Lord Matlock huffed a laugh. “I do remember when she and Anne began piano lessons as children. Anne took to it immediately, while Catherine decidedly did not. She was terrible. She was certainly not proficient and refused to continue after a month or so of lessons. My parents did not protest, so only Anne continued. I do not think this was the only event like that—learning most things came more easily to Anne thanCatherine. It is possible she resented her sister for it. Catherine also looked far more like Father, while Anne looked like Mother. Anne was frequently praised for her beauty. I have never considered it, though it seems likely Catherine was jealous of Anne. As I recall, she wanted to marry George Darcy when I first brought him home.”
Darcy frowned. “Did she? I did not think she particularly cared for Father?”
“When Catherine first met your father, she found him attractive, and he was wealthy, of course. But he fell for Anne nearly the moment he saw her. Father made the two wait, insisting they were too young to consider marriage at the time. George was only twenty and had not finished at Cambridge yet, while Anne was barely sixteen. They were still a bit young when they married, and I believe they experienced several losses before you came along. Catherine did too. It irked her that Anne gave George his son and heir while she only had a daughter. Of course, she refused to even consider another child after giving birth once and locked the door between their rooms,” Lady Matlock explained as she settled into a chair in the study.
“Did you know Mother before she married my father?” Anne asked.
“I lived near Matlock and visited often. Anne and I were friends, though Catherine did not want to have much to do with us. A few days after George came home with James, I was at Matlock for a visit. Both Anne and Catherine had been attracted to George, but he only saw Anne. Catherine was furious, even more so when George asked to court Anne.”
Darcy looked surprised at this. “I do not think I ever realised you and Mother were friends before you married.”
Lady Matlock smiled. “I knew the Matlock family for years. James and I were always around each other. I had been interested in him for years, and it was Anne who helped open his eyes to me. She wanted me as her sister.”
Once everyone had found a seat in the study, Richard cleared his throat. “If it would not cause a scandal, I would suggest that we send Aunt Catherine directly to Bedlam. She ranted the whole way to Wales about Darcy’s so-called ‘foolishness’ and ‘insolence,’ and nothing he or I attempted silenced her. At one point, I seriously considered employing a gag. It took some time, but we settled her into the cottage she owns in Wales. Unfortunately, it did become necessary for the housekeeper and a maid to administer laudanum to end her caterwauling.”
“I refuse to send my sister to Bedlam, regardless of how ill she might be. At the moment, all we have are suspicions that she is responsible for the deaths of Sir Lewis and George, and I doubt we would ever be able to prove it. We do know she has been dosing Anne with something to keep her ill, and that is enough to keep her isolated.”
“You took her to the property near Wrexham?” Darcy asked. “I have never visited, but understood the manor house there was in good repair, and it is not so distant from Matlock that it would be impossible to visit, should it be necessary. As I recall, it is fairly isolated, a good ten miles from the nearest village,” Darcy asked.
“That is correct. There was a skeleton staff already in place, so we hired a few servants to keep Catherine contained. I also employed two nurses to remain with her, with the intention that at least one is always with her. If she has indeed lost her senses as it seems, she will require constant supervision to prevent any harm to herself or others,” Lord Matlock replied.
Anne chuckled, surprising them all. “It is nothing,” she said when they asked. “It merely struck me as ironic that after dosing me for all those years to keep me weak, it is now Mother who seems to need a regular dose of something to keep her calm. However, I would prefer someone with medical expertise to oversee this, as it is evident that an uninformed individual could potentially cause significant harm.”
The others agreed with Anne’s conclusion. After the group spent another hour discussing how matters with her would be handled, it was decided that Anne would spend the summer at Matlock learning how to manage the estate that was officially hers.
As planned, Georgiana and Mary would travel to Matlock with the Fitzwilliams and Anne. A new companion would be found for Anne, and Mrs. Annesley would begin to include Mary with Georgiana in some of her lessons. With help from Lady Matlock, Anne would acquire a new wardrobe, and once Lord Matlock returned to town, they would begin transferring Rosings into Anne’s control.
