Chapter 15 #2
“Oh, I am certain he is!” Caroline huffed, stalking over and planting herself in an armchair near the cold fireplace. “You simply must do something about Elizabeth, Brother! Her discourtesy to Miss Darcy this evening…”
“Caroline!”
“It is bad enough that you married Jane given her poor connections and lack of dowry,” the lady continued angrily, “but to be related by marriage to Elizabeth and her gauche sisters and mother…”
“Caroline!!”
“You really must send her back to Longbourn, Charles, as soon as possible, or she will disgrace us with Mr. Darcy and…”
“That will be ten pounds!” Charles bellowed, turning and reaching for paper and pen on the writing table.
Caroline Bingley froze, mid rant, and turned toward her brother in confusion. “Ten pounds? What are you speaking of?”
Her brother carefully wrote one line on the foolscap and then glowered at his younger sister. “Are you willing to listen, or are you merely going to interrupt me again?”
The lady swallowed hard. There was a peculiar expression on her brother’s usually cheerful face, which provoked an uneasy sensation in her chest.
“Of course I will listen,” she said carefully. “What do you mean, ten pounds?”
Charles leaned forward and said, “I realize that I have been greatly at fault for allowing you to speak so rudely to and about Jane and Elizabeth. I should have confronted you long ago, but as I cannot go back in time, I will begin now. You will speak courteously in company with them, and cease complaining about and insulting them when conversing with me. Every time you say anything malevolent, every time you are unpleasant, every time you use a mocking or disrespectful tone toward my family by marriage, I will deduct ten pounds from your income for the year.”
Caroline’s lips were parted in outrage now, and she sat up straight. “What are you speaking of? I have not been rude, not at all! I know what this is; Elizabeth has complained to you, or Jane perhaps! I suppose given their plebian origins, they are overly sensitive to my words of advice and…”
“That is another ten pounds,” Charles interrupted, turning to write another line on the paper.
Caroline froze in horror for a moment before exclaiming, “Charles, you cannot be serious. I am merely saying what everyone is thinking, I assure you.”
“Oh, I am serious about deducting the money from your income,” the gentleman said.
“Furthermore, you are entirely in error. Both Mr. and Miss Darcy like Elizabeth and Jane very much. It is you who have exasperated and annoyed them with your insistence that Miss Darcy play in company, when it is plain to all but you that she does not wish to do so!”
The lady gaped and then blurted, “Charles, you must be mad! Miss Darcy is so gifted, so accomplished, especially compared to Elizabeth, who plays very ill indeed…”
“Thirty pounds total now,” Charles said, turning to add another line to the paper.
Caroline jerked in confusion. “What did I say?”
“You said Elizabeth plays very ill, which is rude, Caroline.”
“But she…” the woman began, and then shut her mouth.
This entire situation was preposterous and absurd, but given her brother’s demeanor, she had best stop arguing for now.
Charles had always been easy going, and she had, in the past, been certain of having her way, but – well, she had best retreat verbally until she determined how best to manage this unusual situation.
“Let me say it another way,” she said finally. “Miss Darcy is very skilled, and she must long to have the opportunity to show off her skills…”
“She does not!” Charles interrupted in exasperation.
“Have you even looked at her face when you plague her to play, Caroline? Have you seen the distress in her expression? Have you seen how she cringes away and protests? How is it not entirely obvious to you that she is very shy and does not wish to play for us?”
“But … but we are all friends, Charles! Why would she…?”
“She is not your friend! Why would you imagine that you are her friend! You have, after all, spent far more time with Elizabeth than with Miss Darcy, and I am certain you would not say that she is your friend!”
Caroline opened her mouth, ready to unleash a torrent of invective, then slammed it shut before she lost even more money, before beginning again, much more cautiously.
“Elizabeth is my sister by marriage, which is a different relationship compared to my acquaintance with Miss Darcy who, well, perhaps she is a little shy, but I am certain Mr. Darcy agrees with me that she needs to learn to play in company. She will be entering society in the next few years, after all…”
“And who are you, Sister, to decide how to prepare Miss Darcy for society? That is Darcy’s role, not yours!
Has it not occurred to you that every time you harass and pressure Miss Darcy to play the pianoforte, she immediately retreats with a headache?
Really, Caroline, for someone who prides herself on her educational accomplishments and awareness of social niceties, you are truly dense!
Now I must depart to see how Jane is feeling, but mark my words, I am determined to hold the line regarding your treatment of Jane, Elizabeth, and the Darcys.
I am entirely ready to inform your milliner and dressmaker that I will not be covering any excess bills, so do not push me! ”
Caroline could only stare in dazed horror as her brother rose to his feet and stalked out of the room.