From Pemberley With Love

by Claire J Russell

  Darcy did not say another word. Instead, he looked away.

  Caroline would not let it go. She asked again, “Darcy, are you with us?”

  Darcy turned and said grimly, “Well, it’s not for me to judge anyone. That is something for Charles to decide.”

  Bingley stared out the window and contemplated his next move. He couldn’t believe his sisters were discussing his business as though he was not standing in their presence. He finally spoke, “I am confused. On the one hand, Jane is the most handsome woman known to man, at least that is my opinion.”

  Caroline scoffed, “Dear brother, do not do it. Do not go over there and get her hopes up. Perhaps you need to get your eyes checked. What do you think Mr. Darcy?”

  Darcy averted Bingley’s gaze, but after a moment he said, “Never mind what I think any longer. You should do what you think is best, Charles.”

  Bingley smiled, feeling encouraged by Darcy’s words, however, knowing well her brother would likely try to propose to Jane, Caroline interjected, “Why would you even consider proposing to a desperate woman? What value does she have coming here to find a man?”

  “Dear, Caroline, Ms. Bennet is not here in London to see me but to visit family. It just so happened that I ran into Mr. Gardner, and he mentioned her, that’s all.”

  Caroline then suggested, “Well why not let us visit her instead? That way we will know what her true intentions are. We’re only looking out for your best interest.”

  Bingley smiled and considered her suggestion. Then he agreed, “Yes, wonderful! That sounds great, Caroline! Visit her and let me know how it goes.”

  Both sisters smirked at each other, pleased with the plan.

  Bingley continued his jubilation, “Yes, I am excited. You will go tomorrow and tell her how pleased I am that she is here. Tell her I have made my decision to propose.” He kept smiling to himself, “I love Jane and do not want to lose her.”

  Caroline reassured him flatly, “We will be sure to let her know.”

  Darcy listened without saying a word, not convinced the Bingley sisters would deliver the message.

  An idea sprung to Bingley’s mind, “Give me a minute; I am going to write a letter for you to deliver to her."

  Before anyone else could respond, Bingley disappeared into his study, leaving his sisters alone with Darcy.

  “Mr.Darcy, you are being awfully quiet,” Caroline remarked. “I don’t know if I agree with my brother on this, but I will deliver his message.”

  Darcy only nodded, not wanting to be part of this conversation.

  Moments later, Bingley returned with a letter in hand. Gleefully, he instructed to his sisters, “Here. Please deliver this letter to Jane. It states that I am ready to propose if she will have me.”

  His sisters gasped, and Caroline asked, “Propose in a letter? Are you alright?”

  “Why, yes. in fact, I am fine. Why wouldn’t I be?” Bingley inquired.

  Caroline turned to Darcy, hoping for a reaction. She asked him, “Mr. Darcy, do you think what he’s doing is right?”

  Darcy eyed her, “I think your brother has a right to do what he wants. If he truly feels there is something special about her, then he should follow his heart and not be swayed by others’ opinions!”

  Caroline swallowed hard and lowly growled, “I can’t believe you’re on his side!”

  Darcy admitted, “I know in the past I did not say the nicest things about Jane or her family. Now my opinions have changed. Charles, to be truly happy, a man must follow his heart, so follow yours!”

  “But what about tradition and rules?” Caroline tried to make a point. “Surely you must take that into consideration.”

  “What about tradition?” Darcy asked.

  “A woman should not be this...” Caroline started.

  “Tradition, my dear, was created by man, and rules can be changed,” Darcy cut her off.

  “Caroline, will you deliver my letter or not?” Bingley asked, irritated by the conversation.

  “Of course, I will, Brother. All I am saying is that there are proper ways of doing things. No one can break the rules overnight. I still don’t see her as a suitable wife, but if you must, dear brother, I will deliver this letter.”

  “Good. So, you will leave soon.” Bingley said as he walked away with a smile plastered on his face.

  Bingley’s other sister, Louisa, said to Darcy, “Mr. Darcy, do you remember the time Georgina almost eloped with Mr. Wickham?”

  “What happened with Georgina is not the same. If your brother painstakingly wrote a love letter to Jane, then he must propose to her.”

