An Unexpected Legacy

by Don Miller

  Mrs. Bennet’s reflections were decidedly different than her husband’s. She knew she would miss Lydia, who had become her favorite daughter. Although she had let Lydia come out when she was young and had encouraged her with the gentlemen, she had hoped that Lydia would be her companion for a while. She had liked Lydia’s fun loving, playful spirit, even though she knew she was more undisciplined and headstrong than she should be. She, unlike Mr. Bennet, had been disappointed in the personality of the new Lydia. She knew she could never develop the same kind of feeling for Mary she had for Lydia, but she wondered if she and Kitty could become closer. She thought about Jane, and realized she would regret losing Jane primarily because Jane had taken over much of the responsibility of running the household, along with Elizabeth, when she had gotten older. It had not become lost on her that her two oldest daughters had become closer to their Aunt Gardiner than they were with her. And losing Elizabeth had almost been a relief. She had resented Elizabeth for many years, once she realized Elizabeth was not her daughter and Mr. Bennet was not willing to confide in her about the birth. As she looked at Mr. Bennet, she wondered what the future held for the two of them and almost dreaded it. He and she had become like strangers over the years. She knew he had little respect for her, as she had for him. The marriage had started out so promisingly. She wondered if they could have any kind of companionship once all the girls had gone. If only he would talk to her more.

  Back at the Morgan estate, Elizabeth, Darcy, and Col. Fitzwilliam were preparing to leave the next morning. Elizabeth spent much time with Lydia, counseling her on how to act with Mr. Morgan and Dr. Morgan and the staff, and giving her suggestions on how to improve her mind. Elizabeth and Lydia had become quite close over the past several days, and Elizabeth regretted having to leave Lydia at this vulnerable point in her new life, but she knew she had to go with William to his cousin’s wedding. She made a pact with Lydia to write often and assured Lydia she would always be available to her and would maintain a close relationship with her and Mr. Morgan if they married.

  Two days later, near dinner time, the Darcy party entered the grounds of Staunton Park and shortly thereafter stopped in front of the very elegant French Chateau style residence of Lord and Lady Monttard. After they had descended from the carriage, the three of them took a moment to look at the beautiful statuary and planting in the front of the chateau and then walked toward the front entrance. As they approached the door, it was opened and a middle-aged man bowed and said, “Welcome to Staunton Park, Lady Elizabeth and gentlemen.”

  Somewhat surprised by his use of the title Lady, Elizabeth replied, “Thank you,” and, with Darcy and Col. Fitzwilliam, entered the grand foyer, which, although done in the French style, had the same understated elegance as Monttard House. Standing in a row before them were the house staff. The man who had opened the door said to Elizabeth, “Lady Elizabeth, I am your butler, McMasters.” Indicating a man at the beginning of the line, “This is the estate steward, Mr. Watson, and this,” and he touched the shoulders of a woman standing near him, “is my wife and your housekeeper, Mrs. McMasters.”

  Mrs. McMasters curtsied and said, “It is wonderful to meet you, Lady Elizabeth, and may I say that you bear a remarkable resemblance to your mother. It almost took my breath away when I first saw you.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. McMasters, I am sure from what I have heard of my mother that is a great compliment. May I introduce my husband, Mr. Darcy and our cousin, Col. Fitzwilliam? And may I say that I am merely Mrs. Darcy. My grandmother’s title does not pass to me, nor is my husband titled.”

  Mrs. McMasters looked with surprise at her husband, and then back at Elizabeth. “But have you not heard? We recently received a letter from the Baron telling us that the last time Lady Monttard visited the Queen before quitting London, she was told by the Queen you were recognized as the next Baroness of Monttard and that hereafter you should addressed as Lady Elizabeth. We had no idea you did not know, but we are most happy to be the bearers of good news.”

  Elizabeth was stunned and looked at her husband and cousin, who both had big smiles on their faces. “Why do I have the feeling you already knew about this?”

  “Because we did,” said Darcy. “Your grandfather sent me an express that arrived the day after we returned from Bridgewater. He suggested I might like to surprise you with the announcement and I had intended to do it as soon as we arrived here, but I think the way you have learned of it is even better.”

  “Lady Elizabeth, I could hardly hold my tongue,” said Col. Fitzwilliam, and, much to Darcy’s dismay, he took her hand and kissed the back of it, “but you have my congratulations and my assurance that no lady in England deserves it more than you.”

  Looking very cross, Elizabeth said, “I will deal with you two later!” She then turned back to Mr. and Mrs. McMasters with a smile and said, “Thank you for your well wishes, and, please do introduce me to the staff. I am looking forward to meeting them.”

