I had an absolute ball researching so many various items for these chapters. From the way bell pull systems worked to how often large estates conducted inventories… my favorite part though it weaving historical research into a story so it feels like it’s a part of it. 🙂
XOXOX, Elizabeth Ann West
Chapter 22 - The Miracles of Marriage, Book 5 of The Moralities of Marriage
The weather delayed the party of cousins departing Rosings by an additional day, and when at last they arrived at Matlock house, to Richard’s surprise, his father awaited with a welcome worthy of a prodigal son.
“My boy, my boy!” The Earl of Matlock burst from the front door as Richard and Anne departed the Darcy carriage first, followed by Fitzwilliam behind them.
Uncle Henry had been a long favorite of Anne’s, always kind to her when he had visited Rosings. She accepted his effusions and congratulations, then beamed at her husband. Aside from the diversions the city was sure to offer, this was precisely the environment the newlyweds needed to lift their spirits.
After being ushered inside, and offered refreshments, Anne politely declined the generous invitation to join the men in the study.
“You gentlemen have your work, and I have mine,” she said mysteriously as her hand rested on her abdomen. “Uncle Henry, is there any chance I could have a warm bath brought up?” Anne Fitzwilliam asked as her father-in-law heartily agreed.
To the slight embarrassment of his father and cousin, Richard enjoyed a small tête-à-tête with his wife. He urgently whispered asking if she would like for him to go up upstairs and help her settle in, but she playfully slapped his hand away.
“I am quite capable, husband. Besides, we did not come all this way just so that we could admire your parents’ fine home. Go! Show them what a masterful strategist looks like,” she complimented.
With a sheepish grin, Richard bid his wife adieu and followed his father and cousin into the study, where the eldest in the room wasted no time pouring himself a drink. There would be no servants inside as the three men convened. Mr. Darcy felt slightly apprehensive that his uncle’s demeanor had suddenly changed from affable to nervous.
As the earl gulped his brandy, Darcy and Richard opted for the decanter tucked back in the cupboard. Richard poured them both a whiskey and they all sat in the worn leather chairs around the fire.
“Grim news, I’m afraid,” the earl opened, garnering the attention of both his son and nephew. “Your brother is not here. I dined at Syon House, as you instructed. And I believe I was convincing, but that old duke is no simpleton.”
Richard asked his father to go on, and the earl explained.
“I should’ve expected your brother to come to London at his first chance, but Northumberland claimed that he elected to stay at Alnwick Castle with his wife. Had the audacity to say that we could not risk Viscount Brahmington finding his old haunts and habits.”
Mr. Darcy couched his words carefully. “Do you believe James to be kept there against his will?” he asked.
The earl looked uncomfortable, but Richard was having none of it.
“My brother is as good of an escape artist as any of us. If he didn’t wish to be in Northumberland, he’d find a way to London. My guess is he is being kept happy and distracted,” Richard said while both his father and cousin looked at him for further explanation. Richard cleared his throat.
“Yes, we have exchanged letters. James wrote to me to offer his congratulations, and gloat, I’m afraid, about the pleasing figures of the housemaids and exquisite dinners put on each night. And he was no fool, father. His wife leaves him to his own devices and he leaves her to hers. If there was no need for an heir, I would say the match was splendid.” Richard explained and the other two nodded reluctantly. As they all took a drink, the earl found the courage to continue about his night at Syon.
“He also spoke of you, Darcy,” The earl opened and allowed his nephew to inquire for more information. “Yes, he believes you owe him lands in India?”
“I most certainly do not!” Mr. Darcy exclaimed.
“He claims you made a deal with him concerning Wickham–”
Darcy interrupted his uncle.
“I asked for Wickham to be transported, not murdered! The man is the duke’s nephew or was, so I thought that perhaps we would share a common goal of avoiding scandal. But I was mistaken in my calculations,” Darcy said wistfully, but Richard interjected.
“So the duke openly took credit for Wickham’s demise? Were there any witnesses?” Richard asked and his father shook his head.
“No, I’m afraid the dinner was very much a message being sent. I cannot say he went so far as to threaten me, but I did feel threatened that he holds my eldest son in custody, and hinted that if you do not sign over the lands in India, when the investigation begins in Parliament, he will offer it as evidence of you arranging for the murder of George Wickham,” the earl finished.
The air grew heavy with silence as all three men contemplated the high-stakes of their circumstances.
“I should see Baron Percy,” Darcy finally said after a few moments. But his cousin disagreed with him.
“No, you must leave,” Richard said with finality. But, Darcy argued with him.
“I could not possibly! All I have learned is that when I leave my affairs here, things go disastrously,” Darcy began to explain but Richard waved his hand to make his cousin cease.
“Do not equate this mess with your runaway sister. A young woman is impulsive and easily persuaded. We did nothing wrong except perhaps grant her privileges that she abused. But these men are cold and calculating. Your best defense, should it come to that, is that you not be seen in London running around scheming in arranging things yourself.” Richard explained and look to his father for approval. The earl nodded.
“Not you too?” Darcy asked, and his uncle closed his eyes and slowly nodded.
