Chapter 9 #2
“You know that Mrs Bennet is a gentleman’s daughter, do you not, Cheryl?
” Without looking up she nodded. “You also know that the only reason she agreed to help the Bennets was because of her desperate situation!” Again, his wife nodded.
“You are well aware…” Her husband ran through each of her false hoods, and to her mortification she had to acknowledge that she knew the truth in each case.
When Mr Long finished listing all of the falsehoods, he looked to his friend to see if there was anything he had missed, to which Bennet shook his head.
“I promise you that my wife’s days of gossiping are done,” Long vowed, as he looked at his wife, who still had her head down and nodded but she knew that this would not be the end of their conversation.
“That is correct, is it not, Mrs Long?” he asked in a firm voice.
“Y-yes, Mr Long,” she said just above a whisper.
“You will be visiting Longbourn with me tomorrow to apologise to Mrs Bennet,” he stated evenly, “and I expect a sincere apology, Cheryl!” She nodded her acquiescence.
“There is one last piece of news that your wife can make known in the community,” Bennet said as his friend looked on in question.
“She can simply make the truth known, that the Bingley women try to pass themselves off as what they are not when they are rooted in trade. You know that I have never judged one for being in trade, both of my brothers-in-law are, and I am heavily invested with Gardiner, but for them to try and judge others as below them…they need to learn a lesson.”
“Not unlike my wife, who needs to learn that words can hurt, it is never acceptable to prevaricate,” Long said as he looked at his wife who had raised her head a little.
As Bennet turned to leave, Mrs Long spoke in a soft voice. “I will apologise to your wife on the morrow, Mr Bennet, but please know that I am disgusted at myself. Not for being called into account for my words, but for allowing myself to say them in the first place,” she said sincerely.
“You have my forgiveness, Mrs Long,” Bennet said magnanimously. “Please let us never have the same problem between us again.” After wishing the Longs goodbye, Bennet left the study.
“I was going to share with you later that my brother’s girls will be with us for three months,” Mr Long informed his wife.
She brightened up at the prospect of her nieces, Mandy six and Cara four, spending so long with her.
“He and my sister-in-law are taking a holiday to the Continent for a long-delayed wedding trip. The girls will arrive in a fortnight.”
Although chastened, it was a much happier lady that left her husband’s study as she began to plan for her nieces arrival.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Lizzy had just been informed of how she came to be a Fitzwilliam and of the evil that was Lady Catherine.
All of the family other than Georgie and baby Alex were present in the family sitting room to support her if need be.
Her expression was inscrutable as everyone held their collective breaths, hoping that the little mite was not hurt by the disclosures.
“I knew that I was not born a Fitzwilliam,” she finally said her expression neutral, “but why did the bad man discard me?” she asked.
“That, my dear daughter,” Lady Elaine said, “is a question that we would love to have answered, but we have no idea. The man drove his carriage away as fast as he could as soon as he saw the one with your brothers getting close.”
“Did my other family look for me?” she asked.
“I am sure that they did,” her father said. “When Andrew and Richard brought you home, you mentioned Papa, ‘aney, and John. I believe that these were the people who loved you and looked for you, sweetling.”
“We helped your parents by having notices placed in newspapers and had posters placed in all of the surrounding counties, but no one ever came to claim you,” Uncle George told her. “Either they never saw any of them or they were unable to reach you.”
“This cross,” Lizzy reached up and touched the ruby encrusted cross that she wore most days, “is all that is left from my old family?”
“Yes, my love,” her mother confirmed, “we had to burn the blanket and nightgown you were found in as they were dirty beyond reclamation.”
“I have heard that I had a sister Tiffany who would have been close to me in age and she is with God,” Lizzy state thoughtfully, “Did she go to God before I joined the family?”
“Yes,” Andrew answered to spare his mother the task. “She had an accident when she was but six months old.”
Looking at her brothers she said, “Both of you have my everlasting gratitude for bringing me home to Mama and Papa. I am sorry not to know my other family, but I love my family here.” After a short pause she asked, “Why is my aunt so evil?”
“I wish I knew,” her father admitted.
“I do as well,” Aunt Anne added. “She was always hard to live with, a bully even, but she never showed any evil until after she married and left Snowhaven.”
Lizzy was about to leave the sitting room when she had a thought. “What will happen if my other family finds me?” she asked with concern, “They would not force me to never see any of you again would they?”
Lizzy had touched on a recurring nightmare for her mother.
Elaine swallowed her fear and looked her daughter in the eye, “If they love you as I suspect that they do, I do not believe that they would force you to abandon us, Lizzy.” Lady Elaine hoped more than believed that what she said would be the truth if that occurrence ever came to pass.
Her daughter cogitated for a few moments and kissed and hugged her parents, aunt, and uncle.
She hugged her brothers and two cousins and smiled again, happy with the answer her mother had given her.
As a little girl was wont to do, Lizzy decided she knew enough and wanted to go play with Gigi so that the two of them could go visit Fairy, who was now a resident of the Pemberley stables.
