“I’m sure Georgiana will be fine. Now, perhaps, I can hear your news more fully. What is this about being promised to Mr Wickham? And what are you doing in London? I thought you were in Brighton, staying with Colonel and Mrs Forster?”
“Well, I was staying with them to be sure, but Mr Wickham loves me, Lizzy! He loves me with all his heart, and we are to be married. I have been much in his company in Brighton.” She paused, tilting her head and eyeing me in a way that gave me no comfort. “We have been to dances and assemblies. It was quite blissful, but once I knew he was to be my husband, there was nothing to keep me in Brighton. Wickham was eager to get away as he has business in town, and so I accompanied him. We arrived in town late on Friday, and I would have visited you before but—”
“Lydia, slow down! Do Papa and Mama know anything about this?”
“I do not believe they know yet. Mrs Forster knows, but she is a great friend, and she would not betray me. She planned to tell the colonel that I had missed Longbourn so much I needed to return. Is that not the drollest thing you ever heard? I have written to Kitty, but the letter may not have arrived. And in any case, I trust her to keep my secrets. I thought it would be more fun not to include them. How shocked they shall be!”
“Yes, I think you are right. They will be shocked to the bone. Have you told anyone apart from Kitty?”
“Why, I have told you and Mr Darcy and Miss Darcy and Mrs Forster, and I have written to Kitty.”
“And where have you been staying in town?”
“We have been in a dreadful inn called the White Hart. It is in a ghastly lane off Regent Street, and it took me forty minutes to walk here. I have said to Wickham that we cannot stay there another moment, and he agreed I should have a house. We should not be kept to dirty inn rooms like beggars, and so I thought you might know how I might find a house.”
“Lydia. Do you not think that, if you and Mr Wickham are to marry, you should do so before gadding about the country or taking houses or anything else? What of his position in Colonel Forster’s regiment?” It was a great effort to keep my tone calm.
“Well, he has left the regiment, Lizzy. There was no future there, and Wickham has plans! He cannot allow the grass to grow under his feet.”
“I’m sure he cannot. Now, Lydia, tell me: have you had…do you have separate quarters at the White Hart?”
“Oh no, of course not. You are a married woman, are you not? I am surprised you even ask such a question!” With this, she snorted and laughed a raucous laugh. How ridiculous under the circumstances that it was I who felt embarrassed.
“Yes, indeed. Now, where is Wickham? Is he at the inn?”
“I expect so. He has hardly been out since we arrived. He has to attend to so many matters.”
“Well, why not stay here and finish your cake and tea, and I will be back shortly? Is that agreeable?”
She nodded happily, and it was plain that, despite her circumstances, she had no notion to run away. She simply plumped down in her seat and opened her mouth to her sponge. I found Mr Darcy waiting outside the door for me, and together we hurried to his study.
“How is Georgiana?”
“She is fine, Elizabeth. I think she is feeling rather foolish, but she is fine. Now, what has Lydia to say?”
My heart sank as I thought of poor, stupid, thoughtless Lydia, sitting in the drawing room, eating cake, and imagining herself a married lady with a house in town. “Oh, Fitzwilliam, I hardly know where to start.” I looked away from him, and hot tears pricked my eyes. “She tells me she and Mr Wickham ran away from Brighton together. That they intend to marry but are not married yet. That our parents know nothing of her plans. That Mr Wickham has left the regiment for good, and they have been staying together in an inn near Regent Street since Friday night! I asked if they had been quartered separately, and she actually laughed. He is still at the inn apparently. Oh, it is too shameful!”
I felt his strong arms gathering me up and his kisses on my eyes. “Hush, Elizabeth. There is no need to cry. All will be well, my dearest. Hush.”
“But whatever must you think of us after all that has happened before? And I know you have your reasons for forgiving Mama over her behaviour—but this! Lydia does not even realise that she has done anything wrong! She has not a thought for the feelings of our parents or poor unmarried Kitty or anyone but herself. If Mr Bingley were a different man, he might even abandon Jane over a scandal of this magnitude. Lydia has proved that she has no morals at all! I can hardly face you, Fitzwilliam, when you know this of my sister!”
