She had thought that she had been successful in hiding the truth of that day, but now she knew that was not the case. The nameless man and woman who had been in the drawingroom knew, and he had said that others were aware of the truth as well. Catherine briefly considered paying some men to end the man and his wife—having no information about them notwithstanding—but she acknowledged it would be futile as he was not the only one who knew.
No matter what scheme she formulated to try and circumvent what she had been ordered—like some commoner—to do, she found no way to escape the Gordian knot in which the man had tied her.
She did not even have control of her disappointing, sickly daughter any longer. Andthatman had admonished her to leave Anne be, so she could not chance a return to Pemberley and demand her daughter be restored to her. It was not to be borne, but it seemed for now she had no choice but to do what he had commanded.
There was nothing for it. On the morrow—the Sabbath be damned—she would commence her return to Rosings Park. There she would lick her wounds. At least she still had her domain under her control.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
On Monday morning, Bingley was just looking at the outstanding orders for the Scarborough branch when a clerk knocked on his door and handed him an express. The man informed Bingley it had been delivered by a courier.
He waved the man away and looked at the writing, immediately identifying Louisa’s script. She had never before sent him an express, so it was with no little trepidation he broke the unknown seal and began to read.
12 November 1803
Pemberley
Derbyshire
My dear Papa,
Do not be alarmed that this express contains bad news. Harold and I are as well and happy, as we have been since the day we married.
I sent this the way I did to stop Mother and Caroline from making a huge faux pas, one from which they will never recover and may end a friendship that Charles values.
If my mother has not tried to convince you that she and Caroline are needed or have been invited to Pemberley after the late Mr Darcy’s death, then there is nothing for you to do. However, if, as I suspect they have, my epistle is critical!
Papa, not only have they not been invited, nor are they needed here, but the new Mr Darcy has issued orders that they are to be turned away at the gates to the estate.
You know without me having to tell you what a performance Mother and Caroline will put on when denied that which they want. If they arrive here and when they are turned away, I worry they will do so much damage as to make it impossible for Charles’s friends to keep the connection with him.
It will not affect Harold or me because we do not bear the Bingley name.
Please, Papa, in the name of all that is holy, if they are planning to travel into Derbyshire, do not allow it. The perceived pain they will suffer at your refusal will be nothing to the real consequences of their coming here unwanted and uninvited.
I pray this reaches you in time.
With all my daughterly love,
Louisa Hurst
Bingley sprang up from his desk. He hoped they had not departed yet. He reminded himself that Mavis and Caroline did not rise early unless they were forced to.
He practically ran out of the offices shouting orders to have his curricle prepared.
He reached his house in record time and just in time to see the coachman put his team of four horses into motion. Bingley pulled the curricle in front of the lead pair, which caused the coachman to pull back on the ribbons with all of his might, stopping the conveyance dead.
“Why have you stopped?” Miss Caroline screeched from inside of the coach.
Mavis was about to add her voice to that of her daughter’s when one of the side doors was wrenched open, and there stood her husband with a thunderous look on his face. She had a feeling he knew there had been no invitation, but she decided to bluff. “What is the meaning of this? We are expected at Pemberley, and now we will be late, causing them to worry.”
“Yes, Papa, Mr Darcy wrote that he especially wanted me to visit,” Miss Caroline added to bolster her mother’s lie.
“Show me the letter,” Bingley demanded curtly.
“I-I-I left it in t-the h-house,” Mavis prevaricated. “No, now I remember, Caro dropped it into the fire in error.”
“HowDARE YOUlie to my face?” Bingley barked. “Evidently after that one time when you attempted to impose your company on the Fitzwilliams and Darcys at Cambridge, Mr Darcy was concerned that you would do this very thing using his father’s death as your justification. He had Louisa write to warn me you would be turned away at the gates to the estate, and you would more than likely ruin Charles’s friendship with Captain Fitzwilliam and Mr Darcy. You will both have no allowance for a year complete, and you will be barred from spending any of my money on unnecessary shopping as well. You are cut off. The coachmen will be told that they may not convey youanywherewithout my personal say-so.
