Dearly Beloved (Pride And Prejudice Variation #6)

Chapter 1 Lydia Courts Ruin

“Miss Lydia, it would be cruel to raise a gentleman’s hopes merely to disappoint him.”

Lydia batted her eyes at the officer. “Wickham, you and I both know that kissing a gentleman is an improper thing to do. I am no merchant’s daughter, sir.”

“Yet surely you were wishing for love today, or why did you send me the note? Why did you ask me to come?”

She laughed, this time with a coarse, loud guffaw.

“Wicky, I was only flirting with you. I did not think you would ask for a kiss outright. Surely you realize I do not know you well enough for kisses? And besides, where would be the sport in it if I were to give in so easily? You would have gotten what you wanted, and off you would go to flirt with Maria or Mary King.”

“When will you know me well enough to permit one little kiss, my girl? You have been flirting with me for what, eight weeks?”

“It has only been five weeks, lieutenant. It pleases me to make you wait.”

Wickham stepped closer. “And what if it does not please me? What if I take that kiss from you now?”

Lydia stared at him. “You would force me?”

He sniggered. “I could, you know. What would stop me? We are well hidden here. No one would hear you scream.” He stepped closer. “I am larger and stronger than you, Miss Lydia.”

He seized her wrist and pulled her sharply toward him, so that she fell against him. She struggled and cried out. “Let me go.”

Alarmed by the entire scene, by the clandestine rendezvous unfolding before her, Elizabeth had already set aside her book and now, alert, stood hidden, watching and listening to what was taking place on the other side of the shrubbery.

She judged it imperative to act immediately in order to save her sister.

Moving from behind the hedge, she ran forward, laughing noisily.

She was looking back over her shoulder, as though fleeing pursuit, just as she entered the small clearing where Lydia and Wickham stood, and in her haste, she collided with Lydia.

Her eyes widened as she took in her sister, and then, turning to Wickham, she met his gaze only briefly before casting another anxious look behind her.

“Forgive me, sir,” she said breathlessly, “but if Mary and Charlotte catch me, my forfeit is their mending. And, when we next meet in company, you must kindly forget you saw me running.”

She took Lydia’s hand. “Come, Liddie. Hurry. To the barn, before they see us.”

Surprised into obedience, Lydia ran behind her elder sister.

“Hurry, if they catch me, I lose the wager.”

When they reached the front gardens, hidden now from Mr. Wickham’s view, Elizabeth stopped and turned to face her sister.

“You have been meeting with Mr. Wickham.”

Lydia wrinkled her brow. “I did not meet him. He was merely walking by…”

“Do not lie to me, Liddie. I heard everything. I heard him speak of a note that you sent to him. You have been meeting with him for weeks, have you not?”

“You are not my parent. I need not answer you. It is none of your business.”

“It is my business. You have four unmarried sisters who will all be ruined if you allow Mr. Wickham to ruin you. Do you think I will stand by and permit you to bring disgrace upon our family? On me? I will not.”

Lydia planted her hands upon her hips. “And how do you propose to stop me?”

Elizabeth stared at her sister. Lydia’s brow was furrowed, her cheeks flushed. Without another word, Elizabeth turned and strode toward the front door.

“I shall speak with Papa, and we shall see what he has to say about this.”

Lydia ran to catch her. “How dare you, Lizzy. I will never speak to you again if you tell Papa.”

Elizabeth did not slow.

“I shall put a toad between your sheets,” Lydia cried.

Elizabeth turned sharply and caught her sister by the arm, lifting Lydia’s sleeve. A bruise darkened the tender skin where Wickham had seized her.

“He planned to hurt you, did he not?”

The girl’s face crumpled. “He looked mean, Lizzy. I was afraid of him. And then we heard you running, and you saved me.”

Elizabeth drew her into her arms. “He might have forced you into intimacy, and you could have found yourself with child.”

She pulled back and looked into Lydia’s face. “He may be diseased. Then you would be diseased, and so might your children.”

“Diseased?” Lydia whispered.

Elizabeth sighed. Her sister was still so young. “There are illnesses, Liddie. One is especially dreadful. It can kill a baby, and in time, it can kill the mother as well. Before that, it steals the mind.”

Lydia was listening to her, perhaps for the first time in her life.

“Men who have lain with many women may carry such illnesses and pass them on. Do you understand me?”

“Yes.”

“Do not meet with Mr. Wickham again. He means you harm. You would be lost to us all.” Elizabeth’s voice trembled. “Papa would be forced to find you a husband, perhaps a tenant farmer far from Hertfordshire. And if he could not, your fate might be far worse.”

She placed her hands upon her sister’s shoulders and met the child’s frightened gaze. “There are places in London where ruined girls are sent, and they are treated cruelly. Few escape them, and fewer still live very long after being sent there.” Drawing her close, Elizabeth held her fast.

“What places Lizzy?”

“Houses of ill repute, brothels. Magdalene houses, workhouses, and asylums for fallen women. In most of these places, one is made to labor long hours under brutal conditions.”

