Page 18 of Gold and Good Sense

“Help her!” he cried. “You have ruined her!”

Mrs. Bennet raised her head and faced him once more, a defiant expression on her face, but she said nothing.

He realized that there was no point in continuing this conversation. “I will take my leave as soon as I can,” he said, “but there is one thing I must tell you before I go. Perhaps then you will understand the reason for my restrictions. Our daughters’ dowries are not ten thousand pounds as I had hinted. Rather, they now have sixty thousand pounds each.

“To help them learn the manners required of such a fortune, I have hired two companions for them, one of whom is a dowager countess. I have also hired two ladies’ maids to help them as their wardrobes inevitably expand.

“Since I will need to leave as quickly as possible, Jane and Elizabeth can introduce you to our new arrivals. You will treat the companions as equals, not servants. They are here to help even if their advice sounds different to your understanding.”

Mrs. Bennet’s face only showed blank surprise. “Sixty thousand…” she said.

He should have known her mind would get stuck there. She probably hadn’t heard anything else he said.

“Yes. Sixty thousand,” he said. “Now, I must take my leave.”

He got up and left the room. After crossing the hall, he stuck his head into the parlor. Lady Esther and Mrs. Jamison had joined Jane, Elizabeth, and Lydia there. “Elizabeth, may I speak to you for a moment?”

Once Elizabeth was in the hall, he said, “I have told your mother about your fortunes, so there is no need to keep it a secret any longer. However, I am afraid I must ask you to keep a different secret for as long as you can.”

“What is it, Papa?” she asked.

“Kitty has run off to Scotland with Alan Goulding,” said Thomas.

Elizabeth’s eyes widened. He continued, “Your mother has been telling everyone that Kitty is ill with a fever. If you could help her keep up that pretense as long as possible, I would be grateful. I don’t expect it will last much longer than another day, but do your best. In the meantime, I must make an effort to follow them to ensure they actually do get married.”

By the time he was done speaking, Elizabeth’s surprise had faded and firmness had taken its place. “I will do my best, Papa,” she said. “I do hope you can catch up to them.”

Thomas squeezed her hand. Then, without a word, he left to see what could be done about riders and transportation.

In less than an hour, he had sent one rider south toward London to ask at inns along the way if Kitty or Mr. Goulding had been seen. He had also sent two riders north to do the same. As for himself, he was once again ensconced in his coach and on the road.

Thomas’ mouth twisted sourly. He hated traveling.

Chapter 9

Since Thomas had left Longbourn just after midday, he had to stop for the night less than eight hours later. Fortunately, when he awoke, one of his north-bound riders had already returned.

“Mr. Bennet, your daughter and Mr. Goulding have been found just a few hours north of here,” said the rider.

“I would have thought them to be much farther along on their journey than that,” said Thomas.

“I’m afraid I didn’t stop to ask why,” said the young man. “Once we found them, we agreed that one of us should stay to keep them from leaving and the other should find you as quickly as possible.”

“That was well done,” said Thomas. He thanked the young man with a generous tip on top of the wage he had promised.

Once he was dressed, he once again hopped into his conveyance and continued on his journey.

The runaway couple were indeed found just a few hours north of where Thomas had spent the night. It turned out that Mr. Goulding had never had any intention of traveling all the way to Scotland. It had been his intention to force Thomas’ hand into agreeing to the marriage rather than to actually elope.

By not traveling for more than a day, he had deliberately made it easier for Thomas to find them, thereby making a wedding possible more quickly.

Once Thomas understood that much, he insisted they all return to London to make arrangements for a wedding.

When they were all in the carriage heading toward the city, Thomas said, “Now, young Mr. Goulding, perhaps you will enlighten me as to why you needed to run off with my daughter instead of patiently waiting a few months for my permission.”

“It’s because he loves me,” cried Kitty. “And I love him. We couldn’t possibly wait.”

Thomas fixed his daughter with a stern glare. “I am all too aware of why you would behave in such a manner,” he said. “I am asking Mr. Goulding.”