Consequence of Jealousy: A Pride and Prejudice Variation Read online

  Consequence of Jealousy

  Copyright © 2017 by Aubrey Anderson

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Printed in the United States of America

  First Printing, 2017

  ISBN 978-0-9971091-3-9

  MAEMARIE, LLC

  Note: Some passages in this book contain quotations and allusions from “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen.

  Consequence

  Of

  Jealousy

  By

  Aubrey Anderson

  Chapter One

  Mrs. Caroline Darcy was not a woman to be trifled with in any manner. Every gossip, landowner, Lady, an otherwise pretentious upstart that made London their hunting ground, knew this to be true. Although she would never voice it aloud her origins had been somewhat humble--as her family’s wealth and her dowry, a more than handsome sum of twenty thousand pounds, had originated from a rather cunning and industrious Bingley grandfather who made his fortune in trade--her comportment, manner, and beauty had overruled her family’s origins.

  Mrs. Caroline Darcy had indeed proven to her early detractors that she was more than fit to be the next Mistress of such an estate--Pemberley! Some of the especially vicious gossips, Mrs. Caroline Darcy was gratified to learn, had merely clucked their tongues approvingly, upon learning that Caroline Bingley had managed to land even the mysterious, taciturn, and stern, Mr. Fitzwilliam George Darcy. Her brother’s friendship with the reticent Darcy master had been noted as the deciding factor in the Bingley-Darcy union, but Caroline Bingley Darcy scoffed at such ridiculous tittle-tattle. Although Fitzwilliam was a man that demanded comfort and easy accessibility, Caroline Darcy was not a woman to be trifled with. She had learned at the knee of her dear grandmother for whom she had been named, of how she should behave when the time came for her to trade in her pinafore and pigtails for corsets and ball gowns.

  No, Caroline Bingley Darcy realised the value of connections and endearing herself to the correct sort of people the moment she realised that if she presented her ever so carefully embroidered sampler to her grandfather, perhaps with a few lines in French or Italian, she would get a sweet before dinner.

  No--Mrs. Caroline Bingley Darcy knew the usual methods of ensnaring a gentleman would not work with her dear Fitzwilliam. She would have to be more creative, if she was to direct Fitzwilliam’s gaze towards her. Although she was loathe to admit it, even to herself, there were many, much more eligible ladies for Fitzwilliam to direct his gaze to. If he had contained a more mercenary eye, it was just as well that he could have married his sickly, insipid cousin, Anne de Bourgh of Rosings Park. She was not only the heiress of Rosings Park, but also of extensive property, stretching beyond the borders of England, Scotland, and Ireland. However, he had chosen elsewhere for his bride.

  No, he selected an intelligent, refined, and accomplished young woman in her own right, who rightly understood what was most precious to him--his dear, sweet sister--the ever delightful Miss Georgiana Darcy. From their first meeting, Caroline Darcy, then Caroline Bingley, had known what she must do to achieve her family’s long-held dream of bettering their social standing, connections, and wealth--to help her dear brother Charles lead their family’s next generations into the highest echelons of London society.

  She had then befriended the shy Miss Georgiana Darcy, and had brought her out of her shell wonderfully. Soon after their first meeting, and after Caroline Darcy’s first extended visit to what would be her new home, the dear girl had responded to her correspondence with the most delightful, and frequent drawings of beautiful designs for furniture and china, but also bequeathing to Caroline’s custody, music sheets from the very library of her family’s estate, Pemberley.

  Fitzwilliam soon could not only watch their burgeoning friendship, but also become part of it himself, as Caroline made certain to inquire after Fitzwilliam, of her dear friend, Georgiana, as well as interrogate him on whether or not he had brought with him any correspondence between the two ladies, or if he was aware of any incoming correspondence. Fitzwilliam could not help but notice.

  Caroline sighed, spritzing the hollow of her throat with the lovely jasmine scent water that adorned her vanity. Fitzwill--Mr. Darcy, she corrected half-heartedly, even within her own thoughts, would reward her efforts soon. And everything she wished for would then come to fruition.

  A prickling sensation raised the small hairs on the back of her neck, as an unseen hand reached to draw out her jewelled hairclip. Swiftly snatching the errant hand by the wrist, Caroline deftly stood, ready to give her presumptuous lady’s maid the dressing down that she deserved, as well as docking her pay for the week.

  “Caroline!” her elder sister shrieked, the moment she stood, for Caroline had tightened her grip on her wrist.

  Louisa pulled her wrist from Caroline, frowning at the red mark her sister’s neatly manicured nails had left. She quickly squashed the desire to rub it, for she had no wish for an unsightly bruise. She glanced back at her sister.

  “Shall I call Braxton for some ice?” Caroline queried innocently.

  Louisa’s face twisted into a small grimace, as she considered her sister’s actions towards her. “Honestly, Caroline! You declared Miss Eliza as wild and unsophisticated due to her little jaunt here in the mud, how do you believe Grandmother Caroline would judge your display?”

