“I do. There is a lady back home, who I thought had an ethereal beauty about her when she entered womanhood,” he confessed. “Please understand, I have not been coveting this girl through her growth. She is beautiful, but there was something about her that I thought might grow to be incomparable. The lady has been old enough to wed for some three or four years, but something has prevented me from asking for her. As much as I admire her, I did not come to love her romantically as she grew up the way I thought I might. Even as a woman she is immature, and it is not always attractive upon her.”
“If she is only three or four years grown up, she will certainly mature a great deal more in only a few years,” pointed out Charlotte. “I know I matured greatly by the time I was three and twenty.”
“No. My ideal of her as a woman does not meet with reality, and it is my own fault. I had no right to create any such ideal. It was a foolish fancy on my part. She is not a bad person, her heart is in the right place, and she has good intentions. But I do not like her manner of entertaining herself by playing with the feelings and futures of her neighbours. She treats all around her – her friends, her governess, the local spinsters, every young man she meets – as if they are dolls or playthings. She attempts to direct their hearts, and is shocked if she is wrong or they go their own way. We are family. Her sister is married to my brother. I have spent too much time with her in her youth to see her romantically now. All of the chastising I have done regardingher behaviour does not incline me towards love. I cannot see her as anything but a younger sister. It has been some time since I accepted that I wish to marry a grown up lady, with a true woman’s heart. Someone closer to my age, who treats others with genuine compassion and friendship. A woman I might be proud to share my name with.”
It was blatantly obvious that Mr Knightley was informing Charlotte that he believed he had found his match. His voice held more warmth and emotion that Elizabeth had heard in it since he had arrived in Meryton.
Charlotte flushed prettily, and said, “Whoever she is will be a lucky woman.”
“The good fortune shall all be mine if she will only agree,” Mr Knightley said with great feeling. The pair watched the young people dancing on the other side of the room for a moment before the man seemed to gather his courage and spoke again. “May I request the honour of a private audience with you tomorrow, Miss Lucas?”
“You may,” answered Charlotte happily.
Mr Knightley kissed her hand, making her blush again, and left her. Seconds later, Elizabeth barreled into her, hugging her best friend and spinning her around with joy. “I knew how it would be!” Elizabeth cried, then embraced her friend again. The following evening, Sir William Lucas announced the betrothal of his eldest daughter at the Meryton assembly. Charlotte danced every dance, and was radiant with joy. Mr Knightley suddenly no longer seemed as dry and stern. The man smiled animatedly and was profuse with his thanks as the locals gave him their congratulations, and complimented him on being the fortunate man to see what a jewel there was to be found in their Miss Lucas.
Elizabeth stood up with Charlotte in Meryton’s church the second week in April, as her cousin led the couple in theirvows and pronounced them husband and wife. Charlotte was more beautiful than she had ever looked before, and Mr George Knightley was ecstatic as he handed his wife up into his carriage after the wedding breakfast as the couple departed for Bath for two months before going to Highbury.
CHAPTER 23
Paris - 1554
Nostradamus entered a darkenedapartment in Paris. “You survived!” said a man dressed all in black in French as he rose from a semi-recumbent position. “Congratulations, my friend. I had my doubts.”
“You hadyourdoubts! I was certain I was to be beheaded for my predictions regarding the royal family!” Nostradamus exclaimed.
“So what did she want?”asked his friend, moving slowly over to a table where a great book of calculations and predictions was laid out.
“She wishes me to move to the palace, and create horoscopes for her and her children,”said Nostradamus. “Should I go?”
“You have very little choice. Either you do as she says, or she has you killed,”answered his friend.“See if you can get her to let you look at her boy’s ears, they need tending.”
“She wants you too,”said Nostradamus.
“Me?”gasped the other.“Whatever for?”
“She heard I have a friend who is skilled in medicine and transmutation,”said Nostradamus.
The two menentered the throne room at the French Court. “Nostradamus!” the page announced as the first man approached the throne and bowed low to Catherine de Medici.
“Your name, sir?”the page whispered. The man dressed all in black whispered in his ear, and the page straightened his head and announced,“The Comte St Germain.”
CHAPTER 24
Georgiana and Lady Priscilla arrived at Netherfield a few days before the end of April. Mr Bingley was still in London, but the ladies made use of his house for a few days, and socialised with the Bennets before continuing on to Rosings Park. Lydia was in high spirits at what she called her liberation. Elizabeth hoped that she would be equal to controlling the girl, but her father had told her that if her youngest sister gave her, Mrs Annesley, or Lady Catherine the slightest trouble, to put her in Lady Catherine’s carriage and send her straight home.
