Have a Sunday bonus chapter!
Chapter Ten
Despite the hour at which he and Fitzwilliam had returned to Darcy House that morning, both were up and dressed by half past nine.
Darcy lifted an eyebrow upon seeing a note on the salver by the door, wondering who would have sent a message so early. He felt some small measure of concern to see the direction written in Bingley's handwriting.
"What is it, Darcy?" Fitzwilliam asked.
"A note from Bingley," Darcy replied as he broke the seal and opened it.
Darcy,
I regret to inform you that Elizabeth and I will not be able to keep our scheduled engagement for this afternoon. We had quite the row with Caroline when we returned home this morning and have by necessity quit my brother's house. Though she is putting up a brave façade, I know in my heart that Lizzy is devastated, and I have advised her to rest.
I have taken rooms for us and Mrs. Martin at Grillon's, but as I am sure you know, this establishment is more often frequented by single gentlemen. I must spend the next few days searching for more suitable lodgings in which to house my unmarried sister and her companion.
If you should wish to reschedule Lizzy's visit to Miss Darcy before I have found us a home, we are in Suite Six.
Your friend,
Charles Bingley
Fitzwilliam, who had read the note over Darcy's shoulder, snorted in disgust. "Why am I not surprised that harpy has driven Miss Elizabeth from Hurst's house?"
Darcy was for a moment stunned by two things: one, that the enmity Miss Bingley felt for her younger sister was such as to drive her away; and two, that Bingley had written a letter without a single line scratched out.
He must have been so angry that he had not the capacity to think rapidly, as he so often claims, he mused.
Another thought struck him then—the realization that he was concerned for Miss Elizabeth. Darcy told himself it was merely the concern anyone might feel for a new acquaintance and then pushed the thought aside as he folded the note.
"Harpy is certainly one word to describe her," Darcy agreed. "Caroline Bingley has made no secret of her desire to rise as high in the ton as she possibly can. Miss Elizabeth is a pretty, exotic-looking girl with greater intelligence and a sharp wit, which are more attractive attributes than shallow, vapid, obvious attempts at social climbing."
"You think Miss Elizabeth is pretty and exotic-looking, do you?" asked Fitzwilliam with a teasing grin.
"Did I not just say so?" Darcy returned as he slipped Bingley's note into a pocket and started in the direction of his study.
Fitzwilliam followed. "Come now, Darcy, admit it—you admired Miss Elizabeth, didn't you?"
"Certainly. Why else would I have agreed to introduce her to my sister?"
They entered the study and Darcy crossed the room to sit behind his desk, intending to write some letters until breakfast was served. His cousin dropped into the chair across from him and leaned forward.
"Tell me honestly, did you like her?" he pressed.
Suppressing a sigh, Darcy instead drew a breath and reflected back on the conversations he had had with Miss Elizabeth. "She is… admirable. I confess to harboring some concern given the behavior of Bingley's other sisters—"
"With apparent good reason," Fitzwilliam interjected.
Darcy nodded. "Indeed. There was also the fact that she spent four years working in a military camp. I mean no offence to you and your fellow soldiers, of course, but that is just it—such a place is for men and not suitable for a sixteen-year-old girl to work in, let alone spend the next four years of her life in."
Fitzwilliam sat back. "Allow me to ask you this, Darcy: What if she were General Halsey's daughter? Would that make a difference?"
"Would the general not then have insisted that the ladies remain here at home, if they were father and daughter?"
"Perhaps," his cousin conceded. "And the Halseys could certainly have insisted that Miss Elizabeth remain in school. But sometimes commanding officers do bring their families along with them in the field, just as navy men take theirs aboard ship. It is only done if the number of children is small—just one or two—but it has happened before. Does Miss Elizabeth being their niece instead of their child really make a difference?"**
"In that respect, no," Darcy agreed. "However, I had to consider her choice to risk her reputation from society's view and calculate the potential hazards of allowing such a person to become acquainted with my impressionable sister. Bingley's friends already know where Miss Elizabeth has been these four years, but the whole of society does not—yet. It is certain to have been spread about by Miss Bingley at the ball last night, and from there it will surely move across the city."
Fitzwilliam sighed and sat back. "Harsh, but true, I suppose—and it may prevent her from marrying any man of consideration in the world. Still, you asked her to pay a call on Georgiana, so you have clearly decided in favor of her."
