“I say, Darcy! I can’t bear to see you standing around in such a stupid manner. You should be dancing! Come, allow me to introduce you to my angel of a partner. She is delightful! I daresay I’ve never met a more pleasant young lady in all my life.”
The look on the taller gentleman’s face was that of scorn and disdain. “No, Bingley. She may look tolerable, I suppose, but I’m in no humor to give consequence to such an unnatural creature as she. I wonder that her parents do not keep her locked away from society.”
A hot, white anger swelled within Elizabeth’s breast, while Bingley gaped at his friend. “Unnatural creature? Locked away? Good heavens, man!”
Elizabeth had heard enough. She knew making a scene would only call the attention of their neighbors to Jane’s differences, so she dismissed her first inclination to walk up to the man and slap him across the face. Instead, she waited until she could make her move.
Fuming, she stared hard at Darcy. When his eyes moved to her, the rage she felt radiated across the room and into his soul. After several long moments, she deliberately turned her back on him, giving him the cut directly without arousing the suspicions of the other guests.
∞∞∞
While she was debating what to do, she missed Darcy’s reply to his friend. With a sigh, he said, “Forgive me for my poor choice of words, my friend. I am sure that it is her unique beauty that would have the gentlemen lining up. Any father would wish to lock her away to protect her from those of lower character. Go take advantage of her smiles, although I daresay she does smile too much.”
Mollified, Bingley retreated. The headache Darcy had been ignoring all evening increased, and he looked around the room at the revelry. His gaze fell on Elizabeth, and when his eyes met hers, she turned her back.
Darcy’s eyes widened, and his nostrils flared.How dare this insignificant country girl disrespect me? Does she not know who I am? And with her sister bearing the subtle signs of an idiot, she cannot disagree with what I said. Insolent girl!
For the remainder of the evening, his eyes remained fixed on the younger girl’s form. If it was pleasing to his baser nature, his proud mind refused to admit it. He told himself such close monitoring was necessary to prevent her and her elder sister from causing problems with his friend.
∞∞∞
For her part, Elizabeth remained close to her sister’s side when they weren’t on the dance floor. Jane was very popular at each assembly; her kindness, grace, and charming smiles made any man feel as though he could conquer the world, even if he weren’t in search of a wife.
The eldest Lucas boy asked Jane for a dance, and she gave him the same grin of delight that she gave Mr. Goulding, Mr. Long, and all the rest. Jane enjoyed standing up to dance, and her smile made her beauty emanate throughout the room. Even the gossiping biddies never could think of something negative to say about such a gentle creature.
Her innate goodness was what caused Elizabeth to react so violently towards Darcy’s cruel words.He doesn’t even know her,she seethed to herself as she watched the tall man scrutinize Jane.How on earth could he think to lock away someone based solely on her appearance?
To Elizabeth’s delight, Bingley returned to Jane’s side again and again between dances. He even went so far as to solicit her hand for a second time. Elizabeth watched her sister’s happiness with a mixture of joy and apprehension. Jane’s heart was pure and innocent, and it was too easily misused.
Bingley seemed affable, however, and Elizabeth mentally gave her sister permission to like him. Jane had liked many a stupider person in the past, after all.
Much later, in the wee early hours of the morning, the two sisters burrowed under the covers of Elizabeth’s bed. “What did you think of the Netherfield party, Jane?”
“Oh, Lizzy, it was such a wonderful night!” Jane’s girlish voice was even more high-pitched in her excitement. “Mr. Bingley is everything a gentleman should be. I hope we get to meet with him again. He introduced me to his sisters, did you see? They were so elegant and fine!”
Elizabeth pictured the two arrogant ladies who looked down their noses at the entire company. Jane would oppose anything negative, so Elizabeth simply replied, “They did seem to dress very elegantly indeed. I am glad they were kind to you.”
“Even Mr. Darcy seemed polite, though he didn’t smile as much as his friend.”
Having vowed to keep the odious man’s words to herself for fear of hurting her sister, Elizabeth smiled and repeated, “I am glad everyone treated you well, dearest.”
Eventually, Jane’s happy ramblings faded into soft snores, but Elizabeth was unable to join her in dreamland. Instead, her mind worried over what Darcy’s detection of Jane’s unusual nature might mean for her gentle sister. All the world was good in Jane’s eyes, and Elizabeth dreaded the day her tender Jane was forced to see otherwise.
∞∞∞
Sleep was difficult that evening for Darcy. The words he’d uttered at the assembly still haunted him, even then, echoing in his ears:such an unnatural creature as she.
While disguise was every sort of his abhorrence, Darcy’s explanation to his friend was nothing more than a blatant falsehood. In truth, hehadmeant that the girl’s appearance wasabnormally strange, but few would fully recognize her for what she was. It was only his own experiences that gave him any clue as to what lay beneath the skin.
No Darcy has ever produced such unnatural evil!
Darcy winced as his own words were drowned out by his father’s to Lady Anne all those years ago, and he fought the urge to cover his ears with his hands. Even though he was alone, and no one would bear witness to the infantile act, his upbringing would not allow him to do something so undignified, even in private.
Instead, he clenched his fists and tightened his jaw, waiting for the flood of memories to wash over him and fade away, just as they always did each time he came across a person who reminded him of the baby his mother once held in her arms.
“Anne, don’t you dare lock this door. Anne! … Reynolds, bring me the key to your mistress’s chambers immediately. If you do not, I’ll see you thrown out without a reference … Anne!”
An echo of a door banging open was followed by his mother’s screams. Then, an hour later, his father’s words. “Fitzwilliam, you are the only one who can save our family line from this curse. You must marry well. The monsters born into this world may be the children of men, but their unnaturalness cannot be of God. After all, does not the Good Book say we are made in His image? Their taint should not be allowed to spread.”
