Chapter 14

William was angry. Though it was a different sort of anger than the one propelling him forward on this journey to find Wickham.

Dealing with Suzie Carmichael had been easy enough. She was, after all, a savvy businesswoman and when given the choice of pursuing something out of embarrassment and anger or pushing ahead with her new movie, she wisely chooses the latter. Darcy was no fool himself. Investing in her movie was smart money. There wouldn't be a loss for him; only he'd be in the entertainment business longer than he hoped for. That was a small price to pay for having kept Wickham's secret to himself.

Only Wickham's secret now didn't look so awful when framed with the information he was in possession of. George was across the room staring out the window. Had Lydia not been here Darcy was certain he would continue to be ignorant of Wickham's reading disability. Knowing it explained so much and that is where the anger came in. Why had George's father and Darcy's own father kept this secret from him? Did they think he wouldn't understand? Never mind setting Wickham up for failure at every single turn. All the rumors of Wickham's lack of preparation on the set made sense. Not reading emails, not learning his lines, it was all clear.

What wasn't clear was how to move forward. Should they hire a tutor? What did George want to do? Chances of him acting in Hollywood were now minuscule. Darcy searched through his mental list of corporation he owned looking for a position George could fulfill. If George's posture and attitude toward Darcy were any indication it was fifty-fifty if George would even work for him. So far, he wasn't talking to him.

Well, at least he knew of one thing he could do.

"I'm sorry George. I had no idea. Had I know. Had I had a suspicion––"

George spun to face him. "What would you have done Darcy? Mocked me? Tried to teach me yourself. Mr. Smart guy with his Harvard degree and Wharton College whatever it is you have from there."

"I would have supported you better, tried to help you find a solution." Darcy stuck his hands in his pockets. Truthfully, he was at a loss.

"Supported me how? Given me money? Let me marry your sister?" George said angrily.

Darcy glanced at Lydia whose face was now pink. Embarrassed perhaps? "Would you have wanted to marry Georgiana had you had other options?"

The weight of George's anger seems to leave him with one heavy exhale. "No." He looked at Lydia. "No, Georgiana isn't even my type."

Darcy witnessed something looking much like a blossoming love pass in the look George and Lydia shared. He leaned back against the wall of the shabby hotel, not willing to sit in the one lone chair with the stained seat.

"Might we set the past aside temporarily and try to address the current issues. What was the plan by coming out here?"

George and Lydia shared another looked, an unspoken conversation seeming to pass between them. Lydia nodded slightly and George sighed before turning his attention back to Darcy.

"My agent dropped me and Lydia discovered he'd––"

"He was totally taking advantage of Geo, had clauses like a power of attorney and high fees. He's a real dirt bag." She glanced at George and smiled softly at him.

Darcy didn't like the idea of someone taking advantage of another person's disability but he also knew if the shoe was on his foot he'd not like someone else handling the situation for him.

"So you have no agent?" Darcy asked and pushed up from the wall.

Wickham shook his head. "I'm not sure I have a salvageable career left in this town."

Finally, they were getting somewhere. "Is this what you want to do?" As Darcy saw it Wickham had a blank slate, an opportunity to basically do what he wanted.

Wickham shrugged. "I've been thinking about this a lot. When I try to see myself doing something else I can't picture it."

Darcy shifted and search for the best words to use for his next question. There was no delicate way around it. "If you were to remove the obstacle of…err…the situation with reading, what would you want to do?"

"Acting. I like trying on the new characters. Not being George Wickham for a little bit."

Darcy nodded like he understood but he didn't fully.

"Trouble is he can't get in to any audition. We've been turned away from even a few open casting calls," Lydia said. "Even with me acting as his new agent."

"Is that what you want? To be his new agent?" Darcy looked between Lydia and Wickham.

"At least she has a genuine interest in me and she already came to the rescue when I got the new contract from my ex-agent and she didn't have to."

Lydia beamed at Wickham. "I wanted to. Not only because you really needed someone in your corner, but because it angers me to see someone else take advantage of another person. Wrong is wrong. It's how I was raised."

