Chapter 14 #2
Johns and two of his former soldiers led a shocked Lady Catherine away. Soon, the de Bourgh carriage had been turned round and departed.
“As I was saying, Mrs Collins, you may take as much time as you need. If you need any assistance from Rosings Park, all you need do is ask,” Anne offered.
“I had a feeling Mother would misbehave, which is why I accompanied her. I have tried to allow her to remain as mistress for a little longer, but it did not seem that was feasible.”
“Thank you, Miss de Bourgh; your generosity is very much appreciated,” Charlotte replied. “As I am not enamoured of the name Collins, would you agree to address me as Charlotte?”
“Knowing what the man was like, I can understand your desire not to use his name. Charlotte it is, I am Anne.” Anne paused. “Have you thought of your future?”
“After the funeral and once all legalities have been settled, I will return home with my parents. I do not plan to mourn for more than three months. In my mind, even that is too much, but it is what I will do,” Charlotte stated firmly.
“I will not attempt to change your mind,” Anne returned.
“John,” she addressed her other huge footman.
“Please have two of your men remain at the parsonage to be able to assist as needed.” She turned back to the new widow and her parents.
“Please join me for meals at Rosings Park until you depart for Hertfordshire. It will be much more pleasant to have company than for me to rattle around alone in that huge house. On that subject, Charlotte, if you and your parents would like to be out of the parsonage, I would be happy to host you at the manor house.”
With the spectre of Mr Collins in the house, Charlotte knew what she preferred. She turned to her parents, who both nodded. “Thank you again, Miss de Bourgh…Anne. As long as it is not an imposition on you, we would like to accept your generous offer.”
“Some of my men will arrive with a cart to transport the things you want with you now,” Anne stated. “Sir William, your carriage is here, is it not?”
“Indeed, it is, Miss de Bourgh,” Sir William confirmed.
“When you are ready, use it to come to the manor house.” With that, Anne de Bourgh departed in her phaeton, leaving those at the parsonage to get about their business.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
On entering White’s, Bingley made for the private parlour Darcy had mentioned and did not dawdle to greet acquaintances on the way. He was well aware how much emphasis Darcy placed on punctuality.
A footman on duty at the door opened it, and Bingley entered. “Darce, it is good to see you again,” Bingley said as he entered the room, his hand extended.
“Bingley, your lip is no longer hanging down. Am I to assume that you have moved on to the next angel? Let me guess, you found another angel in Scarborough, and she did not live up to your younger sister’s societal aspirations.
” Darcy sat back, but the look he had seen on his friend’s face told him he had hit the nail on the head.
‘He does not realise that he is seen as a rake because of the way he treats women. If he is not careful, his reputation will be in tatters. Bingley needs to mature and become his own man,’ Darcy thought.
“I did, in fact, find an angel, a Miss Cartwright…” Bingley told his friend about the lady and how Caroline had disapproved because the woman was not high enough for her. She had convinced him to depart for London about a fortnight earlier than planned.
“So, you have moved on from Miss Bennet?” Darcy verified.
“How could I not when all she cared for was my wealth? Did you not tell me the same thing Caroline did?” Bingley enquired.
“I never accused Miss Bennet of being a fortune hunter. I said I could not detect signs of love in her countenance,” Darcy clarified. “Bingley, did any of us force you to remain in London and not return to Netherfield Park to ascertain Miss Bennet’s feelings for yourself?”
“Well, no, I suppose not,” Bingley owned.
“There is a particular reason I wanted to meet with you at the club today,” Darcy stated. “Are you able to recognise Miss Bingley’s written script?”
“Did Caroline write to you in an attempt to compromise you? She has been in a mood of late at being denied access to you. Of course, the dearth of invitations to first-circle events has not made her mood any better,” Bingley related.
“No, Miss Bingley has not written a letter to me, but my question still stands.”
“Yes, my own atrocious handwriting notwithstanding, I am able to recognise writing in the hand of either of my sisters. To what does this pertain?”
“In due course, that will become clear.” Darcy extracted the offensive letter from his pocket and had it folded so that a few innocuous sentences could be seen. “Whose script is this?”
“That is Caroline’s. I would know her style of handwriting anywhere. I am confused.”
As sad as it was, Darcy felt that if he told Bingley all, he could not trust that Bingley would not warn his sister.
Due to that fact, Darcy said not a word about the reasons behind his actions.
“All will become clear. Unless your sisters and Hurst are otherwise engaged, please will the four of you call at Darcy House at four this afternoon?”
“Even if Caroline were scheduled to see the Queen, she would cancel to be in your presence. We will be there,” Bingley agreed.
The two friends discussed an inconsequential subject before parting ways.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“Jane and Lizzy, welcome back to Gracechurch Street, and Mary and Kitty, we are happy to have you here for the first time,” Maddie said in greeting once her nieces entered the house.
“Jane and Lizzy, you will share the one guest room, and Mary and Kitty, the other. You do not object to sharing, do you?”
Mary and Kitty looked at one another. “No, Aunt Maddie, we do not object,” Mary replied for both.
“Perfect. The housekeeper will show you to the chamber you will share.” Maddie nodded to the mentioned lady, who, with a smile, led the two younger Bennets to their chamber. “You two may go wash and change in a few moments. First, tell me how your parents are adjusting to the changes at Longbourn.”
“They are much closer. Mama calmed as soon as the announcement regarding the end of the entail was made. I would have thought that she would have reverted to her old, shrill utterances when the situation with Lydia came to light, but she remained calm, and she and Papa argued about which of them bore more blame for not checking Lyddie’s behaviour,” Jane reported.
“Lydia is not the brash, flirtatious girl she once was. I do not think she imagined that there would be any consequences to how she used to behave, because in her mind she was doing what Mama taught her,” Elizabeth added.
“Although, Mama never taught her to give her virtue away to a man before wedlock.”
“It is done, and no amount of remonstrating with the girl will change what has occurred. Has she written from the convent yet and said anything about her courses?” Maddie wondered.
“As of our departure from Longbourn, there had not been an epistle from Lyddie,” Jane revealed.
“Go wash and change. We will speak later,” Maddie instructed.
Jane and Elizabeth made their way up to the chamber they were to share. As they walked, Elizabeth wondered if she would see Mr Darcy in London, and if so, would he be pleased to see her?