Burn Me Once Burn With Me (Ruby Grayson) novel Chapter 22

Ruby turned around at a steady, unhurried pace and looked directly at the old woman. "Mrs. Lancaster, when you came to find me yesterday, what exactly was I doing at the time?"

Mrs. Lancaster thought for a moment. "Yesterday, you were cleaning the street, and I saw you dump all the garbage into the city truck just as it passed by."

"So, you're saying these dead leaves, cigarette butts, plastic wrappers, and tissues—none of them came from my section of the street, correct?"

"Of course not!" The old woman raised her brows, sounding almost indignant. "Anyone can see this is just the result of someone else shirking their duties. It's got nothing to do with you, my dear."

The housekeeper nearby couldn't help but mutter, "But what's all this got to do with Mrs. Lancaster's missing ring?" She couldn't help but wonder if there was more between the old lady and this young cleaning woman than met the eye.

"Director Hart, I believe I've just proved my innocence," Ruby said, her voice calm.

Fiona's face went through several shades, blushing red and then paling, as if someone had spilled tomato soup all over her.

"Fine. Don't celebrate too soon, though," Director Hart snapped. "Even if Darell was slacking off and the trash isn't yours, that doesn't explain you stealing Mrs. Lancaster's ring. We're not letting this go until everything's cleared up!"

"That's right!" someone chimed in. "You're not leaving here until you hand over the ring!"

Ruby gave a little laugh. "Mrs. Lancaster, your ring is actually lying in the grass right by Darell's feet. Earlier, I wasn't sure if he'd keep it on him or hide it somewhere, but when you accused me of stealing your sapphire ring just now, he panicked and tried to move it."

She'd spent so long tangling with Fiona for a reason—she was just waiting for Darell to slip up.

Yesterday, she'd only seen Darell pick something up; she hadn't been certain what it was. Even if she'd told Mrs. Lancaster right away, there was no guarantee the ring would still be on Darell after ten or twenty minutes.

She'd guessed Darell didn't know how valuable the item was and wouldn't try to sell it immediately.

Sure enough, once he thought he was in the clear, he carried it with him all day. But the moment Mrs. Lancaster accused Ruby of theft, Darell panicked and tried to hide the ring elsewhere.

He was probably planning to come back for it later, once the fuss had died down, and make a tidy profit selling it. No one would ever suspect him. But the security cameras had caught everything.

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