Will and Testament // Sequel to the Rosie Grey series

Chapter Twenty-Eight

"Do you think we should wake her?" Mother whispered, her voice washing over me.

"No, I think we should let her sleep for a while longer. It's been a long day," Father said.

"It just goes to show how much Matilda takes after your mother."

"Hm. Neither of them seems to have much of a moral compass or one at all. I'll be glad when we never have to see either of them again."

"We thought we would never see them again twenty-four years ago, and here we are."

"That's true. I wanted to protect Izzy, to make sure she never had to experience the same thing you did, yet here we are. It feels like it will never end."

"She's safe and she's talking to us, that's all that matters."

"I suppose." I felt Father's finger move a small strand of hair off my forehead. "Right, I need to find those crutches."

"I'll give you a hand."

Their footsteps echoed from the room and I listened to them climb the stairs. Once I heard the floorboards above my head creak, signalling they were upstairs, I opened my eyes and stretched my arms behind me. I stifled a yawn and blinked my eyes to adjust them to the fading light that streamed in through the window.

Everyone else had gone, leaving me alone in the parlour with nothing but a ticking clock and the creaks of the floorboards upstairs to break the silence. I knew I hadn't slept for long, at least according to the clock on the mantel, but I felt a little more clear-headed than I had in days. Although I still had a goal of at least trying to stop Grandmother from getting her hands on the house, I didn't have that anger lurking below the surface. It had finally gone and I could think clearly.

I hadn't told Mother and Father everything. They didn't know about the tightening sensation in my chest that made it feel like I couldn't breathe. I didn't tell them about the pond. How could I tell them what went through my head that day? How could I admit that I had wanted to jump into that pond because I thought no one would care about me. I couldn't, especially not in front of the rest of the family and the younger ones.

They could never know.

Upstairs, I could still hear the occasional creak of the floorboards until I heard the footsteps get closer to the top of the stairs. I stretched out again, listening to the footsteps as they came down the stairs with the occasional clunking sound of something hitting the bannister and the wall. Even if I had still been asleep, the noise would have woken me up very quickly. Silence had never been one of Father's strong suits.

He looked at me when he walked in, holding up two wooden crutches that looked like they might snap if I lean on them too hard. Still, if it meant I could attend the debate, then I would take the risk. That and I had never used crutches before.

"These should do. They're not damaged and will get you from Point A to Point B without any incidents. Hopefully," Father said.

"I don't like the sound of that hopefully," I said, stifling a yawn.

"You'll be fine and they shouldn't take too long to get used to. You'll be like lightning on these soon enough."

"If you say so."

"Do you want to try them?"

"Sure, why not? If it means I can go to the debate, I'll do anything."

I slid my right leg off the futon, but I didn't let it hit the floor. Mother walked over to me and grabbed me by the forearms to help me into a standing position whilst making sure I didn't fall over and cause myself another injury. Once standing, Father walked over to me with the crutches and placed one under each of my arms.