  Not wanting to upset Darcy, a man she hoped to eventually marry, Louisa said, “Fine, we will deliver his message.”

  Bingley returned to the room and reported, “I have made the arrangements. A carriage will take you to the Gardiners in the morning.”

  “Oh, that is great. I was just telling Mr. Darcy how we can’t wait to call on her.”

  Bingley beamed at the change in his sisters’ demeanor, “Yes, dear sister, that would make me very happy.”

  Caroline added, “It will be an honor to deliver such an important letter.”

  Bingley confirmed, “Then it is settled. Thank you, my dear sisters.”

  The following morning, the Bingley sisters boarded the carriage and ventured to the Gardiners’ home.

  As they were arriving, Jane was looking out the window, watching the carriage approach the house. She beamed and turned to her aunt, “They are here! Oh, they have finally come with word from Mr. Bingley. Maybe it’s a proposal?”

  Mrs. Gardiner hugged Jane tightly, “Yes! Oh, that would be excellent. What man in his right mind would let a beautiful woman like you go?”

  Jane laughed, and moments later the footman announced the arrival of the Bingley sisters. Mrs. Gardiner requested that they wait in the morning room. She turned back to Jane and offered her wisdom, “You must be on your best behavior. The Bingleys are respected in these parts.”

  “Yes, ma’am!” Jane cheered.

  “Now, I will go greet them, and then I will come get you to announce you properly,” and in the blink of an eye, Mrs. Gardiner disappeared.

  Mrs. Gardner received the sisters in the morning room. “Welcome to our home,” she stretched her arms forward to greet the Bingley sisters.

  Caroline held Mrs. Gardiner’s hand, “Thank you. Such a lovely home you have here.”

  Mrs. Gardiner marveled at the compliment before informing them, “I will go fetch Jane; she should be down in a minute. We are so fortunate that you would come to visit.”

  The sisters glanced at each other. Caroline whispered into her sister’s ear, “We will see how fortunate she feels when she finds out what is really happening.”

  Before long, Mrs. Gardiner returned with Jane following behind her. Jane gave the sisters her warmest smile, “Pleasure to see you again.”

  “Yes, please have a seat,” Mrs. Gardiner gestured toward a chair. She then signaled to the footmen, “Please have the waitstaff bring us some tea.”

  Once everyone was settled in and tea was served, Mrs. Gardiner excused herself at Jane’s insistence to leave her alone with the Bingley sisters. When they were alone, Caroline broke the silence, “You seem very taken with my brother.”

  Taken aback but still hopeful Jane only smiled, but that smile soon turned to despair. Caroline continued, “Yes, and let me assure you that he has the most handsome women in all of England falling at his feet. What makes you think he desires you?”

  Trying to avoid the question and hide her hurt pride, Jane admitted, “Oh, I was hoping you would have some good news for me from Mr. Bingley.”

  The sisters cackled wickedly. They shrugged their shoulders and looked disapprovingly around the room. Caroline handed her a letter, “Here’s a letter from my brother. He asked that we deliver this in person. This should help you understand how he feels about you, dear.”

  Jane accepted the letter with tr
embling fingers. Could he have changed his mind? This thought circled in her mind as she ripped open the envelope.

  Dear Ms. Bennet,

  Or shall I call you Jane? I have painstakingly sent you this message to let you know that I will not be proposing. I am not interested in doing so.

  Tears welled into Jane’s eyes. She crumbled the letter and tossed it onto the floor.

  The sisters, pleased with her reaction, rose to their feet, “Thank you for a pleasant visit. We will be leaving now.”

  They briskly walked passed Mrs. Gardiner and out the door into their awaiting coach.

  Jane flushed and her body trembled. She said out loud, “There is there no way out of this. Papa will be furious once he learns of this.”

  “What happened?” Mrs. Gardiner hurried into the room. She sat next to Jane and held her close. With tears streaming down her face, Jane handed the letter to Mrs. Gardiner.

  It was a crumpled mess, but the words were still there. Jane cried out, “Mr. Bingley doesn’t want me. He never did! There is no hope for me anymore!”

