The Portrait of Elizabeth

by Jane Angwin

  "Hullo again, Master William!" he said. "This big fella has been telling me that he barely got above a trot earlier this morning and is in need of a run, quite eager to go." Darcy never questioned Mr. Raymond's claim to speak with the horses, and as a boy, he had actually believed him, but as an adult, he simply chalked it up to luck and coincidence. However, he was taken aback at his ability to know the pace that Omega had achieved earlier in the day.

  "Thank you, Mr. Raymond," he said. "Please inform Omega that this will be a long journey," he laughed. Much to his surprise, Mr. Raymond went to the horse and informed him that this was not just a morning run, and he would be away for some time. The horse whinnied and shook his head up and down, as if he was acknowledging the information. "There are so many unusual things happening around Pemberley these days, I think this horse actually understood that," he thought. With that, he mounted the steed and was on his way.

  Since he disliked being trapped inside a coach for any length of time and much preferred horseback, his valet would follow with his coach and trunks and arrive in London a day or so later than Darcy. The weather was good, and he rode long distances before stopping to rest Omega and stopping again at night to sleep, arriving in London in good time. He had sent word to Mrs. King, his London housekeeper, but he beat the messenger, and she was quite surprised but delighted to see him after many months away. She knew how he disliked company, and she promised to keep the knocker off the door so there would be no visitors. He immediately sent word to Bingley that he had arrived, requesting that he join him at his earliest convenience, and it wasn't an hour before Bingley arrived at Darcy House. Darcy's butler, Albert knocked on his door and entered, quickly saying "Master William, Mr. Bingley's coach has arrived, but it is not just the gentleman himself. There are four people in his carriage."

  "Four? Oh, Good Lord, Albert. Are there two ladies and a gentleman accompanying Charles?" he inquired with a look of alarm.

  "Yes, Sir, that is correct" he answered with a look of distaste. "Should I allow them to enter?"

  "Of course, Albert. Show them in. They will not be staying long." Bingley's sister Caroline and his married sister, Louisa and her husband, Gilbert Hurst had not been invited, but he knew that they were undoubtedly the guests arriving with Bingley. He groaned out loud, as he had no patience for either of Bingley's sisters, and Gilbert Hurst was tiresome, to say the least. He intended to make it a short visit and retire early after his long ride.

  He heard Miss Bingley's high pitched voice as she entered the front hall, and he cringed. "How does Charles not find her voice disturbing?" he thought. Caroline Bingley had been attempting to impress Darcy for years, and she made no secret about wanting to be the mistress of Pemberley. At every opportunity, she fawned over him and made inappropriate advances, not seeming to notice that her efforts were continuously ignored and blatantly rebuffed.

  Albert opened the door to his study and before he could announce their arrival, Caroline brushed past him and flew into the room exclaiming, "Oh, Mr. Darcy! It is so good of you to invite us to your home this afternoon. We have greatly missed your company in London!" She barely curtsied, and rushed to his side, definitely much too close to be appropriate, and she grabbed his arm. Darcy wanted to remind her that he had not invited her, but it would be useless. He knew that she had assumed that an invitation to Bingley to come to Darcy House was meant to include her, and there would be no correcting her. "We had no idea you were coming to Town!" she exclaimed too close to his ear. "Will you be attending any balls while you are here?"

  "Good Day, Miss Bingley" he said as he bowed, purposefully ignoring her question, carefully removing her hand and walking past her to greet Charles and the others. "Charles, it is good of you to come so quickly." Bingley looked at Darcy with an apologetic glance, knowing that the inclusion of his sisters was not what Darcy had expected or wanted. He greeted Mr. and Mrs. Hurst, and invited them to be seated on a settee by the windows. He also motioned to have Miss Bingley join them at that end of the room, but she ignored his suggestion and slipped her hand back into the crook of his arm, staring up at him as if he was her long lost lover.

  "Caroline," Charles said, "Darcy and I have business to conduct, and I must have you give us some privacy," he admonished. "Please take the chair you have been asked to take." With that, Darcy again removed Miss Bingley's grasp on his arm, and Bingley firmly escorted her to sit next to her sister and Mr. Hurst at the other end of the room.

