The Darcys of Pemberley (16 page)

~*~

Georgiana welcomed her brother and
sister-in-law back to Pemberley, affecting a cheerful air as she
inquired about events at Heatheridge. “A boy and a girl, you said
in your message. Now, do tell me the rest.”

Elizabeth, observing the drawn appearance of
her countenance, instead asked, “Are you quite well, Georgiana? You
look tired.”

“Oh, yes, I am very well.”

“No, Elizabeth is correct,” said Darcy. “Your
color is off; you have been ill. I can always tell.”

“It is nothing, really – only a headache this
morning, which has passed. Now, tell me about the Bingleys’ twins.
I must know all,” Georgiana insisted.

Somewhat reassured, Elizabeth complied.
“Well, I am no expert on babies, but to me they seem quite perfect
in every way. The nurse pronounced them healthy, and I declare that
they will grow up to look just like their parents; little Charles
is the image of his father and Frances favors Jane. Do you not
think so, Darcy?”

“I can give you no account of it,” he said
dismissively. “How one can remark a resemblance between a newly
born infant and any adult is beyond my comprehension. Apparently,
it requires a livelier imagination than I possess.”

“Your brother, Georgiana, pretends to have
little interest in infants of any description. However, you would
not have thought so had you seen the charming picture he made
holding his niece and nephew.” This brought a chastening glare from
her husband. “Nevertheless, I do not know when I have ever seen two
people more thrilled to be parents, and more suited to the role,
than Jane and Mr. Bingley.”

“Is Jane recovering well?” asked
Georgiana.

“Amazingly well,” Elizabeth answered. “After
what she went through, I was surprised to see so little lasting
effect. The nurse says if no fever develops within the week, there
is nothing more to fear.”

“And then we can set off for London,”
concluded Darcy. “Have you managed to work up any enthusiasm for
our trip to town yet, Georgiana?”

“I hardly know. One day I am quite convinced
that I never wish to leave Pemberley, and the next I am desperate
to be off.” Georgiana stopped herself with a little gasp, dropped
her eyes, and colored. “How silly of me,” she added with a nervous
laugh. “I really cannot imagine why I said such a thing. Please
forgive my nonsense. As for London, I promise to go and make the
best of it.”

“Hmm,” said Darcy, closely regarding his
sister. “I suppose we shall have to be content with that reply for
now, and trust the diversions of London to win you over once we
arrive.”

Elizabeth wondered at Georgiana’s odd
statement. What could she mean by it? Perfect composure was not yet
to be expected; the girl could hardly have recovered from her deep
disappointment over Fitzwilliam so soon. Still, this restlessness
and caprice was something new and out of character. Elizabeth
sought a better explanation later in private but was soundly
rebuffed. Georgiana insisted nothing was amiss, and asked that her
sister kindly stop troubling herself over meaningless remarks.
Elizabeth was thus left to hope, like her husband, that the young
lady’s outlook would be improved by the upcoming amusements in
town.

Preparations for their leaving began at once.
When another week passed and they heard from Jane that all was well
at Heatheridge, the Darcys felt they could be off with no more
worries on that head. As there would be an extra seat in the
carriage, a note was dispatched offering the use of it to Mrs.
Collins, who readily accepted in order that she might visit her
family in Hertfordshire.

The day before their departure, a message
arrived for Mr. Darcy. He examined the note without comment, but
Elizabeth could read on his face the displeasure it engendered.
“What is it?” she asked him.

“This? Oh, nothing of significance,” he
answered, hurling the offending scrap of paper into the fire. “Only
a trifling bit of business that I must see to before quitting
Pemberley. A blasted nuisance, but it cannot be helped.”

He had his horse saddled immediately after
dinner, and rode out with no further explanation. When he returned
an hour later, his mood appeared darker than before, yet he once
again declined to discuss the matter with his wife. Elizabeth did
not press him. She had become accustomed to the fact that Darcy
preferred to shield her from the more unpleasant aspects of
business. By morning, his spirits had rebounded somewhat, and no
more was said about the incident.

