Pamela giggled. Elizabeth repressed a smile, and she did not argue that the girl should think more nicely about Anne.
After the hair was done, Elizabeth had her face rubbed with rouge to bring out the red in her cheeks, and a bit of cherry juice rubbed onto her lips to give them a richer color. Then they took the dress down. It was not perfect, but both Pamela and Emma after critical sniffs declared that it had aired out sufficiently to wear.
Pamela helped Elizabeth into the dress and tied the stays in the back for her. They went into the nursery for Elizabeth to spin around prettily to show off. Both Pamela and Emma clapped their hands.
Pamela said, “You are the handsomest girl in the county! But something is missing.”
The maid frowned at Elizabeth and walked around her in a circle. “Do you have any different ribbons? That color does not go with the dress.”
Elizabeth shook her head. Pamela looked at Emma who went to her wardrobe and pulled out her collection. Pamela and Elizabeth looked at Emma’s collection. The ribbons were either too short, or in the wrong color as well.
“I know!” Pamela clapped her hands again and bounced up and down. “You can borrow my ribbon. I shall return with it immediately! I wish to show you something else!”
Elizabeth sat in one of the chairs as Pamela ran off. Tonight would be a disaster, like the night Darcy had her and Emma called down to perform. But that disaster had also led to something good. Soon Emma would be safe from Lady Catherine.
Elizabeth stood and looked at the mirror again. She recognized herself, a version of herself she had not seen for at least a year. Elizabeth bounced from foot to foot happily. She imagined some falling out that left Darcy free to marry her, and still allowed Emma to come to Pemberley with them.
The smile from the fantasy gave her rosy cheeks. She looked beautiful tonight.
Then Elizabeth looked at what she’d set up for Emma to entertain herself with. The girl was old enough to be on her own, but she still became lonely easily. Emma had brought out several dolls and she also had a novel Darcy had given her. “You will not be bored, will you?”
“No.”
“Is there anything you need me to get you?”
Emma rolled her eyes. “You will only be downstairs.”
Elizabeth held her arms out and Emma jumped from where she sat at the signal and embraced Elizabeth. “You look so pretty! I wish I could go downstairs and dress like a gentlewoman already.”
Elizabeth realized she suddenly felt no anxiety for the evening. Darcy would be there. He would smile at her, and she would feel happy and alive. She smiled widely at Emma. “What shall you do with your night? Shall you read all of the book again?”
“Only my favorite parts. Mr. Darcy was so kind to give it to me. Don’t you wish he wasn’t going to marry Miss Anne?”
“I do.” Part of Elizabeth hesitated at saying that. If he didn’t marry Anne, then Emma would not be sent away to Pemberley with Darcy after the marriage. Even if Darcy was free to marry her, she would not be able leave her post as Emma’s guardian while she was under Lady Catherine’s control.
Elizabeth’s happiness sank away again, as she was once more reminded how it was impossible for them to all be happy.
Pamela reentered with her bouncing smile, brighter than even her usual happiness. She waved the ribbon in a circle. “Here — see, it matches the dress perfectly!”
Instead of going back to the bedroom Elizabeth sat on one of the chairs in the nursery, and Pamela undid the braids once more and then expertly weaved the ribbon through them. When she was done she stood back and exclaimed, “So pretty! Miss Bennet, you are so pretty! And that ribbon agrees perfectly with you!” She crouched and said conspiratorially to Emma, “She’ll be the prettiest looking Miss in the room, don’t you agree?”
“Miss Lizzy is the prettiest Miss in the whole world!”
Elizabeth blushed. “Well it is good to find I have a few admirers, even if they are not male.”
With a conspiratorial wink Pamela said, “You have at least one admirer who is a gentleman.”
As Pamela stood she twisted her head so that Elizabeth could see the side. Elizabeth gasped as she saw the jeweled pin.
“I wanted to show you! Don’t you think it is the prettiest piece you have ever seen?”
“That, that is an excellent good hairpiece…” Pamela could never have purchased it. It looked like it was worth the wages of a maid in her position for a year.
