The Resolute Suitor: A Pride and Prejudice Variation

by Don Miller

  Jane put her hand on Bingley’s arm. “Charles, whatever made you think we would have be married in black gowns. We need to wear black for our daily life, but there is no requirement a bride or her bridesmaids wear black at her wedding. In fact, it would be considered inappropriate. We could still be married during the mourning period, but without mother or father here, I am not sure this is where I want to get married. Thus, we need to decide when and where to get married. What do you think, Lizzie? Are you going to change your wedding plans because of this?”

  Elizabeth looked at Darcy. “Will, we have not decided on a date for the wedding yet. Do you think we should wait until after the full mourning period of three months?”

  He thought for a while. “I know it is acceptable to go on with a wedding during the full mourning period if the date has already been set and the announcements sent out. However, since that is not the case with us, I am not sure if it appropriate for us to set a wedding date during this period. I think we should ask my Aunt Helen about that.”

  “I must admit, I have never known anyone to be married while they were in full mourning,” said Bingley. “However, I must also admit that three months will seem like a very long time now that we are engaged.”

  “I agree with you there, Bingley,” said Darcy. “But we have a suggestion for the two of you. Now that Mr. and Mrs. Bennet are no longer with us, would you like to marry at Pemberley with us. Elizabeth suggested it on the way here, and I know she would love to be married with her sister beside her.”

  “Oh Lizzie, you had the same thought I did, but I was hesitant to ask. Charles, would you mind? I know many of Lizzie’s and my friends will be disappointed, but I think it would be grand to be married at Pemberley.”

  Charles smiled and nodded his head. “I would like it very much, but, Darcy, you do realize you will have to put up with my sisters if Jane and I wed at Pemberley. You would not have to invite them to your wedding, but we will have to invite them to ours.”

  Darcy laughed. “You know me too well, old friend. That was exactly the one objection I voiced to Elizabeth when she suggested it, but she assured me she could deal with Caroline, and, as I recall from Netherfield, she was not intimidated by your sister at all. And Caroline will have to beware of Aunt Helen, because Aunt Helen does not like her and will cut her to ribbons if she says or does anything that Aunt Helen thinks is inappropriate.”

  “Jane, when I told Georgiana my suggestion, she wondered if Kitty and Mary would not like to come back to Pemberley with us until the wedding and even longer, if they wanted. She would like to know them better. Also, unlike Meryton, there is, according to Georgiana, a very good seamstress in Lambton who makes excellent women’s clothes. Furthermore Georgiana has an entire wardrobe full of magnificent gowns and dresses she has outgrown. The seamstress at Pemberley has already modified some of them for me and I am sure there are many that would suit Mary and Kitty. Of course, none of them are full mourning clothes, but they will provide them part of a wardrobe for after the full mourning period. I am sure Georgiana is talking to them about it now. Would you mind or might the two of you like to come immediately also?”

  Jane looked at Bingley, waiting for him to answer. It was clear to him from her look she would like to go back to Pemberley with them. “I would like to go to Pemberley, but my youngest sister is still the problem. I sent each of my sisters a letter telling them of the engagement. I told them I would write again when the wedding date had been set, but it would most likely be in six or seven weeks, after your marriage. I know the Hursts will just take that to mean they should wait to hear back from me to decide when they should come to Netherfield. However, I have no idea what Caroline might do. Given she is so against the marriage, she might decide she has to come right away, hoping she can somehow convince me to break my engagement, and will not bother to ask permission to come. If she gets here and finds we are not here and where we have gone, you know she will go to Pemberley, thinking it is fully within her rights. I suspect you would find it hard to turn her away.”

  “Bingley, if you would like to go to Pemberley with us, then do. We will deal with your sister when and if the problem arises. I think Jane, Lizzie, Kitty, and Mary would all prefer to be together during this mourning period, and I know Georgiana would love to have their company. If Caroline does not behave, I will have no problem telling her she has to leave Pemberley and stay at the inn in Lambton.”

