An Invisible Thread Page 8

  Darcy sat beside his wife and took her hands in his. “Are you well, my love?”

  “I hardly know what just happened. I was angry with the person who,” Elizabeth blushed, “interrupted our lessons. Then I walked in here and your Aunt Patricia seemed to charm the anger right out of me. And now it seems I also have an appointment to accompany your aunt to her modiste in order to purchase my trousseau. Our marriage is being celebrated with a dinner party at Matlock House and I hardly know what to say. I fear our honeymoon is over.”

  “Yes, Aunt Patricia is very forceful when she wants to be. Elizabeth, you won her over with your charm and liveliness. She now knows that you are real and here to stay. I believe she feels you need an ally in all that we are about to face and she has decided that she will be there for you and for us.”

  “But, William, a dinner party? I will feel so out of place. I am so nervous about it already and it is still five days away.”

  “No need to be nervous, you will dazzle them all as you did Aunt Patricia. As for those nerves, I think I know just the thing to make you feel better.”

  “Really? Please tell me.”

  “I cannot really tell you my idea, I think I had better show you. Upstairs, in our chambers, now!”

  “Tyrant!”

  “My little minx, get moving! And our honeymoon is not over, not even close!”

  They both smiled at each other as they walked upstairs as quickly as they could. When they entered Elizabeth’s chambers, they politely dismissed Martha and resumed their lovemaking lessons.

  As promised, the Fitzwilliam’s carriage arrived at Darcy House at precisely one o’clock. Elizabeth was ready but she had been unsure about what to wear to London’s most fashionable modiste. She and Martha spoke about it and in the end Elizabeth wore her best day dress. She knew it was probably quite shabby by London’s standards.

  “Good afternoon, your Ladyship, I mean Aunt Patricia.” Elizabeth said as she entered the carriage. “Thank you so much for taking the time to arrange this appointment for me.”

  “Lizzy, my dear girl, London can be a cruel place for people and especially for women who are unaware of what is expected of them, particularly when it comes to fashion. I am guessing that you are wearing your best day dress. Am I correct?”

  Elizabeth nodded her head. “I discussed what to wear with my lady’s maid for thirty minutes. This was the best we could come up with. I feel totally overwhelmed by the whole experience of shopping for clothes as Mrs. Darcy.”

  “Worry not, Lizzy. I will not let you fail. Just follow my lead and you will be just fine.” By the time Aunt Patricia had stopped speaking, the carriage was coming to a halt in front of what must have been the most attractive store in London. The windows were full of mannequins wearing the most beautiful dresses Elizabeth had ever seen and she was speechless. “Come along, my dear, it is time to spend lots of Darcy’s money.” They were both laughing as they exited the carriage.

  The moment they opened the door of Madame Michele’s shop, the owner herself rushed to greet them. “Lady Matlock, you honor me with your presence. And this must be Mrs. Darcy. All of London has been desperate to catch a glimpse of you. I am so pleased to meet you madam and I welcome you to my shop. How can I help you ladies today?”

  “Madame Michele, as you may know, my niece is newly married and is in need of a complete new wardrobe. Morning dresses, walking gowns, dinner dresses, ball gowns and several items of a more personal nature that all newlywed women must have. She will also need hats, gloves and shoes. Do you think you could help us?”

  “Of course, my Lady. Mrs. Darcy has a most pleasing figure and it will be my pleasure to make sure she looks her best at all times. Please follow me.” Madame Michele led the two women through some curtains and into a large open area with low tables, chairs and love seats. “Please take a seat and I will be back shortly to show you some things I hope you will like.” Madame Michele left them and walked through some curtains toward the back of the store. As they were waiting, a maid brought out a tea service and some delicious looking cakes.

  Elizabeth and Lady Matlock were enjoying their tea and cake when a beautiful young woman came through the curtains from the dressing rooms. “Lady Matlock, what a pleasant surprise. I just had a fitting for my gown for your Ball on Friday.” The woman did not even look at Elizabeth. ‘A Ball,’ Elizabeth thought to herself. ‘I thought this was going to be a dinner party with family. I am really and truly in over my head now!’ Once again Elizabeth was filled with self-doubts.

