The Diary: A Pride and Prejudice Variation

by Kate Speck

  “You wrote to Georgiana of being here and he immediately left Berkshire yesterday to be by your side. He is not fully recovered, as you have seen, but he is nearly there and it will not be long.” The officer added, “I hope you will find your contentment, Miss Bennet.”

  “Thank you, Colonel.” Elizabeth nodded as they approached Rosings’ border. “I hope so as well.”

  They entered the gates and turned to the right side of the property line where Elizabeth could see the gentleman sitting on a bench. Her heart fluttered to see him sitting upright, wearing his beaver hat and his hands gripping his cane, appearing as handsome as ever. His eyes lifted up to meet hers and seeing his large grin, she knew she loved him, and even with all of his faults and arrogance, she could not let him go for the world.

  Colonel Fitzwilliam coughed and she turned to look at him. “I will leave you in good hands. Good day, Miss Bennet.” Then he promptly mounted the horse and left her while she continued to walk towards the gentleman who was standing up and waiting for her.

  ~*~

  Mr. Darcy remained by the garden’s bench while Elizabeth walked towards him and stopped in front of him. Not knowing how to greet the man she loved, she curtsied then looked up to meet his eyes.

  Without a word, Mr. Darcy dropped the cane in his hand and cradled both of her cheeks, leaning down to kiss her lips softly and pressing harder to open her mouth. After she allowed him to dive his soul into her through his fervent kiss and returning it, he lifted up his face from hers and whispered, “I love you.”

  Elizabeth could not think straight, after experiencing the most ardent embrace of her life, and could only whisper back, “I love you.”

  Mr. Darcy kissed her again for several minutes until breaths needed to be taken and he finally released his arms to place her on the bench. After gathering his cane, he sat next to her and held her hand, kissing it several times and beaming proudly.

  “I arrived here as soon as I could, after hearing from Georgiana that you were in Kent to visit Mrs. Collins, Elizabeth,” he spoke to her with love in his eyes, “and I had to see you. I had to come and tell you how much I admire and love you and to ask you to be my wife. Will you marry me? Will you be my wife and my companion for the remainder of my days?” He cradled her cheek again, “I apologise that I cannot be on my knee to propose to you right now. I will be on my knee to beg for your love for the rest of my life as soon as possible.”

  Elizabeth laughed, “It is not necessary, Mr. Darcy.”

  “Fitzwilliam.” He announced. “You will call me by name, my love, although I would not mind if you shorten it as you had done with Georgiana’s name.”

  “I shall call you William, then, as Fitzwilliam is dreadfully long!” Elizabeth teased with a smile. “I thought you would be asking for courtship but I will accept you, William. I know not how I fell in love with you, with all of your pretentiousness and wrongs in the past, but I cannot refuse, since you offer me a lifetime of debt and you do have the most wonderful sister in the world.” She leaned forward and embraced him. “I know not what burdens you carry and there are many secrets that I do not know about you, but I cannot refuse you; I will not refuse you. I love you.”

  Mr. Darcy rubbed her back while continuing to hold her in his arms, “I will tell you all, Elizabeth, and I ask for your patience, as it is a long story. But I thank you for accepting me. I know I am a proud man but I will work hard to be deserving of you. Your letter saved me, you must know. When you wrote, ‘Come back to me’ and sent me the handkerchief and shoelace, I knew I had to recover so I could be with you. I had despaired that I would be lame and useless but you gave me the courage to overcome my difficulties.” He looked down and kissed her lips gently. “Wrongs? Can you tell me how I have wronged you? I will make any restitution necessary for wounding you, my love.”

  Elizabeth smiled as she sat upright. “I thought you the haughtiest gentleman in the world when we first met, when you thought me a servant and spoke to me most rudely, and I wanted to despise you for your mistreatment of Mrs. Younge, for terminating her employment to make her destitute and for taking Georgie away from Ramsgate.”

  “I can explai...” Mr. Darcy could not speak as Elizabeth interrupted him.

