Mr. Darcy and the Governess

Book excerpt: After Miss Elizabeth Bennet’s father is swindled in an investment opportunity, the family finds themselves in dire straits, and the eldest Bennet sisters must seek positions as governesses. Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy needs a replacement for the disastrous Miss Younge, who brought his younger sister to near ruin at the hands of the late Mr. Wickham, so he hires Elizabeth. Wickham was killed in a flurry of violence. He threatened Miss Darcy with a knife; Mr. Darcy rushed to defend his sister; the end result was not entirely purposeful. Now, however, both Mr. Darcy and his sister are altered, and Elizabeth knows nothing of what befell them both. So, she arrives to an imposing and grim estate, a secretive and brooding employer, and a haughty and troubled charge. I’m afraid this is another of my out-of-character Mr. Darcy variations. I know not entirely what happened, but a bit of Mr. Rochester seemed to creep into him by degrees as I wrote, and I fear he is a bit darker than our own Fitzwilliam, though hopefully circumstances explain his behavior. I also failed at keeping it clean. Again. I seem to always fail at that, don’t I? Heavens.