Mr. Darcy's Daughter (50 page)

It
was agreed and, as they were going out to their respective vehicles, after
taking tea in the comfortable and well-appointed parlour, Cassy and Richard
thanked both the steward and the housekeeper.

Mr.
Darcy was eager to know their opinion of the property.

"Well,
what do you think, Cassy? Do you like it? Is it not a gem of a house?"

he
asked.

"Oh
indeed it is, Papa, it certainly is and so tastefully furnished, all those handsome
accessories, those beautiful works of art, it is perfect," she replied,
not even trying to hide the enthusiasm in her voice.

Her
father seemed very pleased as he lifted young Anthony into their carriage.
James had scrambled in already. They drove away, leaving Mr. Darcy standing
beside his carriage, smiling. Something in his daughter's voice and demeanour
had told him she was enchanted by Camden House, as he had thought she would be.
He thought it boded well for his plan.

That
evening, they met again. This time it was just the four of them, for Jessica
Courtney had gone to visit her grandmother, Mrs. Gardiner. There could be no
better opportunity and Elizabeth, who had been told by her husband of his
meeting with them, waited only until the servants had left the room, to ask the
inevitable question, "Well, what is your verdict on Camden House,
Cassy?"

Both
Richard and Cassy could not speak highly enough of its situation, the grounds,
the handsome building with its elegantly furnished rooms; they had loved it,
they said. Mr. and Mrs. Darcy listened with interest and then Darcy asked,
"And what will you do with it? Do you propose to let it? You will need to
advise Mrs. Wills and Mr. Adams, because if you intend to lease it, the tenants
may not require the services of all the present staff."

Mr.
Darcy looked as though he was about to go on in the same vein, but Cassy
stopped him in mid-sentence.

It
was time, she had decided, to break the news. "We do not intend to lease
Camden Park to anyone, Papa, it would be a travesty to do so. No, I think,
after Lizzie's wedding is over, we will arrange to move to Camden House and I
think we will let Mr. Adams and Mrs. Wills know soon enough that we hope very
much that they will stay on."

And
seeing the mixture of astonishment and sheer delight with which her parents
greeted her words, Cassy said quietly, "And before you ask why I have
changed my mind, apart from the undeniable appeal of the place, I think you
should hear Richard's news."

Mr.
and Mrs. Darcy turned to their son-in-law, still unsure of the reasons behind
Cassy's change of heart. On the last occasion on which the matter had been
mentioned, they had been left in no doubt; she was implacably opposed to
leaving her present home for Camden Park. Her father remembered it well.
Richard, who was pouring himself a glass of port, put down the decanter with
studied care, seated himself on the sofa beside his wife, close enough to where
Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth sat, beside the fire, and in a quiet, measured voice
told them the news. He had been asked if he would accept a knighthood, for
services to medical research, and he had accepted, he told them; adding that
his assistant, Dr Matthew Ward, would also be honoured by the Queen, for his
work on the same project.

This
information, he insisted, was totally confidential, until he received the
letter containing the citation and he begged them not to speak of it to anyone,
no matter how dear or close.

"What?
May I not tell my sister Jane? After all Matthew Ward is her sonin-law,"
asked Elizabeth, who had few secrets from Mrs. Bingley.

"No
please, Mrs. Darcy, it would be considered a grave breach of protocol, if it
were to come out before the official announcement is made."

Having
obtained the promise, Richard could permit them to congratulate him and drink a
toast to his achievement. His satisfaction grew from the fact that, besides
being honoured with a knighthood, his work would save the lives of thousands of
patients all over Britain.

Cassy
was so proud of him, she felt her heart could not cope with any more excitement
and was therefore glad, when they reached home, to find that the rest of the
household had gone to bed.

It
seemed Richard was likewise pleased to have her to himself. It had been a very
special evening and they wanted to savour its pleasure together. It was not
lost upon either of them that the decisions to accept the knighthood and move
to Camden House implied the acceptance of profound change in their lives.
Tonight, however, there were no reservations and no regrets, only deep love and
contentment.

Back
at Pemberley, Mr. Darcy and his wife could speak of nothing else that night.
Sleep had fled, leaving them wide awake, as they talked of their son-in-law's
success and their beloved daughter's position as Lady Cassandra Gardiner of
Camden Park.

"How
very felicitously it has all come together for them," Elizabeth remarked,
as she put away her jewellery and prepared for bed, to which her husband added that
it could not have come at a more opportune moment in their lives.

"It
is entirely appropriate that they should move to a more spacious residence, now
that Richard will be expected to maintain a greater public presence in the
community," he said, pointing out that, "Titles and honours imply responsibility
as well as distinction and, in Richard's case, the value of his work is such,
he is certain to be in demand among scholars and practitioners alike."

Elizabeth
agreed. She was equally pleased with the prospect of having her daughter close
by and her grandchildren so easily accessible to her.

"Truly,
I cannot, however hard I try, think of a more deserving couple. I do not say
this because Cassy is our daughter..." she went on, but Mr. Darcy, turning
to her with a smile, said, "Oh come, Lizzie my dear, of course we are
proud of Cassy and glad for her. Why should you not favour your daughter when
she deserves it? Yet, I must confess that, like you, I can think of no two
persons more deserving of good fortune and I am immensely pleased for
them."

He
sighed and, when she looked up anxiously, he shook his head.

"No,
my dear, I am not unhappy tonight. It has been a singularly fine and satisfying
day," he said, and his wife knew he was feeling happier than he had been
all year.