“My son speaks wisdom on this. It is clear they will use whatever means available to them to foster conjecture and confusion. You came to London when you’re home was attacked, and that is very rational. I do fear if you stay . . . continue to take meetings with old associates of your father’s . . . it will provide too much opportunity for our enemies to cast you in an unbecoming light.” Placing his empty glass upon the table, the earl pressed the fingertips of his hands together to make a point as sharp as the top of a pyramid. Richard decided to aid his father in convincing Darcy.
But Fitzwilliam felt his anger rising, and so he did not listen as his cousin continued with the reasons for why he must leave.
“While I appreciate your counsel, and realize that I am not the only one in danger here, I might remind you that my house was the only one attacked. Before I make any decision as to how I will best protect my family in the future, I require sleep.” Darcy placed his empty glass upon the table, then addressed Richard specifically. “Come see me in the morning. I shall give my decision then.”
After Darcy left, the two Fitzwilliam men drowned their frustrations with another round of drinks. After the third and fourth round, father and son were well past burying the hatchet, and sloppily telling each other stories from their youth.
Near dinnertime, Anne Fitzwilliam found both men sleeping off the effects of their reunion. She laughed at the commonalities between the way father and son both slept in chairs, their mouths slightly open with drool dribbling down their chin. Both held the uncanny habit of draping their left arm to hang down, while the right crossed over their chest.
“Should I serve dinner, Mrs. Fitzwilliam?” the butler asked but Anne declined.
“Have a tray sent up to my room, and have their valets wake them in two hours time that they both might be sent to bed.”
“Yes, my lady,” the butler answered,
Anne felt stronger by the immediate deference granted to her by the Matlock staff. She tiptoed over to her husband’s sleeping form, and kissed his cheek, but he did not rouse. She left the study, took a deep breath and then walked across the hall to another room, the small library. Here, she inspected the shelves of books, and selected a new novel for her own entertainment. As far as Anne Fitzwilliam was concerned, after such a long day of travel, there was nothing nicer than a meal and a good story to keep one company.
The Miracles of Marriage
a Pride and Prejudice variation novel
Release Date: July 25, 2019
Pages: 306
Book 5 in the Moralities of Marriage Series. Chapters posting now on Elizabeth’s site.
After the murder of George Wickham in the streets of London and the fire at Longbourn, Mr. Darcy and his lovely bride, Elizabeth Bennet, must cut their wedding trip to Scotland short. With the financial stakes of all families hanging in the balance of London’s politics, the Darcys will have to work together to see to everyone’s needs. But with so much tragedy and scandal, can Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam rely on each other, or has the trust between our dear couple worn to edges beyond repair?
Chapter 23 - The Miracles of Marriage, Book 5 of The Moralities of Marriage
Mr. Darcy had made his decision the night prior, but waited for his cousin and guests to arrive before departing for his estate in Derbyshire. As he predicted, all three men arrived at the appointed hour of nine o’clock in the morning, and he ushered them into his study for quick introductions.
“Richard, you know Dr. Matthews, and this is his colleague, Dr. John Sims. I wished to have this interview so you might meet the doctor who can take over care of your wife,” Mr. Darcy explained, as Richard began to anger. The old man next to Dr. Matthews did not impress him.
“Pardon me, Dr. Sims, but there is no need for a new physician for my wife,” Richard countered, but shook the man’s hand, nonetheless.
Dr. Matthews coughed. He looked at Darcy rather incredulous that he had not warned his cousin. Dr. Sims, at sixty and three, was a long respected and admired authority of obstetrics.
“I’m afraid there is. I am leaving with Mr. Darcy to Pemberley to offer care to Mr. Bennet and the surrounding countryside as needed,” Dr. Matthews explained.
Richard began to ask his cousin for a private word, but Darcy refused.
“Truthfully, Richard, Anne’s case is best handled by Dr. Sims. He has far more experience than Dr. Matthews in delivering women where complications exist.”
Richard still crossed his arms in front of his chest, skeptical. “We came to London in part for Anne to receive Dr. Matthews’ care.”
“If I may,” Dr. Sims said, and he received a nod from Dr. Matthews and Mr. Darcy, but no such approval from the former colonel. Still, the man continued. “For thirty-two years, I have been appointed physician and male mid-wife at the Charity for Delivering Poor Married Women in their homes. I have lost count of the babes I have delivered in my lengthy career, but from what I understand from Dr. Matthews, your wife suffers from bouts of bronchial spasms, impairing her ability to breathe?”
Richard nodded, still uncomfortable such an important decision concerning his wife’s care had been made without his input.
“Ah yes, I know it well. Such affliction can cause the mother to cease breathing during delivery and the effects during the term of gestation on the child routinely yields a babe that is low in birth weight,” the elder Dr. Sims remarked, taking a seat near Mr. Darcy’s desk.
“Richard, everything I learned about women and childbirth is from studying under Dr. Sims. My interests, however, lie with the miraculous ways our brains and nervous systems work together. I generally practice well in all areas of medicine, but if my wife was expecting, it would be Dr. Sims I begged to perform the delivery,” Dr. Matthews endorsed his mentor with the utmost sincerity.
