Page 135 of Shields and Roses

Collins had eventually made it to Scotland under their "care" while grumbling all the while about how long the trip seemed to be taking and the inconvenience Wickham had put him to by making this arrangement for Collins to marry his bride. Even the befuddling herbs had not erased his sense of purpose. He knew he was on his way to get married, and during any semi-lucid moment he had much to say on the subject. As it was, Darcy's men became so frustrated with their charge that they did a little planning and diverting of their own, aided by a chance encounter.

In the Scottish border village where they stopped, intending to desert Collins to his fate, they ran across a young woman determined to find a husband. Although generally a smart woman, she had been tricked into indiscretion by a man who promised her marriage. When she discovered herself in the family way, although not yet so far as to be obviously showing, he lured her to Scotland and there he left her. Along the way, she learned he had a wife already and had left others in a similar situation to her own. Knowing how difficult life would be for her and the child without a husband - any husband - or the help of her family, who had already cast her out, she was desperate. When she heard from the footman that Collins was a single clergyman who was expecting to marry a woman named Elizabeth, who had never met and who was neither agreeable nor available, Betsy Connors jumped at the chance. In this she was aided by the fact that she could legally contract the marriage in Scotland without swearing to be anyone else or being called by her surname during the process.

With the aid of Darcy's men, she was introduced to Collins as Elizabeth Bennet. To be fair, the footman warned her how poor a catch she was getting. When they met, she realized the warning had not been overstated. However poor he might be in personality or wealth, though, he was still a chance for her to have a socially respectable situation and a legitimate child. She would learn to manage him. She was certain of that. He seemed unintelligent enough that with a little early concealment, he might never even realize her child was not his own. Of course, Darcy's men had figured out her "secret" as the driving reason why she needed to marry, but they promised not to tell Collins. That courtesy did not extend to Bennet, Peter or Darcy - they needed to know.

Although he thought he was marrying Elizabeth Bennet when he publicly claimed Betsy as his wife, Elizabeth Collins, it was still a legal marriage under the local customs, and more than one problem was solved by it. By means of a bit of theft, Darcy's men had made sure Collins had very little money on him so he would not easily return when they left him there. What they had removed from his pockets, along with a little bit more they were sure Darcy would approve of, they gave to the new Mrs. Collins on condition she keep her husband away from Hunsford as long as possible. She agreed a wedding tour would be just the thing, so long as they also gave her the remainder of the herbs that they had been using to keep the man docile. With the situation well in hand, Darcy's men had headed south by a much more direct route than their journey north had followed, reaching Longbourn a few days later.

Bennet sent a note to Darcy along with the men when they went Pemberley. We shall have to keep an eye on the situation, since any child Mrs. Collins has will be considered legitimately his in the eyes of the law no matter who the natural father might be. If male, it will be the heir presumptive to Longbourn after Collins himself. From what your men tell me of the young woman, that may not be a bad thing. You can question them more yourself, but she sounds like a managing sort who may be the making of him. Of course, without the living at Hunsford, it may also be difficult for Collins to support his new family. I suspect he will be very upset when he learns that Elizabeth Collins never was Elizabeth Bennet, although without Lady Catherine's censure it will not be the disaster for him it might have been. Between all our family contacts, I am sure we can find a curacy for him somewhere in which he can do little harm while still maintaining them. I will undertake to make a small allowance for Mrs. Collins, so she and her child do not starve. She has, after all, done us a favor by taking on responsibility for the fool. It would not do to let her suffer more indignity because the living is denied them.

When Mr. and Mrs. Collins presented themselves at Hunsford another month later, it was clear Betsy Collins had already learned to manage her new husband very well. He listened to his wife with the same kind of attention he had given his noble patroness. Mrs. Collins was as disappointed as he to find out the nice rectory and steady income he had expected would not be theirs. At the same time, knowing her husband, she understood the decision Sir Phillip made not to maintain Collins in the place that had been verbally promised to him but not officially transferred.

Her spirits improved when she learned the current owner of Longbourn and his extended family would take an interest in her future and that of her children. The suggested curacy was provided by Lord Sheldon to give some support, however incompetent, to the local vicar, who was stretched a bit thin in his duties. Collins filled the post with little distinction and never found anyone willing to give him a better one. The situation, which included free lease of a small house, provided sufficient income to keep his wife, two sons and a daughter fed and clothed, especially with the small, extra, secret allowance Mr. Bennet sent to Mrs. Collins. Her ability to manage on such a small income impressed her husband, and she never enlightened him regarding how she did so, just as she never enlightened him on the true parentage of their firstborn and he never appeared to know any different.

The oldest child, Benjamin Collins, unsurprisingly bore little resemblance in intellect or personality to his father of record, although he did share similar coloring, which maintained the public illusion (and Collin's belief) that he was the clergyman's son. As he grew it became clear that Benjamin was, in fact, a very smart young man with a positive outlook and disposition.

Mr. Bennet, who had volunteered for the position of godfather to the boy, learned of his early promise from Lord Sheldon. When Benjamin reached the appropriate age, Bennet sponsored him at a respectable boarding school, both to give him a good education and to keep him from the influence of his father. Later, Bennet sent him to one of the less prestigious, but still respectable, universities to complete his education.

