Mr. Darcy's Daughter (31 page)

Dr
Gardiner would want to speak with him, they supposed, and both agreed that it
was best to keep their engagement a secret until then, out of courtesy to her
parents. It would not be fair, Lizzie said, to have everyone else knowing and
talking about it until her parents had given them their blessing.

That
they would, she had not a shadow of a doubt.

Mr.
Carr had some business in London, which needed urgent attention, he said, and
assured her he would return very soon. A fond and reluctant leave-taking
ensued, each promising the other what couples in such situations usually promise.
"It is, after all, only for a very few days, my darling; I shall be back
with you within three days," he promised and she agreed, although in her
heart, she wished he would not go at all.

Neither
anticipated a change in the weather, which delayed Mr. Carr's return from
London by several days, so that when he arrived to dine with the family on
Boxing Day, the all-important letter had not, as yet, been written.

Indeed,
between dinner and coffee and the opening of gifts, there was hardly any time
to explain and poor Lizzie wondered, at the end of the day, how much longer she
could keep her precious secret.

Finally,
on New Year's Eve, the deed was duly done. Every year, family and friends of
the Darcys would gather at Pemberley on New Year's Eve. This year was no
different, though the Tates and Julian's family were sadly missed. There was,
however, the good news of Josie's recovery, for which they could all be
grateful. Mr. Carr, now regarded as a good neighbour and a friend of the
family, had been invited, too, to the delight of Lizzie and the obvious
pleasure of her brother Darcy, in whom his friend had already confided.

Calling
at the Gardiners' place en route to Pemberley, Mr. Carr had handed the vital
letter, which he had taken all afternoon to compose, to Dr Gardiner, who, being
rather busy at the time or perhaps distracted by other concerns, chose not to
open it immediately. Instead, he placed it prominently upon his desk, proposing
to open it on the morrow. Lizzie, visiting her father's study, had noticed it
sitting unopened on his desk; which fact she conveyed to Mr. Carr in a
whispered remark, as they went in to supper at Pemberley.

The
Pemberley supper parties were justly famous for the excellence of the food and
wine and the generous hospitality of the hosts. This year, in spite of the
somewhat dreary prognostications for the general state of business in the
country, the estate and related enterprises had done well and the New Year's
celebrations were proof of this. Never ostentatious, the Darcys had a
well-earned reputation for sharing their prosperity with the community in which
they lived.

On
this day, Mr. Darcy announced the extension of the Pemberley Parish School
buildings, so they could accommodate older pupils from the area. In an
arrangement with his friend and neighbour Sir Thomas Camden, land and funds
were to be made available from both estates and the building named after Lady
Mary Camden, who had died earlier that year.

The
school was to be administered by Miss Jessica Courtney, daughter of the Darcys'
dear friend and cousin Emily. Jessica, like her parents, had devoted much time
to the education and care of the children of the district. Both Mr. and Mrs.
Darcy held her in very high regard, upon which subject, Mr. Darcy expanded in
his speech.

While
the speech held the attention of most of the party, Lizzie, who was seated to
one side of the room, away from the general company, took the opportunity to
ask Mr. Carr an unrelated question.

"Why
do you suppose Papa did not open your letter? Is it likely that he has
correctly guessed what it contains?" to which he replied, "Now, if I
were the father of a charming young daughter approaching her twentieth year and
a gentleman handed me such a letter, I think I might have guessed what its
contents might be and hastened to open it. But I cannot speak for your father,
my dear Lizzie. Is it possible he thinks that you are still too young to be
spoken for? In which case, he probably believes my letter pertains to matters
of sewerage and sanitation in the tenants' cottages, of which he and I have
spoken on another occasion."

He
was teasing her, and Lizzie knew it.

Still
adamant that it was neither of these things, she caught her brother Darcy's
attention and called him over to join them, as the musicians were preparing to
play the fanfare that always heralded the fireworks on the terrace.

"Let
us see if my brother has a better notion," she said and together the three
of them moved towards an alcove that afforded them an excellent view of the
fireworks, while maintaining considerable privacy from the rest of the company.

Darcy
Gardiner was of a mind to tease them both, since he was the only person in the
room with the advantage of knowledge obtained from his friend as well as his sister.
It placed him in a unique position.

Consequently,
he entertained himself and the couple with a series of propositions that
canvassed several improbable possibilities. "It could be any one of many
reasons," he declared. "I understand a plague of mice has been
troubling some of the farmers in the dales; several children have been bitten,
it is a serious matter, and my father may well have thought the letter
concerned a mouse problem at Rushmore.

"Or
perhaps, he thinks the letter contains a request for a medical opinion and, as
you well know, Lizzie, Papa treats such matters in confidence and probably will
not open the letter until he can take it into the privacy of his rooms at the
hospital."

This
was all too much for Lizzie who put on a show of being exceedingly vexed with
her brother and his friend, which immediately brought Mr. Carr to tender an
abject apology and reprimand Darcy for teasing her.

While
all this harmless fun was going on and the rest of the party were moving to
take tea or coffee, the three participants were unaware that they were being
observed, quite closely, though not in any censorious fashion, by Mrs. Darcy
and her sister Mrs. Bingley. While they could not hear what was being said, it
was plain to Jane and Elizabeth that the three enjoyed a close and friendly
relationship. Their obvious rapport and affectionate raillery was a clear sign
to the two ladies, who had much experience in observing and picking out the
true lovers from the flirts, that there was more to this group than met the
unpracticed eye.

