After traversing the centre of the market town, the lead coachman guided his team onto a road leading west. From the directions the master had provided, they were within two miles of their destination.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
When a footman informed them that coaches were approaching, Agatha and Phillips donned their outerwear and walked down the stone steps to arrive in the drive as the lead conveyance was brought to a halt. They watched as the huge footmen jumped down, and one of them quickly retracted the step. With that done, he opened the door and stood back a little. At the same time footmen had done the same with the second carriage.
Holder stepped out. “Thank you, Biggs and Johns.” Then he turned and handed his wife and daughters out. Lizzy reached in and assisted Anna to alight.
Phillips thought he was seeing a spectre. Before him stood a younger version of the late Fanny. From what Gardiner had written, it had to be Jane. From the same descriptions, he identified Lizzy and Mary from the colour of their hair.
“Mr and Mrs Phillips, I assume?” Holder stated. “I am Holder.”
“Indeed, my Lord. I am Mr Frank Phillips, and this is my wife, Mrs Agatha Phillips.” He bowed, and his wife curtsied next to him.
“Rather than stand on ceremony, let us repair inside,” Holder suggested.
The Phillipses led the way up the broad, beige-coloured stone steps to the large veranda above, and from there into the house. The new butler, Mr Samuelson—his wife was the housekeeper—had footmen assist him in divesting every one of their outerwear.
“Mr Samuelson, please have your wife arrange for tea in the main drawing room to arrive in twenty minutes,” Agatha requested.
The butler bowed and left to carry out his orders.
“Please follow us,” Phillips stated. He led them up to the first floor and to the right from the stairs into a room which had open double doors.
Once in the room, but before they sat, Holder introduced everyone in their party to the Phillipses. He did not miss the surprise on the faces of their hosts when he used the family names for the girls he, his wife, and daughters had agreed upon the previous evening. “Given what we learnt from Gardiner about their late father and the way he cared for and loved Jane, Lizzy, and Mary, we decided it was only right that we change our daughters’ family name to Carrington-Bennet.”
“Thomas would have approved,” Agatha sighed. “All he wanted was for his girls to grow up surrounded by those who love them and would keep them safe. It is obvious that is what you have given them.”
“The tea service will arrive soon,” Phillips stated, looking at his wife, who nodded. “Thereafter, you may begin your inspection of the house before we ride the fields.” He hesitated for a few moments. “Would you agree to our daughters meeting yours? They are in a parlour with their governess, but if you do not think it is the time…”
“No, Mr Phillips, that is not what we think. I know that our daughters have been in anticipation of meeting their younger sisters,” Edith responded.
“Mr Phillips,” Elizabeth interjected, “are you one of our uncles like Uncle Edward is?”
“My late wife was your late birth mother’s sister. However, she was called home to God before Jane…Miss Carrington-Bennet was born. Hence, I was never your uncle, but I was a friend of your late father, and through him I met and got to know you and your older sister when you were both little toddlers,” Phillips replied. “We were all very worried for you girls, so the day Gardiner told us you were discovered and that you were well cared for, loved, and happy, many of us in the area felt a great sense of relief.”
“If your girls are in the house, why not bring them into the drawing room? They can meet their sisters, and I am sure Anna would like to know some more girls close to her own age,” Edith suggested.
Lady Anne nodded her head in agreement regarding her daughter.
“I would, Lady Holder, but thanks to the way they had to act aroundthat man, they are very timid and would not do well meeting so many new people at once,” Agatha revealed. “With your permission, I would take your daughters and Miss Darcy to meet the girls. Once they are ready, if you would like, I will introduce them to you.”
The revulsion the visiting adults felt towards the late man bubbled up again. If he were not already dead and buried, one, or all of the three men, would have called him out. Permission was granted for Mrs Phillips to take the four girls to meet her daughters after tea.
Tea arrived shortly, and Agatha served everyone with the aid of a maid.
The Carrington, Fitzwilliam, and Darcy parents were impressed that neither Mr nor Mrs Phillips fawned over them. During tea the visiting female parents told Mrs Phillips to call them in the less formal way—Lady Elaine, Lady Edith, and Lady Anne—and the men had Phillips address them as Matlock, Holder, and Darcy.
Once the tea service had been removed, Mrs Samuelson came to collect the two countesses and Lady Anne to begin her tour of the house. At the same time, Phillips led the three men out to the drive where the steward—Mr Matthew Jessop—awaited them with saddled horses.
Agatha led the sisters and Anna out of the drawing room once everyone else had departed.
Anna was holding one of Lizzy’s hands tightly as she walked. She was normally very shy around new people she met; however, when she was with Lizzy, she felt much bolder.
Miss Jones stood when Mrs Phillips entered the parlour and urged Misses Kitty and Lydia to do the same.
“These young ladies are Miss Carrington-Bennet, Miss Elizabeth, and Miss Mary. With them is their cousin, Miss Georgiana Darcy. Girls, it is my pleasure to present your sisters to you…” She stopped when Lydia approached her and beckoned for her to bring her ear to Lydia’s level. She listened as the girl whispered to her, her hands cupped to make sure she was not overheard. Agatha smiled widely. “Lydia asked why one of her new sisters looks like her and like her mamma who went away.”
“You know Uncle Edward?” Jane enquired.