Elizabeth searched her sister’s face. The child was trembling.

“Do you promise me you will not see him again?”

“I do,” Lydia said. “I promise.”

They were interrupted when Kitty came skipping down the stairs.

“Liddie, Mamma is taking us shopping to Harpenden. We leave as soon as you and Jane are dressed.”

Lydia squeezed Elizabeth’s hand and ran upstairs to change her gown.

Elizabeth watched the Bennet carriage disappear down the drive. From the back parlor came the sound of Mary practicing the pianoforte.

Elizabeth sighed. It was best to speak with Papa and have the matter done. Perhaps, in this extremity, he would exert himself and act to save Lydia. To save them all from ruin.

She crossed the hall, pausing at the door to his study. She already knew what he would say. What would it take to get him to act? Who could save them if he did not?

Still, she tapped.

“Come in.”

Mr. Bennet looked up from his book. “Has your mother gone off to Harpenden without you, my dear?”

Elizabeth took the chair opposite him. “Yes. It is of no matter, Papa. I prefer to remain out from under her feet.”

“So, you have not come to discuss this latest affront. What is it? If your mother did not distress you, something else must have done so.”

“Papa,” Elizabeth began, “I caught Lydia in the oak grove beyond the hermitage with Mr. Wickham. He is a lieutenant and has recently joined the militia.”

Bennet’s brows lifted, but he did not speak.

“By chance, I overheard them speaking. She sent for him with a note, and he came to meet her. They have been meeting secretly for several weeks. He seized her by the arm and threatened to force himself upon her. He left her bruised.”

She stood. “I extracted a promise from Lydia, but I have little confidence she will keep away from him for very long. Papa, we will all be ruined if you do not restrain her.”

She fell silent and watched her father.

At last, he spoke. “You say she promised not to meet him again?”

“Yes, for now. But she is willful. My sister is frightened today, but there is little to occupy her here, and idleness leads her into mischief.”

Elizabeth considered how she might provoke him into action. “Would you speak with Colonel Forster and warn him that Lieutenant Wickham is pursuing your child?”

“No. I do not wish it known that Lydia has been meeting clandestinely with a grown man. That knowledge alone could damage us all.”

She pressed. “Then perhaps she might be sent to Uncle Gardiner’s. She could assist Aunt Maddie with little Edward.”

“We both know your mother would oppose it. Lydia is her favorite, next to Jane.” He snorted. “And she is jealous of Maddie, with her lovely house in London. She would fight the visit.”

“Papa, if we do nothing, our family will be ruined. If Lydia were sent to London for a few weeks, even Mamma could scarcely demur. Lydia would delight in it.”

Bennet frowned. “No. I will not stir your mother’s ire. We shall simply keep a closer watch upon Lydia here at home.”

Elizabeth tried once more. “Then perhaps a governess. Both my younger sisters would benefit from proper instruction. A firm woman would keep them in order.”

“I have already suggested we hire a governess, but your mother considers it an unnecessary expense. She prefers to spend her coin on gowns and fripperies.”

Elizabeth felt the familiar weight of disappointment settle upon her. He would not act.

“Very well,” she said, rising. “I shall speak with Jane. Perhaps between us, we can keep Lydia in line.”

“My dear, you are well aware that your sister runs straight to her mother when rules are imposed.”

“Yes, Papa, I know.”

“Do what you can,” he replied, returning to his book. “Now run along.”

Elizabeth stepped into the dim hall and angrily brushed away tears. She blew her nose and then turned toward the music room. Would Mary be of any help? She was moral, certainly, but often lacked discretion. Her lectures tended to provoke rather than persuade.

Elizabeth tapped lightly on the doorframe. Mary stopped playing and turned.

“Yes, Lizzy?”

“Might I have a word with you?”

“Of course.” Mary moved to a small couch nestled in an alcove. Elizabeth shut the door and joined her.

“I need your help with Lydia.”

“Something has upset you, Lizzy. What has she done this time?”

“I found her behind the hermitage with an officer of the militia.”

“How could she dare?”

“She has no sense. The man looks to be at least eight and twenty, perhaps even thirty years old.” Elizabeth detailed the clandestine meeting she had witnessed. “I intervened before anything worse occurred. I am only surprised that she refused him.”

Mary snorted. “She meant to wield her power over him. She is silly and dangerous.”

“Liddie is only a child. What she lacks is guidance and parental restraint.”

“What would you have me do?”

“I am not certain,” Elizabeth admitted. “I am almost despairing, for there is no one upon whom we may depend, no one we can trust to care for our interests. This burden falls upon us.”

“That is not true, Lizzy. There is Uncle Edward and Aunt Maddie, who would take Lydia if only Papa would grow a spine. And Charlotte knows how to keep her tongue in her mouth. She could help us if it comes to the worst. And then there are Mr. and Mrs. Hill, who are devoted to us.”

Elizabeth scowled. “Why should our peevish mother have all the power? There are five of us who stand to lose everything. She must no longer be allowed to govern our fates, or none of us will escape complete ruination.”