Early Wednesday morning, Meryton, Hertfordshire
A dusty Mr Collins made no move to get up but sat and gazed after the carriage. Tilly wasted no further time on the scene.
"Miss Anne" she cried as she reached the door of the retiring room. "Oh Miss Anne, they took them instead!"
"What!" cried Anne.
"Your cousins saw the carriage in the yard. They thought those ladies were you and Miss Georgiana and a maid. No matter what the ladies said, your cousins wouldn't listen. They just made them get in the carriage and they've gone to London!"
"They kidnapped the ladies?" said Georgie "Unbelievable!"
Lady Clara gave a sharp bark of laughter. "True sons of Henry. Stupid and unreasonable. They saw the Darcy carriage, were looking for a tall blonde and a smaller brunette and made everything else fit to suit themselves. Even facts must bow to the self-interest of the Fitzwilliams."
Tilly spoke up again "The thing is, Miss Anne, before the carriage left, a cart pulled up and a man got out, well, he fell out, it was quite funny! He accused the Fitzwilliams of kidnapping his cousins and betrothed. They ignored him and left. But Miss, the man, it was Mr Collins, you know, who was Vicar at Hunsford."
"Mr Collins! Of course! He inherited that entailed estate." said Anne. "Remember, he told us of his cousins. We met three of them this morning, but there are five daughters. I think Bennet was the name. My mother decided Mr Collins should choose one of them to marry. I think he was about to visit them when he heard that his cousin had died, and the estate passed to him."
"It would seem one of them has the same problem you do," remarked Lady Clara. "escaping unwanted marriages with repellent cousins. Collins would not be an enticing prospect for any young lady, no matter how impoverished."
"We need to help them somehow. They helped us. What can we do?"
"A return to London and a rescue is indicated." said Lady Clara "They will head for Fitzwilliam House."
"Yes, we must rescue them" said Georgie "but how?"
"I am not sure" admitted Anne "If we go to Fitzwilliam House, they will toss out those ladies and try to marry us. That won't help any of us. I so miss my mother. She would know what to do!"
"True! Aunt Catherine wouldn't let stupid men manipulate helpless ladies."
"You are so right, Georgie."
"She would storm into the house and rescue them!"
"She would, but we helpless ladies will need reinforcements." said Anne. "Men who are not stupid. How I hate being at the whims and mercies of men! What an unfair world it is!"
"True" said Georgie "and if the man you are considering as a reinforcement is my brother…"
"I know. I know. It is doubtful he would bestir himself to rescue either of us, let alone some strangers" said Anne.
"Richard" said Clara "would help, if he is back. So would that charming Mr Bingley."
"They would! I do hope Richard is back." said Georgie
"So do I! I think we should proceed to Richard's London barracks to see if he is there. We can send a man in with a note. You are right, Clara, if Richard is not there, I am sure Mr Bingley would help us. Darce would be our last resort. If we can't get anyone, maybe we just drive to Fitzwilliam House and wait for them to toss out the Bennets. Tilly dear, please enquire how long the carriage will be and tell Simpson I need to speak to him in the front lounge."
"Yes, Miss" said Tilly and departed.
"An excellent plan, Anne" smiled Clara
Anne smiled "I would love to witness the moment Uncle Henry realises his stupid sons kidnapped the wrong ladies."
"I will invite the ladies to stay with us at Darcy House." said Georgie.
"Good idea, Georgie!"
Tilly reported that the Darcy coach would be ready in five minutes. Anne wrote a note for Richard then spent a few minutes convincing Simpson of the need to return to London. The ladies gathered their things, boarded quickly and were soon away.
Charles Bingley's house and Earl's carriage, London, England
It was far too early in the day for anything but sleep. He did not care to be late, so he waited in the library. When the carriage pulled up outside, the footman called "Mr Darcy", opening the front door as he exited the library.
"Nonchalance. Sleepiness" he said to himself as he walked down the front stairs. "A hint of stupidity boredom. Never fear."
Darce entered the carriage, sat down and greeted its occupant, the Earl Fitzwilliam. "Always wonderful to see you, my lord, but why a carriage ride at such an ungodly hour?"
