Chapter 3.15
The ride to Darcys' house was quiet. The girl sat near Elizabeth in complete silence, her legs hanging over the bench's edge. She did not even dare to look at Darcy, her eyes were turned towards the floor most of the time. Neither of them forced her to speak.
As soon as they arrived, Darcy retired to his library. He could see that his presence frightened the girl and wished to allow her time to recover.
Elizabeth called for Mrs. Talbot and Sarah and met them in the drawing-room. There, she took off the girl's bonnet and her thin coat and invited her to sit.
"Mrs. Talbot, Sarah, this is Emily. She will live with us from now on."
Both women looked at her, dumbfounded, but kept their calm.
"Welcome, Emily. How nice to have you here. I am Mrs. Talbot, the housekeeper."
The warm tone was not enough to receive more than a weak "thank you" and a quick glance.
"I am Sarah, Mrs. Darcy's maid. Nice to meet you, Emily."
"Emily is a little shy. And we are both hungry. Mrs. Talbot, Sarah, would you please bring some tea and some food for the four of us? We will have a little chat together," Elizabeth said.
The invitation was unexpected, but so were the circumstances. Sarah left for the kitchen, but Mrs. Talbot remained, puzzled at what was expected from her.
"Let us all sit here, at the table by the window,” Elizabeth offered. She helped Emily into the chair then sat herself and invited the housekeeper to join them.
"Mrs. Talbot, Emily has lived with Madame Claudette until today. We all agreed that she would be more comfortable with us. Mr. Darcy settled the matter, and we brought Emily home."
"Oh, I see," Mrs. Talbot replied, struggling to understand.
"But we will discuss more of this later. After we eat and rest."
"Emily, you will be very happy here. Mrs. Darcy is the best mistress that ever existed, and Mr. Darcy is the best master."
"Mrs. Darcy says she likes me," Emily whispered.
"Oh, I am sure she does," Mrs. Talbot replied.
Sarah returned with a generous tray, putting it on the table. Emily's eyes widened as she stared at the dishes lying before her eyes.
"Sarah, come and sit with us," Elizabeth invited her and the maid accepted reluctantly. Having tea with the mistress was something she had not considered.
"Here is your plate, my dear. You may choose whatever you like," Elizabeth addressed Emily.
The girl stared at her in disbelief. "I can eat this food?"
"Of course! This is why we brought it. Come, let us all eat."
"You should try some meat and some cheese. And some biscuits," Sarah suggested. Being the youngest of the three, Emily appeared more at ease with her.
Slowly, without further insistence, Emily began to eat.
"Do you like it?" Sarah asked.
"Yes…"
"Would you like some tea?"
The girl shook her head and continue to eat. Shy at first, then more confident, glancing at the mistress from time to time to see any sign of disapproval.
"So, Mrs. Talbot, we need to find a room for Emily," Elizabeth said. "Which would you suggest?"
"I can sleep on the floor," Emily said with painful honesty.
"Sleep on the floor?" Sarah replied. “Oh no, we all have lovely chambers, with comfortable and warm beds."
"Nobody sleeps on the floor here, my dear," Mrs. Talbot repeated.
Heavy-hearted, Elizabeth watched the girl eating, unsure of what to do. She wished to ask Darcy's opinion about how to proceed. Emily seemed shy with her, frightened of Darcy and somewhat confident with Sarah.
"May I sleep with you?" Emily suddenly asked Sarah.
All eyes turned to Elizabeth, who hesitated in replying. She had intended to put Emily in one of the upstairs rooms, not below the stairs, but the girl had already chosen.
"If the mistress agrees, I would be happy to have a companion. I have two younger siblings, and I miss them," Sarah answered.
"I dare say that would be a good arrangement for now, if the mistress agrees," Mrs. Talbot interjected, sensing Elizabeth's uncertainty.
"Is Sarah's room large enough to accommodate them both?"
"Oh yes," Sarah replied.
"We have another family room free since Mary and her husband left us several months ago. We could put them both there."
"Yes, that would be an excellent idea. Sarah, is this agreeable to you?"
"Anything you say, Mrs. Darcy," Sarah answered animatedly. "Oh, how lovely that I will have a companion!"
"So I will stay with you?" Emily asked, still doubtful.
"Yes…"
The girls gazed at Elizabeth, waiting, pleading, hopeful.
"I think it would be lovely for you both to have a companion," Elizabeth approved. "Mrs. Talbot, please arrange the change of rooms. Sarah, please help Emily to clean herself and I would suggest she might need some rest. Would you like that, Emily?”
