Mr. Darcy's Daughter (13 page)

"Oh,
my God!" left her mother, and raced down the stairs, crossed the hall in a
few seconds, and ran down the wide steps of Pemberley House to meet Mr. Carr
and her father as they approached.

She
could think only of her husband and what might have happened to him. One look
at their faces told her that something serious had occurred. As Mr. Darcy came
towards her, she cried out, "Papa, what is it? What has happened? Is it
Richard? Has there been an accident? Tell me, please..."

Her
father put his arms around her and she could sense the sorrow in his voice, as
he said, quietly, "It is Mr. Gardiner, my dear. Richard has been called to
Lambton urgently; he has sent Mr. Carr for you. You must go at once; your
mother and I will follow very soon."

Cassy
did not know whether it was sorrow or relief, but she could not control the
sobs that shook her as she stood holding fast to her father.

Elizabeth,
who had followed her out and heard his words, was standing at the entrance with
tears running down her cheeks.

Her
dear Uncle Gardiner was gone.

Mr.
Darcy went to comfort her, while Cassy collected her basket and shawl and returned
to find Mr. Carr waiting for her beside the curricle. He helped her into her
seat, placed a rug around her knees, and took the vehicle around the drive and
out onto the road to travel the few miles to the Gardiners' place at Lambton.

Mr.
Carr did not speak and Cassy was glad of his silence. There was nothing she
could say, no way she could explain. The bad news that the family had dreaded,
yet known was inevitable, had come at last.

When
they reached Oakleigh, the Gardiners' property, Mr. Carr helped Cassy alight.
She thanked him and went directly indoors to the room where she knew the family
would be gathered. She found them--Mrs. Gardiner, Caroline, and Emily--in
tears, trying to comfort one another. She embraced them all, sharing their
loss.

Richard,
who had been summoned by his son Edward, had only just reached his father's
bedside as he passed peacefully into unconsciousness. Seeing Cassy arrive, he
came to her and gathered her into a tight embrace as she wept.

He
knew how dearly she had been loved by his father and with what devotion that
affection had been returned. Cassy had been as dear to Mr. Gardiner as his own
two daughters.

He
recalled his father's words on the day of their wedding: "You are a very
fortunate young man, Richard," he had said. "I know of no other young
woman in the world to whom you could have been wed with greater certainty of
happiness."

The
years had proved him right.

His
younger brother Robert and his wife Rose were away in London with their
children. Mrs. Gardiner, her face still taut with the strain of many anxious
days and nights, came to ask if Richard could arrange to send them an urgent
message by electric telegraph.

"There
are others, too, who must be informed--Emma and James and Jonathan, of
course," she said and he assured her it would all be done, urging her to
rest, lest her own health should be affected.

Recalling
that Mr. Carr, not wishing to intrude upon the family's grief, was waiting in
the parlour, Cassy said, "Richard, could we not ask for Mr. Carr's
help?" and as they went out to find him, Mrs. Gardiner called to them,
"You must inform Julian, Richard; your father was very fond of
Julian."

By
the time Mr. and Mrs. Darcy arrived, Richard and Mr. Carr were busy compiling
lists and composing suitable messages to be despatched to the family and many
friends of Mr. Gardiner. Meanwhile, Cassy sought to comfort her sister-in-law
Caroline, who was so grief-stricken, she had to be taken upstairs to bed.

Hearing
the carriage from Pemberley arrive, Cassy came downstairs to receive her
parents. Mr. Darcy looked so profoundly sad and Elizabeth could not restrain
her grief, as they embraced their daughter again before seeking out Mrs.
Gardiner. The Gardiners held a very special place in their hearts. Having been
instrumental in bringing the couple together all those years ago, they had
remained loving and intimate friends.

As
well, Mr. Gardiner, by inviting Mr. Darcy to become a partner in his lucrative
trading company, had opened up an entirely new world of business and commerce
for the young gentleman from Derbyshire, whose interests and experience had
hitherto been constrained by his exclusive and rather restricted circle of
acquaintances.

