Lydia, it seemed, was safe at last. She returned to 3 Island Street, apparently intact though with a tattoo of an anchor on the back of her neck and a sheepish Wickham in tow. She delighted in teasing her elder siblings that she now had a proper boyfriend, and everything thereafter was “My boyfriend this…” and “My boyfriend that…” Wickham was welcomed with open arms into the bosom of Mrs Bennet, who, on seeing Lydia, had recovered immediately. It seemed the lies and deceptions of Polegate were over.