Chapter Five Hundred and Fifty Five
From above them in the restaurant, Joey remained on the floor, pulling at her t-shirt, as if it could help her breathe better. But her t-shirt wasn't restricting her. It was her mind. She couldn't shut out her thoughts. She knew something was going on below her on the beach. It was something that once upon a time she would have rushed down to help. But today, she felt broken. Today, there was no air left in her lungs.
Charlie, Watson and several other police struggled to keep the River Boys and Summer Bay residents apart. Charlie was relieved that although present, Ruby had remained well out of the way of the fray. She was sat with paramedics who were tending to someone lying on the sand.
"What the hell is going on?" barked a familiar voice.
Charlie rolled her eyes. She and her team had just begun to calm things down. She didn't need John Palmer winding things up again.
"An argument that's got a bit out of hand," Charlie explained. "But things have calmed down. Right boys?"
"Well, aren't you going to arrest these thugs?" John demanded.
Charlie turned to him, taking him away from the crowd.
"John, all that'll happen is we arrest them and release them," she said. "It's a huge waste of time and resources. They've calmed down and they'll move on."
John didn't look happy but he accepted it. Charlie, Watson and the others ushered most of the River Boys away. John marched up to Romeo.
"Where the hell were you in all of this?" he snapped.
Romeo looked anxious.
"I was here!" the teenager snapped back.
"I hired you to stop this sort of thing from happening and what the hell have you done? What is the point of you?"
He gave him a withering look and stormed off. Romeo was crestfallen. Charlie patted him on the arm, clearly on his side and not John's. She headed over to the paramedics. Her heart almost stopped when she saw that the patient they were treating was VJ.
"What the hell happened?" she gasped.
"We don't know," Ruby said, jumping up and hugging her mother. "Heath Braxton pulled him out of the water."
"Heath Braxton?" Charlie repeated, immediately suspicious.
"Yeah," Ruby said, still hanging onto Charlie. "I mean, can you get lower than hurting a kid? Nobody even knew he was in the water, Charlie."
Charlie asked the paramedics how he was. At least he was conscious.
"He should be okay," the lead paramedic said. "He's had a bump to the head. We'll take him in to let the hospital check him over as it's a head injury."
She smiled. Ruby was sure she was checking Charlie out. Oblivious, Charlie thanked her and said she'd call VJ's Mum and let her know what had happened.
Romeo approached them, anxious to know how VJ was as the paramedics carried him on a stretcher to their ambulance.
"He should be okay," Ruby said. "I'm going to the hospital with him."
Romeo walked up the beach with her, feeling the burden of the afternoon resting heavily on his shoulders. He had been too caught up with the fight to even notice that VJ was on the beach at all, let alone in the water. He felt so guilty. What John had said to him had upset him too. He tried to call Indi but she didn't pick up. He felt so alone. As if reading his thoughts, Ruby stopped outside the ambulance. She hugged him tight.
"None of this is your fault," she assured him.
From a quiet distance, Casey watched them, sad that in all of the chaos, Ruby had forgotten about him and the friendship they had begun to develop. At the end of the day, he was just a Braxton. And Braxton's were born to be River Boys.
It had been another long day for all concerned. Thankfully, VJ was fine, although his memory of the incident in the water was sketchy. Leah was beside herself. Her son was being kept in the hospital overnight as a precaution. Irene had invited Leah over for dinner to keep occupied. Charlie had wanted to but she hadn't been sure how Joey would be that evening.
"Hey," she greeted when she and Ruby arrived back.
She greeted Joey with a kiss. Joey had made dinner for the three of them.
"Hi," Joey said. "How was your day?"
"A little crazy," Charlie said. "There was a bit fight on the beach."
"I saw," Joey said a little stiffly.
Charlie looked puzzled.
"I was closing up the restaurant," Joey explained. "I saw."
"Are you okay?" Charlie asked worriedly.
She didn't seem right at all. But Joey had turned to Ruby who was kicking off her shoes and tucking up on the sofa.
"Why were you hanging out with a River Boy?" she accused.
Charlie and Ruby were both shocked by the acidity in her voice. It just wasn't like her.
"I wasn't," Ruby said.
"That kid who was teaching you to surf," Joey said. "He's a Braxton. He's a River Boy."
Ruby stood up, feeling defensive.
"He's a Braxton, yes," she said. "But he's not a River Boy. He's a nice kid. He's new in school and he doesn't have any friends, Joey. I'd have thought you of all people would have wanted me to reach out and be nice to him."
Now it was Joey's turn to be defensive.
"And what's that supposed to mean?" she snapped. "Me of all people?"
