Page 74 of The Weight of Her Silence
“No,” Ava said, her voice barely audible. “She just didn’t want us to be scared.”
Caleb leaned into both of them, and for the first time, he cried—real tears, heartbroken and guttural, as if his body had suddenly realized what it meant to be motherless.
Nate wrapped his arms around his children, holding them close against the ruins of what used to be whole. The sun had dipped low now, casting golden shadows across the room like a memory fading into the walls.
None of them moved for a long time.
They just held on.
To each other.
To the echoes of her warmth.
To the place where Lila had been.
And somewhere in the quiet, the weight of her silence became a part of them all.
Chapter 44
Her Voice, One Last Time
It wasn’t grief’s loud, crashing silence anymore—it was something softer. Something more tender. Like the air itself knew not to be too loud in her absence.
Ava sat on the floor of her bedroom, legs folded beneath her, a box of old things opened in front of her—tied letters, photographs, and a small flash drive in the corner, barely noticeable.
She picked it up like it might burn her.
Caleb was lying on her bed behind her, older now—his shoulders broader, his face thinner, but his voice still carried the same softness.
“Are you sure you want to hear it today?” he asked gently.
Ava nodded. “Yeah.” Her voice cracked, but she didn’t flinch. “It’s time.”
She plugged the drive into her laptop, fingers trembling just slightly. A folder opened, labeled in their mother’s handwriting,“For Ava. For Caleb.”
Her throat closed.
There were two video files. One with Ava’s name. One with Caleb’s.
She looked back at her brother.
“You first,” he said, already blinking too fast.
Ava clicked her own.
The screen flickered.
Then there she was.
Lila.
Wearing her favorite cardigan, no makeup, a scarf wrapped loosely around her neck. The same soft eyes, the same voice Ava hadn’t heard in so long it felt like a dream.
“Hi, my sweet girl,” Lila began, and Ava’s breath hitched instantly.
“I don’t know when you’ll watch this,” Lila said, voice quiet but steady.“But if you are… I’m not there anymore, am I?”
Ava covered her mouth.
