Page 46 of Save Us
“What are you waiting for?” Ophelia asks, coming back into the room with the teapot in her hand. She pours for us and then sits at the head of the table. “Dig in.”
I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t such a cheerful, relaxed meal. I watch Mr. Sutton—Graham—pass Lydia a basket of toast, and Ophelia heap a mountain of scrambled eggs onto James’s plate, and I can’t help remembering that awful dinner with their father. The atmosphere here couldn’t be more different.
I think James feels as weird as I do, because it’s a few minutes before I see his shoulders loosen up.
“There’s something I have to tell you,” he says after a while, turning toward Lydia.
She pauses, her knife stuck in the butter. “That sounds serious.”
James hesitates, then nods. He tells her about the events of the last few days.
When he’s finished, Lydia’s cheeks are flushed with anger and Ophelia is shaking her head in disbelief.
“Dad must be out of his mind,” Lydia says.
Ophelia wipes her hands on a cloth serviette and then sets it down beside her plate. “Typical Mortimer. If something doesn’t fit his plans, he wants to get rid of it. That’s the whole reason I landed up here in Beckdale.”
Silence spreads between us. Nobody takes another bite.
“Ruby,” Lydia says after a while. She glances at Mr. Sutton and then back to me. “Graham and I were talking yesterday evening. About Maxton Hall. And we’ve decided to tell Mr. Lexington about us. Tomorrow.”
I stare at her in amazement. “What? Are you nuts? I—”
“It’s the only option,” she interrupts.
“Your dad sent you here to keep things secret. You can’t go running back to Maxton Hall to tell Lexie, of all people!”
Lydia shakes her head. “I don’t care what Dad wants. I can’t let you be punished for my—our—mistakes.”
I look between the two of them in disbelief, then turn to James.
“What’s up with Cyril?” I ask him. “You gave him till Monday to tell Lexington the truth.”
James nods. “Wait a bit, Lyds. If Cyril digs out the original photos, nobody needs to be punished.” He turns to Graham. “And you can go back to work.”
Graham shakes his head. “I’m not going back to Maxton Hall either way.” His eyes slide to Lydia, and he smiles softly. “For the time being, I just want to be here for Lydia. And then we’ll see.”
“What Cyril did…” Lydia gulps. “I’d never have believed he’d be capable of a thing like that. And I refuse to leave Ruby’s fate in his hands.”
Her words give me goose bumps down my arms.
“Lydia…” James begins, but she shakes her head.
“I’ve made up my mind.”
James presses his lips together and stares back at her. After a few seconds, he exhales with a sigh. “Well, it’s your choice.”
“I didn’t want any of this to happen,” I say quietly.
“I really appreciate what you’ve done for me, Ruby,” Lydia says, reaching across the table to take my hand. “But it’s gone too far. I’m going to go and see Lexington in person tomorrow.”
“How do you even know where he lives?” I ask, my heart racing. It feels as though things really are going to change. Like I won’t be kept in suspense any longer, watching my future crumble away before my eyes.
“I don’t.” Lydia looks from me to James and back again, an almost-sly smile spreading over her face. “But luckily, I know exactly where Lexie likes to spend his free time—and who with.”
13
James
