Lady Lucas was an amiable hostess and loved large parties but she had to admit that keeping everyone entertained at a varied gathering was sometimes a challenge. Her husband was happy if there was a big crowd and a lot of chatter. It was sometimes too much for Maria who was still shy and unsure of herself but she had to learn to move in society sometime, and Lady Lucas thought including a couple of her good friends in the guest list would help. Charlotte – well, if she was not happy she would at least attempt to look like she was. The Lucas heir and his younger brothers would not be attending this time, being away at school.
Of the neighbours, Mrs. Goulding was not often happy but she would be occupied as long as there was someone to listen to her account of her pains and aches. Mr. Goulding would be happier if that someone was not him. Keeping Mrs. Long content required treading the fine line between serving too little and too much wine. Mrs. Bennet was cheerful if her daughters were admired more than any other young ladies but Lady Lucas could hardly ever produce enough single gentlemen to admire them all as well as Mrs. Bennet felt they deserved. Mr. Bennet's happiness was sometimes hard to gauge since he employed so much sarcasm, but he often failed to attend at all, so whenever he came and stayed until the end of the evening, Lady Lucas counted it as success.
The Netherfield party was less well known but Lady Lucas thought that Mr. Hurst's happiness mostly depended on the food and beverages. She had observed that Mrs. Hurst looked slightly more engaged in the festivities if there were card games, so it might be best to be prepared. Miss Bingley would be unlikely to be completely content unless there were several dukes and earls in the guest list. Mr. Darcy usually looked like he would be happier anywhere else, but it was impossible to invite Mr. Bingley and leave his friend out. Mr. Bingley posed the least number of problems as he always seemed happy, no matter what.
Of the Bennet sisters, Miss Bennet was a graceful character, always willing to accommodate everyone else's wishes, but she was never the life and soul of the party. Sir William sometimes succeeded in coaxing her into some animation but Lady Lucas had never been able to draw her out of her reserve. But Mr. Bingley generally gravitated towards the eldest Bennet daughter so Lady Lucas thought those two could be relied upon to entertain each other.
Miss Elizabeth was a more entertaining dinner guest as she was able to laugh at anything and talk about anything with anyone, and most of the time she could be depended on for a song or two if the conversation was lagging. Sometimes Lady Lucas thought she had a vague air of discontent about her, as if something bothered her but most of the time she was not sure what exactly. Lately it might have been Mr. Darcy's presence. After the latest assembly in Meryton, it was common knowledge that Mr. Darcy had insulted Miss Elizabeth somehow. But in their subsequent meetings they had managed to ignore each other civilly enough, or so it seemed, and Lady Lucas hoped they could handle one more dinner party without injuring each other.
Miss Mary was vastly easier to read than her next eldest sister: she disapproved of dancing. She disapproved of card games. She disapproved of wine, cheerful conversation, and all manner of frivolity. Her idea of a good time was to read sermons and play mournful hymns and she would only be happy if nobody else was.
As for the youngest Bennet girls, they wanted to dance and flirt and be the centre of the attention. Usually they succeeded in the last objective, as they tended to be quite loud.
"It is too bad that none of the officers could come!" said Miss Lydia.
"If they were here we might dance a reel," said Miss Kitty.
"A reel!" said Maria breathlessly.
"Oh, to be young again, and dance without hurting…" said Mrs. Goulding mournfully.
"We did invite a few of the officers but they had other occupations tonight," explained Lady Lucas.
"Mr. Carter and Sanderson are busy at the regiment," said Charlotte. "Mr. Denny is in London. And Mr. Wickham said he had made other plans."
"He might have come if the company was more congenial," said Miss Lydia.
"Whatever could you mean," said Sir William. "We are quite a cheerful lot tonight, are we not."
"Yes but perhaps he thought that there are some people who are better avoided," said Miss Lydia.
"Hush, Lydia," said Miss Elizabeth.
But Miss Lydia could not be hushed. "It is very unfair that we are deprived of good company," she said. She had been vaguely grumbling about her discontent in unnamed people's character and behaviour all evening, throwing plenty of dark looks at Mr. Darcy.
