Charlotte was sitting in the parlor at Lucas Lodge, working on some sewing and listening to her betrothed prose on and on about the arrangements he had made and would be making to his parsonage to prepare it for her. She had done her best to avoid him, but she had finally run out of excuses by dinnertime last night, and she had been unable to escape his attention ever since.
Mr. Collins’ flow of conversation was interrupted when three officers were shown into the room.
With very little preamble, Colonel Forster said, “Mr. Collins you are wanted for questioning concerning an attack upon a local lady.”
Charlotte’s eyes immediately swiveled to look at Mr. Collins, whose face had gone pale. “Attack?” was all he managed to say. His eyes were wide with both shock and fear.
“Attack,” replied Colonel Forster firmly. “You will come with me. Now.”
“Yes, of course,” said Mr. Collins as he quickly but clumsily got to his feet. He left with the officers with hardly any farewell from any of them.
Charlotte stared in shock at the doorway long after it was empty.
A couple of hours later, Charlotte’s father called her into his study.
“You are aware that Mr. Collins was taken in for questioning about a rather unpleasant event?” he asked.
“I am, but that is all I know about it. I have a rather difficult time believing that Mr. Collins could be capable of committing such an atrocity, though.”
“He did not do it,” said Sir William. “Rather, it appears as though he hired Mr. Wickham to do it.”
“Even that seems out of character,” said Charlotte. “Why would he do such a thing?”
Charlotte’s father looked at her appraisingly. “He was jealous,” he said after a few moments’ hesitation.
“Jealous?” cried Charlotte. “What reason would he have to be jealous?” Before she even finished her question, however, memories of glances shared with Colonel Fitzwilliam rose to the top of her mind.
She had truly done her best not to allow her feelings to control her actions, but she knew she had not been entirely successful.
“You do not truly need me to answer that,” said her father. There was a slightly disapproving note to his voice. “Anyone who knows you will have seen how you feel about Mr. Darcy’s cousin, and of course how he feels about you in return.”
Hot shame poured over Charlotte. Despite all her efforts and contrary to her very nature, she had let her feelings overrule her sense. She knew it, and everyone who knew her knew it. Even so, Charlotte felt a need to defend herself.
“Whatever my feelings, I have done nothing to betray Mr. Collins,” she said. “I have been faithful to the promise I made to marry him, and I have maintained every intention of being faithful to him after we marry as well.”
“I believe you, Charlotte,” said her father. “You are not the sort of young lady to moon about over a man and ignore your own future well-being. After all, no matter what your feelings for each other are, Colonel Fitzwilliam could never marry someone of your station. For one, I am nearly certain his only income is his commission which is not sufficient to raise a family to his standard of living. For another, he is the son of an earl, and you are the daughter of a knight.”
Charlotte hung her head. She knew these things, but knowing them did not make it easier to hear. “I am aware, Father,” she said, hoping he would stop discussing the topic.
“Well, that leaves us with a decision to make,” said Sir William.
“And what is that?” asked Charlotte.
“Mr. Collins will be tried in the ecclesiastical courts, though it is likely he will not be convicted. As far as I can tell, he did not tell Mr. Wickham to attack the lady in question. He only agreed with Mr. Wickham’s offer to ensure that Mr. Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam left the neighborhood. Mr. Wickham was the onewho decided that attacking a young lady was the best course of action. This means Mr. Collins will likely retain his position in the church, though his reputation will be significantly reduced for a time. Since that is the case, do you still wish to marry him?”
“I must,” said Charlotte. “The contract is already signed. If I refuse now, he will likely demand compensation.”
“If he did demand compensation, he would be a fool,” said her father. “I was happy enough to have you marry a highly respected clergyman who would be the future owner of Longbourn. I am much less sanguine about you marrying a fool who could be so easily led into dangerous behavior. Not only that, but he will likely never be particularly welcome in this neighborhood, even when he does inherit Longbourn.”
“If it can be done without any financial consequences, then yes, I would like to be released from my engagement to Mr. Collins,” said Charlotte.
“I thought as much,” said Sir William. “I will do what I can. Just don’t go fooling yourself into believing Colonel Fitzwilliam will offer for you even if I can break your engagement. He is not for you, and you are not for him.”
Charlotte nodded her agreement, but inside she felt as though a heavy blanket had been laid over her soul and was slowly but surely smothering its flame.
Chapter 18
Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam paced. It was not something he normally did. If he needed to move or to think, he went for a walk or a ride. Usually, however, he was simply not particularly contemplative. Rather, he was a man of action.