  Giving a slight scoff, Caroline dismissed her sister’s words, “If you had not mentioned Miss Eliza, my dear sister, then I would give your argument more weight. My conduct and manner within this wretched little backwards town have been beyond reproach, and I do not believe Miss Eliza can boast anything such! As such, my dear sister, you should not have approached me thus. How was I to know that Braxton or some other servant did not mean to assault me?”

  A heavy roll of her eyes conveyed all the credibility Louisa gave her excuse. Just as well.

  As Louisa settled herself on the chaise across the room, Caroline glanced at the clock above her head on the mantel. Frowning, she realised it was close to eleven o’clock. Where was Braxton she wondered, for it was far past time for the chit to assist her for the evening. Perhaps Braxton’s pay would be docked by the evening, for surely she knew that a lady of Caroline’s status, of the status she would soon attain, did not include the employ of inattentive servants. If Braxton had not been referred to her by the now late Baroness Hastings daughter, the Honourable Miss Augusta Albright, she would be out on the street as soon as her month’s probation ended.

  “It is late Louisa, why are you not abed? You rise even earlier than Mr. Darcy on some occasions.” Mr. Darcy’s habit of rising early, before the sun’s rays formed completely, had not been adequately prepared for by the staff in the early days of Mr. Darcy’s residence at Netherfield. It had taken some doing, but she had harangued Louisa especially to make sure the staff was following her orders to the letter, as Mr. Darcy and Louisa both rose around the same time of day. While Mr. Darcy, went riding in the early hours, Louisa spent that time in the music room, banging out her heavy concertos. Caroline supposed if she had married a man as lethargic as Mr. Hurst, then she too would spend her morning locked away.

  Louisa looked away briefly, and then stated as casually as she could, “I was checking on Miss Bennet and Miss Eliza for the night, Caroline. That is why I have come. Charles ordered Braxton to attend upon Miss Bennet and Miss Elizabeth tonight---”

  Louis
a halted her speech at the furious expression her sister directed at her and gave a delicate shrug of her shoulders.

  “Charles is merely being polite, Caroline, and the Bennet sisters will be gone on the morrow. Come now,” she tried to soothe her sister’s frazzled nerves. Even at her best, Caroline had never done well with disappointment, and the arrival of the Bennet sisters and the spell they cast over the gentlemen of the house did not sit well with Caroline at all. Nor with Louisa, however, she was used to situations not turning out in her favour, and had learnt patience. Caroline, despite her age of two and twenty, had not yet comprehended this.

  “I am sick of the Bennets!” Caroline spat furiously, her eyes sharp as she considered Louisa’s rather casual attitude towards her home being invaded by pretentious upstarts, fortune hunters who had made it their mission to ensnare, by any means necessary, the hands of the two most eligible gentlemen in the horrid, most backwater town Caroline had ever had the displeasure of visiting. Her task was made easier by the fact that Mr. Darcy loathed Hertfordshire and its people almost as much as she did, although clearly not enough. She would have to work on him, as she had in the days gone by--reminding him of Miss Eliza’s low and ill-bred connections had been an excellent start.

  “Caroline, you truly must calm down!” Louisa cautioned in low tones, her eyes worried, and Caroline realised with a start that she had said all of her previous thoughts aloud, and not what would be termed as a quiet or hushed tone.

  “Well it is true, is it not?” She challenged her sister, uncaring of her warning. When Louisa did not answer straight away, she forged ahead, armed with new complaints. “If I am not able to speak as I wish within my own home Louisa, where else shall I do so? I grant you, I may have been a bit hasty with my earlier proclamations at declaring both of the Bennet girls to be pretentious upstarts, for Jane Bennet is a dear, sweet girl without an ill-thought in her head--as we agreed when we invited her to dine with us. But her mother! Her sisters! I cannot believe Charles is even considering a courtship to besmirch our good name with such a family!”

  “Caroline, you do not even know if Charles is thinking anything towards courtship or matrimony! She is a pretty face and gentle manners, a combination you know well that Charles has never been able to resist, time and time again. It is not likely that he will keep this estate, especially if Mr. Darcy gives his disapproval of the purchasing terms. We will leave soon, and then Charles will be able to find a pretty heiress to occupy his time.” Louisa gave another attempt to quiet her sister, for she knew they were not in London. Although gossip seemed to thrive everywhere, however in all her years, Louisa had never heard it thrive so much as within a small town. Although she did not care what the townspeople thought of her nor her husband, for they would soon be back on their own estate, it would not due for a locally hired maid or footman to overhear Caroline disparaging the town favourites. Her own lesson in that regard had been especially branded into her soul when she had married Mr. Hurst, and it was a lesson she would never forget for all of her years.

  Caroline rolled her eyes and gave a derisive scoff. “You may think the situation will turn out Louisa, although, given the circumstances of your marriage, I could hardly understand otherwise, but I shall not sit back and allow that wretched woman entrap my brother into a marriage that will destroy his social standing! Why else would that woman send her daughter on horseback before a storm? And do not speak to me with regards to the impertinent Miss Eliza! She is not so brash and overt as her mother, yet is obviously not as intelligent nor well read as she pretends to be, for no lady would ever appear as she had in front of a gentlemen such as Mr. Darcy the way she did. Abominable manners!” Caroline hissed as she found herself growing angrier and angrier at the injustice that Eliza Bennet had perpetrated upon her family. Once she found herself speaking, she could not stop. Louisa settled herself comfortably on the chaise, for she knew that until Caroline had her little rant, her little temper tantrum, she would be in even more ill-humour than before. It was best to get it over with as soon as possible, so that she might go to bed.

