He placed his hand over hers. “I wish to marry you, Miss Elizabeth. I want to protect you and shield you from all that you fear. I give you my pledge, you will be safe with me.”
She smiled faintly. “Very well then, sir. You may help me into your carriage.”
Bennet stood upon the road, watching the carriage roll away with his three eldest daughters. Somehow, he knew that none of them would ever return to his home to live again as maidens. His spirits fell. He was not accustomed to despondency, yet he felt it keenly now.
His wife’s shrill voice broke his reverie.
“Oh, Mr. Bennet, Lizzy will be married by the end of the week, and perhaps Jane will catch Mr. Bingley while she sojourns at Netherfield Park. Who could have foretold such good fortune? Lady Lucas will be green with envy!”
Collins stared at Frances in disbelief, and Bennet flushed with shame. He must take his wife in hand. If Lydia could bereclaimed, so too could her mother, and he would reclaim her if it was the last thing he did.
He turned toward the house and invited Collins to accompany him, but paused to address his wife.
“Frances, you will not take the carriage out today. It is no part of my plan to allow you to gossip about our daughters to the denizens of Meryton.” He gestured toward Mr. Collins. “You have the heir to account to now, madam. He will be responsible for you should I die tomorrow. It would be well for you not to bring shame upon him or his house.”
She looked at her husband, surprised and embarrassed. “Sir, I do not know what you mean.”
He huffed. “Oh, I believe you do. You may go indoors and see to Lizzy’s room. Have it cleaned and made up, for she will no longer live here at Longbourn. Leave Jane and Mary’s rooms as they are; perhaps they will return, though I doubt it. When you have given Hill your instructions, you may join me in my study. We will begin reclaiming your mind today, so that you may become more acceptable to the heir. Who knows? You might even be so altered that he will feel charity for you when he inherits and finds you come with the property. Or perhaps one of your sons will take you.”
He gave a sardonic grin. “But as you are now, no one would have you.”
Drawing out his watch, he added, “Shall we say two o’clock? That gives you two hours to harry poor Hill about the empty bedchambers before you present yourself in my study.”
Turning to Collins, he said, “Come, sir. I wish to review the ledgers with you this morning. They are very straightforward; it will not take long.”
The two men moved toward the study, while Mrs. Bennet stood motionless where he had left her, rooted to the threshold of the house.
Bennet felt a pang of guilt. He had been too cruel. All the shame and frustration he had endured during the twenty-three years of his marriage seemed to be breaking loose at last. Perhaps it was because his emotions were frayed from losing Lizzy in so painful a manner. Her courage in facing a marriage to a stranger had undone him, and now every pent-up frustration, every regret, was spilling out with his helplessness to save her.
There was no escape. She must marry, and Mr. Darcy, at least, was an honorable man. In the short time they had known him, he had never spoken a lewd word, nor cast a disrespectful or lecherous glance at any of his daughters. Not so with Collins, who could scarcely remove his eyes from Elizabeth, staring at her as though he were stripping her bare. Bennet shivered. No, Elizabeth had no choice. She must marry, but not Mr. Collins. She could never endure the indignities that union would bring.
He drew out the ledgers for the past two years and placed them before his cousin. Opening the oldest, he began methodically to explain each category, each figure, and the improvements made to increase the yield for the following year. Two hours passed before the men completed the review.
“Well, what say you, Collins? Will you visit me again at the end of the quarter and review the accounts? Lizzy and I always examined them together and planned the coming year’sstrategy. I invite you to come and begin learning what it will take to manage the estate.”
Collins leaned back, studying him. Bennet was sincere. “I will save my time off and plan to come one week each quarter. Will my wife be invited as well?”
Bennet nodded gravely. “Yes. Your wife will also be tied to my wife should Frances outlive me. It is best that they begin to get along now. If they do not, I will be forced to make alternate arrangements for Frances. Still, I mean to work with her starting today. She shall learn gentility if it is the last thing I accomplish. Your visits may help her to understand why such a change is necessary.”
Collins inclined his head. “Very well. I will ask my patroness for permission to take leave. She is a stickler for family duty, and it was she who advised me to seek a wife from among my cousins. For that reason, I believe she will allow me to make these quarterly visits. I am sorry that the plan failed, but that is water under the bridge now.”
Bennet replied, “If you wish to invite Mrs. Tolbert and Miss King to dine with us, let me know. I will have Frances send the invitation.”
The man’s brows knit. “Let us invite them tomorrow. I have less than two weeks to secure a betrothal and must now use every minute wisely.”
Bennet then sat down to compose a letter to his brother, Edward Gardiner.
“Edward,
I cannot explain all, but Lizzy has been compromised and will be married later this week, possibly on Friday. Please ask Madelineto purchase a gown suitable for a marriage to a very wealthy man. We would be grateful for your presence and support.
Best regards,
Thomas Bennet.”
He wrote out a draft on his bank, inserted it into the folded paper, and then sealed the letter. He handed it to Mr. Hill, who took it to Meryton and arranged for it to be dispatched by express.
At two o’clock, Mrs. Bennet appeared at the doorway of the study. Mr. Bennet looked up and motioned for her to enter. He gestured to the chair where Lizzy had always sat, and a pang of sadness passed through him. Reaching for a book on his desk, he said quietly,
