Chapter 10

D inner at Netherfield was an awkward affair. A table gathering Mr Bingley and his sisters, Mr Hurst, Miss Darcy and her companion, and all five Bennet sisters was inconceivable.

Miss Bingley and Mrs Hurst exchanged appalled glares and only addressed Miss Darcy and occasionally Jane, disregarding the others almost entirely. Mr Bingley was equally attentive to Jane at Netherfield as he was at Longbourn, and as amiable as ever with everyone else.

Elizabeth watched the scene with amusement. She and Jane were sharing the same room as last time; Lydia, Kitty, and Mary were all in a guest apartment with two bedchambers, and all three were overjoyed by the circumstances.

Miss Darcy and Mrs Annesley were offered rooms in a separate guest wing, on the same hall as Mr Darcy. Despite the Bingley sisters’ efforts to flatter her, Miss Darcy remained timid and restrained.

“Will someone tell me exactly what sort of accident Mr Darcy suffered?” Miss Bingley asked. “Louisa and I have been in continuous distress since we heard, especially since we are not allowed to see him.”

“I told you, Caroline. He hit his head and fell from his horse. He was fortunate to be found by Mrs Bennet and her daughters. You cannot see him because he is not allowed to receive visitors.”

“It is unfortunate he rode so far from Netherfield,” Miss Bingley said. “Why would he remain at Longbourn when we have better accommodation and he would be more comfortable here?”

“Dr Bates said my brother cannot leave his bed yet,” Miss Darcy replied. “He is perfectly comfortable at Longbourn and is well taken care of. The Bennet family has been exceedingly kind to him.”

“Of course they have. Who would not be?” Mrs Hurst said. “But poor Mr Darcy is accustomed to greater comforts.”

Elizabeth was already tired, and bearing the sisters’ rudeness was too much.

“Mr Darcy feels very comfortable,” she said. “I know without doubt because I spoke to him privately a couple of times. He feared he might be disturbing us, which is very considerate of him, but we hope he will not leave Longbourn until it is completely safe for him.”

“True,” Mr Bingley said. “And since you are all staying at Netherfield, there should be room for everyone.” His answer caused another exchange of glares between his sisters.

“Miss Eliza, how did you speak to Mr Darcy privately since Charles said he is not allowed to receive visitors?” Miss Bingley enquired.

“Mr Darcy requested to speak to me,” Elizabeth replied boldly, silencing the lady.

“Charles, I cannot possibly imagine why you have not cancelled the ball,” Mrs Hurst said a while later. “I opposed it from the beginning, and so did Mr Darcy. And now he is hurt, yet you still wish to entertain?”

“Mr Bingley promised to have the ball!” Lydia interjected loudly.

“Well, Miss Lydia — that is your name, is it not? Charles promised because he cannot refuse anything. But responsible people know when promises should be kept. Speaking of responsibility, are you not too young to attend balls?”

Jane and Miss Darcy looked dismayed, Mr Bingley looked uneasy, and Lydia became red-faced. Elizabeth’s vexation had reached its limit, and she replied, “We appreciate your concern, Miss Bingley, in regard to Lydia’s age.”

“Which is truly not for you to judge, Caroline,” Mr Bingley interjected. “And yes, we shall have the ball tomorrow. Darcy approved of it.”

After dinner, the party separated. Miss Bingley and Mrs Hurst withdrew immediately; Mr Bingley offered to take the ladies on a tour of the house, so another hour passed with the activity.

Afterwards, Lydia and Kitty declared they were tired, Mary took a book from the library and was happy to peruse it, and Miss Darcy and Mrs Annesley were ready to withdraw to their rooms too.

“Mr Bingley, if you do not mind, I would like to go and see my brother in the morning.”

“Of course, Miss Darcy. We shall go immediately after breakfast.”

“I do not think I have the patience to wait so long. May I go earlier, if it is not too much trouble? Do you think Mr and Mrs Bennet would mind?”

“Miss Darcy, I shall go with you in the morning,” Elizabeth offered. “You may see your brother, and we shall have breakfast with my parents. And Mr Bingley will bring my sisters later.”

Mr Bingley looked at Jane, who blushed slightly. He seemed to hesitate briefly, then he nodded.

“I shall ask for the carriage to be ready early tomorrow. Once it delivers you to Longbourn, it will return for us.”

“Thank you. And thank you, Miss Elizabeth, for going to so much trouble for us.”

“It is absolutely no trouble, I promise. I generally wake up before all my sisters and take a walk before breakfast. So the timing is perfect.”

With that, Miss Darcy and her companion left; Elizabeth remained with Mr Bingley and Jane.

“Miss Elizabeth,” Bingley uttered, “I have a request to make of you regarding tomorrow morning.”