Feeling slightly convinced, Richard took a seat next to Dr. Sims, and began to ask him questions about diet and restrictions for a woman in Anne’s condition. As Dr. Sims laughed and explained to the nervous young father that he had long learned to leave the business of nurturing the child to the women, he was only there to direct efforts once active labor began.
As the two men continued to talk, Mr. Darcy politely interrupted them to allow himself and Dr. Matthews to take their leave.
“I have instructed Mrs. Potter to leave you free reign over the home, and if you and Anne should need respite, you are always welcome here,” Darcy gave his cousin the normal rights to his house and holdings as he always did.
“Yes, yes, send word when you are safely arrived and tell my mother I send my greetings,” Richard said, as he wished to know more about Dr. Sims and his care for Anne.
As Dr. Matthews and Mr. Darcy boarded the waiting carriage, already packed with both men’s trunks, a second vehicle joined the line. The wagon was full of packages and parcels, and a few large wooden crates.
Dr. Matthews gestured to the wagon rather perplexed.
“Never arrive empty-handed when you are arriving late. A lesson I learned from my father,” Darcy explained, as they each took a bench across from the other.
“Wise. But didn’t Mrs. Darcy know you would be travelling to London?”
“Yes,” Mr. Darcy answered, “but I was not there to carry her over the threshold for the first time as she took her place as Mrs. Darcy. And for that, I shall always be guilty. But gifts,” Mr. Darcy held up a finger to place emphasis on his plan, “gifts make it very difficult for anyone to remain angry for long.”
The Miracles of Marriage
a Pride and Prejudice variation novel
Release Date: July 25, 2019
Pages: 306
Book 5 in the Moralities of Marriage Series. Chapters posting now on Elizabeth’s site.
After the murder of George Wickham in the streets of London and the fire at Longbourn, Mr. Darcy and his lovely bride, Elizabeth Bennet, must cut their wedding trip to Scotland short. With the financial stakes of all families hanging in the balance of London’s politics, the Darcys will have to work together to see to everyone’s needs. But with so much tragedy and scandal, can Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam rely on each other, or has the trust between our dear couple worn to edges beyond repair?
Chapter 24 - The Miracles of Marriage, Book 5 of The Moralities of Marriage
Exhausted, exasperated, and expended, the long caravan of Mrs. Darcy, the Bingleys, and the Bennets arrived midmorning in front of the grand house of Pemberley. Only Elizabeth and Mr. Bingley held the pleasure of seeing the house before, and so for a few moments, Mrs. Bingley and the Bennet women simply gawked at the majestic marble columns that greeted them.
“La, Lizzie, you didn’t tell us it was a palace!” Lydia exclaimed as she clung to the arm of her sister, Mary. Elizabeth giggled as she whispered something to Higgins and then walked up the steps to greet Mrs. Reynolds personally.
“Was everything managed from my letters?” Mrs. Darcy asked conspiratorially, and the longtime housekeeper of Pemberley nodded eagerly.
“Welcome home, Mrs. Darcy. I’m so sorry the master is not with you, but I believe he is to leave London soon.” As Elizabeth squeezed the hands of the housekeeper in greeting and then abandoned her to enter the foyer, she left Mrs. Reynolds to bark her orders and usher her family inside.
But for Elizabeth, a bittersweet taste of regret stung her heart. She stepped into the grand marble foyer with its black and gray checkered floor to twirl around and take in the splendid display. She had crossed the threshold of her home as Mrs. Darcy for the first time. Alone. As soon as the emotion had struck her, she shuffled it aside. Such melancholy was a waste of energy when one was the wife of Fitzwilliam Darcy. And she would focus on the joys and benefits of her position, most especially in what she would get to do next.
Charles Bingley caught Elizabeth’s eye, and the man touched his nose with his forefinger then pointed at Mrs. Darcy. That was the signal all was well and their plan was afoot. Mr. Bingley steered Jane and the children in one direction, while Elizabeth assembled her three sisters and mother in another.
“Welcome to Pemberley,” she began. “Although Fitzwilliam is not with us, he and I were both emphatically agreed that this home is to be your home. When we visited before marrying in Scotland, it was our dearest wish that the home could be full of life again,” Elizabeth said.
“Well it looks like you’ve received your wish,” Kitty remarked, her neck craned as far back as she could manage to take in every detail of the frescoes on the ceiling. Elizabeth followed her sister’s gaze and gaped in astonishment. Abstractly she had been aware of the painting above her, but only now with her artistic sister in residence did she take in the scenes of a bountiful harvest with cherubs and other Greek mythological figures.
“Which one is my room?” Lydia asked, drawing Elizabeth’s attention back to her mischief.
Elizabeth began to go up the stairs and then stopped, forcing her mother and sisters to pause on the first step.
“The home has over 300 rooms. I will confess to you now that I have not visited all of them. However, I have instructed the staff to ready a number of spaces for our family. First is Mama,” Elizabeth said triumphantly and she reached out her hand to her mother. To everyone’s surprise, Mrs. Bennet took Elizabeth’s hand and they ascended the stairs together.
