Chapter Fifty-Eight

W ith Georgiana on her way to Netherfield with her new husband, Mr. Darcy and Richard were free to journey to Chestnut Creek. "My wedding is the twelfth of January, cousin," Richard reminded Mr. Darcy as soon as the carriage was in motion. We must be back in Meryton in plenty of time. I do not want Jane to worry."

"And I have my own reasons for wanting to go to Meryton as soon as may be," Mr. Darcy returned. He had not given up on Miss Elizabeth; he was more determined than ever to win her hand.

"Say, will Bingley let us stay at Netherfield? That inn in Meryton is none too clean or comfortable."

"Bingley is now my brother and your cousin; I think there will be no difficulty in us staying at Netherfield. And it will be an enjoyable experience, I trust, as Miss Bingley will not be in residence."

The two men chuckled together.

With no ladies traveling with them, they did not need to stop often, and so made the journey in just two days. Mr. Darcy knew, of course, exactly where Chestnut Creek was located, so the map he had drawn for Richard was not needed. The carriage pulled up in front of a large, handsome two-story house.

Climbing out of the carriage, Mr. Darcy led the way. "The house is about a century old," he began. "When the Darcys acquired it, the roof was leaking and the furniture was rotting from the damp. The roof has since been repaired and the plasterwork redone, but there is not a good deal of furniture."

He knocked on the door and greeted the housekeeper when it was opened. "Ah, Mrs. McGraw. You are well, I trust?"

"I am, sir, and I thank you. We received your message and all is in readiness for the Colonel. I can have refreshments brought at once."

"I will give your new master a tour first; perhaps in an hour, Mrs. McGraw?"

"Of course, sir."

"Come, Richard."

The Colonel was not in the habit of finding himself overwhelmed by circumstances – fighting the French tended to teach a man to keep his head if he wanted to survive – but his unexpected acquisition of such a handsome property had stilled his tongue. He said not a word as Mr. Darcy walked him through the house, pointing out the drawing room, the study, the dining room, the breakfast room, the kitchen, the larder, the cellar, the servants' quarters, the guest rooms, and finally the quarters assigned to the master and mistress of the house.

"Every room has a fireplace, of course; you will recall how cold the winters are here in Derbyshire."

Richard nodded.

"I have had Mrs. McGraw change the feathers in the mattresses in the master and mistress suite. The other mattresses will also need changing at some point, but that did not seem as important."

Richard nodded again.

"There is but a skeleton staff here; you will need more servants. I considered hiring them myself, but thought Miss Bennet would want to take on that task, as they will answer to her, not to me. I believe all the Bennet ladies share a maid, so she will need to hire one of her own. Mrs. McGraw can assist her in hiring servants, as she knows everyone in these parts." Mr. Darcy turned around and peered at his cousin. "Are you quite well, Richard? You look rather – well, alarmed."

"I had no idea." Richard spread his arms out.

"I do not understand you,"

"I thought this would just be a simple farmhouse."

"This is a simple farmhouse."

"Well, I suppose next to Pemberley pretty much anything is a simple farmhouse."

Mr. Darcy chuckled. "That is likely the case, yes. Richard, truly, I just want you to be happy here. Knowing that you will not be fighting any longer – well, I would be willing to part with a good deal more than a small satellite estate to keep you safe. Come now, Mrs. McGraw will think we have forgotten her."

The two made their way back to the drawing room just as a large tray with sandwiches, small cakes and tea was being placed upon a table.

"Will you be needing anything else, Mr. Darcy? Oh, I beg your pardon, Colonel; I should be addressing you now!" The housekeeper's red face testified to her distress.

The Colonel laughed. "I can scarce credit it myself, Mrs. McGraw; I beg you to think no more of it."

As refreshments were consumed, Mr. Darcy suggested that the Colonel and Miss Bennet might want to raid Pemberley's attics for additional furnishings. "Heavens only knows what is up there," he mused. "But likely you could furnish several houses with the contents."

"I do not imagine even heaven knows, but most likely Mrs. Reynolds does," the Colonel replied. "I will, of course, leave such decisions up to Miss Bennet."

"Doubtless a wise course of action."

Mr. Darcy suggested that they spend the next few hours introducing the Colonel to Chestnut Creek's tenants in the company of the steward, Mr. Frobisher. "He is a good man and gets on well with the tenants, but you will want to learn all that you can so that you are able to weigh in on estate decisions. It is never a good idea to leave everything in the hands of the steward."

The Colonel agreed, and then asked, "How far are we from Pemberley?"

"Pemberley is a two-hour ride from here, due north. Would you prefer that we spend the night here at Chestnut Creek or ride on to Pemberley?"

"If it is all the same to you, cousin, I would like to stay here." My own estate! The Colonel could scarce believe it.