Page 22 of Gold and Good Sense

Elizabeth sighed. “My second to youngest sister, Kitty, is only sixteen, but she seems to have taken it into her head to elope with a young man from our neighborhood. My father had told my mother that our fortunes were a bit more than ten thousand a year before we went to London, probably thinking that would not invite fortune hunters but would explain the sudden need to go into the city.

“Unfortunately, it seems to have attracted at least one fortune hunter. Unless of course Mr. Goulding just happened to have fallen in love with Kitty the very moment she obtained a fortune, despite the fact that they had known each other for more than a year, during which he had shown no particular interest in her.”

The corners of Lady Esther’s lips pinched in what Elizabeth was certain was a well suppressed smile. “That does seem unlikely,” she said. “I assume they’ve gone to Scotland?”

“That is what Papa told me just before he left,” she said. “I do not know how he knew for certain, though. Still, I can’t think of them doing anything else, since she is too young to be married in England without Papa’s express permission.”

“There are many things that can happen between here and Scotland,” said Lady Esther. “The most common of which is that the man loses interest or runs out of money. Very few hot-headed young couples realize how expensive such a long journey is.”

“In this case, I genuinely hope that is what happens,” said Elizabeth. “It will make it easier for Papa to find them.”

“And what will he do if he finds them before they get to Scotland?” asked Lady Esther.

“I do not know for certain,” said Elizabeth. “I suppose I assumed that he would arrange a marriage here in England. What else could he do?”

“Many things,” said Lady Esther. “It is entirely possible that, given your sister’s fortune, he would not wish to reward the young man for such behavior. He could send your sister away to live out her life as a ‘widow,’ or he could find someone else for her to marry. If he does either of these things, she will not be coming home for quite some time if ever.”

“Oh, I do hope that is not the case,” said Elizabeth. “We would all be heartbroken not to see her again, and I am certain she would be rather unhappy to be separated from everyone she knows.”

Lady Esther made no expression of sympathy. She just shrugged her shoulders and said, “Whether she likes it or not, there are no happy outcomes from such a flight. Even if they truly were in love, a marriage begun in such haste and secrecy would be based on a shaky foundation.”

Elizabeth realized that the Lady was entirely correct. “Poor Kitty,” was all she could think to say.

Chapter 11

Around noon the following day, an express was delivered to Longbourn, addressed to Elizabeth. Hoping to find news of Kitty within, Elizabeth opened it with haste.

Inside, she found news that her sister had been found and that a marriage was being arranged. Papa also gave her permission to inform the family and the servants of what had taken place.

Elizabeth hesitated at this last instruction. Why would he want the news to come out before Kitty was officially married?

She did not immediately share the news. Instead, she waited until she had another private moment with Lady Esther and asked for her opinion.

Lady Esther said, “I suspect your father is aware that if Kitty shows up in the neighborhood married after being apparently bedridden for at least five days, everyone will know what happened anyway. He is merely trying to take the sting away from the inevitable barbs by spreading the news around the neighborhood just a few days early.”

“So you believe I should share the news as he has asked me to?” asked Elizabeth.

“Undoubtedly,” said Lady Esther. “Doing so will relieve a great deal of stress from the shoulders of your servants. Additionally, it will allow your family to prepare to receive their sister in her newly married state. Truly, I don’t think you can avoid it.”

Elizabeth sighed. “I believe you are correct, though I am not looking forward to this. Mama already knows about the elopement, but she is likely to be overly excited at the news that one of her daughters will be married in a few days. As for my sisters, I genuinely don’t know how they will take the news, but their reactions are certain to be unique.”

There was silence between the two ladies for a few moments before Lady Esther said, “I believe it speaks highly of you that your father entrusted this information to you rather than your elder sister. I will add that I agree with him that you are the best person to bear this burden. Still, I do feel somewhat sorry for you that the burden existed to be borne in the first place.”

“Thank you Lady Esther,” said Elizabeth. “Praise from you is high praise, indeed.” It was the truth. Elizabeth had known the Lady for a fortnight, and she had always been impressed with her impeccable manners and calm way of handling any difficulty that came her way.

She was truly grateful to Judge Darcy that he had found such a reliable and steady companion for them.

~~~~~

Elizabeth was resolved to find a time when she could share the news with her entire family at once, because she did not wish to have such a difficult conversation multiple times. Such an opportunity came a few hours before it was time to change for dinner.

Mary’s lessons were over for the day, and she had joined the rest of the family, along with their two companions, in the drawing room.

As soon as she found an opportunity, Elizabeth said, “I received an express from Papa earlier today.”

Six pairs of eyes turned to look at her, and she suddenly felt very nervous. She gathered her courage and said, “Kitty has not been ill as Mama and I have pretended. Instead, she eloped to Scotland with Alan Goulding a few days ago, and we have been hiding it. Papa has found her, and they are even now in London while Papa seeks a marriage for them as quickly as possible. He hopes to return here to Longbourn within a few days with the newlyweds.”

Elizabeth had barely registered the surprise on Mary’s and Mrs. Jamison’s faces before Mama cried, “Oh, my dear girl. I knew how it would be. I will finally have one of my girls happily wedded. We shall have so much fun visiting all our neighbors while I introduce her as Mrs. Goulding. Ooh, how well that sounds.”