Page 64 of Under A Sicilian Sky
Shelby flopped back onto the sofa, lowered her gaze and closed her eyes. ‘I’ve done something really stupid.’
Ruby immediately presumed she was about to admit to the hacking and her hackles rose. ‘Go on.’
Shelby sighed and her eyes welled with tears. ‘I only came here because I had a chance to audition for something that you should’ve auditioned for. A British sitcom. I opened the email at the office after you had told Valerie you were relocating again, and I responded as her. I told them you weren’t accepting auditions, because I know you’re not at the moment and I didn’t think you’d be interested in a sitcom anyway. So, I told them I had someone who would be perfect for the part. Then I forged a letter from you saying you wholeheartedly recommended me for the role.’ Tears escaped and trickled down her cheeks. ‘I was so happy when they called me to say I got the audition, and I drove to Glasgow to attend it.’ She let out a sob. ‘Then they gave the part to someone else, even though I knew I was perfect for it. It was all for nothing. I deceived Valerie, convinced her to let me come here and assist you, lied to you too. But all the effort I put in to get the part, the risk I took, was all for nothing.’
Ruby sighed deeply. ‘Oh, Shelby… That’s so disappointing. You can’t do things like that. You’re employed as a PA. You have access to private and confidential information, but you clearly can’t be trusted.’
Shelby burst into tears. ‘Please, please don’t tell Valerie. It was a dumb mistake and I regret it and I’m sorry. It will never happen again. I don’t want Valerie to be angry with me. She’s been good to me and I don’t want her to know I let her down. I’ll quit. I’ll go back to the US and I’ll quit, I promise. Please, Ruby, all I ever wanted was to be an actress and I figured working for Valerie would be a good inroad. I was wrong. All I get to do is babysit people and fetch coffee. I don’t even want to be a damned assistant. Acting is my dream. It’s all I think about. Being amongst the drama of a set, being the star. Surely you get that?’ She pleaded with her eyes and clasped her hands together.
Ruby pondered for a moment. In all honesty, she didn’t get it. It had never been her ‘dream’. Shelby had a desperation for it that Ruby had never experienced, maybe for dancing but not for acting, and she suddenly felt guilty for falling into her career by accident, when Shelby was someone who would clearly risk everything for it. Her heart softened a little.
‘I won’t mention anything to Valerie at this point. So long as you promise to never doanythinglike this again. You’ve put me in a very awkward position, though, Shelby. I’ll need to think things through, and I can’t promise that I won’t tell her. Not only did you lie to Valerie, but you impersonated me, which, under the circumstances, was a very silly and thoughtless thing to do.’
Shelby nodded while sobbing. ‘I know. I never meant to hurt you. I just really wanted that part. And I figured if I got it, you’d be happy for me and so would Valerie.’
Ruby shook her head, knowing full well that it wouldn’t have been as clear-cut as Shelby presumed. ‘Well, now you know that it’s not a matter of lying your way onto a set. You can’t just use my name to get a part. It doesn’t work like that.’
‘I know. I see that now.’ She sniffed. ‘I’ll go pack my stuff.’
Ruby shook her head. ‘No, don’t do that. Not yet. Valerie will want an explanation for sure if you quit. Just leave things for now. Let me think.’
Shelby’s expression brightened. ‘Really? Thank you, Ruby. Thank you so much.’ She walked over and hugged Ruby hard.
Ruby stiffened. ‘Don’t thank me, Shelby. I’m hurt and disappointed. After everything I’ve been put through lately, I didn’t need this. But I’m not awoe is meperson, in spite of what you seem to think. And we’re not friends. I’m not doing you a favour. I’m thinking things through. There may still be repercussions when the production company give feedback on your audition and then you’ll have a lot of explaining to do.’
‘I… I diverted their emails, so it’ll be fine.’
Ruby sighed deeply and shook her head. ‘It’s never good to clamber over people to get to the top, Shelby. You’d do well to remember that.’
Shelby didn’t speak. Her nostrils flared and she turned and left the room.
Ruby flopped back onto the sofa, exhaling roughly and rubbing her hands over her face. She knew she should report Shelby, but for some reason she didn’t have the heart to ruin her career. She wondered what else could go wrong. But at least she knew why Shelby was really here. That was one mystery solved.
* * *
The following week, the village seemed to be buzzing with excitement. The scaffolding had been removed from the village hall and the last check had been carried out by the building inspectors. Rainbow-coloured bunting had been strung all around the shops and houses and coloured lights had been added to the outside of the hall.
It had felt strange around the house. The atmosphere was heavy, and Shelby was hiding out in her room most of the time. When Dougie and Mitch had enquired what was wrong, Ruby had said there had been some personal issues at home and Shelby was taking some time out to deal with them. She felt guilty for lying but knew that the truth would create even more questions, such as, why on earth hadn’t Shelby been sent home and fired?
Ruby had been able to walk around the village alone a couple of times, under the strict instruction from Dougie to use her panic alarm if necessary. She had, however, noticed her bodyguard skulking in the background – he was rather too large to operate incognito – but she couldn’t exactly blame him; he was serious about his work and wouldn’t trust anyone, just in case the worst happened. The villagers always greeted her with a warm smile and she never felt like a famous person trying to fit in; instead, she felt comfortable and at home. People would stop and chat, ask how she was, recommend places for her to visit and she would crouch and fuss their dogs, making even more canine friends. There was certainly something magical about Glentorrin.
She was taking Chewie for a walk while Evin was at school, Jules was working in the museum and Reid was working in his studio, and loved having a furry companion again.
The weather seemed to be getting warmer, but there had been lots of rain showers and on her latest walk she had called in to Archie’s shop and purchased a compact umbrella. As he cut the tags off her purchase, they talked about the weather.
‘Aye, nothing surprises you when you’ve lived here long enough. You can get all four seasons in a day on Skye.’ Ruby was immediately reminded of the Crowded House song. He leaned closer, rather conspiratorially. ‘Just to let you know, I’m getting much closer to tracking down the hackers. I’ll keep you posted,’ he said with a tap to his nose.
Ruby was both lifted and saddened by the news. She secretly hoped it might take just a little longer, so she had more time in Glentorrin. She left the shop humming ‘Four Seasons in One Day’ as the sun did its best to warm her up.
She hadn’t spoken to Valerie for quite some time and when her phone rang while she was out walking Chewie, she considered sending her to voicemail.
‘Hi, Val,’ she reluctantly said as she answered.
‘Hey, Ruby. How’ve you been? I hadn’t heard from you for so long I… I thought I should check in.’
Ruby sighed as she stopped to gaze out at the sea. ‘I’m fine, thank you. Do you have any news?’
Valerie cleared her throat. ‘I do, but it’s not about the hacking, I’m afraid. I’ve decided not to take on any more clients for a while. After this situation with the hacking, I kind of feel that I should be taking a step back, rethinking and re-evaluating everything.’