Lydia’s spirits were irrepressible, but that would likely never change. Despite that, Elizabeth was still impressed by her sister’s progress these last months. She spoke more intelligently now that Papa had taken her education in hand, and she was learning how to think rationally. A month after her first visit, Lydia had demanded the carriage for the day that she might visit Cousin Harriet and Sister Mary Frances again. Mrs Bennet had objected, she had another engagement that day, but Mr Bennet, impressed by Lydia’s interest and compassion for the ladies, granted her request. Aunt Phillips petitioned to join them, she had missed the last visit, and Lydia dragged Janeand Elizabeth with them. Elizabeth had no objection, she was curious about this mysterious cousin. Mr Darcy had offered the use of his carriage so that Mrs Bennet’s engagement might not be interrupted, and he and Mr Bingley escorted the ladies to Ashwell on horseback.
Cousin Harriet again believed Lydia to be her grandmother, and she thought that Jane was Fanny Bennet from her youth. She ignored Elizabeth completely, seeming uncomfortable about her. Sister Mary Frances explained that this was likely because Elizabeth resembled her father’s people, and Cousin Harriet had no lady in her memory to associate Elizabeth’s features with. She likewise tended to forget all about Mr Bennet whenever they were not in company. It had been many years since she had met anyone new besides the occasional novice, and they all looked the same to her. Miss Holbrook was exceedingly happy to sit with Lydia and Jane, and pepper them with questions about events they had attended recently, and clothes they had ordered at the dressmaker. She tired far more quickly this time, presumably due to there being more visitors.
The ladies decided not to come more than three at a time to visit Cousin Harriet in the future. Elizabeth had not considered the visit wasted, even though Miss Gardiner had not engaged with her. She had enjoyed a very friendly conversation with Sister Mary Frances, and had been fascinated to hear about her life. Elizabeth thought that Sister Mary Frances deserved a particular visitor of her own occasionally. It was only appropriate for the nun to receive correspondence very infrequently. Once or twice a year perhaps, unless she was conveying information about Harriet, but Elizabeth vowed to visit and write to the woman when she could, and she was proud of Lydia for caring about the two women, and wanting to bring them the comfort of family visits.
Lydia had applied herself with fresh vigour to her sewing. She was creating a quilt for her chest for when she married, as many girls did, but now she began a new one which would be a gift for Harriet when it was finished. She gave it a great deal more attention than she gave herownquilt, and in order to see it done quickly, Jane and Mrs Bennet often helped her sew squares. It was a simple pattern, something not complicated to assemble, but Lydia wanted to give her cousin something new and lovely to add to her comfort. She also embroidered a lovely shawl for the lady. She fretted that she could not give any gifts to Sister Mary Frances, and the magnitude of the sacrifice the woman had made for her sister weighed upon Lydia often.
She had fussed a great deal about Harriet being moved to a room with a window on her second visit, but Sister Mary Frances explained that when Harriet had a window, she attempted to escape from it, thinking she was meeting a lover, even when she was not on the ground floor. For her safety, she could only sleep in a room with no window, but there was a lovely and bright parlour in the castle for her particular use. The reason she had not been in that parlour during their first two visits was because of the time of day they had arrived, she had already spent the morning downstairs, and then retired back up to her room to rest for the afternoon. Lydia planned to leave earlier for their next visit, that she might see this parlour, and assess its comfort for herself.
The partyof ladies was in high spirits the entire way to Kent. They travelled straight through, instead of stopping in London at their Uncle Gardiner’s. They rested at Bromley, where her ladyship had arranged a private dining room and agenerous luncheon for them. Lady Catherine and William had corresponded about it, and the curate from Hunsford met them at Bromley, and escorted them on the last leg of their journey, to doubly ensure their safety while dining at the inn.
They arrived an hour before dinner, famished, and ready to wash and change as soon as possible. They were overjoyed to see Anne, who had become a great deal more firm and forceful with her mother when necessary during her stay at Netherfield. While Lady Catherine had been assisting Lady Matlock to instruct Miss Bingley, so too were Lord and Lady Matlock and Darcy working upon Lady Catherine to be less domineering with Anne. They were all devastated that she was ill. She was difficult, but she was their family, and they all cared for her. But she was made to see that if her timewasto be short, that it was all the more important for Anne to assert her independence. Anne had pensioned off her companion, Mrs Jenkinson, and taken over much of the running of the house.