*

As
if these were insufficient good tidings, the post, on the morrow, brought more.
Jessica Courtney, returning early from Lambton, found a letter waiting for her,
which she read eagerly and, expressing great satisfaction with its contents,
passed over to Elizabeth after breakfast.

It
came from her mother, Mrs. Emily Courtney, written from Oxford and read:
My
dearest Jessie,

It
is late and I am exceedingly weary after a very long day, but I cannot lie down
to sleep without telling you all the news we have heard today.

There
has been such good news, two lots of it at least, which I know you will want to
hear at the earliest.

First,
your dear cousin Amy is to have a child in the Spring. She and Frank Grantley
are so happy, it is impossible for them to stop smiling.

We
went to hear him take the evening service at the church yesterday and he could
not keep from smiling, as if he had some special secret happiness, which of
course he had, though none of the congregation would have known.

Amy
says she feels well and I hope she continues so. She is very slight and not as
strong as she should be, which concerns me a little. I believe she
has
already written to her Mama and Colonel Fitzwilliam, to give them the good
news.

Second,
and even more exciting for all of us, is the news that your brother William is
invited to be one of the organists at the Cathedral during the Festival of the
Twelve Days of Christmas.

All
the others are famous men, with many years' experience, but the bishop was here
this week and, having heard William play, has personally invited him to
participate. It is a most significant honour, though William is, as usual,
being very modest about it all. Everyone else ,including Dr Grantley and his
wife Georgiana, are convinced it is a
great compliment, indeed.

I
do hope we shall have the chance to see him play; I cannot, of course, be sure
what your father will do, it being right in the middle of Christmas, but we
shall see. I would give anything to be present.

Please,
dear Jessie, tell your Aunt Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. It is due in no small
measure to the generous assistance they provided to William when he was a
student. Without their help, he could not have attained the level of
proficiency nor the success he now has...

Mr.
Darcy and Elizabeth knew exactly what Emily meant.

William
Courtney had shown, at an early age, signs of the same bright talent that had
set their son William apart, talent which may well have taken him to the same
heights of success, had he lived.

It
was from the William Darcy Memorial Trust that funds had been made available
for young William Courtney to pursue his musical studies and for that his
parents were very grateful.

For
Elizabeth and Darcy, however, it was not their gratitude that mattered, but the
happiness that the fulfillment of William's dreams had brought to their family.
For them, there would always be some pain associated with each of William's
achievements, reminding them of their own terrible loss. Yet, never even for a
single moment, did they begrudge William Courtney and his family the undiluted
joy of his success.

The
length of French lace Elizabeth had obtained was, indeed, precisely what
Cassandra had sought for her daughter's wedding gown. No sooner had a design
been decided upon, the dressmaker, who had made the gown for the daughter of
the Duke of Devon, was summoned to Pemberley and the making of Lizzie's gown
entrusted to her.

Elizabeth
was determined her granddaughter was going to have the best.

Other
preparations were afoot all around the estate, the staff pressed into service
for this important occasion. Being the first of the Darcys' grandchildren to be
wed, there was no question but that she was to be married in the Pemberley
Parish Church and no trouble would be spared to ensure the success of the
function.

*

As
Autumn drew to a close, on a day that was at first overcast and caused her
mother to say an extra prayer to the Almighty for fine weather, Lizzie Gardiner
prepared to be married. Nothing, certainly not the threat of rain, could dull
the promise of this day for Lizzie.

She
knew in her heart that she was deeply loved; never had she known the kind of
closeness to another person that she felt with her Mr. Carr. Young and
romantic, though with a good sprinkling of common sense, she shared her
mother's capacity for strong feelings, deep dedication, and hard work, all
traits that would enhance the quality of her marriage.

Thinking
of what this marriage might bring her, apart from the bliss of being with the
man she had grown to love so well, she was sensible of the fact that his
knowledge and experience of the world would help her grow in maturity and
understanding. She knew, because he had told her so, that she had brought
sparkle and delight into his hitherto mundane life. Of their capacity to make
each other happy, she was more certain than she had been of any other matter in
her young life. As the day wore on and the mist that had swathed the hills
behind Pemberley lifted, Lizzie knew it was going to be a day she would always
treasure.

Though
she could have asked for little more to add to her happiness, one thing had
happened, which increased her joy immensely. On the previous morning, a note
had arrived for her parents, from her Uncle Julian Darcy.

He
wrote:

My
dearest Cassy and Richard,

I
had hoped to see you somewhat earlier than today and so did not
deem
it necessary to write that I was coming, but matters outside my control have
delayed my arrival in England, to the extent that I shall only be in Derbyshire
on the Friday night before the wedding. I am writing to reassure you and my
dear niece that I shall be there to see her wed. Please tell little Lizzie that
I could not have stayed away.

I
shall see you all at Pemberley on Saturday morning. I cannot tell you how much
I have looked forward to this happy day.

Yours
etc.,

Julian
Darcy.

No
one in her family, except her husband, knew that Cassandra had taken the letter
to her parents at Pemberley.

Their
son was returning from France for Lizzie's wedding and though it appeared he
had hoped to surprise them, there was no possibility of Cassy keeping such a
piece of news from her mother and father.

When
she saw their faces on reading the letter, she was convinced she had been right
to come. The tears in Elizabeth's eyes and the pleasure upon her father's face
were evidence enough for Cassy. She needed no approbation, happy indeed to have
been the bearer of such good tidings.