Misguided Ghosts

Chapter Forty-Seven

Forty-Seven – Ed

When I woke up, Tay was sat in front of the French windows, rubbing her neck. Slithering off the sofa as silently as I could, I sat next to her. She bowed her head, the moonlight making her face appear ghostly as the soft light danced over her. Her fringe hid her eyes from me, but the light of the moon made the tear that fell from her eye to the carpet seem like a tiny silver orb, crystallised by the moonlight itself.

“Do you want to talk about it?” I whispered, as she rested her head on my shoulder. I turned my head so that my head was resting on top of hers.

Tay broke down, her head slipping to rest on my collarbone, her thin arm reaching across us and clinging to the front of my t-shirt as sobs ripped their way through her, tearing themselves out of her throat in raw gasps and tears fell down her face in pearlescent rivulets. I held onto her as tightly as I could without hurting her, saying nothing. What could I say if I didn’t know what was wrong? Instead I closed my eyes, feeling her heart thunder through her ribs and smash against my side. She took a deep breath, as if she was about to say something, so I opened my eyes. She said nothing. But the moonlight told me everything. Dark bruises smattered her neck, as if a toddler threw paint at her, depicting the story of yet another thing that I hadn’t been able to protect her from.

Without even thinking about it, I ghosted the tips of my fingers over them, making her wince. Pain instantly shot through me.

“He got to you, didn’t he?”

She nodded.

“Tay, what happened?”

Tay shook her head.

“Please. I have to keep you safe. It’s my fault you’re in this position,”

She shook her head again. “You don’t understand. He doesn’t just punish me anymore. If I try and tell anyone, my voice goes,”

I got up, finding some paper and a pen. “Write it. Try writing it,”

Tay’s eyebrows drew together in a frown as she gripped the pen. She touched it to the page and began to write.

Caleb told me

Her hand began to tremble and her frown worsened, as if she was trying to fight a mental battle. She knew exactly what she wanted to write, and yet her brain wasn’t allowing her to put pen to paper. Her knuckles turned white as her grip on the pen tightened, as if she was trying to force it to do her will. Tears of frustration slid down her cheeks as she tried to force the pen to write what she couldn’t say.

“I can’t!” She wailed, throwing the pen down and sending it skittering across the floor. “I can’t tell you!”

“It’s okay,” I murmured, pulling her close to me. “You’re safe now. Come on. You look like you could use some sleep,”

I read to her until I was sure her eyes wouldn’t open and her breathing was deep and steady. She looked so peaceful when she was asleep, her shoulders relaxing as all the weight that she’d been carrying on her shoulders ever since she moved in with me evaporated. The small, worried frown that had replaced her mouth disappeared as she smiled slightly in her sleep, her hand tightening on the edge of the pillow as if she was holding on to something precious. I took a deep breath, knowing that I should have been feeling determined and most of all, angry. Caleb had hurt Tay and now he was going to suffer the consequences.

I left my room, shutting the door quietly behind me. Slipping on the first pair of shoes I saw, I put my keys in my pocket and opened the front door. My eyes swept over the messy interior, as if it was the last time. Then I walked outside.