The family was pleased that the news of her being discarded in the way that she was did not seem to upset her terribly.
And outwardly it had not, but it would be many years before Elizabeth would reconcile what happened to her to get satisfaction.
The four parents had discussed the theory a number of times over the years since she joined the family, that someone had wanted to get rid of Lizzy and that it was not just a simple kidnapping.
A kidnapper would not have discarded the object of ransom, as was done in Lizzy’s case.
She had asked why, and they had answered honestly, that they did not know; thankfully, she did not ask them for their opinions of why.
After Elizabeth had changed into a riding habit, she met Gigi, Andrew, William, Richard, and Anne at the side entrance of the house closest to the stables.
Astraea was waiting for her as Fairy was for Gigi.
William had recently been gifted a stallion who was still young but well trained that he had named Zeus.
Andrew and Richard had left their horses at Snowhaven but were quite happy to ride any one of the many fine mounts in the Darcy stables.
With Biggs, Johns, and two grooms following at a discreet distance, the six cousins set out for a leisurely ride.
With Georgie on her pony, they would not go beyond a trot for this ride.
They exited the park and turned toward the sheep shearing sheds.
Off to the side of the path, hidden in some boulders was George Wickham.
He would have loved to do something to try to spook the brat’s horse, but he did not ignore the presence of the huge brutes and grooms following the group of those he so hated.
He should have been riding with that group if his true father had recognised him as was his due.
George did not care much for school, but he did care that he would no longer receive the same schooling advantages as that prig, William.
He had to be satisfied with the school for children of tenants and servants, and he knew that he was far better than that!
The fourteen-year-old young Wickham kept himself hidden, for it would not suit his purposes to be seen watching the Darcy and Fitzwilliam children.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
As the three Bingley ladies walked along the main street in Meryton, they could not fathom why they were not being treated with the deference they felt they deserved.
Not only that, but people would look at them and then seem to laugh at them or make comments and point at them.
The three had no idea that had they been themselves and not put-on airs and graces and pretended to be that which they were not, they would have been accepted by one and all.
As they were passing the milliner’s shop, they passed Mrs Long, expecting her to fawn over them since they were so much above her and were willing to recognise her.
They were quickly and rudely disabused by the notion.
The lady curtsied, and the question that followed mortified the women who had done everything they could to hide their roots.
“Mrs Bingley, Miss Bingley, Miss Caroline, how do you do today?” Mrs Long asked politely and then before they could respond she continued, “How is your husband’s business doing?
What is it? Oh yes, the Bingley Carriage Works in Scarborough.
” Then to really turn the knife she added, “I must have misunderstood about your being part of the landed gentry when your family is really in trade.” As the three women stood spluttering in mortification, Mrs Long cheerily took her leave of them, and went on her way.
To make matters much worse, there was a fairly large group of ladies within earshot—all of whom were looking at the social climbers and tittering at them.
As quickly as their legs could carry them, Mrs Bingley and her daughters returned to where their conveyance was waiting and told the driver to make all haste to take them back to Netherfield.
By the time they alighted at the manor house, the mortification had morphed into anger.
They stormed into the house after practically throwing their outerwear at the butler and footman, just stopping themselves from berating the two for no reason.
When they stalked into the drawing room where father and son were sitting, it was not hard for Mr Bingley to see that they were in a huff and he had a good idea why, having spoken to Mr Bennet after his visit with the Longs.
“What vexes you so, Mrs Bingley?” he asked nonchalantly.
“These imbeciles in this little, nowhere town do not respect their betters!” Caroline interjected before his wife could respond. His other daughter and wife nodded their agreement with Caroline’s assessment.
“Were they disrespectful to a peer of the realm? Or mayhap a royal?” he smirked, knowing full well to whom they were referring.
“Do not be so obtuse, Mr Bingley,” his wife said with asperity. “Caroline meant that they did not give us our due deference.
“You mean they have found out that you have been lying about our rank,” Mr Bingley corrected, having had enough sport with his wife and daughters. All three looked like beached perches, their mouths flapping open and closed though no sound emitted.
“O-of w-what d-do you talk of, Mr Bingley,” Martha asked as she tried to affect an air of innocence her daughters immediately attempted to emulate.
“What do you take me for, Mrs Bingley?” Oscar asked pointedly, “A simpleton? Did you think that you could go around telling one and all that you are part of the landed gentry and only leasing here while our manor house is being rebuilt on the grandest scale? All of the landed gentry, regardless of their wealth, are above us and the tradesmen are our equals!” Mrs Bingley and Louisa were embarrassed that their lies had been revealed, while Caroline seethed that her father would not back their proclamations.
When no defence was forthcoming, Mr Bingley told his wife and daughters that they would be restricted to the manor house and park for three months, with the exception of Louisa when she returned to the seminary.
He added that there would be no allowance money during the period of restriction, and at some point in its duration he would arrange for his wife and daughters to apologise to those that they had lied to.
Caroline was furious that her mother and sister just sat meekly accepting the unjust punishment. She told herself that in a few years she would be in a position to do something, this was not to be borne.