"It would have been wonderful to have officers here," said Mrs. Bennet. "They are such wonderful dancers."
"Perhaps Mr. Bingley, Mr. Hurst and Mr. Darcy will agree to a whirl around the room," said Sir William. Lady Lucas hoped they would not because rearranging the furniture would be a great deal of trouble.
"I am sure they would rather play cards," said Mrs. Hurst, and Lady Lucas nodded fiercely.
"It would surely be much more rational if conversation instead of dancing were made the order of the day," said Miss Bingley.
"Well, it depends on the conversationalists," said Mr. Bennet. "Some say a whole lot of nonsense."
"Capital, capital," said Sir William.
"The notions are not mutually exclusive," said Mr. Bingley. "People could easily dance and converse at the same time. Apart from Darcy, that is."
"So they do," said Mr. Bennet. "And of perfectly rational topics. This room is very crowded but private balls are so much more pleasant! Yes, I am sure the musicians are doing their absolute best. You look radiant in that shade of green, my dear, and how do you like Rousseau's notion of legitimate social order?"
"If that is how he flirts it is a mystery how Papa ever found anyone to marry."
"Oh, Lydia, I'll have you know that your Papa was a handsome rascal in his youth," said Mrs. Bennet.
"That is right," said Mrs. Long. "Your mother was the envy of the neighbourhood to catch the eye of the handsomest young man in town."
Miss Kitty and Miss Lydia looked at their father with a degree of scepticism.
"How could such beautiful sisters have anything but handsome parents," said Mr. Bingley gallantly, and Mrs. Bennet tittered.
"In fact, in his youth Mr. Bennet looked a bit like that handsome Mr. Wickham," Mrs. Goulding corroborated.
"Mr. Wickham! What a nice young man that is," Mrs. Long said. "All that hair, and so polite! One of you girls should snap him up."
"He probably cannot afford to marry, I dare say he is as poor as a church mouse," said Mr. Goulding.
"Oh, not a church mouse, surely, just a regular mouse," said Mr. Darcy who had been very quiet until then. "Church mouses attend services so frequently that it is not an apt comparison for our friend Mr. Wickham."
"He would be a clergyman if it wasn't for you!" exclaimed Miss Lydia who could not take such glib dismissal of her friend's grievances lightly.
"Would he?" said Mr. Darcy. "This comes as news to me."
"As if you did not know! It was you, and only you who reduced him to his current state of poverty!"
"Was I?"
"To his great misfortune."
"Oh, yes, his misfortunes have been great indeed. But all of his own making."
"His own making! When it was you who cheated on your childhood friend! It was you who ignored your father's will. It was you who refused to give him a valuable living he was promised," said Miss Lydia. "How was any of that his own making?"
"I thought he told me that in confidence," said Miss Elizabeth.
Mr. Darcy looked at her thoughtfully and nodded.
"Yes, that would be his usual modus operandi. He likes to make people feel important and valued, and what better way to convince them of the intimacy than to make them think they share a secret that was trusted to no one else."
"He told us too, when he visited last Thursday," said Mrs. Goulding. "He said he would have loved making sermons above all else. He would have loved to pray for the parishioners who are suffering pain and distress."
"If he had the living he could afford to marry," said Miss Lydia, returning to her most salient complaint. "But you deprived him of his rights and disregarded your father's last will and testament. How can you continue to call yourself a gentleman?"
"I am sure there is some misunderstanding," said Miss Bennet, ever the peacemaker.
"Lydia," said Mr. Bennet. "You go too far, you need to apologize."
"No, no," said Mr. Darcy, with the air of someone who had been goaded to the limit. "It is a reasonable question, and I shall attempt to respond. Mr. Wickham's complaints deserve a fair hearing."
"Capital! Capital!" said Sir William.
"After all, Mr. Wickham may be entitled to some compensation for the grievous injustice he has suffered," Mr. Darcy said. "Should the allegations prove to be true."
