I sat between Mum and Jasper in the public gallery. Cole was on the chair in front of me, and my family were dotted around. I wanted to be between Mum and Jasper rather than Cole because I wanted to show Dad that he hadn’t broken us.
My heart felt as if it was going to burst right out of my chest. I wanted him to get the maximum sentence but at the same time, I felt wrong for wanting that.
Separating who he was from knowing he was my dad was hard. I wished he could have been different but now all I could hope for was that he wasn’t ever given the opportunity to hurt another girl.
Dad seemed older and smaller. He stood with his shoulders hunched over and looked at the floor. His hair had greyed so much he looked ten years older. I couldn’t believe, looking at this man in front of me, that I had ever been afraid of him. But appearances were deceptive.
The judge stood up, in what felt like slow motion. I took Mum and Jasper’s hands and prayed that my father would spend the rest of his life in prison. When the judge opened her mouth, I couldn’t hear a thing, just a ringing in my ears.
My head felt light and I could just about lip-read. I caught a few words. ‘Gross abuse of trust’ and ‘Danger to young children’ were the only things I could pick out. I blinked rapidly, spilling my tears. Please.
Jasper sucked his breath through his teeth and gripped my hand. What? The courtroom burst into life, but I hadn’t heard what the sentence was.
“What happened?” The shrill ringing in my ears and distant murmuring was still all I could hear.
Mum gripped my arms and cried. “Life, Oakley. He will never hurt anyone again.” Her voice sounded muffled, as if I was hearing her from under water, but I made out every word. My father received a life sentence.
Breathing in sharply, I collapsed into Mum’s arms. He got life. How would he cope in prison? Why did I even care? Oh God.
I pulled back from Mum and looked down at him again. His eyes were wide with shock. The dad I knew had gone fifteen years ago. I felt the air rush to my lungs as I finally let go. He wasn’t my dad, and I didn’t ever want to see him again. He was nothing to me now.
As he was being led away to start serving his sentence, he looked up. Our eyes met, and there was nothing. No remorse. His expression was empty.
My heart was beating at a hundred miles an hour and I wanted to run, but I held his gaze, refusing to back down.
Mum and Jasper both put their arm around me. The last image he would have of his family would be us standing strong together, watching him being hauled away.
Goodbye, Dad.
“Honey?” Mum whispered..
“It’s okay now, Mum,” I whispered. “We’re going to be okay.”
Back at Ali’s, I went up to Lizzie’s room for a few minutes to clear my head. Downstairs a celebration had started, but I couldn’t bring myself to raise a glass to helping put him behind bars. I had gone through too much to be able to celebrate anything connected to what happened to me.
I sat on the futon and took a deep, calming breath. Letting him go felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I no longer had a dad, but that was good, because I no longer had an evil one.
Cole pushed the door open. “Hey,” he said, kneeling in front of me. He pulled a little red velvet bag out of his pocket. “Open your hand.”
“Okay,” I replied, frowning as I did as he instructed.
He tipped the bag up, and a small, egg shaped, orange-red gemstone fell onto my hand. A black lace was threaded through a hole cut into the top, creating a necklace. “Fire Agate,” he said.
“Fire what?”
“Agate.” He grinned. “Energy, warmth, strength and courage. You have so much already, but I know you struggle sometimes.”
My heart swelled as I ran my thumb over the smooth stone. I definitely could do with a little more of all of that. “Thank you. It’s perfect.” I leant over and kissed him. “You chose this yourself?”
“Well, I wanted to get you something, but it was Mia that suggested one of those stones. Shall I?”
Nodding, I handed him the necklace and pulled my hair out of the way. With it hanging around my neck, I felt stronger. I knew it was all in my head, but that didn’t matter.
I leant forwards and kissed him softly. “Let’s get down there.” He smiled and stood up. I followed.
Down in the living room, my grandparents sat with Ali on one sofa while Jenna and David sat on another. Lizzie, Miles, Jasper, and Mia were dotted around the floor.
I sat on the carpet between Cole and Jasper. There was a space on the sofa near Ali, but that must be where Mum was sitting. “Where’s Mum?” I asked.
Jasper’s eyes flicked to the floor. “Just on the phone.”
What’s he hiding? “On the phone to who?” He shrugged. “Jasper?” I insisted.