CHAPTER 18 Mrs. Bennet
It was then that Elizabeth heard the sounds of a carriage coming up the drive. Before she knew it, it had stopped at the gate to Hunsford. The door opened and Mrs. Bennet stepped down, not even waiting for the steps.
“Lizzy!” she said. “Oh, my Lizzy! Are you well?”
Mrs. Bennet rushed forward and engulfed her in a tight embrace.
“I am well, Mamma,” she said, still taken aback by her mother’s sudden appearance and noticing that she had begun to cry.
“Are you certain?” asked Mrs. Bennet, still clutching Elizabeth by the shoulders. “For Jane said that you were quite ill…”
“But I am better now, Mamma. Truly.”
“Oh, thank God. Thank the Lord.”
Mrs. Bennet finally leaned back and only then did she acknowledge Darcy's presence. “Mr. Darcy?”
“Good morning, Mrs. Bennet,” said Darcy. “It is good to see you again.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I am visiting my aunt and…calling on Miss Elizabeth.”
“Oh! I see…”
“And how was your journey, Mamma?” Elizabeth took the opportunity to ask.
“It was terrible!” answered Mrs. Bennet, fanning herself with her hand.
“I left the day after we received Jane’s letter and went straight to London.
The trip there was tolerable, but the one here was atrocious!
It rained so hard that we were forced to spend several nights at an inn.
And then the carriage wheel broke because of all the mud.
One of my nicest pairs of walking boots was ruined when we were forced to walk to the nearest village. And I am thankful I even made it here!”
It was then that Darcy bowed and said, “I shall just inform Mrs. Collins of your arrival.”
He left, as Mrs. Bennet continued to stare after him, looking bewildered. She looked closely at Elizabeth and asked, “Is he courting you, Lizzy?”
Elizabeth was so surprised by the question and she could only answer, “What? No! Not that I am aware of.” She was actually hoping that he was courting her but certainly did not wish for her mother to know of it.
“Well, I suppose it is just wishful thinking on my part,” murmured Mrs. Bennet. “After all, you two always did argue.”
Elizabeth grimaced. “Yes, I suppose we did, Mamma.”
Eventually the front door opened and Mr. Darcy returned with Charlotte who encouraged Mrs. Bennet to come inside and have some refreshments.
Soon they were settled in Charlotte’s small parlour, Mr. Bingley and Jane having joined them as well. Mrs. Bennet recounted her travails en route from London to Kent and everyone listened with sympathy.
“But what are you doing here, Mr. Bingley?” she asked at length. “We - my friends in Meryton and I, that is - had all thought that we would never see you again.”
“I do apologise, Mrs. Bennet,” said Bingley contritely, “it was my intention to return but…” His words died away and he glanced at Darcy, apparently unable to finish his sentence.
“Well, he is here now,” said Elizabeth, attempting to spare him her mother’s remonstrances, “and that is all that matters.”
Jane then explained how Mr. Bingley had brought her, the doctor and the maid from London at the behest of Mr. Darcy.
Elizabeth noticed that that gentleman appeared once more embarrassed by the attention he was receiving.
“And it was good that Mr. Darcy’s physician came when he did,” said Charlotte, “because he was instrumental in treating Elizabeth’s illness and bringing about her subsequent recovery.”
As if on cue, Dr. Stephens arrived and was introduced to Mrs. Bennet.
She questioned him in great detail about her daughter’s health and was finally satisfied when he informed her that Elizabeth would eventually make a full recovery.
Nevertheless, he cautioned her that Elizabeth should try not to exert herself too much so soon after her illness.
Mrs. Bennet agreed to keep her daughter from undue exertions then turned her attention back to the company.
Her eyes alighted on her eldest daughter.
“So I see you have been walking in the garden, Jane,” she said, now addressing her. “And with Mr. Bingley.”
“Yes…I was showing him some of the paths hereabouts,” said Jane with a blush.
“It was very kind of Miss Bennet to do so,” said Bingley.
Mrs. Bennet eyed him more closely, then frowned. “And is this what you plan on doing in Kent, sir? Walking in the garden with my daughter then leaving again without warning?”
Mr. Bingley looked both shocked and mortified, while Jane said, “Mamma!”
“No, I…” said Bingley. “Of course not.”
“His intentions are honorable,” said Darcy abruptly, speaking for his friend.
Everyone turned towards him before Bingley said, “You do not need to speak for me, Darcy, though I appreciate your efforts.” He then turned to Mrs. Bennet and added, “But, yes, my intentions are honorable.”
But Mrs. Bennet was not so easily placated.
“So why did you leave Hertfordshire with nary a farewell to your friends there? I recall asking you to have dinner with us and you accepted. Then the next thing we knew you and your entire party had left. And then we received a note from your sister saying that you would not be returning. She went so far as to imply that you would soon be married to Mr. Darcy’s sister. ”
“Mamma!” said Jane. “I never showed you that letter.”
While Darcy exclaimed, “My sister is only sixteen and there is nothing at all going on between them!” He noticed that Jane looked somewhat placated but that Mrs. Bennet was still frowning.
After which Bingley stated with a small voice “I…had business in London.”
“Business in London,” repeated Mrs. Bennet, ignoring both Jane and Darcy. “What a terribly convenient excuse.”
