Chapter 5 #3
The opportunity for private conversation did not present itself immediately, for it would not have done to slight their cousin, or allow an absence to be remarked on.
It was only after some time, when the first curiosity had settled, that Jane rose and quietly withdrew, and Elizabeth followed her without remark.
They passed upstairs together and entered their room; Elizabeth closed the door behind herself with a care that reflected both habit and intention. Jane moved toward the window, and Elizabeth remained for a moment where she was, watching her sister before crossing the room to join her.
“It is a strange thing,” Elizabeth said at last, “to receive such a visitor without warning. He arrives unannounced, speaks of duty, and offers apologies for a situation he has no power to alter. I do not know whether to be grateful or cautious.”
“I believe he intends to be kind,” Jane replied, turning toward her. “His manner may not recommend him at first, but his purpose appears sincere.”
Elizabeth considered this. “I do not doubt that he believes himself so. I am less certain what that belief may produce.”
Jane smiled hopefully. “There may be some good in his visit. At the very least, he has come with the intention of offering it.”
“You are quite right, Jane,” Elizabeth allowed. “Our cousin ought to be given credit for good intentions. Only…I am not confident that even if wishing to do so, Mr Collins is capable of it.”
Too sensible to argue the point, Jane only nodded. For a long moment, silence fell.
“I wish our father would return,” Jane said at last, so softly Elizabeth could scarcely hear her.
Elizabeth swallowed hard. Even as the days of his absence piled up, a direct reminder of it still had the power to make her heart sink to the ground. “So do I,” she said.
“It has been longer than we expected,” Jane continued, her voice steady despite the concern beneath it. “And though we have had no reason to suppose anything amiss, I cannot help but feel uneasy.”
“Mama does not appear to share that concern.”
“I think she does, in her way,” Jane said gently. “Only not in the same way. It may be easier for her to speak of his return as certain than to consider any other possibility.”
“Perhaps you are right,” Elizabeth said, hating the waver that she could not keep out of her voice.
Jane was quiet for a long moment, her hands folded in her lap. When she spoke again, her voice was softer. “Lizzy, what if something has happened to him?”
The question hung between them. It was the fear neither had been willing to voice aloud.
“Then we would have heard something,” Elizabeth said, with more confidence than she felt. “Someone would have written. An innkeeper, a magistrate, someone.”
“Unless he could not tell them who to write to.”
Elizabeth felt something cold settle in her stomach. “Jane —”
“I do not mean to frighten you.” Jane reached for her hand. “Only… it has been so long, Lizzy. And you know as well as I do that Papa is not a young man. If he were taken ill on the road, if something happened…” Her voice broke, and Elizabeth squeezed her hand tightly.
“He will return,” Elizabeth said firmly. “He must.”
After a long moment, Jane spoke hesitantly. “There is something else we must consider,” she said. “If we were to learn that our father is truly gone, the consequences would be immediate.”
Elizabeth did not need further explanation. “Longbourn would pass to Mr Collins.”
Jane inclined her head. The words settled heavily between them, and for a moment Elizabeth could not answer. The idea, once spoken, resisted dismissal in a way it had not before, and she felt a sharp refusal rise against it.
“No,” she said at last. “I will not consider it.”
“I do not wish to consider it either,” Jane replied, her composure steady even as her eyes grew bright with tears. “Only to understand what may be influencing Mama’s behaviour.”
“To refuse to speak of it, to act as though it were impossible and we need not make plans —”
“I do not believe she thinks it so,” Jane said. “Only that she cannot allow herself to dwell on it.”
Elizabeth’s resistance faltered, not entirely, but enough that she did not immediately answer. Jane reached for her hand, and Elizabeth clasped hers, grateful for the small comfort.
“He will return,” Jane said quietly. “We must believe that.”
“Yes,” Elizabeth said after a moment. “He will return.”
The words steadied her, though not completely, and for a time they remained together in silence.
Elizabeth was the first to recover her spirits. “Well,” she said, “it appears we are to be surrounded by men determined to try our patience. First Mr Darcy, and now our cousin.”
Jane’s expression softened, a trace of amusement returning. “Not all the gentlemen we have met of late have been unpleasant. Mr Bingley is very kind.”
“He is,” Elizabeth agreed, smiling more easily. “And I hope, for all our sakes, that the next gentleman we meet will prove as agreeable as Mr Bingley, and not as infuriating as the others.”
Jane’s answering smile was soft, but sincere. “I hope so, too.”