Darcy recalled the sparkle in her eyes as Elizabeth laughed and felt himself smiling.
"She made me laugh," he said. "After Georgiana's near miss in Ramsgate and her subsequent withdrawal into herself, I have had little reason to laugh. I found Miss Elizabeth's impertinence surprisingly delightful, her wit refreshing. She is not like the many society daughters we have both of us been forced to meet in our time."
"Indeed, she is not," Fitzwilliam agreed. "Do you remember I told you she thinks of me as being like her brother?"
At Darcy's nod, his cousin continued with, "Well, the truth is I think of her as a sister. My fellow soldiers are my brothers-in-arms, and since Miss Elizabeth in essence served with us, she is a sister-in-arms. When first I met her four years ago, I could not but think of Cecilia and Olivia, and how fearful I would be for my sisters were they in the midst of a war zone."
A sensation he could not but call relief washed over Darcy upon hearing Fitzwilliam confess that he thought of Elizabeth as a sister—he would not have to compete with his own cousin for her affections.
Not that he intended to seek them, he asserted silently.
"Do you think Bingley and Miss Elizabeth would appreciate a visit?" Fitzwilliam asked then.
"I cannot speak for what Miss Elizabeth might wish—you know her better than I do—but I can say with some certainty that Bingley would," Darcy replied. "He is the sort who suppresses his anger, and though he would not ask it of us, it is likely he would welcome someone to vent his spleen to."
Fitzwilliam inclined his head. "Very well. I propose we go to see them after breakfast. The reason I mentioned my considering Miss Elizabeth as a sister is because I wish to look in on her and see for myself that she is well. I know she was apprehensive of the reunion with her sisters, and this row has proven she had good reason."
The two then set themselves to the task of writing letters. Darcy answered one letter of business and one to an old friend, and he knew that Fitzwilliam had been meaning to write to his parents. The Disleys knew he was home for the next two months and were planning to return to London to spend time with their son when some matters at Disley Court were settled. Viscount Rowarth, the colonel's brother, was set to return with them.
As soon as the morning meal was done, Darcy ordered his carriage. He went upstairs to inform Georgiana he would be leaving for a short time, and she replied to his words with a mute nod of her head.
Lord, I do hope Miss Elizabeth can come soon, he found himself praying as he left his sister's rooms. I will have to confess the whole of the matter to the earl and countess if she does not.
The two gentlemen arrived at Grillon's, the hotel where the Bingleys were staying, in short order, and took themselves at a quick pace up the stairs to their suite. Fitzwilliam knocked on the door and it was quickly answered by Bingley himself.
"Darcy. Colonel Fitzwilliam," said he before backing away and opening the door wider to admit them to a plainly furnished sitting room. "I am surprised to see you, but please, do come in."
When he had shut the door, he said, "Give me a moment, I'll get my jacket."
Fitzwilliam lifted his hand in a dismissive wave. "We don't mind you being only in your shirtsleeves and waistcoat."
Bingley blinked, then sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Of course, of course," he muttered. "Forgive me, I am rather scatterbrained this morning. Last night was completely unexpected."
Darcy had immediately noted that Miss Elizabeth was absent and took the opportunity of asking after her. Bingley replied that she was still abed last he had checked, as she had not slept at all the few hours they had remained at the Hurst house.
"Lizzy packed her own trunks, and spent the night pacing her room," he said. "As soon as Mrs. Martin awoke, she informed her of our decision to leave."
The three men took seats in the lounge area, and for a moment, Bingley tipped his head back and closed his eyes. Darcy felt quite sorry for him. What a burden upon his conscience it must be to have one sister hating the other.
"Have you slept at all, Bingley?" he asked.
Bingley lifted his head and shook it. "No, I didn't sleep either. I was too angry to rest, at Caroline and myself. I … I nearly struck her. Her words to Elizabeth were so vile, I got so far as to raise my hand—and I have never, never been a violent person! But to come so close to striking a woman, and my own sister no less? What kind of man does such a thing?"
"A man who has been provoked beyond all reason, I expect," said Fitzwilliam. "Console yourself, Mr. Bingley, in that you did not follow through—it takes great strength of character to realize you're about to make a huge mistake in the midst of carrying it out. I've seen some of that in my time abroad."