  “And,” she smiled, “you had yelled at me several times, treating me condescendingly at our meetings, and you grabbed my arm and shouted at me when I returned that letter to you, remember?” She continued as he nodded, “And although you were keeping secrets from me, I had thought to forgive you for your sister’s sake, but then I heard from Mr. Wickham that you had denied him the living and made him poor, and I nearly sympathised for the rogue that he had been desperate for a livelihood when he told me of his past under the tree that rainy day. You stood so close to me that day and I thought you might kiss me then.”

  Mr. Darcy leaned forward and kissed her reverently. “I had wished to kiss you when you saved me from that muddy ditch at Netherfield. You were dirty and your hair was displaced and I thought you the most beautiful woman I had ever met, Elizabeth.” He breathed out contently. “You were so tempting but I was not in a position to make a commitment while I was in Hertfordshire and I know I must have appeared foreboding at the time. I am sorry I could not reveal all to you earlier. I am unaccustomed to wooing a worthy lady and even though I had wished to escape your entrapment, my heart was caught after seeing the flash of indignance in your eyes at our first meeting and Georgiana did not cease her praises of you. Your friendship with my sister intrigued me to think of you constantly and you easily won my heart but I knew I could not marry while I was on assignment, but after falling in love with you in Hertfordshire, all I could think was to finish my tasks so that I could return to your side. It seems you thought ill of me and I know not how I was able to gain your regard but I am thankful for your generous heart to accept me as your betrothed. You had every right to be prejudiced against me for my horrid behaviours but I will clarify from the beginning that things are not as it appears.”

  Elizabeth nodded and listened carefully as Mr. Darcy began to explain. “I had not known of Mrs. Younge’s prior acquaintance with Wickham and hired her as my sister’s companion and sent her to Ramsgate to distance Georgiana from the chaos in my life. When she wrote to me that Wickham was there to pursue her, when she told me that after meeting you,” he kissed her lips, “and being convinced to write to me immediately to inform me of his presence there, I left London the next morning to take my sister as far away from the rogue as possible. Mrs. Younge revealed all; that she tried to protect Georgiana from Wickham and through your intervention that he lost his confidence to trick my sister, I set her up to run a boarding house as she had wished and she has become an informant to assist me, which Georgiana was not made aware, as she believed that I sent Mrs. Younge away in anger and in my defence, it was to protect them both.

  “My sister initially thought that I would send her to Pemberley, but knowing that Wickham would follow her there, I sent her to Cambridge, where our uncle who is a retired judge resides. After several weeks there, she was moved to Somerset to attend the viscountess, Colonel Fitzwilliam’s brother’s wife, who gave birth to their heir, and stayed there for several more months. Knowing that Wickham was in Hertfordshire, Georgiana was then sent to Matlock with my uncle and aunt after spending a fortnight in London. She joined me in Berkshire and has been back in town with my uncle in order to return home after I complete my duties. She has not been home yet but will be travelling north next week to finally return to Pemberley after being gone over a year.”

  Elizabeth exclaimed, “She cannot!” She sat up straighter, “William, I know that we still have much to discover about each other, but believe me when I tell you that Georgie is not safe at Pemberley and she must not go there. I have been inst... I had planned to be here in Kent another three weeks but will be returning home as soon as arrangements can be made and I would like for Georgie to come to Longbourn. She must be kept hidden a little longer.”


  “What do you know about her, Elizabeth?” Mr. Darcy frowned, “How do you know she is not safe?”

  “It is a... a feeling... I... I cannot exactly tell you how I know but she must come to Hertfordshire instead.” Elizabeth flustered. “I cannot explain it, William, but I want to keep her safe. Please, can you trust me? You trusted me before and I hope you will allow me to be of assistance to you once again.”

  Mr. Darcy stood up and paced several steps with his cane to help with his gait. He spoke sternly after facing her, “It seems we have many confidences to reveal to each other, but I do trust you. I know not how you know but if you are warning me about my sister’s safety, I must abide by your wisdom and will make the appropriate arrangements. I should tell you also, Elizabeth,” he stood in front of her, who was now standing, “that I am not only a gentleman but also an officer.” He leaned down to rest his forehead against hers, “An officer and likely something else soon, but it seems we must wait to continue our conversation. I know not when we can marry if the danger is still present, but I am going to make you my wife if it is the last thing I ever do. I love you, Elizabeth.” He leaned to kiss her lips again, when there were gallops of horses and two officers on horseback approached them to interrupt their privacy.

