The Pain of Silence
Chapter 8
Frank pulled into their driveway and the group quickly hustled inside. "Hi Dad, what's going on?" Frank greeted his father who was sitting on the couch with Laura.
"Well, why don't you come in and get comfortable? We need to talk about something important and we need some help, which is why I asked you to bring Callie and Vanessa along with you."
Callie and Vanessa exchanged glances, wondering what the Hardys could possibly need their help for. "What's going on Mr. Hardy?" Vanessa asked as she sat with Joe on the loveseat. Callie sat down on the recliner and Frank stood beside her.
"From what I've heard, you spent some time with Brooke this evening? Mrs. Tyler's daughter."
"Yes. We just found out she was back in town today and Tony invited her," Joe explained.
"Well, Mrs. Tyler came to us this evening with some disturbing news. Did Brooke mention anything at all to you boys of where she's been or what's happened since she's been gone?" Fenton inquired.
"Not much. Just that she's hoping to stay in Bayport. Why? Is something wrong with Mrs. Tyler or Brooke?" Frank asked.
"Well, let me explain a few things first. Then I'll tell you what's going on. Mrs. Tyler informed us that the reason she left Bayport in the first place is because her husband was offered a job and he wanted to move. Now, the reason she never told us is because he abused her and asked her not to say anything or see anyone. Probably fearing he'd be arrested." Fenton heard several gasps in the room. "That had been the first time he hurt her. He apologized to her and she thought it was a one time thing, but it wasn't."
"So Brooke's mom has been abused all this time?" Joe asked.
"Not quite. It wasn't her mom that was abused, Joe." Fenton's expression became grim. "It was Brooke."
"Oh my gosh! She never said a word about it!" Callie said.
Frank thought about Brooke's reaction when Tony patted her arm. "Dad, I think something was wrong with her arm tonight. She pulled it away, trying to hide something that looked like a scar. I didn't think anything of it at the time," he said. "Which reminds me of something else. The last time we saw her before this, she had bruises on her arm and she told us that she'd had a fall. Maybe it was from her father?" Frank looked at Joe. "Do you remember her saying her arm hurt?"
Joe nodded. "Vaguely, but we can't be sure it was her father, although it does seem likely."
"Frank, what you probably saw tonight was from what happened to her over a month ago. Her mom tried to take her away from home and her father found them. An argument ensued and she was hurt and ended up in the hospital."
"Why didn't he go to jail?" Vanessa demanded indignantly.
"From what Morgan explained, she did not witness what happened and Scott told the cops Brooke fell. When Brooke woke up, he threatened her, so she falsified her story." Fenton took a deep breath. "So, what we are hoping to do is get them out of the hotel they are staying in, in case Scott comes looking for them. This is until we can find him and hopefully make him pay for what he's done."
"What have you done so far? I'm assuming the police have been contacted? Just so we know what's going on," Frank asked.
"I went and spoke to Con Riley. He's already made phone calls and if we find out in the morning that Scott is not at his house or hasn't been home, then we're going to take precautions to ensure those two remain safe. That's why I wanted to talk to Callie and Vanessa . Girls, do either of you have an extra spare room in your house so maybe they could stay with you? Vanessa, I am aware your mother is at a conference in California from what Joe told me." Fenton paused and Vanessa nodded. "Callie, do you think your parents would mind helping us out? I am hoping it would be for a night or two at most."
"Sir, I'm not sure if my parents have room for them right now. They've taken our guest room apart for some remodeling. It's a mess. I can see if we can tidy it up…"
"Callie, I can help them, don't worry." Vanessa smiled. "I'd love to have them over. My mom won't be home for a few days, so I'm sure she'll be happy to hear I have company. I'll call her when I get home to double-check, but I'm sure they can come over whenever they'd like."
Joe leaned over and kissed Vanessa's cheek. "Thanks."
Vanessa blushed. "Whatever I can do to help."
"Great! Vanessa, we appreciate it very much." Fenton looked at his boys. "May I speak with you both for a moment?"
Both boys stood up and followed their father into his office. He closed the door behind them. "I wanted to show you something," he said and pulled out copies of the pictures Morgan had given him. "This is what happened to Brooke the last time her father…well, you get the gist of it."
Both Frank and Joe took turns looking over the photographs. "Wow, this is worse than I thought," Frank admitted. "Dad, should we have someone stay with them all the time? I don't think they should be left alone."
"I would say yes, but I don't think that'll be necessary. If Scott can't be found then we'll have them stay with Vanessa. School gets out early enough for you two," he said, looking at Joe. "If you and Vanessa want to spend time with them that'd be great. I'm sure Tony and the others will be spending time with her as well." Both boys looked at each other when they heard Tony's name. Fenton noticed the awkward silence. "What is it?"
"It's Tony. He doesn't know. Well, at least we're pretty sure he doesn't from the way he acted tonight. Should we say anything?" Joe wondered if it was their place to mention anything.