  "Charles, I am sure that Mr. Darcy is quite pleased to see us, and this dreary business can surely wait, can it not?" She coyly looked at Darcy and purred, "Isn't that right, Mr. Darcy?"

  "I'm sorry, Miss Bingley, but I did request that Charles come to talk with me about his plans to inspect an estate in Hertfordshire. I have come from Pemberley to assist him to determine if it is a worthy property to lease and possibly purchase. This is his opportunity to become a gentleman landowner, and I should think that is certainly something that would please you."

  Caroline had no sooner sat down than she stood up abruptly and whisked across the room, standing next to Darcy and once again placed her hand on his arm. "Oh, Charles!" she gasped. " What is this about viewing an estate? You did not tell me that this was your purpose in visiting Mr. Darcy!" she screeched. "You do not have to involve Mr. Darcy in this foolishness! An estate in the country with no society is hardly something that we should consider, and I vehemently disagree with this plan", she boldly argued. "Please, Mr. Darcy! Tell Charles that this scheme is a terrible mistake!"

  Once again, Darcy removed her hand from his arm, this time more forcefully and moved around behind his desk taking a seat. Bingley stepped toward his sister and glared at her, sternly admonishing her. "Caroline, this is not your decision to make. I am following our father's desire for me to purchase an estate in the country, and Darcy is the perfect person to guide me in this endeavor." He turned to Darcy and said "I apologize for Caroline's outburst, Darcy. I am grateful to you for coming all this way from Pemberley to assist me, and Caroline is just not yet accustomed to the idea of a country home away from London. As you know, she is most comfortable in the city and the society that she enjoys."

  "Yes, Charles," Darcy said with obvious irritation. "This is not a conversation that needs to take place this afternoon with the ladies and Hurst in attendance. Perhaps we should meet at White's tomorrow afternoon to discuss the details and plan our trip to this place called Hertfordshire. My horse needs time to rest from our ride, and I must admit, so do I. Shall we say three o'clock at White's?"

  He hoped that his hint that the meeting was over was strong enough, but Miss Bingley impolitely insisted that they had hoped to have a cup of tea and enjoy some of his cook's delicious biscuits. "It has been so long since we have enjoyed your company, Mr. Darcy, and I am sure you do not wish our visit to end so soon! My goodness, we have barely just arrived! I am sure your cook has made some of her delicious biscuits that I adore, and we would love to hear about your lovely sister, Georgiana. I so long to see her again!"

  Charles stood up and walked to his sister, holding out his hand to guide her toward the door. "Caroline, did you not hear Darcy say that he is exhausted from his long trip? We are leaving!" He turned to Darcy and rolled his eyes. "I will see you tomorrow Darcy. I apologize for the length of our stay." He wanted to apologize for his sister's outlandish behavior, but he knew that Darcy was quite familiar with her conduct. He took Caroline's arm as she lingered near Darcy, and practically pulled her along to leave his study.

  "Charles! Please unhand me! Can you not see that Mr. Darcy wishes for us to remain?" She looked between the two men, and realized that there would be no invitation to continue the visit. Her sister and Hurst stood and joined Charles in convincing her that it was indeed time to go. "Well then, goodbye for today, Mr. Darcy" she gushed. "We must have you to dinner soon", she said over her shoulder as she was firmly moved down the hall to the front door.

  "Goodbye, Mr. Darcy" said Mrs. Hur
st. That was the only thing that she had said during their entire visit. Her husband, Gilbert merely grunted and followed the others to their coach. As they moved down the hallway, Darcy could hear Bingley chiding his sister for her indecorous behavior and Caroline's high pitched nonsensical quarreling.

