Broken Silence (Silence, #2)(26)

Oakley nodded against my chest.

“You don’t believe me, do you?”

“No one believes you, Cole,” she said with a shaky voice, trying to make a joke.

“That’s because you all suck,” I mumbled against her hair. Her body shook lightly as she laughed.

Every time I saw her upset, I hated myself. I didn’t understand how we all could have missed it. I had told Oakley thousands of times over the years that she could tell me what was going on but she never did.

“Sorry. Again. You must think I’m an unstable mess!”

“Not unstable. Although you are getting a little more like Jasper,” I joked.

Oakley’s moods were about something. She had a good reason, whereas Jaspers were about the most random things, even when he was a kid. He had always been the joker and after a while no one could tell if his reactions were genuine or an act.

“That’s the same as unstable.”

I chuckled quietly and closed my eyes, pulling her closer. She couldn’t feel exactly the same about me as I felt about her or there was no way she would be able to go back to Australia. But if I felt leaving her was the best thing for her, could I do it? I thought about that for a while. Loving someone meant putting them first. I would have to do it.

“Do you want to go when it starts?”

She shook her head. “No. I don’t want to be in there any longer than I have to.”

“So you’re just going to give evidence and watch the verdict?

“Yeah.”

“Me too.”

“Thanks, Cole,” she whispered.

“Stop thanking me.”

To change the mood, I started a conversation about our childhood and the time she tried to rescue a half-dead bird. She kept it in an old shoebox filled with tissue and made me and Jasper bring it worms because she wouldn’t touch them. It died after two days, and we buried it in her back garden.

“He’s still there, you know.”

“Yep. The new owners probably think ‘Squawk’ is a cat or dog.”

My dad carved the bird’s name into a cross we made from lollypop sticks.

“Poor bird. I was really upset when he died. That was the day I stopped wanting to be a vet.”

I laughed.

“Yeah, you shouted that you couldn’t even save one bird so you would be the ‘rubbishest’ vet ever.”

She was only four. I think that was one of the last times I heard her shout, too.

I took in every part of her as we spoke. Her light blue eyes and long wavy blonde hair. Her full pink lips that I had a hard time not attacking. No one was supposed to be perfect, but to me, she was.

Finally, long after we’d finished eating and drinking, I drove her back.

“Do you want to come in for a bit?” she asked.

“You just don’t want to face your mum and crazy brother alone, do you?”

“That’s not the only reason.”

I was a little taken back with how honest that was. I expected a sarcastic reply.

“Sure, I’ll come in.” I don’t want to leave you yet either.

I couldn’t help putting my hand on the small of her back as we walked inside. Touching her was too natural. Oakley grabbed the post from the floor as we walked towards the kitchen.

“Oakley?” Sarah called, the second we closed the front door. “Honey, how was it? Are you okay? We’ve been so worried.”

“I’m fine. It was fine. Sorry I made you worry, but everything was alright. I was with Cole.”

I smiled proudly. Everything was alright because she was with me.

“What’s that?” I asked, frowning and turning my head towards the source of the awful noise coming from upstairs.

“Jasper’s showering. He sings in the shower,” Sarah replied, shaking her head in discouragement. He was singing very loudly. I couldn’t make out every word, but I caught a few, moves and Jagger. Jasper was murdering a perfectly good song.

“What’s wrong?” Oakley’s asked. I spun around and saw her looking at her white-as-a ghost mum.

“It’s a visiting order from prison,” Sarah said. “Max wants to see me.”





Chapter Nine


Oakley




I couldn’t breathe. My lungs were tight. He wanted to see Mum. Why? Did he want to explain? Was there even an explanation for what he did? He was trying to talk his way out of it. If he could get Mum on his side… No, that wasn’t going to happen. She would never believe him.

My eyes wouldn’t focus properly. I was vaguely aware of Cole’s arm around my waist, holding me tight. If it wasn’t for him, I probably would have collapsed. What if she wanted to see him, too? They were married after all, and she must have things she wanted to say. She never got the chance to talk to him after he was arrested.

“Oakley?” Cole shouted, standing in front of me. He frowned, taking my face in his hands.

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I desperately tried to think of something to say.

“Oakley? Are you alright?” Mum asked.

“I’m fine, Mum,” I muttered in reply.

“I’m not going. You know that, don’t you? I don’t ever want to see that man again.”