Elizabeth's Ordeal

by Charlotte Browning

  “You shall bring scandal to the family name.” To say he was astounded with his aunt’s behaviour was an understatement.

  This had to be a nightmare, this could not be happening

  “No, Anne took care of that. I shall only use that scandal to get what I want: for you to marry that stupid girl and ensure the future of the family.” Replied she, very calmly.

  “Aunt Catherine, I am already married. Even if I decided to dissolve my marriage, something that shall never happen, the whole process lasts more than two years, and you know that.” He tried to get some sense into the old woman’s head.

  “There are ways to solve that kind of problem, and you know that.” Insisted she, determined to have her way.

  “Make Anne marry the man that got her pregnant and everything will be alright.”

  “Never. She will marry you.” Insisted she. “And besides, she has told me you are the father.”

  “That is a terrible lie, and you know that perfectly well.” Shouted he, losing his temper, in the face of such lie.

  “Yes, but believe me everybody else will believe me.” She made a pause, as if to allow him to assimilate her words. “Your marriage can be nullified. Or even better, I can make it disappear as if it had never happened.”

  Darcy’s astonishment was so great, he was not able to utter a single word.

  “Give that Bennet girl enough money to last her a lifetime, in exchange for her to disappear from your life and I shall take care of everything.” Ordered she, convinced he would do what she wanted.

  “Never, do you hear me? I shall never do that.”

  The firmness of his tone told more to Lady Catherine then he thought. Being a very intelligent woman, she backed up, for the time being.

  “Very well. If that is what you want, I guess I will have to accept. Please, understand I had to try.” Said she, in a conciliatory tone.

  “Who is the baby’s father?” he asked, after a few moments of silence.

  “The stubborn girl will not tell me. But, I am sure I will be able to convince her to tell me.”

  “I am sure you will.” He let out a heavy sigh, not sure he could believe in his aunt’s apparent surrender.

  That was not like her, at all. She had been after him to marry Anne ever since the girl turned fourteen years old.

  “Are you sure I cannot convince you to change your mind?” asked she, in a soft tone.

  “Yes, I am sure.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Please, do not include my sister in your schemes. She has been acting weird since I returned home.”

  “I promise you I shall do as you ask me to.”

  “May I visit Anne? Perhaps I can convince her to tell me who is the baby’s father.”

  “Yes, of course you can. Try to get some common sense into her stubborn head.”, picking up her cup and taking a sip from it, dismissing him.

  Sighing, Darcy left the room and headed to the stairs, assuming he would find Anne in one of the bedrooms.

  “Darcy, I’m here.” A whisper to his right, revealed the frail body of his cousin, hidden behind a column, clearly eavesdropping on her mother’s conversation.

  She shushed him and guided him out of the house. She only spoke when they were a few yards away from the house.

  “You must be furious with me and this whole situation.” Murmured she, with her cheeks bright red.

  “Yes, I am, but not with you, Anne.” He assured her, taking her hand in his and kissing the back. “Though your mother said she was leaving things as they are, I know she will insist on her plans.” He had not trusted his aunt’s sudden truce.

  She hardly changed her mind about anything and she surely would not change her mind about having me marrying Anne.

  “You have no idea how sorry I am things turned out this way.” She tilted her head to look at him, making sure he realized she meant every word she was saying.

  “Then, why are you allowing your mother to manipulate things like this?” asked he, his tone a bit colder than he intended.

  “I have never been able to face my mother, Darcy, you know that.” She looked away ashamed of her own weakness.

  “She is threatening to ruin my marriage, Anne.” He scolded her.

  “I am aware of that, but I really do not have a say in that, Darcy.”

  “How can you say that? All you have to say is the truth, and all of your mother’s machinations will turn into dust.” Insisted he.

  She shook her head vigorously. “No, I cannot do that.”

  “Why not? Is the baby’s father a married man?” asked he, trying not to lose his patience.

  “No, of course not. But he would never be able to face my mother and she would certainly ruin his life if she ever knew who he is.” She assured him, showing so much determination it surprised Darcy.

  Anne was a very peaceful person, she would avoid conflict at all cost, but he could tell she would go to hell just to protect the man she was obviously in love with.

  “And what does this man say about all this?” he was not able to hide the disdain from his tone.

  She let out a heavy sigh. “I told him the father was not him.” A tear rolled down her cheek.

  “What?” shouted Darcy, astounded.

  Anne took a couple of steps away from him before she turned around to look at him. “Do you not understand? He is a good man. He would have insisted on doing the right thing, no matter what the costs would be for him.” She sighed and rubbed her eyes, clearly trying to keep her tears at bay. “You see, I seduced him. We had been in love for so long, though we knew our love had no future. After one of my asthma crisis, I convinced him to make love to me. I dreaded the idea of dying without knowing how it felt being in the arms of the man I loved.” Explained she.

  Darcy let out a sigh, understanding his cousin’s position. She had lived all her life with a death sentence hanging over her head.

  “Why do you not run away with him? You are over twenty-one. No one can stop you.” Inquired him, his mind working at full speed, trying to find a way out of the situation his aunt had put them all.