Lady Lucas felt apprehensive as there seemed to be no way for this to end well. All she asked was one dinner party that ended with everyone happy. But no, there would be accusations. There would be arguments. There would be a dead body.
Just one, if she was lucky.
"Now, Miss Lydia, have you, by any chance, read my father's will?" asked Mr. Darcy.
"Of course not," said Miss Lydia scornfully. "Why would I?"
"No reason, I am sure." Mr. Darcy paused for a long moment. There was a lot of fidgeting in the room, as people waited for him to continue. "But as it happens, I have."
"How jolly for you," said Miss Lydia in a petulant tone.
"It was not precisely a jolly occasion, but it was certainly instructive."
"Capital, capital," said Sir William.
"Not that it was in any way unusual," Mr. Darcy added. "I often find that reading documents is quite helpful. In ascertaining their contents, that is."
"As a conscientious estate owner, Mr. Darcy has had occasion to deal with a vast number of letters, bills and petitions," Miss Bingley explained. "So he has had a lot of experience reading documents."
"Thank you, Miss Bingley," said Mr. Darcy. "It is useful to have an impartial witness confirming that I am, in fact, literate."
Miss Elizabeth attempted to valiantly suppress her laughter. Mr. Bennet did not even try. Even Charlotte seemed amused. Sir William and poor Maria looked like they were not at all certain what was going on.
"Why are we talking about Mr. Darcy senior's will?" asked Mr. Hurst. "It can be of no importance to anyone here other than Darcy himself."
"That was what I thought too, and between you and me, we might be excused for taking it as a reasonable assumption," said Mr. Darcy. "But it seems like Miss Lydia has some interest in the matter, and I hope to accommodate her request for information. Pardon me for boring the company with my private affairs."
"We are all ears, I am sure," said Mr. Bennet. "For what do we live for but to make a fuss of legal documents that we have never seen?"
"Oh dear!" Mr. Darcy appeared struck. "You are right, this is an untenable situation. I shall write to my solicitors and ask them to provide a copy for you. And I am sure it will be no trouble for them to have several copies made, for all of Meryton, so that everyone concerned may acquaint themselves with the details."
"Mr. Wickham has already told us about the details," said Miss Lydia angrily.
"Yes but it has been some time since Mr. Wickham has had an opportunity to read the original so it may behoove us to go straight to the source so we can ascertain he did not forget anything pertinent."
"They do say that recollections may vary," said Charlotte.
"Exactly, Miss Lucas," Mr. Darcy agreed. "In a matter such as this, I think it is important to get a complete picture of all the facts."
"To think that I almost missed this party," Mr. Bennet remarked inconsequentially.
"Now, Miss Lydia, Mr. Wickham may have told you that he was my father's godson."
"Yes."
"He did," said Maria.
"DId he also tell you that I was jealous because my father loved him like a son?"
"He told us that you could not stand it that he was so close to your father, and your bitterness about this caused you to disregard your father's last wishes," said Mrs. Goulding.
"Amazing," said Mr. Darcy. "I wonder how I knew that he would say that."
"It is conceivable, perhaps, that he has told lies to that effect before this," suggested Mr. Bennet.
"Oh, I hope not!" Mr. Darcy scoffed. "Such a nice young man, serving the country and the crown! So handsome! So talkative and friendly! With such an appearance of goodness in his air!"
Miss Elizabeth fanned herself and seemed much struck by this reasoning.
"He is also a nimble dancer," Charlotte added helpfully.
"Exactly, Miss Lucas. Surely it is quite inconceivable that such a fine dancer could be a practiced liar."
"Mr. Wickham warned us that you would try to cast aspersions on his name," Miss Lydia said darkly.
"Did he also tell you that he loved my father so well he could not bear to denigrate the reputation of the Darcy family, right before denigrating the reputation of the Darcy family?"
"Oh," said Maria.
"Possibly," said Mrs. Goulding.
"Not in those exact words," said Miss Elizabeth.
"He said he owed a great deal of respect to his godfather and could not bear to reveal your villainy to the world," said Miss Lydia.