  When being introduced to each, she insisted that each tell her a little about themselves and made each feel at ease, much to Mrs. McMasters’ delight. When they had finished, she told them all she was happy to have met them and she was sure from what she had seen and heard, they were an excellent staff and she was very impressed with what she had seen of the estate. And she asked they welcome her maid, Leila, and Darcy’s valet, Morris.

  After they had met the house staff, Mrs. McMasters showed them to their rooms and informed them dinner would be served in an hour. Elizabeth and Darcy had a beautiful suite with two bedrooms with dressing rooms and an adjoining sitting room in the family wing of the chateau. It overlooked the formal gardens and beautiful reflecting pool at the rear of the chateau. The bathtubs were in their dressing rooms had both already been filled with hot water, for which each was grateful, and after a relaxing bath, they dressed and went down to dinner.

  They were met at the bottom of the stairs, where they were guided to the dining room by a maid who had been waiting for them. When they entered the dining room, Richard was already there with a glass of brandy in his hand. “This is very classy, Lady Elizabeth. The staff is up to Pemberley standards, which is quite a compliment. They already had a bath ready for me when I reached my room. And the brandy is magnificent.”

  “Thank you for your compliments, COLONEL Fitzwilliam. But I believe we can dispense with the formal titles. I am still getting used to Mrs. Darcy. I suddenly realized I will not be hearing that very often anymore, and I will miss it. It is, after all, my favorite title.”

  Taking her hand and kissing it, Darcy looked her in the eyes and said, “It is my favorite title for you also and I will remind you of it daily, I promise you.”

  Two days after their arrival at Staunton Park, the large party from London which had sailed on Lord Monttard’s private ship from London to Plymouth arrived in the area. Lord and Lady Monttard brought Lord and Lady Matlock and Viscount and Viscountess Gladney to Staunton Park to stay with them and also brought a surprising guest, Anne DeBourgh. Lord and Lady Denby and Margaret, along with one of Margaret’s brothers and his wife had also sailed on the ship, but of course they all went to the Denby estate.

  Darcy and Col. Fitzwilliam were especially delighted Anne had come, but were concerned the trip had been difficult for her. She assured them it had not been, thanks to the exceptional care Lord and Lady Matlock had given her, and she assured them it was better than being at Rosings Park. She told them because her birthday would be before she returned, Lord and Lady Matlock had come to Rosings to help her confront Lady Catherine and tell her she expected Lady Catherine to have moved from Rosings to the dowager house before she returned. Anne told Lady Catherine she had asked Col. Fitzwilliam to take over the management of Rosings until she died, at which time he would inherit it from her, and she expected the Master Suite to be prepared for Col. Fitzwilliam and Margaret when they arrived at Rosings after their honeymoon. She had instructed the butler, the housekeeper, and the steward to ensure a
ll was in readiness for their arrival. She, in the meantime, would be staying with Lord and Lady Matlock until Col. Fitzwilliam and his bride returned. She finished by saying she had never been on a large ship before and had thoroughly enjoyed the voyage from London to Plymouth. She had never slept better.

  Everyone, of course, congratulated Elizabeth on her elevation to Lady Elizabeth. She felt quite embarrassed about the whole thing, because she could really not imagine why she deserved such an honor, but her grandmother assured her the Queen had been very impressed with her. When she and the King had learned she was to work with Lord Monttard in running the shipping line and intended to continue the relationship the shipping line had with the Royal Navy, they determined she would become a Baroness on the death of Lord Monttard and she should now be known as Lady Elizabeth. Therefore the title was in recognition of what the Monttards had done for England in the past and what she would do in the future. In other words, it was a way for a very perceptive Queen to put pressure on Elizabeth to support the monarchy in the future.

  That night, after they had made love, Elizabeth was lying with her head on Darcy’s chest and considering the honor the Queen had bestowed upon her. “William, I feel like I am being overwhelmed. A few months ago I was a nobody from nowhere, with little concern about the monarchy and royal politics. And now I am suddenly destined to be a peer of the realm and perhaps a confidant of the Queen. This does not make sense. Why has the Queen chosen to honor me at this time? What does she expect from me and how is it going to affect our life? A few months ago all I wanted to be was your wife, even though you did not know it, and to have your children and live a good life. Now I seem to be thrust into a role for which I am not sure I am qualified and I am dragging you along with me. How are we going to deal with this?”

