The invitations were for six and once all the guests were assembled, Mr Bingley rose and asked the men to follow him to the billiard room; it was unprecedented that there should be a separation of the sexes prior to dinner, but nobody commented although many wondered what the reason was. It soon became very evident to the ladies, some of whom shook their heads to make sure that they were hearing correctly.
“I requested that my husband lead the men out of the drawing room as I wanted to take this opportunity to apologise, publicly, to all of you for the way that I, and my older daughter Louisa used to behave, for the lies that I told about our station. It has come to my attention, in the most painful way, that reaching for that which is out of reach and pretending that I am what I am not has had disastrous effects on my family and especially my youngest, Caroline.
“All I can do is beg your forgiveness on behalf of myself and my oldest daughter and hope that you allow me to start anew and prove to you that the epiphany that I had did not lead to a transitory change, but a permanent one. I have discovered that true happiness is being who one is, not what one envies and covets.” Martha Bingley finished her speech and waited for the harsh judgment that she believed would be levelled against her that she was prepared to accept as fully justified.
Tammy Bennet, after talking quietly with Sarah Lucas, Hattie Phillips, Cheryl Long, and a group of the more influential ladies in the Meryton area, stood to respond as she was the acknowledged leader of the group.“Mrs Bingley, let her who has never erred cast the first stone,” Tammy looked around the room to see if anyone wanted to contradict her; none did.“It is not hard to see that you are truly contrite and sincere in your apology and the difference in the attitude of both your daughter and yourself have been noted. As such, on behalf of the ladies here gathered, we accept your apology and are indeed willing to begin again.” When Tammy had completed her speech, there were many voices raised in agreement.
Martha and Louisa visibly relaxed, beyond grateful that their neighbours were willing to give them a second chance.
In the billiards room, Nichols and four footmen handed out port and wine glasses, while Oscar Bingley explained why his wife had requested that he lead the men out and let them know what she was telling their wives. The men were impressed that Mrs Bingley was willing to acknowledge her follies and humble herself before the large group of ladies.
Dinner was a very light-hearted affair and conversation and wine flowed freely. Martha Bingley could not believe how generous the ladies that she had tried to treat like savage nobodies were with her, and she pledged to herself to make sure that she would always be worthy of their regard.
The next day, a group of the older children from Lucas Lodge, Longbourn, Netherfield, and Graham Phillips met and spent the afternoon together. Louisa was contented to be readily accepted now that she had dropped her unfounded airs and graces. She found that she liked Charlotte Lucas a lot and the two spent a lot of time talking.
Charles Bingley was sitting with Jane Bennet, Graham Phillips, and Franklin Lucas telling his friends about the very brief time he had been at Pemberley and how his extended stay had been cancelled but he had never seen a more magnificent estate before.“I just remembered,” Charles informed his friends,“Darcy just wrote to me and told me that his young cousin, Lady Elizabeth Fitzwilliam,” hearing the name Elizabeth, Jane paid extra attention, then told herself there was more than one Elizabeth in the world,“had been attacked and very seriously injured but was starting to make a recovery.”
It gave Jane chills that she had dreamt of Lizzy being in trouble and the young girl that Master Bingley was telling them about had been in such a bad way. She dismissed her thoughts as pure coincidence and returned to listen to the story. During her reverie, she had missed his description of her looks and her long raven tresses.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
The day that Lizzy had been dreaming of had arrived; Mr Finch was to examine her and if he were happy with what he found, he would change the splints on her leg to allow her knee to bend and that would mean that she would be permitted to be pushed in the bath chair. The restrictive splints had come off her arm two days previously, and now only her arm below her elbow was splinted and her arm in a sling.
Mr Finch was more than pleased with what he found and happily changed the splints on her leg. While Elizabeth was being helped into a day dress for the first time since the attempt on her life, the surgeon met with her parents.
“She still has a long road ahead of her, but I firmly believe that other than scars on her arm and leg, Lady Elizabeth will make a full recovery,” he informed her parents with professional pride.
