After They Left

By Jose

Posted on 2008-09-17

Is it bad for a man to admit to being jealous?

When Carter first told me that Wickham had left for Gretna Green with Lydia Bennet - or at least that was what everyone believed at the time - the first thing that I thought was “That should have been me leaving with her”. Not that I would have walked out on my regiment, I need my pay packet too much for that, and I try to send what I can to my family. And I would not have wanted to cause problems for a girl's family either. Still, she should have been with me, not with him.

I should never have suggested to that man that he should join our regiment. Wickham seemed a fine enough man when you have a drink with him, but then when you see him racking up debts with the local tradesmen and gambling like there was no tomorrow - not to mention how he carries on with the women - then you have second thoughts about him. He is a sly character, that George, and when he puts his mind to it he can truly be charming. How else did he manage to get himself engaged to Mary King, an heiress with ten thousand pounds, in just a few days? Luckily for her, her father sent her to his brother in Liverpool, effectively ending the engagement. He must have understood something about his daughter's beau, clever man. Back then, nobody else did. Even Elizabeth Bennet, who was supposed to be a girl with a quick wit, fell completely for his stories about being cheated out of a living and marrying his godfather's daughter and all that. Everyone believed him, Lydia told me, except possibly her eldest sister Jane, who was incapable of thinking a mean thought about anyone. Everyone was on his side and the man who was supposed to have wronged him, Mr. Darcy, was disliked and mistrusted by all and did himself no service by being proud and withdrawn. Only the tradesmen came to know better, but no one was listening to them.

When we first arrived in Meryton, she was the first local girl that I met, my first dance partner. She was young and spirited, a playful and sometimes boisterous child in the body of a young woman. She could always find a way to make us officers smile or laugh. Had I the rank or fortune to be able to marry, she might have entered my thoughts. As it was, all that I could hope for was to become her friend. We spoke often, at the camp, in the streets of the village, or at the occasional ball. Her sister Kitty, older by one year, was also there often. There were also other girls that favored the regiment, but the two of them were the most attentive by far. They enjoyed our company and the sight of our red coats, the chance to dance and flirt and joke and tell stories with us, but they had no particular favorites that I could see. It was all a game to them, and to us as well, I dare say. In some games, though, there are people who do not play by the rules.

And then Brighton, the seashore in the summer, longer days and more entertainment. Lydia was also there, as a guest of Colonel Forster's young wife, a friend of hers from Meryton. Once again, she danced and laughed and spent time with all of us. How could I have thought to warn her against Wickham? He had not shown her any more attention than others did. It seemed that involvements were not on her mind and this kept her from any compromising situation. As for his, that was another matter.

Colonel Forster showed me the note that she left for her family, or more exactly, for Kitty to tell the others.
“Kitty, I am telling only you of this, because you are the only one that ever cared three straws for me when everyone else scolds me and calls me a silly girl. Mama will have one less worry, for I am soon to be a married woman! What a lark it will be when I return from Gretna Green and sign my name Lydia Wickham, bride of the most handsome officer that we have ever met!”

He asked me, as well as several others, if I had known anything of this. I had not. Only Saunderson could remember hearing him tell her something about how they had both been ill used by their families. Did this make her think that they could have a future together? The Colonel sent us to the roads, to inquire at the inns and taverns and post-stations whether they had been seen and where they had gone. They could only be traced as far as the London road, which meant Scotland was probably not their destination or that they had no way to arrive there.

On the third day, Carter told me something that changed all of our thoughts. “Denny, we are on a fool's errand,” he said as we were changing our horses' saddles. “If George wanted to marry this girl, he could have gotten himself engaged to her like he did with Miss King. You know how much he owes. And why does he ever do anything with a woman? For money or for sport. Either he wants to have some fun with her and make his way somewhere that his debts will not find him, or he expects to make some money. Either way, it is no business of ours, except for the ten pounds he owes me."

“What do you know, Carter?" I asked him urgently. "Has he told you anything?" Knowing Carter, and the time they spent together drinking and playing cards, he was more likely to be privy to Wickham's plans than anyone else.

“One evening he said something like `Darcy will be livid', but he was halfway in his cups and I paid no attention to it. You know, Darcy, the tall bloke from Derbyshire that he hates."

“The Bennet girls have no fortune that I know of. This does not look well for the lass,” I said. Could it be that Wickham knew he could not gain a father's consent - especially if the people of Meryton had finally found him out - and decided to act this way?

“Then George would no sooner marry her than I would eat raw mutton,” Carter said. “We are wasting our time.” My spirits sank. If there was any reason to think that he loved her, or at least would be honourable, I could have borne it better. Lydia Bennet, what have you done now? Either she will be abandoned or she will have to marry the skunk, and knowing his habits, that would be anything but blissful.

I told the Colonel what Carter told me. He was calling off the search in any case, but he would tell Lydia's father. The damage, I fear, has already been done, even if they find her soon. Not to mention how her family will suffer as well, with a serious black mark against the reputation of her four sisters. Meryton is full of gossips who never forget or forgive anything.

I know there is a ball a week from now, but my appetite for dancing is gone. For now all I need is a few highwaymen to catch, or at least a good strong drink. Or two or three

The End

© 2008 Copyright held by the author.

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