  Bingley pursed his lips and nodded. “You are right, Darcy. I will not let her dictate my life ever again. If she does not behave as a gentlewoman should, I will deal with her. I will send her back to Bath if need be.”

  “Good. Then it is decided,” said Elizabeth. “After we have gone over Papa’s will with Uncle Phillips, looked through safe, and talked with Mr. Collins, we will pack up and head for Pemberley. We will then decide when we will have the wedding. I must admit I am inclined to wait until after the full mourning period, even if three months does seem like a long time. But let us discuss it more as we return to Pemberley.”

  Chapter 23: Mr. Bennet’s Will

  The next morning at ten o’clock, the four Bennet sisters, Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner, Mr. and Mrs. Collins, and Mr. and Mrs. Phillips met in the drawing room of the Phillips’ house so that Mr. Phillips, as Mr. Bennet’s executor, could acquaint them with the terms of Mr. Bennet’s will. Mr. Collins looked visibly upset, because he felt what he would be inheriting now was almost worthless. The others looked expectant, wondering what Mr. Bennet’s actual worth had been.

  “Let us first discuss the entail, after which Mr. and Mrs. Collins may leave, as Mr. Bennet specified they were not to be present when the part relating to his wife and daughters was read. Mr. Collins, as inheritor of Longbourn, you are to receive all lands and structures on that land and from this day forward, all income from that land. This includes the house and all of its contents except for designated personal items, which need not be discussed here, because they were destroyed in the fire. You also inherit all of the money in the Longbourn account, held here in the Meryton bank, which, as of today, contains £8132. Mr. Avery, the Longbourn steward, has agreed to meet with you at the Lucas’ house whenever you wish. He told me yesterday the income from Longbourn last year was £4256.”

  Jane, Kitty, Mary, and Mr. and Mrs. Collins all gasped at the amount, because they had always heard that Longbourn returned no more than £2000 per year to Mr. Bennet. “If Longbourn earned that much per year,” said Mr. Collins, “why is there not more money in the Longbourn account?”

  “Because, as was his right, Mr. Bennet spent it as he wished. If I were you, I would count yourself fortunate there was that much in there. Had Mr. Bennet known he was going to die, I suspect he might have reduced the account balance to even less.”

  “On what did he spend it?”

  “I cannot say, nor is it of concern in this situation. As I said, it was his to spend as he wished and money that has been spent for improvements of Longbourn or articles for the house is not accountable to you or anyone else.”

  “But what about the expense of rebuilding the house?”

  “That is your concern, Mr. Collins, as the new owner of Longbourn. However, I am sure the income from the land should allow you to build a very comfortable residence. I expect the bank here will be happy to give you a mortgage.”

  “How do we get the income?” asked Charlotte Collins.

  “Mr. Avery collects the rents every month and manages the sale of crops grown on Longbourn land. Profits are deposited into the Longbourn account at the bank. He keeps very detailed books, and, of course, Mr. Bennet also kept books. Elizabeth opened the safe he had in his office and we found these ledgers in the safe which should duplicate the information Mr. Avery has.” And he handed several ledgers to Mr. Collins. “The larger of the books gives an accounting of expenses and income related to Longbourn itself and each of the others gives an accounting of expenses and income related to each of the tenants. There was also £832 cash
in there, which is yours.” He then took an envelope from his valise and handed it to Mr. Collins. “Everything else in the safe were documents personal to Mr. Bennet and his family.”

  A pouting Mr. Collins said, “I think I should be able to look at those documents.”

  “No, Mr. Collins, you should not, nor would any judge allow you to see them. They are documents Mr. Bennet would have given to his wife and children before he died and you would never have seen them had he had a natural death.”

  Charlotte stood up and said, “Come, Mr. Collins, we have received a significant inheritance. Let us be happy with our good fortune. Let us allow the family now to have their personal time with his will. Once again, to all of you, you have my condolences and, Lizzie, I hope you will continue to keep in touch with me.”