As
they observed, with some amusement, it was plain all three shared some
information, of which the rest of the company was, as yet, ignorant. Whatever
Dr Gardiner and his wife may or may not have noticed about the situation, to
Elizabeth and Jane, it was quite plain that Mr. Carr was in love with Lizzie
Gardiner and that she probably returned his affection. As for her brother, they
were in no doubt at all that he was in the confidence of both parties.

Supper
over, Cassandra joined her mother and aunt, hoping for some quiet conversation.
To her surprise, she found herself being quizzed about her daughter.

"And
when do you expect that your little Lizzie will be engaged?" asked her
mother, to which Cassy's astonished response was, "My Lizzie engaged? Not
very soon, I do not think, Mama. She is not yet twenty and does not appear to
be in any hurry to be married."

Her
Aunt Jane then asked if there was no particular gentleman in whom Lizzie had
shown an interest.

Cassy
shook her head. "No, Aunt Jane, not above any of the others. There have
been one or two of Darcy's friends who seemed interested, but Lizzie would have
none of it. Of course, there was a time, some years ago, when we were in
London, and it looked as if Charles Bingley may have taken her fancy, but no
one seriously believed it would come to anything. She was not quite fifteen! My
Lizzie is very sensible, you know, Aunt; she will not give her heart easily to
any man," she said, quite decisively.

Elizabeth,
growing a little impatient with her daughter's apparent complacency, said
rather sharply, "Not any man, certainly, but Mr. Carr looks to be a very
likely candidate. Cassy, my love, where have you been? Have you not noticed
that Lizzie and Mr. Carr are plainly in love?" she asked.

Cassandra
was incredulous. "Mama! You cannot be serious; Lizzie and Mr. Carr?"

"Indeed
and I am absolutely serious, Cassy. Unless I am very much mistaken, Mr. Carr
seems to be quite serious, too. Your aunt and I have been observing them all
evening, not that there is any lack of decorum on their part or any silliness,
certainly not; but there is between them a certain closeness, almost an
intimacy, that is unmistakable. My dear Cassy, I will wager anything you care
to name that your daughter is either already secretly engaged to Mr. Carr or
very soon will be, and your Aunt Jane agrees with me."

Her
sister nodded, smiling as she said, "If you do not trust our observation,
I suggest you ask her brother Darcy about his friend's intentions. I am sure he
knows more about it than all the rest of us put together."

Their
words were lightly spoken, but Cassandra was both amazed and disconcerted by
them. It was a possibility she had not contemplated since the earliest weeks of
their acquaintance with their new friend and neighbour. Mr. Carr had proved
helpful, good neighbourly, and generous with his time, especially in the last
few months. But she had long since ceased to regard him as a possible suitor
for her daughter. He was much older than Lizzie. She had heard Darcy mention
that his friend was thirty, and he was an American. Cassy knew few other
Americans, but it was generally believed, especially in London society, that
Americans, both men and women, were mostly in England to do business, acquire
valuable properties and, if possible, spouses who were wealthy and titled.

Young
Lizzie was neither.

Cassy
was confused. If her mother and aunt were right, then she must have been
completely deceived--not deliberately, but as a consequence of her own
inability to see what was right before her eyes. Determined, however, not to
leap to conclusions, she decided to leave well alone, until they were back at
home. She would speak to Richard first and acquaint him with the observations
of her mother and aunt and, perhaps then, their son Darcy may be applied to for
information on his friend's intentions, she thought. For the moment, she was
not going to be stampeded into upsetting Lizzie or anyone else by asking
awkward questions.

With
her mother and aunt, she changed the subject, with characteristic equanimity,
telling them of a letter she had received from her brother, which she had
brought with her to share with them.

Cassandra
knew well, it was one certain way of distracting her mother from any further
speculation about Lizzie and Mr. Carr.

Julian
wrote hopefully:

I
know, my dear Cassy, that you will be happy to hear that Josie is so muchbetter
now. When I proposed that she should come with me to Italy in theSpring, she
agreed readily. I am convinced the warmer climate will
improve her chances
of recovery, even though I have to say to you, with aheavy heart, that the
doctors have warned me not to expect too much. I amso grateful to have her
back, nothing else matters.

My
dear sister, I have to thank you and Richard for all you have donefor Josie.
Yet, I must now ask a further favour of you--that you haveAnthony to stay with
you, whilst I take Josie to Italy in the New Year.

When
Josie has recovered her strength and we return to England, I hope toask Mama to
let us stay a while at her farm in Sussex. I used to enjoy itimmensely, when I
was a boy, and I know the freshness of the country airwill benefit Josie very
much and help restore her to health.

I
do not believe she wishes to return to the house in Cambridge.

I
myself have had some reservations about continuing to work there...

So
pleased had Cassandra been to receive this letter, she told her mother and aunt
she had written immediately, to assure her brother that looking after Anthony
would be a matter of no consequence. "He is not a difficult child and is
good company for our James; they are almost like brothers, so I have written to
say they should not trouble themselves at all on that score," she said.

Her
mother and aunt were not surprised. Jane and Elizabeth knew that Cassy's
selfless love of her brother and his family would have prevailed over any
reservations she may have had on the matter. Elizabeth remarked upon Josie's
extraordinary recovery, whilst Jane hoped that the miracle that had restored
Josie to her family would also help in her recovery. Neither had fully
comprehended either the virulence of her disease or the strange path it had
hitherto taken. Dr Gardiner had not deemed it necessary or wise to trouble them
with the details, with which he was only too familiar.

That
night, returning home after the party at Pemberley, Lizzie Gardiner, unaware of
the confusion that had invaded her mother's mind, went to bed with her head and
heart filled with the exquisite happiness that comes only with the certainty of
being deeply and devotedly loved.

It
eclipsed all other concerns in her mind.