The Ruby in the Storm

Chapter 5: Queen Takes Knight

Chapter 5: Queen takes Knight

Belmoran Island, 1842

The cottage looked haunted and empty in the distance. Ross couldn't believe that it was his once his haven. It looked like a shade, a ghost. There was nothing about the sight that appealed to him.

Lucy solemnly strode beside him as they walked up the grassy path. Phillip Doyle followed behind, a grim look on his face, looking at nothing but the ground, as though he was ashamed of something.

Ross tried to school his face to cool indifference. He knew what it must have looked like to Lucy, that he was hollow and didn't care. Void of feeling and all human thought... It was his goal to embrace such a persona, not because he wanted to hurt the woman he loved, but because he feared that should he release any more emotion, another person would get hurt. The very vivid image of James holding Lucy down still burned a hole in Ross's thoughts. Had he not come in time... Had he not shot the man...

Ross felt Lucy squeeze his hand. God bless her, she thought he was angry with. She thought he hated her, no doubt, and that was not what he wanted. He was furious with James and the fact that he couldn't protect her. She was an innocent in all of this.

"I love you," he whispered, low enough so only she could hear. "Remember that, Lucy. If you are unsure of anything else for the rest of your years, know that I love you."

Lucy smiled up at him, but her eyes remained scarred. He wanted to see the light in them again, and no more fear. No more pain.

They arrived at the door, and Ross put the key in the lock and opened to a hollow home. He had chosen this spot because no one else knew where it was, so no unanswerable questions would be asked. Eventually, Ross would have to stand to answer such questions, and be ready for the consequence, but at the moment, protecting Lucy was his first priority.

When they were all inside and a fire was running, they all sat together to keep warm while Phillip took a moment to gather his thoughts.

"Why are you helping us?" Ross finally asked Phillip while Lucy rubbed her hands together, trying to keep warm. He pulled her closer and she reciprocated by leaning her head on his shoulder.

Phillip looked up. "Lucy's uncle, Robert, is a very valuable associate of my brother's. They had dealings in the past that led my brother to be in Robert Quincy's debt. When I heard that you, Lucy, were on the island, I did not think much of it, because I didn't remember Robert having two nieces, or at least it was a memory that I had tucked away, thinking it irrelevant. My intentions were to pass through Belmoran, as I have done multiple times in the past.

" James Boatwright's arrival allowed me to rethink my acquaintances," he continued. "He kept going on about a Lucy Quincy from Lanfore. I then recalled a Lucy Quincy that I had met at the Branson's ball, the same Lucy Quincy that James Boatwright kept going on about, and the pieces fell together. After speaking with James at length, I realized that he was a danger to you, as I have seen such a measure of obsessive love before. It was my intent, then, to attempt to rectify whatever my brother owed your uncle and try and help you, which I am doing now."

"What does your brother owe my uncle?" Lucy asked.

"That is irrelevant. When Robert Quincy finds out that I helped you, then it will not matter."

"Of course, you have an ulterior motive," Ross snorted.

"Obviously, I want to help my brother," Phillip sat up. "But that does not matter now, what does matter is making sure that James's death cannot be traced back to Lucy."