"Rest?" The girl asked, as if she did not understand the word.
"Yes. Sleep for a little while."
"Sleep? Now?" the girl’s astonishment was painful to behold.
"Only if you want, my dear. Sarah, please take care of Emily. I will ring for you if I need something. For now, you are free from your duties."
Sarah took Emily's little hand and made ready to leave. When they reached the door, Emily ran back and stopped in front of Elizabeth. Tearful, she did not know what to do, but only whispered, "Thank you, Mrs. Darcy."
Elizabeth opened her arms and embraced the girl, who began to sob, as if she was throwing off the grief from her little soul. Elizabeth held the girl, caressing her hair, while her own tears rolled freely down her face.
Once she stopped crying, the girl looked at Elizabeth with such serenity in her eyes, that Elizabeth began to laugh through her tears.
"Go with Sarah! I will come and see your new room later," Elizabeth said, and the girl jumped up, running towards the door. For the first time, she actually behaved like a child.
Once they were alone, Elizabeth wiped her tears, embarrassed to be seen in such a state by the housekeeper.
"She is the daughter of a former seamstress of Madame Claudette.
Her mother eloped a while ago and abandoned the girl with her former employer.
Madame Claudette used her as a help in the house, assigning her the most difficult chores.
Side by side with men! As you heard, I doubt she has ever slept or eaten properly.
I saw her yesterday and spoke to Mr. Darcy about her situation.
He was kind enough to agree with me, so he convinced Madame Claudette to place the girl under our protection until her mother returns. "
"If she ever does," Mrs. Talbot said.
"Yes…We have the means to take care of her. I simply could not leave her there…"
"I understand, ma'am. And I have nothing else to say except I am proud and honoured to have met you, Mrs. Darcy!"
"Oh, nonsense, Elizabeth said, full of emotion. "Thank you for taking care of everything, Mrs. Talbot. I will go and see Mr. Darcy now."
∞∞∞
In the library, Darcy rose from his chair to welcome Elizabeth, and she fell into his arms.
“I have come to see you. Emily is with Mrs. Talbot and Sarah.”
Together, they sat on the sofa, and she sighed.
“What is it, my love? You look exhausted. Have you been crying?”
“Yes… but I am fine, more than fine. I was heartbroken watching Emily eating and listening to her saying she would sleep on the floor. You have saved a life with your generosity today, Mr. Darcy,” she said lovingly.
He placed a lingering kiss in her palm. “You have saved a life, Mrs Darcy.”
“Yes, must most other men would not have allowed their wife to take an orphan into their house out of the blue, with no preparation.”
“Most men do not have a wife like you, my beloved. I have no other merits other than being wise enough to choose properly! After I was properly humbled and induced to change my arrogant behaviour of course,” he added, half in jest.
“You are undeservedly kind with your praise, but I admit to enjoying it,” she smiled, caressing his face.
“I do not like to see the sadness in your eyes, Elizabeth.”
“The sadness is gone now; all is well with Emily. God knows how many other children are in the same tragic circumstances or even worse. And nobody cares, nobody even sees them…”
“Elizabeth, I admire your kindness, but you know life is often unfair. You cannot change the world, nor suffer for that which is not in your power to improve.”
“I am not a simpleton; I do not intend to change the world. And I am well aware that life is often unfair. I do not expect all people to live the same sort of life or to benefit from the same advantages. But injustice has always made me sad and angry. I cannot pretend to be blind and ignore it.”
“You choose to see things that others decide to ignore,” he said tenderly. “But you cannot suffer for all the injustices you will ever see.”
“Not for all, only for those that are unbearable. How is it possible to be so mean to a child? To let them starve or sleep on the floor? Or to set a child unsafe chores? And for months and months, so many people have walked into that shop, yet nobody noticed Emily. If a single lady of consequence had asked Madame Claudette to treat Emily properly, she would have obeyed.”
“People are interested only in their own business,” Darcy said. “I admit to being the same until recently. I used to think little of anyone who was outside the circle of my acquaintances.”
“This is different, Fitzwilliam. I can see how you treat your staff, both here and at Pemberley. I have heard people speaking of you being the best landlord and the best master. I can see how your servants are taken care of. I did not expect Madame Claudette and all the other women to be kind to Emily. Just not to be cruel to her, or any other child.”
Darcy tried to calm her, although he knew it to be a difficult task. He remembered her image from that day at the parsonage when she had been angry with him, and the memory was still vivid and painful.
