Elizabeth slipped back into her bedchamber. She had not been able to sleep and all of the commotion had drawn her to the source of the noise. She still did not like him, but she found she could sympathise with Mr Darcy. She was sure he, like most people she knew, would be loathe to be forced to marry someone not of his own choice.
The maid who was sitting with Jane for the night opened the door leading to the shared sitting room. “Is Miss Bennet well?” Elizabeth worried.
“She has some fever, but not anything like last night, Miss Elizabeth. It is all of the goings-on which woke her. Miss Bennet is asking if you are well.”
It took no time to cross the sitting room and enter Jane’s bedchamber. “Lizzy what was all of that great hullabaloo I heard? It was not connected to you, was it?” Jane worried.
“No Janey, I was but a bystander. Miss Bingley…” Elizabeth told Jane what she knew, which admittedly was not that much, but she had heard Mr Darcy’s speech so she had extrapolated from that. “Thankfully Mr Bingley and Mr Hurst stopped her before she reached me to punish me with her nails. The woman is insane. I think Mr Bingley is to have her put in an institution for the mentally unstable.”
“Not Bedlam! Surely, he would not have Miss Bingley committed there, even if the patients are no longer treated like wild animals on display,” Jane shook her head sadly.
“I know not, but I do not believe he would place her there,” Elizabeth assured her tender-hearted sister. “I am sure we will find out more when Mr Bingley or Louisa is willing to tell us. Are you sad Mr Bingley is to go away for some days when the roads are dry enough and the bridge usable?”
“How can I think of myself and my feelings at a time like this? I do not envy Mr Bingley for what he must do. He will return when he is able, of that I have no doubt,” Jane asserted.They had not declared their feelings one for the other, but Jane knew she was falling in love with Mr Bingley, and she strongly suspected he returned her feelings.
“With the excitement in the house it will not be easy, but try to sleep Janey, you need more of it to make a full recovery.” Elizabeth kissed her sister on her cheek and could feel what the maid had told her was correct. The fever was higher than the evening, but not close to what it had been the previous night. She was well aware it would not be easy for her to fall asleep, but she nevertheless had to try. “I will see you in the morning. Well, I suppose it is morning already; so Janey, I will come to you then when it is light.”
“Good night, Lizzy,” Jane called.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“Darce I am so sorry…” Bingley stopped when his friend held up his hand.
“You warned Miss Bingley, more than once. This is not your fault Bingley, so you have nought for which to apologise,” Darcy insisted.
Once his sister had been situated, albeit still spilling vitriol and an expletive laced invective aimed at Miss Elizabeth, Bingley had come back to Darcy’s suite. They were seated in the sitting room attached to it.
“That is true, yet I still feel responsible for her actions as the head of the Bingley family.”
“If I may offer you some advice given to me by the Fitzwilliams.” Bingley extended his hand, palm up for Darcy to proceed. “Do not take on yourself guilt which belongs to others.”
Bingley knew his friend, or more to the point, the Fitzwilliams had the right of it, yet he still felt some guilt, and of course, much sadness. “Have you heard of any private sanatoriums where the patients are treated with dignity and respect?”
“In fact, it just so happens I have,” Darcy recalled. “It is calledThe Sanctuaryon the island of Jersey. It is used by members of theTonwho have to commit family members. From what I hear it is not cheap.”
“Neither was paying for all of Caroline’s extravagant overspending. It is not the way I would have liked to, but I am sure I will end up saving money,” Bingley opined.
“I think we should attempt to get some sleep,” Darcy suggested.
Bingley nodded, stood, and shook his friend’s hand. He made the slow walk to his chambers trying to fathom what had gone so wrong with his younger sister.
Chapter 12
Georgiana Darcy—Gigi—looked at the letter in her hands as if she was imagining the words. Was William not perfect? If he too erred, then was it possible her own almost elopement was not something about which he felt disgust?
“Gigi, why do you look like something has shocked you?” Lady Rebecca—Becca to friends and family—enquired. As the cousins were so close in age, the youngest Fitzwilliam and youngest Darcy had always been as close. Since Gigi had been resident at Matlock House, Becca had been trying everything she could to convince her younger cousin her near mistake was not the end of the world. After all, William had arrived in time, and Gigi had confessed all to him.
“Please read this Becca,” Georgiana requested as she handed Becca William’s letter.
The two were in the sitting room between their bedchambers without their companions who had a half day off. Becca sat on the settee next to her cousin. They looked like they could have been sisters. Both had straight blonde hair and the Fitzwilliam blue eyes. The difference was in their facial features. Becca favoured her mother while Gigi was the image of her own late mother. The youngest Fitzwilliam lifted the letter, smoothed the paper, and began to read.
25 October 1812
Netherfield Park
My dearest sister,
My prayer is that you have truly begun to recover yourspirits, and Becca is assisting you with that. I hope you have finally realised I do not blame you as you believe. Should you have known better than to agree to what was suggested? Yes. However, you were thoroughly betrayed by one meant to protect you and the other one is a very skilled liar. If anyone is to blame it is me for making some bad choices, one of them being not verifying Mrs Younge characters as I should have. The other, more egregious error was I did not ensure you knew the true nature of the silver-tongued snake. Such knowledge would have allowed you to protect yourself better. I am sorry I did not write sooner, but the skies opened up here and I suspected the floods of Noah were upon us for a few days.
