Chapter 9 #3
"What have you said, Caroline? For God's sake, speak aloud!" Bingley exclaimed, his voice filled with anguish and disbelief.
"I said it was Mr. Darcy. He instructed me not to disclose to you about Miss Bennet’s presence in London.
He believed your emotions were still tender, and he deemed it unwise for you to encounter her at this time.
So it was not just me who was concerned for you, brother.
Your friend shared the same apprehension," she explained, her voice trembling with a mix of fear and desperation.
Bingley’s pain outweighed his anger.
“Did he ask you to return their visit and sever the acquaintance?”, his voice was subdued.
Caroline simply nodded.
“And did he ask you to convey to Miss Bennet that I am to wed Miss Darcy?”, he inquired further.
Darcy is never that foolish, for sure.
“No, that was my own doing. I concede my error in that regard. But I acted out of concern for you. I believed you were in peril of succumbing to their machinations. They sought to ensnare you, brother. Why can't you see that?” Caroline's voice grew stronger as she defended her actions.
Darcy spoke of the same entrapment. So were they both conspiring to divert me from Miss Bennet? He claimed he had no intention of manipulating me covertly. However, is that not precisely what he has achieved? If not for his interference, I would unquestionably have gone back to Hertfordshire.
“Tell me, Caroline. When did you converse with him concerning Miss Bennet's presence in London? How many days has he been aware of it?" Bingley really wanted to know this.
“I told him right after Miss Bennet and her aunt came here to see us. I visited Miss Darcy the next day and there I saw Mr. Darcy. It was two to three days before Mr. Darcy travelled to Kent,” she replied.
Didn’t I see him on the day before his departure to Kent? So, he was aware of it then. Didn’t he see how despondent I was on that day? God, I even brought up Miss Bennet when I conversed with him.
Bingley realized the extent to which his amiable nature had been manipulated by those close to him. He understood that all of them regarded him as a naive individual, easily led and easily manipulated. His lack of complaint and his willingness to follow the paths dictated by others made it easier.
It is my mistake. I should have asserted myself. I made it easier for them. But not anymore. I now know what I want, and I am determined to walk my own path.
“Caroline, listen carefully, for I shall not repeat this again.
I encountered Miss Bennet and Mrs. Gardiner today.
I am now fully aware of all the transgressions you have committed against us.
Furthermore, I have realized my deep affection for Miss Bennet, and she reciprocates my feelings.
Hence, there is nothing else in this world that holds greater importance to me than the love we share.
I have beseeched her to allow me to court her, and she has granted her consent.
If there exists even the slightest possibility of securing her affections, I shall fiercely fight for it.
The sole person who can prevent our union is Miss Bennet herself.
Neither you, Louisa, Darcy, nor anyone else shall be able to dissuade me from this course.
It is time for me to remind you of something.
Until the day you marry, you are under my guardianship.
I hold control over your dowry. I am well aware of your hopes for Darcy to make an offer for your hand.
I have already warned you that it shall never come to pass.
Yet, you persist in your stubbornness. Allow me to make it plain this time.
Darcy can’t stand you. You epitomise the very type of woman he despises.
He thinks you are the worst sort of social climber.
Yes, Caroline, despite your incessant flattery and agreeableness, you have only succeeded in alienating yourself from him.
He tolerates your presence solely out of his friendship for me, a friendship that he stands to lose if he fails to provide satisfactory answers to my questions the next time I see him. ”
Ignoring the shocked expression on Caroline’s face, Bingley continued.
“Are you aware of the number of gentlemen who have inquired about you, Caroline? There have been numerous suitors seeking your hand in courtship. Yet, you have persistently declined their offers, steadfastly waiting for a proposal that shall never come to pass. It is more than enough, Caroline. Therefore, I shall establish a deadline for you. It is April now. The season is about to commence. I grant you a span of five months, Caroline. Five months. By the month of August, I expect you to have accepted a marriage proposal. If, by the conclusion of August, you remain unattached, I shall arrange for your separate establishment and release your dowry to you. You are of age anyway. You will no longer be under my guardianship. Is that perfectly clear?”
