Chapter 6 CourageBlindness #2
“See to it that she does, Darcy. You must allow her to explore and become acquainted with the young men that strive for her attention. I shall speak plainly. Stop scowling at every bachelor not in their dotage! She cannot always be at Pemberley because you sent your wife away.”
Darcy turned to Colonel Fitzwilliam and glared at his cousin.
Lord Matlock misinterpreted the meaning behind his ferocity.
“Rest assured, Darcy, my son has not divulged your secrets to me. He is an honourable man, though I have long suspected that he knows the sordid details of your downfall.”
Darcy could not but appreciate the colonel’s tight lips, even though his silence was rooted in self-interest. He had no wish to be the cuckolded fool of the family, about which he had been firmly warned due to marrying so far beneath his station.
Somewhat dejected, he ventured home to Pemberley.
Perhaps it was the last time he would have the comforting company of his sister to ease the burden of travelling.
Next year, he might be returning to Derbyshire alone for a life of unending solitude.
Annoyed, stunned, horrified. Would the memories never cease to haunt him?
#
London, 1815
Darcy tarried even longer before travelling to town.
He dodged the Easter visit to Lady Catherine, asserting estate matters kept him at home.
He refused to spend a single day in Colonel Fitzwilliam’s undesirable presence.
Therefore, Mr and Miss Darcy arrived in town in May, to a mountain of invitations.
First and foremost, the Matlocks were holding a ball in Georgiana’s honour, and they could not refuse the distinction shown by their own relations. They had begged for three years to be allowed to hold one.
Georgiana was dressed to the nines when they entered the receiving line, as was expected when the event was held in her honour.
Fortunately, no one ever asked after his wife any longer, supposing he was too ashamed of the country nobody he had chosen to wed to bring her to town.
No one had been invited to Pemberley, so they could not know she was not there.
The rush of guests eventually trickled down to a few late arrivals. Darcy and Georgiana followed the Matlocks into the ballroom, where Lord Matlock proceeded to the middle of the floor, and the crowd assembled around him. The room quieted; all eyes were on their host.
Darcy had expected his uncle to make an introductory speech, but he had thought he would wait until supper.
“Dear Lords and Ladies, friends and family, we are gathered here today in honour of my niece Miss Georgiana Darcy, to celebrate her betrothment to my son Colonel Fitzwilliam. May I be the first to offer them my sincerest congratulations.”
The room erupted in cheers and wishes of joy and happiness. Darcy looked at his sister, who was immediately swamped by a mass of tittering ladies, but he managed to catch a glimpse of her eyes. She must have known because she looked guilty and not at all surprised.
Had living with him become such a burden that she would shackle herself to his debauched cousin?
He could not fathom this turn of events, except for the culprit obviously being his uncle.
He had been betrayed by a Fitzwilliam for the second time and loathed his own name.
Never would he saddle a son with a surname as his Christian name.
Not that he would ever have a son of his own.
Instead, it would be Colonel Fitzwilliam’s son who would inherit his life’s work.
Darcy felt sick. It must have shown because Lady Matlock approached him and steered him out of the ballroom to Lord Matlock’s study.
She filled a tumbler with a generous amount of brandy and thrust it into his hand.
He swallowed the amber liquid in one large gulp and felt the familiar burning sensation travel down his throat.
“What is the meaning of this? You were the last person I would have expected to cause a scene. I am sorely disappointed in you.” Lord Matlock had followed them to the study with Colonel Fitzwilliam trotting in his wake.
“I am sorry to spring this upon you in this manner, Darcy, but something had to be done about you thwarting your sister’s prospects.
In this way, we have secured both the Darcy and Fitzwilliam blood at Pemberley for the next generation.
May I remind you, you are not the owner of an estate, you are the guardian for future generations. ”
Darcy felt the injustice of his uncle’s accusations; the rage that surged through his veins was impossible to quell. What had his sister been thinking?
“I need to speak to Georgiana,” he ground out through clenched teeth.
“What, now? The ball has commenced.”
“Yes, now! I shall not enter your ballroom until I have spoken to my sister—alone.”
The Matlocks filed out of the study, and a contrite Georgiana soon entered. She stood just inside the door, studying the pattern on the carpet. He waited patiently for his sister to explain herself, but she offered nothing.
Darcy sighed deeply; he would haul it out of her, the truth of the matter.
It had evidently been a mistake to allow Georgiana to visit the Matlocks while he was busy with estate matters.
His closest relations must have worked upon her until she relented.
But he was not sacrificing his sister; the scandal would not matter much.
“Please tell me you were not coerced into accepting your cousin.”
Georgiana’s head snapped up.
“Of course not. Can you not be happy for me?”
Darcy searched his sister’s eyes; they wore a defiant expression.
“I…” he faltered. What can I say to change her mind? “Please. Let us sit and discuss the matter as rational beings.”
Georgiana acquiesced with a nod and moved to the chairs before the unlit fireplace.
“I know Richard wronged you, Brother, but are we not better off without Elizabeth?”
His first impulse was to vehemently protest, but, thankfully, his reason re-emerged before a word left his lips.
“Would you not agree it is better to be informed than to be ignorant? I admit Richard’s warning came a bit late, but at least it was before you sired an heir you could not be certain was your own.
” Georgiana paused and cleared her throat.
“Richard told me about her affinity for Mr Wickham and how he had to defend your name to her. May I remind you that a child born within wedlock would be impossible to disinherit. I do not commend Richard’s method, but the outcome is the same. ”
It surprised him that Georgiana could speak Wickham’s name with such ease. He hardly heard what she said next, but it delighted him that she was fully recovered from her disappointment.
“It is time to leave the past behind and focus on the future, Fitzwilliam. I love Richard, and I know he will treat me well. He is deeply injured by your estrangement and your continued refusal to mend the breach. He wants nothing more than for the two of you to have the relationship you once had. You truly were like a brother to him.”
“Colonel Fitzwilliam was well aware I was approaching the library because he summoned me thither under some pretence or other.”
“Exactly. He knew you were coming. It only proves he had no intention of seducing Mrs Darcy. He wanted to open your eyes.”
“He could have spoken to me.”
“Would you have believed him? You were so in love with Elizabeth, nothing else mattered. It was the only way he could break the spell she had cast on you.”
A quarter of an hour of uncomfortable silence was broken when Georgiana rose from her seat and offered him her hand.
“Come, Brother, dance with me.”
“I cannot. You are my sister.”
“Humour me this once, Fitzwilliam. I promise never to repeat it.”
Darcy followed his sister, waited patiently for the next set to begin, and danced. Lord Matlock had a point; it was to be hoped the union would provide a child to inherit Pemberley. He needed to move forwards because he was bitterly tired of the hollow emptiness he carried inside.
Darcy missed his closest friend; his sister was desperate to get away from him. It would not do. But before he closed this chapter in his life, the master of Pemberley had one last task to perform. Why, he had no idea, but the need was overwhelming.