Chapter 6
Darcy
Fitzwilliam Darcy decided to check on Miss Bennet’s health. He told himself that he did so out of simple human kindness, with no ulterior motives of, for example, getting a glimpse of Miss Bennet’s sister.
He knocked quietly at the door, and a maid opened it. “How is Miss Bennet doing?” he asked.
“Well, she woke up feeling a bit more poorly,” the maid said, “and I was hoping that Miss Elizabeth would come back from her walk soon. I guess I should ring for someone to fetch her.”
Darcy was a bit surprised that Elizabeth was not with her sister, because she had been in almost constant attendance, but he well understood the need for exercise.
He told the maid that he would take care of finding the patient’s sister.
“In the meantime, I assume that Mr. Jones will be coming again this morning?”
“Yes, sir. I was told that he would come, sir.”
Darcy nodded, thanked the girl, and assured her he would locate Miss Elizabeth and send her to the room.
As he returned to the stairway, meaning to ask servants if they had seen the young woman, he heard Miss Elizabeth’s voice coming from his sister’s rooms. He went to the door and was about to knock, but he arrested his hand for a moment as he listened.
Miss Elizabeth was saying, “Do not worry, Georgiana. I am here, and I love being your friend. Things will be well. Whatever it is you are distressed about, we can work the problem, we can find solutions. You need not fear for yourself or for your brother.”
There was a quiet assurance in Miss Elizabeth’s voice.
Darcy was wondering why Georgiana was in tears, and he was also anxious to know what Georgiana had told Elizabeth.
But, for the most part, he felt comforted at Miss Elizabeth’s apparent willingness to be allied with his sister.
And, he gathered, maybe even with himself.
He knocked on Georgiana’s door. In response, there was a sudden silence—his sister stopped sobbing, and Miss Elizabeth stopped saying comforting words. He called through the door, “Georgie, it is me. Miss Elizabeth’s sister needs her.”
The door opened almost instantly. Miss Elizabeth looked concerned as she murmured her thanks and hurried past him.
Darcy, gazing at his sister’s tear-stained face, asked, “Might I come in?”
“Yes,” Georgiana whispered.
“I am glad,” Darcy said, “that you had Miss Elizabeth to reassure you; she seems like a wonderful friend. But I cannot walk away without asking why you are crying. If you do not mind telling me, what happened? Can your old brother help you in some way?”
Georgiana waved him in and asked him to lock the door. He sat down on the sofa and pulled his sister into an embrace.
“I am sorry to be such a watering pot,” Georgiana mumbled. “I wish that Mrs. Annesley did not have to rush off to her sister just when Aunt and Uncle were needed in Kent.”
“Do you hate it here?” Darcy kissed the top of Georgiana’s head, chastising himself for ever bringing his sister into Caroline Bingley’s orbit. He felt sure that the woman was at least part of the reason for his sister’s upset.
“I do not like being around Miss Bingley, William.”
Darcy nodded, vindicated in his assumption.
“But…actually….” Georgiana said thoughtfully.
He waited and was eventually rewarded with Georgiana’s epiphany: “Actually, I believe I am happy to be here. I think Miss Elizabeth will be able to help me learn how to deal with Miss Bingley. And…that is very good. Because, even if I were to leave right now to escape Miss Bingley, there will always be another lady like Miss Bingley, will there not? I…I believe that I need to be here; I need lessons in how to be gracious and polite while standing up against Miss Bingley’s bullying. I need Miss Elizabeth.”
Darcy caught his breath, closed his eyes, brought those words into his heart.
“Exactly right, Poppet,” he murmured. “There will always be another Miss Bingley. I do not know how to combat her, either. I, too, believe I need lessons.”
He could not bring himself to repeat “I, too, need Miss Elizabeth,” but those words veritably rang in his soul.