"And how exactly do you know of my villainy?" asked Mr. Darcy.
"Because Mr. Wickham said you cheated him out of his inheritance."
"Exactly," said Mr. Darcy.
"It is fortunate that Mr. Wickham is so conscientious and avoids malicious gossip," Charlotte said. "Had he wanted to blacken Mr. Darcy's name, who knows which stories he would tell people about him."
"Oh," said Miss Elizabeth.
"It is not malicious gossip if it is true," said Miss Lydia.
"That is right, Miss Lydia, I agree with you completely," said Mr. Darcy. "The truth must be some justification."
Miss Mary looked like she wished to write that down.
"Now, Miss Lydia, if you read my father's will you would see it said that he had sponsored George Wickham's education in the hopes that he might find gentlemanly employment, and it was his particular wish that Wickham would be considered for the living in Kympton, as soon as it became vacant, should he take orders."
"That is correct," said Miss Lydia. "Mr. Wickham told me himself."
"Did he also tell you that after my father's death he asked to be excused from the clerical duty and requested compensation for the loss of the living in a monetary form instead?"
"No, he did not happen to say that," said Miss Elizabeth.
"I am sure it merely slipped his mind," said Mr. Darcy. "Anyone might forget receiving such a paltry sum as three thousand pounds."
"Three thousand pounds!" exclaimed Mrs. Bennet. "Why, that is a small fortune!"
"It seemed desirable to him at the time," said Mr. Darcy, "so he signed a document to give up all his claims to the living. The living was occupied by a relatively young man at the time, and a vacancy was not expected shortly, so Mr. Wickham preferred to have funds available to him instantly."
"But surely he would not be destitute if he received three thousand pounds," said Mr. Goulding.
"A single man could live very well on three thousand pounds," said Charlotte.
"Four thousand," said Mr. Darcy. "There was also a bequest of a thousand pounds in my father's will. Again, my solicitors will be able to provide copies of the receipts."
"I am sure it is not necessary," said Miss Elizabeth faintly.
"I hate to disagree with you, Miss Elizabeth, but I think I shall request the documents regardless. In a matter such as this, i would vastly prefer to work with proof and evidence, rather than deal in vague recollections and insinuations. Else one risks tarnishing reputations with distortions and untruth, and none of us here would wish for that to happen, I am sure."
"Very wise, Mr. Darcy," said Mr. Bennet.
"Mr. Darcy is such a rational man, and we might all learn some of his wisdom."
"Thank you, Miss Bingley. I would certainly advise for the merchants in Meryton to take my example and very carefully document all the debt that Mr. Wickham might find himself in."
"Is he frequently in debt?" asked Sir William.
"Unfortunately I am not aware of the extent of his debts everywhere that he has been," said Mr. Darcy apologetically. "But it would be a prudent assumption, based on some debts of his that I paid in Cambridge, Lambton and Ramsgate."
"You paid his debts!" exclaimed Miss Kitty.
"My solicitors could provide you with copies of the receipts and the exact sum," said Mr. Darcy helpfully.
"You could see him at Marshalsea," said Mr. Goulding.
"That is assuming that I would wish to see him, anywhere at all," said Mr. Darcy.
"He would not be in debt if he was not poor because of you," said Miss Lydia who was not willing to give up her defense of her latest beau. "He told me that the living became vacant and you refused to give it to him."
"That is right, Miss Lydia," said Mr. Darcy politely. "You are to be congratulated because you are one of the select few who have ever heard George Wickham state something that was true. The previous parson received a barony unexpectedly and resigned in order to tend to his inheritance. When Mr. Wickham heard this he contacted me in order to request to be considered for the living, and indeed, I refused."
"How could you be so cruel to your childhood friend? It was your father's will."
"Miss Lydia, my father's will was for George Wickham to receive the living should he take orders. Do you think he has taken orders? Is he working as a curate in the meantime?"
"You know very well that he is in the militia."
"Which is to his credit, I am sure," said Mr. Darcy airily. "In these troubled times, our country needs all the brave soldiers it can get, and the militia is a fine, honest occupation."
