Chapter Four
Thomas Bennet fell back into his chair, shocked by the anger the man felt for his niece.
He sat in silence, his mind whirling before calling for Elizabeth to attend him in his study.
Mrs. Hill found her in the side garden and told her the master wished to speak with her.
She made her way to her uncle’s study, feeling as though she were walking to a certain death sentence.
“Enter,” her uncle said at her knock.
“Mr. Darcy has left, I presume,” she said with a quick look about the room.
“He has and will return next week. Shut the door, child, there is much to discuss.”
She did as he requested and then sat, hands clasped in her lap, heart pounding in her chest.
“I will not sugarcoat this, Lizzy. You are to wed Mr. Darcy this upcoming Tuesday.”
Involuntarily her eyes closed. It was as she suspected.
“My plans to travel to Spain are postponed indefinitely, it seems,” she said with a heavy sigh.
Uncle reached over and squeezed her hand. He alone knew how long she’d been planning on visiting her mother’s family once she reached her age of majority.
“He has asked me to arrange a common license so that you may wed at Longbourn Chapel and will bring with him the final marriage settlements for signing.”
“That is unexpected. I had thought he would prefer a Special License to keep our secret within the walls of Longbourn.”
“I was under the impression he did not want to air his dirty laundry in front of the archbishop. A common license will do just as well. Also, he insisted you wear the gown you had on at the ball last night.”
“It is torn!” she gasped out.
“He is aware and cares not. Have Kitty start mending it for you, she is very talented with a needle.” Uncle pushed his chair away from his desk and looked out the window, a sure sign he did not want to tell her the rest but must. “You are allowed to bring one trunk. He is taking you straight to Pemberley and has forbidden you from staying in contact with your family.”
“Am I not even allowed to write or receive letters?”
“He said you may not have direct contact with your family,” Uncle said with a heavy sigh.
“I see, but nothing about receiving letters?” Her uncle shook his head. “That is good. It could have been worse.”
“It does get worse.”
“I do not see how. As it is, I must leave almost everything behind as I cannot fit all my belongings in one trunk and am losing my family in less than a week. How could this possibly get worse?”
“He is settling on you fifty pounds.”
“Per month or quarter?”
“No, child. Per annum.”
Stunned, she fell back into her chair, finally understanding how deep his anger was.
“He is a bitter man, Lizzy. He kept saying you and Wickham would not succeed in your plans.”
“He also mentioned Mr. Wickham. I have no idea what he is talking about. He once said his good opinion, once lost was lost forever.” She worried her lower lip between her teeth. “I will not marry him. I would rather be thought immoral than put up with his anger and hatred.”
“Elizabeth.” She was startled at her uncle calling her by her full name.
“Think of your cousins. You were openly compromised in front of nearly every citizen of Meryton. They will bear the brunt of your shame. Your aunt and I will also be shunned. This is more than just you. I am sorry, my dear, you must marry him and make the best of it. With luck, he will leave you in Derbyshire, then head for London, and you will never have to speak with him for months on end. Fortunately, all of your assets and money remain in your control.”
“That is one good thing, I suppose. We have worked too hard to lose everything to a man who cares nothing for our family.”
She felt the gaze of her adopted father and knew his heart had to be breaking as well. Even though she was not his true daughter, she was his avowed favorite, and to know she would be at the mercy of a man who actively hated her would tear him up inside.
“It will be difficult to write letters of business, let alone private letters with the strictures he has placed on you. You cannot contact family.”
“When I last heard from Aunt Madeline, she wrote that she knew the area of Mr. Darcy’s home intimately.
She grew up not five miles from his estate, and her brother is the rector in…
, I cannot recall at this exact moment what she called the village – I shall re-read her letter – but there might be a way for us to communicate without his knowledge. ”
“How so?”
“I am sure Mr. Darcy will not ban me from Sunday Service, and if Aunt’s relatives are willing, when I am in the village, I can pass correspondence through them. Technically, they are not my family, so I will not violate his edicts.”
“That might work, but if they describe you…”
“As I said, Aunt Madeline’s brother is the rector in that little village. I can safely have a conversation with him as Mrs. Darcy and no one will think it odd.”
“True enough.” Uncle began to smile, catching where her thoughts were traveling. “This could work.”
