Page 37 of Darcy's Guarded Heart
Mr Bingley had invited them all to the ball that Saturday. The entire family. And that included not only them, but also Mr Collins.
Chapter Eighteen
Darcy
That evening, Darcy found himself back in the familiar walls of Netherfield Park. Seated in an armchair by the window, his gaze fixed absently on the view. He had not intended to attend this particular gathering, but an urgent summons from Caroline and Louisa Hurst, and the ever-indulgent Mr Hurst, made it inevitable.
Caroline Bingley’s eyes flicked towards him. “Mr Darcy,” she began, her eyes lighting up with a mixture of amusement and malice, “Mr Hurst has made enquiries into the background of the Bennet family.”
Darcy’s jaw tightened imperceptibly. “He has indeed? And what, pray, has he discovered?”
“Tell him, Victor,” Mrs Hurst prodded her husband.
Mr Hurst, who had been half-listening to the exchange while flicking through a newspaper, looked up. “The Bennets?” he said lazily. “Ah, yes, my man in London has informed me of their true circumstances. It is as we thought, the estate is entailed away from them but even without this circumstance, things are dire. Mr Bennet, as it happens, has an income of just two thousand pounds a year.”
Mrs Hurst let out a small grunt of surprise, clearly unimpressed. “Two thousand pounds a year? Good heavens! Hardly the kind of fortune one would hope for in a familywith five daughters, don’t you think? No wonder they are so desperate to marry them off.”
Hurst nodded. “Indeed. And the family’s estate is entailed to Mr Bennet’s second cousin once removed, I believe. Such a situation renders the Bennets prospects quite precarious. One could not, of course, consider them as proper in-laws based on this alone.”
“They are not entirely unrespectable,” Darcy heard himself say, despite what he truly believed. “Their financial circumstances are unfortunate, yes. But we must give credit where it is due.”
Caroline’s smile widened, though it did little to mask the pointedness of her words. “Oh, I am sure Miss Elizabeth possesses all the character one could wish for. As does Miss Bennet herself, who is a delight to be around.” Her eyes glittered as she glanced at Darcy, her voice dipping into something almost conspiratorial. “But surely, despite your admiration for Miss Elizabeth, it is clear Miss Bennet is no match for my brother.”
“It is not ideal,” Darcy conceded, not wishing to give any attention to Caroline’s comments regarding Elizabeth. He knew she meant to set his bristles up and he would not let her succeed. Or rather, he would not let her know she already had. “But it cannot be denied your brother is very fond of her.”
Louisa, intrigued by the direction the conversation was heading, chose to add her voice to the matter. “Well, if Miss Bennet is to be considered for Charles’s affections, then surely the entire family must be taken into account. A woman’s social standing is often defined by her family, after all.”
Caroline seized the opportunity to deliver her final blow. “Indeed, and Miss Bennet’s family is hardly the sort of companywe would want to keep. Her mother’s vulgarity—of which I have heard much talk in town—and her father’s indifference. It would all reflect terribly on Charles, would it not, Mr Darcy? To say nothing of the sisters, who appear mad for officers.”
Darcy wanted to defend Elizabeth and her family but at the same time, he could not deny that they were correct. After all, he’d forbidden Georgiana from attending a ball with the Bennets because he worried for their influence. Surely, such a family could not be tied to his dearest friend.
The fire crackled in the corner, filling the room with its soft, rhythmic warmth, but the silence that followed was heavy, laden with unspoken thoughts and the tension of half-buried emotions. Darcy sat back in his chair, his thoughts racing, but he was not yet ready to confront the full depth of his feelings for Elizabeth.
“You must know,” Caroline said, her voice smooth and deliberately sweet, when she spoke again, “that Mr Collins has arrived in Meryton.”
“Collins?” Louisa asked and Darcy raised his head.
“The cousin upon whom the estate is entailed,” Mr Hurst explained as he consulted a paper by his side. “A vicar, from Kent. You might know him, Darcy. He lives at the Hunsford Parsonage.”
“Hunsford you say?” Darcy said at once alarmed. “I am familiar with him.”
Indeed, Rosings Park was a place that Darcy avoided whenever possible. He had known Lady Catherine all his life, and though he respected her in many ways, her condescending attitude and belief in her superiority were tiresome. As for MrCollins, Darcy had never had the misfortune of having much interaction with him, but from what he had observed, the man was a walking embarrassment. The mere thought of him—his fawning, his inability to take the slightest hint of sarcasm, and his overestimation of his own worth—was enough to make Darcy’s stomach churn.
“I have met Collins. He is the vicar at my aunt’s estate. She holds him in high regard but the same cannot be said for others who have met him,” Darcy said, his voice cool. “I do not imagine he would be much of an asset to anyone in this company.”
“Oh, indeed! I recall you telling us tales of the man now. He sounds rather… interesting. My maid tells me that the ward and this Mr Collins dislike one another greatly, and that the family is rather embarrassed by him also,” Caroline replied, her face a perfect mask of amusement.
“I cannot blame them,” Darcy conceded. “He is somewhat of a bumbling fool, if memory serves me right.”
“Then perhaps he is not without merit in one regard—he is, after all, the heir to Longbourn. It is so… fascinating, don’t you think?” Caroline smiled broadly, looking rather like a cat about to indulge in a mouse.
Darcy raised an eyebrow at the comment. “Heir to Longbourn?” he repeated, his tone even more clipped than before. He could scarcely believe it. As if this entire sordid affair could not get any more complicated.
Caroline nodded. “It seems a most unfortunate turn of events for the Bennet family. Longbourn will be inherited by Mr Collins upon Mr Bennet’s death, as the estate is entailed to him.Mr Bennet’s daughters, as you know, cannot inherit the property themselves, and so it passes to this… parson.”
Darcy’s thoughts raced. He could not help but feel an additional layer of contempt for a man who had so readily accepted an inheritance that had come at the expense of the Bennet family, and particularly for someone as self-important and disagreeable as Collins.
Caroline’s voice interrupted his musing. “Mr Collins, I daresay, will be most useful in reminding Charles of the Bennet family’s unsuitability. He is willing to ignore their lack of a son, their lack of refinement—but he will not be able to ignore the heir’s unsuitability, I am sure.”
