The Silence She Speaks✔

Twenty four-Nora

"Sleep," I whispered to her. "It's time to close your eyes, sweetie. When you wake up you'll be nice and warm at home." Quinn nodded and snuggled into my chest. "Good girl," I praised. I turned to Mason and smiled softly. "Okay bud, I'm taking her home now."

"She'll be scared of you when she wakes up, so make sure that you're gentle and calm. She's been through a lot, so she's pretty much terrified of strangers." Mason stepped closer and looked at Quinn with the most loving expression I've ever seen the kid have. He tucked a few stray strands of her hair behind her ear and kissed her cheek so lightly it was almost like he didn't touch her at all.

"Don't worry Mason, you know I'm studying to be a doctor, I'll take good care of her," I assured.

"I know," Mason sighed. "All of us worry about Quinn too much. She's strong, she'll be okay."

"See you at the house."

"Yeah, bye Nora."

I walked outside and set the sleeping girl in the passenger seat of my car. I buckled her and closed the door as softly as I could. From the looks of those bags under her eyes, she needed sleep. And a lot of it.

When we made it to the house, I carefully carried her inside and laid her on the couch. She shivered and coughed, so I grabbed the warmest blanket I could find and laid it over her.

She stirred and opened her eyes just a bit. They were filled with pain as she mumbled incoherently about something.

"It's alright," I promised. "I'll take good care of you, sweetheart. Right now, you need more sleep. A cute little girl like you needs her beauty rest."

She gave a tired giggle and nodded, closing her eyes. She shivered again so I grabbed another blanket and covered her. Her thin, frail hand reached out and grabbed my shirt just as I was about to leave. She didn't speak, just held it as she slept. I smiled at that and kissed her forehead before gently pulling her hand off and putting it back under the covers.

I've only just met this little girl, but she was cute as a button. I knew it wouldn't be long before I was wrapped around her little finger.

After a few hours, Quinn woke up. I acted like I didn't know her name so she wouldn't think I was a creeped or anything. After a few complications, I was able to get Quinn in bed and resting. Of course, she was only resting because she collapsed.

Like I said, she's gotten me wrapped around her little finger. She didn't even have to try. The second I looked into her big blue eyes, I wanted to hold her and never let go. She was just so sweet and gentle-looking, it's not my fault.

I sat by Quinn for a while. I wanted to make sure that she was alright before I left. Finally, I walked down the stairs and opened up the book that Quinn had been working on. The pictures were horrifying.

There was one that had me running to the bathroom to throw up. Quinn had drawn... well, mature body parts. There was a man and a little girl. The story said that her grandpa had strapped her down to the bed and told her that she needed to feel what her grandma had felt. To bring her daughter into the world, only to have it stripped away from her. His friend had been the one in the picture, from what I understood. He was paid handsomely to do it. I cried when I read the story and felt like I was going to throw up again.

What kind of person does that to a child? To their own granddaughter at that. The other stories were all about how he abused her, or about her mom attacking her. It turns out that Sammy is her older brother that passed away. Poor Sammy.

I put the book back on Quinn's desk when I checked up on her again. She was sleeping peacefully, looking like she had never gone through anything bad at all. She looked so innocent, so small and fragile. Almost like she was a newborn baby.