Page 52 of Savage Scream

This man is boyfriend number five. The one they speak in hushed tones about. The older guy.

My gaze darts to Cynthia and Will, who don’t seem to be concerned, and then back to Rhys, who is no longer smiling at her fellas, but is glaring at me.

Crap. She knows that I know, and if Jared’s reaction to the man is any indication, he has no idea that his best mates are sharing Rhys with this man.

It’s not really my business, except for the fact thatheis a grown arse man, andsheis still under eighteen. And yeah, she turns eighteen next month, but on paper, this is a huge fucking no no. The people that prey on those underage are who I hunt and kill. This is the kind of stuff I’m trying to stop.

But love is love, and I catch another quick glimpse he shoots her, and shit, he loves her. Like really loves her, and she obviously loves him, too.

But could he have groomed her? Could he be manipulating her?

Another look at her boyfriends and I come to the conclusion that there is no way these guys would allow some older creeper to prey on their girl. So I have to assume she’s safe, and she wants whatever it is they have going on.

Not wanting to have a cat fight in front of everyone, because I feel like Rhys is seconds away from pouncing on me, I lift my fingers to my lips and imitate doing up a lock and throwing away the key.

She visibly relaxes, giving me a small nod, and I feel like we’ve just had a moment of bonding or something.

Needing to get out of my dance clothes, I head into the kids’ area in the house and beeline for my bedroom. I can sense Jared on my heels, and the idea of him being in my corner, looking out for, and caring for me, sends a thrill of excitement through my veins.

I shouldn’t like the way it feels as much as I do. Not when I’m leaving soon.

Any hope of getting a slither of alone time before dinner with Jared is quickly dashed when the boisterous banter of Rhys’ boyfriends follows me and Jared, passing by me as one of them, Simon I think, wraps his arm over Jared's shoulders and hauls him along into the small lounge area.

I’m a little disappointed that they’ve stolen him away from me, but when I see the way the guys start messing about with Jared, dragging him in for bro hugs and talking about footy, he gives them a genuine smile, something he hasn’t done much since I came to town, and my heart melts.

It’s great to see him smile.

And it’s even greater to see him with his mates.

At least when I leave him in pieces next week, they will be there to pick him up and help him heal.

15

JARED

Being around my mates feels great. I’ve missed them over the past months, what with them being pussy whipped by Rhys George, and me… well, I’ve been a fucking head case. Let’s just leave it at that.

Simon drags me down onto the couch in the small lounge area that sits in the middle of the kids’ bedrooms, and Bossi flops down next to me, grinning as Garrett and Rhys try to connect a phone to the speaker.

We chat for a bit, but then Gaz shooshes us, and we fall silent as a voice comes through the speaker.

“Welcome to another episode of Breaking the Silence. I am Hush, and today I’m following up on the disgusting predators hiding in the regional community of Timber Valley. As with all of my podcasts, the names of victims and some people have been changed to protect their identity, but the known names of the abusers and criminals will remain the same.”

I’ve heard this podcast before. It’s all the talk of the town right now, recorded by an anonymous girl who spills the heinous details of people’s stories who are unable to speak their truth because it will expose them. She also uses her TikTok account to post information about the podcast stories, which includes images of the perpetrators in the hopes of ruining their reputation and helping the authorities to catch them.

Even though I’ve heard the podcast before, now is the first time that recognition hits me square in the face. It’s the voice. A voice I’ve only heard a couple of times but is so ingrained in my head and heart that it’s like a beacon to me.

Then I recall what she said.

“Welcome to another episode of Breaking the Silence. I am Hush…”

Breaking the Silence?

Hush?

My head whips over my shoulder so fast that Dee, who is still standing in her doorway, isn’t able to wipe the look of ‘deer in headlights’ from her expression in time.

Of course.

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