Chapter 51: Confrontation
As the carriage entered the countryside of Hertfordshire, Elizabeth felt a wave of emotion pass through her. Georgiana was worried about seeing her expression.
"Lizzy, are you all right?" she asked with concern.
"Yes, I am well. I just recollected how I left my home many months ago; it seems like an eternity ago," she said.
Darcy sat in the opposite seat, fervently hoping he had made the right decision by bringing her along; nothing mattered to him more than her happiness and welfare.
"Mr. Bingley would be surprised to see us suddenly," Elizabeth exclaimed.
"He will, but he will be delighted to host us all, nonetheless."
"Is Miss Bingley with him?" Georgiana asked with worry.
"I assume so, and the Hursts as well," Darcy replied.
Judging by the look on Georgiana's face, Elizabeth could sense that she did not prefer Miss Bingley's company.
"Miss Bingley and Miss Anderson are alike," Georgiana whispered lowly to Elizabeth. Elizabeth looked at Darcy and wondered how many women had tried to impress him in the past.
Once they reached Netherfield, as expected, Mr. Bingley was surprised to see them all but warmly welcomed them. The same could not be said about his sisters, especially Miss Bingley.
The wave of excitement she experienced the moment she set eyes on Darcy evaporated within seconds when her brother introduced Elizabeth to them.
Good Heavens! He is engaged, and who is she?
The Bingley sisters were not impressed with the unexpected arrival of the guests at their house, especially those they were not acquainted with, but Mr. Bingley ensured that the guests were well cared for and they had an early supper. The women retired soon after, and Darcy had a deep discussion with Mr. Bingley.
"Darcy, I cannot believe they are capable of such deceit. To have done that to her sister and later raise her child with such hate. Mary related to me how that parson behaved with her, and her parents were planning a compromise just to save their property," Mr. Bingley cried with disgust.
"I cannot tell you how worried I am for Mary's welfare," he added.
"Is she aware of everything?"
"Yes, and she is impatient to see her sister. As you requested previously, I have been in touch with the magistrate here. We are well prepared to handle whatever transpires tomorrow."
Darcy nodded.
"Have you decided on a date for your wedding yet?" Darcy asked.
"We are looking for a date within three weeks, but after tomorrow, I am not certain whether Mary would feel the same."
"The Bennets have gone too long without punishment, deceiving family and society and taking everyone for granted. Imagine the kind of spite one must possess to ruin both mother and daughter in different ways. If not for Mary, that man would have harmed her for life. Every day, I think about it, and I cannot control the rage building within me. Her father feels the same way."
"He seems to be an honorable man; I wonder how he made such a big blunder."
"He had his reasons, Bingley, until last week when he was confident in his actions. But now, he has nothing to defend himself, but I can certainly say he loves his daughter."
They spoke for a long time, and before he retired, Darcy met Elizabeth in Georgiana's room. He expected Georgiana to give them some privacy, but to his surprise, she stayed in the room without leaving them alone.
"I have a feeling Lady Martha sent her an express asking her to be more vigilant as a chaperone," she said teasingly, looking at Darcy's frown.
"Pray, tell me, what have I done so far to make her feel so?" he asked with irritation.
"I do not know; you must ask her."
"You enjoy teasing me, don't you? You certainly make up for Lady Martha."
"I miss her, and honestly, I miss Derbyshire."
"Do not worry, we can return soon. I was discussing his wedding plans with Bingley; he wants to marry your sister in a couple of weeks."
"I am so happy for them, but on the other hand, I am worried about what will happen to the rest of my sisters after tomorrow."
"Elizabeth, you need to trust me. I will handle everything without causing you distress, and I have discussed this with Mr. Gardiner. You look tired; I hope you can give yourself the rest you need to have strength for tomorrow."
"I trust you," she said, and Darcy finally left them. Elizabeth retired, feeling strange spending the night in Netherfield. She had never been in the house before, and her thoughts circled around her life in a home just a few miles away.
Despite the cold November weather, the following day was bright and sunny. Elizabeth felt out of place at the breakfast parlour in Netherfield, but Georgiana kept her company. Miss Bingley sat along with her brother, silently scanning Elizabeth from top to bottom.
