Scarlett COMPLETED (GxG)

22. Lucy and Scarlett leave

"Hello, Charlie."

"Scarlett, w-w-w-what are you doing h-h-here?" The young man asked with his usual stutter while putting the cleaning cloth and copper candle holder on the table. "I t-thought you'd have left already."

Scarlett shook her head while closing the door behind her before she walked further into the dining room.

"I need your help," she said. "Please Charlie, you're the only one I can ask for help."

"Of course, anything."

Scarlett gently pushed him to sit on one chair as she sat down on another.

"But I can't tell you the whole story," she said. "Which I'm glad for because it's better if you don't know."

She hated to involve Charlie in all of this mess, but he was the only one that could help with the plan she and Roy had come up with. They couldn't back down now.

"Okay. I h-have to say that you're s-s-scaring me now."

Scarlett grabbed something out of her pocket and pushed it into Charlie's hand. It was a ring. A golden man's seal ring.

"This is William's ring. I want you to give it to Mr. Dearhorn and say that William gave it to you as a token for the Master to make up for his sudden absence. It was all William had to offer."

"Was?"

Scarlett ignored his question. "He has accidentally made a wealthy town girl pregnant and didn't want to put shame on Dearhorn's castle, so he left this house to handle his own mistakes."

"He d-d-did?" Charlie asked. "Or..." he paused. "He didn't. Did he?"

"Will you tell this to Mr. Dearhorn, please?"

Charlie slowly nodded. "I will," he then answered.

Scarlett could tell the male servant thought this story was rather fishy, but he did not ask about it again. She stood up and kissed his right cheek. "Thank you, Charlie. I also hope we can pretend this conversation never happened?"

"Okay. This talk n-never h-h-happened."

Scarlett smiled in gratitude, stroked the top of Charlie's head one time, said goodbye, and left the room.

~

In the carriage, Lucy bit at the nail of her ring finger. She just said goodbye to her parents, who both thought she and Roy were going away to celebrate their wedding with a nice relaxing honeymoon.

However, nothing was less true.

She knew her parents would feel devastated soon, and it was all thanks to her and the others. No. It was all thanks to that horrible man named William. If he would have kept his mouth shut and his hands to himself, this wouldn't ever have happened.

Roy had told her parents that he and Lucy were going to catch the boat to Italy and Mama had been so thrilled. She said she always wanted to go there someday. Lucy, in her turn, had to hold back her tears.

"Come here," Scarlett said, while she interlaced her fingers with Lucy's slender ones, and pressed a kiss on top of the back of her hand.

They were on their way to get Angela and her son, who were still oblivious to the change of plans.

Roy just paid the carriage driver a hefty sum of money to take his carriage with them. He was currently outside, riding the horse that pulled the carriage.

"I'm so sorry for all of this, Lucy. But I'm not sorry for protecting myself or you," Scarlett said.

"I'm most worried about you," Lucy said.