Chapter 17 #2
Her cheeks burned. “I confess I thought of that, Papa, and I expect to be uneasy at times. But I have grown very attached to Georgiana, whom I believe to be one of the most remarkable young ladies I could possibly know. And Lady Hardwick’s company also honours me.
However, Mr. Darcy is a true gentleman. He declared I will be treated as part of the family, and I have no reason to doubt him. ”
“Very well, my dear. I agree with you, but I wished to be certain that your heart is light about this journey. I will dearly miss you, Lizzy, but I confess that I would insist on your accepting anything Mr. Darcy requested from us. My gratitude to that gentleman is so deep that I could not possibly refuse him anything. And even more, as much as we might try to give Mr. Darcy, we will never be able to repay his generosity to us. Please keep that in mind and overlook any flaws in his behaviour if you happen to notice them. He might be a complicated man, but he is a very kind one —much better than most of us; you have no reason to dislike him.”
“I know that, Papa. I agree that without him we never would have found Wickham until God knows when…and I feel he also had a positive influence on Mr. Bingley’s return, although he denies it. You must not worry; I have long ceased to dislike Mr. Darcy.”
“Excellent,” Mr. Bennet said, turning his back to her. Elizabeth was certain he had wiped a few tears from his eyes.
“Besides,” Mr. Bennet continued in a different tone, “he might be a little out of his mind. He invited all of us to Pemberley! I was afraid he might extend the invitation to Mrs. Philips and Lady Lucas, but thank God, he stopped before doing that.”
Elizabeth laughed wholeheartedly, her eyes tearful too, then almost choked when her father concluded.
“Upon my word, if I did not know better, I would say Mr. Darcy is enamoured of one of my daughters, and he is trying to impress her. Since he did not like you enough to even dance with you, it might be either Mary or Kitty. Although, on second thought, he did dance with you at Netherfield, so who knows. Oh come, Lizzy, do not be missish; I only make sport of you. I said, ‘if I did not know better.’ No one could ever suspect Mr. Darcy of behaving foolishly out of passion. Now let us go and tell your mother that you are leaving for Pemberley. But let me have a glass of brandy first.”
By dinner, Elizabeth still was not at ease with her father’s teasing remark.
Usually amused by his mockery, this time she felt uncomfortable.
She recalled that Mr. Darcy did do rash things out of love: he had proposed to her and borne the most inconsiderate refusal.
And at Pemberley, they would have to face each other every day.
Strangely, Mrs. Bennet’s reaction on hearing the news of her visit to Pemberley was not as loud as Elizabeth expected.
It might have been that she was preoccupied with the wedding in two days, but Elizabeth’s mother declared her approval to the plan and only expressed her hope that Elizabeth would meet gentlemen of consequence in Derbyshire.
Kitty and Mary, on the other hand, were excited and wondered whether they might be allowed to come for Lizzy when she returned and have the chance to take a peek at Pemberley.
Jane’s distress was apparent and profound. She did not oppose Elizabeth’s decision, but the prospect of her sister’s being gone again was painful.
“My dear, I am certain you will have little time to think of me,” Elizabeth said with a laugh. “Mr. Bingley will make sure of that.”
“Lizzy!” Jane’s cheeks and neck seemed on fire. “Do not speak of such things.”
“What things do you mean, future Mrs. Bingley? I only talked about companionship. Do you have something else in mind?”
“Oh, Lizzy, you are so mean to me.” Jane smiled in embarrassment. “On second thought, it might be good for you to leave; I will be happy for a break from your teasing.”
“But not a long one, as I understand I will see you again at Christmas. Dearest Jane, how strange fate is, would you not agree? Who would think only a couple of months ago that you would marry your Mr. Bingley and I would journey to Pemberley?”
“True! But Lizzy, how will you bear to be in Mr. Darcy’s presence every day?
How difficult it must be for you! And for him…
I am sorry that we misjudged him so completely.
Poor man, to constantly see the woman he loved and who rejected him so harshly —can you imagine how much he must love his sister to do that? ”
“Yes…I have thought of this a hundred times since we first discussed the possibility. I hope we manage it somehow for Georgiana’s sake.
Jane, my heart aches for this dear girl.
Her diffidence is so intense that you can feel it.
She seems to wish for little else but my company, and despite any other considerations, I cannot refuse her. ”
“I agree, Lizzy. I am sure that a few months with you will benefit her. Your liveliness is contagious.”
