Wickham was not sure if Miss Elizabeth’s father had heard all of his tale, but if so, was Darcy known to him? It was a worry which made him debate whether it was time to move on or remain with the militia and replenish his needs from the credit the merchants would extend and the favours he would claim from young ladies in the area.
He had only met four, well three, of the Bennet sisters. One had not been introduced as she was not out and her sister had objected to him trying to be friendly to Miss Kitty. Very much wanting to please him, Miss Maria had mentioned a fifth sister who she had indicated would have been competition for officers were she allowed out of the house.
This could only mean the youngest unnamed Bennet would have been easy to seduce. It was a pity she was not free to meet him. He imagined how he would enjoy plucking her virtue before he snapped himself out of his fantasy.
None of that answered his question of whether it was safe for him to remain in Meryton. Wait, had Miss Elizabeth not told of how unpopular Darcy was and was thought of as being rude and aloof? In that case, the chances were there was no connection between Darcy and the Bennets, so the odds of Mr. Bennet speaking to Darcy about what he had heard, if he had heard anything, were low to none.
The realisation allowed Wickham to relax and begin to breathe easier. Besides, a few words from him in well placed ears and precious Georgiana Darcy would be ruined. In the back of his mind, Wickham knew if he took that step, he would have to have the means to escape the country as Richard Fitzwilliam would hunt him down.
That was a last resort. In his opinion, Darcy loved his sister too much to provoke him to have to retaliate. Rather than worry about his nemesis, Wickham began to plan which merchant he would gain credit from first and who would be his first conquest.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Unfortunately for Elizabeth, who loved to walk out in the mornings, it had been raining for three days straight. She knew Jane was equally as disenchanted with the weather as it had not allowed Mr. Bingley to call on her.
Along with Jane and Mary, Elizabeth was seated in the drawing room. Their mother was meeting with Mrs. Hill and then she intended to rest; rainy days were not her favourite. The two youngest Bennets were with the companion-governess in lessons.
Mrs. Buxton had arrived as planned and was an integral part of the household now. Elizabeth liked the no-nonsense lady. She was somewhat taller than herself and if Elizabeth had to guess she would have said the lady was above thirty summers in age.
Without the ability to ramble over the estate’s paths or to her favourite destination, Oakham Mount, Elizabeth sat in on one of the companion-governess’s lessons. She had been impressed on two fronts.
Firstly, Lydia was attentive and seemed keen to learn and secondly, the woman was a good teacher who had an extensive breadth of knowledge. Having the latter did not always make one good at being the former.
Her rumination was disturbed when Mary’s fiancé entered the drawing room. “Mary dearest dove, I received a letter from Lady Catherine this morning, what an honour,” Collins exclaimed.
“Is everything well in Kent?” Mary enquired.
“It seems it is, except Miss de Bourgh has been ill of late,” Collins related sadly. “There are two things of importance for us,” he reported as he brightened again. “I had told my patroness of my good fortune of securing your hand in marriage and Lady Catherine says you sound just like the type of lady she would have imagined as a parson’s wife. She looks forward to your waiting on her when we return to Hunsford subsequent to our joining in holy wedlock in the sight of God and His holy church.”
“Did you tell her we are to marry on the twentieth day of this month?” Mary questioned.
“I did, but sadly she cannot condescend to join us, especially with her daughter’s indifferent health,” Collins averred.
Elizabeth leaned so her mouth was close to Jane’s ear. “And this sickly woman is theRose of Kenthe told us is engaged to Mr. Darcy,” Elizabeth whispered. “It sounds like an interesting pairing.”
“Lizzy,” Jane hissed and playfully swatted at her sister’s arm.
Collins did not seem to notice what had passed between the two eldest Bennet sisters and if Mary did, she ignored the smiling pair. “The other is of equal import,” Collins stated with puffed up pride. “Remember you told me about my great-grandfather Ignatius changing his family name when he married?”
“Yes. Did you research the subject in Papa’s study?” Mary asked.
“Indeed I did. Bennet showed me the family bible where my ancestor was named as Ignatius Bennet. It also showed his wedding day and the date he changed his name to Collins, as you correctly reported,” Collins responded.
“So, you accept without that event, your name would have been William Bennet?” Mary verified.
“That is certain,” Collins confirmed. “Once I saw the bible, I wrote to Lady Catherine and she and I are of one mind on this. Ignatius should have never changed his name to take that of his wife’s, so that means I am a Bennet.”
“Are you to have your name changed?” Jane queried.
“I am, only I do not know how to go about it,” Collins worried.
“You met our Aunt Hattie and Uncle Frank, did you not?” Mary reminded her fiancé.
“Yes, of course. Mr. Philips is a solicitor is he not?” Collins recalled. “Is it certain he will be able to assist me.?
“Uncle Frank is a very good lawyer, and I believe he will, ” Elizabeth stated.
“It is a pity this rain restricts us to the house,” Collins mused.
