Their return from London had been further delayed by a problem with transport, caused by some roads in the south being flooded as the rivers burst their banks with the Spring thaw. When they arrived, Rose, apparently exhausted by the trying journey as well as her illness, went directly to her room, while Robert found time only to gather up a pile of letters, which he took away upstairs to read.
Caroline had arrived early to help her mother and relieve Emily, who had stayed all night again. It being Sunday, Emily had a number of parish duties to attend to.
Several hours slipped by and the house was quiet as the weary travellers slept undisturbed. Tea and other necessities had been delivered to their room, but there had been no sign of them since.
Caroline and her mother were seated together in the parlour, and Mrs Gardiner was asking about Isabella's wedding. She was eager to know everything about the arrangements.
“Isabella tells me it is to be at Pemberley,” she remarked, and Caroline explained that, on hearing the news of Isabella's engagement to Dr Forrester, Elizabeth and Darcy had offered to host the wedding at Pemberley.
“That is so like them; both Mr Darcy and our dear Lizzie are so generous,” Mrs Gardiner began, but before she could continue, they were startled by the sound of someone running down the stairs. The door of the parlour was flung open and Robert appeared, still it seemed in a great hurry, as though he was late for some appointment.
However, it was not Robert in haste, but Robert in anger that confronted them.
In his hand he held a sheet of paper, which Caroline immediately recognised as her father's letter to Mr Caddick, to which was also pinned a smaller piece of note paper. It was obvious to her that Caddick had sent the letter that had so mortified him to Robert with his own comments attached.
And Robert was furious! His eyes flashed as Caroline had never seen before, and his voice rose as he demanded to see his father. He was, he declared, outraged and insulted and wanted a good explanation, or else…
He did not enunciate what he would do but adopted a distinctly threatening tone. For a generally mild-mannered man with no record of precipitate action or intemperate language, it was quite a performance.
Unfortunately for Robert's newfound self-importance, neither his mother nor Caroline was impressed. He was most insistent that he had to see his father, but Mrs Gardiner told him quite firmly that he could not.
“Your papa is too ill to be troubled by such matters, and I must ask you to keep your voice down, Robert. Richard has said he must not be disturbed,” she said and it was quite clear that she was seriously displeased with her son. Even as a child, he had never been permitted to get away with tantrums; she would certainly not allow it now!
Caroline was amazed at how determined her mother could be. Despite Robert's fuming and fulminating, she stood her ground.
“I will not have him badgered about matters concerning the business—that is for you to settle with Caroline and Mr Darcy. They know your father's wishes exactly,” she said with a degree of finality that left Robert no hope at all.
Frustrated, he turned to Caroline. “I demand to know why my father wrote this letter to Mr Caddick. Who was it suggested this letter? Was it you, Caroline, or Mr Darcy? I am told he went with you to Manchester to deliver this letter, what business has Mr Darcy to interfere?”
At that point, Caroline felt constrained to speak. Having denied that she had anything to do with her father's letter, except to deliver it to Mr Caddick as instructed, she did feel the need to point out that Mr Darcy, like her husband Colonel Fitzwilliam, was in fact Mr Gardiner's partner in the company.
“Mr Darcy is as entitled as Fitzwilliam is to take an interest in the management of the company. He will not thank you for referring to his concern as 'interference,' Robert. Indeed, they have more right to intervene than you or I, since we are beneficiaries but not partners in the enterprise. Should the company suffer losses due to bad management, it is they, together with Papa, who will have to bear the brunt of it.”
Robert seemed to have been temporarily silenced by her remarks and looked as though he was to about to leave the room when Rose appeared in the doorway. Her earlier languid aspect had vanished, as she strode over to Robert's side, accusing Caroline and the rest of the family of trying to undermine her dear husband.
Looking directly at Caroline, she declared, “It must have been Caroline's idea; it was you, was it not? I am quite confident dear Mr Gardiner would not have written such a discourteous letter to poor Mr Caddick, who has done much good work for Papa, unless his mind was poisoned. Why, he as good as tells him to mind his own business!”
Caroline felt she could not stand by listening to this irrational tirade without coming to her father's defence.
“Rose, that is unfair and you know it. Papa is never discourteous to anyone, no matter how angry he may be. If Mr Caddick has told you otherwise, it is not true. Nor is it correct that I have turned Papa against him. My father is quite able to compose his own letters, and I merely carried out his instructions exactly; you may ask Mr Darcy or Mr Upton, Robert, they will tell you no different,” she said in a voice whose calmness belied her feelings.
But Rose was clearly in no mood to be reasonable and railed on until Mrs Gardiner rose and said very firmly, “I am sorry, Robert, I must ask you to take Rose to your room. She is plainly tired and overwrought and does not know what she is saying. I cannot have this bickering going on while your father lies ill upstairs. It is most unseemly.”
Caroline stood trembling as her brother escorted his wife out of the room and up the stairs. She had been falsely accused of undermining her brother, her father had been maligned, and she was being held responsible for the tone of Mr Gardiner's letter to Caddick.
