Chapter 16
The Netherfield party’s removal brought melancholy and a feeling of longing to the usually serene and composed Jane and significant distress to Mrs Bennet.
Strangely, however, the most disconcerted and out of spirits was Elizabeth, but her change of disposition passed unnoticed by her mother and sisters.
Mr Bennet was the only one who knew some of her struggle, but even he could not guess its extent entirely.
He had been acquainted by both Darcy and Elizabeth with the conclusion of their private conversation, and he was proud of his daughter’s strength and impressed by Darcy’s character and understanding.
Any man in his situation would have been most offended by having his honourable, advantageous marriage proposal rejected when most women of his acquaintance would have gladly and gratefully accepted.
But Darcy seemed to take the refusal most graciously, and, for the rest of his visit that day, his manners remained amicable, with no sign of resentment as he took his farewell from the family as an old acquaintance, even a friend.
However, there was a part of the conversation that had not been revealed, a secret shared by Elizabeth and Darcy only.
She did not divulge to her father the end of her conversation with Darcy, those words with a special significance that had unsettled her and haunted her sleep ever since.
She recollected every moment, every word of his proposal, of her refusal, and their mutual agreement to forget that discussion and pretend it never happened.
Nonetheless, forgetting was far from her mind, as the memories kept returning, bringing new meanings to the most disquieting conversation of her life.
Days and nights passed by, and Elizabeth’s agitation increased as her thoughts turned towards Darcy with a frequency that surprised, then embarrassed and disconcerted her.
The revelation that Darcy truly admired her and was willing to marry her — due to circumstances first and foremost, but not entirely — was at first difficult to accept.
As she had told him, she had never observed anything in his behaviour towards her to arouse such suspicions.
Even when he did declare his admiration during their meeting in the garden, she considered it simply an attempt to build a friendship for Bingley’s sake.
But things were utterly different from what she had imagined, and either she had been a fool to misjudge his actions — as she had misjudged his character — or he was excellent at concealing his true feelings.
Not for a moment did she suspect any dishonesty on his part.
Everything he had declared to her must have been true.
But could she be equally honest, at least with herself?
Instead of being relieved that she had escaped from an unwanted marriage to someone she had until recently considered to be an insufferable person, instead of being thankful that he took no offence from her dismissal and did not allow it to affect the relationship between Jane and Bingley, she found herself wondering whether he would return to Hertfordshire or when she would meet him again.
She had been so bold as to suggest to him ‘more opportunities for future agreements’ and he had readily agreed.
But what it meant to him she knew not. And what did it mean to her?
Three days after their departure, a letter arrived from Bingley and one from Darcy, both for Mr Bennet who took pity on his excited family and shared their contents.
Mr Bingley’s letter was long, blotched, and rather confused in its expressions but full of enthusiasm.
Darcy’s letter was short, elegant, and neat, making Mr Bennet exclaim that he expected nothing less from the nephew of the illustrious Lady Catherine de Bourgh.
“Mr Bingley will return with the licence, I hope!” Mrs Bennet said impatiently.
“Mama, there is no need for such trouble and expense. We could wed perfectly well in due time waiting for the reading of the banns.” Jane said.
“Oh, nonsense! You are too beautiful not to wed before Charlotte Lucas and Mr Collins! Besides, if Mr Bingley wishes it, you cannot argue with your future husband! And Mr Darcy is there to help him, is he not?” Mrs Bennet continued.
“I am sure this is Mr Darcy’s newest purpose in life: to procure marriage licences for his friends so they can marry sooner than Mr Collins,” Mr Bennet replied, looking at Elizabeth and expecting to see her amused.
She did smile, while she considered that Mr Darcy himself would enjoy her father’s joke.
“And Mr Bingley will return by himself? Without his sisters? This will surely force us to provide him company all the time. The poor man cannot possibly dine alone,” Mrs Bennet continued, completely ignoring her husband’s quip.
“And I wonder if he would prefer to spend Christmas and Boxing Day at Longbourn or at Netherfield, as he will not have anyone to host for him.”
