While the others went their own ways, Darcy headed to the library. He was glad the room was properly filled with interesting reading material, although for the moment he just wished to think. He knew from past experience that a room filled with books was a good place for it.
Miss Elizabeth's acceptance of his offer of courtship and the subsequent proposal and betrothal had taken him completely by surprise. He knew her opinion of him had been steadily improving over the course of his time at Longbourn, but he had not expected such a complete turnaround. The circumstances made him very happy, but he needed to think over the events of the evening and get them straight in his mind. At least he had her assurance she did not accept him because of the witnesses. He had her heart, she had declared. This year was starting off well for him.
On the other hand, he was disturbed that his friendly talks with Miss Lucas had given rise to such speculation by her mother almost the minute Mr. Collins was dead. If Miss Elizabeth had not spoken up when she did, the situation might have turned in a way that could have damaged her friend's reputation. His honor would have compelled him to marry Miss Lucas then, even though he and she both knew his heart belonged to Miss Elizabeth. Going forward he would have to take care not to do or say anything that might tarnish her good name.
Even so, Darcy still wanted to find an appropriate match for his beloved's best friend. Remembering Georgiana's anger when she thought he had chosen for her, Darcy decided the best course would be to confer with Miss Lucas, in company with Miss Elizabeth, to see what help, if any, she would accept.
He pulled the braided trio of sage-green ribbons, his knight's token, out of his pocket and ran it through his fingers while he considered his next steps. He and Miss Elizabeth had only managed a short conversation before he left Longbourn, but in it she told him she was not quite ready to set a date for their wedding. The betrothal was too sudden for her to make such a significant decision so quickly. She also suggested they discuss the matter with Bingley and Miss Bennet and consider a possible double wedding.
Bingley would agree to a double wedding without any hesitation, Darcy knew, so long as they did not have to wait months for the wedding to happen. He suspected Miss Bennet would do so as well, if she believed it to be what her sister wanted. Briefly he thought about Mr. Bennet's concern over placing his very agreeable daughter with a man as easygoing and weak-willed as Bingley had previously appeared. Darcy had never really considered those characteristics a drawback in his friend's nature before, simply because it meant Bingley never opposed him. The same characteristics that made him such a comfortable friend could make him a dangerous husband for a woman like Miss Bennet. Darcy actually laughed aloud when he realized that Caroline Bingley's poor behavior was the catalyst that brought out the steel in his friend's spine and made him a more appropriate match for the woman his sister had hoped he would not marry. He suspected Miss Bennet might prove to have a stiffer spine than appearances showed as well. He hoped she never had the need to find it.
As he wound Miss Elizabeth's ribbons loosely around his thumb and pulled them free again, Darcy thought about his nightmare. He had felt that same sense of helplessness as all the matrons started claiming him for their daughters. At least Wickham and Lady Catherine had not shown up. Of course, it was unlikely he would ever meet George Wickham again unless Darcy chose to visit him at the Marshalsea. That still left Lady Catherine as a potential problem, however.
Even with the connection through Mr. Collins broken, Darcy suspected it would not be long until Lady Catherine learned of his betrothal. How would she take the failure of all her plans to marry him off to his cousin, Anne? He wrapped the ribbon too tightly on his thumb, causing it to catch and tangle when he pulled, and he had to unwind it carefully as he realized his dealings with his aunt had been disturbingly similar to how he handled Wickham.
It was not until after Darcy's father died that Lady Catherine began her bleating about the supposed cradle betrothal with Anne. She claimed it was the fondest wish of Darcy's mother, but Lady Anne Darcy had certainly never made any mention of either wish or betrothal to her son before her death. Darcy told his aunt a few times he had no intention of marrying his cousin. When Lady Catherine refused to take notice of his protests, Darcy took to simply ignoring her many hints that it was time for him to propose. He had assumed Anne had no more desire to marry him than he did her, but now it struck him he had never bothered to find out. It would not have changed his decision as far as he knew, but he might have been more forceful in his denials, so her mother would move on and find her someone else if she really had been waiting for him. Or perhaps not, Darcy thought, remembering that decisive action in his personal affairs had been sorely lacking until recently, no matter how well he managed his business affairs.
