Page 56 of The Weight of Her Silence
Nate exhaled.
“I know it’s not. I know I’ve made mistakes. But I still love you—”
“Shut up,” Caleb snapped.
Nate blinked. “What?”
“I said shut up.” Caleb stood so suddenly the chair scraped across the tile.
“You don’t love us. You don’t love Mom. If you did, you wouldn’t have done it.”
“Caleb—”
“You’re a liar!” The shout made Lila stir in the bedroom down the hall.
Ava flinched.
“You lied to her. You lied to us. And now she’s sick and it’s your fault!”
Nate’s voice wavered.
“I never wanted to hurt her. Or either of you.”
“But you did!” Caleb’s fists clenched.
“You broke her. And you broke me too. And I hate you for it.”
Nate looked like he’d been slapped.
Caleb didn’t wait to see what came next. He turned and stormed out the front door, letting it slam behind him.
He ran—down the street, past the park, around the cul-de-sac where he used to ride his bike with his dad. He didn’t stop until his chest hurt and his eyes burned.
He sat on the curb with his head in his hands.
He was angry. So angry he thought it might crush him. But beneath the fury, beneath the shaking, there was something worse.
He missed his mom.
Not just her voice or her warmth—but her. The version of her that laughed and baked cookies at midnight and whispered stories when he couldn’t sleep.
Now she was fading. Thinner. Quieter. Always tired.
And the person she trusted most had betrayed her in the worst way.
Caleb wasn’t just heartbroken.
He was drowning. He didn’t know how to forgive his father. He didn’t even know if he wanted to.
???
Camille sat in the dim light of her apartment, wrapped in a silk robe that still smelled like him.
Nate hadn’t returned her last three calls.
She told herself he was just busy. That the chaos with Lila and the kids was a temporary storm, one he would ride out before coming back to her. He always did. Always had. For ten years.
Ten years of secrets.
