“Alright, who is ready for a great evening with some good wine?” Tom lets himself in as he says these words in a jolly as ever tone, holding a bottle of wine.

As he takes a few steps, he looks to find everyone in the room staring at him with a cold glare. The mood of the room says he’s entered into a warzone and the looks of the people there confirm it. “What?”

“Nothing. He was just leaving,” Fiona says as she turns away from Oscar.

“Ruby,” Oscar says hoping to explain himself.

“What? What can you possibly say for me to believe that this isn’t a sham! You accuse my brother of murder and then suddenly get close to me! Your disgusting,” Fiona says as she prepares to walk away.

“How about this… You and I met each other five months ago before any of this started. And from that moment I wanted to be with you. And I have told you that time and time again,” Oscar says with a heavy heart as Fiona stops in her tracks. “Or how about the fact that your brother threatened to kill Gregory and Scarlet a few weeks before the assault.”

“Don’t lie,” Fiona says turning to look at him.

“I am not!” Oscar asserts himself. “You think I just decided to suspect your brother without cause. Yesterday a man was at the hospital and he killed Gregory Morgan. A man of his height and physique. Not only that, no one knew Gregory was awake, not even his family. We kept that quiet to protect him but still, he was found with his throat slit. Benjamin was at the hospital and saw him wake up, his final injuries were done by a man, as he died he said the perpetrator had a heart tattoo. What am I to make of all this?” Oscar says sounding frustrated. “Not to mention your family history, your father being responsible for your mother’s death.”

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“Enough!” Benjamin shouts in one loud voice. “Get out! Enough of your lies and misconceptions. My father was a great man; he would never hurt my mother. After her death, he didn’t even look at another woman because he loved her so much. So get your facts right,” Benjamin says as he points to the door.

“Leave.” Oscar turns around to leave and as he reaches the door he turns around to see Fiona wiping a tear from her cheek.

“I can’t believe you would think I am capable of using you. That you think all our time together was a sham,” Oscar turns around trying to control his tears. “I hate to see you cry Ruby, but you’re not the only one here who’s had their heart broken tonight.” Oscar leaves crying as Nicholas holds Ann as she begins to cry, watching her brother become emotional.

“Let’s go,” Nicholas says as he angrily stares at Benjamin as they leave.

“I should go too,” Tom says as he leaves closing the door behind him. Fiona goes to the guest room without saying a word and cries, as Benjamin is left by himself in the living room.

Two days later, Oscar is at the station working and is visited by someone unexpected. Fiona stands before him in his office asking him for a moment to talk. With a painful heart, he decides to hear her out.

“That day you said my dad was responsible for my mom’s death. I’m sure you read about it in the papers, how he was cheating on her and how she said in an interview that she feels neglected.” Oscar had done some digging and had found these articles. “I just wanted to say, that it was true. Every bit of it was true.” Oscar looks at Fiona silently as she continues. “Ben was only three years old when it happened. He was too young to remember, but I wasn’t. He used to bring women home, mom used to scream and break things. He was always drinking and doing what he wanted. Then one-day mom told him to choose between her and some woman, so he walked out of the house. So mom jumped.”

“Sorry,” Oscar says softly.

“When dad found out he was devastated. He realized his mistake, cleaned up, and became the man Benjamin knew him to be. I never told him about what happened so that’s why he thinks it’s a lie,” Fiona says looking at Oscar. “I just wanted to clear that up. And just because his father was like that doesn’t mean Benjamin killed his ex-wife. Yes, he was angry but he’s a good guy. He would never hurt her.” Fiona says as she stands up to leave.

“Wait.”