  Elizabeth arose, went over to Charlotte, and hugged her. “Of course I will. How could you think I would not? You will always be one of my best friends.”

  After the Collinses had gone, Mr. Phillips pulled more papers out of his valise. “Now comes the big surprise. Gardiner and I had always known that your father had more than £2000 income from Longbourn, but we did not know how much more. I suspect Lizzie was the only one who knew. Is that not true Lizzie?”

  “Yes, once I started helping him keep books five years ago, I discovered the income was usually around £4000 per year. However, he made me promise on the Bible I would not disclose it with anyone, because he did not want mother to know. He was afraid she would start spending freely and demanding more and he wanted to put away money for our futures.”

  This is where I come in,” said Mr. Gardiner. “He has been sending money to me to invest for years. Part of it went into my business and part of it in other investments. As of this date, you girls inherit more than £100,000, which gives each of you a significant dowry.”

  “Of course,” said Mr. Phillips, “Bennet had intended £30,000 be given to your mother in increments of £1000 per year to support her until she died and then what was remaining was to be divided between the five of you. Now that £30,000 is part of what you inherit. However, until we know for sure what happened to Lydia, one-fifth of the inheritance must be held out for her. She has one year to appear. You were each given one year to accept your inheritance and if, for some reason, one or more did not accept their part, that part would be equally divided among the others. Also, none of you will actually receive your inheritance until you are married or reach the age of twenty-five.”

  “Therefore, if I understand all that you have just said, when I marry Charles and Lizzie marries Darcy, we will each receive at least £20,000 as a dowry.”

  “Yes, Jane, that is correct. And if Lydia does not appear within a year, another £5,000 will be yours.”

  “That is almost unbelievable to me. Why would he not tell at least me? I believe I showed him I was a responsible woman who could be trusted with a secret. And why did not you tell me Lizzie?”

  “I did not tell you because he told me not to tell you. But, also, what good would it have done you to know? You could not have told anyone until you were married and Papa said if I or you or any of us told anyone before our marriage, he would change the will and reduce that daughter’s portion.”

  Jane thought for a moment. “I think it would have given me more confidence in my interactions with potential suitors. I would have felt I was more acceptable as a wife to more men. But, Lizzie, I will not be mad at you about it, because, I have made the best match I can imagine and I did it without knowing about the inheritance. Thus, in the end, not knowing about it did not hurt me.”

  “I did not think about that Jane. But you see; it had the opposite effect on me. Because I knew it, I was more confident of my future and was therefore probably more resistant to Will than I would have been. It could have cost me the love of my life. I thank God that Will was so determined.”

  “Will we be able to tell people we have a £20,000 dowry?” asked Mary.

  “Yes. It is entirely up to you. It is your money now and you can tell who you wish about it. I would, however, caution you against broadcasting it widely, as that will draw fortune hunters like Mr. Wickham who are very persuasive and appear very honest and gentlemanly.”

  “That brings up another directive in the will: the role of guardian. As you might expect, your Aunt and Uncle Gardiner are named as your guardians. They are now essentially your parents. However, they cannot countermand agreements already made by your father. Therefore, Jane and Elizabeth, you are still officially engaged. Not that I think the Gardiners would want to negate your engagements, but it was required that I tell you. The decision as to where you will live will be decided by them.”

  “Mary and Kitty, if you like, we would be happy to have you come and live with us,” said Mrs. Gardiner. “There are some very good young men in our circle whom you might find interesting, and a dowry such as you will have will certainly make them take interest.”

  Mary thought for a moment. “I would much rather stay in Meryton with Jane and Mr. Bingley or you, Aunt and Uncle Phillips.” She blushed and then continued in a low voice, “I have some hopes for Mr. Thompson, the curate. We have had some interesting conversations and I think he likes me. I like him and maybe having the dowry will make him think I might make a good wife.”

  All of her sisters looked at her in surprise. “Mary, you clever thing,” said Kitty. “I did not even know you knew him that well. When do you see him?”

