The Pemberley Chronicles (7 page)

C
HAPTER
F
OUR

Letters

I

N THE MONTHS THAT
followed, many letters flowed between Pemberley, London, Netherfield Park, and Longbourn. Elizabeth had not spent more than a few days before she longed to put pen to paper. In her private sitting

room, overlooking the park, she pondered on all that surrounded her at Pemberley. It was not just the years of tradition and family history or the exquisite treasures of Darcy's forebears, nor was it the presence of an army of servants and tenant families, who regarded her husband with so much deference and respect, that now flowed through to her. It was much more than that. It was a sense of stability, an environment of elegance and harmony that prevailed throughout, almost defying the ravages of conflict, to create a pervading atmosphere of tranquillity. It was this same stability she had begun to appreciate in her husband, with his unswerving consistency of behaviour, based upon a high sense of personal honour and responsibility. Combined with the constancy and tenderness of their mutual love and esteem, it was an ideal Elizabeth may only have dared to dream of.

There was no doubt, however, that she was missing her beloved sister. Writing to Jane, she struggled to put her thoughts into words:

I have tried, these many hours, to think how I might best convey to you, my dearest Jane, the sense of loss I feel at your departure from Pemberley. Each night since you and my dear Aunt and Uncle left us, we have sat but a short time at the table after dinner, yet no sooner have we risen and gone upstairs to our sitting room, than we speak longingly of the days just gone and the evenings filled with laughter. Oh Jane, both of us miss you so. Darcy has promised that we will visit you soon, probably when father returns to Longbourn. There is no need for me to tell you how much I look forward to seeing you, again.

Meanwhile, I cannot let you believe that we are all gloom and despondency, for that would be unfair to the efforts of Mr Darcy to engage my interest in a dozen different schemes. Tomorrow, we hope the weather will be as good as it is today, which only means cold and dry, instead of cold and wet, for we are invited to a reception for the Duke of Wellington at the estate of the Earl of Lichfield in Staffordshire. The Duke is being feted for his splendid achievements at Waterloo and elsewhere, now that the war is over. The family at Pemberley has had a long association with the Ansons, whose family are the Earls of Lichfield. Mrs Reynolds has told me that Darcy's father, who was much loved and respected, was a close friend of the late Earl.

Afterwards, Darcy has promised we shall visit Lichfield, where my dear favourite Doctor Johnson was born, to attend a choral recital at the great Cathedral there. It is a pleasure I should only have dreamed of, dear Jane, and one I shall enjoy all the more knowing that Darcy will share it with me. He has an excellent understanding of music and will often help Georgiana or myself in reading and interpreting some of the new European compositions. This is especially good for me, since my knowledge of music is mostly self taught, as you know, and not particularly extensive. Georgiana and Dr Grantley are to accompany us; although they are not asked to the reception, they will visit the castle and High House at Stafford, while Mr Darcy and I attend the function for the great man. As you know, Dr Grantley has a great interest in Church music, and Georgiana has been helping him with the material in the Pemberley collection, and he is very appreciative of her interest in his work.

Will you forgive me, my dear sister, if I mention this with some little trepidation, but I fear Georgiana is in danger of falling in love with Dr Grantley. I have not spoken a word of my suspicions to anyone but you, so I beg you keep this to yourself alone. Do not ask me if it is requited, dear Jane, for Dr Grantley is of an age and a level of maturity, being a year older than Darcy, that enables a man to keep his feelings to himself. Georgiana is of such a tender age, being younger than Kitty, that he may not wish to encourage her in any way. If my husband knows anything of it, he has not indicated it to me, but I am sure he will have noticed that they are together for many hours each day. Let us leave it until we meet; there may be more substance to the matter by then, or perchance there may be no more of it, since Dr Grantley returns to his College at Oxford in the Spring. I must close now but will write again when we are returned from Staffordshire. Do give our love to Bingley, and, dear Jane, I beg you please look after yourself. You are always in my thoughts.

Yours very affectionately, Lizzie.

On returning from Staffordshire, Elizabeth found two letters waiting for her. The first, from her father, had been expected for some time, since Mr Bennet had accepted Darcy's invitation to visit Pemberley in the New Year. Elizabeth was overjoyed to read that he was finally coming, having ensured that Mrs Bennet was safely off to Newcastle. He asked Elizabeth to tell her husband that the coach would arrive at Lambton on Saturday afternoon, remembering that Darcy had offered to send the carriage for him.

While I regret that I have delayed my visit to Pemberley, I think, my dear, you will agree that it was done in a good cause, for by waiting until your mother was ready to leave for Newcastle, taking her maid Sarah with her, I have spared your sister Jane the responsibility of entertaining both your mother and Mary for several weeks. I would have felt guilty had I done so and would not have enjoyed my stay with you quite as much as I intend to. As it happens, Mary is gone to Netherfield Park; Hill and John will watch over Longbourn, while I avail myself of the delights of Derbyshire in general and Pemberley in particular. Please tell your husband I am looking forward very much to burying myself in his remarkable library, of which I have such excellent reports.

Elizabeth hurried over to find her husband and give him the news. She found him in the sitting room, reading a letter from Mr Gardiner, thanking them for their hospitality over Christmas and urging them to consider a visit to London, preferably before they went on to Netherfield in Spring. When she handed him her father's letter, Elizabeth was delighted to see the genuine pleasure with which he read it and turning to her, said, "There you are, my dear, I knew you would soon be smiling again. I know how much you've been missing your father--why you're looking better already." Elizabeth knew he was sincere, despite the teasing tone of his voice.

"I shall ask Hobbs to arrange for the carriage to meet him, unless you and Kitty would like to go, too." Elizabeth considered this but decided she would prefer to wait for her father at Pemberley, with Darcy beside her. She said so, and from his approving smile, she knew it was the right thing to do.