"Which he is just starting his career in, at the age of nearly thirty," said Charlotte.
"He was expecting to get the living," Miss Lydia pointed out.
"Ah, yes," Mr. Darcy said. "So you think that for all this time, he has been preparing himself for a career in the church."
"He would make a great preacher, being such an eloquent speaker," said Mrs. Bennet.
"Ah, yes, and the ability to speak is all that is required of a clergyman?" Mr. Darcy inquired. "It must be a nice, easy job, if you can get it."
"Oh, botheration, I do not know," said Mrs. Bennet. "I have no idea what they require."
"I am not an expert either but I am sure my solicitors could help clarify this matter as well. They are Messrs. Shilton, Donovan and Gallagher, in Westminster, London. Mr. Gallagher, in particular, is well versed in the laws and rules governing the church, and a very efficient chap altogether. I am certain he would be happy to explain everything to us in detail. I shall write to him tomorrow and ask him to attend to us in Hertfordshire at his earliest convenience."
"We do not give a fig about your solicitors!" said Miss Lydia.
"That is too bad, because they are a really excellent firm," Mr. Darcy said. "I could give your father their direction, in case you ever need legal assistance, but I suppose your uncle Mr. Philips would be able to come to your aid in most instances. But should you ever wish to know about the ecclesiastical law, I can recommend Mr. Gallagher as the best source."
"Why on earth would I wish to know about the ecclesiastical law?" Miss Lydia asked scornfully.
"I suppose a young lady like you might easily get away with being entirely ignorant of it," allowed Mr. Darcy. "But should you be a young man looking for a living, you would need to have some idea at least."
"I did not expect anyone to bring up the word ecclesiastical in conversation tonight," said Mr. Hurst. "But now that it has happened it stands to reason that it was Darcy."
"Mr. Darcy is always very well-spoken," said Miss Bingley.
"In the process of saying something that will amaze the whole room," said Miss Elizabeth.
"That is not my object, Miss Elizabeth," said Mr. Darcy, "although there are some I would happily astonish at times."
There was a lull in the conversation which enabled Mrs. Hurst to interrupt the discussion concerning Mr. Darcy's solicitors. "Are we going to play cards tonight, Lady Lucas?"
Lady Lucas was forced to attend to the card table, and soon afterwards, the Gouldings and the Hursts started a game. Mrs. Long sat near to assist and observe, and to sip from her cordial. Lady Lucas thought her voice sounded a little too slurred to discuss ecclesiastical law. Mr. Bingley used his first opportunity to compliment Miss Bennet for something or other, and Mrs. Bennet agreed with him enthusiastically.
But Miss Mary found the previous topic too fascinating to give up. "I would be very interested in hearing your solicitor explain the requirements for receiving a living. Clergymen have such an important duty, caring for the souls of their parishioners."
"Quite right, Miss Mary. I was obliged to do some research into the matter when I had the living to bestow, and Mr. Gallagher explained some of it to me then. I hope I still remember enough to do the matter justice, for I would hate to mislead any of you in such an issue."
"I am sure your recollection is near perfect. It always is."
"Thank you, Miss Bingley," said Mr. Darcy. "I deserve no such praise, therefore I encourage everyone to ask for the evidence."
Miss Lydia snorted contemptuously.
"By any chance, did Mr. Wickham ever offer you any receipts or any sort of proof for any of his claims, Miss Lydia?"
"There can be no receipts for he received nothing."
"Nothing except four thousand pounds," Mr. Darcy reminded helpfully. "Which I have the receipts for."
"But you did not give him his living." Miss Lydia was still pouting which made her look much younger than her years.
"That is right, Miss Lydia. And do you know why?"
"Because of your jealousy and disdain."
"Ah, yes. It stands to reason that I would be jealous of him. After all, he owns half of Derbyshire and I am just a handsome devil with nothing to call my own."
"See right there, Mr. Darcy, you are practically dripping with disdain."
Lady Lucas thought Miss Lydia was correct about that. But it seemed increasingly likely that Mr. Darcy had his reasons.