"Because you're so kind," Ruby said. "You're always going out of your way to be nice to people and include them. Or at least you used to before you went all weird."
Joey was stung into silence. Charlie glanced between the two of them. She didn't know what to say. She wanted to help but she didn't have the right worlds.
"I'm just worried about you getting involved with that family," Joey eventually said.
"Well, just because he's from a bad family doesn't mean he's a bad person," Ruby replied. "He's actually really nice, Joey. He's shy and he's sweet and Romeo let me down for a lesson so he offered. He doesn't really know anyone at school. Not many people are reaching out to him because of the River Boy thing so I was actually trying to take a leaf out of your book and offering out a hand of friendship."
Joey sighed, willing herself not to cry. She apologised. Ruby stepped closer.
"Please, Joey," she said. "What's wrong?"
Charlie hung back, wondering if her daughter could be more successful where she had failed.
"I'm just a little all over the place at the moment," Joey said.
She apologised again. Ruby hugged her.
"Please let us take care of you, Joey," Ruby begged.
She invited Charlie into the cuddle. Charlie held onto tight. She felt Joey's tears fall onto her shoulder.
"We love you so much, Joey," she whispered. "Whatever you're going through… please don't go through it by yourself."
Romeo was at home when Indi finally bothered to come by and see him. She had bought him flowers which he thought was cute but it wasn't enough. He had needed her more than once today and each time, she had let him down. He hadn't been anywhere near the top of her list of priorities. And he didn't feel shy about telling her so. He wasn't angry. He just felt sad.
"I'm sorry, Romeo," she said. "I didn't know what was going on."
"I tried to tell you," he said. "I came round this morning and I tried to tell you."
"I know…"
"You were just too busy with your new mates and your new life to even consider listening to me."
"I'm sorry," Indi said again.
Romeo sighed heavily. He felt so tired.
"This is exactly what I said was going to happen, Indi," he said. "We live in different worlds now."
"No!" Indi protested. "This is just one day. One mistake. And I am so sorry. I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you."
He shook his head. He wanted to cry but he also wanted to be a man and he had had it drilled into him from a young age that men didn't cry.
"I needed you and you were too busy for me," he said. "There would never be a time when I was too busy for you, Indi. Never. When Dex went missing, I dropped everything to help you and support your family."
"I know you did," Indi said quietly. "Please? Please can we just start again?"
It was late. Ruby, Charlie and Joey had had dinner and then Ruby had gone off to do her homework, leaving Charlie and Joey to talk.
"What's really going on, Jo?" Charlie asked. "Something about that night has triggered something in you and I can't understand what it is."
She held Joey in her arms, stroking her hair and kissing the top of her head.
"Heath Braxton," Joey said.
Charlie paused.
"What about him?" she asked.
"I went to school with him… briefly," Joey explained.
Charlie continued stroking Joey hair, letting her explain. Joey sighed heavily.
"I went to Yabbie Creek for a little while… before I transferred to Summer Bay High," Joey said. "I started at Summer Bay and got bullied so my parents tried me at Yabbie Creek but it was even worse."
"Because of Heath?" Charlie asked.
"He was a big part of it," Joey said. "He was part of a big gang. Well, of course he was. But he was a kid then, not quite a River Boy. He was a thug amongst a gang of thugs. I was too quiet. I didn't have anything to say for myself. I didn't fit in. I was new. I was just a loser."
Charlie held her tighter.
"And then one day, he hit on me," Joey explained. "In front of his mates. I knocked him back. Obviously. I think he was only doing it for a bet anyway. A game. But he was expecting me to fall at his feet, I think. Be grateful. I wasn't. I didn't want him or any guy near me."
"What did he do?" Charlie asked.
"He was mortified," Joey said. "He was really angry. And he was really embarrassed in front of his friends and his older brother."
She sighed heavily.
"He walked away and I thought that was the end of it."
Charlie tensed. Flashbacks of her own high school ordeal tormented her.
"But he found me after school when I was walking to the bus stop," Joey explained. "He wouldn't stop following me. He was really aggressive. He grabbed me. He kept telling me how out of order I was to treat him the way I had in front of his friends. He said I should count myself lucky that anyone had been interested in me, let alone someone like him."
She took a breath.
"He tried to drag me away from the bus stop," she said. "He tried to kiss me. Like… force me to kiss him."
She felt Charlie grip her tightly. She hated telling her the story.
"I kneed him pretty hard," Joey said. "Then my bus came. Then I refused to go back to school and I transferred back to Summer Bay High."
"Oh, Joey…" Charlie said softly.
She hugged her and kissed her forehead. A tear trickled from the corners of her eyes.
