London
Mr King,
Please excuse the liberty I take in writing to one who was a good friend to my late father but not an acquaintance of mine.
I beg you to believe me that if it were not of the utmost importance, no less than the protection of your niece, Miss Mary King, I would not have written to you.
It was at my nieces’ urging that I write to you, more specifically Miss Bennet, who you will know is loath to say a bad word about anyone. The information was imparted to one of my other nieces, and the man who did so has proof to bolster his assertions.
George Wickham, the man who is courting Miss King, is, I am afraid, a seducer of youngladies, a fortune hunter, a gambler, a cheater of tradesmen, and a liar. My nieces tell me that he only became interested in Miss King after her inheritance became common knowledge in Meryton. From the information we have, he is the worst kind of man who will run through Miss King’s fortune in a few years and then either come to you with his hand out or abandon her for greener pastures.
These are not charges I level without cause. Allow me to supply you with some examples.
The tale of woe Mr Wickham tells regarding Mr Darcy is fiction built around a small kernel of truth. Mr Darcy did deny him the living in Kympton. However, Mr Wickham omits the fact he flatly refused to take orders and was compensated for the living, even though Mr Darcy had no legal or ethical imperative to do so because the presentation was dependant on Mr Wickham taking holy orders. Mr Darcy has a document which was signed and witnessed relinquishing all rights to the living for the sum paid. In two short years, £4,000 were spent on a debauched lifestyle and gambling. Still not having taken holy orders, Mr Wickham then demanded the living. It was only then he was refused.
Mr Wickham is in the habit of leaving unpaid debts in his wake, not caring that he beggars honest tradesmen. I am aware that more than £3,000 of his markers are being held by one who purchasedthem so that the men who had extended credit would not suffer because of a dishonourable man.
There are at least 4 bastard children Mr Wickham has sired; all being cared for by others. He thinks nothing of promising marriage, convincing the lady to anticipate their vows, and then abandoning them.
It is known that he attempted to get one heiress, younger than 16, to elope with him so he would have unfettered access to her dowry.
If you require proof, it can be provided, but I suggest you immediately do what you need to do to protect Miss King from such a man.
Sincerely,
E Gardiner
“Kinsley, attend me at once!” King called out as soon as he dropped the epistle onto his desk.
“Sir.” The butler bowed.
“Is my niece at home?” King was flooded with relief when the butler said it was so. “Have her attend me right away. Then give orders to pack; we are for my house in Liverpool. And Kinsley, if Lieutenant Wickham calls, he is not to be admitted to my house ever again.”
The butler bowed and left to carry out his master’s orders.
King and his late wife had not been blessed with children, so when his nephew and his wife were lost, he had seen the care of Mary as a sacred trust. He did not need to see the proof of Wickham’s perfidy. He had never felt comfortable with the man, but Mary seemed to receive his attentions withpleasure, and King had had a devil of a time refusing her anything. That stopped now.
“Uncle Paul, you called for me,” Mary King stated cheerily as she entered her uncle’s study.
“Mary, your courtship with Lieutenant Wickham is at an end, and we depart for Liverpool today. You are to have no further contact with him ever,” King commanded. Seeing the look of horror on his niece’s face was hard but did not weaken his resolution. He wavered when she began to sob, but he did not break.
“Why?” Mary managed between sobs.
