Excellent Danielle speaks to Oliver His Silence : His Silence - Chapter Nineteen by Jacob1395

Background When Harvey murders his parents, he refuses to say why he did it. Twenty years later, he's finally ready to talk. My legs remain frozen. What’s he doing here? ‘Where’s Callum?’ I ask, running my tongue around the inside of my mouth to try and moisten it, but it has little effect. In my head I think Oliver and I are the only two people here and somehow everyone else in the house has left us, without me realising. I think back to the sound I heard which woke me a few moments ago. Was it the sound of everyone leaving? Oh God, I’m here all on my own with Oliver. Oliver frowns at me. ‘Callum’s in the living room. He’s fine.’ I shake my head. ‘Why’s the door locked? I haven’t been able to get through to his phone.’ ‘We lock all the doors of an evening, it’s a security precaution.’ He’s speaking so calmly. He’s making me sound like an idiot for getting concerned. ‘We ask everyone to switch their phone off so it doesn’t disturb people’s sleep.’ ‘My door wasn’t locked, and no one asked me to turn my phone off.’ I edge a little back towards the corridor. My heart screams in my chest. ‘Were you . . . were you in my room?’ He shakes his head and continues to stare at me with the same neutral expression on his face. ‘No, Danielle, I wasn’t in your room, I’ve been sitting here for the past half an hour. I suffer from anxiety at night and have struggle sleeping, something I’m sure you can relate to.’ ‘Why wasn’t my door locked when everyone else’s was?’ I ask. He frowns at me. ‘I’m not sure, it should’ve been. Mary locks all the doors of an evening. Perhaps she forgot as she hasn’t had to lock your door for years.’ ‘But then she remembered to lock the living room door?’ I say, raising an eyebrow. ‘The living room door is always locked after we finish in there, so she wouldn’t have had to think twice about that. Please sit with me. There are some things I’d like to discuss with you. I was going to wait until the morning but as you’re here now.’ I stand still for a few more moments our eyes locked, then edge over to the table, pull out the chair opposite him and sit down. He’s being so calm. ‘Do you want a drink? Do you know, I remember the very first time I had cocoa, this sweet lady who spent time with me, allowed me to have some before I went to bed one evening. You see it’s those precious memories I cling onto, it’s a real comfort.’ ‘No, thank you,’ I say. I can’t shake off the feeling he’s been expecting me to come downstairs to find him here. He sighs. ‘Danielle, you have to trust me, we have your best interests at heart here. You’re family. You always have been and you always will be. We would never harm you or your friends.’ I want to believe him. ‘Can I see Callum?’ I ask, my voice coming out in a croak. ‘Please.’ Oliver gets up; the legs of his chair squeaking across the stone floor. He strides over to the wall beside the kitchen door, and unhooks a set of keys; they’re rusted, thick and heavy looking. I get up and follow him into the corridor. He slides the key into the lock, unlocks the living room door, and it swings open with a creak. My heart’s still beating like crazy. Callum’s asleep on the sofa at the far end of the room, the shape of his body, rising and falling underneath a blanket. The tick of a clock reaches me. I want to go over to him, wake him up. ‘See, he’s fine,’ Oliver says. He closes the door and locks it again. ‘Can you not?’ I ask, holding my hand out. He stares at me for a brief moment, before unlocking the door. I want to go into the living room. I want to be with Callum. ‘Come, sit down. If you’re up to it, we can have a chat, it does get lonely sitting up at this time of the night,’ he says Somehow I don’t feel I can refuse him. There’s something about his voice. I want to talk to him. I want to hear what he has to say. At least I know everyone else hasn’t left me alone in the house with him. I follow him back into the kitchen, and sit opposite him. ‘What d’you want to talk about?’ I ask, shifting in my seat. Although I want to hear what he has to say, every nerve inside me is screaming at me to run out of the room, grab Callum and go. Perhaps I should never have listened to Harvey in the first place. Perhaps he is having a psychotic breakdown like Callum suggested. ‘Your future,’ he says, taking a sip of his drink. ‘I would very much like to welcome you back here as a fully-fledged member of our community.’ ‘What about my parents?’ I ask. He shrugs, like it’s no big deal. ‘Well, you’re twenty-six now, aren’t you? Surely you must’ve been thinking about moving out for some time, although I know how hard it is for your generation to afford to rent, let alone buy your own home.’ ‘I have been. Callum and I have even been talking about moving in together,’ I say. It’s like he can see right through me. ‘I’m sure they’d understand if you tell them you’ve found somewhere and want to move out, you wouldn’t have to pay any bills if you move here, for a start.’ I stare at him, my mouth dropping open. ‘No bills, are you serious?’ Even Emma and Michael charge me house-keeping at homeHe smiles. ‘I am. Everyone would be delighted to have you back here, you’re so important to us.’ I tap my foot underneath the table, I still haven’t found out much about my parents and my brother, and what our lives were like when we were living here. I haven’t had a chance to speak to anyone else, other than Mary, individually. The answers are still here. Someone here knows something. ‘I . . . it’s something I’ll have to think about, I can’t just rush into this,’ I reply. Oliver nods and picks up his drink. ‘Of course, I totally understand. You can either contact me or Luke, when you feel ready to come back. I’ll give you my contact details.’   ‘But I . . . Oliver, I came here looking for answers, I want to find out why Harvey killed my parents.’ Oliver’s got to know something. I force back the tears. If Harvey’s innocent, that means someone here is responsible. Someone here killed Mum and Dad. Oliver shakes his head. ‘I can’t imagine the pain you must feel, believe me, Danielle, the pain of not knowing why he did it has driven me crazy for twenty years, so I understand. I keep thinking to myself if there’s something I could’ve done to have prevented it. If I could take your pain away from you, I would. Look, if you come back here, you will find a community ready to welcome you with open arms, everyone here will love you unconditionally, and perhaps you’ll find peace. I can promise you that. Remember our motto, peace, love, family.’ I replay his words over in my mind. There must be something more he can tell me about what happened, surely. ‘I think I’m gonna go back up to bed, if that’s OK,’ I say, faking a yawn. I get up from my seat. I need to get out of here. ‘Of course, Danielle, we can talk more about this in the morning.’ ‘Night, Oliver.’ I leave him in the kitchen. Even as I walk back down the hallway, I feel his eyes on me, seeking me out. I think again of the imprint on the second bed in my bedroom. It must’ve been Oliver sitting there, no matter what he says. I climb the stairs and return to my room, willing the morning and the light to come.

© Copyright 2025. Jacob1395 All rights reserved. Jacob1395 has granted FanStory.com, its affiliates and its syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work.