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“As for you, and your sister, this is the most unpleasant. I have found your sister to be a trial in every social setting for close to two years. It is a reflection of our friendship that I have endured her company. And I use that word advisedly. Until today I would never ask someone to put friendship in front of family. If you do not disown your sister, release her dowry and set her up in her own establishment then you have no future in society. I am sorry to be so blunt but it is true. Do not dare breath a word of this but Miss Bennet saved the life of one of Richwood’s children. She can do no wrong with that family, and through them Desmond. Your sister will never be accepted in society again. Ever.
“I will not tell you what to do, merely explain that this is something that she cannot come back from. Unlike Mrs. Hurst, you still share a surname. If you publicly rid yourself of Miss Bingley then there is still hope for you. You will need to be absent from Town for at least a year but you can recover. You are renowned as amiable, a good dancer and an asset to any occasion. There will be some lingering snide comments but you can recover. I will maintain a friendship with you through correspondence with the view to re-establishing contact in ’14.
“But for Mr. Charles Bingley to survive and then be readmitted to society, you have to sacrifice your sister. I am sorry it has come to that, but it is the truth. No amount of ‘what-ifs’ or wishful thinking can change that.”
It was harsh, beyond harsh it was brutal, but it was the truth. And Charles Bingley knew it.
“Thank you for being honest, Darcy. I will take Caroline north to Scarborough and decide on the journey what I am going to do. The family business has interests in Liverpool and it will be where I base myself. You will only receive one final note from me, telling you of my decision. That decision will determine whether we still have a friendship. Even if I ultimately do not cut Caroline free, know that I have valued your friendship these last seven years. Farewell.”
And with that Charles Bingley wheeled his horse and cantered back to the eastern boundary of the park. Darcy followed in his wake but his horse slowly walked back to Darcy House.
--
“I am sorry that you had to go through that.”
“It was unavoidable my dear. Bingley has never been able to control his sister. We have talked about how Wickham was Georgie’s Achilles Heel, well Caroline Bingley is her brother’s.”
“Do you have any idea how he will act?”
“None at all. And it is a mature act to escape Town and think about the choice while travelling. As I think about it, that may be stacking the deck in favour of cutting her loose. Scarborough is close to a week of travel and I cannot imagine it will be a quiet trip. I will await Bingley’s letter. As of Monday at the latest, the four of them will be out of London for the foreseeable future.”
There had been no way to avoid the awkward conversation, but it was over. While he would be sad to never see Charles Bingley again, Darcy was pleased that Caroline Bingley was gone forever.
“Let us ignore the Bingleys. I was very taken by your words yesterday afternoon when we returned to Leonard House. Is it wrong of me to wish that you had gone ‘full Oxley’ on Miss Bingley?”
“My bad temper and poor manners has a name now does it? ‘Full Oxley’?”
Her impish smile was a constant temptation to Darcy’s title of gentleman.
“Like I said yesterday, there was a moment where I was tempted. It was the way she sneered ‘Miss Eliza Bennet’ but I resisted. What I did not say was that I had no wish to embarrass you, my new fiancé, the Duke or Lady Maria. A country nobody three miles from her home can be blunt in her responses to a jumped-up fortune hunter. Now I am known in society, and I have people that I wish to think well of me. You saw the way she acted, she was desperate, lost control of her tongue and as a result suffered the consequences. And even if she had been utterly appropriate, she still would have been cut because she was stupid enough to write lies about Georgiana in her letters. Again, she sabotaged herself, dragging innocents into her idiotic schemes to separate her brother from my sister.”
“You will tell her of what has happened to the Bingleys?”
“She inadvertently triggered the whole situation through those letters. I have reread the letters she has sent to me, and I think she was in love with the idea of Bingley rather than Mr. Bingley the person.”
“Can you explain?”
“Getting married represents freedom from Longbourn, getting out under the control of Mrs. Bennet. And she has just spent five weeks with Charlotte. The one letter she sent from Hunsford was full of praise for the parsonage.”
Darcy was silent for a moment and Elizabeth watched several emotions flit briefly across his face.
“I am thinking out loud, this may be ill advised. Should you suggest to your sister that she remain in London and not return to Hertfordshire?”
It was Elizabeth’s turn to ponder.
“I can see the merits to such a suggestion. Our uncle always moved in circles where Jane would have had the opportunity to meet more gentlemen than back at home. Those circles have only grown since his elevation.”
“Once we are married you are welcome to invite her to Pemberley. But I think that she will have many times more choice here than in northern Derbyshire.”
It was Darcy’s turn to almost be kissed.
“Thank you, William. You are right though, it would make much more sense to remain here. There is no confusion over roles, it has been more than three years since she was last in Town, and that was only for the weekend. I will talk to Uncle Gardiner before she arrives and get his opinion. The only issue I can see is that it may give Mrs. Bennet an excuse to arrive in London unannounced.”
She had a sudden thought.
“William, are you not likely to be bombarded with visitors after the announcement of our engagement. Have you abandoned your poor butler to say ‘Mr. Darcy is not at home’?”
“There is an element of that, I have no wish to deal with those that claim a connection. Anyone who really knows me will know to stay away. Georgiana is back with the Matlocks for 10 days to avoid any of the circus. What about here?”