Elizabeth continued to explain that they would primarily occupy the eastern wing of the house, with the family living in two stories. “In time, we can move my sisters down to the second floor, but there were not suitable accommodations for them unless you’d like your furnishings to look 100 years older or more?” Elizabeth asked over her shoulder with a ghoulish expression and her sisters laughed.
“Is my suite on the third floor? I should dearly hope not, as that is quite a number of stairs,” Mrs. Bennet began to fret, but Elizabeth patted her hand.
“No, Mama, your room is next to Papa’s. We redesigned the rooms from Mr. Darcy’s and Miss Darcy’s youth to add an adjoining door, and I hope you will find the styling to your taste.” Elizabeth and her party entered the room quickly as the footmen bringing Mr. Bennet up stairs were right behind them. They were under the guidance of Mrs. Reynolds directly, so Elizabeth rested knowing that her father would be well sorted.
The living arrangement placed the Bennets in the first suite of rooms of the eastern wing of the home. Mrs. Bennet’s room did not look like a room for young girl, but the light lavender and lilac coloring was preserved. Upon spying her favorite color, Mrs. Bennet had tears well at the edges of her eyes. Elizabeth introduced her mother to a personal maid, named Nancy, and Mrs. Bennet graciously accepted the young woman’s guidance in touring her new wardrobe and washroom.
When she reached the vanity carved with accents of mahogany and white oak, her fingers shook as she touched the tortoise-shell brush set laid out upon the counter. Curious, she looked to her daughter.
“They are not the same,” she explained, and Mrs. Bennet seemed to take a breath. But Elizabeth continued, “I wrote a most detailed description and the jeweler in the village was able to fabricate a similar set. Kitty also enclosed a sketch.”
Mrs. Bennet whispered her thanks. Her set had originally been a gift from her father when she was a girl. Like many of their other possessions, the comb and brush set had been destroyed in the fire.
When Elizabeth was satisfied that her mother had been placated, she explained to her that she would show the other girls their rooms.
“Yes, do that, and then please come fetch me for tea. I’m afraid I will get lost,” Mrs. Bennet said, as her daughters giggled and left their mother to explore her new accommodations.
For the remaining girls’ rooms, Elizabeth showed them to the third floor, and all three paused at the grand windows at the end of the wing looking out across the park. They could see a number of deer running across the open fields, and the leaves were just turning for they neared the end of October.
“We were so silly, Lizzie. I was so wrong,” Lydia began her penance, but Elizabeth only smiled at her sister.
“Mary, I placed you and Lydia next to each other. Follow me.” Elizabeth showed how another suite with adjoining rooms was decorated especially for her two sisters that had remained at Longbourn. Mary’s room was decorated in verdant greens, with touches of velvet and gold. Elizabeth pointed out the writing desk with a journal and a number of religious texts selected from the library downstairs.
Mary carefully picked up a leather bound volume and traced the title with her finger.
In disbelief she read it out loud, “Critical remarks on the Hebrew Scripture?”
Elizabeth nodded. “And there are so many more down below. I also instructed the staff to set for you a small prayer bench by the window,” and Elizabeth pointed out the dainty upholstered piece of furniture knee-high for Mary’s use. “There is also a small chapel in the west wing, I am told. However, it has long been neglected and I was hoping that in your time here you might assist me in bringing it back into normal use,” Elizabeth said and Mary nodded. But then she had a question.
“But who is the parson?” Mary asked and Elizabeth shrugged.
“I am told there is a small parish for the village, and the chapel here for the tenants closest to the main house has not been used in over a generation. Certainly, we have a living, and we could take interviews, but let’s begin that process when Mr. Darcy’s home.” Elizabeth reasoned and her most pious sister agreed.
Impatiently, Lydia asked again to see her room. Elizabeth made a grand show of opening the adjoining door from Mary’s suite to a sunny vista of yellows and whites. Lydia’s room had the companion writing desk to Mary’s, but instead of religious texts, Elizabeth had instructed for a number of novels to be brought up for Lydia’s use.
“I have insured that they include romances and mysteries, and even a few ghost stories,” Elizabeth said and Lydia attempted to be unaffected, but her eyes widened as large as saucers while gazing at all of the titles. Elizabeth also took care to introduce the maid that Lydia and Mary would share, a young woman named Jenny, and the two sisters seemed at peace with the arrangement. As Elizabeth was showing the new wardrobe and unique space to trim her bonnets and other accessories as Lydia was accustomed to doing, when finally, the fact that Kitty had been left for last made Lydia question how she was missing out.
“Why doesn’t Kitty share a maid with us?” Lydia asked, most annoyingly. Mary chided her, but Elizabeth didn’t mind the impertinence.
“It was unavoidable, you see. The wing stretches the length of this corridor. Your rooms are just above my suite with Mr. Darcy. Kitty is at the other end over Mama and Papa. And there is a hidden set of stairs to get there from the second floor. It would be undue work for a maid to rush between three suites of rooms with such a long hallway in between.”