It was outrageous and Caroline had never before experienced such an affront. Never had she heard Rose use such intemperate words before; nor, it seemed, had Robert, for he had looked most embarrassed by her intervention and absolutely dejected at his mother's admonition.
That night, Caroline returned home and, having rested awhile, prepared to dress for dinner. Unwilling to worry her husband with details of Rose and Robert's outburst, she said nothing, and Fitzwilliam, though he sensed the strain in her and knew she had something on her mind, decided to let her tell him about it in her own time. He had missed her and was happy to have her home.
There was a storm brewing on the moors, but Caroline deliberately adopted a bright, cheerful mood and even found time to sit at the pianoforte. Her husband was pleased, hoping he had misread her mood; perhaps, he thought, she had been tired and was feeling better.
After dinner, they took coffee in the parlour and curled up on a sofa by the fire, by which time the storm was at its height. Over its sounds, they heard a vehicle, its urgent clatter and rattle growing louder as it turned into the drive and approached the house. Soon afterwards, they heard footsteps coming swiftly up the steps to the door.
Moments later, the maid announced Mr Kennedy.
Caroline rose at once; she knew it had to be an emergency of some sort. Mr Kennedy was unlikely to arrive late at night in inclement weather unless something was very wrong.
As he walked into the room, she gasped; he had handed his dripping overcoat and hat to the servant, but he was still a strange bedraggled sight, and his boots were sodden.
“Mr Kennedy, what on earth has happened to bring you out in this weather? Look at you, you will catch cold or worse; you must get out of those boots at once.”
She hastened to send for a manservant who took him upstairs, where he divested himself of his outer garments and boots. These were taken downstairs to the kitchen to be dried while he was helped into some of Fitzwilliam's clothes, which, though too large, were at least dry and warm. When he joined them downstairs, he thanked them profusely and apologised for intruding upon them.
In the hours that followed, fortified with a drink and some hot food, Peter Kennedy revealed an amazing story of deceit, in which Mr
Caddick was the main player.
He reminded Caroline of the sheaf of papers he had given her in Manchester. She confessed with some feeling of guilt that she had had no opportunity to peruse them herself, much less to hand them over to her father, whose sudden illness had precluded any discussion of business matters.
“I did not expect them to be of immediate significance, nor did I believe they would require urgent attention,” Caroline admitted.
But their importance was now to become clear, as Mr Kennedy explained that they were faithful copies he had made of bills of lading, which proved beyond doubt that Mr Caddick was using the company to carry on an illegal enterprise.
“He has been importing tobacco and rum from the Caribbean to be sold privately to a merchant in Liverpool with whom he does business regularly. They are being brought in as part of the company's consignments from the Indies,” said Mr Kennedy and when Caroline gasped in astonishment, he added, “It is a deception in which he has engaged for quite a long time, well before he came to work for Mr Gardiner. He has probably used every company he worked for in the same way; it is amazing that he has not been caught,” Kennedy explained.
“And have you confronted him with it?” Fitzwilliam asked.
“Oh no, sir, I would be reluctant to do such a thing without the protection of the law and preferably in the presence of witnesses. I believe Mr Caddick, if he were roused to anger, would be quite a dangerous man. Besides, I did not wish to alert him before we had informed Mr Gardiner.”
“You were right not to get into conflict with him, Mr Kennedy,” Caroline said and then asked, “Does Mr Upton know of this?”
“Not all the detail of it, ma'am, but he is aware that I have evidence of something untoward. However, I thought it best to reveal it to you and Mr Gardiner first.”
Caroline looked at her husband, wondering what was to be done next. It was unthinkable that her father should be involved; Mrs Gardiner would not hear of it. Yet, Robert would probably refuse to believe Mr Kennedy's story. She wished with all her heart that her father had not been so ill. She longed for his sound, sensible advice.
She went upstairs and retrieved the bundle of papers from her travelling case, and when they studied them, it was exactly as Mr Kennedy had described it. Small consignments of spirits and tobacco were being received along with the regular imports of cotton, sugar, and other goods. Yet there was no record of any customer placing orders for them. Clearly Caddick must have a partner in crime on the docks, who was letting them slip through undetected.
Caroline was amazed at the audacious scheme. As she pondered, Mr Kennedy spoke gently, intruding upon her thoughts, “Mrs Fitzwilliam, if I may be so bold as to make a suggestion…”
Caroline turned to him at once, “Please do, Mr Kennedy, I am at a loss to know how best to deal with what is clearly a criminal matter.”
He continued, “If Colonel Fitzwilliam and Mr Robert Gardiner would accompany me to Manchester tomorrow, together with Mr Gardiner's lawyer, we could confront Caddick with the evidence and he could then be handed over to the police. Should we not report this matter, the office, indeed the entire company, could be held responsible for his crimes. In this case, Mr Caddick has defrauded both his employer and Her Majesty's customs while using the name of Mr Gardiner's company.”
Caroline turned to her husband to ascertain his opinion. She could tell from his countenance that he was, as she was, astounded at what they had heard.
