Chapter 6 #2
After expressing her thanks, Elizabeth admitted, “I have often been more than a little frustrated knowing that Mr Bennet had a letter from my mother and could recall few of the details. Since he believed it had been lost in a fire, I supposed I would never know what she wrote. But his circumstances were not easy at the time, with his infant daughter and Mrs Bennet both extremely ill. Hearing from his sister and learning of my father’s death and her own grave illness was difficult for him.
” She shrugged before admitting, “When he told me he had found the letter after all this time, it was…rather remarkable and, for me, special.”
“It has given us all a reason to celebrate,” Lord Romsley said. His assertion was met with universal agreement, and it dissolved Elizabeth’s remaining hesitation over how her father’s relations would receive her.
“Let us speak of practical matters for a moment,” Lord Bramwell said.
“First, names. You are our cousin, thus we”—he nudged his brother with an elbow—“must call you Elizabeth. You may call me Bramwell or Sterling. Like a cousin of ours, I was named for my mother’s people. But no one actually calls me that.”
“And I am Thomas Fitzwilliam,” the colonel said.
Seeing Elizabeth start, the countess explained, “We told my father it was in honour of some relation or other of my husband, but in my heart, it was for my lost brother. Now, to return to Robert and his family, as I said, I shall write to him today. I doubt he will come to town. The carriage drive from Northamptonshire would be too difficult for my sister-in-law. Sophia was injured in an accident last month.”
“Oh dear, that is terrible. Was it serious?” Elizabeth asked solicitously.
“I can tell what a gentle heart you have,” Lady Romsley said, smiling at Elizabeth.
“Sophia will be well, but her back aches, and the physician advised her to be cautious for several months, until she regains her strength.” She gasped lightly.
“I have hit upon the perfect idea! After Twelfth Night, we are going to Romsley Hall.” Giving her attention to the earl, she said, “I had hoped to convince Elizabeth to come to Warwickshire with us. Why do we not first go to Hillsdale?” Again, her attention shifted to Elizabeth.
“That way you can meet your other uncle and aunt and cousins.”
When Elizabeth experienced a moment of being overwhelmed and hesitated, the colonel—Fitzwilliam—said, “That is a wonderful notion, Mama, but perhaps it is a bit much for Elizabeth to contemplate just yet.”
Elizabeth looked from him to his brother, then the earl, and lastly the countess—her father’s sister—and, calling on the same boldness that had driven her to seek out her true family, said, “I should like it very well. As I have said, for years, I have wished to know more about my father’s people.
I cannot express how much it means to me to be here today.
Yes, I shall go with you. But…will Mr Sterling welcome me, given the situation?
” She referred to her grandparents’ decision to disavow their son.
“You are all being so kind to me. I had no notion what to expect, and I cannot thank you enough.”
“None of that, my dear girl,” Lady Romsley interjected. “I am thrilled you are here.”
“As we all are,” Bramwell insisted.
His father and brother agreed, and—knowing how often the quartet had made similar comments—Elizabeth had no choice but to accept they were as pleased to meet her as she was them.
“When my mother told us she had heard from you,” Fitzwilliam added, “I said it was like a Christmas gift to the family. I hold by that view, especially having met you.”
Elizabeth’s cheeks heated, and she was filled with so much warmth that she felt it from the top of her head down to her toes. The experience was so much better than she had imagined in her day-dreams about discovering her paternal relations that it nearly made her cry.
“To answer your question about my brother,” Lady Romsley said, “he will. And I am sure he, Sophia, and the boys will be as delighted with you as we are. I miss my brother Thomas, and I mourned him when I learnt of his death. I did not know there was a child. Truthfully, I do not know how I would have acted had I known about you, but…” She shrugged before continuing, “I have always regretted the breach in our family. I shall not judge the rightness or wrongness of what my parents did. What is the point?”
“Very wise,” the earl interjected.
“It is far better to think of now and our opportunity to know Elizabeth,” Bramwell agreed.
“Our cousins—the boys, as my mother usually refers to them, since having to name three is onerous for even the stoutest person—will be as eager to know you as my brother and I were. Are? Have been? What is the correct verb tense?” His brow furrowed, and he regarded his parents and Fitzwilliam in turn.
As he had earlier, the earl rolled his eyes. “The man you are staying with is called Mr Gardner?” he continued.
“Gardiner,” Elizabeth corrected. Understanding that he wished to know more about him, she added, “He is Mrs Bennet’s younger brother.
I assure you, he is very respectable. He and his wife are lovely people.
” Their situation in life was far different from that of the people she was presently with, and she hoped her newly discovered relations would accept them or, at least, not disdain them.
“They have embraced you as part of their family, despite you not being tied to them by blood?” Fitzwilliam asked.
Elizabeth said yes, and Lady Romsley patted her hand and replied, “That is good. But I would so like it if you would come to stay here, with me.”
“Oh.” Elizabeth was surprised, whether or not she should be.
“Perhaps it is a bit too much for Elizabeth to take in all at once,” the earl said gently.
“I think my father is correct,” Bramwell said, while Fitzwilliam nodded and smiled at Elizabeth in a reassuring manner. “Give her a chance to accustom herself to discovering this part of her family.”
“And get to know us better. After all, as long as Elizabeth is in London, it will be easy to see one another,” Fitzwilliam added.
Elizabeth was grateful for what appeared to be their understanding. To Lady Romsley, she said, “It is such a generous offer, and I truly do appreciate it.”
“But it is too soon,” the countess said.
“I understand. Be warned, however. I shall ask again, and you must consider yourself invited any time you feel comfortable coming to stay here. We have many years of separation to make up for. No more of that now. Will you return tomorrow? My nephew and niece—children of the earl’s late sister—will join us for dinner, and it would be an excellent occasion to meet them. ”
Elizabeth accepted the invitation and promised to think about removing to Grosvenor Square.
She and her relations discussed the proposed trip to Hillsdale and Romsley Hall in January, Elizabeth again expressing her desire to be one of their party.
By the time she left, she was beyond pleased with how well the day had gone.
To be sure, all of them—including herself—had been eager to please and be pleased.
Irritations and misunderstandings were bound to arise as they continued to learn about one another, but with luck, those problems would be minor.
Still, after the years of wondering about her father’s relations, she had found them, and it was reason to rejoice.
The next day, she would meet more of their connexions, extending her circle of acquaintances.
If they are anything like the earl and countess and their sons, I shall have further cause to be grateful.
It struck her that she had not been told their name.
There had been so much else to talk about, and other than the countess’s mention of the brother and sister in relation to dinner, nothing had been said of them.
Elizabeth spent the carriage ride to Gracechurch Street in happy reverie.
If everything worked out as it seemed possible it would, Elizabeth would relish spending more time with Lady Romsley.
They would both gain by it. The countess had said she welcomed the tie to her late brother, and Elizabeth had the opportunity to learn more about her father and feel connected to him.
And, equally as important, Elizabeth believed she would grow to love Lady Romsley as her aunt and feel part of her family.
As overly romantic as the idea sounded, as soon as she had met her, the earl, Bramwell, and Fitzwilliam, Elizabeth had felt as though she belonged, that she was an established member of their family circle.
I do not think it is only because it is what I have longed for all these years. It is them and me, that we…recognise a kinship. As Fitzwilliam said, our reunion is a Christmas gift. The best I shall ever receive.