The Darcy Cousins (4 page)

THE DARCY COUSINS

smile that stretched her lips revealing that she was very pleased with herself for her joke.

It was not in her ladyship's nature to be amused for very long however. She drained her teacup and then returned to her customary mode of interrogation.

"How did you enjoy your journey here, Miss Clarissa?" she demanded.

"I cannot say I enjoyed the journey," replied Clarissa.

"Fortunately I did not suffer from sea sickness, which afflicted some of the others, but we experienced some terrifying moments."

"I daresay you must have encountered a gale," remarked Lady Catherine. "That would account for you being terrified."

"Quite so," replied Clarissa pertly. "And I can assure you, there is nothing as terrifying as being on a tiny ship in an enormous ocean and being buffeted by the waves."

"Surely you did not come on a tiny ship," said Lady Catherine.

"You did not, did you, Mr Frederick?"

"I believe Clarissa was referring to how she felt upon the ship, rather than to its actual size," he replied, with a small smile.

"Then she should have said so," her ladyship asserted. Satisfied with his answer, however, she turned her eyes upon Clarissa again.

"Well, child? Do you intend to continue your account or not?"

"Certainly, Lady Catherine. The waves rose higher than a steeple, and they crashed down around us with the force of boulders."

"Boulders?" interrupted Lady Catherine. "How ridiculous!"

"I see you have acquired some literary talent since I last saw you, Sister," said Robert Darcy, with a grin. Lady Catherine sent him a quelling glance.

"Fortunately, the gale did not tear the ship apart as I expected,"

continued Clarissa, ignoring both interruptions. "In fact, the captain 27

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told me afterwards--I do wish he had thought to mention it earlier--that packet boats are made to work well under stormy conditions, as they can sail closer to the wind than other ships and can pick up good speed when the wind is strong. Or something to that effect, for he explained it at great length and I understood only half the nautical terms." She paused and looked round. Georgiana could tell that she enjoyed having an audience.

"However, the gale was not at all the most terrifying aspect of the trip. That occurred much earlier."

She paused, whether for effect or to catch her breath was not clear.

"We were assured before we left, you see, that the treaty had been ratified, or Mother would never have put us--particularly me--on a ship bound for England. We never expected to have a military encounter. So you can imagine our terror when we were fired upon by an English naval vessel, just a few days out from Boston!"

"Impossible!" muttered her ladyship, outraged. "No British naval vessel would break the treaty. Are you accusing a British naval officer of acting dishonourably?"

Clarissa flashed her a grin. "I am only recounting what occurred, Lady Catherine, and my brother will support my account."

Everyone looked towards Frederick, who nodded in confirmation.

"It turned out that they were firing a warning. We were obliged to draw up to them and allow them to come aboard to inspect our ship. I hid in a corner, convinced they would hack us to pieces, for they looked uncommonly grim and harsh in their uniforms. But then they asked us if we had ratified the treaty and the captain said yes and there were smiles and cheers all round."

"I should think so indeed," said Lady Catherine, sitting back in her chair with a relieved expression. But then she sat up straight again.

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"What can your mother have been about," she remarked suddenly, "sending you all the way to England without even a maid to accompany you?"

"My sister did have a companion--her governess, no less--a Mrs Morris," said Frederick, "but since Mrs Morris and I are to return to Boston in a short while, I have granted her permission to visit her relations in Lancashire, knowing that a maid will be appointed for Clarissa in London. I trust we will not need to appoint one here?"

Lady Catherine stared at Frederick for a long moment. "You seem very decisive for one so youthful. Exactly how old are you?"

"I am twenty-six, madam."

"I expect you are like all Americans--presumptuous, outspoken, and opinionated. A bad business this, declaring your independence from England. And how do you think you will manage without us, pray? You may depend on it, you will come to realise your folly soon enough."

A sharp gleam entered Frederick's eye. "It has been thirty-nine years since our Declaration of Independence," he remarked.