After leaving Mary and Lydia to explore their rooms, as both of them politely declined to see Kitty’s until later, Elizabeth felt she had left truly the best for last. Finally in the hall alone, Elizabeth clasped Kitty’s hand and squeezed it.
“I hope you do not mind I did not place you next to them,” Elizabeth began to explain and Kitty shook her head.
Both girls dashed down the hall like young misses, and Elizabeth breathlessly opened the door to Kitty’s suite that was decorated from floor-to-ceiling in a variety of floral patterns that all coordinated most expertly.
“I had to place you down here, for the sunlight will be to its best advantage during the day and instead of a sister in your adjoining room,” Elizabeth paused as Kitty’s maid Mathilde was waiting for them in the suite.
“You have an adjoining studio,” Elizabeth said and the door was opened to reveal a wide space full of easels, a large working table, and all of the art supplies Kitty could ever imagine.
“Why, there’s enough here for an entire shop!” Kitty exclaimed and Elizabeth nodded.
“Yes, I assigned Fitzwilliam the task of sending as many art supplies as he possibly could the moment we heard about Longbourn’s unfortunate fire.”
Elizabeth had wished to spend more time with Kitty going over the finer points of her room, but her maid Higgins appeared with a message.
“What is it?” Kitty asked
In her excitement, Elizabeth responded “The best news, no,” she stopped herself and re-explained, “the second best news. Lady Matlock has arrived!”
It took some time for Elizabeth and Higgins, with Kitty in tow, to return to the first floor where Lady Matlock and Mrs. Reynolds were in a long discussion in the foyer.
As Elizabeth Darcy descended the stairs, Lady Matlock turned and looked up at her hostess making a small clap with her hands.
“Brava, Mrs. Darcy, brava indeed!” Lady Matlock greeted Elizabeth at the bottom of the stairs and her sister Kitty stood silently awestruck that a countess was so familiar with her sister.
“We have just arrived, and I’m afraid you have caught us rather out of sorts,” Elizabeth said, but Lady Matlock waved such silly problems away.
“Nonsense, I was just discussing with Mrs. Reynolds here that I can take my normal suite of rooms in the west wing. It shall place me next to the Bingleys, and I am so anxious to make their acquaintance,” Lady Matlock said loud enough for those to hear.
As she and Elizabeth walked up the stairs, however, Lady Matlock asked conspiratorially if the dreadful Bingley sister Caroline had also tagged along and Elizabeth shook her head.
“No, it appears that she has been put on the shelf, as they say, and joined her aunt in Scarborough,” Elizabeth gave the preferred explanation for why Caroline Bingley had so swiftly dropped out of London society.
“Good, good,” Lady Matlock said, not revealing that she was privy to such intelligence from Louisa Hurst herself. “I should like–” Lady Matlock did not finish her thought as Elizabeth winced and slightly doubled over with the feeling of a cramping sensation in her abdomen.
“Higgins!” Lady Matlock revealed that she knew the name of Elizabeth’s maid and the woman swiftly came to her mistress’ side.
“Take her straight to bed,” Lady Matlock ordered, and as Elizabeth began to protest the Countess of Matlock shook her head. “I will see that dinner and all of the arrangements are followed through. You must rest.”
Chapter 25 - The Miracles of Marriage, Book 5 of The Moralities of Marriage
When Elizabeth reached her room, her maid assisted her out of her gown. Another distressing pain seized her midsection and Elizabeth grabbed the chamber pot. Her condition had made her bladder eager to empty on most days, but this time when she wiped the filth away, a small tinge of blood stained the cloth.
Elizabeth began to cry and accepted Higgins’ help into bed. Suddenly, her bedroom door received a perfunctory knock and then opened with Jane entering.
“Mr. Darcy’s aunt said I must see to you right away!” Jane looked distressed to see Elizbeth in bed, crying. “Whatever’s wrong, what hurts?”
“I’m losing it,” Elizabeth cried, her face already wet and mucousy from sobbing. “I’m going to lose the baby, just like Charlotte!”
“Nonsense!” Jane had known what kind of evidence occurred when a wife experienced a disappointment. Lizzie was hardly doubled over in pain. “Whatever made you think that?”
Elizabeth accepted a handkerchief from Higgins and cleaned her face. She explained to Jane the cramp-like feeling and that there was blood. She pointed vaguely to the chamber pot Higgins had just lifted to dispose, but Jane motioned for her to lift the cloth. Jane could spy the small dark spot on the cloth,
“Was it bright red?”
The maid shook her head.
Frowning, Jane Bingley grew angry as she had left her crying children to rush to her sister’s aid. There was nothing else but urine in the pot, and she was too sleep-deprived to suffer her sister’s dramatics.
“Do you remember when I thought I was losing the baby? Babies.” Jane corrected herself.
“Y-y-yes,” Elizabeth stammered.
“The twins made me nauseous, far more than you have experienced, and when we traveled from London to Netherfield Park, I had the same as you.”Jane dismissed Higgins, but then called after her for tea to be brought up.