  “I have been giving this a lot of thought since I received the letter from your grandfather. I, too, was a little astonished at first, but I suspect this has been a plan of the Queen since she met you and recognized you as a woman who could be a real power in English society. Whether you want to admit it or not, you are a very unusual and intimidating woman to most people. You are extremely intelligent, honest, and loyal and a good person to have on one’s side, particularly after you married me. I have been a thorn in the royal side, with my disapproval of the Prince’s behavior, and when you married me, we became one of the wealthiest couples in England. Actually, once you inherit, we will probably be the wealthiest couple. I am sure the Queen and the Prince want us on their side if they can, and one way they can try to gain that allegiance is to honor us. They may even offer to reinstate the Darcy peerage, although, given my past criticisms of the Prince’s style of life, it is somewhat unlikely. However, in you they see the perfect opportunity to ensure your shipping line continues to be an important adjunct to the Royal Navy, to ensure your wealth is not used against them, and to try to gain my support, or, at the very least, lessen my opposition to the Prince. My admiration for the Queen has greatly increased in the last few weeks. She is a very perceptive and shrewd woman who is a real asset to the monarchy.”

  “If this is true, does not it bother you they are using me to get at you?”

  “Not at all. It is the kind of thing people in our position must expect. The minute I heard about your parentage and elevation in the ranks of society, I knew becoming involved with you would have repercussions. But I also knew it did not matter, because I knew I could not be happy without you. However, I must admit, I had no idea that eventually I would be the husband of the Baroness Monttard.”

  Despite her concern, Elizabeth had to laugh. “Can you imagine what I would have said to someone five months ago who told me I was destined to become a Baroness? It still seems unreal to me. I just hope my fairy tale does not turn into a horror story.”

  Darcy shifted position so he was on his side, looking into her face, where he placed his hand, softly pushing back one of her curls off of her forehead. “Lady Elizabeth Darcy, future Baroness of Monttard, as long as we are together, it will never be a horror story. We are very resourceful people and we will make it work, whatever it takes. We will have our family; we will do our duty, and we will follow our conscience, wherever it leads us. And I promise you, I will love you forever.” And he bent to give her a long kiss and then demonstrated his passion for her.

  In another part of the chateau, as Lord and Lady Matlock were preparing for bed, Lady Matlock said, “I am proud of the way Elizabeth has accepted her elevation. She has accepted it with humility and realizes it carries with it some important responsibilities. But I am concerned it has all been given to her too soon. Why did the Queen not wait until she was older and more familiar with British upper society?”

  “As you know, when we first discussed this, I had the same reservations, but as I have thought about it, I have come to appreciate the shrewdness of the Queen and the wisdom of her decision. She recognized very quickly in Elizabeth something it has taken us months to determine: she is a very intelligent, strong-willed, principled woman who, with her immense wealth, has the potential to be a force in English society when she truly understands the strength of her position. And now she has married Darcy, the two of them being almost as rich as the royal family, can be a real power in English politics. By giving Elizabeth this honor she is hoping to ensure, with very little cost to the monarchy, their loyalty to the crown.”

  Lady Matlock thought about it for a moment and then, with a laugh, said, “To think when we first heard about her and then met her, we were concerned about her suitability for Darcy and her qualifications to be the mistress of a grand estate like Pemberley. And now I find myself being concerned Darcy may not be up to being the husband of such a dynamic woman.”

  “I do not think you have to worry on that score. I have great confidence in our nephew. I am not a great believer in God arranging marriages, but if ever two people were destined to be together, it has to be Darcy and Elizabeth.” He paused for a few minutes, trying to imagine the future life of Darcy and Elizabeth and finally he said to his wife. “I must say I look forward to the coming years to see how England will deal with the taciturn master of Pemberley and the little unknown country lass from Hertfordshire.”

  THE END

  About the Author

  Don Miller is a retired scientist with a Ph.D. in Mathematical Statistics. He served in the Navy, taught at the university level for a few years, and then worked in the private sector doing scientific research. Besides writing, he is an avid golfer, reader, and computer user, having been the webmaster for his church’s website.

  Don has written eleven Pride and Prejudice variations, all of which are available in the Kindle Bookstore. The others are listed below, with links to their pages in the Kindle Bookstore

  An Extraordinary Request

  Mistakes and Misunderstandings

  The Resolute Suitor

  Georgiana’s Project

  Elizabeth’s Song

  Darcys Second Chance

  Darcy and the Twins

  Remorse and Reconciliation

  The Angel of Grove Street

  The Sisters of Longbourn

  The author may be reached at donhmiller79@gmail.com.