| |
––––––––
“I know who he is!” Mr Collins burst out. “It is the highwayman! The one who goes by the name of Wicked George! He attempted to rob us the other day when we were walking into Meryton. Did he mean you harm, Cousin Elizabeth?”
Elizabeth hesitated. The wisest course of action was to encourage Mr Collins’s assumptions. If she decried Wickham as a violent criminal, bent on violating her honour, she would escape all censure and instead attract sympathy for her plight.
But she could not do it.
To accuse Wickham of such malice seemed the height of indecency when he had been all that was amiable and charming to her. Could she repay his kindness by condemning him so?
“No,” she said at last. “You are mistaken, sir. Indeed, he was most kind and assisted me in reaching Lucas Lodge.”
“Assisted you?” said Charlotte, her eyes widening in surprise.
“Yes, I had fallen in the woods and twisted my ankle. I was unable to stand or walk, and would have lain there helpless, had he not come to my aid.”
“Unable to stand... Eliza, do you mean that he carried you?” asked Charlotte with a scandalised look.
Elizabeth bit her lip in vexation. She had not wanted to reveal the full details of their encounter, and yet somehow she had divulged the wrong points already.
“It was unavoidable,” she protested. “Though I submitted most reluctantly, it was the only way he could remove me from the woods and bring me to the proximity of Lucas Lodge.”
“You permitted the highwayman to carry you?” said Mr Collins in tones of shocked horror. His face was set in lines of deep disapproval. “Have you no sense of propriety, Cousin Elizabeth?” he demanded.
Elizabeth felt her temper rising. “I have explained already—it was an unavoidable situation. Had I any other choice, I would not have followed such an action. Should I have considered the alternative of passing the night in the woods?” she snapped.
“I’m sure you were greatly put upon,” said Charlotte soothingly. “And I am sure Mr Collins did not mean to chastise you.”
Mr Collins did not look as if he agreed, but Elizabeth was relieved that he refrained from further questioning while she was helped into the house and settled in the drawing room of Lucas Lodge. Charlotte rang for a maid who brought a basin of cool water to bathe her injured ankle. Elizabeth leaned back against the cushions and eased her foot into the bowl, sighing as the coolness of the water brought some temporary relief from the pain. The maid had also brought some fresh linen strips, and once her foot had been soaking for several minutes and the swelling had gone down slightly, Elizabeth was able to dry it and bind it tightly. She then took Charlotte’s suggestion of moving to a reclining position on one of the sofas, propping her foot up on a nearby footstool to reduce the pressure on the injury.
With her feet now covered and her modesty restored, Mr Collins returned to the room and explained how he had come to be at Lucas Lodge. It appeared that he had received Kitty’s message of Elizabeth’s intention to visit Charlotte Lucas and had come hither directly in the hopes of intercepting her. He had been overwhelmed by Miss Lucas’s kindness in receiving him and making him comfortable while they awaited Elizabeth’s arrival. When the latter did not appear within the expected time, they began to feel concern for her safety and had gone outside to search for any sign of her approach. They had just been discussing the wisdom of sending a search party out to look for her when they had been startled by her re-appearance, and particularly by the sight of her companion.
Mr Collins now returned to this point. “Cousin Elizabeth, I am deeply disappointed in you. To not only fraternise with a member of the criminal class but to also allow him to lay his hands upon your person! This behaviour is most unbecoming. I shudder to think of what my honourable patroness, Lady Catherine, would think of such an adventure. A lady in her position and with her noble breeding insists on the highest standards of conduct and, as a humble recipient of her generosity, I must adhere to the same strict requirements. I cannot find it excusable in any circumstances. Indeed, I should be mortified were such behaviour to be present in my future wife!”
“Perhaps... you would like to join my father in the library, Mr Collins?” said Charlotte hastily as she saw the ire in Elizabeth’s countenance. “I shall remain here to see to your cousin’s comfort while we await the carriage to be readied to take you both back to Longbourn.”
Mr Collins bowed stiffly and quit the room. Elizabeth was glad to see him leave. She cared not for his good opinion and was not distressed by his pompous disapproval. If he felt her behaviour unbecoming of a parson’s wife, perhaps he might desist in his pursuit of her hand! With these happy musings, she was able to regain her good temper and answer the rest of Charlotte’s questions with tolerable calm.
She told her friend as much as she dared, though she withheld some details of her conversation with Wickham. She had no wish to share the full extent of their friendly intimacy. Indeed, she did not understand, herself, the nature of her relationship with the highwayman. To call the two of them friends seemed ridiculous, and yet it seemed that it was what they were. She had enjoyed herself in his company and found his conversation stimulating. She thought with anger again of Darcy’s interference in Wickham’s life. Were it not for Darcy’s actions, she could have met Wickham in a respectable social setting and enjoyed the charms of his company without fear of recrimination!