"And I believe no one has had cause to regret it so far, particularly since we have so recently been at war. We have built our own institutions..."

But Lady Catherine's attention was diverted by a message that had been brought in by a footman.

"What can be the meaning of this?"

She scanned the contents and tossed the note aside.

"I had expected to be joined by a gentleman today for dinner," said Lady Catherine. "Colonel Fitzwilliam, Darcy's cousin. He is a very eligible young man," she explained, addressing her words to Clarissa,

"and I intend to see him married to Anne or to Georgiana."

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Georgiana noted the warning to Clarissa implied in her aunt's words. Since she herself was discovering Lady Catherine's plans for the first time, she was completely taken aback. She made an unsuccessful attempt to hide her reaction.

"You may look surprised, Georgiana, but do not think I will let you go the way of your brother. What objection could you possibly have to Colonel Fitzwilliam? And who else should he marry but one of his own cousins? He may not command a fortune himself, but he is the son of an earl, and that signifies a great deal. Well, what do you have to say to that?"

Georgiana had a great deal to say to that, but she did not think any of it would be wise.

"Georgiana is to be presented in London," said Elizabeth firmly.

"I am sure there will be plenty of eligible young men there for her to meet."

"She should be presented in London, of course, and should be presented at court, though I am sure you will not be able to do so.

You must leave it to Darcy to find someone suitable. Georgiana has an old and worthy heritage, and she should be proud of it.

But that can have no bearing on the matter at hand. I have quite settled it in my mind: either Georgiana or Anne will marry Colonel Fitzwilliam," she pronounced. "I have not yet determined whether I wish him for Anne. I do not approve of young ladies marrying strangers, nor of all this newfangled business of marrying for love."

She directed a significant dark glance at Elizabeth, then at Darcy, who had not heard a word, since he was deep in discussion with Robert and Frederick. "I have always said it is far better for those who have money to keep the money within the family," she said more loudly, "for why should we benefit other families, when we can benefit our own?"

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Darcy stil paid her no attention. She was obliged to cal out to him.

"Darcy! You do not attend to my words."

"Lady Catherine?" he said, respectfully enough, but his lips had tightened.

They were all making a special effort to be polite to Lady Catherine. After Fitzwilliam's marriage to Elizabeth, she had cut them off and only the birth of a Darcy heir had enabled a reconciliation to occur. This was the first time in two years they had visited Lady Catherine and there was a marked tension in the air.

"I hope you do not plan to let Georgiana have any choice in the matter of her marriage."

"On the contrary, she will have a great deal of choice in the matter of her marriage, Aunt," he responded. "But we had better postpone this discussion to another time." He looked meaningfully towards the doorway through which Mr Collins's voice could now be heard.

Lady Catherine, who would never stoop to discussing family matters in front of the lower orders, immediately dropped the subject.

Clarissa, making the most of the Collinses' arrival, came over quickly and took a place next to Georgiana.

"I am very grateful that Lady Catherine has not included me in her plans," she whispered. "Though if I had known that we were expecting an eligible gentleman, I would have waited to show my ankle until later."

Georgiana, trying not to laugh, looked down, for she did not wish to draw the attention of Lady Catherine once more. But, as luck would have it, Lady Catherine noticed her and, misled by her downcast eyes, remarked loudly that Georgiana at least was an obedient, modest girl and thought just as she ought. She was not unbecomingly forward.

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"In any case, the colonel will not be joining us today. He has written to say he cannot, for with Napoleon running about France gathering an army, one cannot be sure of anything at this time, and none of the officers are permitted to take leave."

"I can see that you have taken my news badly, Anne," she said, looking towards her daughter and frowning. "I am sure, however, that Colonel Fitzwilliam would not have missed this family gathering if he could help it, for he is very attached to me and to Rosings and does not like to stay away."