“You mean my impertinence, I am sure,” Elizabeth said with a smirk. “Now, help me choose what I should put in my luggage. What kind of gowns should I wear at Pemberley? Although it probably matters very little since I expect to have no foreign company.”
The sisters spent the next few hours together, each distressed by the prospect of soon losing the other’s company and unwilling to voice her concerns in order not to upset the other.
As much as she loved and trusted her eldest sister, Elizabeth chose not to tell her about Wickham’s attempt to elope with Georgiana.
It was such a painful secret that she felt heavyhearted at the thought of sharing it, even with the person who was dearest to her.
Before dinner, the family was gathered in the drawing room when the Netherfield party arrived. With surprise and concern, they observed that the two expected ladies —the favourites of all —were missing.
“Mr. Bingley, Mr. Darcy, where are Miss Darcy and Lady Hardwick? Are they unwell?” Mrs. Bennet cried, her nerves obviously affected.
“I must convey to you their apologies, Mrs. Bennet,” Darcy answered. “My aunt was a little tired, and she preferred not to leave her room tonight. My sister chose to stay with her although she was looking forward to another lovely dinner at Longbourn.”
“Oh yes, yes, the countess should rest if she is tired of course. Well, I was quite opposed to the idea of a trip to the woods, but nobody ever listens to me. And here is another proof that I am always right,” Mrs. Bennet concluded.
“Now let us sit as dinner is ready. So, Mr. Darcy, you will take Lizzy to Pemberley. I understand your estate is very large —just please do not let her wander in the fields too much.”
“I assure you, ma’am, that we will take excellent care of Miss Elizabeth. She will be treated in the same way as my sister.”
“How lovely! It is such a pleasant change to see you so kind and friendly, sir! I must say, your aloofness and haughtiness were quite unbecoming!”
“Mama!” cried Jane.
“Well, you must agree that Mr. Darcy looks more handsome lately,” Mrs. Bennet ended the subject decidedly.
Elizabeth and Jane were flustered, and Mr. Bennet angry and embarrassed. Darcy wisely remained silent and avoided a debate about his handsomeness.
Dinner went well, just as it should among family and close friends.
Afterwards, Mary was asked to play, and to everyone’s astonishment, she was reluctant to accept.
When she began, it was apparent that her playing had changed slightly.
A touch of feeling was added to her usual technique, which improved the performance significantly and brought Mary more compliments than she had received in years.
Elizabeth found a moment when Darcy was alone and approached him.
“I hope Lady Hardwick is not unwell because of our picnic. I would be unhappy to know I contributed to her discomfort.”
“My aunt might be tired from the trip, but I am sure she found it valuable. Both she and Georgiana told me they had a lovely time,” he answered.
“Thank you for telling me that. I hope to see them both tomorrow. Georgiana is not unwell, I trust. I dearly miss her.”
“You have no reason to worry, although it is very kind of you to do so. She is well and happy since you agreed to join her on the journey to Pemberley.”
“I am glad. Mr. Darcy, I…there is something that…” she whispered, looking around as she searched for words.
He felt her discomfort and decided not to prolong it.
“Miss Bennet, Georgiana told me about her confession to you.”
Their eyes met, and he noticed the shadows in hers.
“Sir, I found it so extraordinary… if I had known before…but I understand why you did not trust me with such a painful secret.”
He looked at her again, this time longer and more intently, then answered with a voice even softer than hers.
“I did trust you. Strangely enough, even though I was angry and full of resentment and blamed you for accusing me unfairly, my faith in you was steady. All the details were in the letter. I hope you will not blame me for a reluctance to offer you the same information again. I dared not betray my sister’s deepest secret a second time…
and yet, in the end, she did it herself. ”
Elizabeth blinked a few times to stem the burning in her eyes and breathed deeply to gather her courage.
“It never crossed my mind that…if I had only known. So when you first came to Hertfordshire, it was only a few months after…”
“Two months. Georgiana preferred to remain in Town with her new companion, Mrs. Annesley. She was also the one who insisted I should accompany Bingley.”
“And Mr. Wickham…he knew himself guilty of such scheming, and yet he had the audacity to speak such slander of you? Such a horrible excuse for a man…”
“It was his habit to do so, even more so when he found —”
He stopped and sipped some wine.
Elizabeth lowered her eyes and paled. “