  "Poor Bingley," Darcy thought as he watched their carriage roll away from the front of his townhouse. "How did such an affable man become saddled with such odious relations." He knew that he should talk to Bingley about the need to curtail Caroline's offensive manners and relentless pursuit of his attention, but that was probably a task far beyond Bingley's capabilities. He climbed the stairs to retire to his chambers and fell asleep the moment he put his head down on his pillow.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Visitors from America

  To Darcy's great surprise, his valet had apparently arrived quite late the night before, sometime after he had gone to bed, and much sooner than he expected. Darcy had actually wanted Gregory to go straight to Hertfordshire without stopping in London, but the man had served him for many years, and he wouldn't hear of it. Darcy told him to take his time, but he had obviously travelled long days to arrive as soon as possible to serve his employer. With little sleep, he promptly arrived in Darcy's chambers early the next morning to prepare Darcy's bath and to shave and dress him for the day. Darcy felt quite capable of taking care of these things by himself, but he appreciated Gregory's loyalty, and he expressed his gratitude. "No need to thank me, Master Fitzwilliam," Gregory humbly responded. "It is my pleasure to assist you, Sir. You need to refresh yourself after such a long ride, and a bath is definitely in order."

  After breaking his fast, he went to his study and looked through a pile of paperwork and correspondence from Pemberley that his steward had forwarded to London. After a few hours, even though his bath relaxed him, Darcy decided to stretch his still tight leg muscles from three days of riding Omega. He wanted to take a short walk to Hyde Park, just a few blocks from his Grosvenor Park townhouse, but as his butler opened the front door for him, He noticed a carriage rolling to a stop in front of him. As the door opened, a young man stepped out and looked up at Darcy standing at the top of the stairs. "Can I be of assistance?" Darcy inquired of the gentleman.

  "Yes, perhaps you can. I am looking for a Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, and I believe he resides here. Do you know him?"

  Darcy noted that the gentleman spoke with a French accent. "Who may I inquire is asking?" he questioned before introducing himself.

  "Oh, yes, of course. My name is Nicolas Chastain. I was informed that Mr. Darcy might have information about my brother. I have recently arrived from America, and my brother is not at his home here in London."

  Darcy was visibly happy to hear this was who his visitor was. Smiling, he said "Good Day, Mr. Chastain. I am Fitzwilliam Darcy, and I must say that I am quite pleased to make your acquaintance! I was just going out for a short walk, but this is indeed a pleasant surprise. Your brother and your father are currently visiting my home in Derbyshire in Northern England, and they will be most delighted to hear that you have come! Please join me inside, and I will share the details with you."

  "Wonderful! I am joined by my sister, Janine, and she is waiting in the carriage. Let me inform her that we have found you. She will be delighted."

  He turned back to the carriage and leaned inside. "Janine, this is Mr. Darcy! He has knowledge of Francois and Father, and he has invited us to join him inside to assist us in finding them!"

  Darcy heard a quiet voice say "Oh, Nicolas! We are getting so close!" He watched as Nicolas handed out an attractive young girl and escorted her up the stairs where Darcy stood to be introduced. She curtsied, and in a faint French accent she said "I am pleased to meet you, Mr. Darcy. Our brother's housekeeper said you knew their location, and she gave us your London address to speak to your staff. We never thought that you might actually be here!"

  The small group entered the townhouse. The butler met them and took their coats and hats, ushering them into the drawing room where he asked if Darcy would like tea to be served. Darcy agreed, and he bowed and left the room.

  "Please be seated" he said to his guests. "When did you arrive from America?" he asked.

  "We arrived in Portsmouth about three days ago by ship, but after resting for a day there, and two uncomfortable days by post coach, we just arrived in London late this morning. We immediately went to my brother's address, but as my sister said, his housekeeper was obviously told not to give out any information about their location. When we explained who we were, she gave us your name, but nothing else. The name Darcy and your address was easily recognized in a small cafe where we stopped, and we were directed here to Grosvenor Square. What luck that we happened to find you here!"

  At that moment, the door opened and tea arrived. His butler poured the tea, and then left the room. As Darcy handed Janine a cup, she stifled a yawn behind her hand, and she apologized profusely. Darcy smiled at her and said "I realize you are not British, and tea is not as much a part of your culture as ours, but this does wonders for you after a long journey."

