Hi everyone. Sorry for the lack of update over the weekend. I won't be updating tomorrow as I have a hospital appointment and I'll be in London all day but I'll back with you on Wednesday. I hope you enjoy this one though. Love, IJKS xxx

Chapter Thirty Four

"What are you all doing here?" Ruby gasped, still reeling from everything that had just happened.

Joey whirled around in her seat while Charlie focussed hard on the road ahead.

"What are we doing here?" she demanded. "What are you doing here, Ruby? What the hell were you thinking?"

Charlie was relieved that Joey seemed to be saying everything that she was thinking. It meant that she didn't have to be the one to say it.

"I…" Ruby faltered.

She looked at Geoff, who refused to help her. Having seen the level of distress Charlie in particular had gone through, he knew now more than ever that his girlfriend had made a terrible choice by coming to meet her father. And he was worried about the stress Charlie was under in her condition – and Joey, for that matter.

"Well?" Joey said. "What the hell are you doing out here?"

"I just wanted to meet him…" Ruby said.

Tears welled in Charlie's eyes but she fought them back, concentrating on the road ahead. The last thing they needed was an accident – they had more precious cargo than themselves.

"Why?" Joey yelled, startling all of them. "Why would you want to meet someone like that? You know what he did to Charlie! You know he's evil, Ruby!"

Ruby burst into tears.

"I wanted to tell him that," she sobbed. "I wanted to make him face what he'd done. I wanted to tell him I hated him and that he's a monster."

Geoff took pity on her and put his arm around her shoulders. Tears spilled down Charlie's cheeks. She wiped them away. They didn't have time to pull over. She just needed to get them back safely to Summer Bay as quickly as possible.

"I'm sorry," Ruby wept.

Joey softened. She reached out and touched her hand. Ruby held on tightly to it and apologised again.

"I just wanted to…"

"You shouldn't have," Joey said gently. "But… well, at least it's because you hate him and not because…"

"I don't ever want a relationship with him or anything," Ruby assured them all. "I do hate him."

She turned to her mother.

"I hate him for everything he did to you, Charlie," she said.

The driver nodded quietly.

"I'm sorry," Ruby repeated.

She sank against Geoff, who held her tight. Joey turned back to sit more comfortably in her seat, facing the front again. She gently touched Charlie's thigh. Charlie continued to drive.

Charlie, Joey and Ruby hadn't been home long. They'd dropped Geoff off at his house and then returned to their own home to try and talk things through. Ruby was meeker than anybody had ever seen her. It was almost unsettling.

The three of them had just sat down at the kitchen table, with hot drinks to calm their nerves, when there was an urgent knock at the door. All three women glanced at each other, confused as to who could be calling for them.

"Maybe it's Geoff…" Ruby mused.

She stood and headed towards the front door. Charlie and Joey followed her, wanting to be polite to whoever it was but also to make it clear that now wasn't a good time.

"I need to talk to you," their visitor said to Ruby.

Charlie panicked the moment she saw Grant standing there. Ruby froze. Joey leapt forward in order to shut the door on him. There was no way that that monster was going to enter her home.

"Wait!" he yelled, forcing the door back.

It hit her in the face, knocking her to the ground. Charlie leapt into action. She kicked the door shut and ordered Ruby to lock it up tight. Grateful for the first time that her parents were oddly paranoid about security, Ruby bolted every lock she could. Charlie was already on her knees, helping Joey up, desperately checking that she was okay.

"The door hit…" Joey managed, touching her bump.

Charlie tried not to show how frightened she was. Their attention was caught by Grant banging frantically on the window.

"Charlie!" he yelled. "You bitch! That girl told me what you've been saying about me!"

He caught Ruby looking stricken at him through the glass.

"It's not true," he told her. "If I'm your father it's because your precious mother is a slut. Nothing else."

"Ruby, call an ambulance and the police," Charlie demanded, still trying to tend to Joey.

The teenager just kept staring at the angry man outside.

"Ruby!" Charlie shouted.

It jolted her into action. With trembling hands, she pulled out her phone and obeyed orders.

"We're calling the police!" Charlie screamed towards the window. "Stay out there if you like. I'd love to see you behind bars where you belong!"

He slammed his fists hard on the glass. A crack appeared but it didn't break. Then he disappeared.

"Charlie, what happened?" Angelo asked.

He and Watson had followed the ambulance down to the hospital, where Joey was waiting to be seen by Judy.

"Can't this wait?" Charlie snapped. "I need to be with Joey."

He looked frustrated. As usual, he was like a dog with a bone. A lot of compassion seemed to have been drained from him since he'd last lived in Summer Bay. Now, he just got tunnel vision when he was working on a case.

"Yes, it can wait," Watson said, stepping in. "We'll go back to your place and check on Ruby for you. In the meantime, you just look after Joey and baby, okay? We'll come and find you tomorrow to make a statement."

Charlie smiled her thanks, touching her friend's hand briefly. Then she hurried off to where Joey was sat on her hospital bed, looking pale and anxious.

"What if after everything, I've fucked everything up at the last minute?" Joey asked sadly.

Charlie caught hold of her hand immediately. She lifted it and kissed it, reaching out to stroke her hair.

"Everything will be fine," she assured her, hoping that Judy would arrive soon to confirm everything.

"But what if it's not?" Joey asked. "What if I've killed her?"

A sob escaped her. Charlie gathered her hurriedly into her arms, kissing the top of her head.

Back at home, Ruby's mind was reeling. She was consumed with guilt over everything that had happened that day and cursed herself for not being able to leave well enough alone. Suddenly she knew just how lucky she was to have Charlie and Joey and the babies, to have Geoff and her friends and the happy life they lived in Summer Bay. Suddenly it no longer mattered that Charlie was her Mum and had lied about being her sister. Suddenly it didn't matter who her biological father was. Now, all that mattered was their family.

Unfortunately, she'd realised too late. She had gone to find her father, even if her intentions had been honourable. Grant Bledcoe, the man she considered the epitome of evil, now knew where they lived. Pregnant Joey had been rushed to hospital trying to stop him breaking in. And it was all Ruby's fault.

"Of course you haven't killed her," Charlie assured Joey gently. "Come on, she's a member of our family. She's automatically a fighter."

She smiled. Joey smiled weakly back at her but her heart wasn't in it.

"Charlie, I don't know if I can do this," she admitted.

Charlie looked confused.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know if I can be a Mum to Sarah."

Next time… Charlie and Judy try to help Joey through her crisis while Ruby gets a visitor…