What did he see in her to marry her?
Miss Bingley could not digest watching the way Darcy behaved around her. Apart from his sister, she had never seen him care for anyone in such a way.
After breakfast, Darcy briefly conversed with Mrs. Lewis and Elizabeth, ensuring they understood the plan.
"Are you certain you do not want me to accompany you, Lizzy?" Georgiana asked with worry.
"No, I will be all right. Do not worry," Elizabeth said.
Georgiana watched them leave and hoped they would return soon. Mr. Bingley also went with them, and Georgiana excused herself to her room, unwilling to spend time in Miss Bingley's company.
Meanwhile, Darcy sat beside Elizabeth in the carriage; even though they were in Lord Anderson's company, Darcy held her hand. Elizabeth tried hard to compose herself as she watched the familiar paths she had walked pass as the carriage rolled by. Finally, when she set sight of Longbourn, Elizabeth felt a wave of panic hit her.
Lord Anderson witnessed her agony as she struggled to compose herself; her countenance turned white, and she could hardly breathe. Darcy asked her again whether she wanted to return to Netherfield, but she disagreed. As the carriage stopped, she mentally prepared herself for the worst.
In Longbourn, the morning had started as usual; while Mr. Bennet sat in his library, Mrs. Bennet kept to her room, occupied with her thoughts.
I am happy that Mary is marrying him. But I am certain his sisters do not favor the match. And why does Mr. Bingley insist on getting married so soon? I need time to make Mary understand how to deal with his money. She is too naïve; she will not even think about supporting us. Had it been Jane, it would have been easy for me.
Meanwhile, Mr. Bennet was tired of his wife's constant arguments over the past few weeks. She had pestered him about wedding clothes, gifts, and much more. But what irritated him the most was her request to renew relations with the Gardiners and invite them to the wedding.
Just as he sat lost in thought, the servant announced the arrival of visitors, and Mr. Bennet was shocked to see Darcy and another man walk into the library.
"Mr. Darcy!" he exclaimed in surprise, not understanding who the other visitor was.
As they stood before him, Mr. Bennet could not determine why their eyes were cold and resentful.
"Mr. Bingley did not inform me of your arrival, but it is a pleasure to see you again," he said, directing his gaze towards Lord Anderson.
"And who is this gentleman?" Mr. Bennet asked.
"Allow me to introduce you to my future father-in-law and Elizabeth's father, Lord Anderson," Darcy said with composure.
For a second, Mr. Bennet felt he had heard him wrong.
"Wha… What did you say?"
"Why? Have you forgotten her so easily? Or would it be easier to lie to me that no one named Elizabeth Bennet lived her?" Darcy asked.
"How do you know this? And this man here… is he?" Mr. Bennet stammered.
"You might not have seen me in the flesh, but I am certain your wife has spoken of me when you conspired against Sarah," Lord Anderson said.
They watched Mr. Bennet startle; his features expressed confusion and fear.
"I suggest you leave this room now," he said icily.
"Why? Are you going to deny that you never tried to ruin Elizabeth's life to save your property?" Lord Anderson asked with disgust.
"Who are you to question me? Get out of my house now. That girl ran away, and she is as immoral as her mother," Mr. Bennet yelled.
Lord Anderson could no longer stand it; he grabbed Mr. Bennet by his coat and punched him hard.
"Watch your words, Mr. Bennet; I will not think twice to kill you right here."
"How dare you slander the daughter you raised. Are you not ashamed of yourself?" Darcy asked with rage.
Mr. Bennet tried to free himself from Lord Anderson's grasp, and according to him, his worst nightmare had come true.
"Did she really run away? Is that the truth?" Darcy asked as he grabbed Mr. Bennet's arm.
"She did, she did run away."
"Enough! She left because you wanted to ruin her for the sake of wealth. How could you do it? And you called her your daughter?" Darcy asked, shaking Mr. Bennet.
Just then, the library door opened, and Mrs. Bennet entered the room.
"My dear Mr. Bennet, I heard Mr. Darcy just called on you; I must fetch Jane immediately," she said as she entered, and once she set eyes on Lord Anderson, Mrs. Bennet halted abruptly, and every muscle in her body froze.
