I shake my head again. “No. I—” I swallow past the lump in my throat. “I don’t want them to know. It would break my mom.”
A flicker of sympathy softens the lines of his face. “You’re aware this information is bound to come out? There’s no way to keep this information secret given the recent assault against you. The police are looking for a motive and won’t stop digging until they have one. Austin’s defense will also use this information if they feel it can help their case. There’s no keeping it quiet now. Do you understand?”
A stone sinks to the pit of my stomach. I think I knew that already, but a part of me had hoped …
“Yeah,” I mutter. “I understand.”
“I’m going to need you to go back out there and tell Officer Koch about the first assault, in detail. Along with any other altercations that have occurred between then and what transpired yesterday. Can you do that?”
“Do I have a choice?” I mutter.
“Unfortunately, no,” he says. “Not if we intend for the charges to stick. I can request a few hours. At most, maybe a day. But you’ll need to make a statement, and it’s likely that you’ll be interviewed more than once by multiple officers.”
Swallowing hard, I nod. “Is there any way to do that without my parents around?”
“There is,” he says. “But in times like these, it’s often best to have a support system at your side. Your parents love you very much?—”
“I know,” I tell him. “It’s just …” I chew on my bottom lip. “They’ve been through so much already. I don’t want to cause them any more pain.”
“Let them be there for you,” he suggests. “It would cause more pain to be pushed away than to know everything that’s happened. And forgive me for overstepping, but …” he tugs at his tie and purses his lips, almost like he’s struggling to find the right words to say, “I’ve been by your father’s side for severalyears now. I know him pretty well and consider him a true friend.”
I wait for him to continue.
“Your father was distraught when he learned you tried to kill yourself.”
My eyes water, and I quickly look away.
“He blames himself,” he tells me.
“He shouldn’t,” I whisper.
Mr. Ayala shrugs. “That may be. But parents often do. Especially when they can’t make sense of something. When they don’t have the full picture.”
I nod, understanding what he means.
“Alright,” I tell him. “They can stay.”
Mr. Ayala leads me back to the living room, and for the next hour, I tell Officer Koch and my parents everything that happened. Everything that’s been happening these past few months. I spill all my secrets. Even those I still believe are too painful for my parents to bear.
CHAPTER 62
GABRIEL
She’s not answering her phone and Cecilia hasn’t shown up to school for three days now.
I’m losing it.
I’ve taken to getting updates on her well-being from Adriana, of all people, since Cecilia is still takinghercalls.
It’s infuriating. I need to see her. To talk to her and make sure she’s okay.
I’m pissed that she snuck out of my place, but I understand that she’s hurting and overwhelmed. I just wish she’d let me be there for her.
But even her parents—who happen to love me—are helping her dodge my calls, and every time I show up on their porch, they make up some excuse about her resting and turn me away.
Cecilia’s staying safely tucked away—like Rapunzel in her tower—and despite my best efforts, I’ve yet to be granted entry.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I jump to answer it. “Cecilia?” I answer, not bothering to check the caller ID.
