A Most Attentive Father Chapter 26, a pride and prejudice fanfic

Early edition... 😊

~O~

Gossip

As was customary after a ball, the ladies of the community visited one another to relive the most interesting parts of the event.

While the guests at the ball had been predominantly from the gentry, the ladies quite happily discussed the event wherever they met. In places such as the haberdasher, the milliner, the dressmaker and the tearoom, descriptions of the ballroom and the lavish food which had been served abounded. Of course, the news that Miss Elizabeth Bennet had become engaged to Mr Darcy, the guest at Netherfield was also shared with all and sundry.

Soon everyone down to the lowest scullery maid knew every detail of the events at the ball. Unfortunately, there were times when someone misunderstood what was said. Therefore, by the time Mrs Fanny Bennet learnt of the happenings in her former home, she was given a different and somewhat skewed impression of events.

As a consequence, she sent a note to Bennet Hall to demand the presence of her most beautiful daughter.

~O~

Even though Jane had learnt to see her mother for the woman she truly was, as a dutiful daughter, she obeyed the summons.

Fanny Bennet already had tea ready when Jane arrived. In celebration of the occasion, she had even invested in some small cakes which her daughter liked. Jane was not long left in the dark regarding the reason for the invitation.

'Jane, I heard the wonderful news. I knew you could not be so beautiful for nothing. Now we must hurry to London and visit my brother to arrange the finest trousseau for you. And you must prevail upon your father to allow me to plan the most elegant wedding for you. After all, we must do Mr Bingley proud. He shall see how well I can plan such events. Then he will not be able to resist inviting me to live with you. Just think, we shall live in luxury and never have to scrimp and save again. Mr Bingley is such a rich and amiable man; I am certain he shall not be able to refuse us anything. Mistress of Netherfield, how well that sounds.'

Fanny Bennet prattled on in this way for several minutes, barely drawing breath and not giving Jane a chance to speak.

But eventually even Fanny Bennet ran out of effusions and had to stop for a sip of tea.

The moment she stopped long enough for Jane to get a word in edgewise, she spoke firmly, 'No, mother. You are entirely wrong about everything. I am not engaged to Mr Bingley.'

'How can you say that? I have had it from Lucy, who had it from the baker, who had it from Mrs Brown at the haberdashers. She told me that Miss Bennet has become engaged to the gentleman from Netherfield.' She finished her speech in a tone of voice which said, so there, as she sat back and crossed her arms over her chest.

'The gentleman from Netherfield who became engaged is Mr Darcy,' Jane said just as firm as before, even though her patience was being strained.

Before she could continue with her explanation, Fanny interjected, 'Mr Darcy? Mr ten thousand a year? That is even better. Just think how rich we will be; what carriages, what jewels, what pin money we shall have. I hear he owns half of Derbyshire.'

'He may own half of Derbyshire, but he is not engaged to me. He is engaged to Elizabeth.'

That statement silenced Fanny while she stared in open-mouthed amazement at her daughter. As the realisation sank in that Jane was not joking, she exploded, 'Elizabeth? That cannot be. How can that wild and overeducated hoyden have caught a man such as Mr Darcy? Did she compromise him into offering for her?'

'How can you suggest such a disgusting thing about one of your daughters,' Jane snapped. 'They courted for many weeks, almost from the day they met. Mr Darcy appears to be very much in love with Lizzy and she is with him.'

While initially irritated that the daughter she heartily disliked had caught the wealthiest gentleman ever to come to the area, Fanny soon became complaisant again. 'Well, you know what they say, one marriage in a family often begets another. If your sister is to marry Mr Darcy, it cannot be long before his good friend offers for you.'

'Mr Bingley will never offer for me as he is courting Charlotte Lucas.'

This statement almost overset Jane's mother. 'That plain spinster? What could a man like Mr Bingley see in such a drab old woman? You must put yourself forward more to regain his interest. You cannot allow Charlotte Lucas to snatch such a prize from us.' She became ever more agitated at every word.