  “Sir!” An unknown officer shouted, “Your attendance is needed immediately. We just received an express from Dover and have urgent news to report.”

  Mr. Darcy stood upright and looked at the men, “You may speak freely in front of my betrothed. She is the epitome of secrecy and I trust her implicitly.”

  “Yes, Brigadier Darcy, Wickham escaped from his cell last night after convincing a maid to help him. They captured her and she revealed that he spoke of taking revenge on your family and was likely headed to London to seek shelter for several days but we do not know where he will head next. We are sending men to Mrs. Younge’s boarding house to see if he will return there and will monitor all of his usual haunts.” The officer replied. “Colonel Forster is also to be notified in Brighton so that his men will be prepared to catch him if Wickham should return there to his friends. Several of the militia officers owe him gambling debts and he might be desperate for funds.”

  “Good. Mrs. Younge has been an excellent informant and we must ensure her continued safety. Go and alert my staff to prepare for my departure within the hour.” Mr. Darcy commanded. “I will be sending my betrothed home in my carriage and will ride horseback to London. I want two guards to escort Miss Bennet safely home. My sister will also be joining her in Hertfordshire tomorrow.” The officers nodded and left immediately.

  Elizabeth’s eyes were broad with all of the information she had just learned and turned to face the commanding gentleman. “Brigadier? You are not just an officer but a brigadier?” Her mouth dropped. “How is that possible? You are a landowner. You cannot serve in the army!”

  Mr. Darcy wrapped his arm behind her back to guide her to the estate wall, “It is a temporary rank and only until my current assignment is finished, Elizabeth. General Wellesley has high connections and after the Home Secreta...” he sighed, “I do not have time to go into details but I have been working for the Home Office since eighteen years old, Elizabeth, and have known General Wellesley for years. While Richard was promoted to colonel for his valiant actions on the continent, my time had been spent to assist in fighting the French as an advisor and seeking out spies on British soil. After the last failed assassination attempt in Spain, General Wellesley had me appointed the rank so that I could work with the army to draw out the leaders of the spy organization and we were able to capture the traitors after Wickham led us straight to them. Richard was working to uncover another conspiracy while I was convalescing but with Wickham on the loose right now, my priority will be to track him down again and he will now hang for treason. I had not wished to see my old childhood friend in such a position but he will pay for his crimes and I must see to my sister’s safety.”

  He looked down to meet her eyes as they stopped at the border, “I do not know how you know but I will do everything to safeguard whom I love. Go and pack up your belongings so that I can have you journey home immediately. Do not tell anyone here of what has happened but tell them you received urgent news from home as the reason for your return. I will see you at Longbourn tomorrow, my love, and your family may be told of our engagement since I must ask for your father’s permission to marry you, but keep it a secret from everyone else and we will make our betrothal public soon. It is vital that no one else knows how much you mean to me for your own safety. I love you, Elizabeth.” He kissed her reverently once more before turning quickly to limp back to the mansion with his cane in his hand.

  Elizabeth watched him for a moment then walked to the Hunsford cottage to begin her packing. Charlotte and the other residents were shocked at her sudden departure, and hoped all was well at Longbourn. Elizabeth apologised for the abrupt change in plans and could only tell them that a matter of urgency pulled her away and that she had received news of a very important guest arriving unexpectedly in Hertfordshire the next day.

  Elizabeth departed within the hour with two heavily armed officers surrounding the lavish carriage, and Mr. Collins and Sir William could only gawk at the scene, wondering from where officers of such authority arrived and why Mr. Darcy would offer his protection to deliver the young lady home in his carriage.

  Chapter 19

  “LIZZY!” Mr. Bennet cried out as she stepped out of the grand landau, “What in heavens are you doing home already and why are you with these officers? Whose carriage is this?” He wrapped her arm around his precious daughter to walk her inside the manor in concern.

