Darcy's Reckoning

 "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife."

These were the words that defined Fitzwilliam Darcy's young life. Any measure of integrity, honor, loyalty-these were secondary considerations to the size of a bachelor's estate. The only lady to esteem his genuine character was now lost forever, and he must face his future alone.

In his deepest despair, standing in a crowded assembly room of jolly strangers, he would begin an acquaintance that would confound his understanding of the feminine mind and inspire him to become worthy of her genuine approbation. At first believing himself to be misunderstood and unfairly judged, he painstakingly discovers his own culpability for the suffering of others and seizes his opportunity to save the life of the woman he loves.