“Hush. What is true of your sister was almost true of mine, Elizabeth. That is why she fainted at the mention of his name. I believe it was a great shock to her to hear it spoken again and so unexpectedly. You see, Georgiana and I have not spoken of him since last summer. At that time, Wickham sought Georgiana when she was away at the seaside. She was persuaded to believe herself in love with him and to consent to an elopement.” His grip on my arm loosened, and I was all astonishment.
“An elopement? Georgiana?”
“Yes. I did not tell you before because…well, it did not seem necessary, and I did not want you to think less of her as a result of this business. But the fact is that she agreed, and it was all fixed to take place. The only reason it did not come about was that I arrived unexpectedly, and she confessed to me. She was then but fifteen, which must be her excuse.”
“Lydia is only fifteen.”
“Well, in that, he is quite consistent. In Georgiana’s case, I am certain his object was her fortune. As for Lydia, well, time will have to tell. I only hope he has not taken advantage of her absence from the inn to flee. Now I must write express to your uncle and father, and I will go to this inn to find the cad. If we can achieve a marriage as soon as possible, then in part her reputation will be saved, and it will likely have no influence on the prospects of Catherine.”
“Thank you. You always know what is to be done.”
“It is my role to know what is to be done, Elizabeth, and I will not see you in distress. May I leave you now? Please look in on Georgiana, and then escort Lydia to your Uncle Gardiner’s home. I would keep her here, but I think an uncle is probably more suitable than a brother is to be her guardian. And in any case, I hope you understand I cannot have her chattering on about Wickham in front of Georgiana.”
“Yes, of course. I would not dream of it. She must go to Gracechurch Street, but I should stay with her. I cannot leave her to my poor aunt.”
Mr Darcy was not happy about this, but eventually, we agreed that I would accompany Lydia to Cheapside and stay with her at least the first night. It was a challenge to persuade her not to return to the inn, but I pleaded with her that she could not return there unmarried. In the end, I believe she was swayed less by my arguments than by the prospects of a ride through town in Mr Darcy’s barouche. Whatever the inducements, she relented, and after sitting in silence on the way, we arrived at Gracechurch Street. My husband’s express had gone ahead of us, so my aunt knew what was afoot. My uncle had already left the house to join Mr Darcy at the White Hart, and we ladies were left in ignorance of what transpired there.
Our time together passed in boredom, anxiety, and frustration. Lydia sat in the window seat and talked of “dear Wickham” and his grand plans for the future. She continued to eat prodigious quantities while I had no appetite. When told that our father had been sent for and our uncle and Mr Darcy were working to assure her marriage would take place quickly, she was quite at a loss to understand the fuss and wasted no time in saying so. “Well, I cannot imagine why you are all being so dreadfully serious. After all, Lizzy, you only married Mr Darcy because Mama and Mrs Long saw him kiss you.”
“Lydia!”
“Well, everyone knows. It is no secret. And has it not worked out jolly for you? Mr Darcy is a dour sort, but he is awful
ly rich, and he looks after you, does he not? In any case, it got you away from home, and that is what we all need to do. Lord! Mama is always going on about the difficulty of marrying us off, but when I find myself a husband, nobody seems to have a good word to say about it.
“But you have not got yourself a husband yet, Lydia! The problem is…you eloped, and you have been living with Mr Wickham, unmarried! Can you not see that?”
“No, I do not see that! I think you are all being awfully daft about it. After all, it will not be easy for Kitty and Jane. How many eligible men happen upon us, Lizzy? Hardly any. Mr Bingley, who seemed so hopeful, is gone, and when will another of his like come along? There is no one of our existing acquaintances. The regiment coming to Meryton was the best thing that has happened in years, and I am the only one to act on it. I do not see as I should be censured for it now!”
