Page 94 of Broken Silence
“Is there anything I can do to help you?”
I shook my head. “No, I’m ready.”
Linda squeezed my hand and stood again. “Let’s get back in there.”
The court was filling back up, the few remaining people taking their seats again. I bet everyone ran to the bathroom.
“Welcome back, Miss Farrell,” John said almost sarcastically when I stepped back into the box. This time I felt more comfortable. I wasn’t going to let this horrible little man get the better of me. Tall man, but whatever.
I wanted to give him the finger, but I smiled instead. “Thank you.”
Sarcasm probably wasn’t going in my favour, either, but I couldn’t help it.
“You said the alleged abuse lasted for eight years—until you turned thirteen?”
“That’s correct,” I said.
“And how did that make you feel?”
My heart dropped to the floor. He’d gone straight there to derail me. I had to talk aboutthat.
Fine. I would. “Dirty. Worthless. Afraid. Alone. Broken.”
“So broken that you started a relationship with your childhood friend and neighbour… Mr Cole Benson?”
With shaking hands, I gripped the bottom of my top. “I was almost sixteen then and it was completely different.”
Why is he doing this?No one had the right to tell me when I could have a relationship or my reasons for doing so. There was no timeline for this. Enough years pass and then you’re allowed to date, allowed to want to be close to someone you trusted.
Fuck him.
No, it was different for everyone, and I would never apologise for my relationship with Cole. It might have been too soon to other people, but it was right for me.
I found a little bit of courage buried deep and pushed away the tornado of nausea in my gut. He was getting under my skin. I just had to make sure he didn’t know about it.
“So, your physical relationship with Mr Benson started in the summer of 2019, around July?”
My heart stuttered. I had known he might bring Cole up, but I’d had no idea he would be so personal. “Yes.”
His eyebrows shot up. “And when did you turn sixteen?”
Fuck.
My eyes flicked upward to Cole.No. Am I going to get him into trouble?I couldn’t. We hadn’t done anything wrong.
Cole nodded, telling me to continue.
“August.”
“Hmm. Your physical relationship with Mr Benson started relatively quickly, wouldn’t you say?”
“No. I’d known Cole my whole life. I trusted him. For the first time in my life, something felt right, it wasmychoice, and it was completely different to what Frank had done.”
Calm. Down. Right. Now.
Someone barged into the room and approached the judge, interrupting John’s line of questioning. I looked to Linda to see if she knew what was going on, but she wasn’t looking at me. Her eyes were also on the judge. The room fell deathly silent. I tried to listen but could only hear muffled voices.
What’s happening?
