Broken Silence Read online

  “It’s going to be alright Charlie. I just have some news for you.” She tried to reassure me but I just gave a feeble nod and she didn’t speak again while she drove. The serious tone of her voice was enough, but paired with her actually being quiet did nothing to calm me.

  She generally took me to get a snack on these occasions. I knew what was coming but I never cared before. This time I didn’t want to leave. I liked Sophia and I liked my friends. I didn’t even see this one coming, I genuinely thought Sophia and I were doing alright.

  We pulled up to the coffee shop and I was happy it wasn’t a restaurant or café for once. My stomach couldn’t handle any food right now. Danielle ordered us both cappuccinos and sat down. She took a deep breath and I met her serious gaze.

  “Your family’s case has been reopened. I thought it was better I came to explain. There is a new case a few states away that was too similar to theirs. When their detectives were researching they noticed that your father and the woman in this case worked in the same facility in the past. She moved away six months before the men came to your home. When investigating her life here, they happened to make a connection. This means that you may have to talk to Detective Flynn again. They didn’t look into your father’s work the first time, since nothing was suspicious.” She explained in a calming tone. The only reassuring thing was that Detective Flynn was still on the case. He was the only one on the police force that actually gave the case a chance. He wasn’t happy that they wrote it off as a burglary gone wrong, but they didn’t have the evidence to keep it open and he was one man against the department.

  As her words processed, I became numb again. I couldn’t do this a second time. I couldn’t relive this hell.

  I got up from the table and she looked alarmed. I sat my phone down and turned around. She called my name but I took off at a full run. I needed space. I needed alone time. I ran down the sidewalk, weaving in and out of the few people that were around.

  “Charlie??” I looked up and saw Adam looking alarmed. The tears were already running down my cheeks and I tried to run past but he snagged my wrist in his. “What’s wrong?” I couldn’t stop the tears and he just pulled me into a bear hug instead. It was calming, but it barely chiseled away at the panic threatening to consume me. I guess I wasn’t as numb as I first thought

  I took a shaky breath and pushed away from the warm hug. I took off back down the street. I ran until my lungs and legs both burned. I had no clue where I was at this point and I was stupid enough to leave my phone with Danielle. The panic didn’t hit me again, though.

  I slowed down to a walk and followed the road I was on until I reached a park. I found a bench that was hidden away by some trees and tried to sort through these awful emotions.

  Adam

  I watched, shocked, as Charlie ran away from me. Charlie was always a little sad, but she wasn’t one that seemed easy to freak out. Her face was a mixture of panic, anger, and grief. What the hell happened? I felt my hands shake as my protective nature resurfaced. I pulled out my phone and saw the group was already texting.

  Alice: Guys, someone new picked up Charlie today and she didn’t look like it was a good thing. She was almost crying when she got in. I’m worried about her.

  Abby: What did she look like?

  Alice: Late forties, chunky, short blonde hair.

  Abby: ummm, that’s not her foster mom.

  Trent: I didn’t realize she was in foster care. Hope everything is ok. Are her parent’s in the picture? Are they going to move her back?

  Abby: I have no clue. I hope not.

  Me: I just ran into her, she was running down the street crying and freaking out. I managed to stop her and gave her a hug but she pulled away and took off again.

  Cole: I’m going to find her.

  I’m sure Cole was freaking out now too. He hasn’t admitted it to us, but we all saw how he looked at Charlie. It wasn’t good that she was alone and this panicked.

  I obviously wasn’t going to go look for that CD I wanted now. I turned away from the store and got into my car. I Headed for Trent’s house so he could ride with me. I’m sure Cole had already gone to Abby’s house since she lived closest to him.

  Trent was already outside waiting, pacing up and down the sidewalk. He jumped in as soon as my car was stopped. He knew I would head here since I was planning to anyway.

  “I hope she’s ok.” He said in an unsteady voice. Charlie hadn’t been around that long, but she was one of us, we weren’t going to let her go through whatever this was alone. Trent’s phone started ringing. “It’s Abbs. Hey Abbs, any news?” He asked as he put her on speaker phone. I had never heard Abby’s voice sound so sad.

  “Sophia just called me. I guess I was the first name in Charlie’s contacts. They have no clue where she is. I told her we would be looking, her social worker is too. They told Sophia to stay home in case Charlie ended up there. Guys, she doesn’t have a phone on her and is in a town she isn’t completely familiar with yet. Cole has my car, I’m heading on foot to the shops. Maybe she’s hiding out somewhere there.” She hung up and I took a deep breath. I was even more unhappy with the idea of her being out there without a phone. Trent and I continued our drive through town. We started at the school and went all of the places we thought Charlie could reach on foot. We were honked at more than once, but I didn’t care. I would drive as slow as we needed to scan our surroundings. Charlie deserved our extra focus.

  Cole

  Come on Charlie, where are you? I kept whispering as I circled the town. I just called Alice and asked her to wait at the Library in case she showed up there. Adam and Trent were checking the main roads and Abby had the shopping district. I was trying to think of the more relaxing spots she could have ended up.