Higgins curtsied and handed the chamber pot to a lower maid, then expertly entered Mrs. Darcy’s dressing room to use one of two access points for the house bell system in the mistress’ quarters. The elaborate system of ropes running through the walls would alert a pantry maid on the first floor who could send the message to the kitchens. Reading the piece of parchment placed next to the pull cord with the proper codes, Higgins rang the bell four times for a tray with tea and refreshments for Mrs. Darcy.
When she returned, Mrs. Bingley and Mrs. Darcy were laughing, and Mrs. Darcy brightened to see her long-time companion since Netherfield Park.
“Higgins, Mrs. Bingley says there is nothing to worry about as yet. The small spot of blood and cramping is likely exhaustion and lack of liquids during our traveling days.” Mrs. Darcy smiled as she sat up in her bed with more energy now that she knew she was not actively losing the child, and that a small amount of blood now and then was fairly normal.
“Perhaps, after I nap, I can still attend dinner—”
“No!” Jane admonished as Higgins had been shaking her head behind her former employer.
“Okay, okay, just promise you will not spike my tea with laudanum. Don’t think I forget this is how it all began when you put laudanum in my tea at Netherfield,” Elizabeth scolded her sister.
Jane laughed. “And then, you thought Mr. Darcy was Mr. Bingley! Oh yes, I remember well. Oh I was so cross with that man! He nearly killed you, and the only thing that saved me from scratching his eyes out was how very sorry he was.”
“Was he?” Elizabeth asked, as she never tired of hearing about how he had seen to her care after the accident.
“He sulked in that hallway, never leaving. He had been standing there for hours before someone, perhaps a footman, sent a chair for him,” Jane continued to laugh with Lizzie as it had seemed so long ago, just a little over a year, but they had been through so much as a family.
The tray of tea was brought in and Jane marveled at the speed. Together, the sisters watched the choreography of the hall maid addressing Higgins first before approaching the bed with the tea. There was an elaborate hierarchy to the staff that Elizabeth observed briefly when they were at Pemberley, tried to rebel in Scotland, and now accepted as her life.
“Mmm,” Elizabeth mumbled as she accepted the tray. She thanked the hall maid by name and the young girl beamed at her mistress. When at last they were alone again, Elizabeth began to explain.
“See, you cannot dose my tea now,” Elizabeth said proudly as she slurped while Jane watched. “The house bells run all throughout, one bell calls Higgins, two bells calls any maid, three bells calls footmen,” Elizabeth sipped again, finding the house size ever so convenient that tea arrived at the perfect temperature to drink.
“It shall take some getting used to, but I feel Mama shall have the system down in no time at all for her comforts,” Jane said, watching her sister closely.
“Yes, Mrs. Reynolds and I selected the most experienced maid for Mama, and Nancy knows she can report to me any troubles,” Elizabeth said, with a yawn. When she opened her eyes again, she blinked a few times as she stared at her sister. Slowly, recognition dawned in Elizabeth’s mind.
“Jane! How!” she managed groggily, as her sister helped Higgins remove the tray.
“Oh, Lady Matlock and I worked together. I had told her to have a tray made ready with the tincture added. By the time we called it, and it arrived, you were so very thirsty from crying . . .” Jane coddled her sister as she tucked the quilt around her.
Elizabeth closed her eyes, most vexed by her sister. Here she was providing sanctuary to her entire family, and she had been outfoxed by her eldest sister and aunt by marriage.
“When I wake up . . .” she started, but found the rest of the words too difficult to say.
Jane gave her a kiss, ensured that Higgins would watch over her, and then returned to her own family in the other wing. As she walked, Jane was beginning to think she too needed a dose herself to find her desperately needed sleep.
Chapter 26 - The Miracles of Marriage, Book 5 of The Moralities of Marriage
Despite being confined to her bed, Elizabeth Darcy did not shirk her duties as mistress of Pemberley. Thankfully, on the first morning when she woke, she received a number of Fitzwilliam’s letters that he had sent since leaving Netherfield Park at the end of September. Happily, Elizabeth had read them out of order, then sorted them in order, and read them again.
She was reading the date of the last letter from Rosings with the plan to leave his aunt’s estate no later than the fifteenth of October and began to count to herself. With the first of November the previous Sunday, Elizabeth eagerly realized that her husband had to arrive by month end!
Mrs. Reynolds had offered to call the village apothecary to see to Mrs. Darcy, but she had declined. From her husband’s last letter, she knew he would bring Dr. Matthews with him and there was no immediate danger to her health or the child she carried. As much as she disliked it, an agreement was brokered. So long as Mrs. Darcy remained abed until the master arrived, no one would force her to be examined by the apothecary.
Mrs. Bennet complained after the first week at dinner as to the absence of her daughter. She insinuated that Elizabeth was perhaps being more dramatic than necessary. But where she had once swayed the opinions of Lydia and Mary, the first week at Pemberley had eroded all distrust the younger Bennets felt for the Darcys.
