Code of Silence

Code of Silence - Chapter 20

The window of my train carriage didn't offer much of a view. Raindrops driven horizontally across the surface for the entire journey made sure of that. Just my luck that the weather had gone downhill, and at the end of the term, too.

I resorted to passing the ninety-minute trip with a nap, punctuated with social media and email updates. I'd messaged to tell my dad what time I'd be arriving, and fortunately a neighbour had offered to collect me from the station. Home was a walkable distance away, but I didn't fancy the idea of trudging it in the miserable weather. I could tell from the blurred outline of the surrounding countryside that I was close to home. The shapes of familiar farm buildings and yards in the distance, corrugated storage units, large houses on huge plots, detached houses on avenues, then terraced rows and shops. The closer I got the more varied the architecture became. The station platform eased into view and then stood still.

I found my lift waiting in the car park. Preparing myself for some polite small talk I clambered in, holding my rucksack, and greeted Mrs Denton. It was weird. I'd lived there all my life, as had she, right next door to us, but this was the first time we'd been this close. Often my parents had socialised with the neighbours, but like any kid I had kept a low profile when it came to neighbourly chats. University was going well, her garden was recovering from a harsh winter and the weather was atrocious. Real small talk, I thought. My dad was doing well by all accounts. Still not able to talk but lots of improvements elsewhere. As we pulled up at my house, I thanked her. I did appreciate that she'd been there for both me and my dad, years earlier when my mother had passed away, and now for a second time. It got me thinking: perhaps I should make more of an effort to chat with her in the future.

I was excited. I grabbed my bag from the rear seat, found my house keys and let myself in through the front door. My dad was in the lounge, looking fragile but pleased to see me. We hugged as I knelt beside his chair. I discovered that the health visitor had just left so the place was in good order. Dad was looking smart although I thought he had aged since the last time I visited; I didn't mention it. Speaking was still not possible, although the sounds he uttered had developed a little.

I offered to put the kettle on and make some hot drinks. He nodded, and made a thumbs up and a quiet noise. It sounded like he was trying to say please. We spent the evening watching sports highlights on television, me telling him how I was getting on with my course, the rugby club, new friends and all the usual updates. I reminded him he had an appointment with the doctor to review progress that week, and said that I'd take him there. I received handwritten notes on a pad from him. I'd read them, convey my response, and then there would be a pause while another note was created. It was a tortuous process.

The next note I received said: Let's give it a go, then! I'd been telling him about the AI voice developments that Alex and I had been working on. We'd managed to finish the final pieces of work just ahead of the AI conference and had done some initial testing. I was hoping it would be useful for Dad, even if it wasn't as cutting-edge as the stuff Theo was working on.

We agreed to spend the following morning going through it all and giving it a good test. It was early evening, but Dad tired easily. I helped him upstairs to get ready and settled him in his bedroom. I'd planned to catch up on some TV but found myself nodding off on the couch an hour or so later. The naps on the train had messed my body clock about, so I decided to head up to bed as well, checking briefly on Dad. My old room was always a comfort, and I was asleep in no time at all.

Waking early, I familiarised myself with the room again through squinting eyes. My dad was awake too and could just about cope with getting himself ready, so I went downstairs to sort out some breakfast. After a tidy-up I brought through the laptop and set it up on the kitchen table. The application we'd been working on was designed to be downloaded onto my dad's tablet, and would enable him to access a wide range of speech sequences to cover as many situations in everyday life as possible.