“Of course, sir.”

“Please avoid stopping on your journey from Netherfield to Longbourn. Especially… I know he is a friend of your family’s, but Darcy insisted on protecting his sister from any encounter with Mr Wickham.”

Surprised and puzzled, Elizabeth needed to glance at Jane and take a deep breath before she replied.

“I have no intention of meeting anyone, nor making any stop. We shall go home directly. And I would not really call Mr Wickham a friend — more of a new acquaintance whose company is agreeable at times.”

“Thank you.”

“Mr Bingley, do you believe Miss Darcy is in danger from Mr Wickham?” Jane enquired.

“No…not in danger…but I understand he has been disrespectful and disloyal, and Miss Darcy would be distressed were she to see him.”

“Oh…I am sorry to hear that…”

“You must not worry, Mr Bingley. I shall protect Miss Darcy from any inconvenience. As for Mr Wickham, I suspect he is not eager to encounter me either. When I do see him, I have a thing or two to say to him.”

“Mr Wickham might be at the ball,” Jane added timidly.

“He might. Darcy said there is no point in me revoking his invitation. Neither he nor Miss Darcy will be there in any case.”

“Mr Bingley, you said earlier that Mr Darcy’s horse returned here after the accident and that he too was injured,” Elizabeth suddenly said.

“Yes, he returned that very evening. He has a slight wound on his back right leg, like a deep, long scratch. It looks rather nasty, but his movement does not seem to be affected. My grooms are taking care of it.”

“That is very interesting. The horse has a wound on its right back leg, and Mr Darcy has a wound on his right temple. What are the chances?” Elizabeth whispered.

“Indeed, it is very strange and suspicious. I shall speak to Darcy tomorrow.”

“I believe you should. Now please excuse me. Would you mind if I looked for a book in the library?”

“No, not at all. Please do as you wish, Miss Elizabeth.”

Elizabeth left, allowing the two a little bit of privacy — something she needed too. The new information increased the mystery and the disturbance around the accident. If she had harboured any doubt about where the truth lay between Mr Wickham and Mr Darcy, it was all gone now; Mr Darcy would not request his friend protect his sister from Mr Wickham if the danger was not real.

As horrible as the realisation was, Mr Wickham’s presence at the accident and his abrupt departure seemed more sinister than mere coincidence.

When Elizabeth returned to the drawing room, she found Jane and Mr Bingley both flushed, wearing large smiles on their handsome faces. Elizabeth smiled too; apparently, Jane was no longer concerned about Mr Bingley’s friendship with Miss Darcy.

Soon afterwards, they all withdrew to their chambers. Unlike the previous night, Elizabeth fell asleep rather quickly and rested reasonably well.

∞∞∞

The next day began as planned. Elizabeth and Miss Darcy arrived at Longbourn before breakfast. Dr Bates and Mr Darcy were awake, and the reports were more upsetting than expected. Mr Darcy had suffered a high fever overnight, and he was troubled by a gripping inner pain. Miss Darcy went in to see him, and Elizabeth spoke to Dr Bates over a cup of coffee.

“Surely there is no reason for concern about Mr Darcy’s recovery, is there?” she enquired. “I mean — despite the troublesome night.”

“Hopefully not. He is young, healthy, and strong. However, we know so little of medicine, especially for wounds to the head, that we can provide little real help. Prayers could be beneficial too.”

“Dr Bates, something has been bothering me. The scratch on Mr Darcy’s temple… Mr Jones could not be sure what it was. And Mr Bingley said there was a similar scratch — only deeper and longer — on his horse’s back leg. Also on the right side.”

“Was there?” the doctor repeated, then frowned, obviously concerned.

“Could it be a mere coincidence?”

“Hardly, Miss Elizabeth.”

“Do you know what it could be?”

“Yes. I already told Mr Darcy, but he requested I not mention it to his sister. He fears she is too scared already.”

“Oh…of course. Then I shall not insist.”

“You seem to be a clever, perceptive young woman, Miss Elizabeth. Last night, I spent a little time talking to Mr Darcy and your father. They both spoke highly of you.”

“Did they?” Elizabeth repeated, feeling her cheeks burning. “Are you sure they were not jesting?”

“Quite sure. Are you also able to keep a secret, Miss Elizabeth?”

“A secret? Of course…”

“The wound on Mr Darcy’s temple — I suspect it was a bullet that missed its target. I shall go to Netherfield and examine the horse to confirm my suspicions.”

Elizabeth held her breath while she stared at the doctor.

“A bullet? From a pistol?” she whispered. “So somebody deliberately hurt Mr Darcy?”

“That is what I suspect. I have discussed it with only Mr Darcy and your father. Neither of them requested I keep the secret from you, so I hope I have not been indiscreet.”