He wondered what Miss Elizabeth would think of how he had managed the situation with his aunt. He knew he would have to tell her, for Lady Catherine was certain to make mention of the supposed betrothal whenever she and Miss Elizabeth first met. Darcy groaned. He was not looking forward to that meeting even though he was certain Miss Elizabeth would run verbal circles around his aunt. Perhaps his betrothed could help him determine if and how much he had wronged Anne, and what he would need to do to make amends.
His musings were interrupted by a knock at the door. A footman poked his head into the room.
"A messenger has arrived from Longbourn. He brought a note."
Darcy motioned the man inside and took the folded bit of paper. With a feeling of dread, he broke the seal and read the words Mr. Bennet had written.
I hate to call you back when you and Bingley have probably just gotten comfortably settled but needs must. I have a visitor from the militia camp and the presence of both of you is needed to handle a matter of some delicacy. Please come with all speed and I hope you both will keep the agreements you have made with my daughters.
The final sentence was chilling in what it implied. Darcy did not know quite what had happened, but it sounded serious. Tucking the ribbon token back into his pocket, he ordered the footman to get word to the stables and have his horse and Bingley's saddled at once.
He found Bingley napping in his study, leaning back in his chair with his feet on the desk. He snorted and fell over in surprise, knocking the chair over as well, when Darcy called his name.
"Wuh! Oh, Darcy! You scared me," he said as he scrambled to his feet and set the chair upright again.
"Sorry, Bingley. I was hoping to wake you without that result. Mr. Bennet sent over a note. He needs to see us right away. I've asked to have our horses saddled and I spoke with Mrs. Nichols while looking for you. She will set aside our dinner for later and will let my sister and Mrs. Annesley know where we have gone when they come down. I just need to get on my boots and I will be ready. You probably need to do the same. See you at the stable shortly."
He handed Bingley the note as he was speaking and left to change his footwear before his friend had really caught up with what he had said. Taking the stairs two at a time, Darcy took the flight up to the level of the private rooms, but then had to stop and think about the location of his suite. They had been guests at Longbourn for enough time he had forgotten which room had been assigned to him. He knew it was a different room than the one Miss Bingley had assigned on his previous visit being a little less pretentious while having a small balcony with a nice view. Bingley came pounding up the stairs behind him.
"Yours is the third on the left," he told Darcy as he raced past to enter another of the doors.
"Thanks," Darcy called out and went to get his boots.
They galloped to Longbourn in the fading light of the day, taking the familiar route of the road for fear of getting lost on the way. A boy was waiting at the door to take their horses and Mrs. Hill pointed them to the study with a comment that Mr. Bennet was expecting them. The door was open, and the two men entered to find Mr. Bennet sitting across the chessboard from Captain Denny of the militia unit.
"I thi
nk you will see it is checkmate in five moves," Mr. Bennet said as he rose to greet the newcomers. Accepting his opponent's word, Denny tipped over his king and rose likewise.
"Thank you for coming, gentlemen," Denny said. "I was sorry to disturb you after the excitement of last night, but a situation has come up that requires a quick resolution and only you can help."
"That sounds serious," Darcy replied. "How may we be of service?"
"Close the door, there, Bingley, while I pull up another chair," Mr. Bennet said, putting his words into action. The four men took their seats, ranged comfortably around the chessboard with its recently finished game still in place. Darcy could not help examining the board as he sat and noticed with an internal grin that Mr. Bennet had been correct; it would have been checkmate in five moves, although the winner would have been Denny not Mr. Bennet.
"I suppose the best way is just to tell the story plainly," Mr. Bennet began. "I do not know if you noticed that Lydia was not with her sisters when we bid you all farewell a few hours ago."