"Now, Mr. Gallagher explained to me some of the things I should consider when choosing a parson – I do hope that I can recall all of this correctly. I could write to my sister and ask her to locate Mr. Gallagher's letter amongst my papers, so we could all take a look."
"I have no interest in reading your letters," Miss Lydia said.
"Oh, how unfortunate, because it was really informative, with an abundance of pertinent detail. Among other things, if you can believe it, Mr. Gallagher pointed out that one of the requirements was that the recipient of a living should be ordained."
"Of course," said Miss Lydia.
"And do you know what the requirements are for taking orders?"
"Why would I know something like that?"
"I guess you would not. But Mr. Gallagher does. Really, it is one of the many benefits of having great solicitors at one's disposal - they know the strangest things."
"Like what?" asked Maria.
"If one wishes to take orders, one would need a university degree and a testimonial from their college, vouching for their fitness to the office. Then one would need to pass a bishop's examination to determine one understands enough Latin and is familiar with the Scripture, the liturgy and the doctrines."
"Yes, all manner of church things."
"Right, Miss Lydia, all manner of church things."
Mr. Darcy was quiet for a while, looking perfectly calm and unruffled, but Lady Lucas had the distinct notion that he was preparing for the kill.
"Now, Miss Lydia, which of these requirements do you think Mr. Wickham would be able to fulfil?"
Miss Lydia expressed her certainty that Mr. Wickham could fulfil anything he wanted to, and Mr. Bennet laughed, for some reason, before telling her to be quiet.
"He might have bluffed his way through some oral exams but I know for a fact that he was never able to learn passable Latin," said Mr. Darcy. "You could ask him about the Revelation and he will assume you are talking about a seedy tavern on the outskirts of Cambridge. He has read two books in his life, both with more pictures than the Bible."
"But surely one would need to read a little more in order to get a university degree," said Charlotte.
"Exactly my point, Miss Lucas," said Mr. Darcy. "Although my father sponsored his education in Cambridge, or thought he did, Mr. George Wickham never received a degree."
"Oh!" said Miss Elizabeth.
"He has never spoken like a scholar, did he?" said Charlotte.
"It only goes to show that breeding will tell," Miss Bingley said. "He is a steward's son, after all."
"I tend to believe he did not fail because he was a steward's son but because he refused to apply himself to his studies," Mr. Darcy said.
"I do not speak like a scholar," said Mr. Bingley.
"You are welcome to speak any way you like, Mr. Bingley," said Mrs. Bennet.
"So how did he get out of Cambridge without a degree?" Mr. Bennet asked.
"Oh, very easily. He told my father that he was busy studying but in fact he received very little education. He did not excel in the few courses he attempted, and most of the funds intended to support his studies he gambled away. Some of the money was used to buy finery, in order to pass himself as a man of means. He wanted to make his fortune marrying an heiress. Alas, he had no luck doing that, although it was not for want of trying."
"Oh, he does not sound like a man anyone would like to see near their wealthy daughters," said Sir William.
"Not the poor ones either, I dare say," said Mr. Darcy. "He is not above seducing maids, shop girls and impoverished gentlewomen. And pardon me for being indelicate, but there are two mothers in Lambton whose toddlers look just like Mr. Wickham did as a child."
"Unmarried?" asked Mrs. Bennet.
"They both have married by now," said Mr. Darcy. "Not to Mr. Wickham, obviously."
"Good for them," said Sir William. "Anyone is likely to be a better husband than that bounder."
"Charlotte, I know you said that happiness in marriage is a matter of chance, no matter who the husband is," said Miss Elizabeth. "But you have to admit that it is a very distant possibility with such a cad and a gambler."
"As described, he would certainly be nobody's ideal husband," said Charlotte. "Nor an ideal clergyman."
"I would be surprised if he was able to receive a letter of recommendation from his college," said Mr. Darcy. "Dallying with the female relatives of one of the professors may have prejudiced them against his fitness to serve the church."
"One would hardly wish to believe that anyone could be so depraved," said Miss Bennet.