It occurred to me that she had been away from home for so long, she did not know of Jane’s engagement to Mr Bingley. I could have berated her on the anguish she must have caused our parents or the impact on poor Kitty of the inevitable gossip, but there was no point. Lydia’s mind was set. Her Wickham was as eligible a beau as any girl ever had, and nobody would disabuse her of the notion. What is more, her words fetched back to me the mood of Longbourn—the longing for something to happen and the ache to break out—and I knew that, in amongst her nonsense, there was a kernel of truth. With my silence, we were at a truce: Lydia eating her cake and me at a book borrowed from my uncle’s library. Thus, we were eventually joined by my uncle and Mr Darcy, who both looked wan in the evening light.
“My dear Lizzy. Lydia!” snapped my uncle as he placed his hat upon the table. Our heads popped up like sunflowers, and my stomach turned with fear of what may or may not have come to pass. “Well, Lydia, Mr Darcy and I have just left Mr Wickham. We have spent a great part of the day with him, and we have ventured to make a number of arrangements, which I believe are satisfactory. I expect your poor father to arrive at any time, but I cannot think he will object to any part of the agreement. Indeed, I cannot see there is any choice. You shall be married from this house in two days’ time. We shall obtain a special licence tomorrow morning.”
“Married by special licence—how grand! But two days’ time is far too short, Uncle. Why I need time to purchase dresses and—”
“Lydia, I am not opening a discussion on this subject, and I doubt my brother Bennet shall either. You have caused scandal enough, and you must be married as soon as possible in whatever clothing can be found for you in the time available. Let that be an end to the matter.”
At this dressing down, the colour rose in my sister’s face, and her expression was wild with fury. “If Mama were here, she would defend me! Lizzy, shall you not help me in this? It is not fair!”
“No, Lydia, I think Uncle is right. It is much better that the thing be done quickly.”
Lydia glared at me, jerked up her arms, let out a teary shriek, and ran from the room. I was struck by how much she was still a child, and I was overcome with pity for her situation. If I had been unprepared for the married state at twenty, then Lydia at fifteen was far less so. All she knew of men were redcoats, dances, and flirting over card tables. She knew nothing of the strange intimacies of sharing a life with a man day after day: of making space for him alongside you, or of the elliptical mysteries of the flesh after its novelty had worn off. Her caprices would not always carry the day. She would have to contend with Wickham’s vices and inadequacies, and her prospects were not good. She was a spoilt child of limited sense, and she appeared to have grand expectations of him. I wondered how she would fare, and I was most downcast.
With Lydia gone, it was explained that Wickham had not played the part of the willing bridegroom. He had a number of debts in Brighton, which motivated his decampment. Why he had taken Lydia with him was something of a mystery, but my uncle said they found no intention of his marrying her. He had only agreed to do so with the covenant that his debts were paid off and a sum of money paid to him to begin life anew. He was to take up a commission in Newcastle, which I thought had the merit of being far away. How this had been procured when he had effectively deserted from Brighton, I knew not. My heart ached to think of Fitzwilliam being forced into negotiations with the man who had tried to ruin his sister. I also thought it likely that my husband had laid out most of—or perhaps all— the sum required to bring this marriage about, and I was mortified. His penance for having looked down upon my family seemed to be long and arduous, and I felt great shame at their behaviour.
My husband reluctantly took his leave of me that night. He expressed concern should I become upset sharing a room with Lydia and suggested she would be well looked after by our aunt. I wished for nothing more than to sleep in his arms in our own home, but I could not in conscience leave my sister, so I stayed. She had had no supper and had spoken not one word to me when I joined her in bed. We lay together in the dark, shadows falling across the bed and unfamiliar noises of the eastern part of the city at night drifting through the windows. I knew Lydia lay awake, too. I felt with great sadness the sheer unluckiness of her situation. In my mind, I compared my nuptials to hers. By threat of scandal, I had to marry a stranger who turned out to be the best man I had ever known, and now I loved him as he loved me. Poor Lydia, I knew in my heart, would not be so fortunate.
“We shall see what we can do about a gown tomorrow, Lydia. I have some very pretty ones just arrived from the modiste that might do for you. You and I suit the same colours and are similar about the body, except you are the taller, of course. Hannah could let down the hems to fit you. We could change the ribbon or the lace to suit you. You may take my gown and make it your own just like we used to do at Longbourn.”