  Elizabeth loosened the ribbon from her bonnet and placed it on the table in the foyer. “Oh, papa, a great many things happened this past week and I will tell you all I can. I am engaged, papa.” She laughed to see his mouth agape. “Mr. Darcy proposed and I have accepted him.”

  She smiled at her mother and her sisters who had just rushed inside the house from the backyard after being told by Mrs. Hill that an unknown carriage had arrived. “LIZZY! YOU ARE ENGAGED?!” Her mother cried out, holding on to Jane’s arm so that she would not collapse onto the floor.

  “Yes, mama, Mr. Darcy will arrive tomorrow to make the formal request.” Elizabeth answered. “We will need to host Miss Darcy for some time and she is to arrive tomorrow with her brother. I have a short note from him, papa, to request hospitality for his guards to stay here. Please allow me to share with you the latest.” She guided her family into the parlour and described seeing Mr. Darcy at Rosings Park and how he had proposed that same morning. She left out the details that were to be kept secret and revealed to them that she had been in love with the gentleman for months. “...and Georgie, I hope, will be pleased with the news and will stay at length so that we can continue our friendship. I have not seen her since Ramsgate last summer but we have been corresponding frequently and I am most eager to see her in person again.”

  “Would you be able to marry with Charles and me, Lizzy?” Jane excitedly asked. “Our dreams will come true!”

  Elizabeth shook her head, “I do not know when I can marry, Janey. Although we will be engaged as soon as Mr. Darcy receives papa’s approval, he has several duties that keep him from staying in Hertfordshire right now and the betrothal will need to be kept secret within our family, I am afraid. It may be one month or six months, I know not, but mama’s dream of having two daughters married this year might come true.” She laughed. “Mary will be next and then soon enough, Kitty and Lydia will all leave the nest. Are you certain you want all of your daughters to marry as soon as possible, mama?”

  Mr. Bennet furrowed his brows, “I do not understand the need for the secrecy, Lizzy. If he is bringing his sister, it cannot be that he is ashamed of the connection, and I understand the requirement of such a great gentlemen that he has duties that he must complete, but why can we not announce your engagement?”

  “It is for my own safety, papa,�
� Elizabeth responded. “There are some... villainous men after Mr. Darcy’s family and I, as well as Miss Darcy, would be in danger if it is known that I will become Mrs. Darcy. We must keep Georgie safely hidden in Hertfordshire as well and why she is coming here tomorrow but will need to be introduced by another name to our neighbours. Please, papa,” she begged, “our family must protect her and give Mr. Darcy the peace of mind while he completes his tasks.” She smiled in gratitude as her father nodded his agreement.

  Mrs. Bennet waved her handkerchief in the air, “But of course we will keep the secret! We will not let any harm come to you nor to Miss Darcy.” She beamed brightly, “Ooohhh, Mrs. Darcy! How well that sounds! But I think two daughters married this year is quite sufficient, Lizzy, and my nerves will be completely frayed to plan another wedding! Oh, how many jewels and carriages you will have! I did not think you could care for a man such as Mr. Darcy but if you like him, he deserves you. I have yet to see the gentleman smile but I know you will cheer him up with your lively spirits and I knew you were not so witty for nothing.”

  “He smiles, mama, but he does not prattle on like other young men and his severity is misunderstood as arrogance, but he is wonderful. I have much more to learn about him but he is truly the best of men.” Elizabeth blushed.

  Mr. Bennet stood after listening to the conversation. “I would like to speak with you privately, Lizzy. Mrs. Bennet, perhaps you can prepare for Miss Darcy’s arrival tomorrow and continue on with Jane’s wedding preparations. Having four daughters to assist you, you will have plenty of hands and do not need Lizzy at this moment.”

  Elizabeth walked to her father’s study with him and closed the door while Mrs. Bennet fretted loudly that the house was not clean enough to receive such dignified guests. She giggled softly to bring her mother joy, since it was inconceivable that Elizabeth would be content to marry anyone at all.