Bingley growled and pushed to his feet. He paced back and forth before the cold fireplace for a minute before he turned to them and said, "What pains me the most is how this is affecting Lizzy. She is heartbroken, I know she is. Her eyes were so haunted when we left Grosvenor Street. She and Caroline have never got on and all Elizabeth has ever wanted was for her sisters to love her as she loved them."
Darcy grimaced. "And now she has had her eyes opened to their true characters—Miss Bingley's, at least. Was Mrs. Hurst involved in your row?"
"No, but she wasn't exactly kind to Lizzy a few days ago, when I spoke to her about their bullying of our sister," Bingley replied. "You'd think Louisa and Caroline are the same age rather than five years apart—or that Caroline is the elder of the two, as easily as she bullies and persuades Louisa to think as she does."
With a small sigh, Darcy said, "I am truly sorry a breach has developed in your family, Bingley. It must be a great burden upon your mind."
"I think the greatest burden at present will be finding us a place to live," said Bingley as he moved back to the chair he'd occupied and sat again. "I've sent a letter to my man of business to check into estates available in the country. With Caroline's abominable actions last night—she all but told people at Hiddleston's that Elizabeth behaved improperly with the soldiers she worked with—"
Fitzwilliam sat forward sharply. "She did what?!" he cried.
Bingley then recounted the painful confrontation he and Miss Elizabeth had had with their sister. Darcy found himself feeling a mixture of horror, shock, and anger at Miss Bingley as well as sympathy and concern for Miss Elizabeth. No one should have someone they looked up to—someone they loved—spew such vitriol.
"As I was saying, I am determined to lease an estate—it need not be a large one—to get Lizzy away from the city," Bingley went on. "It is my hope that any rumours Caroline may have started will have died away by the next time we come here."
"A country setting is just the right thing for your sister," said Fitzwilliam. "We may be heading into winter soon, but I am fairly certain that Miss Elizabeth will do very well in the country. She has a great affection for the out of doors."
Bingley smiled a little. "You have got to know my sister well, have you, Colonel?"
Fitzwilliam nodded. "I like to think so. We have known one another these four years, after all."
For a moment, Bingley rubbed his chin with one hand. "Do you … like my sister?" he asked. "She has a very respectable dowry—more than forty thousand pounds now. The two of you would surely do very well on such a sum."
Darcy exchanged a look with his cousin. "More than forty, sir?" Fitzwilliam queried. "I do not understand—I thought her dowry was only twenty thousand?"
"It was, yes," Bingley replied, apparently non-plussed that the colonel knew the amount of his sister's dowry. "But she has used none of her allowance these last four years, so there's an additional four thousand, and the letters that Lizzy brought to me from my Uncle Halsey were to secure the transfer of my aunt's dowry—which was also twenty thousand—from his account to mine. My uncle and aunt wished Elizabeth to have it, as they loved her like a daughter. She also inherited some rather fine jewelry from my aunt."
Darcy found himself watching his cousin at this revelation. Forty thousand pounds would secure him a fine lifestyle not unlike that which he had always enjoyed at home if he and Miss Elizabeth were to manage the fortune wisely.
"Blimey," Fitzwilliam said. "In that respect, at least, Miss Elizabeth is blessed indeed, and I am happy for her. But if you are suggesting that I should pay suit to her, I must disappoint you. She says I am too much like you to ever marry me, and I confessed to Darcy just this morning that she is like a sister to me. This whole business with Miss Bingley upsets me and I am concerned for her. That is why we came—to see how our friends were holding up."
Darcy suppressed a sigh of relief at hearing his cousin confirm his statement from that morning—though why he was so relieved, he refused to contemplate.
Bingley smiled sheepishly. "I am sorry, Colonel—I should not be trying to marry my sister off to get her out of my house before I even have one," he said. "I just… It seemed that you liked her very much, and I thought perhaps a courtship would help raise her spirits a little."
"I am certain it would, and I do like her very much. Just not in a romantic sense," Fitzwilliam replied. "And I mean no offence, sir, but I do not know that my parents would approve the match, given your family's lack of connections and ties to trade. I know that I am old enough to not require their approval, but I of course want them to welcome my wife into the family."
"I understand you, Colonel, and appreciate your candor. Now that we have established that," said Bingley with a laugh, "I should like your opinion on something else."
Darcy inclined his head. "I should be glad to offer advice where I may."
"As would I," echoed Fitzwilliam.
