Page 32 of Her Favourite Daughter

“And a duchess, as Miss Bingley says, I will gain more family, but I will never agree to give you up. I care not if it is not by blood, but you are my family, and I love every one of you, even James,” Elizabeth added to lighten the mood. “Besides, if I am a duchess, who will gainsay me?”

“And we will never give you up as our sister, Lizzy!” Jane exclaimed as James, Mary, and Kitty nodded emphatically. “No matter your title and rank, you will always be our Lizzy.”

Hearing Lizzy’s declaration, Fanny, Beth, Penelope, and Bennet felt much better. They could not believe the birth family would be so cruel as to cut them out of Lizzy’s life even without her determination. If they attempted such, they would discover that Lizzy could be as obstinate as she was intelligent.

“Collins, how do we proceed?” Bennet queried.

“If memory serves, the Matlocks and Holdernesses are Lady Bethany’s godparents. I will write to Lord Matlock. I am certain if there is a way to identify Lady Bethany, they will know how. I believe they will want to establish the identity beyond any doubts before they inform the Dowager Duchess of Leeds. They would not want to raise her hopes only to have them dashed.”

“In that case, please use the desk in my office. We will send the missive by express,” Bennet allowed.

Even though her identity had not been confirmed, Elizabeth had to endure much ‘Her Grace’ teasing from her sisters and brother.

Once Collins’s letter was on its way to Seaview House, the Darcy’s house near Brighton where the Fitzwilliams and Darcys were until the end of July, Bennet sat down and wrote first to Gardiner and then a note to Phillips.

Chapter 12

Lady Amelia Osborne was doing her best not to allow the melancholy she felt from time to time to dominate her thoughts. She wondered if her refusal to join the Fitzwilliams and Darcys at Seaview House was the wisest choice she had made.

Being alone with her thoughts of how much she hoped that she would see Bethie in the mortal world again, and of how much she missed Francis gave her little else to think about. The passage of time had not lessened the ache she felt for either of them. It had been almost sixteen years since her daughter was kidnapped at the behest of those dead criminals and eight years since Francis went to his final reward.

The belief that Bethie, who would be sixteen in March, was still alive gave her life purpose, but being alone away from her friends who loved her was not the best thing for her.

To that end, Lady Amelia had reached a decision some days ago. She knew her friends would be at the house near Brighton until early August. Hence, she wrote a letter which told Anne and Elaine that as long as the invitation was still available, she would like to join them at the house on the bluff with the beautiful views of the English Channel on one side and Brighton on the other.

Since she had made that decision, Amelia had felt lighter. Even though she was certain she would receive a positive response to her epistle, she would not assume and would only begin her travels south once said reply was received. In the meanwhile, she had issued orders to pack her trunks and prepare for a journey of more than two hundred and seventy-five miles. With the lengthy summer days, she was hoping her coachman would be able to drive around seventy miles each day, which meant the trip would be of a duration of four to five days.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

On the first day of July, Lady Anne Darcy was handed a missive from Elaine’s and her best friend that was addressed to the two of them. She found Elaine sitting on the expansive veranda on the side of the house facing the English Channel. Her sister-in-law was sipping refreshing lemonade. Their husbands and children—Andrew, Richard, William, Anne, and Giana—were down on the strip of private beach in the cove, which was invisible to those on the water of the Channel. The men were helping the two young girls find shells of interest.

“Elaine, you and I received an epistle from Amelia. Should we sit and read it together, or would you like to peruse it first?” Lady Anne enquired.

“We should read it together,” Lady Elaine suggested. “I hope she is not too lonely rattling around in that huge castle of hers. She should have accepted the invitation to pass the summer with us.”

“I also wish she would have joined us,” Lady Anne agreed. She broke the Leeds seal and opened the letter, holding it for both of them to read.

25 June 1807

Hornby Castle

Yorkshire

Anne and Elaine, my dearest friends,

I admit I was wrong. As you two attempted to tell me, being alone for the whole of the summer with just my thoughts for company was not a wise choice.

When I am alone for an extended time, too many dark contemplations intrude. They, of course, centre on my losses of both Bethie and Francis. Of course, my prayer is that my daughter is alive, and I will see her again in the mortal world, but after she has been gone almost 16 years, it is hard to maintain that hope.

The purpose of this letter is not to tell you of my dark moods and thoughts. Rather, it is connected to my desire to correct my mistake when I refused the kind invitation to join you for the summer.

If that invitation is still available, please write at your earliest convenience and inform me.

Hoping to hear from one of you soon,

Amelia

“Such a silly goose. Amelia should have travelled here as soon as she made the decision to write to us,” Lady Anne declared.