According to prior arrangement, Mr. Sanditon
brought Charlotte to Pemberley quite early to share a hearty
breakfast with the Darcys before the travelers departed. Upon
entering, Charlotte commenced to thank her benefactors for the
kindness of conveying her to Hertfordshire.

“Say nothing of it,” Mr. Darcy insisted. “The
seat would have been vacant and gone to waste otherwise.”

“How long do you anticipate being in town,
sir?” Mr. Sanditon asked.

“At least a month, I expect.”

“I know many people hold the London season as
something not to be missed,” continued Mr. Sanditon, “but I
confess, I cannot fathom the attraction. I much prefer the quiet of
a country life. Do not you agree, Miss Darcy?”

Georgiana only blushed and stammered at his
unexpected question.

Her brother came to her rescue. “I believe
all three of us prefer the country for the most part. Still, an
occasional trip to town provides welcome variety. Business requires
me to go in any event, and I shall be very glad for such agreeable
company.”

“Then all that is left for me to do is wish
you a safe journey and an enjoyable stay. Meanwhile, I shall dearly
miss your society here. Now that I have become accustomed to it, I
shall not gladly return to my old reclusive ways. London’s gain is
my loss.”

After breakfast, they made their way to the
awaiting carriage. Mr. Sanditon escorted Georgiana and took her
aside for a few parting words before handing her into the coach.
When the four were comfortably settled – Mr. and Mrs. Darcy on one
side and the other two ladies across from them – the carriage got
underway.

As the long journey stretched out before
them, Elizabeth grew increasingly grateful for Charlotte’s
companionship. Darcy still suffered some lingering petulance from
the night before, and Georgiana was not in the best of spirits
either. They both largely resisted Elizabeth’s attempts to engage
them in conversation, and spent the greater share of their time
staring out the windows at the rain. Whilst mile after mile rolled
by, Charlotte provided the only relief to what might otherwise have
been tedious hours of silence.

At the inn where they broke their journey
that night, Elizabeth made no attempt to speak to her husband about
his ill humor. Experience had taught her that when Darcy brooded
over some difficulty, repeated inquiries were neither welcome nor
helpful. He must work through the problem in his own way. Her best
course was to stand clear until the disturbance passed.

By the time they left the inn the next
morning, things were looking brighter in all respects. The dismal
weather had cleared, and with it had apparently gone Darcy’s
sullenness and Georgiana’s unsociability. Whatever troubles they
carried with them from Pemberley now seemed left far behind. The
focus of conversation shifted to the prospect ahead and the
anticipated pleasures awaiting each of them at their
destinations.

Upon reaching Hertfordshire, they first went
to Lucas Lodge to deliver Charlotte to her family, and, after
accepting an hour’s hospitality there, proceeded on to Longbourn.
With Mrs. Bennet and Kitty still at Heatheridge, the three Darcys
anticipated finding only Mr. Bennet and Mary at home. The visit had
not been prearranged, Elizabeth deciding that it would be great fun
to arrive unannounced instead. Mary noticed their approach and
alerted her father and the housekeeper, Mrs. Hill. By the time the
Darcy’s carriage came to a stop, the welcoming party was fully
assembled.

“Well, well, what a congenial surprise this
is!” said Mr. Bennet in high spirits. “I see you have taken a page
from my book, Lizzy, coming when I did not expect you. Miss Darcy,
I am delighted to see you again. And Mr. Darcy, you are always very
welcome. Pray, come in. Come in and rest yourselves. You must be
tired from your journey.”

“So you
are
surprised then, Papa.”
said Elizabeth, taking his arm and giving him a kiss on the cheek.
“I thought perhaps Mama might have written that we were bound for
London, and you would be more or less expecting us to stop as we
passed by.”

“Not at all. If I am to rely on the evidence
held forth in her letters, I must conclude that your mother has
completely forgotten your existence, my dear child, along with most
everything else. For now at least, there is no room in her head for
any topic other than Jane’s twins. I fear you will have to do
something quite spectacular, Lizzy, if you are to recapture her
attention.”

“I have no desire to do any such thing,”
replied Elizabeth. “Let Mama devote herself to Jane and her twins.
I shall not find her neglect too much hardship to bear, I assure
you.”