Mary spent much of her days in quiet contemplation or in the music room, as it was quite well furnished with numerous instruments, including a grand pianoforte. Lydia had read some of the novels in her room, braved the library to find more, and settled on Gothic romances and stories of ghosts hunting for revenge to be her favorites. She also joined Mary some afternoons. One afternoon after completing St. Irvyne by Mary Shelley, she felt too lazy to go back downstairs to the library and seek a new book, nor upstairs to fetch one from her bedroom. So by happenstance, and a distaste for walking, Lydia discovered herself to be prodigiously skillful at the harp.
Where Mary played by written music, Lydia would hold the harp and play almost by instinct and ear. So long as Mary played her piece a few times before, Lydia found the right strings to pluck in harmony with her sister’s playing. Mary was not a very emotive piano player, her focus always remained on the technical aspects of performing music. The addition of the harp allowed many to appreciate Mary’s playing for a longer tenure than they had before, including Mrs. Bennet.
Kitty had attempted to cheer her sister confined to bed with comical sketches and caricatures of various staff and family members in residence. Elizabeth, condoned such sketches so long as after they were shown to her, they were committed to the fire. Such a plan never risked offense to the subject.
Kitty even taught Elizabeth how to find patience to sketch basic shapes. By the end of her first week of confinement, Mrs. Darcy had managed a very passing vase of flowers under Kitty’s instruction.
Just as Elizabeth was beginning to believe she might go crazy being so confined to bed, she attempted to bargain with Lady Matlock one morning when the countess had come to see her hostess. Elizabeth tried to explain that she was not quite certain she was with child.
This surprised Lady matlock in the extreme. To her, there was no denying from simply looking at Mrs. Darcy the woman possessed the glow and effusive complexion many a blushing bride boasted a few months after their marriage.
“My dear, it is November. When did you last have your courses?” Elizabeth confessed at that had been at the end of June, nearly four months ago.
“And did you not suffer many bouts of nausea? I heard your maid described the journey was very difficult for you,”
Elizabeth admitted as much to Lady Matlock, then the woman seemed convinced. But still, Lizzie grew frustrated.
“But I feel nothing, Lady Matlock,” she fussed and the woman scolded her for forgetting to call her Aunt Maggie when they were alone. So Elizabeth repeated after her. “Aunt Maggie.”
Lady Matlock patted the upper thigh of Mrs. Darcy so that she would slide over on the bed and the woman could take a seat.
“My child, I have birthed four children in my lifetime, three of whom survived. My youngest boy, you’ve never met as he’s been away at school. But he shall join us for the Christmas holidays,” Lady Matlock explained. “Until one has children, the first flutters of a child’s quickening are easily mistaken for the digestion of a bad plate of fish,” Lady Matlock said pulling a face as Elizabeth giggled. “When he is ready, your child will make his presence known. Give it a little more time, you will finally experience that miracle that comes from a happy marriage.” The wiser woman gave Elizabeth the motherly advice her own mother was unwilling to provide.
Lady Matlock also came with an additional gift for Elizabeth. With a double knock, Mrs. Reynolds entered the room with two maids carrying a number of ledgers and leather-bound books that appeared to be journals.
“My lady, Mrs. Darcy, I have brought the materials you have requested, Lady Matlock,” Mrs. Reynolds said and the maids dutifully carried the heavy tomes to the table next to Elizabeth’s bed.
Impressed, Elizabeth realized that the book she had been reading was mysteriously absent when she awoke from her morning rest, and now it was replaced with giant leather-bound books of parchment.
“Mrs. Darcy, may I introduce you to Pemberley’s books.” Lady Matlock smiled and Elizabeth suddenly realized what had been brought to her.
As she gingerly picked up the topmost ledger, she opened it to recognize immediately her husband’s penmanship on various lines of the ledger. Incomes, rents, salaries to various staff, and bills paid to the butcher and other tradesmen in the village, filled page after page to Elizabeth’s delight. Involuntarily, she spread her hand over the page and rested it gently against the ink, as though she were somehow closer to her husband by the very act of touching work he had finished.
Lady Matlock nudged the book away from Elizabeth to inspect it for herself and scowled.
“Sloppy work, Darcy. I am surprised,” Lady Matlock critiqued the ledger and Elizabeth asked her to explain. Instead, Lady Matlock motioned for the maid to move the the next book and to give Elizabeth the third ledger down.
When Elizabeth opened this ledger, the ink was far more faded and the penmanship a lighter hand that her husband’s. However, the letter formation was similar and the entries far more specific.
3H. Of ham F. Evers -19 £ 8 s
15 cndls dine 23 June 1789 -5 £ 3p
Elizabeth looked at Lady Matlock with her eyes wide. Here was the work of her predecessor, Mr. Darcy’s mother.
Lady Matlock nodded to acknowledge Elizabeth’s understanding. “Yes, you see, a well-run household has very specific ledgers kept. To the men, the bill to the butcher or the draper, is nothing but the cheque that is written. But for the woman who runs the household, each line item is an instance of care for her family. An opportunity for luxury or economy, as were the need.” Lady Matlock gulped as her family’s financial worries had not been so long ago that she was quite accustomed to how fast fortunes changed. One moment a lady could be hosting a dinner with thirty guests and the room ablaze in candles, and the next she is accepting every possible invitation out so as to keep her pantry bill low.
