Page 89 of Under A Sicilian Sky
Jessica and Philippe sat opposite Ruby at the table. Bayleigh and Brienne, had cleared away the breakfast plates and retreated to their rooms to get ready for school.
‘I just don’t want you to give up on your dreams because of all this, Ruby,’ Philippe said, his stern gaze fixed on her.
Ruby shook her head. ‘No, I’m not. That’s the thing. I never wanted this. Not really. My dream was always to be a dancer. I fell into this business totally by accident and got swept up in it all. But it was never my dream. And after this whole hacking business and the horrid stuff that followed, I feel like I will never recover, career-wise. I think it’s too late. Maybe if Valerie had done what she said to begin with, it would have settled by now. But the fact that I was stopped from defending myself didn’t help, and then when I tried, everything was twisted beyond recognition. It’s dragged on for too long, meaning I look guilty. It’s made me just want to step away.’ She gave a deep sigh. ‘Being famous is too hard. I just want to be me again. On Skye, I had a small taste of freedom and I loved it. The people I met – with some exceptions, of course – were incredible. So warm and giving. I want people like that, like you guys, in my life. I’m tired of not knowing who to trust and… and of being lonely.’ She paused as her own words sank in. ‘Because the life I’ve been living has been so very lonely. I want someone to love me for me, not my fame, to have the chance at real happiness out of the spotlight.’ Jessica and Philippe listened intently as she carried on. ‘The film I was due to be in,The Girl and The Rose? They dropped me because of it all.’ She scoffed. ‘Val said they had “postponed”, but I reckon they’ve just changed their minds about me. I mean, who wants a romantic lead who’s bigoted and a hideous person in real life? I certainly wouldn’t if I was them! It would be box-office suicide.’
‘But what will you do? Where will you go?’ Jessica asked with a look of concern in her eyes.
Ruby shrugged. ‘I don’t know. I have money in the bank. I might go back to Scotland and travel for a while. I fell in love with Skye and would love to do more exploring there. Then after that I can afford to buy somewhere off the beaten track. And maybe in a couple of years I’ll go get a regular job, make some new friends. There’s a world of opportunities out there. Once people forget about me and this scandal, I can live a normal life again. Do all the things I’ve been missing all these years. My name will have been cleared so I’ll be okay.’
Jessica shook her head. ‘I just think this is so sad. And such a waste of your wonderful talent. Are you sure this isn’t a knee-jerk reaction? I mean, you’ve had a shitty time of things, especially in the last couple of days.’
Ruby smiled. ‘I think if I’d made this decision as soon as I found out about the hacking it would’ve been knee-jerk. But I’ve had weeks, months even, to think about this. It feels like the right decision.’ She shrugged. ‘And I’m comfortable with it.’
Philippe leaned across and placed his hand over hers. ‘You are welcome to stay here as long as you need. Consider this your home, please. We want to make sure you have a safe place and people who have your back.’
Ruby placed her other hand on top of his. ‘Thank you. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you both. At some point, I’d like to fly home to see my mum and dad. Their visit to Skye was wonderful, but I miss them like crazy, and I want to see my best friend Kitty, and her baby when it’s born, but I don’t want to bring trouble to their door, so I’ll only go once I know that it’s safe to do so. I’ll need to wait until my name has officially been cleared though. If that’s okay?’
Philippe nodded. ‘Absolument. Pas de question. As long as you need.’
* * *
After breakfast, Ruby returned to her bedroom. She picked up her phone and saw yet another text and several missed calls from Mitch.
Ruby, I don’t know why you won’t answer my calls or reply to my texts, but Archie has discovered your hacker. I need to speak to you before I go to the police. Please just call me. Mitch xx
Ruby’s heart pounded. This was it. The truth.Finally. Her hand shook as she glanced at the clock and calculated the time difference. It was ten in the morning in New York, which meant it was three in the afternoon in Scotland. The message Mitch had sent was timed at 3 a.m. GMT, which meant he’d been up ridiculously late but may be at work now. She wasn’t sure how she had missed the message.
For a moment she pondered leaving the call until later, but her nerves were jangling, palms sweating, stomach roiling.
‘Sod it,’ she said as she hit dial on Mitch’s number.
‘Ruby! Thank God. Are you okay? I’ve been worried sick.’
Hearing his voice made her heart squeeze. She missed him, even after what he’d done.
Idiot, she chastised herself inwardly. ‘I’m fine. Please just tell me what you found out.’
He fell silent. ‘Can we talk for a minute?’
She closed her eyes and imagined his worried expression. ‘I have nothing to say to you. I appreciate you putting me in touch with Archie and I’m grateful for all your help, but I don’t feel we have anything else to discuss other than the hacking. Please just tell me.’
There was a pause before Mitch cleared his throat. ‘Right. I see. Okay. Erm… so you remember Archie discovered two fake names, characters fromThe Big Bang Theory, Howard Wolowitz and Sheldon Cooper?’
Ruby could hear the sadness in his voice and almost crumbled. But she reminded herself why she was being so harsh with him; he had slept with her under false pretences; made her think he cared when he obviously just wanted meaningless sex.
She swallowed down her emotions. ‘I remember, yes. And?’
‘Okay… are you sitting down? Are you alone? You maybe shouldn’t be alone for this.’
‘Mitch, for goodness’ sake, just tell me!’ she yelled and immediately regretted it. After all, this man had sacrificed a lot for her when he didn’t really know her that well. ‘I’m sorry. Just… just tell me, please.’
She heard him inhale deeply. ‘Okay. So… The hackings have been traced back to… Shelby Copeland. Hence the use of Sheldon Cooper, I guess. I presume she used the other character name to try and send any would-be detectives off the scent.’
Ruby shook her head, confusion clouding her mind. ‘Who?’
‘Shelby… Valerie’s assistant, Shelby.’
Ruby flopped to the bed. ‘I’m sorry,what?’ She knew she shouldn’t be surprised after what she had discovered about her audition, but this news still hit her like a ton of bricks.
