“Yes, they do,” Elizabeth said hotly. “When the rumour is this specific. It is not idle speculation. Someone who knows us intimately, or who has been to Hertfordshire and knows about your stay at Netherfield.”
Jane said nothing.
At last, Elizabeth understood the true reason for Jane’s poor spirits. Not only had she been suffering from a broken heart, she had also been the subject of public humiliation. Someone was orchestrating a campaign against her, for reasons she couldn’t hope to guess. The realisation of her sister’s misery only fuelled her anger.
“This is deliberate.”
Her sister sipped her tea. “I don’t like to believe that anyone would do such a thing.”
“Whoever wrote this wishes to make Bingley believe you sought to entrap him.”
Her sister’s careful composure fractured. “But I did not.”
“And anyone who knows you understands you never would. The cruelty in this lies in how believable it might appear to those who don’t know you as I do.”
Jane’s eyes welled with tears once more.
“If I find out that Caroline Bingley is behind this —”
“No, Lizzie. I don’t believe she would do this. She has been distant, but who can wonder at that? If she has seen these terrible accusations, it is only natural that she would not wish to see me.”
Elizabeth bit back her retort. “Regardless of who it is, I will find them.”
Jane dried her cheeks. “Don’t jump to conclusions, please. For my sake. Don’t let anger cloud your judgement.”
“I am perfectly capable of judgement.”
“I know, but sometimes your temper leads you to see enemies where none exist.”
Elizabeth pressed her lips together. “If there is a villain, I shall find them, but I shall investigate with an open mind. If I discover who has been hurting you…”
She could not finish the sentence. She did not need to.
Jane gave a small, weary laugh. “You have always been my fierce champion.”
“And I always will be.”
A knock sounded at the door, and Mrs Gardiner entered with a tray of fresh tea and an expression of cautious optimism.
“Shall we go for a walk, my dears?” she asked. “The fresh air will do you good.”
Jane smiled faintly. “Yes, Aunt.”
Elizabeth readily added her own agreement to the suggestion. It was the perfect opportunity to begin her investigation. She would walk by her sister’s side and open her ears for any hint of who was behind this malicious campaign.
Chapter 2
Elizabeth had not expected her powers of persuasion to be called upon so soon after arriving in London, but Jane’s gentle protests only confirmed that the best remedy for her sister’s wounded spirits was the one she resisted.
“I think it would be best to remain here this evening,” Jane said, wholly unconvincing. She smoothed the folds of her gown, not daring to meet her own reflection. “There is no need to appear at every gathering or accept every invitation. I am content, truly.”
Elizabeth huffed as she tucked one of Jane’s curls into place. “You are so content that you have sighed no less than six times since breakfast. The best cure for melancholy is distraction, and the ball this evening shall provide it.”
Jane blushed and squirmed beneath her sister’s attentions. “It is only that if people have been reading such things about me, it might be better to wait until the matter fades, do you not think?”
The anger in Elizabeth’s chest flared brightly. It had not been extinguished since she’d first read for herself the terrible gossip, and fuelled her determination to attend this evening’sball. “Absence gives rumours room to grow. I shall not see you banished from society by the malicious words of a gossip whose quill is dipped in as much spite as ink.”
“But what if people stare?” Jane asked, finally meeting Elizabeth’s eyes in the looking glass. “What if they whisper? The column writes that I schemed to secure Mr Bingley as though he were a prize to be won, in violation of any sense of modesty or judgement. How terrible!”
