Page 106 of The Silent Waters (Elements 3)

“Everything okay?” he asked me.

“Yeah. Cheryl just said my parents need me there. Do you think you can drive me back?” I grimaced. “I know you might not be ready to go back, but I just need to make sure everyone’s okay.”

“Of course. I’ll go pack my stuff, too.”

“You’re coming back with me?”

“I just got you back, Maggie May Riley, and I’m never going to let you go again,” he said, walking over and wrapping his arms around me. “Plus, I was supposed to return that boat weeks and weeks ago, so I’m pretty sure I owe more money than I want to know.”

I snickered.

We packed up the car, hooked the boat trailer up, and headed back home. The whole trip back, we didn’t listen to the radio. I knew Brooks wasn’t ready to dive into anything dealing with music. Just as he waited for me to find my voice, I’d patiently wait for him to find his own. And he’d find it—I knew he would. Seeing him out on the boat singing was the biggest sign to me. He was slowly but surely finding his way home.

“I think I’ll wait here,” Brooks said, pulling up to our house. “I don’t want to interfere.”

I leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. You go help your mom. I’ll be here.”

I nodded and told him I wouldn’t keep him too long. The second I stepped out of the car, Cheryl came rushing out to me.

“Oh my God! What took you so long? I texted you like four hours ago!” she groaned.

I snickered, walking over to my dramatic sister. “It takes four hours to drive from the cabin.”

“I know, but that doesn’t mean—” She paused. Her hands flew to her chest. “I’m sorry. Wait. Back that train up. Did you just…” She crossed her arms, uncrossed them, placed them on her hips, and then crossed them again. “Did you just speak?”

I nodded my head. “Yeah, it’s this new thing I’m trying.”

“Oh my God.” Her hands flew to her mouth. She started crying and slugged me in the shoulder. “Well, I’ll be damned, my sister speaks!” she screamed, taking my hands and spinning me in a circle before pulling me into a hug. “Oh my gosh, Mom’s going to freak out. This is perfect. She needs a lift me up.”

“What’s wrong with her?”

“Oh, you know, she’s crying every night and eating ice cream like it’s the only food group known to mankind.”

“She misses him that much?”

“Even more than you think. Plus, Dad is a hot mess, too. For the first time in a long time, you and I aren’t the troubled ones in the family.” She winked before she started tearing up again. “Maggie. You’re talking.”

We stood in the front yard hugging for quite some time before we separated and she glanced over at Brooks. “Hey, stranger, are you the one responsible for making my sister speak up?”

He shouted out of the rolled down window. “Guilty. She kind of got pissed off and exploded.”

Cheryl laughed. “Thanks for pissing off my sister, Brooks.”

“Anytime, Cheryl. Anytime.”

When we walked inside of the house, Mama was sitting on the living room couch, watching television. “Maggie May,” Mama said, surprised. She stood up and walked over to me, pulling me into a hug. Her hair was all over the place, and I swore she had chocolate on her chin. “I missed you.”

“I missed you, too, Mama.”

She stumbled backward after hearing my voice. I gave her a small grin. “I know. That seems to be the main reaction today from people.”

“No. What. How? What?” She started hyperventilating. “Oh my gosh, Maggie May.” Her arms flew around me and she wouldn’t let go. “I don’t get it,” she said, flabbergasted. What changed?”

“Time.”

“Oh my gosh.” Her hands were shaking. “We have to tell Eric. We have to call him. He has to come over. Oh my God. He needs to be here for this.” She started pacing the house. “I can’t believe he’s missing this.”