The Ashes of Longbourn

by Schertz, Melanie

  “I am Frederick Storm. My family lived next door to the Collins family, and we were the best of friends. I found young Collins had fallen from the loft in their barn. As he lay dying, he begged me to take over for him. Longbourn had no other heir and he did not wish to see it be lost due to his death. It was at his insistence that I took over his life, coming to Hunsford to tend to the souls of those in the parish. Miss Elizabeth should have been my wife, she should have married me. Instead, she made me the laughingstock of her family and her neighbors. I was forced to marry that nobody, Charlotte Lucas, to keep up appearances, but I will not be unfaithful to my Anne. In my heart, Anne has always been my wife.”

  “He is mine, and you, Cousin, cannot take him from me. Mother will not allow it, I am sure, as Frederick is dear to me and I will insist on her protecting him.” Anne said as a dreamy look came over her expression. “I insist that you, Richard, go back to Hertfordshire and bring Darcy here so that we can be married immediately. I am quite put out with all of his excuses, he needs to come now. And you can easily put an end to that chit Elizabeth Bennet. It would be simple enough for you with all the training you have had, not to mention experience at war, killing people.”

  “Anne, you are ill. I will not murder Elizabeth for you, nor will I bring Darcy here. You are delusional, and far too many people have paid a high price for your insanity.”

  Anne pulled her arm free from the soldier who was holding her, reaching out in an attempt to harm her cousin. “I am Anne de Bourgh, and I will not be spoken to in such a manner, not even by you, Cousin. I will see that you are killed for your insolence.”

  Colonel Fitzwilliam was repulsed by his cousin’s behavior. “Take her to the main house, the physician will need to examine her and determine what is to be done with her.”

  “My mother will not allow your physician to tend to me. She will not allow you to cause me any harm. You had best leave me to my business and go prepare for your own demise. And Darcy as well, if he will not abide by his commitment to marry me. I will see him and that chit in the ground before I allow them to carry on in such a manner. That little country nobody will not make me food for the gossips to twitter about.”

  “Gag her and bind her hands.” Colonel Forster called out. “Sgt. Winters, you go with them and make certain that the physician sees Miss de Bourgh. You there, Johnson, you make sure that this man is taken to the stable until the magistrate can be sent to deal with him.” The colonel pointed at Frederick Storm.

  The soldiers took their captives from the cabin, bound and gagged and both of them fighting to gain their freedom. Colonel Forster felt a deep sense of regret for his friend, as it was clear that Colonel Fitzwilliam’s family had a great deal to contend with. “Shall we return to your father and inform him of what we have learned?”

  Colonel Fitzwilliam nodded as he glanced around the room a final time. He picked up his cousin’s gown from the floor where she had abandoned it, preparing to show Lady Catherine proof that her daughter was not taken advantage of and violated, as the gown had no tears or stains. No, it was clear that Anne had participated of her own free will.

  Entering the foyer of the main house at Rosings, Richard Fitzwilliam could hear his aunt ranting about the treatment of her daughter by men she had never met before. Lord Matlock allowed his sister to rant until he saw his son. Turning her attention towards her nephew, Lady Catherine unleashed her fury on him.

  “How dare you allow these men to manhandle my daughter? It is clear that she has been violated; she has no clothing on and is irrational. How could you allow someone else to bring her here, you should have done so yourself. You have made matters worse for her by abandoning her to these soldiers. And they bound her hands and gagged her. Oh, my poor dear Anne, to be treated in such a manner. Richard, I hold you responsible for my daughter’s mistreatment.”

  “And I hold your daughter responsible for the deaths of the Bennet family and the pain that has been inflicted on many others. Anne was financing your clergyman, who admits to being Frederick Storm, not William Collins. They wanted Elizabeth murdered to remove her from Darcy’s life as well as payback for her refusing Storm’s offer of marriage. They planned to force Darcy into a marriage of convenience for his money. Is Rosings suffering financially?”

  Lady Catherine looked confused. “Rosings has never been in need of money, as I took care to protect it. Anne took over the books nearly a year and a half ago. But I cannot see that she would have made mistakes that would make her believe Rosings was in debt. She would have come to me with concerns she might have had.”

