The Silent Ones: An absolutely gripping psychological thriller(25)

They always sound deluded.

Only this morning, I was loading the dishwasher, planning the evening meal, putting on the laundry I should have set going last night.

Now our precious daughters are in danger of being charged with murder. If that happens, they will never shrug off the stigma. Even if it’s proven at some stage that they were wrongly charged, things will never be as they were.

It will raise its head again and again their whole lives, through sly nudges, unsuccessful job applications, friends who fade away… I’m trying so hard to process it, but it’s proving impossible. The thought that life as we knew it could collapse so completely in a day is utterly crazy.

Ten minutes ago, Dad took Mum over the road to Costa. Chloe isn’t in the mood for talking and has been immersed in her phone and I’m just staring at the walls, wondering if Tom has picked up Josh safely. I thought he might have texted me.

The door opens and I sit up straight. Neary walks in, and a tall woman in her early forties enters the room behind him. She’s wearing black trousers and a silky green blouse that complements her short copper-coloured hair and pale skin. She smiles pleasantly at us all. I’m the only one who smiles back.

Neary clears his throat. ‘Juliet, Chloe, I’d like to introduce you to Dana Sewell, a brilliant family therapist I’ve known and worked with for many years now.’

Her name sounds familiar but I can’t think why.

We all shake hands, and as we sit down, I notice that her face and forearms are heavily patterned with freckles.

‘Good to meet you,’ she says in a local accent.

‘Dana has kindly agreed at short notice to come and speak to Maddy and Brianna,’ Neary tells us. ‘We’re hoping she can break through the girls’ silence. It isn’t helping either of them. Do you have any questions?’

‘What do you think you can do to get through to them that we haven’t thought of?’ Chloe asks in a belligerent tone. ‘If the girls won’t even speak to us, their own mothers, I don’t see why they’ll be any different with you.’

‘At this stage, I can’t promise anything at all.’ Dana moves her hands around gently as she speaks. ‘I plan to start by meeting the girls and hopefully establishing some sort of initial relationship.’

My fingers loosen their grip on the sides of the chair. Her voice is soothing, somehow. She’s the kind of person I think I could trust.

‘And that’s it?’ Chloe gives a disparaging grunt. ‘This is the genius strategy that we’re hanging our hopes on?’

‘Dana has a bit of a head start in that she’s local to the village and has worked at the school your daughters attend,’ Neary offers and I realise I must have heard her name mentioned on a school newsletter. ‘They may well recognise her as a friendly face, and she’s known for her unique ability to quickly form relationships with young people.’

Chloe frowns and peers closer at Dana, as if she’s trying to match her face with a picture in her mind. ‘You’re not that school therapist they had to fire last year, are you?’

Now I remember! Beth, always an expert on local gossip, had told me about a woman who worked at a handful of local schools, including ours. She had overstepped the mark and been struck off, or something similar.

‘She sounds quite a maverick,’ Beth had remarked at the time.

‘I was suspended, not dismissed,’ Dana replies calmly. ‘And I’ve now been fully cleared of any wrongdoing.’

‘Well I’m sorry, but I don’t want her anywhere near Brianna.’ Chloe folds her arms and stares stonily at the opposite wall.

Dana’s face flushes pink, but she doesn’t respond. I cringe inwardly at Chloe’s overt rudeness.

‘Juliet?’ Neary sighs. ‘What’s your view on this?’

‘Why do you think the girls have stopped speaking?’ I ask Dana. Nobody has actually given an opinion on it.

‘There could be lots of reasons – fear, rebellion, anger – but we feel it’s far more constructive simply to get them talking again rather than worry about why they’re choosing not to communicate.’

Chloe gives a derisory sniff, frustration seeming to etch deeper the tiny lines around her mouth and eyes.

‘I welcome anyone who can help us get the girls home, and I think my husband will feel the same way,’ I say honestly. I feel Chloe’s searing glance in my direction and turn to look at her. ‘If Maddy and Brianna recognise Dana from school, they might just trust her enough to open up to someone independent. Someone who’s neither their parent nor a police officer.’

‘That’s my hope too,’ Dana says warmly. ‘We’ve probably got two very frightened and confused little girls who think they’ll get into even more trouble if they speak out of turn. Hopefully I can coax them to help themselves.’

‘Brianna has already indicated through her silence and tears that she’s confused and terrified,’ Chloe says icily. ‘I doubt she’s suddenly going to relax and open up.’

‘We’ll see about that,’ Dana said in a friendly but firm manner. ‘Now, I just want to ask you a bit about the girls. What they love, what they dislike… all very easy stuff but could be crucial in the interview.’

After chatting to Dana a bit about the girls, we’re led from Room 15A down the corridor into the viewing room. It’s a small, windowless space, with one wall made entirely of glass, so we can see everything in the interview suite. ‘When the girls are in here, you’ll be able to see them and hear everything too. You’re entitled to sit in with them during the session, but they’re used to Carol now, and we hope you’ll agree it may be better initially to keep them focused on the therapist.’