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Jane, who were happy to see their husbands for their own sake, the event
also meant they would the sooner be on their way back home to their families.
For the rest, the anticipation of what the men might have to report
predominated. Mrs. Bennet, feeling the import of the occasion, roused herself
so much as to dress and venture downstairs, assisted by her two younger
daughters.
    They all
gathered in the drawing room as soon as the men had had time to change from
their traveling clothes and take a little refreshment. Mr. Darcy took his stand
at the head of the room, before the hearth, whilst the others seated
themselves, waiting in alert attendance upon his good pleasure. Even Mrs.
Bennet held her peace, seeming in no hurry to demand the news from town.
Silence was her friend. As long as the moment could be sustained, all things
were still possible; every one of her darling wishes, no matter how ultimately
unviable, still breathed. Yet she could not curb her curiosity and her tongue
forever.
    “Oh, Mr. Darcy,
I can bear the suspense no longer!” she cried out. “What news do you bring,
good or ill?”
    “Forgive me, Madam,”
he answered, “but what is there of good to be expected?”
    “The entail, of
course! You must know that I have lived in the hope of Mr. Gerber discovering a
way of escaping it. What do we pay him for, if not to turn the tide in our
favor?”
    “As with turning
the tide, Mrs. Bennet, escaping the entail would require a miracle… or at the
very least, an act of Parliament… and no such thing has occurred to spare
Longbourn, I am sorry to say. Mr. Bennet’s estate is just as entailed as it
ever was, and now must legally pass, as we anticipated, into the hands of Mr.
Collins’s younger brother – a Mr. Tristan Collins. If there is any good news in
the case, it is that he currently resides in the Americas, in a place called Virginia. Mr. Gerber is bound by law to notify him of his inheritance, and yet it will be
some time – a few months at a minimum, I should think – before he could arrive
to assert his rights. So you will have at least that long to make other
arrangements.”
    “Then, all is
lost forever!” Mrs. Bennet wailed before abandoning herself to a noisy fit of
tears.
    “There, there,
Mama,” offered Jane, patting her mother’s hand. “This is nothing so very
alarming, only what was to be expected. You shall always be well looked after.
Have no fear.”
    When Mrs.
Bennet had quieted some, Mr. Darcy went on to explain the rest of the
information provided by the solicitor. There was nothing remarkable in it, only
such limited provisions for Mr. Bennet’s widow and daughters as had been known
to them all along, and which would go no very great distance towards their
comfort and keeping.
    Unlike her
mother, Mary heard the news with a brave face. She had never entertained even
the slightest hope of a financial reprieve, nor did she particularly desire
one. What difference would a larger dowry make for her now? Enough money might
still have produced a marriage proposal, most likely one from a widowed old man
with ten unruly children for her to look after. When compared to that unhappy
scenario, however, she should infinitely prefer her current situation. After
all, it was what she had chosen with her eyes wide open… over the strenuous
objections of all her relations, some of whom had called it a lowering of
herself and an embarrassment to the family.
    Mary did not
see honest employment as a degradation, though. In truth, she was proud that
she had within herself the resources to make her own way in life. Her natural
inclination for industry, study, and musical accomplishment had equipped her
well for the occupation of governess. And surely there was sufficient
consequence for any reasonable person in a job well done.
    From these
contemplations, Mary was called back to the room by her mother’s sudden
outburst.
    “But, Mr.
Darcy, you have failed to answer for us a most vital