  “I would never do such a thing. My mother would take away my allowance and she would make sure he would not make a decent life again.”

  Her words confirmed his suspicions. Anne had fallen for her doctor, a very handsome man, and as far as he knew a much respected one, a highlander baron’s youngest son.

  “Where is he now?” asked he, curious.

  “When we discovered I was with child and I told him he was not the father, he was so hurt, so furious he decided to go visit his family.” A small cry escaped her lips. “I have not seen him ever since.” This time she was not able to contain her tears, and Darcy took her in his arms, comforting her.

  “We will find a way out of this situation, I assure you.” Murmured he, running his hand down her long hair.

  Her sobs became louder and it took her several minutes until she finally stopped crying.

  “Thank you for listening to me. I really needed this. I have been so lonely ever since he left.” Confessed she.

  “Then, tell him the truth.”

  She immediately took a few steps away from him. “No, I shall never do a thing like that. I shall not be responsible for ruining his life.”

  “Very well, but I am afraid I shall do the same with my wife.” He warned her, in a soft tone. “I will not allow her to ruin our lives, of that you can be sure of.”

  “Of course. I am ready to face the consequences of my acts.” Said she, determined.

  “Anne, have you thought about that child’s future?” asked he, with a frown. “If you do not get married, the child will be a bastard and rejected by society.”

  By the look on her face, Darcy was able to tell she had not thought of that. She had been so determined to protect the man she loved, she had not considered her child’s future.

  “I am sure mother will find someone willing to marry me.” replied she, though her tone showed no certainty at all.


  “Let us hope that is true.”

  They returned to the house and Darcy bid his cousin goodbye.

  There was so much on Darcy’s mind, he did not feel ready to return to the house, so he decided to go for a long ride to clear his mind and search for the best solution to this messed up situation.

  He was sure the good doctor was the man in his cousin’s life. He had been the only man that had spent enough time with her to make her fall in love with him.

  He had to find the man and convince him of her lie, so that he would return and make things right.

  He would take care of his aunt at the time, forcing her to accept the man and allow them to make their own lives. It would not be easy, but he had no other option.

  Chapter Four

  The morning sun greeted Elizabeth still in bed, but already alone. She remembered Mr. Darcy’s words of visiting his aunt and she hoped that visit had positive results, but her instincts told her it would not be that easy.

  She got up and Maggie helped her get dressed, before she went downstairs for breakfast.

  Georgiana was still at the table when she arrived and with a deep breath, Elizabeth put on her brightest smile as she walked into the room and greeted her sister in law.

  “Good morning, Georgiana, how are you this splendid morning?” asked she, taking a seat at the table.

  The girl barely looked at her and her tone did not invite further conversation. “Fine.”

  “I am glad to hear that.” Elizabeth served herself a cup of the rich tea tempting her with its scent and picked a raisin muffin from a tray. “Your brother has told me so much of you I feel I already know you.” Added she, still smiling.

  “I am afraid I cannot say the same, since he had not mentioned you at all, prior to the wedding.” There was resentment in the girl’s tone that was for sure.

  “We had only met for a few weeks when we decided to get married.” Elizabeth tried to explain, even though she was clear it was a lame excuse.

  “And that is just one of the things I am not able to understand. My brother is the least impulsive person I know.” The accusation was clear in her tone.

  “People usually change, when powerful feelings are involved.” Assured she.

  The girl only snorted, before she got up. “If you will excuse me, I have to attend to my pianoforte practice.”

  Elizabeth nodded, watching the girl leave the room as she considered asking her to assist her practice, but the deep frown on the girl’s face discouraged her.

  She finished her breakfast and she was about to leave the dining room when Mrs. Reynolds joined her.

  “Good morning, ma’am. I thought you might like to see the menus for the rest of the week with me.” Said she, standing next to the table.

  “Of course, Mrs. Reynolds, I would love to.” she immediately accepted. “Would you like to do it here, or in the kitchen?”

  “In the kitchen would be a little easier, ma’am. You would be able to see the ingredients.” The woman suggested, with a shy smile.

  “Then, lead the way, please.” Elizabeth said, motioning the woman to take her there. “Where do you get the groceries you usually need?” asked she, curious.

  “We produce most of them in the small garden, in the back of the house as well as in the greenhouse, and the rest comes from the farms nearby, and the grocery store in the nearest village.” The woman explained, with visible pride.

  “Oh that is perfect. My mother has a small garden too in our estate, and it surely makes things easier.”

  “Yes it does, ma’am.”

  They reached the kitchen, a room a lot more comfortable than all the kitchens Elizabeth had seen so far, quite big and spacious, with a lot of natural light coming through the high windows in three of the four walls of the room.

  “Oh, this is an amazing kitchen.” She commented, walking around the room, watching the small group of maids already working on lunch’s preparation.

  “Yes, it is ma’am. Mr. Darcy remodelled the old kitchen when he inherited, and gave us this fantastic place to work in.” The cook said, with a wide smile as she put a few balls of dough in the stone oven.

  “No wonder the bread is so fresh.” Elizabeth smiled, pleased.

  “Yes, ma’am, we bake bread three times a day.” The woman explained, with a wide smile.