Darcy and Bingley both nodded and said they had. Mr. Bennet shook his head sadly and continued. Darcy already had a pretty good idea of what was coming. He was simply waiting to hear the details and learn how they would affect his betrothal to Miss Elizabeth.
"It seems my youngest has long cherished the hope of being the first of her sisters to marry, or so she says. Personally, I think she is just jealous of the attention her mother has been giving to Jane and Lizzy's betrothal last night tipped her into madness. At any rate, since she has sworn to marry an officer, she decided it was time to arrange her own betrothal."
"It seems I was chosen to be the lucky man," Denny put in. "Apparently, I am the handsomest of the officers now that Wickham has gone."
"Lucky you," said Darcy with a heavy dose of sarcasm. Denny nodded glumly.
"She stayed awake all night after our return - plotting, I suppose. As soon as it was light, she walked into Meryton. Knowing from discussions yesterday evening that several of the officers, including the Captain, here, would be on duty this afternoon, she loitered around the entrance of the camp until she saw them leave their quarters. Once the coast was clear, she slipped into Denny's room, removed all her clothes and proceeded to go to sleep in his bed."
"Where, I assume, you found her on your return?" Darcy asked Denny.
"Yes. I was tired and did not notice her at first. I simply walked in, closed the door and proceeded to disrobe. I got the shock of my life when she sat up in the bed, told me she had decided to marry me and, as long as I agreed, she would not scream or make a fuss."
"Hmm, yes. With you being only partially clothed in your own quarters with an underage, unclothed daughter of a gentleman in your bed, having her scream could bring some very negative attention from your superior." Darcy said. "She actually planned that very well. I would not have expected a plot so complex from her, although heaven knows I have had to avoid similar enough situations among members of the Ton that the actual result is not very surprising. What did you do, Captain?"
"I agreed to her demands," the Denny said. "If Colonel Forster had found me like that, I would have been in no end of trouble. He has been very strict with all of us on a number of things since you had Wickham taken up and bringing women to our quarters is among those. Even had she been a tavern maid or professional, I would have been in trouble but even more so for a gentleman’s daughter. At any rate, I convinced her to get dressed and snuck her out of the camp to bring her back here. I tried to be careful, but I expect we were probably seen. She made no effort at stealth and it was all I could do to convince her to be quiet leaving my quarters. She giggled and talked the rest of the way back here."
"No, she would not be stealthy or silent once she got what she wanted. The more attention, the better as far as Lydia is concerned," Mr. Bennet said.
"I am willing to marry her with some conditions," Denny continued. "She's pretty enough and generally good company, even if she is overly talkative, young and foolish. More to the point, it will probably ruin my reputation and career if I do not marry her now. However, I need some assurance it will not ruin my reputation or career just as certainly if I do marry her. That is where you gentlemen come in."
"You want our word we will not desert the young ladies to whom we are betrothed if any scandal comes to light as a result of Miss Lydia's foolish actions," Darcy guessed.
"Exactly. So long as you are both willing to go through with your agreements to marry her sisters and I can make use of the connection to your families to advance my career, I am willing to accept the risks that come with marrying Miss Lydia."
"I will marry Miss Elizabeth," Darcy declared. "I would do so even if you had chosen to toss Miss Lydia out into the street without a stitch of clothing on. I will do so even if you chose not to marry Miss Lydia now. No scandal or threat of ruin can stop me."
"I feel the same about Jane," Bingley said quickly. "I do not know what you can gain from a connection to me, but if being related by marriage helps your career, that is fine with me."
"I believe my family name can be of assistance, but in return for a quick marriage and a guarantee you will treat Miss Lydia with more respect than she deserves, I can also manage a more substantial wedding present. Were you looking to leave the reserves for the regulars?" Darcy asked.
"Yes, but to move over at the same rank is well-beyond my means. Anything lower and I will not be able to support a wife."
"A captaincy in the regulars can be arranged. In fact, I will work with my cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam, to see if he can also arrange a good posting for you. Those family connections you mentioned will be coming into play."