My words seemed to settle on the bed linen between us, and I knew she was deciding whether to maintain her sulk. At length, she responded quietly, “Thank you, Lizzy. You had to wear one of Jane’s did you not, so I suppose you and I are alike?”
“Yes, I did, and I suppose, in that regard, we are.” I tried to sound light and hopeful. There followed a long and hollow silence before Lydia turned onto her front and looked at me.
“Oh, Lizzy, what will become of me?” And with that, her shoulders shook gently, and her tears fell. I took her into my arms and held her to me, whispering words of comfort.
***
The next day passed in a tumult of activity. Fitzwilliam called at Gracechurch Street as soon as it was seemly to take me home. As promised, I came with Lydia, and together we selected one of my gowns to be altered for her. Hannah laid out all of the possible candidates on my bed in Darcy House, and I believe Lydia rather enjoyed selecting her favourite and then designing her amendments. She twirled about the room in a haze of pinks, blues, and greens and shrieked with joy as only my youngest sister can. Lydia’s wedding gown was pinned, and Hannah stitched while my sister and I drank tea. “Is not this nice?” said Lydia with great optimism.
By late afternoon, it was decided that Fitzwilliam and I would accompany Lydia back to Gracechurch Street and then return home ourselves. When we arrived there, we found Papa had arrived and been appraised of the present circumstances. He sat in a chair in the corner of my uncle’s study and looked grave. As he registered me, his expression softened slightly, and he stood.
“Elizabeth, Mr Darcy, Lydia.” We each nodded. “Mr Darcy, I understand that I am to thank you for assisting my brother Gardiner in finding Mr Wickham and procuring the marriage that is to take place. Well, I do thank you, although of course, you are already familiar with hasty nuptials, so maybe you consider this quite unremarkable.”
“Papa!” Anger and shame at my father surged in my breast, but I felt Fitzwilliam’s hand on my arm and was silent.
“You are welcome, Mr Bennet. As for my thoughts on the present situation, I would be willing to discuss them but not in front of the ladies. I shall not have m
y wife distressed, sir.”
I saw a shadow of defeat cross my father’s face and knew there would be no more discussion of the subject. He glowered at Lydia and said, “Well…well. If you, young lady, had the same regard for the feelings of your poor parents and relations, we should not be where we are now. I would speak with you in private but later.”
The taking of tea in present company was a stilted affair with Papa looking anguished and saying little. When Fitzwilliam suggested we return home, I gladly agreed. Inside the carriage, I pulled down the blinds and crawled into my husband’s embrace. “How I have missed you, and it was only one night.”
“Was your sister not a comfortable bedfellow, Elizabeth?”
“No indeed, she was most melancholy. When she is alone in the dark, I believe she sees things more clearly. Or more likely, when she is in the light, she feels compelled to pretend to an analysis of her circumstances that even she does not really believe.”
“I do not know whether that is better or not. It is fortunate that she is not entirely without sense. But on the other hand, things being as they are, there may be an advantage for her to believe her own illusions.”
“Fitzwilliam, I dread to imagine the trouble and mortification this business has caused you. I am sorry about Papa. I was astounded at his rudeness and so embarrassed. I must thank you on behalf of all my family for all you must have done for my poor sister. They, of course, do not realise how much you do by being involved, for they do not know what Mr Wickham is.”
“Well, I think they know now, Elizabeth. For all he intended to do to Georgiana, he has done to Lydia, except I rather think he very much intended to marry Georgiana.”
“Why ever did he take Lydia with him if he did not intend to marry her?”
“I think he was testing to see how far I would go to protect her. He knew the risk that I would force him to marry, and at the right price, he was willing. If I did nothing, then I suspect he would simply have abandoned her—suggest she visit the shops one afternoon and get away while she was out. He is calculating, but Wickham is also a man of impulse. As it was, he was not surprised to see Mr Gardiner and me in his doorway. I rather suspect he put the idea of Lydia’s appealing to you in her head. What he was not expecting, though, and where I believe we had the advantage, was the involvement of Colonel Fitzwilliam.”
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