Pamela angled her head so that Elizabeth could properly admire it. “My secret gentleman friend visited again today, and he gave it to me.”
“Did he?”
Pamela hit her on the arm. “Miss Bennet! You don’t think I did anything ill to get this!”
Elizabeth carefully studied the other woman’s expression. The anxiety in her stomach for her loosened a little. “I believe you. But…gentlemen do not generally give hair pieces with real jewels to a maid on a whim — you ought take it off. Suppose Lady Catherine sees you wearing such an expensive ornament?”
“I shall not. He made me promise to wear it. It was so romantic — I did not want to take it, but he assured me he meant nothing by it, except he wanted me to remember him by it. I will wear it.”
“Lady Catherine. You cannot — if a maid were to wear that in front of her, she would be thrown into a rage.”
Pamela went pale, and Elizabeth was glad to see she was pounding some sense into her friend. Then she asked, “You talk as though it is valuable? How much do you believe it is worth?”
“That? A jeweler in London would demand ten or fifteen pounds. You probably couldn’t sell it for more than half that.”
“I will wear it. It is mine, and he gave it to me, and I promised to wear it. I won’t cower before Lady Catherine. I’ll survive if she dismisses me.”
“Pamela! This is a good position. You like working here.”
The maid flushed. She looked from the rug to the mirror. “I said I would wear it. I promised. I must at least once.”
“Be cautious.”
“You are such a worrier. Nothing bad will happen. I’ll try to keep Lady Catherine from seeing it.”
Pamela pranced from the room, clearly a little offended. Elizabeth could not keep the uneasiness from her stomach while she waited for the dinner bell to call her down.
When it did Elizabeth quietly entered the drawing room. Mr. Darcy, Colonel Fitzwilliam and Anne were all present.
Mr. Darcy smiled at her, his eyes widening. He stepped forward and bowed deeply, taking her hand to lightly kiss.
She smiled back at him and wondered if he remembered the other time that he had seen her wear this dress. Colonel Fitzwilliam followed behind Darcy and with a smile greeted her also.
Anne had a pinched pucker between her eyebrows as she stared at Elizabeth. When Colonel Fitzwilliam stepped back, Anne frowned and while looking at Elizabeth with her disconcerting stare said in an absent voice, “You are very welcome, Miss Bennet.”
Darcy took Elizabeth’s arm and led her to the window next to the piano. He stroked his hand along the fine dark wood of the instrument. “Do you remember when you recommended I practice making conversation with strangers? You were playing right here.”
His smile was beguiling.
Elizabeth, though, looked back in her memory. “I do not. I am deeply flattered you remember my words. I would ask if you took my advice, but even though I do not remember giving the lesson, it is evident you have been a diligent student. The good results are clear.”
The fading afternoon sunlight gleamed on his dark locks, bringing out the rich fine color of his hair. Darcy squared his shoulders and stood taller with his handsome smile. “It is only because you are such a good teacher.”
“I know. My vanity attributes every virtue I see in you to my good influence — I am extraordinarily vain after all.”
“You mean to imply I have a great many virtues? Since you are the source of my virtues, and I can admit that I ha
ve many virtues—”
“Very, very many.”
“It shows no pride or vanity on my part to say so, since I am only praising your influence.”
“Oooh. That is a well-spoken compliment to both of us.” Elizabeth smirked at him.
Darcy smiled back, displaying his white teeth and the dimple in his cheek. He looked boyish and very handsome.
Their tete a tete was interrupted when Lady Catherine entered the room with a light tread. She walked to them, ignoring her daughter and Colonel Fitzwilliam. There was an angry curl to her lip, showing she was in a poor mood.
The lady looked Elizabeth up and down while tapping her fingers against her cheek. Darcy had wished her to be a gentlewoman again for this evening, and in a moment of impulsive bravery, Elizabeth met the old lady’s eye, as she would have when she was Miss Elizabeth of Longbourn.
Lady Catherine sneered. “I disapprove. Darcy, she must accept her place. But you will have the management of her and Emma after your marriage. You will see what a problem it creates to let a governess think she is a gentlewoman. I wash my hands of the trouble.”