The newly married couple were relieved to be given several months alone at Pemberley, though they were expected to arrive in London after the harvest, no later than Michaelmas. Lady Matlock was very stern when she gave Darcy his orders about when to arrive in London.
“William, you are expected to appear on my doorstep no later than the first of October. Do not test my patience in this matter, or I will take you over my knee as I did when you were a child.”
Elizabeth stifled a snort at the matriarch threatening her nephew, who stood nearly a head taller than his petite aunt and likely weighed nearly twice as much. “Oh, Lady Matlock, forgiveme, but the thought of you disciplining William in such a way is quite amusing. You must admit that to do as you suggest would be difficult.”
Even Lady Matlock conceded that it was amusing, but she did inform Elizabeth that she was earnest about the date the couple should arrive in London. “I intend to do all I can to assist your entry to the ton, Elizabeth, but to do that, you must be in town for at least part of the season. I would prefer you to arrive in a month, but knowing how much my nephew despises social events, it is probably best to limit how long he will have to endure the ton.”
“Thank you, Aunt. I hope you know we do appreciate your support,” Elizabeth replied.
Darcy concurred and expressed his gratitude to his aunt. With matters settled for now, the group sought out Georgiana and Mary in the music room. They listened to the girls playing for some time and then engaged in various activities for the rest of the day. As the evening approached, those leaving the next day took time to pack and prepare for their departure. Dinner that night transpired quietly, and soon after, everyone retired.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
With all of their guests finally gone, Darcy did as promised and kept Elizabeth in their suite of rooms for much of the next fortnight. They emerged from their rooms only briefly during this time, delighting in the discoveries they were making of each other.
Not all this time was spent in bed—much to Darcy’s occasional displeasure. One of the forays into other parts of the house was a surreptitious attempt to obtain a chessboard from the library. A late-night conversation revealed that Elizabeth played the game, so after attiring themselves in dressing gowns, Darcy had taken Elizabeth by the hand to lead her through the darkened corridors, startling a footman upon their return. Elizabeth had giggled at the servant’s expression at seeing the master and mistress so attired and running through the hallways like children.
As soon as they reached their chambers, Elizabeth grinned broadly at her husband. “I do believe we surprised him, William. Do you think he will recover?”
Shaking his head, he returned her grin, setting down his treasure. “He will have to. But, well, it does keep things interesting, does it not?” At her continued giggles, Darcy grabbed his wife and kissed her until she stopped laughing. The chessboard sat on the table unused until the following day.
Another night-time escapade had taken the couple into the study and a special locked cabinet his father had shared with him as a young man. Darcy took pleasure in revealing these treasures to his wife, and they discreetly relocated them from the study cabinet to another one in their private chambers.
Despite some reluctance, after a fortnight of isolation, they began to attend to their responsibilities once again. However, they continued to break their fast in their shared sitting room, for unless they had guests or other commitments, they decided to make it a habit to start their day together and discuss their plans for the day over breakfast. To this end, they had decided to search the house for a table and sideboard that could be moved into their sitting room.
Quickly, Elizabeth became acquainted with the responsibilities and duties of the mistress of such a grand estate. She was familiar with the running of Longbourn, but it operated on a much smaller scale than Pemberley. While many principles remained the same, Elizabeth had to adjust her ideas to fit. Mrs. Reynolds greatly aided her in this, and the two women swiftly built a good working relationship.
Though their marriage was stronger for the problems they had already faced, that is not to say that the newlyweds did not occasionally disagree. Two such passionate people can scarcely be so frequently in company without the occasional argument.
When confronted with the joint problems created by Wickham and Lady Catherine, the two had worked together, but when it came to the matters of the estate, Darcy, used to carrying the burdens entirely by himself, found it difficult to cede any of that control to his wife. However, when the steward from Longbourn wrote to Elizabeth about a change Darcy ordered, she had burst into his study, interrupting a meeting between her husband and his steward.
