AU Pride and Prejudice

Fan Fiction

I TRIED to Keep as the OC's LOW on this FF but from this chapter on ugh...all i can say is I DID make an honest attempt ...please do not get mad at me.

Blindsided

Previously

"EMMALINE!" Once again Maja emphasized her sister's name, appalled at Mrs. Bennet's remark. Only big sister could not get Mr. Bennet to chastise his wife; the man had fallen into a chair from laughing so hard.

Matilda's Search

Ch. 16

Matilda and two of her servants braved the elements on a cold, dark, blistering winter day, as they headed inside a neglected establishment which had been built by her husband's grandfather and then inherited by his father. They wrapped their heavy coats even tighter around themselves as the wind blew harder around their bodies. The boots which they had pulled over their feet kept them dry, their wool hats on their heads kept their ears from freezing and their gloves on their hands kept them safe from frostbite. Matilda hoped to find the treasure, or at least a clue, to it among the ruins of the inn for she had about exhausted her resources on the Gunnarsson's enormous estate.

"What are we looking for?" Julia, the older servant of the two, a fairly heavy-set woman of about forty-five years, asked in a low voice. She was not thrilled that they were risking life and limb coming into a place where no business was to be seen.

"I told you already," snapped Matilda. She was determined to find any evidence of the hidden treasure or that blasted old will that had been rumored to exist, and it certainly was not one written by any Gunnarsson male. However, unfortunately, it had never been seen or proven. Nonetheless, everything in her said the item, or items, did exist. It had been her sole reason for marrying Ivar.

Ivar had been so easy to play, mostly because he had been so gullible. If those blasted sisters of his -especially Emmaline, had been just as easy to bend things would not have had to get so messy. Oh, well, those brats had both got husbands out of the deal, so what was that to her?

Matilda ignored the thought of her husband's sisters and went on to list off a few other items on her 'what to look for' list. Rare books in excellent condition, expensive jewelry, paintings and antiques. She then headed upstairs, leaving her servants to search the ground floor.

One board creaked, another moaned so loudly that the ladies downstairs thought for sure Mrs. Gunnarson was going to come falling through the staircase and land at their feet; she did not. Another board did snap in half, but fortunately for all three, Matilda was already off it. She cursed under her breath and continued her search.

Entering one room, Matilda opened the chest of drawers, only to find corkscrews, shreds of paper and more dust. She slammed the drawers shut and moved on to the next room. There, she found rotting sheets, old clothes and smelly boots. She wrinkled her nose and left the room quickly. The next room smelled even worse, as if a dead corpse was lying inside. She did not bother to enter, but moved on to the next door.

None of it deterred Mrs. Gunnarson from her goal. She was convinced that there was something hidden in the inn that could support her claim to the treasure, or at least help her convince the family of it. She had heard stories from her husband about a secret stash of documents and valuables that his grandfather had kept on the estate, but he had never told her were exactly. She was determined to find it, no matter what.

Meanwhile, the two servants were now in the basement, quietly grumbling about their assignment. They did not share their mistress's determination. They knew that the inn had been abandoned for years, and that the chances of finding anything of worth were slim to none. They also knew that the inn was rumored to be haunted by the ghosts of the previous owners, who had died mysteriously. They wished they were back at the mansion, where it was warm and cozy, and where they did not have to deal with spiders, rats, or creepy crawling critters.

"I think that is the real reason she wanted Mr. Gunnarson's sisters gone," she whispered, not wanting her mistress to hear them talking. "No one would have pushed sweet Miss Emmaline into leaving, especially into marrying an old man otherwise." If she had overheard Matilda's thoughts about Mr. Gunnarson's sisters, she would not have been surprised that her words matched of Matilda's thoughts. Marianne just knew she felt sorry for the gentle and kind Emmaline, who - in her opinion - should not have been pushed into going along with the will.

"Word is that the old man is treating her extremely well," Julia said, keeping her volume down for the same reason as her companion. "And, you know as well as I do; there was no real pushing done. Not with the way her parents raised her. Personally, if there is anything of worth, I hope she took it with her." She did not think highly of Matilda, who was greedy and ambitious. The servant herself had heard stories from her husband about a secret stash of documents and valuables that Mr. Gunnarsson's grandfather had kept in the inn, but he had never said where.

Julia and Marianne looked over old bottles full of dust, rotten food that no one in their right mind would touch, along with and broken furniture that was falling apart. However, to their shock, they came across an old book with a lock and key, that was covered in dust and grime. They knew they should show it to Matilda, but seeing as how they could not the stomach the woman they simply set the book on the counter and decided to unlock it.

The part that had been locked held what appeared to be small trinkets and old brass jewelry. Julia put the key in her pocket and the two went through the items a child might wear to play around in. A bag holding strange round metal that looked to be of no worth was in one of the corners. Marianne reached for another item that was also now covered in dust and grime only just as the young lady was going to tell her companion what it was, or what she thought it was, Mrs. Gunnarson entered the basement.

"I said to look for things that are important, not to waste your time on trinkets and books in bad shape!" Mrs. Gunnarson snapped, ignoring Marianne who tried to tell her that book was not in that bad of shape, it was only because the sides had been cut different in the first place. "Just get rid of those stupid items, you have no clue what you are talking about. I have seen plenty of books, and that one was not properly made in the first place. We are looking for more important things that only a child would want, or a book that a person did not know how to put together. None of those things would bring in any amount of decent cash; we would be lucky if it brought in enough to pay for one meal; and that is not one meal for each of us." With that, she went back upstairs, leaving the servants in the basement.

Julia was tempted to tell her about the book's key, hoping that it might please her or at least get her off their backs, and of the item which had not been pulled out. But then she thought better of it. She did not trust Matilda, and she had a feeling that the book might contain something important or interesting. And that horn, well, if Marianne said it was of worth than it was so.

"What do we do with these items?" Asked Marianne as she put everything she had seen, or touched, together. "It does not feel right to keep them but, after the way the Gunnarssons treated Emmaline, I hate seeing them with these items either."

"Send them to Mrs. Bennet. No, wait a minute..." Julia tapped the side of her mouth, as if she had a better idea. "I heard the other day from a visitor in town that there is a lady by the name of Lady Catherine de Bourgh who has taken a liking to our sweet Emmaline. She treats her like a daughter, they say. Send all this to her, and tell her that they belong to Mrs. Bennet, but we do not trust Mrs. Gunnarson not to change her mind. Explain that we feel, if we send them straight to the Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, we fear they may not get to Longbourn safely. And, for all that is good and holy, do not tell any member of the Gunnarsson family any of this. We will just tell them we donated it to the poor."

"Sounds good to me." Marianne agreed and wondered what secrets the old book and key might hold and could not help but speculate who the horn had once belonged to. She hoped the items would reach this Lady Catherine safely and that Mrs. Bennet would then gain possession of the book, items and horn.