  “Lady Alice Thornton, allow me to introduce my niece, Mrs. Elizabeth Darcy.” Elizabeth stood and curtsied while Lady Alice barely bent her knee in response.

  “So, you are the elusive Mrs. Darcy.” She said with venom in her voice. She looked Elizabeth up and down with a critical eye, closely inspecting everything from her hair to her shoes. “I daresay I must be one of the only people in London who has met the woman who finally captured our dear Mr. Darcy.”

  “Lady Alice, to clear up any misconceptions you may have, I did not ‘capture’ anyone. My husband and I met almost a year ago. He courted me, we became betrothed and then we married.” Elizabeth shot Lady Alice a glare which she pretended not to see.

  “We look forward to seeing you on Friday night, Lady Alice. Enjoy the rest of your afternoon.” With those words Lady Matlock let Lady Alice Thornton know that she was being dismissed.

  Lady Alice curtsied in Lady Matlock’s direction. “Good day to you, my lady,” she said to Lady Matlock. As an afterthought she glanced at Elizabeth and barely nodded her head as she headed out of the store.

  Elizabeth waited until she heard the front door of the store close before she spoke. “Aunt Patricia, what was that all about? It felt like she was shooting daggers at me with her eyes.”

  “Oh, Lady Alice’s comments are nothing compared to some of the things you will see and hear about your marriage to Darcy. I believe she and Darcy had some kind of affair before she married. Now that she is a wealthy widow with a title, she cannot believe anyone, much less my nephew, would pass her over for someone like you. I do not say that to insult you Lizzy, but that is how many people of the ton will look at things. You must not let Lady Alice or anyone else upset you.”

  Darcy had told her on their wedding night that he had never been with a woman before and Elizabeth was sure that Darcy and Lady Alice had never had any sort of dalliance. She knew that she could not share that information with his aunt or anyone else. She was about to respond to Lady Matlock’s advice when Madame Michele, followed by two assistants, came through the curtains carrying more dresses, hats and footwear than Elizabeth had ever seen before. “Shall we begin, madam?”

  Several hours later, Elizabeth and Lady Matlock entered the Fitzwilliam carriage. Several footmen were required to carry all the boxes of finery Elizabeth was taking home. Elizabeth was leaving the modiste with several gowns that had already been fitted to her needs. Many more gowns were to be delivered to Darcy House in the following days and even more required additional fittings. Elizabeth was exhausted and could not get the words and looks of Lady Alice out of her mind. As they sat across from each other in the carriage, Lady Matlock noticed how pale and drawn Elizabeth looked. “Are you quite well, Lizzy? Your face looks rather ashen.”

  “Thank you, Aunt Patricia, I am well. Just a bit tired after all those fittings. I cannot thank you enough for your guidance today.”

  “Nonsense, what are aunts for? I am the mother of two boys, so helping you shop for your trousseau was a real treat for me. I was going to ask Georgiana to join us today but I thought that your first foray into London society might be fraught with dangers. I did not want to expose Georgiana to anything that would upset her.”

  “Dangers, Aunt Patricia? I do not understand what you mean.“

  “I simply mean I did not want Georgiana to be exposed to the barbs that might be thrown your way by someone like Lady Alice or anyone else. I brought you with me today to
protect you in my own way. Being married to a peer has some value at times like these.” The carriage was pulling up in front of Darcy House.

  “Would you like to come in, Aunt Patricia?” asked a dispirited Elizabeth.

  “No, thank you, my dear, I have taken you away from your husband long enough. I am sure he is eager to have you back home, alone!”

  “Thank you again for today. We will see you on Friday night at the Ball,” Elizabeth said. She wanted to let Lady Matlock know that she knew Friday night was not simply a dinner party for their family. The Fitzwilliams were hosting a Ball so all of London could inspect and judge the new Mrs. Darcy. Elizabeth had never felt so much self-doubt about her new role.

