Lady Catherine was quick to add her approval. “Oh, your sister may certainly be spared. Unmarried sisters are never of so muchconsequence, unless there are children to be reared, and as there are none to occupy her, Mrs. Collins, you can have no objection.”
Thus, before the two sisters from Hunsford Parsonage had taken their leave, it was settled Elizabeth would return on the morrow at two o’clock, to sing, to play, and to raise the spirits of Miss Anne de Bourgh.
Chapter 12: Anne de Burgh
Elizabeth stood at the side entrance of Rosings and hesitated, uncertain how to proceed. Miss de Bourgh had instructed her to enter by this door, yet the act was too bold, and for a moment she remained where she was, undecided.
A few minutes later, a servant approached from behind and stepped around her to open the door. “May I assist you, miss?”
“I am Miss Bennet. Miss de Bourgh directed me to enter here, as it leads directly to her private parlor on the second floor.”
The servant curtsied. “Yes, miss. Shall I conduct you upstairs?”
Elizabeth smiled. “I should be obliged.”
Elizabeth followed her up the narrow stair and soon realized it was the servants’ passage. It struck her as odd that Miss de Bourgh should send her this way. Did she suppose Elizabeth too insignificant to enter by the front? She was still considering it when a small shriek broke in upon her thoughts.
“Miss Bennet! You came. Sarah, you must not tell Lady Catherine you saw me upon the back stair, nor that Miss Bennet has arrived. She is not expected until three, for I told my mother I asked Miss Bennet to arrive at a later hour. You understand, Sarah?”
The middle-aged woman chortled. “Miss Anne, you are at your tricks again. Of course, I understand. You run along, Miss, and never mind your mamma.”
Anne seized Elizabeth’s hand. “Come, let us walk. I have spent the morning shut up in a darkened room with my poor Maria.”
They hurried down the stair. Elizabeth was astonished to find Miss de Bourgh so quick and light of step. She showed no signof breathlessness, nor any appearance of the frailty Mary had spoken of.
They did not pause until they reached the beech grove. There, Anne stopped and released her hand. “Indeed, Elizabeth, you run very well. It is rare to find a lady who does not require a rest at every turn.”
Elizabeth laughed, still surprised by her companion’s vigor.
“You will excuse me. May I call you Elizabeth? I have thought of you as Elizabeth since we met yesterday.”
Elizabeth smiled. “You may, unless you prefer Lizzy, as my sister does.”
“Lizzy… yes, I like that very much. It suits you. Please call me Anne or Annie. Let us do away with formalities and honorifics, shall we?”
Elizabeth only blinked in surprise.
Miss Anne breathed in the fresh air, and she twirled about on the green. “Oh, Lizzy, how I have needed this. I have spent nearly a month confined with my beloved Maria. The physician told me this morning that she will not survive the illness.”
Elizabeth’s expression softened. “What ails her? Does he know?”
“He believes she suffers from a tumor in the lung. Maria has reached the point where she can scarcely breathe. He brought laudanum today, saying it will ease her breathing and the pain. She finds a little relief when I fan her, but I am afraid to give her the tincture.”
Elizabeth’s brows drew together. “You need not fear. When one suffers as she must, laudanum will not harm her. The bodygrows accustomed to it, and in time it may cease to give relief at all. For now, it will ease her.”
“Then I shall not be afraid to give it. She is too weak to take it herself, so I must assist her.”
Elizabeth saw the anxiety in her face. “Would you like me to administer the first dose?”
“Would you? I should be much relieved if you would, at least the first time.”
“Of course. What is it you fear?”
“I do not wish to poison her.”
“If your poor Maria suffers greatly, it may be that the laudanum offers only limited relief, but we must try. Shall we go up now and give her the first dose?”
“Yes.”