  “You must agree with me Louisa!”

  “With what assertion, Caroline?” Louisa questioned shortly, not wishing to incite any more points of argument for Caroline to turn back on her, nor add to the length of her diatribe in general.

  “That Miss Eliza has not the looks, nor the wit to capture any sort of a gentleman, let alone one such as Mr. Darcy. It is obvious! Why else would she behave in such an odious manner towards the gentleman? It is clear that she seeks to gain his attention by being deliberately obtuse and difficult. And it has worked!” Caroline, at this point, had begun to pace the length of her vanity towards the chaise that her sister sat upon.

  When she saw that Louisa was simply attempting to wait her out, as she had not responded to Caroline’s slur about the circumstances of her marriage, something inside of her gave way. Caroline prided herself on being able to accurately read people. She had done it all her life. Her Grandmother Caroline had praised her for it, as it was a necessary skill that she would need to move within society. Her skills especially came within use when she and Louisa had been sent off to school at the age of thirteen. The connections she made, without Louisa’s help, had done nothing but embolden her behaviour. As Louisa’s behaviour was doing now. Ever since they had been children, Louisa had always been jealous of her ability to command the attention of her Grandmother Caroline, their parents, and the various guests that they entertained throughout the years. As soon as Louisa realised that she could not command attention in the way that Caroline could, she devised a method of waiting out Caroline. She did this when she saw Caroline garner praise and attention, and when she believed Caroline was being irrational.

  As if Caroline Augustus Bingley, soon to be Darcy, could be anything other than ladylike.

  Well, Caroline would show her. Louisa had gotten herself into a foolish situation, one that ended with her engagement and marriage to Mr. Hurst, and it was because she had held her tongue at the wrong moment. Caroline would never make that mistake, although she supposed she should be glad that Hurst was indeed a well-connected gentleman who was not averse to introducing Charles and Caroline to some of his most illustrious contacts and relatives, as long as food, drink, and sport was in ample supply within the Bingley household.

  However, that did not mean Louisa was better than she, more rational than she, and Caroline would soon have the matter settled as soon as her name changed from Bingley to Darcy. The gall of her sister renewed her fury.

  Caroline sneered as the realisation came to her. “It is obvious, my dear sister, that we should be worried.”

  Louisa raised a brow, undeniably curious. Although she knew Mr. Darcy was somewhat intrigued with Miss Elizabeth Bennet, she did not believe him to be in any danger. She knew gentlemen like him. She was not quite as irrational as Caroline, as she fully-acknowledged the Bennets were the daughters of a gentleman. It was truly unfortunate for the dear, sweet girl, Jane Bennet, to be related to such low connections and ill breeding, and to have such a low fortune to boot! Mr. Darcy was wealthy and independent; he could marry as he chose. She did not believe he would marry a society woman, as she knew full well he despised London. A speculation she would not share with Caroline, for she would not dash her sister’s hopes. However, she knew that he would never ally himself with such an ill-bred, uncouth, forward family, not even if they were the last females in England! Within him, she recognised a love and care for his sister, one she shared for her own. Such relations would only shame Miss Darcy.

  “Worried?” Louisa prodded, her curiosity getting the better of her.

  “Yes, my dear sister,” Caroline crowed triumphantly, causing Louisa to wince at the volume of her voice. “Miss Eliza has clearly learned the mean, false arts of seduction and dissipation from her mother, the honourable Mrs. Bennet. Think of it, Louisa! How else would the daughter of a country magistrate entrap a gentleman! I grant you, it may not seem like Mr
. Bennet is worth much of anything, but around this backwards town, he may as well be the Prince Regent in the flesh! It is his wife and his daughters that set the town fashions, as outdated as they may be. I have little doubt that Mrs. Bennet was just as silly and loud as she is now in her younger years, yet Mr. Bennet married her anyway. I simply must seek the answer, for Charles and Mr. Darcy may be in danger! That immoral woman has sent both of her daughters here to seduce the gentlemen under this very roof? Who knows if they are doing so right now!”

  When Caroline made to move towards the door, Louisa decided that now was the time to act. She would need to calm down her sister quickly, for it was becoming more and more clear that the stress of the visiting Bennet sisters was getting to her, and perhaps a good night’s rest would help her face the next day. She stood, and swiftly grabbed her sister’s wrist, in the same manner as Caroline had grabbed hers earlier. Half measures did not work with Caroline, she had learnt this truth from an early age.

  “Caroline, comport yourself this instant!” Louisa whispered furiously, all too aware that Caroline was behaving as though all of the servants were down to their own rooms for the night. She knew they were not, that a few maids had been elected to serve the Bennets with even more detail, at Charles’ insistence, given that it would be their last night at Netherfield. “You cannot believe--.”