Chapter 6 #2
He immediately took her into his arms and kissed her.
Eleanor asked him to give her a little time to prepare her father before speaking to him, so their secret meetings continued for several more weeks.
Whenever they met, the hours seemed to pass in an instant as they talked, shared tender and passionate kisses, and dreamed of the life they hoped to build together.
Each believed that no one in the world could possibly be happier than they were.
At last, Eleanor told her father that the young Captain wished to speak with him. Marcus was well educated and had impeccable family connections, but he had not yet established the financial security necessary to support a family.
"Young man, I shall not refuse you permission to marry my daughter. However, I shall only give my consent once you are able to offer her a stable and secure future," Eustace Bennet said. In truth, he hoped to gain enough time to separate the couple.
"I understand, sir. Please do not concern yourself. Within three months, I shall have a home worthy of Miss Bennet," the young Captain replied. Although disappointed, he understood that Eleanor's father wished to ensure his daughter would be well provided for.
As soon as Marcus left Longbourn, Eustace turned to reproach his son.
"This is all your fault, Thomas. If you behaved as the heir to Longbourn ought to and accepted your responsibilities, your sister would be free to marry and build a life of her own.
But instead of fulfilling your duty, you married that foolish and vulgar woman.
I do not even wish to imagine what the next heir to Longbourn will become with a foolish mother and a lazy father.
The future of the Bennet family depends upon Ella.
She must manage the estate and raise the future heir to Longbourn, ensuring that he grows into a worthy gentleman. "
Eustace was determined to preserve the Bennets' standing at any cost.
Thomas pretended to listen to his father's rebuke, but in truth, he paid it little attention. He had been married to Fanny for three months and knew his father was right. The future heir to Longbourn would need someone like Eleanor to help shape him into a sensible and honourable man.
A few days later…
At the top of Oakham Mount, Marcus held Eleanor as she wept in his arms.
"My love, do not be sad. You will see how quickly these three months will pass."
"I do not know what I shall do without you, my dear Marcus," Eleanor whispered as he gently kissed her cheek.
They were so absorbed in one another that neither noticed the storm gathering overhead.
By the time the first drops of rain began to fall, they hurried away together.
Eleanor told him there was a small hunting lodge not far away where they could take shelter.
When they finally reached it, they were both drenched.
They looked at one another and burst into laughter before embracing once more.
Their kisses grew ever more passionate, and, carried away by the depth of their love, they gave themselves to one another with tenderness and devotion.
It was the first and last time for them both.
"I want you to know, my love, that I already consider you my wife. You are mine, and I am yours, and nothing and no one shall ever separate us. I love you, and I shall love you until the day I die," Marcus said, his voice breaking with emotion.
"I love you, Marcus, my beloved husband," she replied, equally overcome as she nestled into his embrace.
Two hours later, Marcus and Eleanor shared one last kiss behind the old willow tree before saying goodbye, never imagining it would be the last time they would ever see one another.
"Please do not forget that I shall return in three months, my love. Remember that I shall always love you."
Those were the last words Marcus spoke before walking away. Eleanor watched him until he disappeared from sight, then quietly entered Longbourn through the back door so that no one would notice her return.
◆◆◆
Months passed without Ella receiving a single letter from Marcus.
Hurt and disappointed, she came to believe that he had merely played with her feelings.
Yet even that pain paled in comparison to the fear and anguish she experienced when she discovered that their rainy afternoon together had left her carrying Marcus's child.
When she told her father and brother, they were stunned.
For several days, neither of them spoke to her.
Eventually, however, they accepted the situation and offered her their support.
Eleanor feared that her father would send her away to live with some distant relative.
Instead, he insisted that she remain at Longbourn and conceal the consequences of her indiscretion for as long as possible.
Once her condition could no longer be hidden, she was not allowed to leave the house.
She had no idea what her father intended to do.
Fanny was also expecting a child. If Fanny gave birth to another girl and Eleanor to a boy, they would claim the children were twins, and Eleanor's son would become the heir to Longbourn.
If both babies were girls, Eleanor's daughter would be raised by one of the tenant families.
Eleanor believed that her brother would adopt her child regardless of its sex, and she promised to remain at Longbourn for the rest of her life, helping to raise the children and manage the estate.
She would watch her own child grow up and always make certain that nothing was lacking.
Unfortunately, events unfolded very differently, and Eleanor was forced to leave her home forever.
Marcus finally returned to England after nearly four months.
The situation on the Continent had prevented him from returning any sooner.
Desperate to hear from Eleanor, he could not understand why she had not written to him even once.
He feared the worst—that she had fallen in love with another man, that her father had forced her to marry someone else, or that she had fallen gravely ill.
Unable to bear the uncertainty any longer, he sent an express letter to his beloved the very day he set foot on English soil, praying that she would answer.
That very night, however, Marcus and his men received orders to deal with disturbances on one of the islands in the English Channel.
His regiment was ambushed by a band of smugglers, and the young Captain fought with extraordinary courage, saving the lives of many of his men.
During the battle, however, he disappeared, and after several months with no news of him, his family was informed that he had been killed.
No one knew that he had actually been captured by a French patrol after being found in French territory and accused of espionage.
He remained imprisoned for more than six months before his family finally succeeded in negotiating his release.
When Ella received Marcus's letter, she finally realized that her father and brother had intercepted every one of his messages.
She immediately wrote back, begging him to return as soon as possible so that they could leave Longbourn and begin a new life together with their child.
But no further letters ever came. As her pregnancy advanced, she rarely left the house.
At night, when everyone else was asleep, she would slip into the back garden and hide beneath the old willow tree, where she wept in silence.
Only a few days before her child was due, she received a letter from Lord Rockwell informing her of Marcus's death and offering whatever assistance he could provide.
Overcome with grief, she confronted her father and brother, accusing them of destroying her happiness by concealing Marcus's letters.
Eustace coldly warned her that if she spoke another word, he would throw her out into the street.
Not knowing what else to do, she fled the house, desperate to escape the unbearable pain.
That was how she suffered a serious accident and remained unconscious for several days.
When Eleanor awoke, she remembered nothing of the accident.
She knew only that her little daughter had died.
The doctor explained that the infection resulting from her premature labour had most likely left her unable to conceive again.
Five days after regaining consciousness, she left Longbourn forever and began a new life far away from her father and brother.
Fanny had experienced many difficulties during her second pregnancy and had spent almost the last two months confined to her bed.
Her daughter was born the day after Ella left Longbourn, but survived only a few minutes.
Fanny was devastated by the loss of her child.
She knew that her sister-in-law had suffered an accident and that her little girl had also died, but she was stunned when Thomas told her the truth.