"Mr. Andrews, I cannot believe…how are you here?" she stammered.
"You know my original identity very well, my madam. Don't you?" Lord Anderson asked her.
Her stare shifted between each of the men in the room, and she was horrified to see her husband's state.
"How dare you? Leave my husband right now. Mr. Bennet, what happened?" she asked in horror.
"Don't you understand why I am here? I am here to obtain justice for my dead wife, the one you chose to betray so cruelly for money. Answer me now, did you do it or not?"
"I did not do anything. We raised that disgraceful daughter of hers and gave her a life, but she was as immoral as her mother; she ran away with someone."
"Enough!" cried Darcy, and his voice was so loud that Mrs. Bennet was certain the entire household heard him.
He walked closer to Mrs. Bennet.
"I warn you not to utter another word about her. You let the world slander your own sister and then have the nerve to do that to Elizabeth as well? You thought she had no one to protect her, didn't you?"
Mrs. Bennet could not understand how Darcy was aware of Elizabeth, and the very mention of her name in his mouth gave Mrs. Bennet the chills.
"Let me acquaint you with information your husband is already aware of. Elizabeth is to marry me, and I am proud to have her as my wife. She is no longer alone in this world. You are answerable to everything you have done to her mother."
"Is she still alive? I thought she had ended her life somewhere; we never heard from her all these months. Mr. Bennet, why are you silent? Send these men away from our home."
Lord Anderson and Darcy tried hard to compose themselves; they were enraged by Mrs. Bennet's words.
"You assumed wrong, Mrs. Bennet. Unlike Sarah, she did not die and leave this world without exposing you. She was brave enough to live after what you did to her."
"We did nothing to her; she ran away, and God knows with whom?" Mr. Bennet cried with spite, and the next moment, he was on the floor due to a deadly blow Lord Anderson landed on him.
Mrs. Bennet was beside him immediately, crying.
"Oh! My poor husband is being treated like this for no fault of his. You must leave before I call my servants to remove you; I do not know why you are here. I do not care whether she is alive or not; leave this house," Mrs. Bennet cried.
"You must care now because I discovered the truth about Sarah—the truth you so malicious chose to hide from me. I know now that she was pregnant with my child while you forged the letters stating she wanted to marry this man here. I know everything."
Mrs. Bennet stared at him in horror.
This is impossible; how could he know? No, this cannot be true.
"I do not know what you are accusing me of; I did not know anything about your relationship with her. Sarah was a ruined woman, and we generously raised the child she brought to this world as a disgrace. Elizabeth was born out of wedlock; that is what we knew."
"Nonsense! You knew very well that she was married. Do not lie," Lord Anderson cried.
"Why are you both here? I am warning you again, leave my house,"
"We are here for justice," Darcy said.
"All you seem to have is a tale spun out of thin air," Mr. Bennet said with sarcasm.
"You have the nerve to think you can still escape your crimes, don't you?" Darcy asked with rage. He pulled Mr. Bennet up from the floor and pushed him towards the wall; he looked at Mrs. Bennet with a piercing gaze.
"You have one choice before you, Mrs. Bennet, either confess to what you have done or else you leave me no choice but to kill your husband. I cannot tell you how long I have been waiting for this moment."
Mrs. Bennet froze upon hearing Darcy's words.
"Leave him alone; who do you think you are? Stepping into our house and threatening us? What do you want to know? Do you want to know how I felt around my sister? She emasculated my existence in my family. And I could not stand Sarah marrying into a fortune; nobody preferred me in my house. My brother, my father, and even the man I married loved only her," Mrs. Bennet cried.
"Fanny, stop this; do not say a word more," Mr. Bennet warned her.
"Everyone loved her; she was beautiful and intelligent, and she made me feel worthless. Nobody cared about my feelings or what I wanted. Yes, I did it. I earned her trust and forged the letters. I made her believe the man she loved sent her money to compensate for her ruin. I watched her suffer every day while I was happily married. I watched my father and brother despise her; the love they deprived me of, the love they showered on her, turned into aversion. Yes, I did it!" she said proudly, and the room stared at her in astonishment.