"I'm sorry," Joey said. "Just seeing him in the restaurant, seeing him destroy the restaurant, breaking my wrist… Charging round the Bay as if he owns the place…"
"I get it," Charlie said. "Especially after…"
"Robbo," Joey finished. "Yeah. It's brought some stuff back."
She swallowed. A lump ached in her throat. She had been having nightmares every night. She was just glad she hadn't been disturbing her girlfriend.
"I wish you'd told me, Joey," Charlie said.
"I didn't know how…"
Charlie shifted, looking into Joey's eyes.
"There mustn't be anything you don't know how to tell me, Jo," she said. "I love you so much and I always want to be there for you. Always. I've broken my heart not being able to reach you these past few days."
"I'm sorry," Joey said tearfully.
"No," Charlie said softly, tucking Joey's hair behind her ears. "Please don't apologise."
Joey apologised again, making them both laugh.
"I just want you to be able to feel safe enough to talk to me," Charlie said.
"I do," Joey promised. "I just… I couldn't sort the words out enough in my head."
They kissed softly, their tears melting together.
Romeo lay alone in bed. He couldn't sleep for thinking about Indi. Usually, that wasn't a problem. But now, he wasn't thinking the same thoughts he usually did. Now, he couldn't stop thinking about how alone he felt. Now he could taste bitterness at the knowledge that whenever she needed him, he was there. It wouldn't occur to him to not be there. But when he had needed her, she had been too busy in her fancy new life at University with her fancy, academic new friends. It was playing out exactly how he had feared it would.
He sighed heavily, his mind drifting to Ruby. He was upset that she had ditched him to have a lesson with Casey today. Why hadn't she just waited for him? He had wanted to teach her. He had wanted to spend time with her. He enjoyed spending time with her. He enjoyed their study session and mucking around in and out of school. She was kind to him and she listened to him. She made him laugh and she didn't make him feel stupid. She had been so lovely to him today when he had felt like a failure with the fight with the River Boys and what had happened to VJ. Ruby had been there when Indi hadn't.
Across town, Joey was also struggling to sleep. She felt better, having told Charlie about her history with Heath and all that it had brought up. But she was frustrated with herself too. She thought she had healed from Robbo. She thought she had recovered from being a victim. Up until Valentine's Day, she had felt stronger and more capable than she ever had in her life. Well, she had if she ignored the digs that Will Smith had made before he had been arrested and dragged away for murder. But now the likes of Heath Braxton were hanging around, she felt more and more haunted by the person she used to be. Her family and her friends didn't know that person. She didn't think they would like that person. She didn't like that person. And she certainly didn't ever want to be her again. It felt like a nightmare she couldn't escape from. She was desperate to wake up but she didn't know how.
She knew she should have told Charlie the whole truth. She should have told her about the panic attacks. But she just hadn't been able to. She couldn't admit to them as well. It was just too much. She felt too ashamed.
She gazed at her sleeping partner beside her. She looked so beautiful and peaceful. Joey knew how lucky she was to be with someone as amazing as Charlie. She could still hardly believe that somehow, Charlie had given her a second glance. But she had. And Joey was delighted and happy and grateful. She didn't want to ever let her down.
The next morning, Charlie was up early. Joey woke up to the smell of cooking. It was unusual. She padded out of her bedroom to find her girlfriend and her step-daughter preparing a feast.
"What's all this?" she wondered.
"For you!" Charlie said proudly.
"We made you breakfast," Ruby explained.
"That's so sweet of you…" Joey said as Charlie pulled out a chair.
"Well, you're always cooking for us," Charlie said, kissing her cheek.
Ruby poured her a cup of coffee.
"We wanted to treat you for a change."
She sat and was served all her favourite food.
"Well, I'm not buying this whole 'you do it, Joey, I can't cook' thing anymore," she remarked, as the three of them sat down to eat together.
"Charlie!" Ruby complained. "I told you this was going to backfire!"
She grinned, making both her parents laugh.
"We just wanted you to know how much we love you, Joey," the teenager said sincerely.
"Well, I love you both too," Joey replied. "And I'm sorry I've been… well, shit to live with lately."
Charlie put her arm around her.
"None of what's happened is your fault, okay?"
Joey had given her permission to give Ruby a debrief.
"We get it," Ruby said. "We just wish you'd been able to talk about it earlier. We're a team, okay? We support each other and we work through things together."
Joey thanked them both, genuinely grateful. Perhaps today would be a better day.
