Wives and Daughters Part IV

Cynthia tells Mr Gibson what has been going on. She says she does not want Roger to come home to forgive her for her tangled relationship with Preston and her flirting. She does not want to be patronised. She is still thinking of going abroad as a governess. Molly has been restored to the good opinion of the town's ladies, and visits Lady Harriet. She also tries to cheer the squire up, as he misses Osborne. He is very fond of his grandson. He accepts that Aimee, his mother has to stay with the boy. Roger comes home when Osborne dies, to discuss estate matters. He knows now that Cynthia does not want to marry him. He is hurt, but Cynthia tells Molly that she feels sure that he's consolable, and that he has much more in common with Molly than with her. Mr Gibson is worried about Molly, who has been tired out, of late, due to the stress of the Cynthia affair. He is depressed on his own account, as he blames Mrs Gibson for not looking after Cynthia and Molly better. He accepts that his wife is flighty and silly and not very honest but he must put up with her. But he knows now that she was never likely to be much good at caring for Molly, as he had hoped. He orders Molly to rest. Cynthia pays a visit to her father's relatives in London. One of her uncles is a barrister, who has just won a big case and has taken silk. While Cynthia is visiting, she meets one of his fellow lawyers, Walter Henderson. He asks her to marry him. She accepts and they get married. Molly is still tired out and can't go to the wedding, so she goes to stay with Lady Harriet. She is glad that Cynthia is getting married. At the Towers, Roger meets Molly again and begins to fall in love with her, but he has to go back to Africa to finish the tour he set out on. The story breaks off there as Mrs Gaskell died suddenly, but it is clear that it's going to end with Roger proposing to Molly and their having a happy marriage.