Tea was served and as the others helped themselves, Elizabeth took hers upstairs hoping to read the second letter she had received, in the privacy of her sitting room. She had recognised the hand; it was Charlotte's and posted at Hunsford. Even before she opened it, Elizabeth felt a sense of gleeful anticipation; Charlotte would surely have news from Rosings where Lady Catherine must have held court during the festive season, with the Bingley sisters and Mr Collins showing appropriate respect.

On opening it, Elizabeth read it quickly through and then re-read it as she was wont to do when she wished to savour the pleasure of a letter from a favourite source. The first few paragraphs contained sundry pieces of information relating to household matters and then there was news from the domain of Lady Catherine de Bourgh.

Charlotte wrote:
Dear Eliza,

You probably will not be surprised to hear that your marriage to Mr Darcy has not found favour with his aunt. She seemed to think you had done it out of spite or some determination to flout her Ladyship's wishes. It was a judgement with which Mrs Hurst and Miss Caroline Bingley seemed ready to agree with alacrity, though it must be said that Mr Hurst did not wish to become involved. He was of the opinion that Mr Darcy "had had his eye on Miss Eliza Bennet since the day of the Netherfield Ball," and this rather threw them all into confusion. You will be pleased, I am sure, to hear that Mr Collins and I remained staunchly aloof from any vilification of your selves and when the opportunity arose, I remarked to Miss Bingley that I was quite certain both her brother Mr Bingley and his friend Mr Darcy were considered extremely fortunate to have married two of the most handsome ladies in the county.

"Oh Charlotte, I can wager anything, she did not like that," said Lizzie, chuckling to herself, visualising the scene at Rosings and enjoying the discomfiture of Miss Bingley as Charlotte described it.

More than for herself, Elizabeth found it hard to be charitable to the Bingley sisters on account of their treatment of Jane last Summer. It remained a mystery to her that their brother could be such an amiable and sincere gentleman while growing up in the company of sisters whose meanness of understanding and total selfishness of character were hard to conceal. She could not restrain her laughter when she read of Lady Catherine's response to the failure of her nephew James Fitzwilliam to present himself at Rosings for Christmas.

Her Ladyship appeared most put out when a message arrived on Christmas Eve, from her nephew James, elder brother of Colonel Fitzwilliam, saying he was unavoidably delayed up North and could not get back to Kent for Christmas. Mr Collins did try to discover why Lady Catherine was so particular that he should be here, but no one seemed to know.

Elizabeth, recalling Darcy's tale of Lady Catherine's plans for her nephew, laughed out loud. When Darcy came in search of her, Elizabeth had reached the last page of Charlotte's letter:

My main reason for writing, dear Eliza, is to tell you that I am going to be at Lucas Lodge from the beginning of March until my baby is born in May and probably for a month afterwards. My dear parents have asked me to stay, and Mr Collins agrees with me that Dr Jones would engender more confidence, having attended almost all members of our family, than the physician recommended by Lady Catherine. Again, I doubt that I have pleased her Ladyship with my decision, but I am convinced I must do as I see fit.

Elizabeth gave a cry of joy, as if she was cheering Charlotte on in her defiance, and Darcy looked on in astonishment, until she acquainted him with the reason for her satisfaction. She passed the letter to him, having read the last paragraph, in which her friend expressed a wish that Lizzie should not fail to visit her when she came to Longbourn. Elizabeth had not been unaware of Mrs Collins' condition, having heard of it at the time of her own wedding in October, but her happiness was intensified by Charlotte's news that she would be at Lucas Lodge--probably without her odious husband, so that a visit would bring real pleasure. "It will be almost like old times," she said, and Mr Darcy, who had always felt some regard for the pleasant, sensible, and long-suffering Charlotte, agreed. They laughed together at the news from Rosings, especially the remark from Mr Hurst about Darcy and Elizabeth and Charlotte's description of Lady Catherine's aggravation at the non-appearance of her nephew.

"She cannot have learned of his engagement to Rosamund," said Darcy, adding that he was glad not to be at Rosings to hear her reaction.
Finding him in this very light-hearted mood, Elizabeth pressed her request for an early visit to her sister at Netherfield, with the possibility of seeing Charlotte at the same time. It wasn't difficult to extract a promise that when her father returned home in four weeks' time, they would all go, probably via London. In addition, he had other, more advanced plans. "I know how much it means to you, dearest, and I have already made arrangements for our stay in London, probably for four days. I have only been waiting on Mr Bennet's arrival to discover whether he would like to join us or stay here with Dr Grantley and Kitty.
"Once we know his preference, you can make whatever arrangements you wish with Mrs Gardiner for your entertainment during the day, when Mr Gardiner and I will be busy with matters of business. Your uncle has also obtained tickets for the Opera, and we must confirm our arrangements as soon as possible," he said.
Elizabeth was delighted. She threw her arms around Darcy and thanked him with an enthusiasm that both surprised and delighted him. As soon as matters were decided, she intended to write to Jane and Charlotte and give them the good news. As for Mrs Gardiner, she was owed a letter, and Elizabeth decided it was going to be written without delay.
Outside, the weather was still wintry, but in her heart, it was already Spring. This feeling of lightness flowed through into her letter:

My dearest Aunt,

It gives me so much joy to write with good news, and so much of it. First, my father arrives on Saturday for four weeks, having ensured that my mother has safely left for Newcastle to be with Lydia. He apologises for his tardiness in coming to us but is certain that it was in a good cause, since it preserves dear Jane and Bingley from having Mama to stay for two weeks before her journey North. I have no doubt at all that Jane and Bingley are profoundly grateful, although they are both much too polite to say so.