Chapter 26

Chapter Twenty-Six

T hree days after this discussion, Lady Catherine arrived on the Darcys’ doorstep. Despite being told frequently that Darcy and her daughter would never marry, the grand lady had not ceased her insistence upon it. When she learned in the paper that her nephew had married the former Elizabeth Gardiner, she was incensed and did not hesitate to make her way to London to let her nephew know of her displeasure.

Though Darcy had informed his aunt of his courtship and subsequent engagement through letters, her daughter Anne had somehow prevented her mother from reading these and, therefore, kept her mother from knowing any of it. Unfortunately, she was unable to prevent her mother from finding the wedding announcement posted in the Times and the letter from her Uncle Matlock that announced the news.

Both the letter and the newspaper did not arrive for more than a fortnight after the wedding had taken place. To say that Lady Catherine was displeased was an understatement. Anne did her best to mitigate her mother’s anger by telling her that she was not upset by the so- called ‘betrayal’, but it did not matter to her mother. She was upset that her own plans were wrecked.

Lady Catherine liked being in charge at Rosings and wanted to remain in charge. As it stood, Anne would inherit upon her twenty-fifth birthday, now less than a year away. Had Lady Catherine got her way, Darcy would have married Anne and carried her to Pemberley, leaving her to remain in charge of Rosings.

Anne flatly refused to accompany her mother to London to confront Darcy. “There is little point, Mother. Even had I wanted to marry Darcy, he is now wed and has been for more than a fortnight. Not only that, he is married to a woman he loves, and nothing you do or say will force him to relinquish her.”

Lady Catherine eyed her daughter warily. “What do you know about it, Anne?”

"Darcy wrote to you months ago, Mother. Since you always have me read his letters to you because his handwriting is 'too difficult' for you to read yourself, I simply did not read out those portions of the letter. I did not wish for you to interfere with my cousin’s happiness."

The matriarch was taken aback at this realisation. While it should have been abundantly apparent that this journey to London was pointless, she was still determined to go to make her outrage known. Nothing her daughter could say would stop her, and she was determined to ensure her nephew knew exactly what she thought about his treachery.

She spent the carriage ride fuming about her recalcitrant nephews and obstinate daughters who were unwilling to comply with her plans. Their disobedience weighed heavily on her mind, overshadowing the scenery passing by outside the carriage window. The rhythmic clatter of the horses’ hooves seemed to echo her frustration, amplifying her discontent with each passing mile .

The further she travelled, the more determined she became. She intended to confront Darcy and force him to do as she wished. However, she was uncertain how to make him comply with her plans, and it seemed that her brother would be no help in this matter. Regardless, she intended to let her entire family know of her displeasure.

Lady Catherine’s carriage rushed toward London, passing through the town of Maidstone without stopping, completely unaware of the carriage colliding with another in her wake as it swerved to avoid the fast-moving carriage. Though had she been aware of her demand that her driver “make haste” had caused an accident, it probably would have done little to change her resolve.

It was mid-afternoon, and the couple was resting in the library, enjoying a brief respite from the responsibilities of managing their home and business. Both were informally attired since they had no intention of seeing anyone other than their servants. They were surprised when they heard a strident voice demanding to see her nephew, and Darcy rolled his eyes expressively when he recognised his aunt’s voice.

“Lady Catherine,” he informed his wife unnecessarily.

Elizabeth cocked her head at him. “You wrote to her of our engagement and intended marriage, did you not? The marriage announcement was only recently published, I know, but I thought your uncle was to write to her as well.”

Darcy nodded before taking a deep breath and preparing himself for whatever was to follow. He had thought it odd she had not at least written before now, but since he did not want to invite problems, he had not worried about it.

Finally, the door was flung open as the harried butler attempted to do his duty in announcing the guest. Darcy merely shook his head at the man, indicating that he should go on about his business .

“What is the meaning of this, Darcy? How dare you defy me by marrying someone other than my Anne. She was formed for you, and your mother and I planned for your match in your cradles,” she said, seething at the couple’s informal attire and obvious familiarity with each other.

As he stood belatedly, Darcy shook his head in disbelief at her coming to object now. "Madam, you might have wished for it, and my mother might even have agreed that it was a pleasant thought, but that is all it was—an idle thought of two mothers almost twenty-five years ago. No contracts were ever signed and neither of my parents approved the match, a fact of which you are well aware since my father wrote to you about it on several occasions before his death. Anne did not desire to wed me any more than I wished to marry her. Furthermore, I am now married to a dear woman of my choosing. You are too late to do anything about the matter. Now, if you will allow me, I will introduce you to my wife."

“I have no desire to meet your so-called wife. Why would I want to meet such a low-born trollop who would deliberately come in between you and your betrothed?”

Darcy cut her off at the insult. "Madam, you will speak respectfully of Mrs. Darcy, or you will be thrown from this house. Mrs. Darcy is my wife and will be the only Mrs. Darcy in my lifetime. You have been told time and again that I would not marry your daughter. Your presence here is unwanted and I think it best you leave now."

Lady Catherine took a step back, surprised at the vehemence from her nephew. Yes, both he and Anne had said often enough that they would not marry, but she had always brushed such objections aside.

“I will not leave,” she insisted.

“You will not remain unless you consent to an introduction to my wife, apologise for your unfeeling words, and speak civilly to both of us,” Darcy informed the angry lady, his own temper strained .

“You cannot force me to leave my sister’s house,” the lady demanded.

“I can, and I will,” Darcy retorted, stepping to the door and calling for the butler and several footmen. “Hobbes, escort my aunt to her carriage. She is not to be permitted entry again until I say otherwise.”

“I will go to my brother. He will …” She stopped abruptly as another commanding voice interrupted her from the doorway.

"Do absolutely nothing to assist you in your unreasonabledemands. Darcy is married and out of your reach. It is time for you to accept your fate and cease telling untruths about an engagement between Anne and Darcy. You are the only one who wanted them to marry–they certainly did not wish to do so and you know very well that George Darcy denied his consent for such a union in writing several times and that our sister never made any agreement with you about the children marrying each other. Now, I will permit you to stay at Matlock House exactly one night, and then I will send you back to Kent. Once you return, you will say nothing to anyone about Darcy’s choice of wife or an engagement between Darcy and Anne. Am I understood? Now desist with this foolishness. Come with me, Catherine, or I will allow Darcy's footmen to carry you out of this house."

With a huff, she did as ordered and left the house on her brother’s arm. Lord Matlock glanced briefly at his nephew. “My wife desires that the two of you come for tea tomorrow. We expect you to call at two ‘o’clock to discuss this.” He paused and chuckled slightly before continuing. “My wife intends to discuss her plans for your social schedule. Be prepared to have your every moment dictated for the next month.”

Darcy groaned while Elizabeth laughed at her husband, knowing his distaste for society and its events. He had endured them during the season but had not hesitated to remind her frequently that he attended only so he could be seen with her on his arm. Grinning at him, she teased: “It will be little different from when we were courting, will it not? You will attend, if only so you might be seen accompanying me.”

Suppressing the sigh that threatened to escape, Darcy instead pulled his wife into his embrace and returned her teasing grin. “I suppose knowing that you will be my reward at the end of an evening spent in tedious company might actually improve my enjoyment of the event.” He paused for a moment, and when he continued, his voice was husky. “Or make me more desirous of ending it early.”

Elizabeth giggled when her husband pulled her into him more tightly and the two soon retreated to their chambers where they spent the rest of the evening.