"I want John to marry Georgiana" said the Earl bluntly.
Darce leaned back in his seat. "Today?"
He didn't need to ask why the Earl wanted his heir John to marry Georgiana. He might play the fool but was acutely aware of things that concerned his own wellbeing. The reason for urgency was also clear: the impending return of the Earl's third son Richard, Georgiana's co-guardian.
The Earl glared at him "You will give permission."
"You're not thinking of asking Georgiana's opinion on the matter?" Darce asked, enjoying the Earl's look of contempt at his question. Permission was the last thing he was going to give. He'd already sold his soul but sign his own death warrant? No! He wasn't sure how he would extract himself from this situation but, one step at a time.
"She only has thirty thousand. There must be many heiresses with more, some with estates as well as money."
"A hit" he thought, as the Earl's face reddened. Of course, such heiresses existed but their fathers had all turned down Lord John's suit, wary of an Earldom impoverished by incompetence and gambling.
"Are we for Kent, then?" he asked.
"John and Edmund are bringing them to town."
"Them? Anne too?"
The Earl ignored him.
Darce shifted, stretched and yawned. "I should discuss it with Richard. I believe he will soon be home. You must be so looking forward to seeing him!" he added innocently.
The Earl glared.
"Another hit!" thought Darce, looking out of the window. "Aren't we going to your house?"
"We are picking up the vicar. We'll be back in town in an hour" growled the Earl.
"You mean I could have had more sleep?"
Meryton to London
As the carriage reached the outskirts of London, both Fitzwilliam brothers were dozing noisily. They had made only one stop, to send an express rider with a note for their father.
On the backward facing seat, Jane was wide awake. Next to her, Mary's eyes were closed but her lips moved, possibly in prayer. On the other side of Mary, Elizabeth looked out of the window, her hands tightly clenched in her lap.
Jane's thoughts raged. "What could I have done differently? Better the devil you know, they say! Was Mr Collins better than the unknown? Have I been unforgivably selfish? I couldn't let Lizzy and Mary go to London alone! What will happen when we get to wherever we are going? What will they do with us when they find out they were wrong?"
She turned to look out of her window, trying to distract herself from her thoughts. The streets became quieter and the houses larger. Two hours or so after leaving Meryton, the coach stopped outside a magnificent townhouse.
Fitzwilliam Townhouse, London, England,
The Fitzwilliam brothers escorted the Bennets inside. If the outside of the house was impressive, the interior was even more so. They gazed in wonder at the marble multi-story vestibule. Elizabeth was a little overwhelmed at such evidence of riches. The Bennets were silent, not really wishing to plead their case in front of servants.
"Good morning my lord, Mr Edmund" said the butler, looking a little confused.
"James, you remember our cousins?"
"Your cousins?" asked Mr James.
"Where is my father, James? Did he receive the express?"
"Yes. He went out, my lord, er may I have a word…these ladies…"
"Not now James. Get the housekeeper."
"Of course, my lord"
The housekeeper arrived. John instructed her to take the ladies to a room where they could refresh themselves, then bring them back for tea.
The housekeeper showed the Bennets to a first-floor room and had hot water and towels brought for them.
Jane said softly to Elizabeth "What are we going to do now?"
"I am not sure" said Elizabeth.
"Do you think the other ladies worked out what happened? asked Mary
"Probably, as their maid was listening in the corridor. The question is, will they do anything about it?"
"If they arrive here, they meet the trouble we avoided for them" said Jane.
"True" said Mary
Elizabeth said "I hate to involve the servants, but maybe the butler could help us. He seemed confused."
"Yes, he did" said Jane "He might be our only hope."
Well, it was a plan. Elizabeth always felt better when she had a plan.
Tea and food were welcome. Jane and her sisters were hungry and not too proud to partake. The tea was excellent and the food delicious. John and Edmund ate without speaking.
After a while, Elizabeth said politely "Lord John, is your butler acquainted with your cousins?"
John looked up from his food, annoyed.
"You should know" he barked.
Elizabeth sent up a prayer for patience and tried again. "Lord John. We say we are not your cousins. You say we are. Could your butler not settle the matter? He looked very confused when we arrived."
