Checkmate, Mr Darcy Chapter 21, a pride and prejudice fanfic

Dear readers who are comparing Darcy and Georgiana.

The way I see the difference is that a vulnerable 15yo Georgiana agreed to be taken advantage of… 28yo Darcy was trying to take advantage of Elizabeth when she was vulnerable….

~O~

Chapter

The de Bourgh coach pulled up in front of Longbourn carrying Mr and Mrs Collins.

The journey from Hunsford had been relatively pleasant for Mrs Collins as her husband had been mostly lost in thought, allowing her to read or even doze.

Mr Collins had been enjoying the anticipation of putting his cousin Elizabeth in her place. Since it had only been than a week since the funeral, he expected that the ladies would still be trying to find new accommodation. He indulged in the pleasant fantasies of their reactions when he evicted them. Perhaps, if Cousin Elizabeth begged him on her knees to allow them to remain a few more days, he would consider being merciful.

Their arrival was anticlimactic and dashed Collins' dreams.

When the Rosings footman placed the steps and assisted them to exit the coach, the door of the house was opened by an unfamiliar maid, who greeted them, 'Welcome to Longbourn.'

Collins looked around and asked, 'Where is everyone? I would have expected my cousins to show respect to the new master of Longbourn.'

The maid bobbed a curtsy and said with a straight face, 'The Bennet ladies have moved to The Hedgerows.'

Collins was pleased to hear that the Bennets must have moved to some hovel but was frustrated that he would not have the anticipated pleasure of evicting them. He was therefore rather brusque when he asked, 'Where is our staff?'

'Well, there's me, I'm Polly, and there's Tilly, what used to be the scullery maid. She's busy fixing our tea. Marge and Carol are busy upstairs. And John is looking after the animals.'

'Where are the butler and the housekeeper? Where is the cook? I remember she does excellent potatoes.'

'They've all gone with Mrs Bennet.'

Charlotte had listened quietly and could not fault the Bennet ladies for absenting themselves as quickly as possible. She was also not surprised that their most senior staff had gone with them. She would not say anything now, but she was curious to find out where those hedgerows were which the maid had mentioned. She was starting to suspect a joke of some kind. Perhaps they were at Netherfield?

Having observed her husband's attitude towards Elizabeth during her visit to Hunsford, Charlotte had been selective about passing on information about the family. Even her father had become disillusioned with Collins and had not mentioned the Bennets in his letters to his son-in-law. Collins had chosen to interpret that as deference to his sensibilities.

Before her husband could keep them standing at the door any longer, she suggested, 'I believe we should enter and take time to refresh ourselves.' Turning to the maid she said, 'I hope that you will be able to provide us with some hot water to wash and some tea after we have cleaned up.'

Polly curtsied, relieved to be address by the lady who was more reasonable than her husband. 'I'll see to your needs,' she promised.

~O~

Since Charlotte knew the house, she led the way to the master and mistress's suites.

As she had expected, Mrs Bennet had stripped her rooms of everything personal, but Charlotte detected Lizzy's hand in ensuring it was comfortable for her. There was even a small writing desk which Charlotte had admired in her friend's room which was now in the mistress's sitting room.

Collins did not know what to expect as he had not seen the rooms while they were occupied by Bennet and was therefore pleased to see that they were much grander than his room at the parsonage.

It was only when he came downstairs and saw the state of the public rooms that he realised how much Mrs Bennet had had a hand in the décor he had admired on his previous visits.

'How dare those Bennets ransack my house,' he blustered.

'Mr Collins, remember the Earl of Matlock informed us that he had personally overseen the removal of your cousins' personal belongings and he has assured us that everything mentioned in the entail remained. Except for a few items which wore out over the years and were replaced. In that case the newer items are here.'

No matter how much Collins wanted to argue that the house was not as elegant as he had expected, he could not contradict his wife or the Earl.

He had to console himself with the knowledge that Longbourn was now his and the Bennets had been cast into the hedgerows.

~O~

In the morning, Collins insisted on going out to view his new domain, giving Charlotte a chance to visit Lucas Lodge for a private word with her mother.

At the earliest opportunity after greeting her mother, Charlotte simply had to ask, 'Where have the Bennets moved to? Are they well? Are they at Netherfield?'

'As far as I know, they are not at Netherfield.' Lady Lucas sighed in embarrassment. 'While I have no wish to disparage your husband, his behaviour at the funeral of Mr Bennet has put out everyone here. His eagerness to claim his inheritance and evict the ladies has not made him any friends. Because of our association, people have been reluctant to confide in us.'

'Did anyone give you even a hint?'

'Everyone connected with them has been quite cagey about their new residence. Mrs Phillips admitted that they have moved to a cottage at the edge of Meryton. Yet the only cottage which I had heard was available for rent is the Robertson's cottage, which is rather small. And you must not forget that because they are in mourning, they have kept to their own home.'

Charlotte gave a rueful smile. 'The servants have been busily out and about though. Longbourn has been cleared completely of all their personal possession.'

~O~

Charlotte's next stop was the home of Mrs Phillips.

'My dear Mrs Collins, it is good to see you,' the lady gushed when Charlotte entered her parlour. 'I heard that you only arrived yesterday afternoon.'

'From the butcher or the baker?' teased Charlotte.

'Both, actually.' Mrs Phillips responded with an unrepentant smile.

'Of course, you know everything that is going on in Meryton and its environs. But I wonder if you can tell me what happened to my dearest friend Eliza?'

