Unspoken

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

“So, where exactly are we going?” Declan asks the next day as I hop into his truck. I hand him the directions that I printed off of the internet the other day. He takes a moment to study them and then gives me a look.

“You forgot to mention that it’s a two hour drive,” he grumbles. I look at him innocently, widening my blue eyes and pouting my lips slightly. “Okay, okay. I forgive you. Now, stop looking at me like that.”

A smile creeps onto my face and I notice the corners of his mouth turn up in response. He looks over at me and I motion for him to pay attention to the road. He doesn’t talk for awhile because he is focusing on driving and claims that I distract him too much. Then I hear him humming and I can’t help myself but laugh.

“What?” he asks. In response I lean over in my seat and kiss his cheek, I don’t need words to show him how happy that I am.

“There you go distracting me again. You know you’re making this very difficult,” he says, eyes sparkling. I lean my head forward so my hair falls in my face, covering my blush. He reaches over and tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. Just then a car runs a stop light and Declan is forced to slam on the breaks. I lurch forward in my seat, but my seat belt slams me back into the seat. I look at Declan, to make sure he is okay, and he is looking at me his eyes wide.

“Are you okay?” he asks me shakily. I nod and motion for him to pull the car over to the shoulder of the road. He does and then leans back in his seat, letting out a long breath. I slide over to his seat and rest my hand on his.

“I’m sorry,” he practically whispers. I tilt his face up, so that he is looking at me. I try to tell him, just by using my eyes, that it wasn’t his fault. He seems to get it because he nods.

“I know I’m overreacting, it’s just…when I was nine I was in a pretty bad car accident. My mom and I were lucky, but the other people weren’t. I remember my mom running over to help them, but there was nothing she could do. There were two little kids in that car along with their mom and dad. All of them died,” he says and takes a shaky breath.

I gently rub his back, trying to calm him down. I wish more than anything that I could say something to make him feel better. I can feel the words poised on the tip of my tongue, but I just can’t seem to say them. So, instead I just grip his hand tightly, letting him know that I’m there. He leans against me and I run my hand through his hair, until I feel him begin to relax.

“I guess we should go,” he says and turns the truck back on. I try to tell him we can just go home if he wants, but he shakes his head stubbornly. “I promised I would do this for you and I will. I’m fine, really.”

I can see by the set of his jaw that there is no use in arguing. So, I slid back into my seat and fasten my seat belt. I keep looking over at him anxiously as we drive, but he seems to be okay. He doesn’t completely relax, though, until we pull into Richard Sim’s driveway. I eagerly slide out of my seat and onto the pavement. I practically run up to the house, ready to finally get some answers. I go to knock on the door, but I pause with my hand hovering. What if he won’t tell me anything? Or what if he tells my dad that I was here? My stomach clenches as I feel the nervousness take over my whole body. My hand drops to my side and I don’t know if I can do this. I mean what if it has nothing to do with Caleb? All of this was probably just a huge waste of time. I’m turning to let Declan know when his hand reaches out and knocks on the door.

“If you don’t do it, you’ll regret it later,” he whispers in my ear just before the door creaks open. A man who I assume to be Richard Sims stands there, looking out at us. He is around my father’s age, with short hair that is almost a silvery gray. He waits for us to say something and I turn to Declan, my eyes pleading.

“Hello Mr. Sims, I’m Declan Meyers and this is Arianna Rogers. We were wondering if we could talk to you about something,” Declan says.

“Rogers? You don’t happen to be Steve Rogers’ girl?” he asks, taking a good look at me. I nod my head in affirmation. “Wow, you’ve really grown up since the last time I saw you.”

“So, can we come in?” Declan inquires, getting the conversation back on topic. Richard walks into the house leaving the door open, an unspoken invitation. We follow him inside and into a living room. Papers and books are scattered all over the furniture and Richard begins to clear a spot off for us to sit.

“Sorry for the mess, I don’t have many visitors these days,” he says, his eyes reflect a sadness through his glasses. “Would you like anything to drink?”

“No thank you,” Declan responds for both of us.

“So, what is it you wanted to talk about?” Richard asks.

“Well, we were wondering if you remembered this man,” Declan tells him as he slips the picture I found across the table. Richard squints at it and then I notice his eyebrows shoot up in surprise.

“Y-you know?” he stutters his eyes wide. Declan and I look at each other, communicating with our eyes. Declan wants to know if we should pretend like we know what he is talking about in order to trick the information out of him, but I shake my head. I don’t think that it is necessary yet.

“Well, we know that Arianna’s dad hired you to keep track of him,” Declan says and Richard visibly relaxes.

“Did he tell you that?” Richard asks doubtfully.

“No, she found the picture in her attic with a note from you attached. We were wondering if you could tell us who the man is.”

“It would be best if you two stayed out of this. Just go home and forget about the picture, don’t dig into something you aren’t ready to handle,” Richard says and stands up, trying to get us to do the same.

“Look, okay? This is important to her and I think that she deserves to know what’s going on,” Declan responds angrily.

“Maybe your right, but looking into this will only bring up sad memories for everyone. It really isn’t worth it,” Richard states carefully, afraid of setting Declan off. I look around for a piece of paper and find a pen lying in a pile of books. I write a message to Declan, which he reads aloud.

“What happened between you and my father? Why did you stop talking after Caleb died?” Declan reads, looking at me confused. He still doesn’t know about Caleb and I promise myself that I will explain later. Richard sighs deeply, a look of regret in his eyes.

“It was a mistake. I didn’t understand what I was getting myself into until it was too late,” Richard rambles on and then covers his face with his hands.

“What was a mistake?” Declan asks quietly, trying not to upset Richard any further.

“I can’t tell you that, but you were right that that Arianna deserves to know. I will give you his name and maybe he will be able to give you the answers that I can’t,” Richard says and writes down a name on a piece of paper. He hands it to Declan and then looks me over once again.. I notice guilt lurking in the depths of his brown eyes and I can’t help, but to wonder what he did. “You look just like him you, you know.”

I give him a sad smile and then lead Declan outside. He looks at me questioningly as we walk towards the truck. I squeeze his hand in reassurance that I will explain everything to him. For now, though, I take the piece of paper out of his other hand and spread it open to read the name of the man that has the answers to my questions. Matthew Simon.