John stared at her, logic apparently defeating him. Edmund said "No need. We know you are our cousins. John, I really want to marry Georgiana. Anne talks too much."
Elizabeth sighed.
Jane tried "I imagine your father is well acquainted with his nieces."
"Of course he is." said John.
"What will your father do when he arrives to find you have kidnapped the wrong ladies?"
"It was not kidnap." cried Edmund ignoring the real question.
"What would you call it? asked Mary
"What is your maid doing here?" said John, only now noticing her.
"Eating" said Mary "and enjoying an excellent cup of tea for which I am grateful to your servants. I am only a maid in the shallows of your feeble imagination."
During this distraction, Elizabeth leaped up and went for the door. "Mr James" she called "Please come in here."
The butler obliged. Elizabeth shut the door after he entered.
"There is no need!" cried John.
"Mr James, are you familiar with these gentlemen's cousins?"
"I am" said James.
"Am I one of those cousins?" asked Elizabeth "particularly one named Anne?"
"Miss Anne de Bourgh? No, you are not."
"Not?" asked John going pale "but the carriage was there…"
"Not?" echoed Edmund
"De Bourgh" Jane asked herself, "why is that name familiar?"
"As we told you at the time, it was not our carriage. Thank you, Mr James. My sister over there, is she a cousin named Georgiana?"
"No, she is not" said Mr James.
"Could we now please end this case of mistaken identity?" asked Elizabeth "We will forgive you for accidentally kidnapping us and forget we ever met if we and our luggage can be on our way now".
Whatever Lord John might have said to this was lost, as the door flew open and a tall heavy man walked in, followed by a tall young gentleman and a shorter elderly man in clerical garb.
"Father!" squeaked Edmund.
John buried his head in his hands.
"This is not good" thought Jane.
The Earl focussed on his butler.
"There you are James" he said.
"My lord" said Mr James with a brief bow.
"I need pen and paper." barked the Earl. James hurried out of the room.
"You, Darcy," he said to the tall young gentlemen "will write a note giving permission for your sister to marry John."
He smiled "My sister is a little young for marriage, my Lord. I would ask her opinion on the matter, but unfortunately, she is not here."
The Earl glared at him for a moment then finally took in the room's contents, his self-satisfied mien fading fast.
"What is going on here?" he roared "John, what did you do with your cousins? Are they upstairs? Who are these women? Let's get these weddings done."
Mr James returned with writing materials.
Milord's sons seemed permanently speechless, so Elizabeth looked pleadingly at Mr James. She could hardly address an Earl to whom she had not been introduced.
Mr James took courage and did not disappoint.
"My lord we were just clearing up a case of mistaken identity. Lord John and Mr Edmund thought these ladies were their cousins and accidentally er…"
"kidnapped" supplied Mary.
"Yes" finished Mr James.
"…and you were able to let Lord John and Mr Edmund know they had made a mistake. Thank you." said Elizabeth.
"We were just about to leave. Mr James do you know where our bags are?"
"I am sure we can find them, Miss" said Mr James.
"Just one moment" roared the Earl. "You are daring to accuse my sons of kidnap? How did you manage to deceive them?" The Earl towered over Elizabeth.
"They deceived themselves with no help from us, my lord" snapped Elizabeth.
"They wouldn't listen!" added Mary.
"It may have escaped your notice that not every lady wants to marry your sons!" said Elizabeth. "Kidnap is what happened, but I assure you, once we leave your house, we will forget all about it, won't we sisters?
"Yes, immediately." said Jane.
Mary thought to add, "I will forgive your sons for assuming I am a maid."
"We only have two female cousins" said Edmund. "It was a natural conclusion."
Mary sent him a not so forgiving look.
"The carriage…" whined Lord John
Mr James, near the partly open door, noticed movement in the foyer and an incredulous look appeared on his face.
"No one is going anywhere" said the Earl angrily. "James, get some footmen to escort these women to a room and lock them in."
The ladies gazed at him in extreme consternation.
"You are not serious!" cried Elizabeth "First kidnap, now imprisonment. What kind of people are you?"
James moved quickly out of the way as the door flew fully open and a uniformed army officer, sword at side, marched in, followed by two men and three ladies.