Broken - Isadora Quagmire

Part 4 -Scrunched Up Piece Of Paper

Day 11 on the island...

I woke up in me and Quigley's tent, then woke him up and we checked that the Baudelaires were still in their tent. After that, Quigely and I had a walk on the beach, talked about Issy. Soon joined by Klaus, then Violet and Sunny. I kissed Violet on the cheek, oh did I forget to mention, Vi and I are kind of a thing now!!!!

Anyway, Quigley and Sunny went to help prepare lunch, and Klaus, Violet and I joined in on a game of volleyball. Then she turned up, Naomi, I have nothing against her, it's just her relationship with Klaus. Nothing has happened, she is friends with all of us. She's just really close with Klaus and that upsets me I guess, I know how much he meant to my sister.

Naomi is also an orphan, she washed up on the shore of the island about 5 years ago when she was 7. She is now 13, the same age as Klaus. The only thing she has left of her parents is her father's yellow coat and her mother's dungarees, but she isn't allowed to wear them.

She came and walked away with Klaus -giving Violet and I some alone time.

We went back to Quigley and my tent and lay on my bed, I had my arm around her.

She started wriggling around.

"What's wrong?" I asked her.

"The bed it's not right" she got up and started feeling under the mattress.

"Violet, it's fine. Don't look under-"

She pulled out three commonplace books out. "What are these?" she asked.

"Nothing" I said, taking them away from her.

"Duncan, what is it?" she said, sitting beside me.

"These are Issy's" I said. "The night before the trial she decided that she had enough of being scared of doing... anything. She wrote everything that happened to her since the fire. She took up her spare, my spare and Quigely's spare commonplace books. I haven't had the courage to read them"

She put her hand on my knee. "She was my best friend, and you're my sweetheart. I know you can do this. Isadora wrote her story for a reason, she wanted people to know. Maybe you'll find out things you never knew"

"Like what was in that letter. I know I've asked you this before but-"

"Duncan. If I knew what was in that letter, I would tell you"

"What about-"

"I still have no idea what she threw to him. Duncan, please promise to me that you will at least try to read her story. I'm not saying right now, I'm not saying I have to be there, but please read it"

The rest of the day was as normal as life on the island with Count Olaf somewhere around could be. We ate lunch, we played games, we caught up with the others, we ate dinner, we drank cordial, we gathered round the fire.

I snuck away to me and Quigley's tent, and got 'Broken' out from under my bed.

I could almost hear her talking to me, feel her sitting in front of me or reading the book over my shoulder. I felt her touch my shoulder, and reached my hand up to touch her, but she was gone, again. It was so depressing reading it, knowing that I could have saved her that night and she would still be here, telling me to shut up and telling me it would all be okay.

I looked up just when Vi walked in. She sat down beside me.

"We were worried" she said.

"Sorry, I wanted to try and do this alone. But, I just-". I broke down in tears.

"Hey. Don't cry. I'm here with you now"

Violet comforted me, and we sat together as we continued reading 'Broken'.

"I can't believe it" Violet said. We had just finished Issy's book. "I didn't know you went through so much. Isadora was so bra-"

"She lied" I said.

"Sorry"

"She lied, it was way worse than she wrote. She writes that she ran with us, trying to be quiet. I was there, I had to listen to her whimpering and eventually crying because of all the pain she was in"

"Maybe she didn't want to write about how bad it was"

"This is the last straw"

"What?"

I left the tent and marched my way to the Baudelaire's tent.

"Duncan. What are you doing?"

"Your brother has hid that scrunched up piece of paper somewhere"

I didn't find it in their tent. So, I snuck into Naomi's tent and, of course, under her mattress, there it was.

"'Dear Count Olaf. When the Quagmire triplets came to me this morning and explained their plan to me and my brother, I was shocked by their bravery. Giving up their freedom to save the Baudelaires from certain doom. But there was one thing, Isadora. Her main reason was Klaus, which confused me. She told me about the wondrous time she had with him the day prior and it shocked me because not four hours later, he was kissing me. She should know this so she isn't hurt when she inevitably finds out. On another note, two weeks on Thursday, there will be a V.F.D. meeting at the Hotel Denouement'" I read aloud to Violet, Quigley, Sunny and... Klaus.

Day 19 on the island...

Update: Count Olaf has been found.