  Shocked by Jane’s words, Mrs. Gardiner read through the contents of the letter. She pondered, “Why would he send his sisters with such a horrible message if he had no intentions of marrying you?”

  Jane buried her face in her hands, “I don’t know. I’m so unhappy. I disappointed my parents, and now I shall be all alone.”

  “You will not be alone! There are other suitors out there. Perhaps it is best to move on from him now. Look at the bright side: you did not marry him only to find out later that he did not love you. You should spend a few more days with us. We can visit Hyde Park, if you like?”

  Jane stood up and looked out the window, gazing far into the distance, “Thank you, but I must return home.” She then walked respectfully passed her aunt, making her way to her bedroom. Mrs. Gardiner then instructed one of the house workers to take care of Jane.

  “Give her anything she wants,” she instructed.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Chapter Ten

  “Don’t worry about it and please not a word to anyone,” Mr. Bennet said to his wife, pacing up and down the room.

  Mrs. Bennet replied in a trembling voice, “So what are we going to do? How are we going to save Longbourn? I don’t want to end up in some cottage in the middle of nowhere. You must save our home, dear. I beg of you!”

  Mr. Bennet turned and said, “The only alternative will be to have Mr. Collins take over Longbourn. The horses were my last hope of keeping my debts away until our daughters got married. Now I have no choice but to give it up to him. I’m sorry, but if he pays the pending debts, he can do what he pleases with the estate.”

  “No! No!” Mrs. Bennet cried.

  Then Mr. Bennet continued, “I have spoken with Mr. Collins, and he assured me he will let us stay in the home for the two more weeks before deciding where we can go.”

  Mrs. Bennet fell to the ground sobbing, “Dear God, are you telling me that in a matter of weeks I will now answer to Charlotte, my daughter’s friend? Tell me this is a nightmare and that I will wake up from it soon! Oh no, dear God! No!”

  Mr. Bennet sighed, "I wish you were less dramatic about it. There is still hope.” Mr. Bennet let out a breath. “Perhaps one of our daughters will accept a marriage proposal soon.”

  “I do hope so. The sooner, the better,” Mrs. Bennet agreed, wiping her tears. “I wonder what is happening with Jane in London. For all we know, she might already have received a proposal.”

  “Oh? Is she expecting one?”

  “Yes, Mr. Bingley might propose, so that will be good news.”

  “Well, that will be great news! If she receives a proposal from Bingley, then Longhorn will be saved,” Mr. Bennet pressed his palms together in prayer position.

  Mrs. Bennet twirled her fingers, “Oh, I pray so. I don’t know how we got to this point, and do not speak about my ball; it served its purpose. It brought Jane and Bingley together.”

  Mr. Bennet shook his head, “Well, I will retire to my study now. If anything of importance occurs, let me know. You know we still have a most-prized asset and should something happen, we can at least offset the debts with the horses.”

  Mrs. Bennet clasped her hand, pleased knowing they owned the most beautiful horses that could command a pretty penny. She smiled at her husband, “At least that would give us some time.”

  “Yes, that will buy us some time. A few months maybe. By that time if nothing comes of it, we’ll have no choice but to do as we discussed.”

  Mrs. Bennet sat down on the couch then called on the footman, “Please have Mr. Reynolds bring us some tea.”

  “Yes, Madam,” the footman promptly walked out the room.

  “You have your tea, dear; I will be in the study working on business matters.” Mr. Bennet walked off to his study.

  Not a second passed before Mrs. Bennet yelled for Elizabeth, who walked into the room, “Is everything alright, Mama?”

  Mrs. Bennet responded, “Yes, everything is okay. Have you heard from Jane? Did Mr. Bingley propose?”

  Elizabeth sighed, “Mother, I wish you would let things happen naturally. Why the sudden haste?”

  “Hush, dear child. What do you know? It has been awhile since we talked about finding you husbands. We spent a tidy sum on the ball and still no proposal.”

  “Mr. Bingley has yet to ask for her hand in marriage, and if he doesn’t, Mother, then someone else will.”

  Mr. Reynolds returned with the tea and quietly placed it on the table.

