Page 50 of Under A Sicilian Sky
‘Look, Val, I need some time to process this. I need some time to think.’
Valerie sniffed again. ‘I understand. I really do. And, as I promised, things will move forward now. Iwilldeal with it or, at least I will find people who can help me to do so.’
Ruby closed her eyes. ‘Okay. Bye Val.’ She hung up the call and burst into tears.
‘Hey, hey, what’s happened, Ruby?’ Mitch asked from behind her.
Ruby swiped at her tears. He had seen her crying more than he had seen her smiling at this point. ‘Oh… nothing, it’s fine.’ She shrugged.
He walked over and sat opposite her on one of the wicker chairs. ‘Nah. Not buying it. Something major has happened. Hasn’t it?’
She shook her head no, but more tears spilled over and she nodded her head yes. She sobbed and covered her face with her hands. ‘Everything is completely ruined. I’m no longer a falling star. I’ve gone completely supernova, and not in a good way.’
‘Shit, that sounds bad. What’s changed?’
Ruby sniffed and rubbed her hands over her face. ‘Nothing. That’s the problem. Valerie said she was dealing with the hacking. That things were going well. Today I’ve discovered that she’s done nothing apart from put two ancient lawyers on it, who know even less about cybercrime than she does, and that’s saying something. I feel betrayed and that this has gone on too long for me to ever recover from it. People are still sharing the original posts and my name is mudeverywhere. She could have made a difference, but for some unknown reason she chose not to.’
Mitch huffed the air from his lungs through puffed cheeks. ‘Bloody hell. I can’t believe that. Are you going to fire her?’
Ruby shrugged. ‘Maybe. I don’t know what to do.’
Mitch chewed his lip for a moment. ‘Look, I know I have a habit of sticking my nose where it’s not wanted, and I know I’ve mentioned this before, but I know someone who is a computer whizz. A totally unassuming guy but he studied IT at uni and knows a lot about this kind of stuff. He lives in the village. Runs a campsite and owns an outdoor gear shop. I can ask for his help if you like? What do you say?’
Ruby sighed and shrugged. ‘I say I have the grand total of nothing to lose at this point. Go for it.’
Mitch stood and clapped his hands together. ‘Get your coat.’
* * *
Feeling a bit awkward in a flat cap borrowed from Mitch, with her hair tucked inside by way of disguise, Ruby glanced around the neat but very masculine living room of Mitch’s friend’s cottage: tartan carpet, plain walls, black leather sofas and a huge inglenook fireplace complete with roaring fire. What was lacking was any sign of computer equipment, however.
‘Archie, mate, this is the lassie I told you about. But you have to keep this totally between us. Okay?’
Archie was a tall, slim man, ruggedly handsome with longish dark brown hair that was peppered with grey, and a beard that was more grey than brown. He wore a checked shirt with an Aerosmith T-shirt underneath and cargo pants. He definitely fit the outdoorsy bill that Ruby had expected, but in no way resembled the IT whizz she hoped for. Although she was more aware than ever that she shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.
He stared and held out his hand. ‘You’re R-Ruby Locke. I’ve seen you at the cinema. Well, I mean not youpersonallyof course, but you on the screen. What I mean is… I saw your films… like, all of them. I mean, I’m not a stalker or anything but—’
Mitch patted his shoulder. ‘Aye, Archie, she’s famous, get over it, pal. Can you help?’
Archie shook his head as if trying to dislodge something loose from his brain. ‘Aye, aye, of course I can. A hacking wasn’t it? I saw it in the papers. I didn’t believe it was you who said those awful things. You’re not like that. What I mean is you don’t come across like that.’
Ruby smiled and shook his hand. ‘Thank you, Archie. You’re right. I didn’t do it, but I need to find out who did.’ She handed him an envelope. ‘I’ve written all my passwords and sites on a piece of paper. I deactivated them and my agent allegedly froze them so they can’t be reactivated, but I’m guessing you can circumvent that. Mitch says I can trust you.’
Archie saluted. ‘No problemo. And you absolutelycantrust me, ma’am. One hundred and ninety-nine per cent.’
Ruby narrowed her eyes and tilted her head. ‘What about the other one per cent of that two hundred?’
Archie widened his eyes. ‘Oh, well, I mean—’
She giggled. He may not have the appearance of a computer genius but it was clear his heart was in the right place. ‘I’m joking. I’m joking. If Mitch says I can trust you, then I trust you.’
Archie’s cheeks were bright red by this point. ‘Oh, right enough, aye.’ He grinned. ‘Leave it with me, eh?’
Mitch patted his shoulder and shook his hand. ‘Cheers, mate. I really appreciate this.’
Archie nodded. ‘Hey, have you seen Reid since you got here? I reckon he’d love to see you. He got engaged, you know. Jules is a top lassie. He’s a lucky beggar, that one.’
Mitch gave a small, uncertain smile. ‘Not yet. But I’ll probably see him at some point.’