“I am glad that you have chosen to let me make my mistakes without further advice.”
Lady Catherine scowled. She studied Elizabeth again. “At least you dressed poorly. That was wise. That dress is worn. Anyone with any taste will see how far from fashion it is. Darcy, you must have Anne call the best dressmakers from London to Pemberley. She has not used them often, being prevented by her ill health, but now she will need to dress for her position as one of the leading women of the country.”
Elizabeth glanced at Darcy. His lips were tight, and he made no response.
Drawn by her name, Anne came to stand next to Darcy in that quiet backward manner she had.
Elizabeth’s stomach rebelled when she imagined her and Darcy together in a marital embrace. She imagined Darcy fulfilling his duty to create an heir with Anne. Perhaps he would enjoy it since men were supposed to always enjoy the marital act.
Elizabeth shook the thought away. She saw Colonel Fitzwilliam standing across the room in an uncharacteristically quiet manner. He stared at Anne. Elizabeth wondered if he had a similar thought in his head, driven by his love for Anne.
Lady Catherine smiled brightly. “I doubt that Georgiana will dress well for her wedding, or her presentation. She needed the advice of a woman of taste, such as myself. My nephew’s wife tries, but she does not have natural taste.”
The footman opened the room and announced two outside guests who had arrived together. Mr. Hawdry, the local magistrate, entered bantering lightly with Lady Sanders, a local widow of substantial standing. Mr. Hawdry bowed deeply to Lady Catherine. “You look particularly fine tonight.”
“Yes, yes. You always say that.” Then Lady Catherine paused, and smiled in an almost hideous manner. “But I will accept it tonight. I do look particularly fine. Tell me about that problem I heard. With the thief. How did you manage it?”
Mr. Hawdry was a bald man with an ample paunch, sausage-like fingers and a florid face. He nodded his head so the bushy sideburns waved. “The stocks. Always the stocks. I fined him too.”
“No. No. While useful in so many cases, this man’s transgression was a more serious matter. You should have put him in gaol for several weeks. His family would have missed the wages. Their unhappiness would have taught the needed lesson.”
“It might encourage more theft, by deepening their poverty.”
“Do not think.” Lady Catherine rolled her eyes. “It is not the place of gentlemen to think about matters — you must punish severely when a peasant has broken our laws too far. However, you must also be most kind while there is still an opportunity for correcting the character of the man.”
“I shall be guided by your wisdom. I only wish I had not yet issued the summary judgment and could still place him in the gaol.”
“Let it be a lesson. I do hope you will be cleverer in the future.”
The footman opened the door once more, and Mr. Dawson, who had just inherited a substantial estate from his uncle, entered and smiled in a doltish manner. The young man had been trying to impress Lady Catherine, and learn to fit into the neighborhood’s society.
“You are late!”
“My apologies. I could not remember whether you had recommended an Obaldeston knot or a waterfall for my cravat. I asked my butler, as I had told him to write down your advice — it had struck me so deeply — but I needed some minutes to tie it into such a fine knot as this.”
He gestured proudly at the ugly and poorly tied knot around his neck.
Lady Catherine peered at it. “A decent job of it. But you ought to learn to keep such advice in your head. You cannot always depend on your butler. I depend on no one but myself and my prodigious brain in matters of importance. But a good knot. A gentleman never looks more the fool than when he chooses the wrong knot for his cravat.” She pointed at Colonel Fitzwilliam. “There is an example of what you must avoid.”
The ill mood Lady Catherine had entered with was evidently only slightly relieved by Mr. Dawson having followed her advice. She scowled at each of them, lingering a long time on Elizabeth. “At last. All here? Dinner at last; it’s been an interminable wait. Hawdry! My arm.”
Darcy maneuvered so that he had Elizabeth’s arm and was seated between her and Anne, while Colonel Fitzwilliam was on the other side of Elizabeth.
However, each time Elizabeth tried to speak to Darcy, Lady Catherine interrupted them to speak to Darcy. It became quite amusing, and Elizabeth spent most of her time talking to Colonel Fitzwilliam. There was a sharp edge to Colonel Fitzwilliam, but Lady Catherine did not mind her talking to him.