  I drove for about twenty minutes with no luck when I spotted the park. I figured it was worth a shot. I drove around the road that ran through the park. It made a circle so I should be able to spot her if she was here. I was about hallway through when I did a double take. I almost missed her, but I saw the flash of purple almost hidden amongst the trees. I parked and tried my best to not run over to her. I didn’t want to panic her more.

  Charlie didn’t even look over as I sat down. The look on her face was blank, but tears were steadily streaming down her face. My poor Charlie girl. I took her hand in mine and she jumped. She looked over and finally noticed that I was sitting with her. She looked startled to see me.

  “We’ve been looking everywhere for you, Charlie girl.” I said quietly. “What’s wrong?” She started shaking her head no and I saw panic creep into her eyes again. I couldn’t resist anymore and pulled her into my lap. I needed to feel her in my arms to convince myself she was safe. I pulled out my phone, figuring I should tell the others.

  Me: I’ve got her guys, She’s at the park by the fountain. Don’t let her social worker come get her, but Abbs let her foster mom know I’ll bring her home when she’s ready.

  Abbs: Ok, someone come get me. She needs us.

  Trent: Thank God she’s ok. We got you Abbs.

  Me: I didn’t say she was ok, she’s not doing so hot.

  Alice: I’m at the library, pick me up too?

  Trent: Coming.

  I smiled at their responses. This is what we did best. If one of us falls, we pick them back up and smother them with group time.

  I sat there and held her while I waited for our friends to arrive. It took about fifteen minutes until I heard the car doors. I looked up and saw the others walking up. Adam picked Charlie up from my arms and sat on the grass with her. I started to feel a twinge of jealousy but pushed it away, she needed this and I think he did too. I could see the panic in his face when he walked up. He was the big brother protective type and didn’t like not being able to protect her.

  We all sat in a circle around them. Abby reached out and took Charlie’s hand. Her tears started to slow down. Her eyes were close and her face had that awful broken look she tries to hide. I could feel my hea
rt fracturing at seeing her like this. What happened to this girl?

  A few minutes later she looked up and gave the other’s a watery smile. She looked confused and looked around. I realized she couldn’t see me, I leaned around Adam. “You doing a little better, Charlie girl?” Her face relaxed when she saw me and gave Adam one more squeeze before crawling over to sit back in my lap again. It was more bold than she generally was, but I couldn’t help but enjoy it. A part of me felt smug at the thought she wanted me to be her safe place. I wanted that too.

  “What’s going on Charlie?” Alice asked quietly. Charlie took a deep breath but didn’t move. We knew she wasn’t ignoring us, she just wasn’t ready. Finally she indicated she wanted my phone. She pulled up the notes and typed that she would message us later. Then asked for a ride home. I looked at Abby.

  “Can I take your car to drop her off? I’ll bring it to your house after.” I asked hoping she would be ok with it. She gave a smile and nod. I stood up and pulled Charlie up with me. Each of our friends gave her a tight hug before we all went to our cars.

  I held Charlie’s hand the entire way home. Thankfully she looked a bit more relaxed and wasn’t crying anymore. The questions just kept piling up.

  “Charlie babe, Please, If there is anything we can do, even just listen, let us in when you are ready. Ok?” I asked. I met her eyes and noticed she was blushing. Whoops, guess there was no hiding how I feel now. She gave me a small nod.

  I pulled up in front of her house and saw her tense next to me. A car I haven’t seen before is parked out front. She motioned for me to keep going, so I did. I parked in front of my house and gave her a questioning look. She wasn’t panicking, she just looked defeated now.

  “I have to read to my little brothers. Want to join me before I walk you home?” She immediately gave me a happy nod. I couldn’t blame her for diving right back into whatever hell she was facing.

  I took her hand and led her into the house. Before I had a chance to warn her, the twin tornadoes crashed into us. I managed to keep her upright and a smile broke out on her pretty face as she looked at the twins.

  “Is this your girlfriend? Can she read to us? She’s pretty! Someone painted her hair!” My brothers went back and forth and Charlie just grinned at them.

  “No she isn’t my girlfriend yet.” I started, but realized what I said. I tried to play it off and continued. “No she won’t read to you, yes she is pretty and she painted her hair, its called hair dye.” I said patiently. I took Charlie’s hand and led her and the twin tornadoes upstairs.

  Thomas insisted that she tuck him in, and she didn’t hesitate to help him up on his bed and tuck him in. I smiled as I helped Jonas get into his bed. I gave Jonas his hug and looked over to see Thomas insisting on a hug from Charlie. She leaned in and gave him a squeeze and tickled his side. He giggled and when she pulled away I noticed her smile was back. I was giving these kids cookies tomorrow.

  I pulled out their favorite story about dinosaurs. I groaned internally as I realized this meant I had to do voices in front of her. Whatever, I doubt she would care.

  I went about my storytelling like I usually do, voices and all. Charlie was silently laughing along with them. I was relieved to see a smile still on her face so I put extra ridiculous enthusiasm into the story. I told the twins goodnight and pulled Charlie out of their room. I told mom I was walking her home and she gave Charlie a smile and I hurried her out before mom could get embarrassing.