Jane briefly closed her eyes and took a deep breath. This was the conversation she hoped never to have, but it was time to put a stop to her mother's fantasies. 'No, mother, I shall do no such thing. I have recently learnt that there is no need for me to marry unless I should wish to do so. And I do not wish to marry.'

'But how shall I live? How shall I regain my rightful position?' Fanny cried in a panic. Her banishment to the dower house had caused her to become greatly distraught. Having to live in what she considered such a mean little hovel had only been bearable since she assumed it would be a temporary affliction. Once Jane married Mr Bingley or someone like him, she could go to live with the couple and take over as the mistress of the establishment. After all, Jane would never gainsay her.

At that display of selfishness, Jane snapped. 'You are living very comfortably. Most people in the country would be thrilled with such a level of comfort. As for your position… you never did a thing to earn that position. You tricked an honourable man into thinking you would be a helpmeet to him. But all you ever wanted was to go to or give parties, gossip and spend money with both hands.'

At seeing Fanny's offended expression, Jane emphasised her point. 'You tricked father into thinking that you wanted to learn to be a good wife to him when you never had the slightest intention to lift a finger in support of the estate. And since you had no interest in the duties of the mistress of an estate, you have ensured that I would be completely unmarriageable. You refused to allow me to be educated.'

Fanny stared as the vitriol poured from Jane's lips.

But Jane was not yet finished. 'What makes you think that any man with a modicum of sense wants to marry a woman with no accomplishments? One who has never learnt how to run an estate or worse, even a house. A woman who has nothing to offer except beauty. But even if you found a man stupid enough to accept me for nothing but beauty, I will not allow you to sell me into slavery just to pander to your sense of entitlement. Especially, after you rejected me so cruelly.'

She glared at her mother. 'You are the most selfish and hateful woman I have ever known.'

'But I did everything for you.'

'You never did anything for me which was purely for my benefit. You only saw me as a way to live in luxury for the rest of your life without ever having to lift a finger.'

Fanny listened in stunned silence to her favourite daughter saying all those horrible things she did not wish to hear. The longer she listened, the harder she had to work to deny the truth in Jane's words. She refused to admit even to herself that Jane was perfectly justified in her opinion.

In the end, she could not stand it any longer. She cried, 'You ungrateful child. If all you mean to do is to vex me, go away and never come back.'

Feeling the last bond with her mother shatter, Jane snapped, 'With pleasure,' and stormed out of the dower house.

Fanny Bennet stared out the window at the back of her departing daughter she was torn between sorrow for losing the only person who had loved her and anger for being mistreated. Anger and bitterness won.

~O~

Jane rushed back to Bennet Hall. Hurt anger had lent her momentum for the first part of the walk. By the hallway point the anger had faded, leaving only the hurt. She walked ever slower, especially as it became more difficult for her to see as tears blurred her vision.

She was stumbling up the steps to the house when a warm hand reached out to support her. Bennet was returning from inspecting a broken fence when he saw his distraught daughter.

He took her to his study, a cosy room which Jane was coming to know quite well and because only good things ever happened here, she came to associate it with security.

Puring a small tot of brandy, he handed her the glass and sitting next to her on the small sofa he waited patiently for Jane to calm down.

Once she had regained her equilibrium somewhat, Jane managed to relate what had happened at the dower house. She finished by saying, 'I do not know what came over me. I said some horrible things to her.'

'You only told her the truth. I have long known that that woman is the most selfish creature I have ever encountered, but she has excelled herself today. Wanting you to marry Mr Bingley so that she could take over as mistress of Netherfield.'

Bennet shook his head in disbelief and gently squeezed Jane's hand. 'I am tempted to throw her into the real hedgerows for her plans, but I refuse to sink to her level.'

Jane gave him a watery smile. 'You are too good a man to do that. That is why I love you.'

Bennet would swear on a stack of bibles that it must have been smoke from the fire which made his eyes water.

~O~

At Netherfield, Charles Bingley took his sister aside for a private conversation.

'I hope you will now stop spouting all that nonsense about the Bennets.'

'Why did you not tell me before I made a fool of myself?'

