, that Mr. Darcy will not be in attendance on Tuesday. Please, do say you will come!"
Mr. Wickham gave her an unctuous smirk. "I cannot refuse such a passionate appeal, especially when you have approached the matter so logically. Very well, Miss Elizabeth, I will come, for I cannot resist the temptation of such charming company as is sure to be had. It is doubtless to hope in vain that you have not yet a partner for the first set, and yet I must enquire."
"I am not engaged for those dances," Elizabeth replied, gifting Wickham with a small smile.
"In that case, may I be the lucky man to claim them?"
"Certainly."
Having achieved the purpose of her visit to Meryton by securing Mr. Wickham for a set at the ball, Elizabeth was eager to be gone. She was aware, however, of the need to appear pleased with her company, and remained civil and engaging until she was rescued by Charlotte who declared that it looked as though it would soon rain, and they had better be on their way.
If Elizabeth expected to be interrogated by Charlotte over her puzzling warmth towards Mr. Wickham, given the opinions she had expressed of him earlier that day, she was disappointed.
Charlotte only gave her a wry look and said: "I do hope, Eliza, that you know what you are about."
Elizabeth assured her that she did, but begged not to be questioned any more on the matter.
Charlotte obliged, and the rest of the walk was spent in discussion of Mr. Collins' attentions towards Mary until the beginning of a drizzle obliged them to discontinue the conversation and run the rest of the way home before it began to rain in earnest.