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Will escorted Georgiana out of Maggie Harper’s office on Monday morning, keeping one hand at the small of her back. Neither spoke a word as they walked down the sidewalk toward the parking garage; both were shocked at the news they’d just received from Maggie.
She’d informed them that per her boss’s instructions, Wickham and Collins would be allowed to plead out to lesser charges, and explained that even though the authorities had those awful pictures, there was nothing to prove that a sexual assault had taken place. And because Georgiana hadn’t gone to the police and hadn’t sought medical attention, any physical evidence that could have been gathered was long gone.
“But what about Julie and Matt?” Will had asked. “They found Georgie, they know what kind of condition she was in. They already gave statements.”
“It still doesn't prove that she was drugged; it only indicates that she might have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol. There's a difference. And Georgiana is in a relationship with Mr. Evans now, isn't she? The defense attorney would have a field day with him in court.”
When Maggie told them Wickham and Collins would only be charged with sexual misconduct—a misdemeanor—the anger simmering in Will’s blood had finally boiled over.
“This is unacceptable!” he’d nearly yelled, and rose from his chair. “How is it that Georgiana doesn't have a say? And Collins…heconfessed, he ratted them out!”
Maggie shook her head. “In this type of situation, the victim usually doesn't have a say. Of course you want your day in court, but it's up to my boss to determine if that day in court will be a victorious one. And as far as Collins’s confession, it's his word against his cousin's. One thing Collins has made certain to say since the first time he was questioned was that he never touched Georgiana; he was a spectator. The fact that he’s made himself out to be an innocent will raise too many questions with a jury. It looks too much like he's trying to pin something on his cousin and take himself out of the equation.” She paused. “If it was up to me, I would take my chances and go to trial. But it's not up to me. I have a boss to answer to. I've made my opinion on the matter very clear, but he's quite certain that no jury would convict either of the men on the felony charge. I'm afraid he's unwavering in his decision.”
There was some good news to balance out the bad. The Rohypnol found in Wickham’s hotel room would automatically ensure he served a three-year sentence for possession. And now that they had his DNA, they could begin a search of their database to see if it matched up to any unsolved rape or sexual assault cases. Maggie told them it would be a slow process, but that theywantedit to be slow; it would ensure they didn’t miss anything.
Despite those small bits of promising news, Will stewed as he and Georgiana walked in silence, and when they finally arrived at his car and climbed inside, he turned to her before starting the engine. She stared straight ahead, unblinking and expressionless.
“Georgie?”
She glanced at him, then just as quickly looked away again. “It's okay, Will. I'm fine.”
“How can you be fine?”
“I have to be.”
“Aren't you even the slightest bit angry?”
“OfcourseI'm angry, but I refuse to let this take over my life again. I've done what I can, and I'll do more if they need me to, I'll do whatever they think is best... But I realize now, more than ever, that my mistake was hiding what happened in the first place. I should have listened to Julie and Matt back then, but I didn't, and I can't go back and change that. So now I have to move on and hope that maybe they'll find a link between Wickham and another rape case.”
“But you seem resigned, like everything Maggie just told us isn't a big deal.”
She turned to him, her eyes bright. “Ofcourseit’s a big deal. I'm just facing the reality of the situation, which is whatyouneed to do. Go pound the shit out of that heavy bag if you need to, but it will be a cold day in hell before I let this consume you like it did before. I have to move on. I have my entire future in front of me. I have a caring family, a wonderful boyfriend, good friends, and a new job. I havesomanythingsto be thankful for, and I amnotgoing to let George Wickham take them all away again.” She paused and lowered her voice. “You have Elizabeth back in your life. Don't lose sight of that, and don't let Wickham take her away from you too. Don't let him win.”
Her words sank in, and he sighed heavily. “You’re right.”
“I don't want you to think I've given up, because I haven't. I want to see Wickham behind bars just like you do, just like Maggie does, and just like the detectives do. And if not by my hand, then by someone else's. I want that more than anything. But if it doesn't happen, I'll live. I'll move on. I have to.”
He nodded. “We both will.”
He ended up taking Georgiana's advice to heart, and spent a good amount of time beating up the heavy bag Monday night. It felt like déjà vu, and not in a good way; the anger, the helplessness, the sense of things spinning out of his control...it was overwhelming.
He called Charles on Tuesday morning and asked him to explain the legalities of everything.
“I can't really explain it any better than Maggie did,” Charles said apologetically. “Her boss is right. The fact of the matter is, they could take Wickham and Collins to trial, but if they're found not guilty, that's it. They're free. Obviously, he feels there isn't enough evidence for a guilty verdict. After hearing what Maggie told you, I have to agree. In essence, he's saying he'd rather charge them with something that will stick. At least this way, they'll suffer some type of punishment.”
“But it's a misdemeanor. They won't even serve jail time.”
“Wickham will for the drug charge, and he'll have to sit in jail for a bit longer until they try him on that, because it's a federal trafficking offense. The DEA likes to drag its feet. He'll suffer a bit longer, and maybe some evidence from another rape case will match up. That's all you can hope for.”
“And in the meantime, after the hearing tomorrow, Collins goes free. What if he goes back to his job? Can he do that?”
“Like you said, if he pleads guilty to the sexual misconduct charge, it's a misdemeanor. I would think it's up to his employer. If they decide that it’s grounds for termination, they could let him go. And if they do, I can't see him fighting it. The fact that his coworkers will know, and that Elizabeth knows and is connected to Georgie... I would think it would be enough to send him packing.”
“If I don't kill him first.”
“Will—”
