This is my first Sanditon Fanfiction. I fell in love with the story. I hope you will enjoy this. This happens after the rescue of Georgiana.

The carriage ride back to London was in silent. Georgiana was still shaken by her ordeal, while miss Heywood tried her best to comfort her. Sidney sad across them and felt relieved that they got to her in time. He didn't dare to think what could have happened if it was too late.

He didn't know Howard personally, but he had heard of him. A man lacking any sense of moral, who lost himself in pleasure and treating women like they were his pets and existed only for his needs. If the marriage had been complete, Georgiana would have been subjected to mental and physical abuse. And he, her guardian, would have been powerless to do anything about it.

The worst part was that the law wouldn't lift a finger against Howard, partly because a woman was a man's property, once they were married, and partly because of Georgiana's color skin. In their eyes, they wouldn't see anything wrong with Beecroft selling a black woman. They might have Mr. Molyneux arrested for selling property that didn't belong to him and be done with it.

He was glad to have miss Heywood with him. Not only had she helped him finding Georgiana, but for the moment a comfort of a friend had better effect on Georgiana than comfort of a guardian she despised would.

Miss Heywood asked gently Georgiana if there had been done any harm to her. Georgiana denied it, but just remarked that it was torture to be wearing this sort of wedding dress at this time of year.

"Where are we going now?" she asked. "Back to Sanditon?"

Sidney shook his head. "We are going back to London. Tom has a house at Bedford Square, where we can rest. It has been a long night, and I need to send word to Mrs. Griffith and Mary that we are all safe. I also need to talk to Tom."

It had been a long night for all three of them. What Sidney desired most right now was a bath and a long good rest. It was so strange to think the worse was over now.

He noticed that Miss Heywood seemed to be on guard. She kept glancing out of the window as if on watch out for any pursuers.

He almost said 'Penny for your thoughts, miss Heywood' until he remembered the last time, he said those words and decided not to bring up any unpleasant memories. There was no room for that.

"Something on your mind, miss Heywood?" he asked. "You seem troubled."

"I was just thinking… Is it all over now? Could Georgiana's reputation still be at stake? Do you think that this Mr. Howard would cause trouble? Or Beecroft? They must be furious."

"Undoubtedly," said Sidney. He turned his glace toward the window. "But for the moment, I think Howard is more interested in getting his money back from Beecroft. I don't think that Howard is going to try anything against us. I'm Georgiana's guardian and can prove it, so I was in my good right to stop him. He can't say anything without admitting that he was taking her to Scotland against my will. No couple from London gets married in Scotland in secret, if there wasn't anything to forbid it. He can deny that he brought her from Beecroft and that it was against her will, but it would to the public look like a failed elopement. A succeeded elopement is bad enough, but the society accepts it, but a failed elopement would make him a laughingstock and a social outcast. He can't make a scandal out of Georgiana without making a scandal out of himself."

It pleased him to see the look of relief on her face.

"And Mr. Beecroft?"

"He's a businessman. I'm declined to think that he will refuse paying Howard back, since, from his view, his responsibility in the deal was over once the transaction was complete. The seller is not responsible for the horse, if it runs away from its owner. That's how Beecroft will look at it. Anyway, the worst he could do to us would be to deny us entrance to his establishments. Which is a loss we can survive."

"Horse," repeated Georgiana with a bitter smirk. "That was how he viewed me."

"Pardon?" said Miss Heywood.

Sidney saw that Georgiana at once was at another place in another time. "Howard. He said that he had broken enough horses and that he didn't think a wife would be much different."

Sidney felt a punch in his gut, when he realized how unlucky his words had hit.

"What about Otis?" Georgiana now inquired returning back to the present. Her voice took a desperate tone. "They said that he offered me up to pay his debts. That can't be true…? He wouldn't…" Her glace drifted from Sidney toward Miss Heywood.

Miss Heywood shoot him a concern look asking silently for advice. Sidney understood her worries. Whatever doubts Sidney had of Molyneux' feelings, he did believe that Georgiana's feelings were engaged. There was no easy or gentle way to explain the follies of an irresponsible man and what damage he had inadvertently caused. How much shock could Georgiana bear for now? He wasn't keen either of telling her of Molyneux's part in this mess. Especially since it could tear Georgiana's world apart, just like his did, when Eliza broke off with him. But Georgiana needed to know.