“Does that mean that my darling girl will walk again Mr Finch?” a hopeful mother asked.
“Not only walk your Ladyship, but I also believe that some months from now you will not be able to stop her running.” The surgeon looked on as joy and pleasure suffused the faces of his young patient’s parents.
“There are not enough words to thank you, Finch, or money to compensate you for what you have done for my sweetling,” the Earl stated, his voice gruff with emotion.
“You do know, do you not, Reggie, that the boys will be fighting over who will get to push her bath chair,” Elaine smiled happily.
“They will have to push Biggs or Johns out of the way first!” the Earl grinned with joy.
So it was, on the tenth Day of August in the year 1799 Lady Elizabeth Fitzwilliam was allowed to leave her bedchamber for the first time since that horrendous day almost two months previously.
Chapter5
December1799
The preceding months had not been without their challenges. As much as Lizzy understood the need for the restrictions on her movement, she chaffed against them. She was splint free and could not accept that she was not free to run or return to the same level of activity that she was used to before the attack. She had a hard time accepting that, after so many months of not using her arm or leg, it would take time and exercise before her muscles were once again able to support the activity that she desired.
After so many months at Pemberley, the Fitzwilliams had returned to Snowhaven in the middle of November. The outpouring of concern and well wishes from the Queen on down was heart-warming, but all four were pleased to be in their own home once again. They had celebrated Anne’s thirteenth birthday at Pemberley and Georgie had cried many tears at Lizzy and Anne’s departure, as she has become so used to her‘older sisters’being in residence. She had been placated by the promise that they would all see one another soon when the family met at Snowhaven for Christmastide.
The three young men had to be ordered to return to their schools, William the only one left at Eton as Richard joined Andrew at Cambridge. None of them wanted to leave Lizzy until she was, in their minds, completely back to her normal self. Both fathers had brooked no opposition; they stood fast that their sons would depart for school on time at the end of August and, with many mumbled complaints, it had been so. All three had been to Pemberley for a four-day break together and had reluctantly departed at the end of it. They would be returning within a week for the end-of-year break, accompanied by Master Charles Bingley, Lord Wesley De Melville, Ian Ashby, and Lord Perry Rhys-Davies. Andrew and the younger Ashby son had met at Cambridge and become good friends.
Mr Finch had prescribed a regimen of exercise that Elizabeth followed religiously. She no longer spent most of her time in the bath chair but walked with the aid of crutches. She refused to be coddled, as she was well aware that the more she exercised, the faster the time would arrive when she no longer needed assistance in walking.
One thing that her mother and father had struggled with was a replacement for her beloved cob Astraea. She had been buried near the spot where she fell, and Elizabeth had been carried to her grave to visit a few times before they departed Pemberley. They knew that Lizzy wanted to ride again but until her leg and arm were again at full strength, she would not be able to. Given how sad she had been when informed of Astraea’s death, or murder as she termed it, they did not want to push her on the subject of a new mount. Reggie did decide that when she was ready, he would find a mare for his daughter.
Not a few times, Elizabeth had taken a walk with one of her parents to Astraea’s stall, left unused after the attack. She would ask cook for an apple and carrot and leave them on the low wall at the front of the stall. Her parents would feel for their daughter as she would get melancholy each time that she brought the tribute for the fallen cob.
Over the period of her convalescence, both at Pemberley and since the return to their own estate, Elizabeth and Anne de Bourgh became closer than they were before. While her cousin was bed-bound, Anne was with her every day and acted as her legs, making sure that she fetched anything that Elizabeth needed. It made Anne feel good to be able to be of use in that way. Her Aunt Anne would come visit her niece with Georgiana and Alex for a little while each day; though she would never leave Alex in the chamber once she left, Georgie would remain and visit with her older cousin for as long as she was allowed to.
“Mama,” Elizabeth got her mother’s attention as they were sitting in the drawing room one day,“will I ever be able to ride again?”