“Certainly not… Thank you for trusting me, sir. You may depend on my secrecy.”

Elizabeth could barely speak because of the sudden lump in her throat. Her worst fear was slowly turning into reality, and the burden of self-reproach pressed on her chest more and more heavily.

“Lizzy? Are you already here? What happened?”

Dumbfounded, Elizabeth turned to see her father.

“Nothing, Papa. Miss Darcy wished to see her brother, and since everybody else was still sleeping, I came with her.”

“Good. Lately, I have developed the bad habit of assuming the worst.”

“I shall go to Mr Darcy now,” Dr Bates said, while Mr Bennet asked for a cup of coffee.

“You look quite ill, Lizzy. Are you tired?”

“No, Papa. In fact, I slept quite well. Papa, Dr Bates told me…about the bullet…”

“Did he?”

“Yes…I began the conversation because I found out that Mr Darcy’s horse had a similar wound to the one on his master’s temple. And on the same side. Mr Bingley told me last night.”

“Does it? This is a vital piece of evidence, Lizzy. Now, I trust you know how important it is to keep that information from everyone else. Mr Darcy requested complete secrecy.”

“But…Papa, was it Mr Wickham?”

“Very likely. Mr Darcy mentioned to me — in the presence of Dr Bates, who was no stranger to the story — that this Wickham fellow received several important sums of money in exchange for that living he insisted was denied him. That he declared he had no interest in the church and wished to pursue another careers. Only after he had spent all the money on cards and other depravities, and that living became vacant, did he return and demand it. Mr Darcy’s refusal angered the scoundrel — hence all his lies that you and many others readily believed.”

Elizabeth felt a cold grip in her stomach. “Dr Bates was aware of this tale?”

“He seemed to be since he showed no surprise. And he did mention several illegitimate children Wickham fathered with young girls in Derbyshire.”

“Oh, dear Lord!” Elizabeth whispered, fighting a sudden weakness and dizziness. “This is horrible… Outrageous… He must be immediately exposed.”

“Apparently, Mr Darcy revealed the truth to Colonel Forster, and the colonel dismissed it, stating that is how most men — at least army men — behave. Therefore, Mr Darcy wished to wait until he felt better, gather some evidence, then act accordingly.”

“Papa, I am shocked! I feel so ashamed of myself… How could I have been such a fool to trust such a man?”

“Well, if it is any consolation, I heard the scoundrel has deceived many others. Others who are older, more experienced, and more educated than you, Lizzy.”

Elizabeth sipped from her cup, trying to compose herself, while her father gulped some coffee.

“Papa, may I ask how it happened that you and Mr Darcy are on such friendly terms? That he trusts you with his secrets when the two of you are barely acquainted?”

“My dear, I was a little puzzled too since Mr Darcy is such a private man. On careful consideration, though, he did not reveal any secrets to me. Apparently, everybody who knows Wickham well enough is aware of his behaviour and his character. He merely told me in advance what I would find out soon enough.”

“True…”

“As for the bullet wound, Dr Bates opened the subject, and the conversation went on from there. Did you tell him that the horse has the same injury?”

“I did. I assume he will inform Mr Darcy too.”

“We seem to be in the midst of a novel, and I am not sure how I came to be here,” Mr Bennet said, rolling his eyes. “Out of prudence, I wish to see no officers in the near future.”

“I am afraid you will have to see many of them at the ball tomorrow night, Papa. I only hope Mr Wickham will not have the audacity to be among them.”

∞∞∞

The rest of the day passed noisily at Longbourn with the presence of so many people in a relatively small house.

Mr Collins was at home too, and he did not miss the opportunity to express his adoration towards Miss Darcy and to relate the details of his connection to her aunt Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Miss Darcy listened with her usual candour, throwing discreet yet desperate glances towards Elizabeth, who eventually saved her.

After breakfast, Miss Darcy returned to her brother and stayed with him until the medicine caused him to fall asleep.

Elizabeth struggled to control her nervousness as so many questions without answers stirred in her mind. Her sisters prepared their gowns for the ball at Netherfield, Mr Collins declared he would dance with all of them, Mrs Bennet complained about her nerves, and Mr Bennet moved to his library.

Around noon, Elizabeth had the surprise — and joy — of seeing Miss Darcy showing Mary something on the pianoforte. Within minutes, they tentatively began to play together, Miss Darcy explaining something with a sweet smile and Mary listening in awe.

“Miss Elizabeth?”

Dr Bates sat down next to her, then said, “Miss Elizabeth, Mr Darcy has asked whether you would go and speak to him for a moment, if you do not mind.”

Surprised by such a request, Elizabeth could only nod in acceptance.