She stormed out of the library and stomped her way to the drawing room, where she threw the door open with all of her might.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“How dare you expectmyMr Darcy to humble himself before you? You are a nothing, but are trying to throw your ugly daughters, who are nothing but strumpets, at him! You are not good enough to look at me or Mr Darcy. The only one who is as low as you, is that deformed sister of mine who has stolen part of my dowry! Neither of you should have been born. How dare your harlots temptmyMr Darcy with their arts and allurements? You should all…” Whatever Miss Caroline was about to rant next was lost when her face was slapped with great force.
For all of her life, Louisa had taken the abuse heapedon her by her mother and then by her mother and Caroline together. After the death of their mother, Caroline had continued her campaign of cruelty on her own. Of course, this was done for the most part when she thought she was unobserved.
Her sister’s crazed words were far beyond the pale. Louisa jumped up from her chair, approached her sister, pulled her arm back, and unleashed it with the back of her hand connecting with Caroline’s left cheek.
Miss Caroline stood in shock for some moments as her hand rubbed her stinging cheek. “YOU BITCH!” she screamed. “Mother should have drowned you as soon as she saw that mark of Satan on your face! Had our weak father not stopped her, she would have!” With that Miss Caroline raised her hands, her talons ready to scratch, and began to charge towards where her sister had retreated to.
She only managed two steps before Bennet and Bingley grabbed an arm each and stopped her.
“She has slipped the bounds of reason,” Hildebrand opined as she shook her head sadly. “This was my late sister-in-law Mavis’s doing. She filled Caroline’s head with so much stuff and nonsense that created expectations which could never be fulfilled. Is it any wonder that it has led to Caroline’s insanity?”
“I amNOTinsane!” Miss Caroline screeched as she fought against the men who were restraining her.
Hildebrand rang the bell. As soon as Mrs Nichols entered, she asked for four footmen to be sent to the drawing room, with good rope for binding and something to be used as a gag.
Within five minutes the person who used to be Caroline Bingley was now some crazed shell of her former self. She was bound, gagged, and removed to a small windowless room where she would be locked away until she could be consignedto Bedlam.
“I still did not manage to meet Miss Caroline,” Bennet said sardonically after she was taken away.
The quip caused the three Bingleys to relax a little.
“Unfortunately for my friend here,” Bingley cocked his head towards Darcy, “since the day my sister wheedled information about him from the Medford twins, friends of ours from Cambridge, she decided that she would marry Darcy regardless of how many times she was told he would not marry her. Darcy went as far as to tell her himself. He told her a compromise would never be gratified.”
“A man after my own heart.” Bennet shook his head. “As much as I hated having to marry the woman, I have five wonderful daughters from that marriage. I lift my prayers to Him every day to give thanks for the fact that none of them are like their birthmother in character. Jane, Mary, and Lydia look just like her. Lizzy and Kate, which is short for Catherine, look very much like my late mother, for whom Elizabeth is named.” He looked at his host and hostess. “I think it is time for me to leave. I am sure you have much to discuss as a family.”
“To that end, Mr Bennet, may I accompany you back to your estate? It will allow the Bingleys time to discuss what they need to and for me to offer my amends to Miss Elizabeth,” Darcy requested.
“You do not need to leave, Darce,” Bingley stated.
“Perhaps not, but I do need to beg Mr Bennet’s daughter’s pardon in person. There is no time like the present for that,” Darcy assured his friend.
A message was sent to the stables to have Zeus saddled and brought along with Mr Bennet’s horse to the drive in front of the manor house. Ten minutes later, the two men had mounted and had begun the three-mile ride to Longbourn.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
The five Bennet sisters, along with Mrs Dudley and Miss Jones, were seated in the drawing room. Lydia was trying to induce Lizzy, who was the best player other than herself, to play chess. Jane and Kate were working on repairs to clothing for tenant children, and Mary was sewing new gowns for one of the tenants who was about to be blessed with a new babe.
Kate was facing the window, looking out onto the drive. “I see Papa on Jupiter, but he is not alone. There is a tall, rather handsome man on a big black horse next to him,” she reported.
Elizabeth walked to the window. It was Mr Darcy, and he looked in much better humour than he had been at the assembly. Things must have gone well for Papa to allow him to visit Longbourn. She assumed that meant that Mr Darcy had apologised. Their father had always been very selective regarding single men calling at the house. She would have been lying to herself had she said she was not intrigued by the man.
Like her sisters, Elizabeth waited in the drawing room for their father to enter. It could be that Mr Darcy would not be spending time with them but only with Papa in the study.
In two hours, Jane and Elizabeth planned to walk into Meryton—escorted by John Biggs—so they could call on Charlotte, who was very close to her second lying-in. All of the Bennet sisters enjoyed spending time with little Lawrence who would turn two next month. Although the two eldest Bennet sisters had kept to their resolution never to address Charlotte with the title of aunt, they were still as close as sisters.
When the door opened, her father led Mr Darcy into the drawing room, all thoughts of the impending visit to the Phillips’ house were banished from Elizabeth’s mind. She had thought before that Mr Darcy was handsome, but now, with much less worry evident on his countenance, he was anAdonis.
Darcy had to fight to keep from gasping when he saw Miss Elizabeth from close up in the light of day. She was not just a handsome woman—she was absolutely beautiful. From closer he could see that her eyes were magnificent, not just fine.
“Mr Darcy, allow me to present my daughters, Miss Jane Bennet, Miss Elizabeth, Miss Mary, Miss Kate, and Miss Lydia. The ladies who are their companions are Mrs Dudley and Miss Jones. Ladies, Mr Fitzwilliam Darcy of Pemberley and Darcy House.” Bennet watched as each lady curtsied when her name was mentioned and then Darcy—they had agreed to address one another more informally on the ride to the house—bowed to his daughters and the companions.
As there was no reason to procrastinate, Darcy cleared his throat.
Before the man could speak, Lydia, who was perhaps the most fearless of all of the Bennet sisters, spoke up. “Mr Darcy, are you in need of spectacles to have called Lizzy only tolerable?” She was standing with arms akimbo.