Darcy thought of Elizabeth who worked from the same principle. From her perspective he imagined she felt it had been wrong, or an injustice, to come in and tell her how to run her business without knowing anything about it, just as it had been wrong to intervene in the love affairs of her sister Jane. Yet, this current situation with Lydia and Wickham felt very much his problem as much as hers. He could only hope she would see it that way, too.

Darcy needed a plan, and idea, or an inkling of something that would lead to either of those but he was coming up blank. "And this blacklisting, does it extend to Broadway and off Broadway?"

Wickham nodded. "We made a few calls and it would appear so." He flung himself in the stained chair and sighed heavily. "I'm not saying this to ask for money but I wonder if I might be able to land something in London?"

Darcy tapped out a text to his assistant asking the same question. After sending it he opened the app that listed all his holdings and began to scroll through it. Many of the entertainment ones were in the process of being sold off, Darcy having no previous interest in owning such holdings. Now he understood why his father had added the entertainment companies to his holdings and had Darcy been in possession of the same facts his father had been Darcy himself might not have been quick to sell them off. Prejudice, it was the darnedest emotion.

Darcy's finger paused on the name of an Australian company. "Do you know anything about other countries television and movie industry. Say Bollywood for example."

Lydia shook her head. "I don't know anything about India but I know Hugh Jackman started on a soap in Australia."

"Australia market is very lucrative and popular."

A text from Darcy's assistant came through. "London's out. Your name is mud there as well." He tapped out a second question.

Wickham groaned, his chin dropping to his chest. "What am I going to do?"

"We'll think of something. We may not think of it today but we will come up with a plan." Lydia assured him. She squished into the chair with him. "Do you hear me? You need to have some faith."

Wickham nodded.

"How about Australia?" Darcy asked. Looks like he was part owner in a network there that ran the highest rated soap. "I'll get you a role, it might be small, but you go out there, show them a new George Wickham and clean up your reputation. If you can do that you'll be back here in no time. I'm also connecting you with a reputable agent there who is willing to take you on." Well, Darcy's assistant was making the pieces come together. What a boon his assistant's cousin was the agent.

Wickham sat straight up and flung an arm around Lydia. "Are you for real?" He asked Darcy.

"I am. I'm having it all worked out right now. You'll need to leave as soon as possible." Darcy smiled.

"Not a problem." Letting loose of Lydia, Wickham stood, then he came to stand before Darcy. "Thank you," he said and thrust out his hand. "I won't let you down." The two shook. It was the first step in repairing the damage many years of anger and distrust. All caused by one secret.

"Besides," Wickham said. "I can do anything now with Lyddie in my corner. Right babe."

Lydia smiled sadly. "Yes, only I can't go to Australia."

Darcy groaned. Wickham swayed.

"Why ever not?" Wickham asked.

"If this is about a passport or money I can make sure everything is taken care of to get you both situated there," Darcy added.

Lydia shook her head again. "It has nothing to do with that. I can't move across the world, give up my job, my family, and my dreams–– though being there might actually be a benefit––for something as great as this opportunity might seem because on a personal level its not all that great. I won't be your wife; I won't be your agent. Why should I go?"

Wickham knelt before her. "Because I need you."

"You needed me here. There you'll be taken care of."

Wickham shook his head. "Not true."

Lydia sighed. "I saw this movie about the up and coming rock star who got the deal and he moved to the big city with his girlfriend, who was also a songwriter and he sang a lot of her songs. They got there and he essentially forgot all about her. I won't be like her. I won't ride around whatever city it is in Australia on some bicycle all sad and lonely with no money to get home."

Wickham took her hands and Darcy shifted uncomfortably. He'd rather not witness this if he could help it.

"Lyddie, there were two people in all my life who knew my darkest secret. You were the third and admitting it to you was not scary. It was not embarrassing. It was natural. It felt right. Just like knowing that going to Australia is the right thing to do, but only if you are with me. If you can't go then I'll stay here and do something else."

She snorted. "Like what? Dig a ditch or something?" Darcy could tell she was moved by his words because she was blinking rapidly.

"If that's what it takes." Wickham kissed her knuckles.

"You're being ridiculous," she said with a wobbly smile.

"So you'll come?" he asked, his words light with hope.

"No," she said and wiped a tear from her face.