'I tried to tell you and so did Louisa, but you were determined in your dislike of the family and refused to listen.'

'They may be rich, but what scandal are they trying to hush up since I have never seen Mrs Bennet… Mrs Thomas Bennet.'

'Unlike the gossip you like to spread, there is no particular scandal, as the whole town knows that Mrs Bennet has been banished to the dower house. They also know the reason why.'

'Pray tell, what is that well known reason,' Caroline sneered.

Bingley gave a mirthless laugh. 'It is common knowledge that Mrs Bennet tricked her husband into marrying her by pretending to be in love with him and she feigned an interest in learning to improve herself. But all she was interested in was to marry, not Thomas Bennet but the master of Longbourn and his wealth. She expected that marriage to allow her to spend money with both hands and engage in a continuous round of parties.'

'So, she was a fortune hunter. That does not particularly surprise me, as I am certain her daughters are just the same,' Caroline said dismissively.

'While the Misses Bennet have no need to hunt fortunes, as you are poor compared to them, is that not exactly to what you aspire? You wanted to marry Darcy, not for himself but his wealth and status. You thought that as his wife you would be able to lord it over society in London. You are as utterly selfish as Mrs Bennet.'

'I am nothing like her.'

'You are both the daughters of tradesmen.' Bingley shook his head. 'You know, there is a lesson for you there. You sneer at Mrs Bennet for being banished to the dower house. But that could be you in ten, twenty or thirty years. Look closely and you will realise that you are looking in a mirror.'

Caroline Bingley glared angrily at her brother. As much as she hated to listen to having her dreams destroyed, when even he echoed what everyone else had been telling her lately, perhaps it was time to listen. But she most certainly did not have to like it.

~O~

The officers who had attended the ball returned to camp most impressed by the evening.

'Wickham, you should have come along, you would have enjoyed yourself. Mrs Hurst really knows how to cater a party.'

'But that would have been nothing if not for the house. That was the biggest ballroom I have ever seen.'

'The Bennets have a house big enough to hold a ballroom?'

'Not just any ballroom, but the biggest one I have ever seen.'

'How can that be? I was given the impression that theirs is only a small estate. Not only that, but it is entailed to a distant cousin.'

'I was told that only a small part of Bennet's estate was entailed and even that entail has finished with him. Since he only has daughters, that makes them all heiresses.'

'Maybe so, but you have to get on the father's good side. That man is not likely to give his permission to wed one of his daughters to just anyone. He said that he even struggled when Mr Darcy asked for Miss Elizabeth's hand.'

Denny grimaced. 'I know. I found out the hard way. Just because I was trying to change the girl's mind about dancing with me, Pratt and I are confined to comp for the next month.'

Wickham was distracted for a moment at that snippet of information, although it was not exactly a surprise. He had observed his nemesis for several weeks, carefully from afar, of course, and had seen the attachment between the two.

He became more interested when Saunderson grinned as he suggested, 'I would say that a man could do much worse than courting Miss Bennet. She is a beauty and as the oldest daughter I think will likely inherit the estate.' He paused before he added the clincher. 'And she has the benefit of being of age and does not require permission to marry.'

That certainly piqued Wickham's interest.

While Miss Bennet was significantly older than his preferred victims, she was beautiful and appeared very quiet and pliable. And with an estate such as his colleagues described, he could put up with some minor deficiencies. Especially as he had not the slightest intention to honour his marriage vows.

~O~

The officers of the militia and the ladies of Meryton were not the only ones to spread the news of the engagement of Elizabeth and Darcy.

Bennet was also pleased to share the information with his extended family in letters to Mr Gardiner and Mr Collins, both of whom were keen to pass on the good news to other members of the engaged couple's family.

While Mrs Gardiner was excited for her niece, Lady Catherine was not as sanguine about her nephew.

She nearly had an apoplexy when Mr Collins cheerfully informed the lady that with this marriage they would be related.

~O~

BTW when I remove the story, I will leave the last coupe of chapters, so you can finish reading the story.

~O~