'Are you asking as Charlotte or Mrs Collins?'

Although somewhat taken aback by the question, she answered immediately, 'As Charlotte. I am concerned for Eliza and her family. They should not have had to vacate their home so precipitately.'

Mrs Phillips gave her a calculating look before she made a decision. 'Do you have time to go for a walk?'

'I have some time. My husband expects me to visit my family and I expect it will take him some time to inspect his new estate.' She did not have to mention that he was an indifferent walker and a worse rider.

They donned their bonnets and gloves and set off. Mrs Phillips took Charlotte's arm as they strolled down the High Street. At the first intersection they turned and headed towards the edge of the town in the opposite direction from the Robertson's cottage.

Mrs Phillips cheerfully engaged her companion in conversation until they turned yet another corner and crossed the street.

They walked up a circular drive towards a large mansion hidden behind a tall hedge. Charlotte noticed a small building off to one side and tried to head in that direction, but Mrs Phillips continued firmly to the front door and used the knocker. Then, with a mischievous smile she pointed at the name plate beside the door.

Mr Hill opened the door and smiling with pleasure at the stunned expression of Charlotte, said, 'Welcome to The Hedgerows, Mrs Collins.'

The lady gave her companions an exasperated look and asked, 'Whose idea was the name?'

~O~

'La, that was papa's joke,' came Lydia's cheerful voice as she rounded the corner of the house, having hurried from the stable where she had seen their approach and could not resist observing Charlotte's reaction.

'Save your questions,' advised Mrs Phillips. Addressing Mr Hill, she asked, 'Are the family in the small parlour?'

'They are indeed.'

Mrs Phillips led Charlotte past the formal rooms at the front, along the foyer to the family parlour at the back of the house. Lydia rushed ahead and announced, 'Charlotte is here.'

Charlotte entered the room nervously tugging at the straps of her reticule. She was relieved when the ladies put down their sewing and turned to her with warm smiles. Elizabeth jumped from her chair and rushed to Charlotte taking her hands. 'I am so pleased that you have come to visit us.'

'Under the circumstances I was not certain of my welcome.'

Elizabeth stepped back and said, 'You are not responsible for papa's death, and you are not responsible for Mr Collins' attitudes and actions. And we greatly appreciated the letter you sent.'

Charlotte turned her hands up in a what can I say gesture. 'It was the least I could do.'

Mrs Bennet rose and joined them. 'It was much appreciated. It gave us warning, which helped us prepare. That was a great kindness.'

Lydia, who had listened patiently, for her, exclaimed, 'But you should have seen Charlotte's face when she saw the house.' She could not repress the giggle.

Being reminded, Charlotte looked around in wonder, spreading her arms to indicate all about her. 'How…' words failed her.

~O~

Charlotte was installed in a comfortable chair with a cup of tea and listened to the story with amazement.

'So, let me make sure I understood this rightly. Mr Bennet played chess with several gentlemen by mail, and they bet on the outcome. And over the last twenty or more years he won enough to buy this house and put money aside for you to live on.'

'With some help from Uncle Gardiner.'

'And none of you knew anything about this?'

'We only found out about this house the day my husband passed away,' Mrs Bennet confirmed sadly. Now that she had lost her fear of the future, she was able to discern emotions which had been masked in the past.

'Who knows about this house?'

'Only family, almost family and the servants.'

At Charlotte's puzzled expression, Jane explained, 'Family is obviously us, Aunt and Uncle Phillips, Aunt and Uncle Gardiner, and you.'

'But I am not…'

'But you are our cousin by marriage.'

'Oh.'

'Almost family are Mr Bingley and his aunt, and Mr Fitzwilliam and his family.'

'You have gone past your courtship then?'

'Oh, yes. Lizzy and I are engaged to be married,' Jane informed her with a smile which had gone from her former serene expression to unalloyed happiness.

Elizabeth chimed in. 'Papa did not want us to go through some artificial mourning period but get on with our lives. Since that was his dying wish, we will get married in just over two weeks. But because of the circumstances, it will be a very quiet ceremony with only immediate family. And we have not made it public yet,' she added for good measure with a significant look.

'I shall respect your privacy,' Charlotte was happy to reassure her friends. 'But there is a price… I would love a tour of your new home.'

The sisters were happy to oblige their friend, leaving Mrs Phillips to visit with her sister.

~O~

Inspecting the estate had taken its toll on Mr Collins.

Unused to riding, especially for as long as it had taken to inspect his new possession, the exercise had left him with saddle-sores. Unable to even sit at the dining table, he had taken to his bed until he healed. He was grateful for the ointment Mr Jones had provided to speed the process.

It was nearly two weeks before Mr Collins was able to return to attend his duties.

Mrs Collins had made good use of the time setting the house to rights according to her taste and with the help of family and friends she had hired more staff.

The timing could not have been more serendipitous.

During her second visit to Lucas Lodge, Charlotte encountered her second brother who had just finished his education at Oxford. When Charlotte congratulated Frank on his achievement, he mourned, 'It is indeed wonderful to have all this education in estate management, but I have not found a position to apply it.'

Charlotte thought it a delicious irony that her sensible marriage to avoid being a burden on her family, now put her in a position to provide employment to her brother.

If Mrs Collins had suggested employing her brother as a steward for Longbourn before her husband's injury, he would have protested that he was perfectly capable of administering his estate. Instead, he praised his wife for her intelligence.

~O~