Young Benjamin generally spent the greater part of his school breaks at Longbourn. While there, he helped Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, kept them company and learned how best to manage the estate that was likely to one day be his. After he finished university, he came to Longbourn to live at Bennet's invitation. His presence eased Bennet's later years of most responsibility, although Collins was always a bit jealous of the favor shown to his son.

"He may not be a member of my bloodline," Bennet once said to Darcy, "but the estate will, at least, one day be in the hands of a worthy young man. That was a good idea of yours to send Collins off to Scotland, even if this was not your intent. The results of that trip have worked out well for a number of people."

As it turned out, Benjamin inherited the estate directly from Mr. Bennet because his father died of influenza a few weeks before Bennet's death from the same source. The young man brought his mother to Longbourn to live, although he also allowed Mrs. Bennet to stay in her married home for the remainder of her life. This made for some complications when Benjamin eventually married and his wife wished to take over as mistress, but by and large all three women eventually got along.

Benjamin's younger brother and sister also benefited from the interest of family. The two were clearly Collin's children but they had the good fortune to inherit a lit bit of wit and good looks from their mother, although not to the extent their older brother had. Darcy kept an eye out for them and helped them along in life. He and Bennet together sent the younger boy to the same schools as his brother. David Collins put in enough effort to make a decent showing and eventually became a clergyman. Like his father, he never progressed beyond a curate's post, but he did gain more respect for his work over the years and eventually had a small family of his own.

Rebecca Collins did not receive the same educational advantages as her brothers, but her mother trained her to manage a household and behave well. Eventually, she made a respectable if not brilliant marriage at a higher social level than she probably could have without the influence and connections of the Bennets and their extended circle.

~o~

That extended circle contained several happy couples and their own children. Darcy and Lizzy's four children had many cousins to keep them company growing up. Even the youngest and shyest of the three Darcy boys found Eton bearable due to the presence of his Fitzwilliam, Linton, Bingley, Hanson and de Bourgh cousins. The large group of children all grew up to be generally happy, generally productive members of society.

Our couples themselves lived long and happy lives. Darcy and Lizzy spent most of their time at Pemberley, but they often made visits to other members of the families for a week or two at a time or accepted visits from them. Darcy once commented to Richard that he had done more traveling in the first three years of his marriage than in all the years of his life prior, even counting the trips to and from school and the trips only seemed to increase in number each year. Although he grumbled on occasion, Darcy enjoyed seeing the various family members frequently.

Sir Phillip and Kitty married thirteen months after the triple wedding for her older sisters. In the intervening time, she enjoyed a visit to London with the Gardiners and some social outings under the auspices of Lady Sheldon and Mrs. Damask. Kitty's exposure to and training in society continued even after her marriage. Sir Phillip and Lady de Bourgh, along with Mr. and Mrs. Hanson, joined their varied family members at several events serving as beginning social opportunities for Georgiana and Lydia.

The two younger girls made their come out together, sometimes joined at events by Charlotte's sister Maria, who was the same age. By the time they were twenty, all three girls had found worthy husbands and within a few more years they had their own children to add to the growing horde of cousins.

Mrs. Bennet doted on her many grandchildren. She was no less loud or silly than she had always been, but that never bothered the younger generation, especially when she gave them treats when their mothers were not looking. Her favorite topic of gossip slowly shifted from courtships and marriages to the triumphs of her grandchildren and all the things her daughters were doing wrong because they had never properly listened to her.

Despite his steadily failing health, Mr. Bennet still lived to play many more games of chess. He enjoyed training Benjamin to be an estate owner, and he felt secure knowing that Mrs. Bennet and his daughters would be cared for no matter what happened to Longbourn. His sons-in-law and Richard visited regularly, giving him good company. Despite all the claims on his time with his responsibilities as Earl of Matlock and as a grandfather to Richard and Charlotte's children, Peter Fitzwilliam was a frequent visitor as well.

The men, with the addition of Sir William Lucas on many occasions, would gather in Bennet's study and talk over politics, literature and the doings of the younger generation. They generally did not miss the days of plotting to counter Lady Catherine's schemes, although Richard sometimes joked about the subject.

Darcy's own private joke, although it was really not meant to be funny, was his request for several cuttings from the damask rose that had done in his aunt, as well as some from the one that had served as Wickham's jailer. He passed these off to the head gardener at Pemberley with a request to find them appropriate places in the sprawling gardens where they could thrive. Within a few years, the Darcys had several fine rose bushes beautifying the outer edges of the garden area during the blooming season. Darcy did finally get a laugh out of the joke when Sir Phillip admitted during a walk in the Pemberley garden that he had also taken cuttings from the damask and they were growing well in the grounds at Rosings Park. He told Darcy he had to smile every time he passed them and he had even planted one near Lady Catherine's grave. It was an amusing revelation for both men and Darcy recounted it eagerly to Richard at the next possible encounter.

So it was that a vendetta begun by a jealous and unpleasant woman ended in a bouquet of roses and a large and happy family.