Jane gasped while Elizabeth looked at her mother in stunned silence, not quite believing that Fanny Bennet was chastising Mr. Bingley, despite the risk of frightening him off. But she had always been protective of her children and Elizabeth supposed that her mother was only being so now.
“It is my fault,” said Darcy, intervening again.
“Your fault? How so?”
Darcy swallowed. “I…warned Bingley away from Miss Bennet because I thought that she did not love him.”
“But why would you do such a thing? And why should he even believe you about it? Are you some sort of expert about how ladies are supposed to behave?” She turned to Bingley and added, “And you sir, have absolutely no backbone - for listening to a friend and abandoning my daughter instead of finding out for yourself whether or not she loved you.”
Elizabeth looked at Jane and saw that she too was staring at their mother, mouth agape.
“I…I apologise again,” stammered Bingley.
“As do I,” said Darcy.
“And what of your comment at the Meryton Assembly?” she asked, now turning her attention to that gentleman.
“What comment?” asked Darcy.
Mrs. Bennet cleared her throat. “She is tolerable but not handsome enough to tempt me, and I am in no humour to give…what was it again, Lizzy? What was it that Mr. Darcy said?”
“Consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men,” said Elizabeth dully.
She could not believe that she had said it, but the words seemed to pour from her mouth as if of their own volition. Perhaps it was her illness doing the talking.
“So what do you have to say for yourself, Mr. Darcy?” continued Mrs. Bennet. “Hmm?”
Darcy winced. “I was…” He looked down but could not seem to think of a reply.
“It was a hurtful comment to make about my daughter,” finished Mrs. Bennet. “Terribly hurtful.”
“I am deeply sorry,” said Darcy, now turning to Elizabeth, who was appalled by the entire exchange. “I never even looked at you. My sister had recently gone through some difficulties and…I simply did not wish to dance.”
“Well, you should have thought of a better way to avoid it!” retorted Mrs. Bennet.
“You are right, I should have.”
Mrs. Bennet huffed while Charlotte suddenly said, “Mrs. Bennet, would you care for a slice of spice cake?”
Mrs. Bennet blinked. “What?”
“The cake,” said Charlotte desperately, not wishing for Lady Catherine to hear that her nephew had been berated by her guests, “it is very good. Please…try some.”
“Well…” said Mrs. Bennet, “if you insist.”
Charlotte handed her a piece of cake, then turned to Darcy and said, “And you, Mr. Darcy, would you also like a slice?”
“Thank you, no, Mrs. Collins. Perhaps it is best that Bingley and I be on our way.”
He looked at Bingley who suddenly stood up and said, “Yes, perhaps we had better take our leave.”
Mrs. Bennet, who was now eating her cake, said, “Suit yourselves.”
*****
“Mamma! Why did you do that?” asked Elizabeth once the gentlemen had left.
“Because they deserved it!” answered her mother. “And also because I was so worried that you would die!” Elizabeth stared at her mother who continued, “But I cannot believe that the two of you did not see it before. In fact, I cannot believe that I did not see it.”
“See what, Mamma?” asked Jane.
“Why, that you have been treated shabbily by those gentlemen.”
Elizabeth and Jane were silent for some moments, before Jane said, “But what if they never come back?”
“Never come back! Nonsense. What decent gentleman does not return for the woman he loves simply because he was taken to task for his poor behaviour? And is that the kind of gentleman you would wish to marry?”
Jane blinked, then eventually murmured, “I never thought about it that way before, Mamma.”
“They shall return,” said Mrs. Bennet with confidence.
Elizabeth, however, was still focused on what her mother had said about the gentlemen loving them. “And what makes you think Mr. Darcy loves me, Mamma?”
“I do not know,” said Mrs. Bennet, with a shrug. “I just assumed…from the way he was sitting with you in the garden…”
“It was very kind of you to defend me earlier,” said Elizabeth, despite not knowing if she was thankful or angry at her mother, “but just because he sat in the garden with me does not mean he loves me.”
“Well, if he does not, then it is his loss!” Mrs. Bennet took another bite of cake and added, “This is really quite good, Charlotte.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Bennet.”
Elizabeth was just beginning to relax a little when her mother assaulted her with yet another question. “So are you interested in him, Lizzy?”
“What are you talking about, Mamma?”
“I am talking about Mr. Darcy,” answered Mrs. Bennet with a huff. She finished off her cake then put the plate down. “Are you interested in him?”
Elizabeth was caught. She did not wish to lie about it, but also did not wish to divulge her hopes, only to have them come to naught. And possibly become an object of pity.
“Well, perhaps I might have been,” she finally answered, “But what does it signify when you may have frightened him off?”
“Do not say that, Lizzy,” said Jane unexpectedly. “I agree with Mamma, and believe that they will return.”
Elizabeth stared at her sister and mother, feeling as if she were in another world.
She sagged against the cushions of the couch and realised that she needed more than several hours to ponder what had happened that afternoon.
Mrs. Bennet had always been protective of them but this was completely unexpected, even for her.
Elizabeth supposed that it was her brush with death that had caused her mother to behave so fiercely. And erratically.
Eventually she said, “Very well, Jane, Mamma. I shall believe you when you say they shall return. However, might I have someone’s assistance to go upstairs? I feel quite exhausted and need to lie down for a moment.”