Darcy blanched as he read Elizabeth's letter, finding it hard to believe what she wrote; He knew that Elizabeth was not the type of woman to play with the feelings of a gentleman. What had happened in the last few days to make her change her mind? Did she think that just by telling him I release you from our engagement, he would leave things like that? No, he was not going to let that happen!
His ankle was much better, although he still had some discomfort when he walked. But he was not going to wait another week to travel to London, that was unacceptable!
He immediately gave orders to prepare his carriage - the best of them was already on its way to London - and a few hours later he left for London.
On the way to London, he thought about the possible reasons why Elizabeth no longer wanted to marry him, and several things came to his mind: Mrs. Smith and her comments hinting they were in a relationship, his marriage to Lady Maria and his 'daughter, and other things. Had the Matlocks said or done something that upset Elizabeth? Whatever had happened or she had heard, he was going to defend himself and tell her the whole truth.
Fortunately, there were no mishaps during the long journey. The carriage was comfortable and although his ankle still ached, it didn't get any worse.
Arriving in London, he went at once to Elizabeth's house and found that she had gone to Ramsgate. Despite his questions, Mrs. Barton refused to discuss Elizabeth's motives for sending him such a letter but gave him Mrs. Maxwell's address.
A few hours later he left for Ramsgate, and he thought seriously about the advice Mrs. Barton gave him at parting.
"Mr. Darcy, before you go, I'm just going to give you this advice: sincerity and trust in a marriage are even more important than love..."
The next day he went to the Maxwell house, but Elizabeth was not there. Mrs. Maxwell was excited by his visit, and invited him to have tea with her while he waited for Elizabeth. Despite the fact that to his liking the lady was too curious and talkative – and talked about people he didn't know – he recognized that she had a very good heart and cared about Elizabeth.
An hour later, they heard the noise of a carriage. Mrs. Maxwell got up agitated and told him that it was surely Elizabeth...
A few minutes later, Elizabeth finally entered the room. Darcy looked at her intently, noting that she was pale, had lost weight, and had obviously been crying. Mrs. Maxwell after making some trivial comments, left them alone so they could greet each other properly.
The two looked at each other in silence, until finally, Darcy said….
"Elizabeth, before I ask you to explain why you wrote me that you want to end our engagement, I would like to go somewhere where we can talk in private."
Elizabeth took a deep breath and nodded, "I agree Mr. Darcy. Can you walk?"
Darcy nodded, "Yes, but if it's too far, I would rather go by carriage."
"It's less than a quarter mile..."
They both walked toward a small house that had not been used since Mrs. Maxwell's daughter was a child. Along the way, the two of them were deep in thought, and neither of them spoke.
As soon as they arrived, Darcy was the first to speak...
"Elizabeth, could you please explain to me why you want to end our engagement?"
Elizabeth stared at him, noting that Darcy was pale and looked as if he hadn't slept well in days. She took a deep breath and replied, "I have many doubts, and I think I rushed to accept your proposal."
Darcy looked at her intently and replied, "Why do you think so? Tell me what doubts you have. Please tell me."
She closed her eyes and replied, "I have doubts about your character." She opened her eyes and looked into his eyes, "Please tell me the truth, Is Mrs. Smith your mistress?"
Darcy paled even more when he heard the name of that woman and for a few seconds, he did not answer. Elizabeth lowered her head, taking the silence as an affirmation of what Mrs. Smith had told her, and tried to leave the room. She didn't want to cry in front of Mr. Darcy.
Darcy took her arm to prevent her from leaving, and said determinedly, "Please, before jumping to conclusions that may be wrong, would you do me the honor of listening to me?"