Page 33 of Losing Lizzy
Elizabeth growled again. “You proudful toad! You think I do not know how your father all but disowned you because you were such a disappointment to him. It was my father, you twit, who stood against yours. Mr. Bennet knew the value of having a son, where yours was willing to send you away to live with others. Such was the source of their falling out.” She turned to Sheffield and indicated she would be calmer, and he released her, before she turned back to Collins. “Somehow you learned what my father did for you. Do not deny it. Such is why you extended the proverbial olive branch to my family. You knewyour father had erred, and, in your totally incompetent manner of approaching the world, you meant to offer your gratitude.” She stiffened as she looked upon the man. “Then you betrayed all things holy. You should not wear the robes of a cleric. You do not deserve the honor of serving your parish.”
Charlotte stepped before her husband to block Elizabeth’s view. “I think you have gone too far, Elizabeth. I must ask you to leave this property.”
Elizabeth reached into the pocket sewn in the side seam of her dress to remove the note she knew written by Collins. “Not until you read this message delivered to my home yesterday morning. You should be made aware of the kind of man you married.”
“I already know enough of Mr. Collins’s nature,” Charlotte declared stubbornly.
Sheffield said softly, “It would be easier if you would agree, ma’am. Surely you are aware of Elizabeth’s obstinate nature.”
“And who are you, sir?” Mr. Collins demanded. However, he remained partially concealed behind his wife, using her as his shield. “I view no ring on either of your fingers. Is the gentleman your protector, Cousin Elizabeth? Have you become a kept woman?” he said in accusation.
Sheffield’s hand caught Elizabeth’s elbow to hold her in place. “I am Mr. Darcy’s valet and do upon occasion, when the gentleman himself is not available, serve as the lady’s protector, but not in the sense of degradation that you infer. Yet, we are both aware I have been made known to you. You, obviously, can name my identity; otherwise you would not have known the directions displayed upon the outside of the note in your wife’s hands.” Sheffield tucked Elizabeth into his side. “Please read the message, Mrs. Collins. We await your opinion.”
Elizabeth held her breath as her long-time friend and confidante unfolded the note to read its contents. “You have a daughter, Elizabeth?” Charlotte smiled sadly. “We lost ours.”
“I am grieved for your loss, Charlotte. You, as a mother,will certainly understand how I feel. I have a daughter,” Elizabeth said simply, “but someone has stolen her away. I must find her, Charlotte, before it is too late.”
“And Mr. Darcy?” Charlotte asked, a frown forming on her features as her eyes returned to the paper.
“Very much alive and searching Kent, brick-by-brick, to locate his child,” Elizabeth explained. “Mr. Collins knows something of where my daughter has been taken.”
Elizabeth heard the click of a gun. She turned to discover Mr. Sheffield’s driver holding a pistol on Mr. Collins, who had, obviously, thought to make his exit or, more likely, report Elizabeth’s accusations to Lady Catherine at the great house, while she attempted to convince Charlotte of the urgency of their mission.
“I would suggest ye rejoin yer wife, sir,” Mr. Jacobsen said.
“Mr. Collins,” Charlotte accused in sharp tones. “You wrote this note.”
“I did not,” he said with a sickening smile on his lips, evidently meant to convince his wife of his innocence.
“Mine was not a question, sir,” Charlotte corrected. “You have executed Lady Catherine’s dirty work again. It is bad enough you harangue her tenants when she instructs you to do so, but to commit such a crime! I recognize your handwriting. Do not deny you are, if not the author, the transcriber, of this note. I have corrected enough of your sermons to be well aware of your script. It is one thing to feed her ladyship’s vanity in order to maintain your position, but it is quite another to send threatening notes to those who have treated you fairly. And how could you be involved in stealing away a child from her family? Can you not imagine the terror that little girl experiences? What if she were your child? Our child?”
He said in excuse, “I had no choice. Such was Lady Catherine’s wish.”
Charlotte charged at her husband then, much as Elizabeth had done earlier. “You placed Lady Catherine’s Bedlam-likedemands before the welfare of our family? Before the welfare of your relations? You conspired to separate your cousin from her child!”
“The child was born without the benefit of wedding vows,” he protested.
“Are you certain?” Mr. Sheffield said quietly.
“Lady Catherine says it is so,” Mr. Collins insisted.
Charlotte snapped. “Then it must be written as surely as if it was the finger of God damning the child. Heaven forbid Lady Catherine de Bourgh would approve of an opinion not of her own making! And even if it were true that Elizabeth’s child was Mr. Darcy’s by-blow, your duty as a cleric is to pray for her and the child’s eternal souls, not set as judge! When did our God set you in judgement of others? Jesus did not judge Mary Magdalene. Instead, he welcomed her among those who followed him.”
“Be reasonable, Charlotte,” he entreated. “Lady Catherine will turn us out without a reference if I do not do what she asks. I had no choice.”
“You always have a choice, Mr. Collins,” Charlotte said in steely tones. “The difference is whether you are man enough to stand against those who defame others. You will make this right, or I will take your child and return to my father’s house in Hertfordshire.” It was only then that Elizabeth realized Charlotte was again with child. Lying with a man such as Mr. Collins would never appeal to Elizabeth, but Charlotte was different. All her friend had ever wanted was children and a house of her own.
Mr. Collins attempted to stand his ground. “You are my wife, Mrs. Collins. You may not leave without my permission, and I will never tolerate your removing my child from this house.”
“And I will not tolerate a man who practices such evil against his relations. I would not want our child to know such a man as his or her father. I want my children to be raised with honor. Moreover, I doubt my father or my brothers will care for your posturing, Husband,” she declared. “Sir William Lucas raised his children with values.”
Mr. Sheffield added, “Do not forget Mr. Darcy, sir. Once he has located his daughter, Mr. Darcy will move heaven and earth to destroy all those who stood against him. You would do well to tell Elizabeth what you know. It may be the only thing to save you.”
“Lady Catherine will not allow anything to occur to me or the others who serve her. She is my patron,” Collins asserted. “She is the daughter of an earl and the widow of a baronet, permitting her precedence over her nephew. Her word is her bond.”
“Since when?” Charlotte said sarcastically.
“You cannot think to compare her ladyship with her nephew,” Sheffield argued. “Mr. Darcy is one of the wealthiest men in England. Even his uncle, Lady Catherine’s brother, fears Mr. Darcy. You should also,” Sheffield warned in ominous tones. “A wealthy gentleman always trumps the widow of a commoner.”