  “She has been financing Mr Storm’s schemes in Hertfordshire.” Richard said. “And they have been lovers since before his marriage to Miss Lucas. You may find that Rosings is in financial problems due to her giving Mr Storm a great deal of funds.”

  “Anne would never behave so irresponsibly. This man…Mr Collins…he must have stolen it or forced her to give it to him, for Anne would not have given it to him willingly. Look at what he has already done to her, violating her and ruining her for all other men. Darcy must be made to come immediately to marry her and save her reputation.”

  Lord Matlock could not tolerate his sister’s foolishness any further. “Catherine, stop this caterwauling this instant. Darcy is married and will never be married to Anne. Anne was not violated; she willingly ruined herself by giving herself to this Mr Storm. She has also been involved in the conspiracy of her own free will. The physician we brought with us will examine her, but I believe it will be necessary for us to have Anne sent to a sanitarium. From what I have heard here, that is the only way to keep her from the gallows for her crimes.”

  “Anne was forced into all of this; she is a gentle and sweet natured girl who would never harm anyone else.”

  “You may believe that all you wish, Sister, but the truth is that your daughter is deranged. And you allowed her to do as she pleased, always making excuses for her behavior. Now, I suggest that you go into the drawing room and calm yourself while we wait for the physician to give us his recommendations.”

