Just Jane by Nancy Moser Read Free Book Online

brother’s bounty!
    ’Tis the essence of convenience to have a brother who was made rich through inheritance, though admittedly odd that he has gained his wealth, not from his blood family, but through the family who adopted him. Edward Knight-Austen is his legal name, though I expect the Austen moniker will fall away when he eventually takes on his father’s title. No mere “mister” for my brother. Master.
    My brother Edward—adopted at twelve by the childless Knights in Kent—also helped his pocketbook by marrying well, for Elizabeth owned her own fortune and property. (That the rich become richer is a perplexing feat, one they have perfected over centuries of practice.) Since their marriage six years ago, Edward and his wife have lived in one of her family’s homes, called Rowling, on her parents’ Goodnestone estate.
    But now all that has changed. Edward’s adoptive father died four years ago. Since then, his mother has lived alone in the mansion of Godmersham but has recently decided having so many rooms to wander in by herself is a bore and has offered it to Edward, Elizabeth, and their four—soon to be five—children. Five children in six years. Perhaps in their new manor home my brother and his wife should consider separate bedrooms.
    I hear the elder Mrs. Knight has just purchased a home in Canterbury. I can only imagine its palatial qualities. I cannot imagine she is used to anything humdrum or mundane.
    Edward has invited my parents, Cassandra, and me for a summer visit to Kent. ’Twill be a chance for Edward to show off, though I expect Elizabeth will do the crowing for both of them. To his credit, my brother has never flaunted his wealth, though he readily enjoys it. He realizes how the fates have smiled on him through no merit of his own (but by being a sweet, agreeable boy who captured the Knights’ fancy) and acknowledges that he is where he is due to the sacrifice of our parents. To relinquish a son for his own betterment is a true act of love. After seeing Godmersham, perhaps I will wish the Knights had wanted a daughter.
    But no. I am suited to Steventon, to the rectory, and to the quiet life we lead. Although I may show wit to family and close friends, among strangers I have been called standoffish and dull—two traits highly unacceptable in high society. So be it. I see no reason to play a part for others’ sake. To pretend to be that which one is not . . . I leave such drama for my characters: Mr. Collins and Lucy Steele aspire to impress. In regard to my own dealings with the upper set, I cannot say I’ve met any who would make me regret my position, nor any who would inspire me to step up the charm for their benefit—or my own. And if my sister-in-law Elizabeth—now the lady of a great manor—has some of her priggish friends come to call (and if she is appalled by my diffident manner) then I shall declare my mission complete.
    I can be quite evil, in a loving sort of way. Yet as everyone knows, Kent is the only place for happiness. Everyone is rich there. Back in Steventon people get so horridly poor and economical that I have no patience with them.
    My evil shortcomings are mercifully interrupted by Mother looking out the window of the carriage and exclaiming, “There it is!”
    In spite of my stubborn vow to remain unimpressed, I am stunned. How can I be otherwise? The house is set alone on a hill so all can be astonished by its stateliness and offer the proper reaction. It is surrounded by lush parks with groupings of trees planted just so. The entire park is enclosed by a stone wall, a sure way to serve two purposes: show the world the extent of one’s holdings, as well as keep those same people in their proper place—outside.
    The carriage stops at the wall and a man unlocks the gate. I admit to feeling a surge of pride that we are allowed inside, which proves my ego is not as faultless as I would like to believe.
    “Our son has done well,” Mother says to