“Do you agree with Mr Kennedy, Fitzy? Can it be done?”
“Well, my dear, there is nothing for it, it must be done,” he replied, “and to borrow a line from the bard, then 't'were best done quickly.' Mr Kennedy, you had best stay the night here. I shall send a note to Robert asking him to be ready to travel tomorrow on urgent business, and we can leave at dawn. I need give him no explanation at this stage.
“I agree that it is best if we have Mr Gardiner's lawyer with us, but if he is unavailable, I am confident Mr Upton will recommend a reputable man in Manchester. Our aim must be not to alert Caddick in any way, to catch him red handed as it were, and confront him. Does he know you are here?”
Mr Kennedy smiled, “Certainly not, sir. I was given leave of absence on account of my mother's serious illness, sir. Mr Upton was most obliging. You will be happy to hear, ma'am, my mother is perfectly well.”
They laughed as he recounted the subterfuge he had used to avoid suspicion, then Caroline asked, “Do you think Robert will agree to hand Caddick over to the police?”
Fitzwilliam was quite firm, “My dear, Robert will have no alternative and Mr Caddick no refuge. He has broken the law and once the police have seen these papers and heard Mr Kennedy's evidence, there will be but one course open to them.” Peter Kennedy nodded agreement.
It was late as Caroline left the men together. There was less than a month to Isabella's wedding and everything was in turmoil. Her father's health and peace of mind were in jeopardy, and the very enterprise to which he had given the best years of his life was in danger of being corrupted by the greed of a stranger and her brother's neglect.
Caroline could not but be depressed.
On the morrow, she bade them farewell, praying it would turn out well. She wished Robert would do the right thing and thanked God for the conscientious and honest Peter Kennedy, without whom all might have been lost.
Isabella Fitzwilliam was married to Dr Henry Forrester a few weeks later.
Although neither had wished for a grand wedding, there was little chance they could escape the celebrations. Their own popularity in the community, the affection and regard that so many felt for the Fitzwilliams, and the generosity of Mr and Mrs Darcy ensured there was a large and appreciative party gathered at Pemberley for the happy event. The excellent food and fine late Spring weather contributed to make a memorable day.
Significantly, however, the main topic of conversation among the majority of guests at the wedding was not the lovely bride and her groom, but the possibility of war with Russia. Not even Colonel Fitzwilliam, whose loyalty to Palmerston had been unswerving, could deny that this time, he was wrong. Mr Darcy and Anthony Tate had both made their views on the prospect of war very clear.
“It is a wasteful exercise for which England is ill prepared, nor is she likely to benefit in any way whatsoever,” said one and the other was so impressed with the sentiment expressed, he asked permission to use it in his next editorial on the subject.
Not long after Isabella and her husband had left on their wedding journey to Wales, a letter reached Caroline from Manchester. It reported that Mr Caddick had been brought before the magistrate and confessed to his crimes, some of which had been committed many years before he had moved to Derbyshire.
“It is generally expected that he will soon be on his way to New South Wales to serve out a long term of imprisonment,” wrote Mr Kennedy, to whom had been returned all of the responsibilities previously held by him which Robert had needlessly and unsuccessfully transferred to Mr Caddick.
Now, everyone was pleased with him, even Robert, albeit somewhat chastened and subdued as a result of his unhappy experience with Caddick. Thereafter, he seemed content to entrust the majority of the work to Mr Kennedy, which was good news indeed, for the company and Mr Kennedy, who was recommended for promotion as a consequence.
Not so good was the news from Westminster that England after some forty years of peace and relative prosperity, was at war again in the year 1854, this time in the Crimea—and it was to drag on for four dreadful years.
In the years that followed, the lives of Caroline, Colonel Fitzwilliam, and many other members of their family were affected by circumstances and events that could not have been foreseen.
Some, as in the case of the engagement of Julian Darcy to Josie Tate, surprised everyone, including the parents of the young couple, while others, like the gradual disintegration of the marriage of Jonathan and Amelia-Jane leading finally to her death in a dreadful accident on the road to Bath, l
eft the entire family aghast. No one who knew either Jonathan or his young wife could ever have foreseen such a disaster. It was much later that the truth was revealed.
Caroline's disappointment that Julian Darcy had chosen to marry Josie Tate, instead of her own daughter Amy, had been shared by his mother Elizabeth, who had long hoped for such a match. Amy had seemed to her a natural choice as the wife of the heir to Pemberley. But it was not Julian's choice.
At least for Caroline, the distress was assuaged when a few years later, Amy was very happily married to Frank, the son of Dr and Mrs Grantley. The genuine goodness and good humour of Mr Grantley had clearly helped him supplant the more jejune infatuation Amy had felt for her cousin. The couple had moved to Oxford and were clearly enjoying their life together. Letters received from Georgiana Grantley suggested that Amy was a great favourite with her in-laws as well.
However, the same did not apply at Pemberley.
My Cousin Caroline: The acclaimed Pride and Prejudice sequel series The Pemberley Chronicles Book 6 Page 30