Mr Darcy Requests the Pleasure

by Elizabeth Aston

  Theodosia had two choices: she could seek employment as a paid companion to some elderly woman or become a governess.

  She had been educated at a select seminary, knew where to find various countries on the globe, had a good command of both the French and Italian tongues and, blessed with a real talent in music, played the pianoforte and the harp. She would be a governess.

  The first position she obtained was not a success, for although her charges were a girl and a younger boy, there was an elder brother. He made advances to her, and she was dismissed by the mistress of the house who accused her of leading him on and enticing him to immorality.

  Mrs Wormbridge should have taken a good look at her son, for a woman would have had to be a fairly desperate creature to have any designs upon him. He was portly and his disposition was bad.

  However, Theodosia had no say in the matter and so was turned upon the world, homeless and without a job. She had to retreat to Bath—how she disliked that town—and throw herself on the goodwill of her cousin while she sought a new appointment.

  And then Captain Hyde had come to her rescue, calling on her in Bath as soon as he heard of her difficulties.

  “I owe a lot to your late father, who was very kind to me when I was a midshipman.”

  “Such a pleasant young man, and he is married to Lady Sarah Darcy, you know,” Mrs Beckford said. “The daughter of an earl!”

  He took the opportunity when Mrs Beckford was out of the room to tell Theodosia that his wife’s cousins in Derbyshire were looking for a governess for their two eldest daughters. “Their last governess left abruptly a few weeks ago.”

  “Are there only the girls? No older boys?” Theodosia asked.

  She wasn’t going to make that mistake again. Enamoured employers or their offspring were all very well within the pages of a novel where, at the end of the third volume, the heroine would marry the heir and be elevated to wealth and status. In the real world, they were best avoided.

  Captain Hyde looked surprised, but said, “No, they only have daughters. If you want to know why their governess packed her bags and left, I must confess that the younger of these two girls is rather a handful. I fear the governess was not able to control her and so decided to leave. In floods of tears, I gather.”

  Theodosia’s heart sank. But she could not afford to be too nice. The salary offered was extremely good, and at least she was not subject to tears. Besides, Derbyshire was a wild country, so she had heard, which would at least provide food for her imagination.

  Letters were exchanged, she was engaged, and here she was, in what she must consider her new home.

  A good night’s sleep in a comfortable bed had restored her energy after the long journey from Bath. She wasn’t sure what the hour was, but surely it must be time for her to rise from her bed and embark upon her duties.

  She heard a creak and the door slowly opened.

  Was this the ghost of a Darcy ancestor come to visit; had they put her in a haunted room? This fancy amused her for a few seconds, but her reason told her it was most likely to be the maid come to make up the fire.

  As she watched through half-closed eyelids she saw, neither a maid nor a spectre, but a girl slip into the room. The child looked over to the bed, nodded to herself and then went back to the door and left it ajar behind her. Theodosia heard her clambering on to something and then a small hand balanced a book on top of the door.

  Theodosia opened her eyes, and said, in a quiet, amused voice, “Pray come in.”

  Silence, and then the girl edged through the door, She stood just inside the room, frowning.

  Theodosia said. “That is an old trick, but think how how unfair it would be if the book had not fallen upon my head, but on to that of some unfortunate maid.”

  The girl looked at her with grave eyes and then suddenly smiled, a smile that transformed her. She came further into the room and announced, “I am Miss Camilla Darcy.”

  “Then you are the younger of my two charges.”

  “Yes. My older sister is Letitia, but everyone calls her Letty.”

  “And I am Miss Beckford. I am so pleased to make your acquaintance. Shall I help you take that book down from the door? Ah, I see it is a French grammar.”

  “I hate French, and there’s no point in learning it since we are at war with France. Besides, it’s boring. You can’t say anything interesting; it’s all Je suis, tu es and that kind of thing. I don’t see the use in it.”

  Theodosia’s spirits rose. Whatever else lay in wait for her here at Pemberley, she knew she was going to like this child.

  Chapter Two

  Mr Darcy and Mrs Darcy were sitting together at the breakfast table.

  Letters had been brought in, and Mr Darcy opened one, glanced at its contents and passed it to Elizabeth. “It is from Lady Catherine. Pray read it and tell me if there is anything in it I should take notice of.”

  Elizabeth scanned the closely written sheets. “She says Charlotte is well, although Mr Collins was confined indoors for several days with a heavy cold. Poor Charlotte, I am sure Mr Collins is one of those men who is a perfect nuisance when he’s ill.”

  “Some might say he was a nuisance at any time,” Mr Darcy remarked. “But yes, he would make a tedious patient.”

  “Anne is sickly again and so your aunt is considering taking her to drink the waters at Buxton Spa. I do not know why she thinks travelling anywhere in February will be good for Anne’s delicate constitution. Perhaps she is thinking of doing so later in the year.” She read on and then said, “Here is something I do not understand, she has written a diatribe against a Mr Justin Aconbury. I never heard of him; why should his presence in England be such an affront to her? Do you know him? Is he some kind of a rogue or a rake or, horror of horrors, a Whig?”

