Page 58 of Freeing Ruby

She’s shaking now, so I sit on the side of the bed and pull her into my arms. “You’ll be safe there,” I whisper against her forehead. “I promise.”

“You’ll be with me?”

“Of course. I’m not leaving you.”

She nods. “Okay.”

“Before I forget—” I reach into my pocket and pull out her ring. “—I’ve been keeping this safe for you.” I slip her mother’s ring onto her finger.

The hospital room door opens and Allen strides in. When he throws the privacy curtain wide open, Ruby flinches. I realize she’s using the curtain as a barrier between herself and the rest of the world. It’s her shield right now, her safety net. The only one she has.

Foster doesn’t even spare me a glance. “Ruby, this is getting ridiculous. You’re coming home with me. Your apartment is hardly safe, is it?” Foster glares at me. “You could have died, no thanks to this idiot.”

“It wasn’t Miguel’s fault!” Ruby tightens her hold on my hand. “He saved my life. If he hadn’t called 911 when he did, I probably wouldn’t be alive right now.”

“That’s so convenient, don’t you think?” Foster asks. He nods to me. “Miguel gets to play the big hero and ingratiate himself with you in the process. Who do you think drugged your coffee in the first place, Ruby?” He stares at her expectantly, as if he assumes she’ll agree with him.

Ruby looks away, gazing out the large picture window. “I don’t know, but it wasn’t Miguel.”

“You are so damn gullible,” Foster says. “He’s already under investigation by the Chicago PD. He’s their number one suspect.”

Ruby looks at me in shock. “Is that true? Are they investigating you?”

“I’ve been questioned by a detective, yes. But I’m not a suspect.”

She brushes her thumb over the back of my hand. “That’s ridiculous,” she says to her father. “Miguel had nothing to do with it.”

Foster crosses his arms over his chest. “Tell that to Detective Cartwright.”

I’ve heard enough. Foster’s just going to continue aggravating Ruby, and she’s going to continue defending me, and the two of them will keep running circles around each other.

“That’s enough,” I say to Foster. “You need to leave. You’re upsetting Ruby.” He scowls at the both of us before he turns and stalks out the door.

Ruby covers her face with her hands. “Oh, god, Miguel, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay.” I put my arm around her and draw her close. When she melts into me, I smile. “Everything’s going to be fine.”

“Were you really interviewed by the police?”

“Yeah, but it was fine. I met with one of the detectives at your apartment. He searched the place, with my permission. I hope you don’t mind. I knew he wouldn’t find anything incriminating because there’s nothing to find. He’s working on getting a warrant so he can search Darren’s apartment.”

“You still think Darren’s behind this?”

“I do.”

Ruby shakes her head in disbelief. “I can’t believe he’d do this. It doesn’t make any sense. Why in the world would he want to hurt me?”

“I don’t know, but I’m going to find out. In the meanwhile, we need to make plans to move you to the new apartment.”

She squeezes my hand. “My doctor said I might be able to go home later today.”

“I’ll let Shane know. He’s going to get your belongings packed and moved to the new apartment before you’re released.”

She doesn’t look happy about the idea of moving.

“You trust me, right?” I ask.

She nods.

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