Pride and Prejudice FF

Unbreakable Bonds

NOTE: First a Thank you to anyone who is still reading this story. And thank you to those who PM with useful information. It is making this story far better than it would be otherwise. Also, to anyone who has already read chapters 6... I went and made a small edit: Elizabeth is being sent a post so she will be aware of the content of the letter before her father heads to Bath.

Previously:

"I understand and, if it makes you feel any better, Mr. Hurst told me just this morning they all will be leaving for London in the morning. It turns out that neither one of my sisters can handle living at Netherfield and Jane refuses to move to London." Charles grinned. "I cannot honestly say it breaks my heart. However, I do agree, Kitty needs to attend to her duties."

Private Space

Ch. 7

Mahalia stood at the opening of a small cave overlooking 'her' valley in the county of Somerset. A river could be seen traversing the land, and green grass soaked in every drop within its reach. Smiling, the lady knew it really was not her valley, but at times like this—when Mrs. Rhy had come down to complain about Miss Mahalia's lack of interest in men who were coming to call on her—it felt good to get away and hide.

"How do you expect a gentleman to offer you his hand in marriage if you always run from him?" Mrs. Rhy complained.

Mahalia had found it difficult to explain so, rather than attempt, the woman had simply kept quiet. How was she to explain a promise made to a stranger two years ago, involving someone she had never met? Her father's wife would think her mad. As it was, her grandmother had been taken aback when told. The memory of first telling her grandmother about it now came to the forefront of her mind, considering who was heading their way.

"My dear child, the woman was not from around here, nor was she asking you to promise to take care of a physical flower garden. She was referring to her own children."

"Oh, dear." Mahalia sat stunned. "I usually catch onto such things with the slightest of ease. I have turned down more than one similar offer. How did I miss it this time around."

"You are twenty-three, not forty-three. I dare say that is how. I always feared your maturity in speech, and action, would get you another offer like the ones of the past. Though I do not know what that woman as thinking as you and her husband have never met. Tell me her, and her daughters' names again." When told, Mrs. Rhy let out a long sigh. "I know her and her husband's names, if they are the same ones from a few years back. I even know where they live. And If I am correct, odds are she did not even tell him what she was doing."

Neither one of them spoke until the old lady started speaking again.

"I can only do so much. It is not like I can go wandering all over England like I used to. I am sure I can think of something. However, we should not expect a gentleman to deliver on a promise he never made."

"I would not have agreed to what I did had I even suspected Mr. Bennet did not know. Did you write to him? Did you tell him of my leg? My health? My promise?"

It was about two weeks later Mahalia, after Mrs. Rhy had pulled stupid stunt in regard to a marquee did Miss Rhy speak again to her grandmother.

"Rest assured, I took care of things, my dear." 'And did a bit more' was not said out loud. "But only after receiving a letter from one of his daughters informing me her mother had indeed passed on. However, I did request he give himself two years. There is no need to insist on him rushing up after just burying his wife. And you, whether we like it or not, are not the healthiest lady around," Lady Rhy sighed. "If I were twenty-five years younger, I might have suggested we court ourselves." She laughed and then sobered up. "I also asked him …"

The old lady had stopped only because other company had come, namely her son's wife and there was no way either one of them was going to have her hear their conversation.

If it had just been descriptions of the strangers Mahalia had been concerned about, she would not have pulled her grandmother into things. It was that promise which caused her to turn to Lady Rhy...she had thought the woman had been talking about a nearby garden in Bath...what an off day she had been having. And when it had clicked, Mahalia had questioned herself on it. Hence, her turning to the only mother figure who could be trusted.

A breeze now blew across her face as gently as a fresh handkerchief never touched by human hands. Ignoring the conversation which had occurred between her and her grandmother, Mahalia focused on a lilac bush that was just outside the cave. The smell of their clusters of delicate flowers filled the air with their sweet perfume. Mahalia walked out and picked a flower and, not caring how old she was, stuck it behind her ear. Going back inside, she turned around the corner and sat down on a nature-made bench. She would have started singing to try to ease her nerves, wondering if her grandmother would get a response from Mr. Bennet, only the lady heard footsteps and voices heading her way. Therefore, she froze.

"I do not see what her problem is. It is not like Mrs. Rhy is picking horrible men to court her husband's daughter."

Mahalia groaned inside. She recognized the voice; it was Ruby Rods, one of the maids. And, ten to one, that meant she was either talking to Tabby—her pet cat—or Miss Styles, another gossipy maid. Her guess was answered when another voice replied back.

"Maybe, Miss Rhy is waiting for an offer from the king himself. Let us go inside this cave and mimic what you know the lady would do if that happened." The girls giggled and then quieted as an unearthly groaning sound came from the ground, as if someone were trying to break free from the cold, hard, barren rocks an stretch out their bony fingers to grab the ladies' ankles.

"EEEEEEEEEEEE!" The girls screamed, and their feet could be heard running in the opposite direction; Mahalia's heart pounded with mirth as the echo of the maids' screams faded into the distance. She pressed her hand to her chest, feeling the rapid beat of her heart, a stark contrast to the serene valley before her. The lilac's sweet scent still lingered, a reminder of the innocent mischief she had just committed.

She knew she could not stay in the cave. It may have been her sanctuary from the pressures of society, and definitely from any Mrs. Rhy attempted to put on her. However, it was a temporary respite. It was times such as this that gave Matilda a kinship with the land. It was, other than her times spent in her grandmother's gardens, what gave her the feeling of being most free.

'Is there a man out there who would care about me? I mean, really care about me? And not just the dowry that I bring with me.' Mahalia looked upward and then out to a river not far from the cave. 'And not just because they thought I would make a fine ornament on their arm whenever my leg does not argue with them.' She sighed and thought again of the promise that had been made.

"What was she thinking, and more importantly, what was I thinking?"

The sun began its descent, and the shadows which the woman had been watching lengthened. The river began to gleam like tiny shreds of shiny fabric weaving together to make an elegant piece of clothing. Mahalia stood up, brushed the dirt from her dress, and took one last look at the view before heading back to her grandmother's home.

Lady Rhy was just sitting down for dinner when her granddaughter walked in. Neither one of the ladies spoke as Mahalia sat down. Lady Rhy only spoke once the food had been served and the cook was back in the kitchen.

"It seems that the maids think the lower end of the property is haunted. Did you experience any hauntings?" The old lady's mouth was asking one question, her eyes another.

"I experienced no hauntings, only the enjoyment of nature and the pleasure it brings."

If sons are like fathers and daughters are like mothers. Well, then granddaughters can certainly be mirror images of their grandmothers, for Mahalia's eyes were twinkling just as bright as Lady Rhy's.