  "I fear that I am still quite fatigued from our long journey across the ocean," Janine admitted. "We were at sea for almost thirteen weeks with difficult weather, so being in England at last has been an emotional experience for us. Our brother wrote to us that Papa was quite ill, and we worried that we would be too late to see him, but it was very important that we at least tried. From what you have said, he is with our brother at your home, and we hopefully still have time. Can you tell us of his condition?" she timidly asked.

  "I left him three days ago, Miss Chastain, and although he is weak, the fresh air of the country and the good care he is receiving has done a great deal for him. Your brother and their good friend Angelique are there with my sister and her governess, and our family physician visits him daily. I am presently in London as I agreed to join a friend of mine to view a potential estate to lease just outside of town, and believe me, I would not have left Pemberley if I felt that he was in imminent danger."

  "Does the physician know what has caused his illness?" Nicolas asked.

  "Not as yet. He has a theory, but he has requested a second opinion from another physician that has done studies on ailments related to the heart. That gentleman has not been able to leave his practice here in London yet to see your father, but I expect he will journey to Derbyshire within the next few weeks."

  Nicolas looked thoughtful for a moment, and then asked "How long is the journey to Derbyshire, Mr. Darcy?"

  "It is a three day journey by coach, depending on weather conditions. I would very much like to assist you with your plans to travel there as soon as possible. Arrangements must be made for overnight accommodations and changing horses along the way. I was to leave first thing tomorrow morning, but I will postpone my departure until we have taken care of your journey. You must stay here with me until the arrangements have been made, and I will have rooms prepared for you right away," he said.

  Nicolas and Janine looked at each other, appearing unable to speak. "Mr. Darcy," Nicolas started, "This is entirely too much for you to do for us. You do not even know us, and you are not only housing our family at your home in Derbyshire, but now you are offering to give us shelter here in London and to help us with our travel plans. We cannot ask so much of you."

  "Please, Mr. Chastain, it is my pleasure to assist you and your sister. Your brother has been a dear friend of our family for many years, and it will be an amazing surprise for him and particularly your father to have you arrive at Pemberley."

  "Very well then, Mon Ami, we accept your kind offer. We do not have accommodations arranged in London, and it would be greatly appreciated to have a good night's sleep. Our travel to London did not afford us the luxury of good mattresses or civil companionship. It seems our French accents have stayed stronger than I thought after living in America for these many years, and there appears to be some animosity toward the French here in England, Oui?"
r />   "Perhaps in the smaller cities, but not that much here in London. There was some difficulty when the first immigrants found refuge here about the time you left for America, as it was feared that there might be dissidents among the large number that arrived, but that has decreased over time. There are so many lovely French restaurants and shops that the French opened when they arrived, and for the most part, they have been accepted. The English people have become quite accustomed to the touch of class it brings to London, although there is always talk of another war, and that might tend to make some people act in an entirely different manner toward the French." Darcy stood and motioned for them to stay seated while he pulled the bell cord for his housekeeper.

  Mrs. King entered the room, and Darcy asked her to ready two guest chambers for his visitors. "This is Mr. Nicolas Chastain and Miss Janine Chastain. They will be staying with us for at least two nights."

  "Yes, Sir, Mr. Darcy. It is my pleasure to make your guests' stay with us as comfortable as possible." Mrs. King curtsied and greeted them with a smile. "Have you had anything to eat yet today?"

  "No, I'm afraid not. We had a cup of coffee before we left our inn and traveled to London this morning, but please, do not go to any trouble for us."

  "Nonsense", Darcy said. " Mrs. King, please tell Cook to prepare a nice meal for our guests after they have refreshed themselves, and advise her that there will be three of us dining together this evening." He mentioned that he had a meeting arranged for the afternoon, but he would return in time to join them for tea and dinner after they had rested. "There is much to discuss!" he said.

  That afternoon, as planned, Darcy met Bingley at White's. Darcy hadn't been there for over a year, but he noticed some of the same men seated in the very same seats they had occupied at his last visit. He felt disgust at their indolence and the total lack of any kind of productivity in their lives. They sat for hours drinking much too much, complaining incessantly about the terrible weather and their abysmal wives, and, of course, gossiping about the Prince Regent and his barmy father, King George.