When the whole house was searched, he did not object to his bedchamber being included, after all, everything was safely away from Willowmere.
A few days later when Hilldale told him to return to Pemberley, Wickham feigned sadness. When he reached the tree, which was not visible from the house, he retrieved his spoils and rode on to Pemberley. On his arrival at the steward’s cottage, George hid his gains inside of his mattress.
A year later, not long after Mr Darcy withdrew as his patron, George decided to join some games of chance to increase his money, but within a month, all of his money was gone. All he had left was the watch which he swore to keep.
The Present
“Master, there is a rather large man at the kitchen door with information, they claim, regarding one who wants to harm Miss Lizzy,” Hill drawled when he entered the library.
Bennet was sitting across the chess board from Darcy, while some of the other men were also playing chess and the rest were reading.
“What is this?” Wendell demanded, his game of chess forgotten.
“Hill, I think you should show the man in. Just in case, have some of the guards close by,” Bennet ordered,
The butler bowed and left to do as he had beeninstructed.
“Do you think we should have the ladies join us?” Matlock asked. “They may not be well pleased if we keep anything about Ellie’s safety from them.”
“Father, let us see what this is first,” Richard suggested.
By and by, Hill led the mountainous man into the library. They saw that the man had to bend so his head cleared the doorframe when he entered the room.
“I am Mr Bennet, and this is Mr Wendell,” Bennet stated in a businesslike manner. “According to the butler you have information regarding our daughter’s safety. Is that so?”
“Aye, Sir. I be John Biggs. Me and me brother, Brian, came to Meryton to…” He told how his sister, who was barely fifteen, had been seduced by Lieutenant Wickham and had foolishly given him her virtue for the promise of marriage. John Biggs related how he and his brother had found work in Meryton and their role in making things difficult for the libertine to get up to his normal tricks. When he arrived at the present, he told of the story of the capture of Lieutenant Wickham and his solicitation of murder. “Me brother is watching ‘im so ‘e will not go anywhere. Also, I demanded summin’ of value, and ‘e gave me this.” John held up the watch.
Wendell stepped forward and extended his hand. The huge man dropped the fob watch into it. He opened the back and there was the name of the first Wendell who had owned it engraved into the back cover. “It is the watch, there can be no question,” he announced.
“That bastard, I will kill him,” David roared as soon as his father confirmed it was the Wendell fob watch.
“Not if I get to him first,” Richard barked.
“Mr Biggs…” Wendell began to say when the big man interjected.
“Me name be John,” he insisted.
“John, if you and your brother will bring that miscreant to Longbourn, we will be very grateful,” Wendell requested. “We will send a few of our men with a carriage, that way you can put him on the floor, and if you use him to rest your feet on, we will not object.”
“Aye, Sir, it be my pleasure,” John agreed.
It was not long before Thompson and one more man joined the huge man, a man who made the aforementioned Thompson look small, and were on their way to the inn’s stables.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“It was bloody Wickham!” Barney spat out. “I want a piece of that bastard.”
“We need to calm ourselves and go speak to the ladies in the drawing room,” Bennet suggested.
There were nods of agreement. The men made for the drawing room.
“Welcome,” Fanny sang. Then she stopped. There was no missing the serious looks on the men’s countenances as they filed into the drawing room.
Wendell looked to Bennet for permission to be the one to speak, the latter nodded. “We know who took Ellie,” he said as he held up the watch. “I checked; it is the one which was stolen along with Ellie and the money.”
“Who?” Cilla demanded.
“George Wickham,” Wendell stated. He saw the shocked faces of those ladies who had been present when Ellie had been kidnapped. “There is no doubt it is him. Some men will be bringing him here soon.”