When the final course was removed Elizabeth winked at Darcy, who frowned ruefully. She had enjoyed her time a great deal, but she suspected he had not gained the entertainment he had hoped from having her present at the dinner.
The gentlewomen followed Lady Catherine to the drawing room while the gentlemen remained behind. Elizabeth sat to the side and observed them. Lady Catherine held court lecturing and questioning. For her part, Elizabeth was completely ignored by Lady Catherine.
When the gentlemen entered after a short interval, Lady Catherine called out to Mr. Hawdry. “Come here. We must talk more about your work as the JP. You must remember that you are not only a law giver, but a teacher.”
Colonel Fitzwilliam sat next to Anne, while Darcy sat next to Elizabeth.
Mr. Hawdry replied, “True, true! The lower orders are children who must be taught their way, for their own good. I hate the deuced idealists who cannot understand.”
“Younger sons are also a lower order. I confess I am an idealist. I never understood the necessity of our tragic impoverishment.” Colonel Fitzwilliam grinned at everyone. Hawdry and Lady Catherine laughed.
Elizabeth heard the real edge of bitterness to Colonel Fitzwilliam’s tone which had not been there years before.
Anne touched him on the knee, and Elizabeth wondered about the cause of the attraction between the two. Maybe they were attached because both were forced into positions they did not like. Despite her poverty, she had always felt the freedom to act in the manner she chose.
Hawdry slapped his hands together. “Good joke. Good joke. My younger brother never understood the matter either.”
“For my part,” Elizabeth smirked, “I never understood why sons are preferred to daughters. Perhaps they should be equally preferred. Mr. Darcy, could you imagine a world in which Pemberley was equally divided between you and your sister?”
Mr. Hawdry frankly stared at her. Lady Catherine frowned, with an expression that said she did not think Elizabeth should say anything. But once Darcy married Anne and Emma became Darcy’s ward, she would no longer be dependent upon Lady Catherine’s good will.
Darcy replied, “Perhaps that would be fair to my sister, but within a few generations Pemberley would be so divided as to have completely lost its glory. Someone must be given the entire es
tate if it is to remain undivided. In my quite biased opinion, choosing the eldest son is a perfectly reasonable way to determine who.”
“But never the eldest daughter?” Elizabeth insisted with a smile. “What if Georgiana was your elder, it would still keep the estate together.”
“Having a daughter inherit when there is a son? Ridiculous.” Mr. Hawdry laughed. “Lady Catherine, I am shocked Miss Bennet is here. You told me how poor a notion it is, allowing governesses to pretend to be part of the family.”
“I do not approve. But Darcy begged so kindly; he and Miss Bennet are old acquaintances. It is bad for discipline. Once in employment, they must school themselves to accept subordination. But my nephew insists. He insists, and I cannot stop him. He shall have her dine with Anne and himself in Pemberley, I am quite sure. Then he shall learn. He is such a boy; he only can learn by harsh experience.”
Hawdry frowned at Darcy. “Mr. Darcy, it is not my place to advise you—”
“Then do not.”
“Your aunt is a fountain of wisdom. My position as a magistrate would be intolerable without her aid and advice. She wishes the greatest happiness for all in her purview, and—”
“Mr. Hawdry,” Darcy sharply snapped, “it is not your place to advise me.”
“Well, I’ll say. I will say. It is quite irregular to treat me in that way. I am only attempting to be kind.”
Darcy turned to Elizabeth, ignoring Hawdry. “We had been speaking in the other room about Wellington’s management as prime minister — what do you think on the topic?”
Amused by how Darcy had treated the self-important man who had attached himself to Lady Catherine, Elizabeth replied with a lilt, “But I am a simple woman.”
“Nevertheless, your advice has always proven of value, quite unlike that of some other women I know.”
Elizabeth replied to Darcy’s question about the Iron Duke with some nonsense she had read in a newspaper recently. She simply enjoyed the fun of conversing with him, dressed like this, and being served as a gentlewoman again.
The Trials: A Pride and Prejudice Story Page 11