Page 15 of A Different Impression

He laughed. “He is my uncle,” he replied, too amused by the coincidence to notice the expression that crossed her face. “I will be writing to tell him I met the girl who beat him in chess. He is rather good, and I myself have only defeated him once or twice. I cannot wait to tell him what I know. When might we play?”

She eyed him cautiously. “You would be willing to play chess with me?” she repeated.

He grinned. “I will look forward to it. And I do hope that I can watch the next time you play Uncle James.”

She laughed and began to walk down the hill towards her home. “It can be arranged, sir,” she called as she walked away.

Darcy laughed to himself as he mounted his horse and rode back to Netherfield. He owed his uncle a letter and wondered what he would say when he told him about the girl he met. He smiled to himself. It was madness. They had scarcely known one another for four days. Yet he found he no longer cared. One day, he intended to make Elizabeth Bennet his wife.

CHAPTER 7

Mr Bennet Takes Control

Mr Bennet was not in his book room that morning. Instead, he stood on the uppermost floor of the house, outside the schoolroom, contending with both his wife and youngest daughter over their notions of how a girl ought to “catch a husband.”

“Lydia is barely fifteen, Mrs Bennet, and far too young and immature even to be considering marriage,” he declared. “She will remain confined to the schoolroom until she demonstrates some degree of sense. If you continue to protest, I shall hire a governess for both of you.”

His wife gasped, but he continued before she could interrupt.

“Kitty will return to the schoolroom and remain there until she demonstrates better judgement as well. And you, madam, will cease filling their heads with such dangerous foolishness. A girl who permits a gentleman to kiss her without an engagement is not clever, nor has she secured a husband. She has behaved like a fool and, if discovered, may be ruined—along with every one of her sisters.”

“But, Mr Bennet⁠—”

“You are encouraging your daughter to destroy not only her own prospects but those of the entire family. If Lydia’s conduct brings disgrace upon us, you may indeed find yourself in the hedgerows after my death, for those who might otherwise assist you could be rendered unable—or unwilling—to do so.”

Mrs Bennet’s jaw fell open. Apparently, the possibility that one of her own daughters might bring ruin upon the family had never presented itself to her with sufficient force.

“Mr Bennet,” she began in a voice that was almost calm, but whatever protest she intended failed her. Instead, she burst into tears.

Lydia chose that moment to attempt to push past him, loudly insisting that she would not be treated like a child. Mr Bennet caught her by the arm and returned her firmly to the schoolroom.

“Mr Hill,” he called, having asked the man to remain nearby in case he was needed, “have one of the maids bring Miss Lydia whatever clothing and necessities she will require. Her meals are also to be sent up until I give orders otherwise. She is not to leave this room.”

Lydia’s protests continued while the necessary items were gathered. Mr Bennet endured them in silence, his resolve hardening with every shriek. Once the maid had departed, he closed the door and turned the key in the lock.

“You may come down when I am satisfied that you understand both the danger and the impropriety of your conduct,” he called through the door. “Until then, you will remain here.”

He pocketed the key and escorted his weeping wife to her own room.

Once there, he spoke to her slowly and with more patience than he would have believed himself capable of summoning. He explained what would follow if Lydia were permitted to continue unchecked. For once, Mrs Bennet neither called for her salts nor complained of her nerves as he described what she ought already to have understood: the ruin of one daughter would taint the reputations of all five and might prevent any of them from marrying respectably.

He also spoke of the militia’s impending arrival. A handsome uniform, he warned her, was no guarantee of honour, and very few officers possessed sufficient income to support a wife.

To his surprise, she remained quiet throughout. When he had finished, she began to cry in earnest—not with her usual noisy indignation, but with something that appeared to be genuine fear.

Mr Bennet left his wife to the ministrations of her maid and returned to the schoolroom. Perhaps, once deprived of her mother’s encouragement and given time to reflect, Lydia might prove more willing to listen.

An hour later, he emerged frustrated and thoroughly angered by his recalcitrant daughter. It was now clear that merely hiring a governess would not be enough to correct Lydia’s behaviour. He left her confined there, having first ensured that the window was secured and that she had no means of carrying out her threats to escape.

Kitty would not share her sister’s confinement, but neither would she continue to be out. From that day forward, she would spend several hours under instruction. He would write at once to enquire about a governess or sensible companion for Kitty and a suitable school for Lydia—or perhaps a convent somewhere on the continent.

By the time he descended the stairs in search of Kitty, his temper had not improved. He had neglected the guidance of his younger daughters for far too long, preferring amusement to effort and retreat to confrontation. Perhaps the same careful explanation he had given his wife might yet have some effect upon Kitty.

He could only hope he had not begun too late.

Shortly after luncheon, Mr Bennet had spoken to Kitty and completed five letters—a greater quantity of serious business than he usually undertook in as many days. When Hill announced two visitors, he was more than ready to set aside his pen and welcome the distraction.

Mr Bingley entered first and introduced his companion as Mr Fitzwilliam Darcy. As the customary greetings were exchanged, Mr Bennet became aware that Darcy was observing him with unusual attention. The gentleman appeared to be taking his measure, and the realisation prompted Mr Bennet to attend more closely to the conversation and probe a little deeper in return.