  When Elizabeth entered Darcy House she heard someone shouting in a loud, shrill voice and she knew it could only be one person. As she walked toward the drawing room she heard Lady Catherine de Bourgh yelling at her husband. She stood quietly in the drawing room doorway but Lady Catherine noticed her immediately.

  “You! How dare you show your face in my daughter’s future home!”

  “Good day to you, Lady Catherine,” Elizabeth curtsied.

  Darcy seemed frozen in place standing next to the fireplace. This was the first time since their betrothal in Hertfordshire that he did not immediately come to her side when she entered a room.

  “You are nothing but a cheap harlot. You used your country girl arts and allurements to entice my nephew into this sham of a marriage.”

  “Aunt Catherine, you will apologize to my wife right now!”

  “I shall not! I will never apologize to her. She is unworthy to bear the Darcy name. Yes, her father is a gentleman but she was raised in nothing more than genteel poverty. She has no dowry, no connections and who are her people? They are tradesmen! Tradesmen, Darcy! She brings nothing to this marriage. She is completely unfit for a role in our society. I have learned there is no question of your marriage being consummated but there are still many ways to be rid of this interloper.”

  “Aunt Catherine, I do not know who you have spying on my private life but I will quickly find out and that will be the end of your source of information. Elizabeth is my wife and nothing will ever change that. She is more than capable of being the mistress of Pemberley and this house. You have insulted her for the last time. Either you apologize to my wife or you will no longer be welcome in any of our homes. The decision is yours, madam.”

  “Darcy, what about Anne?” Lady Catherine said in a much more conciliatory voice. “What about the plans your mother and I made for you while the two of you were still in your cradles? How can you break your cousin’s heart?” Then her voice returned to the harsh tone she started with. “What about the uniting of our two great estates? Think of the power you could have! You would give all that up for this meaningless intruder?”

  Darcy ran his hand through his hair. “Aunt Catherine, Anne and I were never betrothed. My mother never mentioned anything to me about your ridiculous plans. Ask Anne how she feels about it. She has never wanted to marry me. She knows she is not healthy enough to be mistress of Pemberley or to produce an heir. You and Uncle Hugh only thought about the power you would gain if our two estates were united. You used my devotion to my sister as a means to your own selfish ends. If you are not prepared to speak kindly to my wife, I must ask you to leave Darcy House and never return.” With these words, Darcy finally walked over to Elizabeth and placed her hand on his arm. Elizabeth wondered if Darcy could feel her hand trembling through the thickness of his jacket. As Lady Catherine rushed from the room, her eyes never looked toward the young couple.

  “You will regret this Darcy! There are many ways of dissolving this marriage! I will have my way! You have not heard the last from me!” The front door was opened by a footman and Lady Catherine walked down the front steps and into her waiting carriage.

  Darcy took Elizabeth’s hand and led her away from the doorway. He walked her over to the couch where he helped her be seated and then he sat on a nearby chair. “I am sorry you had to hear any of that. When Lady Catherine arrived, I was hoping Aunt Patricia would keep you longer at the modiste so you would miss her visit. Please do not take anything my aunt said to heart. She is a mean and selfish woman who thinks only of herself. Now that she is banned from our homes, I doubt we will ever see her again. Simply forget she was ever here.”

  “She must hate me a great deal to call me those names and discredit my family that way. I hope you are right about us never seeing her again.”

  “Let us forget about Lady Catherine’s visit and speak of more pleasant things. How was your visit to Madame Michele’s?”

  Chapter 11

  Elizabeth’s head was spinning. How could Darcy so easily dismiss what she had just heard? How could she ‘simply forget’ about all the horrible things Lady Catherine said? How could she forget everything she was falsely accused of being and doing in order to ‘entice’ Darcy to marry her? Darcy appeared not to notice or care that his aunt had called her a ‘cheap harlot’ and ‘meaningless intruder’. He had demanded an apology but he knew his aunt would never humble herself to this ‘interloper’. Elizabeth tried desperately to gather her thoughts. She felt that during those long minutes with Lady Catherine something had suddenly shifted inside her and she did not know how she was going to deal with these new feelings. Elizabeth could not understand why Darcy did not come to her side as a sign of support for his wife while Lady Catherine was speaking to her so cruelly.

