Chapter 8 #3
They started with the home farm, where no fault was found, and then visited a selection of tenant farms. At the last one they visited; the lady of the house was out of sorts.
When the Duke asked if there was anything he could do to assist, the lady pointed to the retreating form of a lady with long chestnut curls and said, “Miss Elizabeth visited me, sir, an’ gave me some elixir from Mr. Jones. ”
When they reached their horses, the Duke looked at the steward questioningly.
“Miss Elizabeth Bennet is from Longbourn, your Grace. If you look to where the young lady just crossed the stile in the fence, that is Longbourn. As there has been no master here for some time, Miss Elizabeth looks in on the tenants from time to time,” the steward related.
“That is quite singular,” Lord William said in wonder.
He could not imagine any other gentlewoman walking all over her estate to take care of not only the tenants of her estate, but those of the neighbouring estate as well.
Just then a memory stirred. “Mr. Hampstead, do you know if these Bennets are related to the Earl of Holder, Lord James Bennet, by any chance?”
“Sorry your Grace, I have been here but two years and have never heard mention of any other Bennets. All I know is that Miss Elizabeth’s father died in a riding accident some three years past. I heard there was another sister, but I do not know what happened to her, or what her name was,” Hampstead related.
“Bennet is not an uncommon name, so I am sure it must be another family about which I am thinking. Thank you, Hampstead; I am extremely impressed by what I have seen.” The men mounted their steeds and rode back toward the manor house along the border fence between the two estates.
The young lady turned and looked at them for a moment, and the Duke could have sworn he saw a pair of the greenest eyes looking at him. Then she turned and continued her walk.
Lord William decided his eyes must have played tricks on him, as they were too far distant to be able to see her features.
By the time they returned to the manor house, the Duke had pushed thoughts of the intriguing young lady to the recesses of his mind.
During negotiations to purchase the estate, he never asked the one man who would have been able to give him the correct answers, Mr. Philips.
Before the Duke departed, a price was agreed upon, and papers signed. As soon as the funds were transferred to Mr. Morris’s bank account, which would be within a fortnight, the sale would be final.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Richard Fitzwilliam and George Wickham had both earned field promotions. The two had fought side by side at the Battle of Rolica, the Battle of Vimeiro, and the Battle of Sahagún. The first two had been in August of ’08, while the last in December of the same year.
Richard was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel, replacing the man who was promoted to command the battalion when Colonel Atherton had been promoted to Brigadier General.
After Wickham had saved the lives of a group of men, including Richard Fitzwilliam’s, he was promoted to Major and assumed command of the company his friend formerly commanded.
So far, by the Grace of God, both had escaped any serious injury. There had been some cuts and bruises, but nothing that would keep a good officer down. The two men had grown as close as brothers and watched one another’s back on the battlefields. When they were able to sleep, they shared a tent.
In January of ’09, they went into battle again; this time it was The Battle of Corunna, also known as Battle of Elvina. The newly promoted colonel was struck down on the first day, and Richard Fitzwilliam found himself a full colonel before the next day of fighting.
There was particularly bloody fighting at Corunna, and both Major Wickham and Colonel Fitzwilliam were injured.
Wickham had a bullet wound in his right arm, the one that wielded his sabre, and Richard was shot in the muscle of his left thigh, making riding a horse impossible.
Neither one felt easy about leaving his men behind when they were ordered back to England.
Thankfully the generals decided that the dragoons deserved a break from being the tip of the spear, so the entire battalion was ordered back to England to rest and recuperate.
By mid-March, the friends went to the railing on the ship that they were on to see the welcome sight of white cliffs rising out of the sea ahead, signalling that they were close to England once more. After being gone for more than two years, it was a most welcome sight to the brothers-in-arms.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“Mama, I heard that the new owner of Netherfield is a duke! And he is unmarried,” Caroline Bingley screeched in excitement.
“A duke! A single man with such a fortune must be in want of a wife; how good this will be for you, Caroline! My daughter, a duchess,” Martha Bennet imagined.
Elizabeth and Louisa looked at one another and had to employ all the self-control they processed not to burst out into raucous laughter.