Mr. Bennet spoke up. "I hate to reward Lydia by allowing her to be first to wed, but it is probably best they marry quickly, and by common license rather than posting the banns. There is no way the stupid girl will keep secret what she has done to bring the wedding about if we do not have the wedding soon."
"I planned to see Mr. Phillips this week about putting together a settlement for Miss Elizabeth. We can all three offer your brother-in-law custom in that form. Once Miss Lydia's settlement is done, they can marry. The commission and posting may take a little longer, but the settlement and ceremony are the most pressing needs."
Mr. Bennet looked more embarrassed than Darcy had seen him previously. "I am ashamed to say my daughters each have a dowry of only fifty pounds along with equal shares of Mrs. Bennet's settlement of five thousand pounds at her death." He looked around at the well-filled bookshelves. "I may be able to sell something to increase that number a bit."
"Mr. Darcy's offer of the captain's commission is dowry enough on top of what you already have set aside," Denny said. "Once we are married, I will not allow her to spend our budget on excessive amounts of clothing or other fripperies, so if you or your wife occasionally wish to send her a few gowns or the like, they will not be unwelcome, and, of course, I am certain your wife will insist on proper bride clothes even if they have to come after the wedding."
Bingley spoke up. "While we are on the subject of dowries, I think Darcy will agree with me when I suggest you add Jane's fifty pounds to what you have set aside for Miss Mary and give Miss Elizabeth's to Miss Kitty. We will both ensure our ladies have a secure jointure."
"I agree," Darcy stated. "While we would not wish to downplay the importance of whatever our ladies bring to the marriage, I think both would like to see their younger sisters reap the benefits of the assets Bingley and I bring to the table."
"I can hardly argue with you," Mr. Bennet said, with no trace of his usual sarcastic wit. "Phillips is the man to hammer out the arrangements. We can meet with him on the morrow. Would the two of you care to make your escape before I announce Lydia's betrothal to her mother? I will not deny Captain Denny the experience, but you have both already lived through it."
Darcy and Bingley looked at one another as both scrambled up from their chairs. "Yes, sir," they said in unison, then all fou
r men fell to laughing as they shook hands and wished each other a good evening. Mr. Bennet pointed them out the back way as he and Denny headed to the sitting room. They quickly took the indicated route.
"I would have liked to see Jane again," Bingley said as they crossed to the stables, "But after hearing Mrs. Bennet's reaction to my betrothal I thought cowardice was the order of the day."
"We will still hear her reaction again if we do not get on our horses quickly enough," Darcy warned.
His observation proved to be accurate. Fortunately, the shrill expressions of Mrs. Bennet's delight were only marginally audible as the mounted men passed the windows of the sitting room on their way down the drive. Even that was quickly left behind as they headed back to Netherfield in the last of the evening light.
Chapter 21: A Letter Encoded
To: Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam
January 2, 1811
My Dear Cousin,
Your hopes that my sister and I would benefit from a happy Christmas came true, even though the letter which expressed them arrived at our current location nearly a week after the event. I must hope our wishes towards you came true as well, even if their delivery suffered a similar delay. You have told me before that communication by mail can be a chancy thing when your assignments take you out of the country. Having just experienced the mild disruption caused by a snowstorm or two, I understand the problem. I am mindful that your post can be disrupted by man-made delays as easily as by the weather and there is never any guarantee it will arrive to you unopened, if at all. Well, I will write for any to read that we continue to hope for your safe and speedy return. I miss your friendship and counsel as much as my sister misses her co-guardian. Perhaps she thinks you would be more understanding and indulgent than I, or perhaps it is your smiling face and amusing stories she misses. Come back to us soon and question her on her reasons for yourself.
In my last letter, which I hope you received, I mentioned the events of a visit I made with the intent of assisting as my most genial friend took on the lease of a country house. I may not have told you much of substance, however, and repeat some of it here as a reminder and to explain what has happened since.
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