  Elizabeth looked up at her husband sitting nearby. “Aunt Patricia was very helpful and I selected a number of things which I hope you will like. We also met a friend of yours, Lady Alice Thornton.”

  Elizabeth had been watching Darcy’s face and when she said Lady Alice’s name, he grimaced. “Did Lady Alice have anything interesting to say?”

  “Well, first, this ‘family dinner party’ on Friday night is a Ball. Lady Alice told Aunt Patricia that she was at Madame Michele’s for a fitting for her gown for the gala event. She expressed her surprise at meeting me. She said she thought she was one of the only people in London who had met the ‘elusive woman who had captured our dear Mr. Darcy.'”

  “I am not surprised that my Aunt Patricia deceived us about the extent of this social gathering on Friday. She loves to entertain and her aim is to impress all her guests. I should have realized that a small family dinner party would be too limiting for her. My dear, you will undoubtedly meet London’s elite on Friday night and be subject to their scrutiny. I am already sorry we accepted her invitation.”

  ‘No more than I regret it,’ thought Elizabeth. She noticed that her husband had not responded to anything she had told him about Lady Alice.

  Darcy rose and said, “I have some more work to do in my study. I will see you at dinner.” With those words Darcy stood and left the room. He had not come to her side. He did not kiss her hand or her forehead when he left the room. Elizabeth felt abandoned, vulnerable and insecure after all the abuse she had endured in the past few hours. Right before her eyes her loving, kind husband had transformed into the cold, uncaring man she met the first time he came to Hertfordshire. Elizabeth felt a headache coming on and decided that she would return to her rooms. She told Martha that she had a headache and asked not to be disturbed.

  After several hours, Elizabeth heard a light knock on her door and she asked whomever was knocking to enter. She saw her tall, handsome husband who was dressed for dinner, enter her room. “Are you still unwell, my love?”

  “I have a bad headache. Do you mind if I have a tray sent up later. I am not hungry right now.”

  “I do not mind at all. I will have my dinner sent up as well. I have come to enjoy eating on trays in our chambers.”

  Elizabeth thought about those first days of their marriage and how happy she was. What had happened today to make her doubt those feelings? She knew she needed to be alone to think things through. “As you wish, but you are already dressed for dinner. Why do you not eat downstairs and I will see
you later?”

  Darcy was unsure why Elizabeth was turning him away. Was she very unwell with a headache? Had he done something to upset her? He decided to avoid any discussion on the matter and he bowed to her as he left the room. Elizabeth had never felt so alone. She turned to her pillow and began to cry.

  Later that night, when Darcy entered her bed chamber, Elizabeth was already in bed and had turned on her side facing away from the door. Darcy immediately noticed that her hair was braided. She pretended to be asleep and was hoping her husband would go away. She was not ready to talk about her feelings and she was certainly in no mood for one of their lessons tonight. She felt the mattress shift as Darcy got into bed and eventually he turned on his side with his back to her. Some time later, she heard the steady rhythm of his breathing and knew her husband was asleep. Elizabeth thought about what Aunt Patricia said about Darcy and Lady Alice having been ‘together’. After seeing his reaction at the mention of her name, Elizabeth thought that maybe Darcy only said what he did on their wedding night in order to alleviate her anxiety. Was Lady Alice a former lover? Were there many more? Did he have a mistress and a child as Wickham suggested?

  Elizabeth’s mind was also full of Lady Catherine’s words, but she would have to think about her verbal attack in the morning. Elizabeth continued to ask herself why her husband was not sensitive to her feelings. He had to know how upset she was after Lady Catherine's insulting tirade. She had only told him some of the nasty comments Lady Alice made. Although she was very upset on many levels, Elizabeth eventually fell into a fitful sleep.