The Season

Rather than pressing on to London as planned,
the Darcys allowed themselves to be persuaded into staying the
night at Longbourn.

“You must take pity on an old man who is
sadly starved for good conversation,” said Mr. Bennet in the cause.
“Fresh company and original ideas are what I require. Sir William
Lucas and I have long since grown weary of each other’s threadbare
stories, and I must confess that I often find your sister Mary’s
discourse unpalatable. It contains too much of the didactic for
regular consumption, especially since I have quite given up any
hopes of self-reform.”

The evening passed pleasurably for all
concerned. Mary and Georgiana entertained each other with their
common love of music, taking turns at the spinet, while the other
three gathered for the bright conversation Mr. Bennet so much
craved.

With the promise to stop again at Longbourn
on the return trip in a few weeks’ time, the Darcys said their
farewells early the next day. An easy morning’s drive took them to
their residence in town, where the household staff assembled to
welcome them before they could exit the carriage. The look-out had
been on in earnest, the family’s arrival having been expected since
the previous afternoon.

Once inside, a glance about themselves and
inquiries made of the butler confirmed that everything was in good
order. The servants that had been sent on ahead from Pemberley were
safely arrived, and the trunks, which had come by the same
conveyance, were already unpacked into the appropriate rooms.

After greeting the staff, Georgiana went up
to her apartment to get settled. Darcy and Elizabeth lingered
downstairs only long enough to check for cards and letters that had
arrived in advance of them.

“The Applewhites have called,” Elizabeth
observed to her husband.

“So, they are back from their tour on the
continent. Good. Their society is always agreeable, and I daresay
that, with the least bit of encouragement, Applewhite will consent
to regale us with creative accounts of their adventures abroad. One
can only believe half of what he says, of course, but his
embellishments do make the stories that much more
entertaining.”

“True,” Elizabeth said with a laugh. “I never
tire of listening to his standard yarns, and now he must have many
new diverting tales to tell. Oh look, here is a letter from Jane. I
had not expected to hear from her so soon. I hope this does not
signify something amiss,” she said breaking open the seal at
once.

“What does it say? Are they well?” Darcy
asked.

Elizabeth quickly surveyed the missive. “Yes,
yes, she says we are not to be alarmed for they are all in
excellent health. It looks as if she has written chiefly to alert
us to the possibility that we may chance to meet Wickham here in
town. She writes, ‘Mr. Wickham and Lydia had been with us only a
week when he announced that he had urgent business in town, and
promptly set off for London without further explanation.’ How
unlucky! Still, I doubt that we shall cross paths with him; London
is a big place and we move in such different circles.”

“I agree that a
chance
meeting is
improbable. It is far more likely he will go out of his way to
impose himself on us in some fashion. It certainly would not be the
first time,” Darcy said, glowering. “I believe he would stoop to
any manner of mischief if he thought it worth his while. Just to be
prudent, you and Georgiana must not go out alone as long as he is
in town.”

“Of course, if you think such precautions
necessary, my love,” said Elizabeth, a little puzzled. “I hope in
this case you are wrong, however. In any event, let us not spoil
our first night in town by thinking anything more about that odious
man.”

The subsequent days passed without incident,
and nothing more was said on the subject of Mr. Wickham. Mr. Darcy
had set about tending to his business affairs without delay,
dispatching them as expeditiously as possible in order to be free
for less serious occupations during the remainder of their stay.
Always with a footman’s escort, Elizabeth and Georgiana also
ventured forth on various and sundry errands – shopping as well as
making the rounds of their acquaintances. They paid calls and left
cards alerting their friends to their presence in town. Darcy
posted a note to his aunt at Rosings Park informing her of the
same.

Soon invitations began arriving for private
balls and parties. These Mr. Darcy scrutinized and discussed with
his wife, ultimately accepting many more than he might have done
according to his own inclination. He knew that a month or two in
London would afford his sister greater scope for social intercourse
than any other circumstances imaginable. In these few weeks, she
would rub shoulders with more of her equals, including suitable
young men, than she would likely come across in five years time in
the country. Thus, despite his personal distaste for the “marriage
market” atmosphere of these gatherings, he allowed it to be a
necessary evil.