This time, Bingley wanted to hear his sister’s reply, so he waited.
“You would not do such a thing, Charles. You are my brother. How can you do this to me?” Caroline was almost in tears.
“You are my sister, Caroline. However, did that deter you from attempting to separate me from Miss Bennet?
Have you not witnessed my anguish throughout these many months?
No, Caroline. It is enough. I have resolved to assert my independence and forge my own path.
There is more. I mentioned a span of five months.
I shall personally engage with all your suitors, the ones you wish for me to consider.
I will endeavour to ascertain their genuine affection for you, disregarding any consideration of your dowry.
I will only release your dowry to them if one of them convinces me that they will take care of you after marriage.
But mark my words, it shall never be Darcy.
Even if, by some chance, you manage to garner a proposal from him, I shall never acquiesce to such a union.
Now, I don’t want any further conversation on this matter.
Tomorrow, I will speak with Louisa and Hurst. I shall request Hurst to open his townhouse and arrange for you to reside there.
I need a few days to ensure that word spreads of your availability for matrimony.
As for myself, I intend to return to Netherfield by the conclusion of the following week.
Should you dare to contravene my wishes in any manner, I shall not wait for the stipulated five month period to end.
Instead, you shall be promptly relocated to your own establishment by the following day. ”
With a final cautionary glance in her direction, Bingley returned the chair to its original position and walked out of the parlour.
Caroline
Caroline realized that all her plans had crumbled. There was no way she was going to get an offer from Mr. Darcy after this. Besides, the burden of her lies weighed heavily on her. If Mr. Darcy found out about her falsehoods, London wouldn't be a safe haven anymore.
What a wretched wretched mistake? What was I thinking?
She still had the option of confessing her mistake to her brother. She could admit that Mr. Darcy was unaware of Miss Bennet's presence in London. She could plead her case, explaining that she had panicked and spoken without thinking, not fully comprehending the gravity of her words at the time.
At least it is true. I panicked. But what will happen next?
Charles will be furious. I know not what other punishments he may devise for me.
At least he won't tell Mr. Darcy about my mistakes.
Their friendship will survive, allowing me to stay somewhat connected to Mr. Darcy.
Perchance, this may facilitate my prospects of securing a suitor of elevated standing within society.
Having resolved upon her course of action, she rose from her seat and proceeded towards her brother's study, only to find it empty. Upon further inquiry, she learned that Charles had requested a tray to be brought to his chambers and retired for the day.
I must converse with him first thing in the morning. I hope he will be in a much better mood after a night's sleep.
When it is not your day, every action and inaction you take turns out to be a mistake. For Caroline Bingley, this was one of those days.
Hunsford Parsonage, Kent
Elizabeth
In just under a week, Elizabeth shall come to realize that on this particular evening, she had completely lost control of herself.
She will regret all her outbursts directed towards Mr. Darcy.
But that day was in the future. In the present moment, she was riding on a wave of anger and resentment. She was on a roll.
“From the very beginning of my acquaintance with you, your manners impressing me with the fullest belief of your arrogance, your conceit, and your selfish disdain of the feelings of others, were such as to form that groundwork of disapprobation, on which succeeding events have built so immovable a dislike; and I had not known you a month before I felt that you were the last man…”
She couldn’t finish. The words caught in her throat as as her eyes beheld a sight that would haunt her for the remainder of her days.
Darcy
Though he had always endeavoured to live by the wisdom imparted by his late mother, Darcy had not thought about her for quite some time.
Yet, in that moment of abject defeat and desolation, as he stood there, enduring the cutting remarks from the sole lady who held his heart's affection, his thoughts involuntarily traversed back to the profound conversation he had shared with his mother fifteen years earlier.
With vivid clarity, he recalled his mother's heartfelt plea for him to pursue a union rooted in genuine love.
The memory of his own solemn vow to uphold her wishes resurfaced, a promise he now realized he could never fulfil.