  I took a chance and held Charlie’s hand the entire way. She didn’t protest. I gave her a hug at the door and told her to text me if she needed me. I hurried off to take Abby her car back. I really hoped that Charlie would let us in soon, she needed someone to confide in before she exploded.

  Chapter 7

  Danielle had apparently left by the time we were done with story time. I couldn’t help but smile at how adorable Cole was while he read his brothers a story. I think I enjoyed it as much as the twins did.

  “Charlie!” Sophia rushed at me and almost knocked me over as she crushed me in her arms. “I was so worried. I’m so sorry honey, I shouldn’t have let Danielle talk me into letting her tell you. I will be with you the entire time and every single step of the process. Don’t worry.” I couldn’t help the tears from flowing. I felt awful for making her worry. I squeezed her back to show how sorry I was.

  She led me to the table and pulled out a takeout menu. We quickly chose what to eat and she ordered. She sat down next to me and slid my notebook over to me.

  “What can I do?” She asked. She sat and gave me a moment to process what my answer would be.

  ‘I would still like to do a movie night Saturday so you can meet my friends. I also think that I would finally like to go to my storage unit and see about my dads work papers, maybe I can find something for the detectives.’ I slid the notebook back after I finished writing. She carefully read it over and smiled.

  “Your friends are welcome here anytime. They found my daughter, and that makes them worthy in my eyes. Sunday I will clear whatever I have to do and take you to the unit. Is it in Starbrooke?” She asked. I nodded as tears blurred my vision again. I was usually fantastic at masking emotions, but tonight I couldn’t help it. She called me her daughter. I felt the barriers I had built around myself shake even more. I tried so hard to say ‘thank you’ out loud, but I still couldn’t bring myself to do it.

  I debated whether or not to tell my friends about my past. The main thing holding me back was I didn’t think something this heavy should be written down or texted. My parents deserved words. I knew I wasn’t strong enough yet. I would get there though.

  Me: Thank you for being strong for me today.

  Adam: You are one of us, this is what we do.

  Alice: Of course.

  Abby: We love you Charlie, don’t doubt that.

  Cole: I wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else.

  Trent: We’ve got your back ;)

  I couldn’t help but smile at the responses. My friends were seriously the best. I would probably always struggle with not pushing people away, because I feared being left behind. This group of amazing and understanding people made me want to fight these feelings. They made me want to live again.

  As I settled into bed for the night my thoughts drifted to Cole. I loved being able to see a new side to him. The silly side he showed to his family made me like him even more. The way he held me when he found me in that park had solidified his place in my heart. He didn’t even protest when I crawled back into his lap. He made me feel less broken. He was slowly starting to fill that hole that had carved its way into my chest.

  “Ok, movie, last vote. We’ve got it narrowed down to superheroes or a scary movie.” Alice announced holding both of the DVDs up. Cole, Adam and I pointed to the superhero movie. Abby pointed to the scary one and Trent shrugged. “Superhero it is.” Alice announced and handed it over. I put it in the DVD player and turned on the surround sound. I was about to press play when Sophia walked in. She had been practically dancing around today, she was so excited I was having friends over. I think she hated living alone in this big house and loved anytime it was noisy. My friends definitely qualified as noisy.

  “Pizza orders. What does everyone like?” She called out. My friends aren’t shy and they all called out what they liked and she wrote it down. “Charlie, cheese like usual?” I nodded and she turned away to go order.

  The rest of our movie night was a whirl of movies, pizza, wings, and laughing. It was the perfect distraction. By the end of the night I was tired and happy.

  “See you Monday, Charlie!” Trent waved, followed by Adam and Alice. Abby was next with a big hug and an obvious look between me and Cole before she walked away. I tried to contain my eye roll at her obvious hints. Despite her push, I walked with Cole to the porch anyway like I planned.

  “I better go read to the twin tornadoes, they are probably refusing to go to bed until I come home.” He joked and gave me a half grin. I smiled
back. My heart stopped as he grabbed my hand and gently tugged me toward him. He leaned forward and met my lips with his. His lips were soft and warm, sending the butterflies in my stomach into a frenzy. He pulled away and I felt my cheeks warm as I got lost in his eyes. “Have a good night, beautiful.” He whispered. He turned and walked away. I couldn’t move. It was the single happiest moment of my life. In that moment I realized, I was no longer numb and I didn’t want to be.

  The next day Sophia woke me up early. I put on some of my older clothes since I was probably going to get super dusty. Though I couldn’t resist my fingerless gloves that matched my fake leather jacket.

  The drive was two hours long, and it gave me way too many opportunities to send my anxiety into dangerous levels. The memories kept flashing back throughout the drive, but the worst was the Starbrooke sign. As soon as I saw it my heart started racing.

  “You can do this, Charlie. You won’t be staying here, and it is just stuff. Their belongings are not them.” She reassured me in a firm voice. It helped bring my anxiety down by a small amount. That is, until we pulled up outside of the storage unit.