Page 102 of Love Me Again

I stare at her wordlessly, my mouth agape while I let her words sink in. Sophie was the one responsible for my plane crash? “What? I don’t understand. They said it was turbine engine failure.” Shayla shakes her head meekly.

“It was her. She tried to have us killed, Cole.” She croaks and drops her gaze to her hands, an endless stream of tears falling from her eyes.

Jesus Christ.

“Here, drink this.” I pour her a glass of water, and she takes it from me and drinks it and sighs, wincing a little. I take the empty glass from her and take her hand into mine again. She doesn’t pull away this time.

“How’s Alaia?” She asks, lifting her eyes to look at me for a second before she looks away again.

“She’s at home with your mum. She’s okay; she wasn’t hurt. They left her outside a police station with a note to call me to collect her.” I explain, and she closes her eyes and cries.

“Thank God. I was so worried she had done something horrible to her.” She sniffles, looking at the rope burns on her wrists. “When she said she would return Alaia to you, I was so relieved, but I didn’t trust her not to hurt her.”

“Alaia’s fine, baby; she misses you so much. She’s refusing to feed on the bottle, she wouldn’t drink the formula milk, and the only way they got her to stop crying is with your shirt.” I state, and Shayla sobs, covering her face with her hand. “I’m so thankful you’re alive. We both need you so much, baby. We wouldn’t survive without you, not for a second.” I cry, pressing my forehead to hers.

“I didn’t want to survive, Cole. I didn’t want to wake up and face you after what they…” She winces and squeezes her eyes shut, shaking her head.

“Hey, look at me,” I lift her gaze to mine gently. “There is nothing so big you and I can’t work through. We’re going to get through this together. You’ve got a big family who loves you and will do anything for you, and you’ve got me. I love you so much baby, please don’t shut me out.”

“Cole,” She whimpers wretchedly, shaking her head.

“They’re going to pay for what they did to you. I swear to you, baby. I won’t rest until they suffer ten times what you did. All three of them.” I promise her, and she releases a quivering breath.

“The police are outside waiting to speak to you. To get your statement, are you up for it?” I ask, and she sighs, and I feel her body start to tremble in distress. “You don’t have to if you’re not ready. They can wait.”

“No, it’s okay.” She breathes, pulling away. “I’ll speak to them, but I want a shower first.”

“Okay, I told Aimee to bring you some clothes on their way over. I’ll call them and see where they are.” I say and hand her another glass of water. “Drink that. The doctor said you’re dehydrated.” Shayla takes the glass and sips the water. I watch her as I call Josh to see where they are.

“Hey bro, is Shay okay?” He asks as soon as he answers. I look over at her and bite the inside of my cheek.

“Not really. How long till you get here, she wants to shower?” I ask with a sigh. “Aimee did pick up some clothes for her, right?”

“Yeah, we’re about five minutes out. I’ve got Sara and Alaia. Jo and Sam are behind us. We’ll be there soon.” I nod and utter an okay before I hang up the phone.

“They’ll be here in a few minutes. Your Mum and brother are coming too.” I inform them while I sit on the chair beside her bedside, she stares up at the ceiling and nods.

“I don’t want to see anyone,” Shayla whispers, tears rolling down the side of her face. “Especially my mother. Please.” I nod and lean in to kiss her forehead, but she pulls away and shakes her head, squeezing her eyes shut as if it pained her. “Don’t.”

I push aside the sting of the disappointment of not being able to touch her and nod, fisting my hands by my side. She’s suffered so much. It’s only natural for her to close off. I’ll be patient, however long it takes. I’m going to do everything I can to erase those horrific memories from her mind, even if it takes the rest of my life. I will do it.

A knock sounds on the door, and it opens abruptly, causing Shayla to jump startled and gasp sharply before she starts to sob. I jump up to my feet and take her hand. “It’s okay, baby. It’s just the police officer. It’s okay.” I assure her and scowl at the police officer, and he looks at us apologetically.

“I’m sorry to disturb you, but there are some family members out here that would like to see her.” I shake my head.

“No, keep everyone out. I’ll be out in a second.” I instruct him, and he nods and closes the door. I look at Shayla, who had her eyes closed and panting to catch her breath. “Are you okay?” I ask, brushing my thumb over her bruised knuckles, and she nods. “I’ll be right back, sweetheart.” I walk to the door and look back at her once more before I slip out of the room. I close the door and lean against it closing my eyes. I release a painful breath that was choking the life out of me.

I want to scream and break everything in my fucking path.

“Cole.” I open my eyes and see everyone in the corridor, waiting anxiously. I walk over to them and kiss Alaia’s head in my mother-in-law’s arms, looking at me with red-rimmed and worried eyes. “How is she? Can we see her?” Sara asks, and I exhale deeply and shake my head.

“She doesn’t want to see anyone or doesn’t want anyone to see her in that state. She’s not okay at all. She just wants to shower, and the police are still waiting to take her statement.”

Sara sobs shaking her head. “Please let me see her, just for a second.”

“You don’t want to see her like that, trust me. Maybe after she showers, she might feel a little better. I’m going to take Alaia in for a bit to see her.” I explain and take Alaia from her hold and take the bag of clothes from Aimee.

“We’ll be here waiting to see her. Tell her we love her.” Aimee says, brushing away the tears that roll down her cheeks.

“I will.” I turn and walk back to the room Shayla was in. I make sure I open the door slowly, not to startle her again. Shayla takes one look at Alaia in my arms and bursts into tears. She pushes herself up to sit and cries out, holding her ribs. “Take it easy, baby. You have two fractured ribs; try not to move suddenly.” I tell her, and she winces, her eyes on Alaia. “Do you want to hold her?” I ask, and she shakes her head.

“No. I just want to shower.” She cries, reaching out to touch Alaia’s hand that was stretched out to her; her fingers tremble, and she pulls them back. “Okay. Do you want me to help you shower, or shall I get Aimee and Jo in to help you?” She looks at me for a second, and I see the fear in her eyes, and my heart tightens painfully in my chest. She doesn’t want me to see her naked. “I’ll get the girls, okay?” She nods meekly and lowers her gaze. I take Alaia back to my mother-in-law. “Girls, can you help her shower,” I request, and they nod and get up to walk to the room, but I stop them. “She’s fragile and really scared. Please be careful with her. She jumps at every loud sound, so open the door slowly. She’s not in good shape, so when you see her, don’t freak out. She hasn’t seen how bad she looks yet.” I state, and both girls exchange looks, and their eyes fill with tears, which they blink away and exhale. I watch them as they walk toward the room.

They hesitate for a moment but push the door open, and I hear them gasp sharply.

---