  Mrs. Reynolds invited her to take a seat at the kitchen table and showed her a small notebook where she had the meals already written down. “This is what we had decided for the week, ma’am, but we can change it all, if you see fit.” Informed she.

  “Let us see.” She picked the notebook up in her hands and took a look at it.

  Mrs. Reynolds was very thorough and she had everything annotated in it, from how many bread loafs they had to bake to which hen to sacrifice for which meal.

  “This is a very complete menu, Mrs. Reynolds.” She praised the woman. “And except for turnips, that I simply cannot make myself eat, the menu looks delicious.”

  The woman chuckled as she nodded. “I shall make sure the cook does not add many to her recipe. Mr. Darcy loves them.” She explained.

  “Then, by all means we need to give them all to him.” She replied with an amused scowl in her face.

  “Of course, ma’am.”

  “Would you show me the rest of this area of the house, Mrs. Reynolds?” asked she, standing up and looking around.

  “Of course, ma’am.”

  And so it began their small tour through the cupboard, the laundry room and the servant’s rooms. Unlike most houses, all the facilities were renewed and looked very good.

  Pleased, Elizabeth decided to go for a walk in the gardens, when she was done with Mrs. Reynolds. The sun was still shining up in the sky and she needed the distraction her walks always provided her.

  She still had not seen Mr. Darcy that morning and his absence was starting to worry her a little. Could it be possible that he was still at his aunt’s?

  Lunch time arrived and for Elizabeth’s relief Mr. Darcy showed up. The expression on his face though was so stern, she immediately tensed up. Something was wrong, very wrong and she wanted to find out what, but the presence of Georgiana and her governess, prevented her from talking.

  Lunch was a very tense meal, with Elizabeth and the governess trying to sustain all the conversation at the table, not an easy task in the face of the mutism of the other two.

  Lunch was finally over and Elizabeth followed Mr. Darcy into his studio.

  “I missed you this morning at breakfast.” she told him, closing the door behind her back.

  “I decided to go visit my aunt as early as possible.” Informed he, taking a seat behind his desk and rubbing his face with his hand.

  “What happened?” Elizabeth took a seat in front of the desk.

  “My cousin Anne was not feeling alright, so I made her company until she got better. Her doctor had to travel north to visit his family and she misses his medicines.” Explained he.

  “And is she alright now?” Elizabeth asked, concerned.

  “Yes, I believe she is.” He sighed. “I had breakfast with my aunt, so I was able to talk to her. She told me she had moved into the Dower house to be closer to me, in case Anne’s health deteriorated. According to her, she could not expect me to move to Rosings so soon after our wedding.”

  “Did she mention Georgiana and her behaviour?” Elizabeth asked, with a slight frown.

  Somehow, she was having trouble believing that version of Lady Catherine’s sudden move to the Dower house.

  “No, not at all. And when I brought up the subject, she said she had absolutely no idea of what I was talking about. I insisted and she sustained her version.”

  “Well, then it will be up to us to find out what is going on in Georgiana’s mind.” Elizabeth concluded.

  “Yes, you are right. I will talk to her this afternoon and see if she confides in me.”

  “I am sure she will and we shall be able to get to the bottom of this.”
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  “I truly hope so.” He sighed heavily.

  The butler interrupted them at that moment. “There is a message for Mrs. Darcy, from Lady Catherine.” The man announced.

  Before Elizabeth could pick the message from the man’s hands, Darcy took it and read it.

  “My aunt is inviting you for the tea, this afternoon.” He informed with a deep frown.

  “Oh, she did?” Elizabeth was surprised.

  She was sure Lady Catherine was not very fond of her, so she did not quite understand the reason behind her invitation.

  “You can reject her invitation politely.” Suggested he, deepening his frown. What could his aunt possibly want with Elizabeth? Nothing good, he was sure of it, but he could not say that to his wife, without explaining the whole situation, and if he could avoid it, she would never find out about it.

  “Yes, I know, but that would probably be counter-productive. She might think I am afraid of her or something.” Retorted she, smiling. “I shall go and who knows? She might confess her malefic plans to me.”

  He chuckled, but deep down, that was exactly what he was afraid of. “Yes, that would be perfect.” He picked up her hand across the table and caressed it. “Are you sure you want to go? You could postpone that visit to some other day.” Insisted he, trying to talk her out of it.

  “No, I am sure it will be better to face her.”

  He sighed, hoping for the best, trusting his aunt would be sensible enough as to keep her plans to herself. “Would you like to ride a horse there? Or would you prefer to take the carriage?”

  “How far is the Dower house?”

  “About two miles. It is not that far, but you should consider getting there as spotless as possible. My aunt’s tongue can be quite poisonous.” Suggested he.

  “Yes, I am aware of that and you might have a point there. It is not sensible to give her weapons to wield against me.”

  “Correct. I shall ask Jameson to have the carriage ready for you.” Nodded he.

  “Thank you. Then, I should better go choose the dress I will use and get prepared.”

  “Yes, you would not like to be late for that tea.”

  She squeezed his hand and getting up, she left the room. Once there, she called Maggie, looking for her help.