  As Lady Catherine turned, furious at what her brother had told her, Colonel Fitzwilliam shook his head. “This is one day I pray I forget soon. I cannot believe we ever worried about poor, sickly Anne. I will never underestimate her again.”

  ~~~~~~~ ** ~~~~~~~

  Chapter 20

  Darcy was awaiting news from his uncle and cousin the following morning. He had thought that they would have sent an express the night before, and when he had finally fallen asleep, he was afraid of what could have happened to have kept word from being sent. Had Lord Matlock or Colonel Fitzwilliam been injured or worse yet, killed?

  He finally heard a horse approaching the house rapidly. Darcy ran to the front door and waited for the rider to dismount. The rider turned out to be Sgt. Winters. “Good God, Man, you look as if you have ridden to hell and back.”

  “Feels that way, Sir. I will be plum glad when this mess is over so that I can find some rest. A message here from the Colonel.”

  “You should go to the kitchen and have something to eat, before taking some rest. I will let you know if I need you to return with a message.”

  Sgt. Winters nodded his head. “I thank you, Sir. I left Rosings quite early this morning.”

  Breaking open the seal, Darcy quickly read the message from his cousin. Disbelief was obvious, as he would never have thought Anne capable of such villainy. But the description of Lady Catherine’s behavior was predictable. Never had Lady Catherine accepted any blame for anything that had happened, nor would she accept that Darcy would not be the white knight, riding in on his stallion, to rescue them.

  He decided to wait until everyone had gathered to break their fast, as this would allow him to repeat the information from the letter once. Entering the breakfast room, Darcy found Bingley was the only one in the room, drinking his coffee as he read a letter which had arrived in the post.

  “Ah, Darcy, good morning to you, how
is Lizzy this morning?”

  “She was snug in bed, dreaming good dreams from the smile on her face.”

  “That is wonderful. I must say, if you had not returned when you did, I am afraid that Lizzy would not have survived much longer. And now, she is returning to us more and more every day.”

  “Lizzy told me that she had a discussion with Jane concerning the two of you marrying soon. I believe she is planning to continue working on Jane until she gives in.”

  “Thanks to your dear wife, Jane has agreed to have our wedding next week. We were planning to announce the news this morning. I will need to write to Louisa and Hurst to invite them to come. There will be a problem with Caroline, I am sure. I was just reading the latest news from Louisa. She is looking forward to becoming a mother. You can nearly feel her joy leap from the pages of the letter.”

  “I am pleased for her and Hurst. Will they remain in Town for the confinement or will they travel to Hurst’s family estate?”

  “Most likely stay in Town, as Hurst is insisting on all the latest medical care for my sister. Louisa says that he is as nervous as a wet hen.”

  “Should be interesting to see, as most of the time I have been in the presence of Hurst, he has been asleep, drunk, or eating.” Darcy said as he laughed.

  “Actually, Hurst pretends to be asleep or drunk for Caroline, so she leaves him alone. It has caused problems at times for Louisa and Hurst, but they are now working towards a wonderful life with a family.”

  Hearing voices coming towards the breakfast room, a smile came to his face as he saw his wife conversing with her sister. The carefree manner which Elizabeth spoke was one of the signs that her spirit was nearly restored to before the fire. It made his heart soar to hear the musical notes as she spoke.

  “Good morning, my love.” Darcy said as he leaned over to place a kiss on his wife’s lips. “Did you have any difficulty coming downstairs without me?”

  “Mrs Hill sent for one of the footmen to help me down, and Jane aided me with the chair. Jane said that I have gained enough weight back that she can no longer lift me by herself.” Elizabeth said with a smile. “Now I need to be careful not to over eat and gain too much weight.”

  “I believe having a little more to hold on to is much nicer for me.” Darcy said teasingly. “And, as long as you do not become as large as the side of the house, I will not complain.”

  “What if I become too large to fit through the door to our bed chamber?”

  “Then there are two solutions. Either the door would have to be made larger, or you would have to remain in our bed chambers for the rest of your life, with me at your side, of course.”

  “Of course.” Elizabeth said with a laugh. “You are in a chipper mood this morning. Has there been any news from your uncle yet?”

  “There has. I was waiting for everyone to join us before I read it out loud.”

  One by one, their family members entered the breakfast room, and, after everyone had arrived, Darcy related the news from Rosings. Lady Matlock, Georgiana and Elizabeth were shocked at the news that Anne, not Lady Catherine, was the culprit. None were surprised to learn the physician’s evaluation determined that Anne was insane. She would be delivered to a secure sanitarium to live out her days. It was also learned that she was with child. Lady Catherine was nearly catatonic from the news, collapsing when she heard that she was to be a grandmother.

  The physician insisted that Lady Catherine be removed from Rosings to Bath or Brighton, in hopes that the change of environments and the healing waters of those locations would be able to calm the elder woman. This brought a chuckle from Lady Matlock, the thought of Lady Catherine calm was difficult to picture. A nurse was hired to travel with Lady Catherine and stay with her.

  The men had spent the night going over the books of Rosings. Anne had destroyed her heritage, leaving Lady Catherine nearly penniless. It appeared that Anne had given a great deal of funds to Mr Storm, though where he put it was unknown. He refused to speak without his beloved Anne, and she was in no condition to participate in such a conversation.