“Mama, please, let us wait until Mr Bingley returns and expresses his preferences for himself,” Jane answered.
“Harriet said there should be a ball given by the regiment on New Year’s Eve, but now, with Mr Wickham’s death and all, it might be postponed. I hope this is not the case, though,” Lydia interjected.
“I wonder if the truth about Mr Wickham’s tragedy will ever be discovered,” Kitty said dreamily. “It is like a mystery novel with an incomplete ending.”
“Women should employ their time better and select reading material to improve their morals, not novels,” Mary intervened primly, pushing her glasses up her nose.
Without so much as a glance towards Mary, Lydia dismissed the interruption and, very happy to prove her superior knowledge to Kitty, answered excitedly, “I have it from a very good source that the magistrate said there had been a fight and Wickham had been hurt. Then, he had seemingly taken a fall from somewhere higher, down a ravine or something like that. Harriet told me in the strictest confidence. Poor man. I am so sad and I miss him so much!” Lydia concluded, sighing exaggeratedly.
“And I!” Kitty exclaimed. “There must be some highwaymen who tried to rob him, I am sure. Nobody from our neighbourhood would hurt Mr Wickham!”
“You should not—” tried Mary again.
“Hush, Mary! Nobody needs your dull lessons! You must be right, Kitty. Everybody loved him very much, and I am sure I shall never recover from such a loss!” Lydia agreed.
“Archibald and Denny said something about him yesterday though, when I visited Harriet, but I did not pay attention. Ah! That reminds me, Papa, Harriet has invited me and Kitty to attend a party the day after tomorrow at her house. And she said since it gets dark very early now, we should stay the night. Do say we may go!”
“You may go, or else I shall have no peace, I am sure! I cannot listen to any more talk of balls, parties, and weddings, so I am going to my library before I meet my demise from this tedium,” Mr Bennet declared.
“If Mr Bingley returns alone, I might ask him to allow me to move into his library directly.”
“You should be safe there, Papa. From what I noticed during our stay there, nobody used that room except for Mr Darcy,” Elizabeth attempted to support the joke, but a shiver creeping down her back gave her pause.
While those days had been rather tedious, the recollection of the half an hour spent with Mr Darcy in the library without either of them speaking a word, their discussions in the sitting room, often in disagreement, his comments about accomplished women when he insisted on adding reading as a required criteria, his reference to her in regard to his sister Georgiana’s height, his invitation to dance a reel and her consecutive flippant response — everything appeared now in a different light, and she wondered how she had missed all those small hints and misinterpreted them all as evidence of his disdain.
“I dare say, since my brother Gardiner and his family should arrive soon, it might be a good idea for someone to stay at Netherfield,” Mrs Bennet intervened again, much to the rest of the family’s consternation.
“Do not look at me so disapprovingly — would it not be foolish for that manor to be empty while we are all crowded here? After all, Jane will soon be the mistress of that place!”
“Mama!” Jane cried, her cheeks crimson from embarrassment.
Mr Bennet rolled his eyes. “Mrs Bennet, your foresight is commendable. You already sent Jane to Netherfield on horseback, counting on the rain to start, so she could fall ill and spend a few days there. Now, you should send more of us — all on horseback or on foot. And, if a blizzard should happen — not an extraordinary occurrence in December — we may stay there till spring.”
“You may go on as you like, Mr Bennet, but my plan worked very well! Jane staying there for several days and nights helped Mr Bingley to know her better and to fall in love with her sooner!”
“I cannot argue with the evidence, and I applaud your success, Mrs Bennet! Now, if you will excuse me, you may continue devising plans while I finish my book.”
Mr Bennet left while his wife continued to embarrass her eldest daughters with more arrangements involving Mr Bingley.
Elizabeth pondered that it would be fortunate if Mr Bingley procured a licence and married sooner rather than later.
It would certainly save poor Jane many moments of mortification.
***
Several days later, winter seized the entire county. Cold weather and biting winds gave way to the first snow, and everything was white and frozen around them.