"Talk to Brooke when you see her. I remember you told me a while back that he liked Brooke so that's completely different. It's more personal. Let's not worry about that just yet. Oh! Before I forget, here's a written description of Scott's truck. Look it over and memorize the license plate. Morgan is hoping to get a photo of the truck for us," Fenton informed them.
They went over everything else Morgan had told Fenton and Laura and then the boys left to give their girlfriends a ride home.
"Joe, when we get out of school we'll have them come over. That's if your dad says it's necessary. Is that okay?" Vanessa asked.
"That's fine. From the sounds of it, I'm sure it hasn't taken Scott this long to figure out Brooke and her mother are missing. Frank, what time do you get out of your classes tomorrow?"
"I get done at five. Maybe tomorrow we can talk to them a little bit more to see what we're dealing with," Frank announced.
Fifteen minutes later both boys were back at home and called it a night.
Brooke lay down on her bed. After what her mom had told her about having spoken to Fenton and asking for help, she knew that Frank and Joe would know about everything...and she wondered what she'd say to them they next time she saw them.
She sighed in frustration and propped her head up on the pillow, waiting for her mom to come out of the bathroom. A couple more minutes went by, then Morgan finally emerged in her bathrobe.
"Are you ready to call it a night, sweetie?" Morgan walked over to her daughter and sat on the edge of the bed. "Is something wrong?" She noticed the sad look on her daughter's face.
"Mom, I've been thinking about Dad. I don't understand what went wrong," she frowned. "I mean, one day he's fine and the next he's not. It's been on my mind and I know we haven't talked about it a lot, but…"
"Honey, I don't know what happened to your father. As far as I knew, he was a kind-hearted person. I don't know what caused him to do this. You and I are both confused, darlin'." Morgan gently stroked Brooke's hair.
"Do you think he can get help? Maybe some day he'll be better?" Brooke cared a lot for her father despite his abuse problems. For fifteen years of her life he had never laid a violent hand on her and then things suddenly changed. She remembered saying to her friends he was the best father anyone could ever have.
"Honey, I think Dad is going to be getting some help once the police can take care of him. From what you've told me though, he's going to probably go to jail."
Brooke wiped away the tear that trickled down her cheek. "I'm sorry I never said anything sooner, Mom. I can't believe I let it go this far."
"Brooke, it's going to be okay. You were scared for yourself and me. If I had ever found out he hurt you all this time, this would have been over a long time ago. I'm sorry I never noticed your pain." Morgan also felt responsible for her daughter's injuries and pain over the years. She knew Brooke had done a good job of hiding it, but she felt as though she let her daughter down. "I promise, I will make this up to you. We'll get our own apartment or maybe a nice house. Then we can start over. You already have all of your friends here. It will be great!"
"If you say so. Hey Mom, do you think Dad had problems in his past? I read something online about a lady that abused her children and doctors claimed it was because she was abused all her life as a child. Do you think Dad may have started drinking and hurting me as a result of something that may have happened to him?" Brooke asked her and sat up.
"Hon, I'm not a doctor. I have no idea, but that is a good point. I've never heard him say anything before. It's a possibility. I'll see if I can look into it." Morgan said.
"Thanks Mom. I know it's a long shot, but I saw that a couple days before we left home. It's just been so hectic I forgot about it until now. I just want to see Dad get help. I honestly miss him."
Morgan was shocked. "You miss him? After what he's done to you?"
"Mom, I miss the father I had a few years ago. Before this all started happening." She wiped away a few more tears that had spilled over. "I can't help it. He's my father. Things weren't always bad. I just wish…" she paused to contain her emotions. "I just wish I could go back in time and stick up for myself when this all started happening. Maybe, just maybe things wouldn't be like they are. We wouldn't be running away from him. I feel like I've ruined our family." Brooke started crying as guilt consumed her.
Morgan wrapped her arms around her and squeezed. "This is not your fault. You were scared. You didn't know what to do! It's his fault! Don't blame yourself! You had no idea this was going to happen, sweetie." She continued to caress her daughter's back to comfort her until she finally calmed down. "There…are you okay?"
Brooke nodded. "Sorry, Mom. Do you mind if I go take a bath? I just need to calm down. Everything's been getting to me."
Morgan released her. "Of course. Do you want me to wait up for you?"
Brooke stood up. "No, get some sleep. I'll just be a little bit. Good night, Mom. Sorry for…"
"Don't apologize! It's all right. I understand what you're going through." Morgan embraced her daughter. "I'm here for you. You can tell me whatever is on your mind. I love you."
"I love you too, Mom. Good night." Brooke departed to the bathroom and took a long bath.
I wonder if they'll find him or if he's already on his way here. I wonder who we'll be staying with… she sighed. Tomorrow's gonna be a long day…