His Pride & Her Prejudice (in the 21st Century)-unedited.

Chapter Nineteen

William waited impatiently for the lawyer. Things would have turned out quite differently if he had acted otherwise. His quiet nature has not allowed him to reveal to others what a disgusting man Wickham was.

He paced in the hotel's meeting room in the Castleton Corners. He let out an uncharacteristic snort. He was back in New Jersey when he had persuaded Braden to have fun elsewhere for the remaining summer not too long ago.

He would have felt guilty and a hypocrite if he had been having a blast. But no, he had barely slept in the last forty-eight hours. He had to remedy the grave error that had resulted from his lapse of judgment.

Finally, Gareth entered the room with Lydia Bennet. The girl sauntered in and looked at him with raised brows.

"Hello, Lydia," William greeted, holding her gaze steady. He saw no remorse in it.

"Dad dropped me here with no explanation. I'd rather be home and take a hot shower," she pouted. "The police station place stank so much."

"The penitentiary centre would be even worse," said Gareth under her breath, but William heard it nonetheless.

"Do you understand why you were there?" He asked. When Georgina had fallen into the bad habit with Wickham, she had seen the error of her ways.

"Yes, I took the cash from the store, which I intended to return through my next paycheque. I asked for an advance, and the cow said no. Other girls had gotten it. Talk about favouritism," Lydia grumbled.

"Your manager, Ilyas, says you are the least hardworking employee who takes long lunch breaks and arrives late for her shifts. Because of this, he declined to give you an advance. Plus, it was your third ask in a row. Other girls ask once in a blue moon," Gareth told her. His tone barely hid his disappointment. "Your case isn't looking too good. I am trying to get you to do community service rather than jail time."

"It's not fair. As I said, I was just borrowing the money. And why does Angela have to snitch on me?" she stomped and pulled a chair out to sit down.

William exchanged an exasperated look with Gareth.

"She is the salesgirl who did the float for the cash register the next day after my niece stole the money during the closing the night before. When they found five thousand dollars missing. Ilyas knew who had taken it, and he checked the security camera to confirm his suspicions," Gareth clarified for William's sake.

"Ah!" William sat down across from Lydia and her Uncle. "Thank God for honest people like Angela."

"She hates my guts," Lydia stated.

"Enough, Lydia," scold each Uncle Gareth, now looking every inch a formidable attorney he was reputed to be. It made her sink a bit lower in the chair. "You are in big trouble already. So, not another word out of your mouth."

Perverse satisfaction flowed through William as the spoiled brat needed to be knocked an inch or two off her pedestal of entitlement. "Well, Gareth, you and John will punish Lydia as you see fit. But I have some good news."

This got the uncle's attention. He said, "I can do with some, indeed. Sakura is refusing to drop the charges. They think Lydia has been behind every shortfall in cash and the pilferage of their inventory."

"OMG." Lydia threw her hands in the air.

"Right. But that's where you are wrong. They have dropped the charges," he told the duo and watched as their eyes widened in shock.

"How?" Gareth demanded. "I talked to them yesterday, and they were adamant in their stance."

"Before I delve further into this topic, I have to ask Lydia something," William said. His demeanour turned serious as he breached the topic about the man he loathed.