“Say nothing of this to Aunt Frances or the girls. All it takes is one loose tongue, and my tentative plan will fail before I can enact it.”
“I may not be able to stop this marriage, but I will not leave you immediately destitute. I have a little over five hundred pounds in my strongbox and will send that with you.”
“Uncle Thomas, you need that money for Longbourn!”
“You know this is only what I keep on site. I am not worried about the money. If it makes you feel any better, I will have Gardiner reimburse me from your funds.” Her uncle leaned forward on his desk.
“If it proves untenable to stay in Derbyshire, write me, regardless of what the high and mighty Mr. Darcy says. I will find a way to remove you to safety.”
“Never did I think I would have to worry about my safety with Mr. Darcy. Arrogant and prideful he most assuredly is, but I do not believe he would physically threaten a woman.”
“Unprincipled anger makes a man do many things he thought impossible. Keep your head down and learn to stay out of his sight and mind.” He picked up a document and handed it to her.
“Read this well. It is a rough copy of the legal settlement he is having his solicitor prepare for my signing when he returns. You will see that I am settling on you fifty pounds per annum.”
She couldn’t help but smile at the sum.
“Did you do this for his benefit or mine?”
“I had to show I was willing to give you something, otherwise he may be induced to look closer at the added clause when he comes next week. This way, in his arrogance, he will scrawl his signature, confident in the fact you rely solely on him.”
She took the sheets of paper and began to peruse them.
A few times, she lifted her gaze and looked at her uncle.
Finally, she growled out, “Odious man! Upon his death, if I am still alive, I am to leave Pemberley and never return. He has graciously included one thousand pounds to be given to me immediately and an annual allowance of two hundred pounds a year until my death or remarriage. How magnanimous of him! His generosity quadruples upon his demise. His cousin, some colonel, will be the guardian of any children, along with his uncle the earl. As if we will have any children!” she exclaimed.
“Lizzy, you should know – this is not a marriage of convenience. He expects to sire an heir and, as such, will treat you as his wife in every respect.”
She felt a deep flush invade her cheeks, mortified at the thought.
“I will not hold my breath waiting for him to come to my bed. Argh! It is so frustrating to be a woman with no control over their own life. How I wish I had been born a son!”
Elizabeth left her uncle’s study, hoping to walk off some anger when Mr. Collins stopped her in the hall.
“I have just learned what happened last night and saw Mr. Darcy leaving this house in such a rage. I must know. Has he made an offer of marriage?”
“If you could call such a travesty an offer,” she said, not able to hide her bitterness.
“Indeed, it is a travesty. Mr. Darcy is betrothed to Lady Catherine de Bourgh’s most precious daughter, Miss Anne de Bourgh. She will be seriously displeased over what has occurred. I must speak with your uncle and put a halt to this. What will she think?”
“Mr. Collins, while I appreciate the fact you are concerned for Lady Catherine’s well-being and that of her daughter, I do not believe this can be stopped. At this very moment, Mr. Darcy is on his way to London to have the marriage settlement drawn up.”
Mr. Collins openly gaped; his eyes wide with fright. Then a calm stole over his face, and he nodded, as though having agreed with a conclusion he’d figured out in his head.
“Very well, Cousin Elizabeth. I shall know what to do.”
He then spun on his heel and went upstairs to his room. As for herself, she also went to her room to compose a letter to Aunt Gardiner to lay the groundwork for a secret correspondence before taking a walk to calm her mind.
***
Later that same afternoon, Darcy stretched out his long legs and lifted the cut glass filled with fine brandy to his lips.
He’d stopped at his club after dropping off the rough draft of the marriage settlement to his solicitors.
He would pick it up on Monday, and then Tuesday…
Tuesday he would become a married man. Exactly one week from the catalyst that created the compromise.
He remembered the raised eyebrow and pursed lips of his solicitor when he read over the rough draft and how his brow had furrowed over the added clause Bennet insisted upon.
At the time, he told his solicitor to ensure the clause Bennet asked him to include was ironclad.
Elizabeth’s paltry fifty pounds a year from her father was safe from him, along with her garnet necklace and muslin dresses.
Yes, he certainly would not wish to take those from her.