She could not, of course, so there must be something else afoot; he would ask Lizzy about it later.
“I understand from Lizzy that you plan to go to London after the wedding,” he said to Mr. Darcy.
“Yes; I plan to introduce Elizabeth to Society.”
“You do understand that she has never been exposed to theton, do you not?”
“I do, of course; but can you doubt her ability to navigate those waters? One has only to look at her to be enchanted; one has only to listen to her to be captivated by her intelligence and insight.” As he spoke, Mr. Darcy looked at Elizabeth with so much love and passion that Mr. Gardiner felt almost embarrassed to have witnessed it. Well, Mr. Gardiner thought, there can be no doubt that this is a love match.
***
But there was something different in the family, something that appeared to have nothing to do with Jane or Elizabeth. “Did you notice something – well, something odd – about Kitty and Lydia?” Mrs. Gardiner asked her husband that night in their room.
“Well, the dinner table seemed a good deal quieter than usual,” Mr. Gardiner said, scratching his head. “Is that what you mean?”
“There was no caterwauling, no complaints of being treated badly. And both Kitty and Lydia asked if there was anything they could do to make our stay more pleasant!”
“That seems very much out of character,” Mr. Gardiner agreed.
“I shall get to the bottom of it,” Mrs. Gardiner declared.
***
And the very next morning, she did so. “Lizzy, what has happened to Kitty and Lydia?”
Elizabeth chuckled. “What happened, dear Aunt, is Georgiana Darcy!”
“Georgiana Darcy?” Mrs. Gardiner was baffled.
“Yes; she succeeded where all the rest of us failed. Kitty and Lydia admire her greatly, and when she described how she had been taught to behave by her governesses, Kitty and Lydiaevidently decided that this would do for them as well. Oh, they slip up now and again, but overall, Longbourn has been a far quieter place!”
***
Over the next few days, the Gardiners met Miss Bingley and the Hursts; all in all, they were very satisfied that Jane would be happy with the Bingleys.
But the question of what it was that weighed on Mr. Darcy – for Mrs. Gardiner agreed that it had to do with Miss Darcy – remained. Finally, Mrs. Gardiner approached Elizabeth directly.
“Lizzy, it is not my place to pry…” she began.
“But you will in any case!” Elizabeth laughed. “Go on, Aunt Madeleine; what is it?”
“It seems to me that something is very much distressing the Darcys. Oh, they hide it well, but there is something in the way that he watches her that concerns me.”
Elizabeth paled. She opened her mouth to reply, and then visibly changed her mind, compressing her lips together.
“It is a secret, I suppose,” Mrs. Gardiner surmised.
“It is, but – oh, I must tell you, for you of all people will be able to offer me good advice!”
“Go on, then.”
“You must promise not to judge harshly.”
“I believe I have always been reasonable, Lizzy.” There was a touch of a reprimand in Mrs. Gardiner’s voice.
“You have, of course. I apologise, Aunt. Very well, here it is.” Words tumbling out, Elizabeth laid forth Georgiana’s history with George Wickham, and the resulting scandal.
Mrs. Gardiner had tears in her eyes at the end of this recital. “Oh, that poor child!”
