Ramsgate Rescue Chapter 1, a pride and prejudice fanfic

Author Note: Notice... I will be posting the entire main story here on FF and then will need to take most of it down on Feb 17, 2024 per Amazon's rules. The "author's cut" of Ramsgate Rescue, will include various edits, tweaks, additions and two epilogues so we can see how our favorite characters (and villains) are doing in the future. If you start reading now, don't fall behind!

Chapter 1

The Gardiners' Rental House

Ramsgate

Kent

July, 1811

"We will be back by four o'clock," Elizabeth Bennet said to her cousins' governess, and Mrs. Simpson smiled and replied, "Enjoy yourself, Miss Bennet."

Elizabeth was absolutely certain that she would, and she smiled in return. She stepped out of the door of the rental house and onto the cobbles street with Milly, one of Mrs. Gardiner's maids, at her heels. Elizabeth drew in a deep breath of slightly salted air and began marching to the east, toward the sea.

The afternoon sun, already sinking into the west, was warm across Elizabeth's back, and she was grateful for the straw bonnet protecting her neck. Milly, beside her, reached to adjust her own cotton cap down a little further. The street they were walking along, lined with modest houses, was largely quiet, with only a few other pedestrians out and one carriage that rattled over the cobbles.

From the corner ahead and the next street over, the noise of traffic was a little louder, and Elizabeth could see several coaches and carriages ahead, crossing through the intersection of a busier thoroughfare. Pedestrians were briefly visible, gentlemen on horseback, with small boys and dogs darting along the street.

Elizabeth, country bred as she was, was more used to the quiet of a neighborhood road, but her interest was piqued by the glimpse of the bustle ahead of them. Her companion seemed rather ill at ease, however, and she looked over at the maid.

"They will be fine," Elizabeth said a moment later as she observed Milly turning a worried look toward the house they had left a few minutes previously. "The children are fed and well cared for."

"Yes, Miss Bennet," Milly replied and then, after a moment, continued, "I am merely concerned about the mistress. She is so tired, and the children are still not entirely well."

Elizabeth sighed and nodded in agreement. She had been invited to spend a few weeks with the Gardiners in London the previous month and had arrived just in time for illness to invade their house in Gracechurch Street. Elizabeth had, to the relief of everyone, avoided the influenza which had sickened three of her cousins and her aunt, but the last weeks had been exhausting, and the journey from London to Ramsgate had been long, dusty, and tedious. She was thankful to be here at last, and hopeful that in time Mrs. Gardiner would recover her full bloom. The children, too, while they had recuperated more quickly than their mother, would benefit from the clean air and cool breezes of Ramsgate on the sea.

"I know," she said, "and I am most grateful for your care of her and my cousins, along with Mrs. Simpson and Agnes. But you are doing me a favor by coming with me, since Mrs. Gardiner was not comfortable with me wandering off by myself."

"And she is right, Miss," the woman replied firmly. "You are a gentleman's daughter and ought not be walking alone."

Elizabeth sighed but held her peace. She was accustomed to walking alone at her family's estate in Hertfordshire and even in the village of Meryton, which was but one mile from Longbourn, her home. It was somewhat exasperating to be forced to bring a companion for her walks, but at least Milly was country-bred and able to keep up with Elizabeth's brisk stride.

The two women turned a corner and came to a simultaneous halt, and Milly exclaimed, "It is wonderful, is it not, Miss?"

"It is," Elizabeth whispered as she stared in awed amazement. A wrinkled blanket of blue-green spread out before them, embroidered with white sea-foam atop cresting waves and a golden sun-glitter that no thread could ever truly catch. Toy boats glided smoothly and achingly slowly across the blanket, white handkerchief-sails billowed out in a stiff breeze too far away for her to feel. Though they looked small from the street, Elizabeth knew that each ship carried dozens of soldiers, ready to head for the continent to fight the Corsican tyrant.