Georgiana, try as she would, could see nothing in Anne's behaviour to reflect any disappointment. Anne looked tired and pale--precisely as she always did.

"It is, of course, all Napoleon's fault, for he is becoming quite bothersome. He has certainly inconvenienced us, for now there will be too few gentlemen and we will be obliged to change the seating arrangement at the table."

The Collinses were ushered in at that moment. They were followed by a nursemaid carrying a two-month infant--Felicity--who was promptly removed after Lady Catherine had examined her face and remarked that her looks were improving now that her face was no longer so crumpled and she did not look so cross-eyed.

Mr Collins was very gratified by the praise. He bowed low before Lady Catherine and thanked her most earnestly for noticing what must be to her ladyship a very insignificant matter. He then went on to apologise to everyone present, expressing his fear that he had kept them waiting.

"I must lay the blame at Mrs Collins's door, for at the last moment we had to wait while the nurse changed Felicity, since Charlotte was not satisfied that she was presentable. She was convinced that her clothes were wet, though I assured her they 32

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were quite dry, with the unfortunate consequence that we have now encroached upon your ladyship's infinite patience by keeping your ladyship waiting."

"Mrs Collins was quite right," replied Lady Catherine decisively.

"You could not have brought an infant into my presence in wet clothes. Of course, if you had been truly late, it would have been altogether better to leave the child behind."

Mr Collins expressed his regrets once again and promised that, should such a deplorable event occur another time, he would keep her ladyship's advice in mind.

Lady Catherine now rose, a signal that they would be going into dinner, and, as they gathered to form a line, her imposing voice could be heard correcting everyone in matters of precedence.

"We do not have enough gentlemen," she said. "If I had known the colonel was not coming, I would have invited Mr Gatley to dine with us. He would have evened out the numbers and is the only gentleman in the neighbourhood worthy of being invited to dinner at Rosings. We would still have been short, but that would hardly matter to the younger ladies, since they are not yet fully out. They will have to be content with sitting next to each other."

Georgiana was delighted at the opportunity.

As they were taking their seats, Lady Catherine turned to Georgiana and addressed her from the top of the table.

"Perhaps now you will realise what your fate will be as an old maid--perhaps now at least you will regret Colonel Fitzwilliam's absence. You are forced to sit at the bottom of the table and must enter without an escort."

Georgiana made a valiant attempt to keep a straight face, but Clarissa next to her fumbled for a napkin.

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Fortunately, the first course was brought in and Lady Catherine did not see her as she collapsed into a fit of giggles.

But when the fit passed, Georgiana was struck by a certain realisation. She might not take Lady Catherine seriously, but she served as a reminder of the change in her status now. For the first time, she considered the implications of Lady Catherine's speech.

She was now old enough to be married. Lady Catherine's words were just the beginning of the pressure that society would bring to bear upon her to choose a husband, and choose quickly. The carefree time of being left to her own devices had gone forever.

Whether the gentleman in question was Colonel Fitzwilliam, Mr Gatley, or anyone else she had not yet met, she would before long have to start making decisions. Within a few short months, her future would be determined.

It was a terrifying prospect.

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Chapter 4

We must endeavour to kidnap Miss de Bourgh,"

announced Clarissa several days later as the three younger Darcy cousins were walking together in the tree-lined grove in Rosings Park. "We have to take her away from here. We cannot allow her to languish like this. I am certain Lady Catherine locks her in a tower when no one is around and forces her to drink some strange herbs that stop her from running away or talking to anyone.

Nothing else would account for her condition."

"Something villainous is most certainly afoot," replied Frederick with mock gravity. "Lady Catherine must be in desperate need of her daughter's fortune, having gambled all her husband's money away. I am convinced she is poisoning Miss de Bourgh, slowly but steadily. Would you not agree, Miss Darcy?"

Georgiana laughed. "I cannot imagine my aunt gambling a fortune away, however fond she may be of card games, but I am willing to entertain any idea you put forward as possible."