"No, no," answered miss Heywood as gentle and reassuring as possible. "It was never his intention for this to happen. He didn't know what you were missing until we found him."

That seem to comfort Georgiana a bit, but her eyes still asked wordless questions. She wanted to know what Molyneux' role then was.

"I don't know what Beecroft told Howard. It's possible that's the story as he thinks it is," Sidney said. "But Mr. Molyneux does have gambling debts owned to Beecroft. I don't know which one of these two to believe, but as far as I understand, Molyneux had been bragging about you and your fortune at the card table. He implied to Beecroft that the two of you were engaged, so Beecroft would give him more time to pay his debts. But Beecroft decided to get his money instead by selling you. Perhaps he viewed it as a sale of Molyneux' engagement to you. Or maybe he regarded that Molyneux used your fortune as a security and marriage to you were a necessary accessory. He had some men seizing the letters you wrote him. That's how he learned of your location. By the time we turned up at Beecroft's, he had already sold you."

Georgiana's face went pale. He could only imagine what went through her head right now.

That the man she loved had used her fortune as a security behind her back. She immediately turned toward miss Heywood again, hiding her tearful face in her friend's shoulder.

Sidney could only watch, feeling complete helpless. He knew what pain by betrayal from a loved one felt like. He still lived with the pain every day. He wanted to comfort Georgiana, but he didn't know how.

But a part of him couldn't help but think that Molyneux should have known better than bragging of having won an heiress' affection at a gambling den. That sort of thing makes one a target of greedy coldhearted vultures – like Beecroft. They can smell quick money as a wolf can smell blood. Molyneux might not have imagine the danger he put Georgiana in, but he should have thought of the danger he was putting himself in, since he was more woundable than Georgiana.

However, that didn't excuse his own failures. He had failed Georgiana, and he had failed her father. Mr. Lambe had been his closest friend in Antigua and one of the few beside his family who had faith in Sidney's worth as a man. He had often told him to not close himself off from the rest of world. That it wasn't worth to close off both the cruelty of the world, but also its generosity. While Sidney didn't always listen to his advice, he was deep down touched by Mr. Lambe's friendship and guidance.

Sidney had never asked for guardianship over Georgiana. He had often wondered why her father didn't entrust her to someone who was more willing and probably more suited for the responsibility.

What Sidney always had seen as a burden, he now realized that it was a sign of Mr. Lambe's never-waving faith in him. He wouldn't have entrusted Georgiana to him, if he hadn't believed him to be capable of taking care of her.

Never before had Sidney Parker been more ashamed of himself. He had failed greatly a man he respected. Maybe he and Tom were masters where it came to be ignoring nasty truths.

He looked toward Miss Heywood, still occupied with Georgiana. He felt that strange spark that he always felt in her present and couldn't put a name on.

"I'm so sorry," Miss Heywood whispered.

"It's alright," said Georgiana. "It's not your fault. You didn't know this would happen."

"No, but if I had only gone with you at the cricket. You wouldn't have been alone, and maybe they wouldn't have dared to take you."

"Or," interrupted Sidney, "they could have taken both of you. They wouldn't have let you go and risk alerting the whole town. You, Miss Heywood, would likely have ended as one of Mrs. Harris' girls. These sorts of people wouldn't think there were better use of you."

He immediately regretted his words, as he saw the look of horror shadowing miss Heywood's face. How much of her innocent view of the world remained intact? Had this matter affected her just as gravely as it had affected Georgiana? He couldn't help but tighting his grip on his stick as the fury boiled in him by the thought of miss Heywood forced into harlotry. Naturally she would have rebelled by any means possible, refuse to submit, but what would they have done to her then? It had never crossed his mind to consider what such place did to unoperated girls, and he couldn't bring himself to imagine. He was grateful, that she hadn't been abducted alongside Georgiana. Otherwise she wouldn't have been able to help him. And he wouldn't have forgiven himself if his failure as Georgiana's guardian had ruined another person. Now they were both safe. He managed to calm himself enough down to say: "Whatever mistakes, you have made in this matter, Miss Heywood, you have more than made up for them now."

Miss Heywood looked at him with surprise at his completement, and then muttered: "Thank you, Mr. Parker. That means a lot to me."

For some reason that answer pleased him.

So did you like it? I'm thinking of making this a collection of one-shots. I have other ideas of Sanditon fanfictions.