"It is," Elizabeth repeated a full minute later and took in another deep, rapturous breath before turning to stroll along the boardwalk which paralleled the sea.

A white line wavered across the water, a wave cresting in silent majesty, too distant to be heard. A gull skimmed the surface and rose again with its catch, wheeling on the breeze to rejoin its companions. Further away, a small splash and a spreading ripple from a fish leaping out of the water. The breeze picked up, tugging at bonnet-ribbons and loose curls of hair.

The crowds were thicker here, and Elizabeth and her maid found themselves drifting along with the streams of people, many of whom spent no time looking at the glorious sights of the ocean. Perhaps if one lived here, it would be easy to take sea and sky for granted.

She, however, found herself wishing to stop every minute to gaze at the great waters which stretched out to the horizon, deepening as it went. It was wild and free and glorious, and she was suddenly aware of a deep sense of awe for her Almighty Father, who had made all this.

"Let us step in here!" she suggested, gesturing toward the little wooden platform which extended outward to the ocean. Two other women were already there, bending over a painting easel, but there was plenty of space for Elizabeth and Milly to walk over to the low balustrade and stare out at the endless waves rolling toward them.

"It is so big, Miss," Milly said in an awed tone. "It looks like it must stretch to the end of the world."

"It does look that way," Elizabeth agreed, and sighed. "In truth, it is only some forty miles to the French coast, where our soldiers are fighting so bravely."

Milly nodded, and they were silent for a few minutes, enjoying the wind on their faces and the cries of the gulls circling overhead. Elizabeth felt something ease in her chest. Mrs. Gardiner had sickened badly, and there had been a time when Elizabeth had feared for the life of her aunt. But the danger was past, and Ramsgate was far healthier than steamy, smoky London. It was good to be here.

"Oh, bother!" a feminine voice exclaimed from her left, and Elizabeth turned in surprise toward the two women sitting at the easel.

The younger of the two, a mere girl in her teens, had pale blonde ringlets and blue eyes and was dressed becomingly in a sprig muslin dress and a chip straw hat. The woman next to her, who looked to be at least thirty years of age, had dark hair and wore simpler garments. A lady and her companion, perhaps?

The girl, who had noticed Elizabeth's look, flushed miserably and looked down at the ground. Elizabeth hesitated over whether to respond or move away. There was no one to introduce them, but the girl looked so embarrassed and so shy that she took a little step forward and smiled reassuringly. "Are you painting? I am certain it must be very difficult."

The girl looked up and managed a wavering smile in return, and the older woman said, "It is, but the most important thing is to keep trying. It is only through practice that one can improve."

Elizabeth nodded in agreement and, after a moment of uncertainty, gestured at the easel. "May I see it?"

The girl bit her lip and nodded, and Elizabeth took a few steps over to look at the painting with interest.

Thin charcoal pencil lines sketched across the paper, outlining beach and rocks and sea, along with three ships depicted on the ocean's rippled surface. One corner of the painting had started to come alive with color, ranging hues of blue watercolor seeping across the page. It lacked the breathtaking technical skill of the paintings Elizabeth had seen in her father's books, but it was charming and remarkably true to life for a young lady's sketch. The colors already applied were beautifully vibrant, bringing sky and sea to life.

"I think you have done a very fine job with it," she said after a minute, bestowing an approving look on the girl. "I cannot draw at all and am especially impressed with your depiction of that ship there."

The girl looked at the ship in question, and her smile grew wider. "Thank you very much, Miss…"

She trailed off, and Elizabeth said, "Miss Elizabeth Bennet, from Hertfordshire. I arrived in Ramsgate only today with my aunt and her children."

"And I am Miss Georgiana Darcy, and this is my governess, Mrs. Younge. It is pleasant to meet you."

Author Note: Welcome! I hope you are ready to join me for another fun adventure with our dear characters. :-) BTW, I released a new novel called "Longbourn Christmas", which is available on Amazon & KU - check it out.