Darcy
had been very grateful. For him and Elizabeth, this was going to be a very
harrowing funeral. It was probably the realisation of this fact that prompted
Cassy to offer to help with the arrangements at Pemberley.

Mr.
Gardiner had asked that he be laid to rest in the churchyard there and Cassy
knew preparations would have to be made for the relatives and friends who would
attend, as well as those who would be accommodated at Pemberley.

She
knew, too, that in the absence of her brother Julian, her parents would need
and welcome her help.

"Oh,
if only Lizzie were here," she said with a sigh, as they returned that
night to Matlock. "Emily and Caroline are both so desolated, I have not
the heart to ask for their help."

Richard
assured her that he would always be there if she needed him and urged her to
seek the help of the Granthams, husband and wife, who were manager and
housekeeper at Pemberley and had been with the Darcys for many years.

"They
will know exactly what is required and carry out all the work with their usual
efficiency, I am sure," he said and Cassy said she was confident they
would.

"Besides,"
said her husband, "it will be best, my love, if you were not to be seen
taking over what should by rights be Julian's role." Cassy agreed; she had
no desire to do so, but with her brother away in Cambridge, it was the least
she could do for her parents.

"I
am sure Julian will understand," she said, to which Richard replied,
"I am quite certain
he
will, but will everyone else?"

They
both realised that gossip in the neighbourhood was best avoided.

Cassandra
worked hard but with great discretion over the next few days.

Her
only consolation was that keeping busy stopped her from weeping and, of course,
there was the hope that her brother and possibly Josie would soon arrive,
bringing her daughter Lizzie with them.

Sadly,
it was a hope that faded as the day of the funeral dawned.

No
one had arrived from Cambridge, nor had any word been received, until the very
last moment, when a telegraphed message was delivered apologising for Julian's
late arrival and his wife's inability to attend.

It
meant Lizzie Gardiner was late, too.

Even
as the funeral service began in the church at Pemberley, there was no sign of
Julian and, when the lesson assigned to him had to be read, it was Mr. Darcy
who stepped up to read it. Cassandra knew how deeply disappointed and hurt her
parents would be, their personal loss exacerbated by the absence of their son.

As
the service was ending, Julian arrived with Lizzie, who slipped into a pew
beside her sister Laura Ann, while Julian entered unnoticed and stood at the
back of the church. Only Lizzie knew he was there, until it was over and they
came out into the churchyard and saw him standing outside.

It
was Cassy who, as the mourners and friends began to leave, took her father's
arm and moved him away from the graveside, while Jonathan Bingley hastened to
support his aunt and help her into the carriage that waited to take them to
Pemberley.

Later,
Julian apologised to his family and especially to Mrs. Gardiner; his work, he
claimed, had delayed him and caused them to miss the coach. As for Josie, she
was still not strong enough to make long journeys and had been advised to stay
home, he said. Indeed, he was compelled to return to Cambridge immediately
following the funeral and would not even be staying the night at Pemberley.

Mrs.
Gardiner nodded and concealed her feelings behind her widow's veil, but Cassy
could not. Her tears made it plain, if her words did not, that she was bitterly
disappointed with her brother's conduct.

"How
could he? How could he be so unfeeling, so inconsiderate of others?

Oh,
Richard, I am so angry," she cried, her voice rising in exasperation. But
he would not be drawn into recriminations.

Grief,
he said, was hard enough to bear without the added burden of anger.

"Hush,
my dear, this is not worthy of you," he said. "Julian has his own
problems to cope with. Let us not contaminate our sorrow with anger and
bitterness; it will only heighten the pain and prove far more difficult to heal."

As
on many previous occasions, his wise counsel and love sustained her, letting
her grieve without rancour and find strength enough to support her parents.

Cassy
recalled vividly the days after her brother William had been killed, when her
parents, in the depths of their terrible grief, had all but forgotten her own.
It had been to Richard she had gone for help. Richard, to whom she had become
engaged on that fateful day, had held her and comforted her, loved and consoled
her until she found peace within her heart, in the midst of a veritable
maelstrom of emotions.