Page 66 of A Most Beloved Sister
“Now, before you are run away with your feelings of gratitude, allow me to finish. My reasons for marrying are, first, that I think it a right thing for every clergyman in easy circumstances like myself. Secondly, I am convinced it will add greatly to my happiness, and thirdly—which I perhaps ought to have mentioned first—is that my noble patroness commands it. She has even promised to visit you once we are married!”
It was these final words that pushed past the haze of shock and induced Elizabeth to anger. She pushed away the offending finger that had remained lingering on her lips for the man’s speech.
“When we aremarried?” The words flew from her mouth, and she forced herself to keep from screaming. Just the thoughtof being tied to this man for the remainder of her life made her queasy.
Mr. Collins lumbered to his feet, stumbling and grabbing hold of her arm to keep his balance. She gasped and attempted to yank herself from his grip, but he chuckled. “My dear Cousin Elizabeth! Your modesty does you no disservice at all, but rather, it merely adds to your other perfections! You would have been less amiable in my eyes had there not been this little unwillingness. But now that we are engaged, there is nothing improper in a chaste kiss between lovers.”
Elizabeth’s eyes widened as the parson’s pudgy face and fleshy jowls leaned in towards her. She could smell the foul stench of rotting food on his breath, and she turned her face away as his corpulent frame leaned into hers.
Pulling away with all her might, she could feel the bruises that would probably form. As he was much larger than she was, it was a hopeless case; shouting would do no good, as it would only lead to a compromise. Her best chance would be to run as soon as he set her free.
“Oy! You there! Let go of her!”
Elizabeth gasped in relief as Jamie’s shout caused Mr. Collins’s hand to loosen on her arm, his lips only a hair’s breadth away from her own. She yanked herself free from his grasp and dashed towards Jamie, running with all her might.
“Miss Lizzy, are you all right?” Jamie, who was standing on the front drive, looked at her in alarm.
“Keep him away from me,” she cried. “Mama brought him from Longbourn. He’s Papa’s heir, and he says he’s going to marry me. Send someone for my father.”
She ran into the house, calling for Grantham. When the butler appeared, his normally unflappable face betrayed his concern at her disheveled state. “Miss Elizabeth? What on earth—?”
“Donotallow that man in here!” she cried. “Mr. Collins can wait outside until Mr. Bennet arrives from Longbourn. He isnotto be granted entry unless myself or Mrs. Hurst allows it, and only if Mrs. Hurst has spoken to me first. Is that understood?”
Grantham’s training took over, and he schooled his features back to their detached appearance. “Of course.”
The butler turned and snapped his fingers at two footmen, then began issuing orders at other servants. Elizabeth left him to his work and made her way back towards the parlor, where her mother was standing at the window, looking out towards the gardens.
“Oh, a daughter married! My dear Mrs. Collins!”
Mrs. Bennet made to throw her arms around her daughter, but she was forestalled when Elizabeth raised her hand. In an icy tone, Elizabeth said, “I am not engaged, Mama. Nor shall I be anytime soon. Absolutely nothing you say will induce me to marry that man.”
The delight on Mrs. Bennet’s face instantly changed to a scowl. “Now see here, Miss Lizzy Bennet! I have not raised you to be such an ungrateful—”
But her words were cut short; Elizabeth’s voice grew even colder. “Mother, you should think very carefully about what you do next. I can definitely assure you that you willnotbe happy if I take your place as mistress of Longbourn when Papa passes on.”
“I… I don’t understand. You would save us all! If you reject this offer—and it may very well be theonlyoffer of marriage you get—I will not maintain you when your father is dead.”
“And I, madam, will not maintainyouat Longbourn if I am its mistress.”
It took a full five seconds for Mrs. Bennet’s mean understanding to process what her most intelligent daughter was saying, but when she was finally able to comprehend Elizabeth’s words, her face paled. “You would not… surely not…certainly you would not turn out your own mother from her home?”
“You mean to say that you do not think I would remove you from my sight? The very woman who would condemn me to a life of misery with that… that disgusting oaf out there? Who would not listen to a single word I said? Who would force himself on me when I tried to reject him? Mama, I can safely promise you that if you were to succeed in securing my marriage with Mr. Collins, you would no longer live at Longbourn once I became its mistress.”
The frost in Elizabeth’s voice seemed to have frozen Mrs. Bennet in her place. After a few moments of silence, Elizabeth added calmly, “Now, the butler has been ordered to have Mr. Collins remain outside. My father has been summoned from Longbourn to address the situation as well. What is your choice, madam?”
Chapter 18
Elizabeth stared at her mother, fists clenched tightly at her side. Lord, please let my father come quickly!
While her outward demeanor presented a young woman who was firm in her resolve, inside, she trembled. Whilst she had defied her mother on occasion in the past—such as refusing to add more lace to a dress or lower the neckline another inch—this was an act of insubordination that had never before been seen in the Bennet household.
Indeed, if it were not for her knowledge of the money her father had set aside, as well as Bingley’s forthcoming proposal and her semi-permanent residency at Netherfield, Elizabeth did not know if she would otherwise have had the courage to speak so insolently to the woman who had raised her.
In the past, her courage had always risen with every attempt to intimidate her, but Elizabeth’s encounter with Mr. Collins had left her quite shaken. It took every ounce of mental fortitude she possessed to say what she had and to not recall her words under her mother’s astonished gaze.
Mrs. Bennet folded her arms and glared at her most troublesome daughter. “Well,” she sniffed, “we shall see what your father has to say about this when he arrives! Mark my words, Elizabeth Bennet—if you refuse Mr. Collins, then you canconsider yourself no longer welcome at Longbourn as long as I live!”
“And if I am forced to accept him,” Elizabeth shot back, folding her own arms to hide her trembling hands, “then you will no longer be welcome at Longbourn oncePapano longer lives!”