“How is Emily now? I did not come with you, as I noticed she seemed frightened by me.”
“Thank you; it was very considerate of you. You cannot blame her - you are an impressive man to anyone until they become better acquainted with you. I am sure Emily will soon adore you,” she smiled.
“I would be content for her to feel safe and comfortable.”
“I am sure she will. She ate more than a starving man. She is still shy and restrained with me, but she grew attached to Sarah very quickly.”
“I am glad to hear that. Sarah must be more like the women she is accustomed to. Did you decide which room she will stay in?”
“She asked me to let her sleep with Sarah.”
“With Sarah? Below stairs?”
“Yes,” Elizabeth replied. “I did not want to even suggest otherwise, for the time being. She was already distressed by moving into a strange house, regardless of how kindly she was treated. And I feared that forcing her to sleep in a large, elegant room would make her feel rather lonely. Sarah seemed happy to have company.”
“But is Sarah’s room large enough,” he asked, and Elizabeth smiled at their similar concern.
“They will move together into the room that belonged to Mary and her husband. Mrs. Talbot suggested it. Do you approve of it?”
“Anything Mrs. Talbot suggested, must be appropriate,” he replied. “I trust her implicitly when it comes to the household. If you agree, there is no need for further debate.”
“Poor child… She looked so pale and thin and tired. I suggested she should sleep a little while and she was stunned by the notion of resting during the day. She cried in my arms… wholeheartedly… I cannot tell you how shattered I was by the bitter tears of such a young girl. And how furious!”
“I believe it was a wise decision to allow Emily to choose her room and companion. And I am sure she will sleep, as soon as the pain and fear go away,” Darcy said. “As for your fury – we must find a way to dissipate it! All is well now, my love.”
∞∞∞
Elizabeth spent a full hour in her husband’s pleasant company, then allowed him to return to his business, and she went to look for Emily.
In the kitchen, there was more agitation than usual, which ended with her arrival.
Emily was on a chair, eating, but she stood the moment she saw Elizabeth.
She had been bathed; her hair brushed, her clothes changed.
She was holding a cake, which she tried to hide behind her back.
“I have only come to see how you have settled, Emily. I do not wish to interrupt you. May I see your room?”
“Of course,” Sarah answer hastily, leading the way. Emily followed her closely, as if fearing that she might get lost.
Elizabeth had been below stairs several times since her marriage, but had never visited a servant’s chamber.
She was pleasantly surprised to see a generous room, warm and pleasant, with a comfortable bed, a small table, two chairs and a closet.
A window allowed enough light, and the entire chamber was neat and smelled clean.
“It is a beautiful room! And I can sleep on the pillow,” Emily declared.
Elizabeth stroked her hair. “I am glad you like it. Emily, please tell Sarah if there is ever anything you want. Will you promise me? Anything you see, you are allowed to eat; if you feel ill, or anything is bothering you, tell Sarah. Will you?”
The girl nodded decidedly. “I do not need nothing, Mrs. Darcy. I am full! And I am warm. I do not feel ill; I fell very well!”
Elizabeth caressed her again. “I am glad to hear that, my darling. Sarah, I would suggest retiring early tonight. Emily needs rest. There has been enough excitement for one day. Tomorrow I will show her the rooms upstairs. Miss Darcy might be home too, so I will introduce them.”
Emily looked somehow nervous again. “Mrs. Darcy?”
“Yes, my dear?”
“How long can I stay here?”
“How long? As long as you wish.”
“A whole week?”
“Do you want to leave, Emily?”
“Oh no… I don’t want to leave!”
“Then you will not, my darling. Not in a week, nor in a thousand weeks. Do not worry.”
“I can stay forever?”
“Forever, Emily,” Elizabeth answered, embracing the girl again.
After the emotional moment, Elizabeth returned to the kitchen and enjoyed a cup of tea, talking to the staff, while Emily never took her eyes from her.
However, when Elizabeth offered to take her upstairs, she refused, and Elizabeth did not insist.
An hour later, before dinner, Sarah came to help the mistress change. With a smile, she informed Elizabeth that Emily had finally fallen deeply asleep, with a pillow in her arms, and cuddled under the blankets.
“I believe she felt safe and warm for the first time in a long while,” the maid said.
“I believe you are right, Sarah. Thank you for being so kind to her.”
“Thank you for being so kind to all of us, Mrs. Darcy,” the maid replied with genuine gratitude.