Page 44 of Shields and Roses

"We will get to what I said shortly, but as to the timing, well..." he broke off as someone rapped at the door. In response to his invitation, Edward Gardiner stepped inside.

"Ah, Gardiner," Bennet said, "Come in and join us. You can pull up the other chair I keep there in the corner."

Lizzy stood and adjusted her chair to make more room in front of the fire for the chair her uncle retrieved from the indicated corner. Edward settled into his spot with a smile for them both.

"I came down to breakfast a little later than I had intended," he said. "When I heard you two had left the breakfast room together, I thought it likely you had come here to discuss the situation with Lady Catherine. I am curious about that as well. Do you mind if I join in?"

"Of course not, Uncle," Lizzy said. "Papa was just about to explain why he chose to make the break with Lady Catherine now."

"At the end of his visit with Mary, Viscount Rand explained his reasoning for recommending the step now. I should like to hear your thoughts, Bennet." Edward said as he settled into his chair.

"Ah, well, as you both know, Rand and I have been playing a waiting game these last twenty years. That is not to say we have done nothing, but we have been keeping our cards close to our chests while we waited for Lady Catherine to show her hand. We both knew she was planning over the long term and that we would need to be vigilant. Actively thwarting her designs, particularly in the early years, would have pushed her to be even more devious and secretive. Instead, we went along with her suggestions, seeming to fall into her trap, all the while keeping a close eye on her actions."

"Letting Miss Stanton go signaled a change that Mary and I were both glad you made," Lizzy said. "I think even Jane had recognized that Miss Stanton did not always have our best interest in mind when she gave her instructions. It was a relief to no longer have to listen politely to her sly criticisms and complaints about our various family members."

"Indeed. We all knew from the start that she answered to Lady Catherine and was passing on information, although I am not certain that what she told her second employer was always accurate."

"What do you mean?" Lizzy asked her father and Edward looked at him questioningly.

Bennet grinned, knowing he had surprised them. "As you know, Viscount Rand has placed a few spies of his own at Rosings Park. He wanted to keep an eye on his sister and do what he could to help his niece, Miss de Bourgh, and protect her from harm. Until or unless Lady Catherine commits a crime, there no way to stop her schemes at the source. Our best option has been to be watchful and work to block or divert them."

Lizzy still looked confused. "I knew Viscount Rand had arranged for Miss de Bourgh to have a governess who would alert him if his niece was in any danger, but how does that relate to Miss Stanton beyond the obvious parallel in their divided loyalties?"

"Her personal maid, the cook and the head groom are also his agents. None of them has any direct evidence regarding Miss Stanton, but there are several signs that indicate she could have successfully fed false information to Lady Catherine."

"I think I know where you are going," Edward said, "but could you explain a little more fully?" Lizzy nodded agreement with her uncle's request.

After shifting in his chair to ease his shoulder, Bennet adjusted the shawl again before replying, "We have learned that Lady Catherine's firm belief in her own consequence and power make her vulnerable, or perhaps just less effective in implementing her schemes. She cannot imagine that one of her agents, someone whose services are paid for, might lie to her. Of course, she also interprets anything she is told to make it fit her own peculiar beliefs."

"A little like Mama?" Lizzy asked, chuckling. The two men joined in.

As Edward nodded, Bennet said, "Yes, your mother does tend to believe whatever she wants to believe. There is little that can sway her once she has decided on a point. However, aside from her insistence that all you girls must marry quickly, or dire consequences will befall our family, her mistaken beliefs are mostly harmless. Lady Catherine, on the other hand, appears to believe it is her right to control or punish everyone she knows. The problem she encounters is that, like young Mr. Darcy with his secondhand gossip, she does not verify the truth of what she is told. Rand and I think that she tasked Miss Stanton with developing certain traits in you girls in addition to the usual accomplishments and that she has reported success even where she has had none."

"What traits?" Lizzy asked.

"Think about the things Mr. Darcy said. His aunt told him that you are greedy fortune-hunters who behave poorly in public despite your extensive training in decorum. Why would she pass on information that could so easily be proven false should he chance to meet you? It is likely that is what she believes based on reports from Miss Stanton. We know Miss Stanton tried to lead Jane to feel above her family and our station. We know she encouraged you to feel superior because of your extensive education. You were to be the perfect scholar and that was to divide you from the others as well. You foiled that plan, though when you insisted on including and encouraging Mary. If Miss Parks had not stayed on as governess to the younger girls, I think Miss Stanton would have encouraged Lydia to indulge her high spirits inappropriately and left Kitty without any real skills or guidance."

Lizzy nodded thoughtfully. Everything her father said made sense and agreed with things she had observed for herself over the years.

Edward spoke up. "It has also been clear that Miss Stanton has done her best to discourage Jane from forming any attachments locally or joining us in London where she might find an appropriate match, no doubt on Lady Catherine's instructions. She objected to every invitation we made."

"And I overruled each objection," Bennet agreed. "It was clear she did not want Jane or you, Lizzy, to encounter an opportunity to marry. At the time, I agreed both of you were not yet ready to marry anyway, so I kept my responses to her objections mild. At the same time, though, she was feeding your mother's fears. With Mary now out and the opportunity for all three of you to go visiting, it was time to make a change. And once her spy in this house was gone, it was inevitable the break with Lady Catherine would come."

"So, she did not want us to marry, but she did want us to be both accomplished and overly proud. How would that serve Lady Catherine's interests?" Lizzy asked.

"I cannot answer that directly, because we do not know all her plan. It is primarily conjecture on my part, but I think she is hoping to socially ruin one or more of you girls and, by extension, our entire family. If any of you are married, the effects of such a plan will be diminished. Rand's sources at Rosings Park indicated Lady Catherine's plans, what they can find out about them, leaned in this direction. That gave all the more reason for me to remove Miss Stanton from this household. An unreliable companion can be dangerous for any young lady coming out in society, even if the companion is simply careless and not actively working against her charge. I know my girls are all smart and unlikely to deliberately place themselves into questionable situations, but a companion is the gatekeeper who can betray you to the enemy."

"Do you truly think she would have?" asked Lizzy.

"I did not want to take that chance," her father replied. "You girls are not playing pieces in a game of chess – you are my daughters and your well-being is of great importance to me. So, we have removed the person who could most easily facilitate a scheme for your ruin. She may still have that as her plan, but now she will need to employ an outside agent, and it will require more than just vague rumors voiced second-hand through her nephew."

"Hmph," Lizzy snorted, "I still cannot believe he was so eager to stop Sir Barnaby from paying attention to Jane."

"You make too much of the incident, Lizzy," her father admonished. "You must remember that he was not acting as he did in a spirit of malice. His information was inaccurate and incomplete. Although he did not take the extra step of confirming it before passing it on, he thought he was being helpful. He did make amends when the error was brought to his attention. Many men would not have done so. You may be more sensitive than most to the power of gossip by virtue of having lived all these years with your mother. He had probably not seen the full effect a few words spoken at the wrong time can have."

With a rueful smile, Lizzy nodded. "I suspect he understands that now."

"And the lesson will be fully driven home if he ever learns that Miss Elizabeth Rose is a Bennet," Edward chuckled.