"What have you done?" Mr. Bennet asked in rage.
"You heard it; what can you do now? You cannot prove anything. I burned all the letters she wrote. Leave my husband alone and get out of our house," his wife cried, looking at Darcy and Lord Anderson.
"How could you confess to this cruelty without any guilt? Wasn't she your sister, a pregnant woman who trusted you?"
"She deserved everything. She had no one to support her then; what can you do now, after all these years? You have no proof about anything."
Mr. Bennet freed himself from Darcy's grasp and hurried towards his wife.
"Be quiet now; why can't you keep your mouth shut for once?"
"Why are you angry with me? What can they do? They have no proof about the letters. Ask them to leave, Mr. Bennet."
Just then, the library door opened, and Mr. Gardiner and Mrs. Lewis walked in.
"Why, my dear sister, we do have proof, and she stands beside me now," Mr. Gardiner said.
"Mrs. Lewis?" Mrs. Bennet gasped.
"Yes, Fanny, the truth I was already aware of sounded even more bitter hearing it from you," Mrs. Lewis said.
Mr. Bennet knew now that they were caught.
"I wish you were dead instead of Sarah; you did all this because you were jealous of her? How could you? Maybe you were right, Father, and I could never care for you because deep down, we knew what a monster you could be," Mr. Gardiner said with spite.
"Edward, how did you… how did you find her? Do not believe anything she says," Mrs. Bennet screamed.
"I could not do anything for Sarah while she was alive; I wish I had. But now I did this not only for her but for Elizabeth. The daughter you raised as a burden, the one you planned to ruin, has made you pay today."
"Is she here?" Mr. Bennet asked, well aware of the answer. Darcy left the room, and when he returned, Elizabeth walked in with him, locking arms.
As for Elizabeth, she had anticipated the moment for many weeks now. She was surprised at her composure as she entered the room, and Darcy's presence gave her the strength she needed. The same library she had run out of many months ago, struggling to understand her past, now welcomed her with nothing but the truth.
She witnessed utter disbelief on the faces of the Bennets as they set sight on her.
"Elizabeth!" Mr. Bennet said with a stoic expression.
"I must correct you, Miss Elizabeth Anderson, and the future Mrs. Darcy," Lord Anderson added. As much as Elizabeth disagreed with his words, she kept silent.
"You thought you could bury the truth, didn't you? I really pity you both for the sort of lives you have led; how could you look at yourself without disgust? How could you live and lead a life after what you did to my mother? Are you not ashamed?" Elizabeth finally asked.
"Answer her," Lord Anderson yelled.
"I heard everything you said about my mother. Don't you feel any sort of guilt for what you have done?" Elizabeth questioned Mrs. Bennet more calmly than she felt.
Mrs. Bennet pursed her lips, and her eyes flickered with anger. She could not stand to see Elizabeth in the flesh after all these months.
"And what about you, Papa?" she paused and corrected herself, "I should never address you that way even by mistake. Did you for once think about the life you both ruined? You helped her write those letters, didn't you? The very sight of you both disgusts me; you both would do anything for money. I doubted it before, but now I am certain you will not care to ruin even your own daughters for money," Elizabeth cried.
"How dare you?" Mrs. Bennet cried and angrily approached Elizabeth to strike her, but Lord Anderson and Darcy stopped her.
"Enough, do not dare to touch her. I know you took the liberty to lay a hand on her in the past; don't you dare to try that again," Darcy yelled.
Mrs. Bennet trembled at the sight of an enraged Darcy, and Mr. Bennet knew they were caught red-handed.
"Leave this house, all of you; I do not want any of you here. Get out!" Mr. Bennet said, sinking into the chair as his world spun.
"You still think we came here just to confront you and nothing else?" Mr. Gardiner asked sarcastically.
"Edward, what are you saying? What do you plan to do?" Mrs. Bennet asked in despair; she finally realized the seriousness of the situation.
Darcy looked at Elizabeth, and she understood what was about to happen.
She approached the people who raised her and looked them in the eye.
"Goodbye!" she said and left the room with Mrs. Lewis.