  Mr Darcy folded up another letter that he had just read. “It is a coincidence, although perhaps not, that this letter is from Justin Aconbury. He was my father’s godson and the youngest of a numerous family. You will have heard of Lord Aconbury, and his eldest son, Felix Aconbury, is a rising young politician. The other brothers are also doing well for themselves, but Justin from boyhood onwards was always at odds with his family. He got himself into one scrape after another, went up to Cambridge, but didn’t take a degree and in the end, despairing of his ever making anything of himself, his family packed him off to India.”

  Elizabeth said, “How old was he?”

  “Twenty years old, I think.”

  “I consider that a monstrous thing to do, when you consider what a hard life it is for Englishmen in India.”

  Mr Darcy said, “It is not unusual for young men to join the East India Company at an even earlier age than that. But I do know that his mother felt pretty certain that he would never come back; she was heard to observe that she was rid of him at last. It is the same when some families send their younger sons into the army believing them to be worthless except as cannon fodder.”

  “Then they should be ashamed of themselves. To think that way of their own offspring, or indeed of any person, is disgraceful. But if you think well of him, then he will be a welcome guest.” She added with an arch smile, “I cannot but feel that a young man of whom Lady Catherine speaks in such disparaging terms is bound to be an interesting guest. What chiefly seems to have roused her indignation is the very fact of his returning from India. She thinks he will once again prove to be a sad trial to her dear friend, Lady Alconbury. I wonder at her lack of Christian charity.”

  The door opened and Octavius Hyde came in. Civil enquires as to Sarah’s well-being were made.

  “She is resting in bed and will not get up until later in the day; she is tired after the journey. It has not been easy time for her, but she feels better now and we have been assured that everything is going on prosperously and that she will soon feel less tired and regain her normal spirits.”

  Elizabeth said, “If she is not asleep, I will go up to her after breakfast. I feel for her because I was never comf
ortable in the same situation. And I have to thank you, Octavius, for bringing us Miss Beckford, who seems a most agreeable young lady.”

  Mr Darcy said dryly, “Agreeableness is all very well, let us hope she also has firmness of character and the ability to control Camilla.”

  Octavius sat down and Elizabeth poured him a cup of coffee. “I warned her as to why the previous governess left so abruptly.”

  Elizabeth said, “I am afraid she was not the only one. We have had three governesses in the last twelvemonth. One decamped after a mere week.”

  “Miss Beckford is unlikely to do that. She comes from a naval family and we are made of sterner stuff.”

  Elizabeth said, “She will need to be. I do pity her. Oh, not because Camilla is not an easy child to deal with, but because of her circumstances, which Sarah told me about. It is hard on a young woman in her position to have to go out and make a living in the world, especially when they have been brought up to expect a degree of comfort and security that is no longer theirs.”

  Octavius chose his words carefully, not wishing to make Miss Beckford appear to be at fault for the differences between her and her mother . “She had little choice. She could not take up residence with her mother and their cousin in Bath; it would not do, as I saw when I called upon them. She had been staying there since she quit her previous post, and I could see how awkward it was there for her.”

  Elizabeth said, “You assured us that her reasons for leaving her last post were good ones, but you did not expand upon the subject.”

  Octavius said, “Oh, that is soon told. It is a familiar tale: there was an older brother and, as you will see for yourself Miss Beckford is an attractive young woman, and so–”

  Mr Darcy said, “Well, there is no danger of that kind here at Pemberley, no elder brother nor anyone else will leap on her from cupboards in the style of Richardson’s novels, we can promise her that.”

  Octavius helped himself to a slice of cold beef. “It is hard on her as you say, Elizabeth. Particularly since there was an understanding, if no formal engagement, between her and a young lieutenant. He went on a voyage to the West Indies and there succumbed to the yellow fever. Marriage would have been a better option for her, but of course the way things turned out there was no likelihood of her having the kind of life which might put her in the way of meeting another suitable man. She is not the sort to marry just anybody. And depend upon it, she and Camilla—after a few initial tussles—will get along splendidly.”

  Mr Darcy pushed his chair back and stood up. “If she succeed in making that happen, she will earn our gratitude. I have to make a visit to a tenant on the other side of Lambton, Octavius, if you care to ride out with me.”

  “Willingly, for I know Sarah won’t want to have me hanging about her and the exercise will be welcome after being cooped up in a chaise for so many hours.”

  Chapter Three

  Before visiting Sarah, Elizabeth went upstairs to the schoolroom to see how Miss Beckford was settling in.

  She opened the door with a little trepidation and was amazed to find the schoolroom perfectly quiet. Miss Beckford was sitting at the table, with Letty at her side and Camilla on a stool opposite. Letty’s tongue was tucked into the corner of her mouth as she drew an outline. Camilla on her other side was silently mouthing and then inscribing words on a slate.

  As soon as they saw their mother the girls jumped from their seats and ran to give her a hug and receive a kiss each. Miss Beckford rose from the table and smiled at the affectionate exchange between the girls and their mother.

  Elizabeth said, “You must continue with your tasks. What are you doing, Letty?”

