Broken Silence (Silence, #2)(66)

I froze, automatically shrinking from the idea of speaking to journalists, then shook myself, remembering what was at stake here. “Okay. I can do that.” There was still a large gathering of people out in the street, there would most likely be one or two members of the press still out there.

I heard Linda’s car door slam and the engine roar to life. “One second, I’m just putting you on hands-free,” she explained. I waited, listening to her press a button. “Alright. I’m now on my way to the station. Before you go out there we need to run through a few things you should and shouldn’t say.”

For the ten-minute drive to the station, with one two-minute break as Linda called the police to say she was on her way, we spoke about what I should say. Linda promised she would call the second she had any news, and I was happy that she had given me something to do that might actually prove helpful.

I was scared though. Actually, I was terrified. What if I said something wrong? What if people thought Cole deserved to be arrested for it? I just prayed that they would see our point of view. Yes, I was underage but barely and there wasn’t a huge age gap between us. It was nothing like what Frank did to me and to think other people would be making it out to be the same made me feel sick.

Five minutes later and I had mentally prepared myself, getting everything I needed to say straight in my head. This was all happening so quickly. I hated not having control over the situation. Taking a deep breath, I opened the front door. Jasper stood beside me on high alert with his chest puffed out. The rest of my family were just inside, behind me all the way.

My name was shouted over and over. The sea of noise was deafening. I held my hand up and surprisingly they all shut up. I guessed they really wanted to hear something from me.

Deciding to get straight to the point and not hang around wasting time, I said, “I really need your help.” Questions were yelled at me all at once, the second I finished my sentence. “Stop! I’ll answer some questions but one at a time.”

“Oakley, what’s happening with Cole?”

Jasper stepped closer and wrapped his arm around my shoulder. “I’m okay,” I whispered to him, before addressing the reporter who had asked the question.

“Cole has been arrested because we slept together when I was fifteen.” Another round of questions started, and I wanted to scream. Could they not just let me finish? This was so important. I wanted the whole country behind Cole, but they were making it so difficult.

“Please,” I shouted, sighing in exasperation. “Cole doesn’t deserve this. We were both teenagers, both in school and both made the choice to be together. What happened between us was completely different to what my father and Frank did. Cole is nothing like them. This shouldn’t be happening.”

Words of support and disgust at the situation buzzed around the crowd, in which neighbours outnumbered press. Talks of a campaign and protests made my head spin. They really were willing to help. Most of the explicit words were spat by the neighbours, the people that had known me and Cole since we were born.

I opened my mouth again, and the crowd paused. “Please, I need your help.” Launching into the details I could say, I prayed they would follow through and help.



“Oakley, are you sure you know what you’re doing? Drawing this much attention to Cole?” Jasper trailed off, frowning as he debated internally with himself. He locked the front door behind us.

I was overwhelmed by the support everyone was showing and just needed to keep going. “I can’t sit around and do nothing. It’s already all over the news, and I want people on Cole’s side. And if Linda thinks it’s a good idea…”

I pushed past Jasper and headed back up to Lizzie’s room to get my phone and try calling Linda for some news. Lizzie was in her room for the first time in weeks. She looked up, startled. “Oh, sorry.”

“Lizzie, this is your room. Don’t be sorry. I was just getting my phone.”

“You don’t have to go, you know?”

“You don’t have to stay over at your boyfriend’s every night, either.”

She shook her head and shrugged. “He’s not my boyfriend.” But she wanted him to be, that much was clear.

“Maybe not yet.” I grabbed my phone and headed to the door before I realised we’d just had a normal conversation. She really wasn’t that bad. “Lizzie, tell him how you feel. You never know you could just get everything you want.” I did, and I hoped with everything that I hadn’t lost it again.

“Oakley,” she called, and I turned around, poking my head around the door. “You’ll tell me if there’s anything I can do, right?”

“Yes. Thanks.” I closed her door, giving her some privacy. “Jasper,” I shouted, running down the stairs. He jumped up and spun around, looking up at me confused. What had he been doing? I didn’t even want to know. “Can you take me to the station, please?”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

I nodded. “Yes.” Now I’d told the world and asked them go get behind Cole, I needed to do the same thing.

He frowned as he considered what would be the best thing to do. Finally, he gave in with a grunt of exasperation. Jasper found it hard to say no to me, and I tried not to use it to my advantage too much, but this was different. “We leave if we need to, though. If it’s best for Cole, we leave, okay?”