We learn more about Lucy in this week's readings, about how catty and jealous she really is (especially the beautifully mean paragraph in Ch. 32 about "the overpowering delight of Lucy in finding [Elinor] still in town.") This adds just a little bit of extra flavor to Lucy's character, and to me it makes accidentally bumping in to the Barton Park cousins just after finding out about a potential rival at Barton Cottage seem even more improbable.

I confess however that I do not have any plausible theory of exactly how these manipulations might have been accomplished. Dear Jane leaves too much unsaid ... Did Lucy know about her cousins Mrs. Jennings and Lady Middleton previously? Was their visit to Exeter planned and talked of in advance? Would Mr. Pratt have known of it? I haven't the faintest idea. I simply base my belief in Lucy's extreme scheming based on what I think I perceive of her character so far.