  “Why do you think I go to church to practice on the piano there? I said it was because I always wanted to practice the Sunday music on the church piano before I played for Sunday service, but it was also a chance to see Mr. Thompson. He was also the reason I volunteered last year to be the pianist on Sundays.”

  “Mary, I think that is wonderful. Of course you can stay with us,” said Jane, “but would you rather stay in town closer to the church?”

  A smiling Mrs. Phillips said, “I do think she would rather stay with us; particularly when I tell her that Mr. Thompson takes supper with us at least once every two weeks. Has he told you that?”

  “Yes, he did mention it when I told him you were my aunt and uncle. And you may not have noticed, but I have talked to him at your last two tea parties while all of you were playing cards.”

  “We have lots of room and we would love having you live with us, would we not, Harold?”

  “We would indeed, Mary. If that is what you would like.” Speaking to the Gardiners, he asked, “Would that be alright with you?”

  “Is that truly what you want Mary?” asked Mrs. Gardiner.

  “Yes it is.”

  “Then it is settled Mary. You can move in with us as soon as you wish.”

  “How about me?” asked Kitty. “I do not want to upset you, Uncle Edward or Aunt Madeleine, but Georgiana thought I might be able to live at Pemberley. I think she would be a sister with whom I would very much like to live. Lizzie, would you or Mr. Darcy object?”

  “Kitty, we have already talked about that and decided we would love to have you if aunt and uncle do not mind. We will prepare you with Georgiana for a coming out in the ton. You will be able to meet sons of peers of the realm and all sorts of rich young men and your dowry will make you much more attractive to them, despite your modest upbringing. And the fact you are the sister of Mr. Darcy’s wife will not hurt either.”

  “Oh thank you, thank you, thank you, Lizzie. I will work very hard to learn to be a proper gentlewoman and make you proud of me.”

  Mr. Gardiner laughed. “It seems our role as guardians is going to be symbolic. I am sure I will probably defer to Mr. Darcy or Mr. Phillips relative to suitors and approval of courtships and engagements. May I ask; does Miss Darcy have another term in school in London?”

  “She did, but we decided she would not return this fall. We have decided to hire private tutors. Kitty could then have the advantage of them also.”

  “That seems very satisfactory; therefore permission is given for Kitty to live with
the Darcys.”

  “Thank you, Uncle Edward. I hope you do not think I would not like living with you. I just think living with Lizzie and Georgiana will be wonderful and very good for me. I know I have a lot to learn if I am to be a true gentlewoman.”

  “Now that living arrangements and inheritances have been decided, let me tell you of one other surprise your father has for you. Do you know the lovely cottage in which the Widow Harding lives?”

  When all acknowledged that did, he continued, “When her husband died a few years ago, he left her with very little and she decided to sell her house and try to find someplace cheaper to live. I told your father about it, he looked at the house, and offered to buy it from her, agreeing in turn to rent it to her at a very reasonable rate, which she could pay out of the money he gave her for the house. He arranged to give her monthly payments for three years, out of which he would take her rent. His offer was very generous and she took it, realizing that when she died the house would be his. He did agree if she died before three years were up, he would give the amount remaining to her daughter. The point is: the three years is up in three months. I have arranged for her to receive the last three payments and from then on, she will be paying rent. Lizzie, he left the house to you and your mother, thinking that you were less likely to marry than Jane. He wanted to ensure you had a place to live when he died, knowing if the other girls needed a home, you would supply it. I would suggest you go talk to Mrs. Harding and discuss her continuing habitation of the house. I believe she is becoming so feeble it is difficult for her to take care of it and thus, she might like to go live with her daughter now. Her daughter and son know all about the deal Mrs. Harding made with your father and I believe, now that their children are grown and mostly gone from home, will be happy to take in Mrs. Harding.”

  Elizabeth shook her head in disbelief. “This just gets odder and odder. Father never told me about the purchase nor did I ever see anything about it in the books with which I helped him. He must have had an entirely different book for this house.”