Page 46 of Compromise & Consequence
Darcy clamped his lips tight.
“First, Wickham was not at the ball; nor in Hertfordshire. Your wife did not conspire with him in any way, shape, or form. You owe her an apology and I suggest your valet places extra padding in the knees of your trousers.”
“Whatever for?”
Darcy felt as though a pit had settled in his stomach.
“You will be begging her mercy by the time I have finished telling all I know.”
“Dare I ask you to continue?”
“Oh yes, You absolutely must.”
“You are too happy about all this. It does not bode well for me.”
“It does not.” Richard grinned and the pit in Darcy’s stomach grew two sizes larger. “As I enjoyed a very expensive brandy in Mr. Bennet’s library, I noticed several things besides the quality of his liquor.”
“Such as?”
“He had many books. Rare books, new books, and a large family Bible.”
“I am sure you were suitably impressed.”
“Frankly, I was. His library may not be as large as yours, but I would bet you two shillings he has more rare books than you.”
“I highly doubt that,” scoffed Darcy.
“This is still not what I found so interesting. I am sure when you huffed and puffed your way through the house, you took no notice of the expensive paintings, well-made furniture, and priceless little artifacts scattered about. For an impoverished family with an entailed estate, they live fairly high on the instep. The dinner Mrs. Bennet provided would rival some of the great houses here in town.”
“I will not deny that Mrs. Bennet is a good hostess. It is her vulgar manners I detest.”
“No doubt and the little baggage that is her youngest daughter makes them all seem worse than they are.”
“I see you met Miss Lydia. Crazy about officers and the such. She chased one of them around the room with a sword, at Bingley’s ball! Can you imagine?”
“From her? Yes. Now, let me finish my story. Are you aware that your wife is not even the daughter of Mr. Bennet?” Darcy’s eyes widened in surprise. “She is his niece. Her father was Mr. Bennet’s younger brother.”
“How did you find all this out?”
“Before leaving for Meryton, I stopped by here to have breakfast with Georgiana. Imagine my surprise when I discovered Mrs. Darcy at the breakfast table and not on her way to Pemberley as planned. We had an interesting conversation and she let slip that she was Bennet’s niece. We will speak later about the bruise on her cheek. But enough of that, I wish to tell you about my time at Longbourn.”
“For someone used to barking out orders, you are taking an inordinate amount of time to relay the facts,” grumbled Darcy.
“Patience man, I am getting there. After dinner and a lovely time in the presence of Miss Jane Bennet – oh, by the by –Bingley was a fool to have left her behind.” When Darcy opened his mouth to decry Bingley’s decision, he said, “Tut, tut, no interrupting. After we had retired for the evening, and I was sure all were asleep, I took myself down to Mr. Bennet’s cozy study, and settled in to see who was faithfully recorded in that family Bible I spotted earlier.”
He speared Darcy with a hard look.
“Did you know there has been a Bennet at Longbourn since King Henry sat on the throne? They have been landed gentry for almost as long as your family. In that regard, you and your wife are equals. I found the entry for Mrs. Darcy’s father, James Bennet. He married Isabella de Cortez in 1788 and your wife was born in May of ’91. Her mother died in ‘95 and her father in ‘98.”
“What does this have to do with anything? It changes nothing that she is the niece and not the daughter.”
“You are so impatient. I am getting to that.” Richard leaned back in his chair and stretched his legs, crossing one ankle over the other. “While at Mr. Bennet’s desk, I spied his ledger. Seeing as I had already delved into the family tree, I decided to check his finances.” Richard straightened. “I heard you say their estate only brings in about two thousand pounds per annum.” Darcy nodded in affirmation. “That sum is far, far below what it brings in. Longbourn turns a profit of over four thousand a year.”
“What? How is that possible?”
“Mr. Bennet is very clever. He dares not put all the money back into the estate because of the entail. His wife and daughters will not profit from any of their hard work. However, he has found a workaround. Mrs. Bennet and her four daughters each have a tidy sum of money to spend each month as they like. A little over a thousand pounds is put back into the estate for its requirements, and the rest is gifted to one Elizabeth Bennet.”
At Darcy’s look of outright surprise, Richard chuckled softly.
