For the rest of the service Elizabeth revelled in the closeness of those she loved and who loved her in return.
She felt strong pangs of regret when the concluding hymn had been sung as she had no excuse to remain at the church forlonger than it would take her to walk to her coach. When she exited out of the vestibule into the bright sunlight she could have kissed Uncle Adam.
“Excuse me for asking, but are you Her Grace, the Duchess of Hertfordshire?” he asked innocently.
“I am,” Elizabeth averred. “I was most taken with the lesson you preached in your sermon, Mr. Lambert if I heard correctly.”
A murmur went up from the crowd milling about outside of the church as the speculation she was the Duchess was confirmed. None would walk home until Her Grace departed.
“Indeed Your Grace. Would you allow me to introduce you to my family and some friends?” Lambert requested.
Lambert made a show of introducing his family—instead of Bennet, he used the family name of Gardiner—and friends. All Elizabeth could do was incline her head to each. If she extended her hand, it would have raised too many questions, and if there was a watcher loyal to the old man, she did not want to provide any morsels to be reported to him.
Biggs and Johns noted Her Grace was happy to be introduced and was not being importuned against her wishes. Hence they kept in the background, ever vigilant, ready to pounce if needs be.
Mrs. Medford the midwife, who had examined Elizabeth the same day the doctor had earlier in the week, approached.
After conveying sabbath wishes, the midwife spoke at a volume easily heard. “I see you have met my assistant Mrs. Gardiner and her apprentice, Miss Jane. They will be calling on you at Castlemere on Tuesday for your next examination, if that meets your approval, Your Grace.”
“Yes, thank you, Mrs. Medford, that is entirely acceptable to me,” Elizabeth agreed.
To not make it seem as if he was especially singling out certain people to meet Her Grace, Lambert introduced some of the leading denizens of Lambton to the Duchess before one of her giant-sized men handed her into the coach, and it departed in the direction of Castlemere.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
That afternoon, subsequent to the post church meal, the Darcy and Fitzwilliam parents were seated in the former’s private sitting room in the master suite.
“You will not believe what Mrs. Reynolds told me,” Lady Anne articulated.
“What is it?” Lady Matlock enquired.
“The young Duchess attended Lambton’s church, and those who met her, say she is open and friendly,” Lady Anne reported. “Evidently, she sat with the rector’s family.”
“That is particular,” Lord Matlock opined. “I would wager she sat among the populace because her husband is far away in London. Let us hope he remains there when word of his wife mixing with theunwashed massesreaches him.”
“That she was willing to mix with all at the church speaks well of her character, I think,” Lady Anne postulated.
“I look forward to meeting her, if she is home to callers on Tuesday,” Lady Matlock stated.
“You and me both, Elaine,” Lady Anne agreed.
Chapter 21
Come Monday morning, Elizabeth was feeling rather melancholic. She had been ecstatic to see her family and friends, even if she had been unable to acknowledge them as such at the church.
The cause of her sadness was knowing that for as long ashewas alive, she would have to keep a distance between herself and those she loved best in the world.
Yes, Jane and Aunt Maddie would be seeing her once a week, but it was covert and they would have to be so very circumspect to guard against word of the subterfuge reaching the heinous old man in London.
It was nothing she would ever say to Jane and the rest of her family and friends, but in a way, it was cruel seeing them but not being able to be free in her interactions with them. She openly admitted it was her own suggestion they join her in Derbyshire, all they had done was advance the date of their arrival. That knowledge did not lighten the burden she felt in knowing that she could not be free in her interactions with those she loved most as long as she was tied tohim. For their own protection, Elizabeth would have to keep her distance from her loved ones.
She had married a monster to protect Jane and she would not allow anything to redound on Jane, their younger sisters, or any of her other loved ones.
That morning she felt nauseous as she had for some time now, but at least she had not vomited. Loretta had her ginger tea and two slices of dry toast ready for her as soon as she was dressed.
Elizabeth sat at the table in the sitting room looking out over the lake. It was a vista which usually brought cheer to her, but not today. For so long she had put up a brave front, even convincing herself her life could be far worse. The truth was she was enslaved to the worst man she had ever met, or could imagine. She believed it was cliché to call every bad man evil, but in the man she had been coerced to marry Elizabeth believed he was in fact, pure evil. The devil incarnate.
She remembered when she had asked him why he chose her, both in front of Mr. Bennet and when he had revealed his plan to give her a choice, her or Jane, he had said he had his reasons. To date, he had not told her what they were, and she doubted he ever would.