Bingley drew a breath, then said, "Given the position Caroline has taken against Lizzy, the fact that she reached her majority this spring, and the fact that I must look after the latter until she chooses to marry… I have been considering that I might release Caroline's dowry to her. In doing so, neither Lizzy nor I have to have anything to do with her."
Darcy glanced at Fitzwilliam. "I can understand Miss Elizabeth wishing to sever ties with Miss Bingley, but are you certain that you wish to take that step also?"
A sigh which clearly denoted a mixture of anger, frustration, resignation, and a touch of sorrow escaped his friend, and Bingley once more ran a hand through his hair.
"I… It pains me, Darcy, it truly does," said he. "Caroline is my sister and I do love her in spite of her faults. But I see no other recourse. After what she did and the things she said to Lizzy… Issuing a cut direct, as it were, will save both Lizzy and me a great deal of aggravation in the future. As regretful as the decision is, I must think of Lizzy's happiness."
"And your own, I daresay," offered Fitzwilliam. "I mean, from what little I have been told by Miss Elizabeth, and what you have shared this morning, I gather that it will be better for you in the end as well, to remove such a source of frustration from your life."
"What about the Hursts?" asked Darcy. "I assume that Miss Bingley would be living with them. Will you also cut them?"
"As I said before, Louisa has not been entirely welcoming to Lizzy, but neither has she been as cruel as Caroline," Bingley said. "I will have to arrange a meeting with her and Hurst to make sure they understand my position. If they choose to house Caroline, I will not stand against them, nor will I cut them for that alone—but I will not tolerate any more abuse of Elizabeth."
Darcy nodded again. "As well you should not."
A door to the left of the fireplace opened and Miss Elizabeth suddenly appeared. She paused when the three gentlemen stood and bowed.
"Mr. Darcy, Colonel Fitzwilliam," said she after curtseying in return. "What do you do here? Has Charles told you…?"
Darcy found himself studying her features. He could tell she had used powder in an attempt to hide the evidence of an untold number of tears, and he felt the strongest urge to go to her and offer comfort.
Bingley acted where he could not, walking over to her and gathering her to his chest. "I sent a note after our arrival here, dearest," said he. "Our friends came to see that we were well."
She nodded against him, then stood back. "I… I understand, Charles."
Miss Elizabeth then looked to Darcy and said, "Pray forgive my not being able to call on your sister. I am in no fit state myself to be much company, let alone comfort."
"Do not make yourself uneasy, Miss Elizabeth," Darcy replied. "I understand your need to compose yourself after such an upset."
"She was vile," the lady went on. "So mean, and just… cruel. She essentially said she wished I'd never been born."
"What a reprehensible thing to say," muttered Fitzwilliam. "I cannot understand anyone wishing such a thing."
"Nor could I, sir, until this morning," said Miss Elizabeth.
"Did you sleep at all, Lizzy?" Bingley asked.
"Not very much. You would think after a long night out followed by a vicious row would exhaust me, but I cannot seem to feel at rest."
"Perhaps Colonel Fitzwilliam and I should take our leave," Darcy suggested. "We have no desire to disrupt your rest and offer apologies if our conversation disturbed you."
"Oh no, Mr. Darcy, you did not disturb me," Miss Elizabeth said. "I am rather pleased that you and the colonel were kind enough to be concerned for our welfare."
"What are friends for but to try and cheer you when you are melancholy, eh?" said Fitzwilliam with a grin.
Miss Elizabeth flashed a weak smile. Her countenance was dimmed by the lack of light in her eyes, and Darcy found he could not but wish to see them shine again.
"Perhaps," he began, "if you are feeling up to it this evening, the two of you might join Colonel Fitzwilliam and me for dinner at Darcy House?"
"Very kind of you to offer, Darcy," said Bingley. "What say you, Lizzy?"
Miss Elizabeth looked for a moment as though she intended to decline the invitation, which Darcy could certainly understand. But then she drew a breath, squared her shoulders, and smiled.
"I believe by this evening, I should be feeling much better," said she. "Charles and I should be delighted to join you."
Darcy returned her smile. "Then we shall see you at six."
** This is speculation for storytelling purposes. I know that naval captains could take their wives on board ship, so I would assume an army commander could take his wife with him as well. I do not know about children - I kind of doubt it, but again, this is fiction. I have to do some little bit of creative storytelling. :)