  Letty proudly showed her the map of Spain that she was copying from an atlas. “Only imagine, Mama, Miss Beckford has been there, and she promises to tell us all about it. She says she will tell us some stories about all the castles in Spain.”

  “They sound very sinister,” said Camilla with a delighted shudder. “Mama, I have to fill in these missing words in French. It is a puzzle you see, something like an acrostic. Miss Beckford says I know a lot of French words, which I do, but that I need to work hard at my grammar if I am going to speak French well. At this she gave Miss Beckford a slightly anxious glance, knowing that the French grammar open in front of her was evidence of her earlier wrong-doing.

  Theodosia wasn’t going to give her away.

  Camilla gave her a quick, grateful smile. “French won’t be boring with her. She read us a story from a book and explained what it meant and I want to be able to read it. It sounds quite different when she reads out loud in French. When Miss Farley did so, it sounded just like English but with foreign words.”

  Theodosia said, “I was taught by a Frenchwoman, so it is easy for me to have a good accent. If you listen carefully and take care to copy how I speak French, then you will speak the language well.”

  Elizabeth had taken a liking to this young woman who had so quickly brought Camilla under control. She could see why the brother at her last place had pestered her. What an attractive smile she had, and she was blessed with good features and a light, pleasing figure. Perhaps it wouldn’t always be her fate to be a governess, but for now Elizabeth was thankful that there were no men in the neighbourhood to woo Miss Beckford and take her away from Pemberley.

  Chapter Four

  Justin Aconbury posted down to Kent soon after he arrived back in England. He had been recovering from a severe bout of dysentery when the ship sailed from Calcutta, but the long voyage had restored him to his usual excellent health. He vowed, as he stepped ashore at Tilbury docks, that he would never go back to India. He knew that the enchantment of that land would remain as a pleasure in his memory: the exotic scenery, the colours, the extraordinary vitality of its teeming population and the richness of its civilization, but he had had his fill of it.

  And there were other memories: of the violence and the constant presence of death from disease, of friends new and old carried off by fever in an afternoon, of the heat that sapped the energy from your bones.

  He had been extraordinarily lucky. Lucky in a constitution that could withstand the extremes and the miasmas of the monsoon; in discovering that he had a shrewd head for business, which served him well in the East India Company; in being blessed with a disposition to get on well with his fellow men. And, finally, in the extraordinary piece of luck that brought him to the attention of Mr Smythe. And had set him on his way to making a fortune.

  Now those years were behind him. He was back in his native country making his plans for his future.

  He went to Kent, to his family home, to see his mother and father. He did this more out of a sense of duty than from affection; he knew full well how glad they had been to see him go seven years before. He couldn’t altogether blame them, although his brothers had in his view got into far worse scrapes than he ever had, and they had always been tolerated and made little of. All his faults were pounced upon. There was no forgiveness for his mistakes and mishaps; no allowance made for his youth, nothing but contempt for a faulty character and reckless ways.

  Still, that was all in the past, and as he travelled through the familiar countryside, he found himself looking forward to the prospect of going back to his childhood home. Perhaps he would buy an estate in Kent and settle down in his home county.

  That ambition vanished within an hour after his arrival at Aconbury House. His father was suffering from an attack of the gout and that always put him in a temper. He greeted Justin with a gruff, “There you are, Justin,” as though he had merely parted from his son that morning. His mother was cold and distant as always. She gave him a chilly kiss, said that he looked thinner than he was used to be, and then added in what almost seemed a complaint, “I am glad to see you well, one hears that so many who go to India succumb to fevers and the flux and all kinds of ailments that carry them off.”

  Was there a note of regret in her voice that he hadn’t been among that number?

  It was
evident that he was not to be welcomed back as the prodigal son. His mother said that she hoped he had managed to put aside some savings; she clearly disapproved very much when he told her he had left the Company. “For we can hardly give you an allowance, times are very difficult just now with the war, and at least with the East India Company you had regular employment. What do you plan to do with yourself?”

  Justin kept his temper with difficulty. “I have some money put by, you need not worry about me.”

  She had no intention of doing any such thing, that was obvious. He made a much shorter stay than he had intended, departing the next morning with a feeling that this time he really was shaking the dust of his home off his feet.

  He wasn’t going to repine over it. He had friends who were orphaned and whose parents had been disagreeable in all kinds of ways so that they had endured far worse upbringings than he had had. But as the carriage rattled down the drive, he promised himself that if he were ever to find a wife to suit him, he would make very sure that any and all children born to them were loved and cherished.

  Back in London, he was pleased to meet up with old friends from school and university days, some of them serving officers back from the Peninsula for leave or recovering from wounds, and he spent an enjoyable few weeks in town. He went to a tailor to get himself kitted out, since his friends pointed out that in his out-of-date clothes he looked a veritable provincial, a bumpkin come to the city. He visited a carriage maker and ordered a curricle and then went to Tatersalls to purchase a good pair of horses. He put up at Grillon’s hotel and his friends teased him about that, saying he would get a shock when he saw the bill. “Although all you Company men are full of juice.”

  The only member of his family who had ever shown him much kindness was an aunt on his father’s side. Hearing that he was back in England she had written to say that she would be glad to see him should he be in Harrogate.