Chapter 16 #3
“I have witnessed everything from the beginning,” Mrs Jenkinson continued. “I know exactly what happened.”
Realising at last what she intended, Lady Catherine tried to silence her. “Hold your tongue, woman! You are nothing. A servant. No one wishes to hear you.”
“I will not allow you to speak to Mrs Jenkinson in that manner, Mother.” Anne had finally made her choice. “My cousin is right. This madness has gone on long enough.”
Astonishment swept through the room. Even Elizabeth forgot Darcy for an instant, though he still lay in her arms while Lady Catherine seemed almost unable to breathe. Never in her life had Anne spoken to her with such firmness.
“Be silent, you foolish girl!” she shrieked.
Yet no one remained on Lady Catherine’s side. Not her daughter. Not Mrs Jenkinson. Not even Mr Collins, whose livelihood depended upon her favour.
Mrs Jenkinson attempted to speak, but Anne gently laid a hand upon her arm. “Thank you, Mrs Jenkinson. You are, and always have been, the only person who truly cared for me.”
At those words Georgiana crossed the room and quietly took Anne’s hand. “That is not true, dear Anne. I care for you, and I know my brother does as well. So does our cousin.”
“Indeed I do,” the colonel said, continuing to pace the room whilst keeping Lady Catherine well away from Darcy. “But I cannot understand how you agreed to take part in such a monstrous scheme.”
“I have spent my whole life as a puppet in my mother’s hands,” Anne answered with quiet dignity.
“I am ashamed of it. I scarcely know how I allowed myself to become part of such madness. Mrs Jenkinson has done more for me than anyone else. She helped me see my own weakness and gave me courage to overcome my fear of my mother. I have been weak. I have been a coward. I am ashamed to admit it, but the time has come to make my own decisions.”
She looked towards Darcy. “Now that you are all here, let me say it plainly. I shall never marry my cousin Darcy. Never.”
Under the unbearable intensity of that moment, Elizabeth hid her face, and they heard her weeping. Yet it was not the hopeless grief of the previous days, but tears that washed away the horror they had endured during the past week. Mr Bennet, standing quietly to her side, gently stroked her hair.
No one interrupted her. She had earned the right to cry.
“Nothing happened between Mr Darcy and Anne,” Mrs Jenkinson said quietly, and Anne nodded.
“What exactly did your mother give him?” the colonel finally asked, voicing the question that was on everyone’s mind. “Will he recover?”
“Laudanum,” Mrs Jenkinson answered. “Her ladyship obtained that bottle from her apothecary for pains in her back. I was present when she questioned him about it in great detail. At the time, I believed she was merely concerned about her own health. He warned her to take only the prescribed quantity, never more, and never every day. Laudanum is dangerous. Too much may kill a person, and repeated use can create such dependence that life without it becomes almost impossible.”
Elizabeth sighed in despair and drew Darcy closer. More than anything, she longed to see him awake again. Every other fear had vanished, yet one remained: that Lady Catherine’s dreadful drug had done him lasting harm and that he might never fully recover.
“Will he recover completely?” Georgiana asked, voicing Elizabeth’s fears.
“He will,” the colonel replied. “Do not be afraid. I know something of laudanum and have seen its effects before. Some of my men take it simply for the pleasant sensation it produces. In small quantities it is not usually dangerous. Still, it becomes perilous when a person grows dependent upon it, just as Mrs Jenkinson has said. It appears, however, that my cousin has been given far larger doses than any of my soldiers ever took. Lady Catherine wanted to keep him in the stupor you see before you.”
“We shall leave for London as soon as possible,” Bingley said, still shaken by everything they had witnessed. “Darcy will have the best physicians that can be found.”
“If he has not awakened by then, we shall carry him to the carriage,” the colonel said, and every man in the room silently agreed.
“He will recover, sir,” Mrs Jenkinson spoke with confidence. “Yesterday Anne and I resolved that this could not continue. We emptied the laudanum bottle and replaced it with harmless oil. Since then he has taken nothing else. I believe he will soon regain his senses.”
“Very good,” the colonel said with approval. “Anne, Mrs Jenkinson, you are coming with us.” Then he turned towards Lady Catherine. “As for you, madam, I strongly advise you to remove yourself from my sight.”
“I shall not take orders in my own house. If you do not wish to see me, then you may leave. I shall remain here for as long as I please,” she replied, settling herself in an armchair with her cane across her knees.
The colonel merely shrugged. “Do as you wish until Darcy wakes. Afterwards, you will answer to my father. I shall be glad to leave this place, and I have no intention of ever setting foot in it again.”
They began preparing to leave Rosings, but one obstacle still remained. “I do not want any further misfortune because of those armed men in the park,” Mr Bennet said.
Colonel Fitzwilliam and Parker exchanged a glance and nodded. Someone would have to deal with the guards before they attempted to leave.
“We shall speak to them,” the colonel said.
“I shall go,” Anne offered quietly.
“And I shall accompany you,” Bingley added.
The colonel, however, shook his head.
“No. Mr Bennet and Mr Bingley will remain here. I want Darcy watched until we return.”
The guards proved more stubborn than anyone had expected. Anne needed considerable time to persuade them that their services were no longer required. In the end, her arguments were bolstered by a generous payment. At last they departed, leaving the park deserted and the road clear.