Page 40 of Grief and Grievances
His unexpected proposal had caught her off guard and left her reeling, the revelations he shared with her causing an internal battle between her former prejudice and the new information she’d been given. The inner turmoil left her feeling isolated, unable to confide in even her closest confidant, her beloved sister Jane.
“Elizabeth, are you quite well?” Jane asked, her voice tinged with concern as she noticed her sister’s distant gaze. They were supposed to be packing their belongings, preparing to return home to Longbourn, but Elizabeth had been sitting motionless for quite some time, her gaze far away.
“Indeed, I am well,” Elizabeth replied, forcing a smile that felt foreign upon her lips. “I simply find myself lost in thought, nothing more.”
“Your contemplation has been rather frequent lately,” Jane observed, her gentle eyes searching her sister’s face for any hidden emotion. “Is there something you wish to share?”
To anyone else, the question may have seemed invasive or presumptuous; but coming from Jane, the inquiry was tender, sincere, and filled with love. Yet Elizabeth found herself at a loss for words, the weight of Darcy’s confession too heavy to bear on her own, let alone share with another.
“Jane, if I were to share my thoughts, I fear they would only serve to burden you with their complexity,” Elizabeth said, her voice barely above a whisper. Her heart ached with the desire to unburden herself, but the thought of involving Jane in her tumultuous emotions was unbearable.
“Dearest sister, your burdens are mine to help carry,” Jane insisted, reaching out to clasp Elizabeth’s hand in a gesture of support. “You know you can trust me with anything.”
“Your kindness is ever-present, Jane,” Elizabeth replied, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. “But this is a matter I must resolve within myself, and in time, I am certain I will find clarity.”
“Very well,” Jane acquiesced, sensing her sister’s reluctance to divulge further. “Know that I am here for you when you are ready to speak.”
“Thank you, Jane,” Elizabeth whispered, her gratitude genuine even as she continued to grapple with the unexpected shift in her feelings towards Mr. Darcy.
As the sisters sat in companionable silence, their thoughts drifting on separate currents, the door opened to reveal Georgiana Darcy, her timid gaze flitting around the room before settling on Elizabeth.
“Miss Bennet, Miss Elizabeth,” Georgiana greeted them, her voice soft yet steady. “I hope I am not intruding?”
“Of course not, Miss Darcy,” Jane replied warmly, beckoning the younger girl to join them. “You are always welcome.”
“Indeed,” Elizabeth concurred, offering Georgiana a genuine smile. “Please, do join us.”
“Are you almost packed?” Georgiana looked at Jane’s almost-full trunk, and Elizabeth’s empty one sitting beside it. “Can I help you at all?”
“Oh, you are very kind.” Elizabeth held out a hand and when Georgiana took it, drew her down to sit next to her on the chaise. “I shall do my own packing; I am merely distracted at the moment. Thinking of all that has occurred since I came here to Kent.”
“Indeed!” Georgiana nodded. “Though I shall always mourn Anne’s loss, I am grateful that this episode brought me here to meet you.”
“And I, you,” Elizabeth agreed. As well as the opportunity to truly come to know your brother, she thought but did not say aloud.
“Tell me again about your sisters,” Georgiana begged, and Elizabeth laughed. Miss Darcy had an insatiable thirst for stories of family life, it seemed, and delighted in tales of sisterly mischief and pranks.
“Allow me to save at least a few stories for the carriage ride,” she insisted. “Else we shall all be very bored by the end of the journey!”
“Oh, but it is only one short day’s travel!” Georgiana objected. “I am used to the five or six days it takes from London to Pemberley; a single day is no hardship at all.”
“You are quite the seasoned traveller,” Elizabeth noted, “whereas I have left Hertfordshire on only a few occasions in my life.” As she said it, she wondered what travelling in Europe would be like, if she accepted Lady Catherine’s offer.
They were to leave early in the morning, and a maid came to rouse them just after dawn. They dressed quickly and packed their last belongings in their trunks, pausing to look one last time around the rooms.
With the last of their belongings secured and the farewells exchanged, Elizabeth could not help but feel a pang of regret as she made her farewells to Lady Catherine. The formidable older woman had been mollified somewhat regarding their departure when Georgiana’s companion, Mrs. Annesley, had offered to stay at Rosings to keep Lady Catherine company. Confident Georgiana would be in safe hands in Hertfordshire, Darcy had given his blessing, and Lady Catherine and Mrs. Annesley seemed to have taken to each other very well.
“Mrs. Annesley,” said Darcy with a gentlemanly bow, “I trust you shall be well entertained during our absence.”
“Indeed, Mr. Darcy,” replied the kind-hearted companion, her eyes twinkling with genuine warmth. “Lady Catherine has been most obliging, and I have no doubt that we shall pass our time very agreeably.”
“Hmph,” Lady Catherine said, but she embraced each and every one of them quite fervently, leaving them in no doubt that she not only held them in esteem, but would miss their company.
Their farewells had been made the previous evening to the Collinses and the de Bourgh siblings, so once the courtesies due Lady Catherine were completed, it was time for them to depart.
“Very well then,” said Darcy, turning to his sister, who stood at the carriage door with an air of mingled excitement and trepidation. “Georgiana, are you quite ready?”
“Quite so, brother,” she replied, her voice soft yet steady. And with that, she climbed into the carriage, followed by Jane, Elizabeth, and finally Mr. Darcy, who settled himself beside his sister opposite the Bennet sisters.
