AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You probably won't hear much over the weekend, but you should give your lawyer a call. I'm sure she's waiting to hear from you.”
“I will. Thank you, Detective Cooper. And pass on my thanks to Detective Mitchell as well.”
After Will hung up, he sat for a moment and let the news sink in.It’s done. Well, almost as good as done, from the sound of it. Collins caved.Of course he did, that spineless piece of shit.
Part of him wanted to celebrate, fist pump, and dance around the room; but another other part of him grew somber at the thought of what lay ahead for Georgiana. His thoughts shifted to Elizabeth, and he wondered if she knew anything about Collins, about what was happening, and hoped that Jane had told her.
How he wished she was here with him now. He wanted to hold her, feel her arms around him, and hear her telling him that this would finally be coming to an end and everything would be all right. That’s all he truly desired, but his elation quickly turned to sadness when reality intruded, reminding him that what he desired, and what he actually had, were two very different things.
Sighing, he decided to call Charles before he called Maggie. He relayed everything Detective Cooper had told him, lastly mentioning the pictures the detectives had found in Collins’s house.
“I'm thinking one of them might be of Elizabeth,” Will said. “And maybe Charlotte too. I feel like Elizabeth needs to know... If I'm right, and Wickham had a picture of her stuffed under his fucking mattress, she needs to know.”
“I'll talk to Jane. Um, she told Lizzy about Collins yesterday.”
“Did Jane say how she’s doing?” There was no response from Charles, and Will sighed. “I'm not trying to put you on the spot. I just want to make sure she's okay.”
“I know. It sounds like she's holding up. She’s heading back to South Carolina today.”
“Good.”
“So…I'm assuming you haven't heard from her?”
“No. I'm hoping maybe something I said to her on Tuesday will be enough so that she'll talk to me again.”
“Just give her time. You needed it too, at one point.”
“Nice dig.”
“Shut up, it's not a dig. It’s areminder. You needed time, now she needs it too. Deal with it.”
“I will. I am.”But I don't want to. I want to see her. “I should go, I have to get over to Georgie's. I'll touch base with you over the weekend.”
“Okay, sounds good.” Charles paused. “Just so you know, I'm rooting for you. I want this to work out, I really do. I just have to be careful that I don't say too much, or do the wrong thing... I can't risk alienating Jane. She's too important to me.”
“I appreciate that. And you don't have to explain. I'll try not to put you in that position. If I do, just tell me. You know me, I'll push it sometimes, so you just have to tell me to fuck off.”
Charles gave a short laugh. “I'll try to be a little nicer than that.”
“Thanks. All right, we’ll catch up later. Have a good one.”
“You too.”
He walked out of the house and down the walkway to Georgiana's. She let him in and they sat in the living room, and he looked around appreciatively.
“You've really done a lot with this place. It doesn't look the same at all, except for the furniture.”
She smiled faintly. “Thanks. It's been fun adding my own little touches. It's good therapy.”
He cleared his throat. “Um, speaking of therapy… I think–I think I need to talk to someone.”
Her eyebrows rose. “Really?”
He nodded. “I’ve got a lot going on, and I can’t tackle it on my own.”
“It’s tough to admit that, isn’t it? But it’s helped me tremendously. I could recommend—”
“No, it’s okay. Um, I made some phone calls and found someone local. I have an appointment next week.”