Charlie arrived at work with a mission. She had called Leah and checked in on VJ. He would be allowed home that morning but he hadn't said much about the accident. However, all the witness reports had placed Heath Braxton in the water. He had dragged VJ out, unconscious. Now knowing the depths that the man would plunge, Charlie collared Watson, eager to pull him in for questioning.
Joey didn't especially want to go out. She was finding it harder and harder to leave the house. It was another thing she hadn't shared with Charlie or Ruby. But she had gone to open up the restaurant for the builders and check they knew what they were doing for the day and then she had called Leah, to see if she could pop in and see VJ.
"Do you remember what happened?" Joey asked.
The pre-teen had been delighted to see her, his first proper visitor.
"I just wanted to go out on the water," he said. "I wanted to impress those guys."
"What guys?" Joey asked worriedly.
"You know, the new guys…"
Joey froze.
"The ones with the tattoos?" she asked.
VJ nodded. Joey used her free arm to grip his. Leah watched carefully.
"VJ, you mustn't ever do anything so dangerous to impress people like that, okay?" Joey said seriously. "Those aren't the kind of people you want to impress."
VJ sighed and agreed. Leah threw up her hands in frustration.
"I said exactly the same thing and he argued!" she complained. "You come and say it and he's fine!"
"Well, boys don't listen to their Mums," Joey said.
"They do listen to their Mum's hot friends," Leah smirked.
Joey and VJ both blushed.
"Anyway, what happened out their Veej?" Leah asked.
She hadn't been able to get it out of him yet.
"There was just a big wave…" he said. "And a rock. And then… nothing."
Charlie had had the most frustrating day. She had thought she had Heath cornered for harming VJ out on the water but VJ himself, who had no loyalty to the River Boy or even any concept of threat, had exonerated him. It had just been an accident. And Heath, of all people, had seen him struggling and rescued him. VJ had unwittingly made a hero of a thug. Not only had they had to let Heath go, they'd had to apologise for their mistake. The words had stuck in her throat.
"Why were you so convinced, Charlie?" Watson wondered, as they patrolled the seafront together.
Her colleague had been in a strange mood all day.
"Just… I know what he's capable of," Charlie said. "And this gang is causing mayhem here, Watson. I can't walk into the Diner without being ambushed by John or Colleen or some other resident they're harassing."
"Yeah," Watson agreed.
It was happening to her too. Everywhere she went, someone was begging her to chase the River Boys away singlehandedly.
"People feel like they're taking over our town and you know what? I agree. They trashed my business and Joey…"
She shook her head, fighting tears. Watson really was worried now.
"Joey just isn't the same, Watson," Charlie said.
She stopped abruptly. Ahead of them was Darryl 'Brax' Braxton and he wasn't walking away. He stood up straight, surfboard propped lazily in one hand, warfare tattoos emblazoned across his half naked body.
"Charlie, I don't think you're in the right frame of mind for…"
"I heard you wrongfully arrested my brother today," Brax said.
He almost looked pleased.
"Well, he was an obvious suspect," Charlie said.
"I'm starting to feel like you're victimising my family," he replied, leaning in closely so he could read her badge. "Sergeant C. Buckton."
He stood up again. Charlie glared at him.
"Don't you think you should apologise for wasting his whole day?"
"What valuable contribution to the world were we keeping him from, exactly?" Charlie countered.
Brax chuckled.
"What's your problem with us, exactly?" he asked.
"You're making the community I protect feel unsafe," Charlie told him.
"You know, you're pretty hot when you're angry," he said.
Charlie clenched her fists. She was seething.
"That is not how you speak to a police officer," she said. "I'd mind your manners."
"Hey," Brax said easily, holding up his free hand. "I was complimenting you."
"Well, I don't appreciate it," Charlie snapped.
"So… you're Charlie Buckton, right?" he said, completely ignoring her. "I've heard plenty about you. You've arrested a tonne of my boys."
"Well, what does that say about how they behave?" Charlie replied.
"I heard a rumour that you played for the other side," Brax said. "Is that true?"
He looked her up and down.
"I mean… what a waste."
Watson rolled her eyes. That was the kind of ignorant comment that really irritated her.
"I think this conversation is becoming inappropriate and irrelevant," she said, taking Charlie by the elbow and guiding her away.
"Oh, is that your partner in every sense of the word?" Brax asked, calling behind them.
They ignored him. He shrugged.
"I'm just curious," he said, speaking more to himself than to them. "I want to get to know the people I'm going to be spending time with. Because I think me and my boys are going to like it here in Summer Bay. I think we might move in."
Next time… Nicole and Elijah both return to Summer Bay, Bianca suffers with jealousy and Charlie and Joey make plans to relaunch the restaurant…