  Suddenly, a loud bang sounded outside their home.

  “What was that?!” Mrs. Bennet shrieked in horror.

  At that moment, the footman rushed in and ran passed Mrs. Bennet, towards Mr. Bennet’s study. He knocked on the door and shouted, “Sir, the barn with the horses just went up in smoke.”

  All of the color drained from Mr. Bennet’s face, leaving him pale. “What did you just say? What happened?”

  The footman repeated, “Sir, the barn is on fire. I don’t know how it happened. I was feeding the horses when I heard a loud sound.”

  “What? It must’ve been arson, but who would have done such a thing?” Mr. Bennet hissed.

  “We don’t know, sir,” the footman replied. At hearing this news, Mrs. Bennet fainted. No more horses? No back up plan to save Longbourn.

  Mr. Bennet instructed one of the servants to take Mrs. Bennet to her room to rest.

  Then he hurried out with the footman to try and salvage what was left of their assets. They began throwing water at the barn to quench the fire, but it was of no use. The barn continued to burn to the ground along with the horses.

  Mr. Bennet stared at the barn as it disappeared. Tears formed at the thought of his home being taken over by Collins. He cried out in despair, “No, this cannot be happening!”

  Mr. Bennet yelled out for water to douse the fire. Pandemonium and panic ensued. People came out to help with buckets filled with water. The flames seemed to subside after a short thanks to the bucket brigades using well water on the raging fire; everyone heaved a sigh of relief.

  Perhaps now they could breathe easy. Mr. Bennet turned to thank the crowd. Then to his horror, another spark and the flames increased. The fire brigade couldn't do anything with a fire of this magnitude. Mr. Bennet watched dejectedly as his prized barn burned to the ground

  The Bennet sisters came running out of the house. Horrified at the sight, they stood by their father in shocked silence, watching the flames.

  Mr. Bennet tried his best not to show emotion around his daughters. He said to them, “Get back in the house right now. It’s not safe for you out here.”

  Elizabeth said, “We cannot go back in there and watch this happen from inside the house. We want to stand by you, Papa. We may have lost the horses but at least we have each other.”

  Touched by her words Mr. Bennet didn’t fight her, and they all watched the flames burn out. Everything was now up in smoke, but as Eliz
abeth pointed out, at least they had each other.

  “I think it’s best we called it a night. It’s been a long day. We should get some rest.,” Mr. Bennet prompted his daughters. “Send word to the Gardiners about what occurred,” he concluded with the footman.

  Meanwhile, Elizabeth caught a curious glance at Lydia. There was something different about her body. Lydia turned to her and smiled mischievously as though she had something Elizabeth desired. Elizabeth couldn’t put a finger to it, but she wondered why Lydia kept on smiling at her.

  Does she have a secret?

  Word of the fire had reached the Gardiners and Jane. Jane cried, she knew how much the horses meant to her father. Who could have done such a thing. Then she reasoned it might have been an accident. She turned to Mr. Gardiner for support.

  “This must have been arson,” Mr. Gardiner said. He turned to Jane and said, “If you want to leave now, we understand.”

  Jane with tears in her eyes, nodded her head.

  She said, “Yes, I must go and be with my family. Thank you so much for providing me a place to stay in your home.”

  Mr. Gardiner nodded, and he ordered a carriage be made available to take Jane back to Longbourn.

  Mrs. Gardiner embraced Jane and whispered, “It’s going to be okay.” She glanced back at her husband, “We will accompany you back home."

  Overwhelmed, Jane said, “Thank you. You have been incredibly gracious to me." Tear pricked at her eyes then she began to cry.

  Mrs. Gardiner embraced Jane once again in comfort, “Don’t cry, Jane. It is going to be okay. You father will pull through this; he always does.”

  “Yes, get ready Jane we will leave at once, the carriage is ready,” Mr. Gardiner announced in a comforting voice. Jane nodded and pulled out of Mrs. Gardiners arms. She gathered her things and rode with Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner in carriage back to Longbourn.

  Chapter Eleven

  It didn’t take long for news about the Longbourn fire to spread. Mr. Bingley had not heard the news.