Page 82 of His Pride and His Prejudice

“It does not matter,” Elliot said.

“It does,” Jack replied. “But you do not wish to tell me for you feel you must protect me, which makes little sense given I am the older brother! And also the cleverest,” he added with a laugh. “And so, I know it is likely something to do with our family? Our poor connections? The behaviours of our younger brothers, our mama even?”

“Jack—”

“I am not unaware of them,” Jack said. “But there is little you or I can do to change them.” He sighed. “This is simply how they are, Elliot, and we must love and accept them regardless.”

“Even if it materially impacts our own chances?” Elliot asked.

“Even then,” Jack replied. He paused. “I suspect it has impacted my chances.”

“Jack…”

“I am not going to ask you if Mr. Darcy said anything about Mr. Bingley,” he said. “I remain…heart sore, and I fear any discussion on that matter might set back the little progress I have made.”

“Jack…”

“In time perhaps we may discuss it more fully,” he said. “But for now…” He shook his head. “Tell me instead the full story of Wickham. It is much as I suspected, yes?”

Elliot relayed the whole of it, he trusted Jack implicitly, and indeed his brother looked suitably shocked in all the right places.

“His poor sister,” Jack eventually said. “It is rare for an alpha such as Darcy to have a sister who is an omega,” he added. “And it would, of course, make her more vulnerable.”

“Yes.”

“He is protective of her, and rightly so.”

“Indeed.”

“You do not speak of your own feelings on any of this,” Jack eventually said.

“What is there to say?” Elliot asked.

“I do not know, Elliot, but if you wish to discuss them, I am here for you, just as you have been there for me.”

In the days that followed Elliot did not speak on his feelings. He simply could not, but he did spend time considering how he might begin to repair the damage of Bingley and Jack’s relationship, because now that he was settled at home, and at leisure to observe the real state of his brother’s spirits it became quite obvious to Elliot that Jack was not recovered at all. He was still in love with Bingley, and his attachment boasted a steadiness that made clear its origin.

“Well, Elliot,” said Mrs. Bennet one day. “What is your opinion now of this sad business of Jack’s? For my part, I am determined never to speak of it again to anybody. I told the Phillipses so the other day. I cannot find out if Jack saw anything of him in London. He will not tell me.”

“Perhaps it is best not to inquire,” Elliot suggested.

“Inquiring is what I do best, Elliot,” she said. “And my inquiries reveal that there is no talk of his coming to Netherfield again in the summer.”

“I do not believe he will ever reside at Netherfield again,” Elliot said.

“Then we will never see him or his party again!” she declared. A pause and then, “At least that includes Mr. Darcy, and I shall not be sorry to never set eyes on him again! The odious man!”

“Mama!”

“Can you deny it, my love?” she asked. “Would you want to see him again?”

Elliot was not required to answer that, which was a relief, for if he had been, the answer he would have given his mama would have been a shocking one indeed.

Forty-One

Pemberley was not a mere half day ride away, instead it was quite a distance more. Darcy had made the journey from Pemberley to London on numerous occasions and he had made a bit of a study around working out the speed of the journey based on several factors including the type of coach, the season they travelled in, the weather of the day, and how many refreshment breaks were necessary. He had found a formula in an intriguing Oxford treatise which when applied at the beginning of the journey would allow him to predict their arrival. He always made it a point to apply the formula as soon as they set off and then took some pleasure in reviewing the results at the end.

The journey Darcy had set out with his cousin Fitzwilliam not long after handing his letter over to Elliot was an exception. Darcy did not know what speed they moved at, he barely took notice of the weather except to see that it was raining, and he allowed few refreshment breaks. Even so, it took until the end of the week for them to make it to Pemberley from Kent.

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