"He always seemed so amiable," said Sir William.
"It serves him well in his chosen career as a garden implement," opined Mr. Hurst. Lady Lucas had thought that the card players had been attending to their game and not the ongoing conversation but it turned out that at least Mr. Hurst could divide his attention to several things at the same time. "Cantankerous fellows such as Darcy or myself could hardly have as much success as a rake."
"This is all just vicious lies," said Miss Lydia.
"It is quite beyond the pale to doubt the assertions of such a man as Mr. Darcy," said Miss Bingley.
"Darcy must be considered something of an authority in this matter," said Mr. Bingley, "as he has known that man very intimately for years."
"Yes and hated him for a long time!"
"I realise that you have merely my word about this, Miss Lydia, and I am asking a lot, expecting you to heed me before seeing any of my proof," Mr. Darcy said. "But then again, you believed that I am a scoundrel who would cheat a childhood friend when you had merely Mr. Wickham's word about it, so this could not be an entirely new experience for you."
"Good heavens!" exclaimed Miss Elizabeth.
"I can easily provide other accounts of Mr. Wickham's debauchery from many of his former friends, including my cousin Colonel Fitzwilliam as well as other Cambridge fellows. Mr. Wickham was not always discreet and some of his exploits were well known." Mr. Darcy looked around his audience, fixating on Mr. Bennet. "Although perhaps the more explicit part of this evidence would be best restricted to the fathers of our company."
"Perhaps it would be best," breathed Lady Lucas on an inhale.
"Such a handsome man! And so bad!" said Miss Kitty.
"Just like in the novels!" exclaimed Maria.
"A man without honour and a conscience," said Miss Mary. "Let this serve as a lesson for us all, not to trust a frivolous character so readily."
"Has there ever been any evidence of his goodness beyond a handsome face, a cheerful smile and an abundance of conversation?" asked Charlotte.
"Penelope will never believe this," said Maria.
"I knew it all along," said Mrs. Bennet. "I always had such a bad feeling about him."
"I do not credit a word of it," said Miss Lydia, although she looked a lot less certain of herself than she had been before.
"For the truth of everything here related, I can appeal more particularly to the testimony of Colonel Fitzwilliam, who, from our near relationship and constant intimacy, and, still more, as one of the executors of my father's will, has been unavoidably acquainted with every particular of these transactions. If your abhorrence of me should make my assertions valueless, you cannot be prevented by the same cause from confiding in my cousin; and that there may be the possibility of consulting him I shall furnish Mr. Bennet with his direction."
"Perhaps you might consider enlightening Colonel Forster of these particulars as well," said Mr. Bennet.
It took some effort on Lady Lucas's part but eventually the conversation was diverted into less confrontational topics. Miss Elizabeth played a Scottish folk song. Mrs. Goulding told them how her joints were faring, and Mr. Goulding bore it with equanimity. Both Miss Bingley and Miss Mary had taken great joy in Mr. Wickham's fall from grace, as Miss Mary was able to recite some of her favourite moralistic quotations about honesty and virtue, and Miss Bingley was able to describe recent London events she had attended in remarkable detail, noting that none of the hostesses of quality would admit a steward's son. Sir William wondered if they might meet at St James's.
Miss Lydia had been very quiet for the rest of the evening. Charlotte took the opportunity to talk to her, Maria, and Miss Kitty about the need for caution when dealing with the officers and other young men. Mrs. Bennet no longer bemoaned the absence of the officers. Mr. Bennet made some effort to converse with Mr. Darcy. Mrs. Hurst was happy because she had won two shillings. Mr. Hurst told Lady Lucas that it had been a splendid dinner and the roast beef was particularly well done. Mrs. Long had not passed out in her chair at any point of the evening. Miss Bennet and Mr. Bingley had spent an hour whispering in a corner.
While waiting for the carriages, Miss Elizabeth had spoken with Mr. Darcy about something in a very quiet voice. Lady Lucas could not hear what they said. But for once, Mr. Darcy looked very happy to be exactly where he was, and Lady Lucas counted it as a victory.