“It has all gone quite wrong, has it not?” Lady Anne managed to say.
“Yes; but it has been wrong from the start, has it not?”
“It has. I am only now seeing it.”
“Are we to begin packing?”
“Soon; I am permitted to remain until Mrs. Darcy returns. After that, I am to move to Cumberland, and I find that I cannot blame him for insisting upon it.”
Chapter Sixty-Three
Mary was puzzled by Elizabeth’s invitation to join her in London, and not altogether eager to accept. Her mother, however, had no reservations on the matter, and so Mary and Kate climbed into the Darcy coach when it arrived for them. It was a very comfortable conveyance, and so the three-hour journey to London passed painlessly enough.
Both girls gawked when the coach pulled up in front of Darcy House. “She is very rich,” Kate whispered.
“I had not really understood how wealthy Mr. Darcy is,” Mary whispered back.
The two girls climbed the front steps up to the entryway, and a stern-looking butler said, “You must be Miss Bennet.”
Mary said, “I am, and this is Kate Simmons.”
The butler inclined his head in acknowledgement and led them into the drawing room where Elizabeth waited.
Elizabeth was delighted beyond words to see familiar faces. Not just familiar faces, butkindfaces,lovingfaces, faces that did not want to judge her for her clothing or her connections. And though she thought she had exhausted all her tears, the very sight of Mary and Kate brought them on again, as she rushed to hug her visitors.
Mary was shocked. “Lizzy! Whatever –“
“I will tell you all, but not here.”
***
Upstairs in a newly redecorated guest room, Mary and Kate listened to Elizabeth’s story. She was alternately shocked, upset, furious, dismayed and troubled, and finally deeply disturbed by the notion of her sister having been treated in so infamous a manner. Finally, Mary said, “Can you not simply come home?”
“How I wish I could! But the Countess, as well as our own Aunt and Uncle Gardiner, think it best for me to stay in London, pretending that my husband has sent me here to enjoy myself.”
“Pretense! This is all very well, but what will he say when he discovers where you are? Which he will, eventually, will he not?”
“I suppose he will force me to return to Pemberley and his terrible mother; all the more reason that I should enjoy myself in London while I can.” Elizabeth tried to sound gay, but her voice was brittle.
“I suppose,” Mary said, her doubt evident in her voice.
Kate spoke. “I cannot believe what that Abby did to you. I am so, so sorry, Mrs. Darcy. If a woman may not trust her own maid, she cannot trust anyone! It is a sacred bond!”
“Kate, if I must return to Pemberley – and Mary is right, my husband will eventually discover my whereabouts and force me back – then I beg you to come with me. I need at least one person that I can trust to be with me.” Elizabeth’s voice was ragged. “The Countess sent me one of her own maids, Alice, to teach you what you need to know for so-called high society.”
“I will be happy to take instruction from her, of course, and I will protect you from all the Abbys of the world!” Kate vowed.
“Mary, perhaps you might consider coming to Pemberley as well?” Elizabeth asked. “It would be so very good to have you with me.”
“I do not know, Lizzy; it sounds very dreadful.” Mary shuddered.
“Oh! The estate is everything lovely, Mary! It is only Lady Anne who is dreadful.”
“And servants who were willing to be bribed to mistreat you, and a sister by marriage who is too weak to stand up for herself. It does not sound at all pleasant, but I will think on it, as I can see it would be good for you to have people around you who you can trust,” Mary replied.
“Thank you, Mary; that is it exactly. Now tell me all the news from home, as all I hear about lately is Jane’s expectations.”
Mary spoke about her parents, her sisters, the estate tenants, the servants, and it soon became clear to Elizabeth that Mary was a changed woman. No longer did she utter homilies and proverbs; it was as if she had been asleep and was now awake to the inequities around her. Once Mary had finished giving her sister the news from Meryton, she launched into a description of her latest reading projects, and ended by saying, “And I hope we might visit Hatchard’s while I am here, as I have some very particular interests now.”
