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Expecting the maid who had brought the broth to be returning for the tray, he was surprised to see Richard enter the room. It was at that point that he recalled having given his cousin permission to escort Lady Morgan to his home to see Elizabeth. Still very worried about how her visit might affect his love, William turned to confirm Elizabeth’s wishes.
“Darling, you gave me permission to let your sister visit you, and it appears Lady Morgan is here now. Do you feel well enough to speak to her, and do you wish me to leave the room?”
Elizabeth appeared a bit uncertain before replying, “I am resolved to see Jane, but I would like you to be with me when I do.”
To Richard, William said, “Please send her in.”
“Miss Catherine came with her. She wished to see Miss Bennet, too, so I thought to send her in first … I mean, if that meets with your approval.”
Elizabeth smiled. “It does. I would dearly love to see Kitty before I face Jane.”
“Good. Good,” Richard replied. Walking over to the door, he opened it, saying, “I will send Miss Catherine straight up.”
It was not long until Catherine was ushered into the room by Mrs. Barnes, and upon seeing Elizabeth, she rushed to the bed and carefully leaned down to embrace her. “You had us all so worried, Lizzy. I have never prayed so hard in my life as I have since you were injured.”
“Thank you, sweetheart,” Elizabeth murmured into Catherine’s hair.
Afterwards, Catherine leaned back to get a better look at Lizzy. Noting how much weight she had lost and how pale she appeared, she was determined not to make Lizzy feel worse; therefore, she said nothing about Lizzy’s appearance. Instead, she remarked, “Lydia has been so kind as to keep us informed of how you are faring when she visits Emma.”
“I tried to tell Lydia she can return to her daughter now.”
“Believe me when I say she is where she wishes to be, and she sees Emma almost every day. Oh, by the way, Mary sends her love and asked me to tell you that she prays for you every day. She cannot leave Mama at present, or she would have come with me.”
“Please tell Mary that I return her sentiments. I love her and pray for her daily.”
“I will.” Catherine smiled brightly. “By the way, Lydia cannot brag enough about your caregiver. I swear she thinks Mr. Darcy is an angel sent down from Heaven.”
Looking across the room at the man she loved, Elizabeth smiled affectionately. “I would not go far as to call him an angel, for he is clearly too obstinate to be one. I am certain, however, that hearing him calling my name is what brought me back from the brink of death.”
Unable to tease her about that, Catherine said, “Then all of us who love you owe him a debt we can never repay.”
Uncomfortable with all the praise, William declared, “I merely did what any man in love would do; I cried out to God not to take Elizabeth from me.”
“Which was apparently enough to prompt Him to act!” Catherine replied. Then she stood, adding, “I shall not stay a minute longer since I know how badly you need your rest. Just being able to see you has been a balm to my soul, and, if it is not any imposition, I shall try to visit you at least once a week until you are back on your feet.”
“It will not be an imposition,” William interjected.
“That is good to know. Now, I shall return downstairs and send Jane up,” Catherine replied, giving Elizabeth one last kiss and exiting the room.
“That went well,” William declared.
“Very well,” Elizabeth replied.
It was not long until another knock sounded. William and Elizabeth exchanged glances before he called, “Come!”
Walking slowly into the room, Lady Morgan closed the door, and after nodding in William’s direction, she looked anxiously towards Elizabeth. It appeared that she was about to say something when, instead, she began to cry and rushed over to kiss Elizabeth’s cheek. Her actions created a similar reaction in Elizabeth, who began to weep as well.
Finally, Jane pulled back, retrieved a handkerchief from the sleeve of her gown and began to dry her eyes, saying, “Forgive me, Lizzy! For everything! After you returned from Kent, I believed you were antagonistic towards Mr. Darcy so I—”
Elizabeth reached out to take Jane’s hand. “There is no need for explanations,” she said, interrupting her. “I was too proud to let him, you, or anyone else know that I regretted rejecting his offer; subsequently, it was my fault that you believed I still held his proposal at Kent against him. It took forever for me to even admit it to myself.” She smiled wanly. “In any case, once we discovered that we still loved each other when we met again in Lambton, there was no turning back.”
“Nonetheless, it was my fault that I refused to accept what everyone tried to point out—that Mr. Darcy was still in love with you. I am greatly ashamed of the things I said and did whilst trying to secure him for myself. My actions were unkind and appalling.”
“It is understandable, dearest, that once you found out what a kind and considerate man he is, it would be hard not to want Mr. Darcy for a husband and a father for your children.”
From where he sat across the room, unable to say anything for fear of interfering, William squirmed in his chair at what was being said. Elizabeth glanced to him once, giving him a small smile of gratitude for his patience and forbearance.
“I cannot stay,” Jane said, standing. “David will need to be fed shortly, and I covet the time we have together before his wet nurse takes over in the evenings. They grow up so fast that he will be eating soft foods before long and will no longer need his mother quite so much.”