The carriage arrived at last to bear them back to Longbourn and Mr Collins sat stiffly, his expression heavy with disapproval, the entire journey. Elizabeth was glad of his silence and did not mind his disdain. When they arrived back at the Bennet abode, they found Mr and Mrs Bennet away for the afternoon, but the other sisters greeted them with great wonder at the morning’s adventure. Jane was all concern for Elizabeth’s well-being and hurried to make her comfortable in the morning parlour, bringing fresh water and bandages to re-bind her foot. During her sister’s gentle ministrations, Elizabeth—determined not to keep any more secrets from Jane—told her the full story, including Wickham’s account of the abuse he had suffered at the hands of Mr Darcy.
“But my dear Lizzy!” said Jane, her eyes round. “Can it be true? It is impossible to think that Mr Darcy could behave so abominably, to treat his father’s favourite in such a manner.”
“It is equally impossible to think that Wickham should fabricate such an account,” Elizabeth retorted.
Jane shook her head. “But Lizzy... how can you accept Wickham’s account so readily? You have spent much time in Mr Darcy’s company during our stay at Netherfield Park. Have you not seen enough to determine his character in your own mind? Indeed, for my part, I am inclined to think him an honourable man and one unlikely to behave in such a manner.”
“I do not know what to think,” Elizabeth admitted. “Mr Darcy is a man of such contradiction. It is difficult to understand his character. Wickham himself had advised me that Mr Darcy could change his behaviour on a whim, and behave differently to those around him as it pleased him. We may have only seen his respectable side because we are fortunate to be amongst the accepted society. Indeed, his friend’s partiality for you may play a large role in his civility towards us and our family.”
Jane blushed slightly at the reference to Bingley’s affection for her. “Nay, Lizzy, but what about his treatment of Tilly the maid—have you forgotten that? Was that not the action of a man of honour and decency? If he were to treat those of lesser birth and position contemptuously—as Wickham claims—then would he not have treated her with equal apathy?”
Elizabeth shrugged. “Perhaps he has some other reason that we are not aware of. It may not have been a charitable cause which motivated his actions.”
“It seems to me that you are very quick to condemn and think the worst of Mr Darcy,” said Jane, looking at her curiously. “I own, he does not have Wickham’s charming manners, but that does not make him a less decent man.”
Elizabeth flushed. “Jane, I—”
A sudden noise behind the folding screen made them both turn their heads and Elizabeth realised with chagrin that Kitty and Lydia were concealed behind its shape.
“Kitty! Lydia! What are you doing there?” she asked sharply. The two youngest Bennet girls came out from their hiding place, their expressions slightly ashamed.
“We had to take the opportunity to eavesdrop for the two of you are always sharing secrets and never making us part of it!” said Lydia with a pout. Then she recovered her good spirits and turned eagerly to Elizabeth. “Is it true, Lizzy? That story you told? What an infamous way for Mr Darcy to behave towards poor Wickham! It is abominable that Mr Darcy should go unpunished. He ought to be publicly disgraced for his actions!”
“Lydia, we do not know the full particulars of that story nor the veracity of its information,” cautioned Jane.
“What further proof do we need?” demanded Lydia. “Is not the fact that poor Wickham has been reduced to the plight of a highwayman proof enough?”
“That is not sound,” said Jane. She looked at Elizabeth for support. “Surely you agree, Lizzy, that there may be some doubt in the truth of Wickham’s story?”
“Well, I...” Elizabeth hesitated.
“No she does not!” said Lydia passionately. “There can be no doubt! Mr Darcy has used Wickham cruelly and should be condemned for his abuse! Were it not for him, Wickham could take his rightful place in society, instead of being forced into a life of crime. It is imperative that everyone should know of his suffering!”
“Lydia...” said Jane in a firmer tone. “You must not think of sharing this information with anyone else! It must not go outside this room.”
“Well!” Lydia flounced over to the other side of the room and threw herself into a chair. Her eyes flashed and her mouth set in a sulky line.
Elizabeth looked at her with concern. While she was not sure if she believed Wickham’s story, she agreed with Jane that public slander of Mr Darcy without proof of his guilt was unacceptable. She hoped that Lydia would heed their eldest sister’s warning. There was a rebellious streak in the youngest Bennet girl which—combined with her natural self-consequence and high spirits—boded ill for the quiet resolution of this situation.