“Mrs. Reynolds, how often did Lady Anne meet with you to maintain these ledgers?” Elizabeth asked. Mrs. Reynolds closed her eyes to remember.
“When she was not ill, we frequently met every day. But as her illness progressed, she did her best to review them each week,” Mrs. Reynolds explained.
Lady Matlock asked how often Mr. Darcy tended to the ledgers, and Mrs. Reynolds laughed. Then apologized, but Lady Matlock and Mrs. Darcy had not taken offense.
“The master reviews the ledgers when he is in residence, and then he often falls to every fortnight. If he goes longer than a month, I do bring the ledgers to him for his attention,” Mrs. Reynolds explained, and Mrs. Darcy and Lady Matlock shared a laugh.
“Well then, as I feel I have much to learn, would it be too difficult Mrs. Reynolds for you and I to meet twice a day, perhaps ten in the morning and three in the afternoon?” Mrs. Darcy asked, adding that if either one of them needed to adjust the time for that day, she was perfectly amenable to such action.
Mrs. Reynolds nodded, and agreed with her mistress that such a plan would have the ledgers back in proper order in no time.
“There is one other matter,” Lady Matlock said, but hesitated. “But I’m afraid this one you are not going to be able to conduct as easily from your bed. So it may have to wait.”
“What is it? Whatever it is, if it’s a service Pemberley needs and under the purview of the mistress, I shall find a way,” Elizabeth stated and Lady Matlock and Mrs. Reynolds shared a look of solidarity. Elizabeth inquired as to the meaning of the look, and Lady Matlock spoke.
“There was a small bet between myself and Mrs. Reynolds and I’m afraid to say that I have lost.”
“Oh dear,” Elizabeth said, “what was the wager?”
Mrs. Reynolds explained. “Her ladyship has to now assist in the task.”
Elizabeth began to worry the task would be quite onerous, indeed, but it was nothing of the sort.
“The inventory,” Lady Matlock pronounced and Elizabeth knew what the word meant, but was unclear as to the scope.
“The last time Pemberley was properly inventoried was when Lady Anne married George Darcy. It is custom to perform such a task at least every ten years.”
“And it’s been nearly thirty,” Elizabeth did the sum quickly in her head as her husband was nearing his third decade of life.
“Precisely.”
“Well, that does not sound so terrible, and if I was permitted to walk to one room per day . . .”
“Absolutely not. But as I have lost the bet and I am a woman of my word, I will enlist the help of your unmarried sisters. And I shall invite your mother to help supervise them,” Lady Matlock said, with a smile. Elizabeth giggled as she imagined how very irritating it would be to inventory her family’s wealth when her mother had treated her so poorly.
“But there’s three hundred rooms. Even at a room per day,” Elizabeth realized how very dreadful the inventory sounded. She had not even considered the count would need to be done at all of the Darcy properties, and include the outbuildings of Pemberley.
“Oh, the staff will help with the mundane. Our focus shall be the antiquities and artwork. But yes, it can take the better part of two to three years to complete, if one is most prodigious,” Lady Matlock sighed as she had just completed Matlock’s inventory a year ago. It had proved helpful, as identifying pieces to sell for quick cash, discreetly, of course, had not been a chore.
“Well, then if this is all,” Elizabeth stretched and felt irritated that it seemed to her the longer one laid in bed, the more tired one felt. “I propose that you leave the ledgers here and we can meet this afternoon. And the inventory may start tomorrow?”
Lady Matlock clucked her tongue. “Nonsense, it’s already underway. If the mistress works, her unmarried sisters can as well.”
The Miracles of Marriage
a Pride and Prejudice variation novel
Release Date: July 25, 2019
Pages: 306
Book 5 in the Moralities of Marriage Series. Chapters posting now on Elizabeth’s site.
After the murder of George Wickham in the streets of London and the fire at Longbourn, Mr. Darcy and his lovely bride, Elizabeth Bennet, must cut their wedding trip to Scotland short. With the financial stakes of all families hanging in the balance of London’s politics, the Darcys will have to work together to see to everyone’s needs. But with so much tragedy and scandal, can Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam rely on each other, or has the trust between our dear couple worn to edges beyond repair?
+ 23 additional Pride & Prejudice variations are available at these fine retailers . . .
Keep Reading Chapters Below!
Chapter 12-16 The Miracles of Marriage
Book is OUT! Sorry the chapters are late, but I am auntie to a new nephew!
Chapter 17-21 The Miracles of Marriage
Book is OUT! Working on putting the chapters up for everyone to read!
Chapter 22-26 The Miracles of Marriage
Book is OUT! Working on putting the chapters up for everyone to read!
Chapter 27-29 The Miracles of Marriage
All the feels wrapping this one up . . . and whoa!
A Jane-of-all-trades, mistress to none! Elizabeth Ann West is the author of 8 novels and 11 novellas, 18 of which are story variations of Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice.