Shortly after the Darcys’seventh anniversary, the final payment is made between Longbourn and Pemberley, paying the loan in full. The Darcys presented the Bennet daughters each with a sum of money earned from the payments, which amounted to nearly two thousand pounds each with the accumulated interest. When Bennet discovered how the money was distributed, he was at first angry, but it did not take him long to realise that Darcy and Elizabeth had done for him what he should have done all his life. Had he made any effort to restrain his wife or taken an interest in the estate sooner, he could have ensured all of his daughters had dowries instead of expecting others to ensure his children and wife were provided for.
As his children left home and married, Mr Bennet had managed to put aside additional funds in addition to the payments he had made to Darcy. Mr Bennet found that in the seven years he was required to work to improve the estate, it had been more interesting than merely staying in his bookroom and reading, and with no children at home, the house was quieter and more peaceful. He no longer had to hide to get the quiet he wanted, and he found his wife a decent companion. The money he set aside more than doubled Mrs Bennet’s jointure and would enable her to live well should he predecease her.
The Bennets were never invited to Pemberley and only invited to London by Jane. Mary rarely travelled that far, being very busy with her duties to the parish, and Kitty’s home was not large enough for guests. Even the visits to London were rare as Mr Hastings did not care for his mother-in-law as she alwaysmanaged to slight him, believing him to be little better than a tradesman. In reality, Mr Hastings’ income was higher than even Lydia’s husband’s, but Mrs Bennet never understood that as a barrister, Mr Hastings was a gentleman and far above the position of solicitor. Mrs Bennet was invited to Lydia’s home for the birth of Lydia’s first child. and, during that visit, argued with Lydia’s mother-in-law to the point that she was banished from the home thereafter.
All of the sisters did occasionally get together at Pemberley. The Darcys invited them all each summer, but usually, only one or two managed to make the trip, although every three or four years, they all managed to be there together. No one ever addressed that their parents were not invited, and the Bennets were not missed.
Mrs Bennet had grown more resentful as her comments became more biting towards all of her daughters over the years. Three years after the loan was paid, ten years after the Darcys’ marriage that changed everything for her family, Mrs Bennet passed away in her sleep. Her daughters mourned her, not for what she was, but for the mother they wished she could have been. Mr Bennet lived another five years without her, spending most of his time at Longbourn and enjoying the solitude.
His death,however, brought to the fore his lack of an heir for Longbourn. William Collins had been declared dead a decade before Bennet’s death. He had been bitten by a bug in Africa, and his wound festered. Eventually, the man died from an infection, which the locals believed was due to the evil spirits the man hadaround him. Since no one else bitten by this particular insect had ever died, the villagers believed this was a reasonable explanation for his death. It took a year or two for the news to travel to England, leaving Charlotte a widow in truth.
Charlotte remained unmarried and enjoyed the privilege of running her own home for a decade after Collins was sent away. She often visited Elizabeth at Pemberley and aided Mary in her charitable endeavours within the parish. Darcy ensured she never wanted for anything, but when she was forty, she travelled with the Darcys to London for a season. While there, she met an older Viscount with several nearly grown children, and the two became good friends. He proposed at the end of the season, but Charlotte did not immediately accept. After carefully considering the proposal for several days, she decided companionship was more desirable than independence and agreed to the gentleman’s proposal. She never had her own children, but she became ‘grandmother’ to that gentleman’s grandchildren and greatly enjoyed that title.
Since no male heir was to be found, the Bennet daughters were permitted to decide for themselves what to do with the estate. It was offered to each daughter in turn, and after Jane and Elizabeth turned it down, Mary and her husband chose to accept it. The two moved to Hertfordshire with their four children, three boys and a girl, and continued modernising the estate, making it even more profitable. The sisters also agreed to give the family Mrs Bennet’s widow’s portion, which they used to update and upgrade the house.
Several years after their marriage,the Darcys finally heard what happened to the Bingleys. During the season, Darcy encountered Mr Hurst in his club one afternoon, and he informed Darcy what happened to his former friend.
Miss Bingley’s banishment from London had been permanent as no one wanted her to live with her following her spiteful behaviour towards Mrs Darcy. Bingley went north with her, and while there, his intended wrote him a letter to break their engagement. She blamed this on the embarrassment attached to his name, but she married soon after this. While Bingley had wanted this outcome, he had been rather upset when she married so quickly after and decided not to return to London.
However, during this time, it became apparent that no man in England would take Caroline as a bride without a substantial dowry, so the brother and sister decided to venture to America with what remained of their fortunes. The Hursts received only one letter announcing they arrived somewhere in Virginia.
The Darcys were exceedingly happy.In the decade after their marriage, they added five children to their household: Alex, the eldest, had been followed by the twins, Anne and Wills, and then two more came in the following years—Henry James, named after Lord Matlock, and Helen Eleanor, who they called Ellie,named for her Great-Aunt Helen. Pemberley thrived under their care, and the hallways rang with the sounds of the children who were reared with an emphasis on acting responsibly and avoiding allowing resentment to fester.