  It was at the suggestion of the solicitor that Rosings be sold. The townhouse in London would be kept to house Lady Catherine. There were limited funds available for the time being, though the solicitor seemed optimistic that the bookkeeper that he had on staff would be able to assist in finding some of the missing funds. For the first time in her life, Lady Catherine would need to be on a fixed and very rigid budget. Funds would also need to be available to pay for Anne’s keep and the medical care for her and her unborn child.

  The information was overwhelming for all at the table. The future was still uncertain, though there was peace in knowing that Anne and Mr Storm where in custody, Wickham was dead, and Mr Jolly was set to sail from England forever. For the first time since the fire, Elizabeth was able to take a breath and release all the pain and agony that had been held inside her, even after Darcy had returned to her. To know that such evil and such insanity could destroy so many lives was difficult. Now the true healing could begin.

  Wiping the tears from his wife’s cheeks, Darcy kissed her forehead. “Dearest, Charles has informed me just this morning that your sister as agreed to marry him next week. Is that not wonderful news?”

  “That is wonderful news.” Elizabeth squealed as she turned to her sister. “We must begin immediately to prepare for it. Jane, you will need a new gown. And we will need to plan a wedding breakfast. Where shall you have the wedding? The chapel here is quite nice, though it is not large.”

  The other ladies began to laugh. Mrs Gardiner could not help her response. “Lizzy, you could not think of these things for your own wedding, and yet, here you are sounding much like your mother.”

  “Well, I know that Jane has always wished for a more formal sort of wedding than I. And Mamma would be delighted to have finally had the wedding she had desired since we first received word of Mr Bingley’s arrival at Netherfield. It is also time for me to behave a little silly, as I have been far too serious for too long.”

  Jane ran to her sister and embraced her. “I am so pleased to have my sister back, my dear Lizzy. So pleased, I will even allow you to plan my wedding breakfast and choose the style for my gown.”

  Lady Matlock watched with pleasure as the sisters became animated as they spoke. It was not long before Georgiana chimed in her opinions on the latest style of gowns and how Jane should wear her hair. Bingley was pleased to see Jane become involved in the discussion, and the delight she took in some of the plans. He would send an express to Louisa and Hurst. The only problem was what to do with Caroline?

  ~~ ** ~~

  Lady Matlock and Georgiana went to the sitting room attached to Lady Matlock’s bedchamber. The aunt knew her young niece well enough to know that Georgiana was in need of some motherly advice. “The news that arrived from your uncle was surprising, was it not?”

  “Aunt, it is difficult to believe the Anne was behind all of this chaos. She has always been so frail and delicate. To learn that she has been causing so many problems, not only here, but even for her own mother, my heart goes out to Lady Catherine. Losing her daughter to her condition and to lose her home for allowing Anne to have her way, I am sure that Lady Catherine is devastated.”

  “Lady Catherine brought a lot of this on herself. She has always pampered and spoiled Anne, allowing Anne to behave whatever way she wished without consequences for her actions. To lose everything due to her own foolishness for giving Anne free rein to do as she pleased is just desserts if you ask me. It will be interesting to see my sister in law learn what it is like to stay on a budget and not be able to spend money as she wishes. Lady Catherine has always been able to spend funds as she saw fit, now she will have to do as she is told.”

  “And what will happen with the baby?” Georgiana asked softly.

  “I am sure that your uncle and your brother will see that the babe finds a good home, away from Lady Catherine. Your aunt is in no way able to care for a b
abe, not that she was able to take care of Anne when she was a small child. No, it is best that a baby be sent to a family that will take care of it.”

  “If left in Lady Catherine’s power to see it raised, she would ruin any child’s chance at a good life. I am glad that William did not go with Uncle Henry. My brother would have taken all of the concerns on himself rather than concentrate on his own happiness with Lizzy. I pray that they will be able to have a child when Elizabeth recovers.”

  “Georgiana, you do know, there is a chance that Elizabeth may never be able to walk or to have a child. Elizabeth may be in a wheeled chair for the rest of her life.”

  The young girl smiled. “No, I have a strong feeling that Lizzy will recover. I dreamed of William and Elizabeth riding on horses to the hill above Mother’s favorite grove. I am certain that my sister will be able to walk again.”

  ~~ ** ~~

  Jane and Elizabeth met in the study of the Mistress of Netherfield. “Oh, Lizzy, we have been living here these many months, and I have already been acting as the Mistress of the estate. To think that next week I will truly be the Mistress, and Mrs Charles Bingley.”

  “You deserve such joys, Jane. You have been so good to me and looked out for my needs; I can never thank you enough.”

  “You are being silly, Lizzy. I did nothing more than you would have done for me if the situation were reversed. I wish it were me in the chair, rather than see you so restricted.”

  “It is one of life’s tests, dear sister. Do not tell anyone, for only Mrs Bogs knows at the moment. I felt a slight tingling sensation in my right toes yesterday. I believe her treatments are helping me and that I will be able to walk again.”

  “Oh, Lizzy, that is wonderful news.” She said as she embraced her sister. “Why are you not singing from the rooftops of this news?”

  “I wish to wait until we see how this progresses. I could not stand to watch William be disappointed if it is all for naught.”

  Taking her sister’s hands in her own, Jane placed a gentle kiss on the knuckles of each. “William could never be disappointed to hear any news which tells that you are getting better. I will pray that it continues and you will soon regain the use of your legs.”