“Then you will have nothing from me, not a shilling,” Mrs. Ferrars cried. “You have disregarded my wishes for you and sunk yourself irrevocably! I hope she is worth it.”
Mr. Ferrars appeared to have his doubts, but he stood up straighter in the face of his mother’s admonishments. Elizabeth was surprised, for he had told Jane in no uncertain terms that he had tired of the connection; she supposed he thought primarily of clinging to his own honor in the presence of so many guests.
Even Mrs. Jennings was astonished by his resolution. “But Mr. Ferrars, I had thought – when you visited at Christmas, I was sure Miss Dashwood was your object….”
This incited another outcry of objections from Mrs. Ferrars and Fanny Dashwood, and Lucy Steele began to disparage Elinor’s attachment to Edward in shamelessly vulgar language. Elizabeth could not allow her cousin’s name to be disgraced, and she told the irate ladies, “Perhaps you ought to leave, and settle this dispute privately.”
“I will not be commanded by an impertinent country upstart,” Mrs. Ferrars harrumphed.
“I think it is you who should leave, after what you have done,” Miss Steele hissed.
Both women continued to rage at one another, and anybody else who would listen. Mrs. Jennings crossed her arms and scolded Miss Steele, insisting that she would not turn the Bennet sisters out of her house. “You have secured an invitation from me under false pretenses, Lucy! Indeed, you may not wish to reside in the same house as Jane and Lizzy, but perhaps it is best if you remove yourself, and the scandal you have brought here.”
“You will come with us,” Miss Bingley said. “We will go at once, and send for your things in the morning. Poor girl, you have been abominably mistreated, but I will show you generosity.”
After a little more rancor, more than half the guests made a hasty departure. Aside from the ladies of the house, only Mr. Willoughby’s party and Mr. Darcy’s remained. There was an eerie calmness after the storm Elizabeth had incited, and she waited in a state of high anxiety for someone to either reprimand her for what she had done, or return them all to better cheer.
Mrs. Jennings could not stay silent for long, and she began to laugh nervously as the plates were cleared away and dessert was served. “Well, I cannot recall when there was so much excitement in my dining room.”
“I must heartily apologize,” Elizabeth said to her hostess, her remorse so earnest that tears filled her eyes.
Mrs. Gardiner, who had looked quite cross with Elizabeth, now softened her expression. “Perhaps our friends at the far end of the table would like to move closer, and fill these empty seats? I have been looking forward to the pudding.”
“Quite right,” the viscount agreed. “Not all of your friends have abandoned you; I am sure we shall be a merrier party now that we are a more intimate one.”
The countess was the first to move, and she gave Elizabeth a pat on the shoulder as she took Miss Bingley’s empty chair. “That was better than an evening at the theatre!”
Elizabeth was wary of being so swiftly forgiven for causing such an ordeal. “I am sorry for inveigling you in such a drama,” she told Mrs. Jennings.
The kindly old lady laughed heartily. “A great many of you looked far from surprised at the shocking revelation; I daresay nearly everybody here was aware of the secret engagement already.”
“I was not – but I am relieved if I was mistaken in supposing Mr. Ferrars’ interest lay elsewhere,” the countess said. She looked around at the rest of their party, and began to laugh. “Am I the only one who did not know of it? What a fine joke!”
Georgiana looked guiltily at Sophie, who in turn looked to her mother. “I only heard of it an hour ago.”
There was a minute of silence, and then Mr. Willoughby threw back his head and laughed wildly. “I daresay the secret weighed on Mr. Ferrars; he looked nearly relieved to have out with it at last. Surely the great gorgon will not cut him off entirely.”
Mr. Darcy had moved into the seat occupied by Julius Palmer, at Elizabeth’s right-hand side. She turned to him, wishing she knew how to interpret his stony expression.
In answer to her unspoken query, he gave her a sullen smile and spoke softly. “I have told you already, Miss Elizabeth, that I am on your side – if only you will permit me to be.”
“I have never been in greater need of such an imposing ally,” she whispered back to him. “But I am amazed that you are not appalled by my wickedness.”
“I should never praise such behavior, but I will own that your actions were justified, for you meant only to spare your sister the discomfort that was obviously caused by Mrs. Ferrars’s avarice. If Edward had heeded my advice when first he confided his situation to me, this could not have happened.”
“So youdidadvise him?”
“I told him that he ought to be honest with his mother, if he wished to marry Miss Steele, or dissolve their engagement if his sentiments had altered. I said nothing to influence his interest in your sister, and in that failing perhaps I am just as culpable as you are.”
Elizabeth felt her tense posture relax, though she marveled at Mr. Darcy’s willingness to exclude her behavior. “You told me once that your good opinion, once lost, is lost forever; I am glad I have not sunk myself in your esteem, sir. Shall we continue as friends?”
“Be in no doubt of my regard for you, Miss Elizabeth. Now that I have seen the lengths you will go to when sufficiently vexed, I must endeavor to remain in your good graces. I hope we shall ever be the very best of friends.”
Mr. Darcy’s face colored as he spoke, and he turned away to address his sister, who was whispering gleefully with Sophie and Mrs. Hatchard.
Meanwhile, Mr. Willoughby remained determined to salvage what remained of the party. By the time the remaining guests took their leave, the ladies of the house had all recovered from the excitement of the great row.
Indeed, Mrs. Jennings’s spirits were as cheerful as Elizabeth had ever seen them, when the four ladies were leftto their own devices in the parlor. They had all consumed a great deal of wine after their party was halved, and their hostess wasted no time in making free with her congratulations, declaring Jane and Elizabeth to be spoiled for choice with suitors.
