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So Elizabeth started, right from the carriage ride out to Meryton and the first meeting of a portion of the Netherfield Park party. She paused momentarily when describing the first afternoon at Longbourn but decided to share Claire’s observations about her youngest sister and mother. It was not until she started describing the Assembly that Lady Maria interrupted for the first time.

“You speak warmly of Mr. Bingley. His behaviour was so markedly different to the other four?”

She nodded.

“Yes, it was exactly what you would expect of a gentleman in his position. He was friendly, cheerful, open, he danced every set, and was generally a welcome addition to the Assembly. On his actions alone, everyone was inclined to think well of him. It was the other members of his party that dragged him down. One gentleman was a sot, his wife and her sister, sisters by blood to Mr. Bingley, were dismissive, snobbish and thought themselves above their company, and his ‘friend’ acted like someone had just shot his prize stallion. He was the one that proceeded to insult my sister.”

“Insult your sister?”

“He called her tolerable, and said to Bingley that he would not give her consequence since she was sitting out the set. He made no effort to lower his voice and although she was not eavesdropping she still clearly heard the insult.”

Elizabeth moved passed the Assembly and turned the tale to her interactions with her oldest sister and former close friend. Lady Maria listened as Elizabeth recounted their mild jealousy of her ‘freedom’ and independence.

“The first month was fine, everything had settled down after the first evening and my mother and I had got to the point where we could co-exist. Then Jane went on horseback to Netherfield Park, got wet and caught a bad chill. She fought a stubbornly high fever for three days before it broke.”

“Your tone suggests there is more to the story.”

“I later found out that it was a deliberate ploy of my mother, for Jane to go on horseback rather than in the carriage. She did not want Jane to get sick but the weather was overcast and promising rain. Her hope was that the rain would force Jane to remain at Netherfield Park and spend time with Mr. Bingley.”

Elizabeth sipped her tea, mentally bracing herself for the start of the awkward parts of her monologue.

“I walked to Netherfield Park to check on Jane the next morning, stayed with her all day and, given that her fever was still worryingly high, received permission from Mr. Bingley to stay overnight. Which ended up being four nights. That first night I joined the others for dinner but during the separation of the sexes went back upstairs to check on Jane. I made the mistake of rejoining the company in the drawing room.”

“The mistake?”

Elizabeth ruefully smiled.

“I will explain. The unmarried sister is Caroline Bingley.”

Lady Maria failed to hide her grimace of recognition.

“You know her?”

“I know of her. I promise to tell you all but finish your story first.”

“I do not know how she had been acting with Jane the previous day but her tone with me was extremely interrogative. She shortened my name without permission and took my request to call me by my full name with ill grace. She then started to question me about my family. You know of the entail and there being only daughters but she was condescending and full of fake sorrow. All the while wallowing in joy like a pig in the mud.”

“Miss Elizabeth.”

“I am sorry to confess that it gets much worse. She contrasted the Bingley good fortune of having a son to the Bennet misfortune of only having daughters. She had annoyed me sufficiently that I quietly asked her what estate she had grown up on. There have been Bennets at Longbourn since the 1550s. But she would not leave it alone. She turned her attack to my uncles, especially Uncle Gardiner here in London. What she did not know was that I had met her uncle when he came to my own uncle’s place of business. I did not answer her directly but instead talked to her brother about their uncle who now runs the family carriage business.”

“That must have caused quite a scene.”

“I had had enough by that point. I retired for the evening. For the next two days I ate all my meals in my room, other than breakfast where I knew she would not have arisen. On the third afternoon Jane’s fever broke but I did not inform my host until near the end of the evening. Other than a few moments with Bingley’s friend in the morning I did not see any of the residents until dinner on the fourth evening. My maid Claire had informed me that Miss Bingley was canvassing all the information she could about me. It was clear that she still wanted to lord it over me for some reason.”

“Could you discern the reason?”

“As far as I can tell there are two reasons. The first is the key one, we just instinctively dislike each other. There is nothing that can be done. Now my preferred response to this situation is to ignore her, try and stay away from her company. Sadly, hers was a need to continue to needle me. For what purpose is my conjecture for the second reason. I did not cower before her, bow down to her airs and pretentions. She was rude, my retorts were sharp.”

Elizabeth knew that last comment was dissembling of the worst kind.

“On the fourth evening, we survived dinner and the separation. She was waiting for an audience I presume. When the gentlemen had joined us she started immediately. Her first petty salvo was to once again call me Eliza rather than Elizabeth. That was tiresome so I admit to having some fun at her expense. To shorten her name would be easy, Miss Caro, but that seemed too easy. So instead I dropped the first two letters and the last two letters and was left with Miss Roli.”

Elizabeth watched as a society matron in her 50s, the sister of a Duke, burst out laughing.

“You did not!”

A rueful nod.