Elizabeth turned to her pregnant sister. “Are you well enough to travel, Mary?”
“I believe so, Lizzy. I am not ill, only excessively swollen.”
Elizabeth looked toward her father. “What think you, sir? Would Mr. Collins permit his wife to reside in Derbyshire through this confinement?”
“I believe he would, Lizzy. It would spare him the trouble of traveling up from Kent each month.”
Elizabeth saw the relief in his expression. What her father truly meant was that the household at Longbourn would be spared the rector’s company. They must all be thoroughly weary of the man.
She turned back to Mr. Darcy. “Sir, I should like to bring my sister with us.”
“Very well, Elizabeth. We shall remain here tonight.” He turned to Mr. Bennet. “Sir, once our night bags are unloaded, I shall send the carriage and servants on to the local inn. Can you direct my men there?”
The two gentlemen departed to arrange the matter. Elizabeth noticed Mary blotting her eyes and cheeks, and she asked, “Mary, what is it, dear?”
“Forgive me, Lizzy. I do not know why, but tears are always near the surface now that I am with child. I am deeply grateful to you for offering me hospitality within your new home.”
Elizabeth said, “I have emptied Longbourn of half its occupants. Hopefully, Mamma will not sink into a decline with no one left to manage.”
Mary managed a faint smile and rose. “I shall go upstairs and begin packing, and I must write to Mr. Collins to inform him that I am traveling to Derbyshire in search of medical care.”
Elizabeth asked, “Do you fear the gossipmongers? You came to Longbourn for Mamma’s care, and now you travel north, farther away from your husband.”
“No indeed. Papa shall inform our neighbors that there are two midwives in your neighborhood and that you yourself shall care for me in Mamma’s absence. He may embellish the tale further and say that I shall have a maid assigned exclusively to assist me.”
“You have become quite adept at managing appearances, sister dear,” Elizabeth said, a half-smile playing on her lips.
“Lizzy, my life has become one calculation after another as I attempt to manage this difficult situation in which I find myself. It is a delicate business maintaining one's respectability, even as a married woman. I do not wish our neighbors to conclude that Mr. Collins finds me displeasing and has cast me aside.”
Elizabeth rose as well. “I shall come and help you.”
She addressed Georgiana. “Sister, I am going upstairs with Mary. Perhaps you would like to stretch your legs. Kitty, the path to the hermitage is charming, even in winter. Would you walk with my sister-in-law?”
The young girl directed a bright look toward Kitty. “I should like that very much, if it would not displease you.”
The matter settled, the two eldest sisters went upstairs to pack Mary's meager belongings, while the two youngest bundled themselves against the cold and ventured into the garden, away from Mrs. Bennet's prying questions.
Elizabeth entered Mary’s room and shut the door behind them. “Mary dear, it appears to me that Papa has also grown thoroughly weary of Mr. Collins. He seemed positively relieved to learn that the monthly visits are to cease.”
“Yes. I was tempted to laugh at his obvious relief. I myself feel greatly relieved to leave both Mamma and Mr. Collins behind. It has been exhausting to live between the two of them. Though Mr. Collins never remains longer than five days at a time, together they are almost too much to bear.”
Turning the subject, Elizabeth said, “Mamma seems an entirely different person. I expected to feel mortified from the moment I stepped from the carriage, yet she has been nothing but polite and, even, elegant.”
“Yes, she manages well enough in our daily lives, but Mr. Collins torments her. He threatens to put her out once he inherits.” Mary once more pressed her handkerchief to her face.
“I have assured her that so long as I live, she shall never be turned away, but he is cruel, Lizzy. His true character began to reveal itself after I returned to Longbourn. He dislikes thejourney, and perhaps that has made him ill-tempered toward me, though with the neighbors, he is all civility and obliging manners. Lady Lucas and Charlotte practically worship him. The admiration of nearly all our neighbors has quite gone to his head.”
Elizabeth said, “Well, fortunately for you, you have two sisters who are well married and reside in large homes that you may visit whenever you require respite from that man. He can hardly object if we declare it beneficial for the children. They may share in the instruction provided by the governesses, tutors, and masters we hire for our own families.”
Mary’s eyes shone with amusement. “Yes, if we are invited for the children’s benefit, he cannot very well complain. He is terribly miserly, Lizzy. He will gladly send away his wife and children if it spares him any expense.” Her expression softened. “I begin to feel hopeful again, sister.”
Dinner that evening passed peacefully, and afterward the family retired early so they might be upon the road at first light.
Elizabeth watched as Mr. Darcy removed his coat and cravat. His presence in her girlhood room seemed almost incongruous. He was tall and undeniably masculine. The chamber appeared too small to contain him. He filled it with his presence.
He caught her eye, amusement dancing in his own. “Mrs. Darcy, you appear distracted. Are you contemplating assisting me with my waistcoat?”
“You are teasing me, sir, but as a matter of fact, I should like that very much.”
