Wind Carved Names Into Silence by Zex Hollow 215

Chapter 215 

“Lottie, goddess girl, why would you do that?” Shane asks her. He looks gutted and I still feel the same. She looks back at me before turning her attention back to the front of her once more, and this time when she talks, I can hear the raw emotion in her voice and it 

hurts my heart. “It gets worse.” 

“How can it get worse?” Her grandad asks her. “I… I… goddess, please forgive me. I told her that there was a way to solve the problem.” The moment she stops talking, I swear you could hear a pin drop in the room. “Please tell me you’re kidding? This has to be some kind of sick joke, right?” Shane practically whispers as shock pours out of him. 

“It’s not a joke,” Lottie says as she looks down at her feet, and then I hear her sniffle, and I hate it. I take a step forward and take hold of her hand while Nick follows right behind me. Only he stands next to me instead of Lottie. She looks up at me and that’s when I see it. There’s a hurt in her eyes from more than just being called out on what she’s said. There is more going on here which is what I first feared, and I’m going to find out exactly what it is. 

“I know you said that she needs to own up to her mistakes and I get it, but I think this should be a conversation for just the three of us.” I look up to Nick and see his eyes flicker between Lottie and me. “I don’t mean any offense to anyone here. Please don’t think that.” Everyone at the table gives me understanding looks and nods as they start to stand up and leave the room one by one until it’s just the three of us left here alone and that’s exactly how I want it to be. 

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. They understand why you want it to be just us three, and I get it now too.” I look up at Nick to see him staring at Lottie, and I’m pretty sure that he now sees what I just saw. He sees the look in her eyes and he knows. 

“Sit down, Lottie.” His tone is more gentle towards her now as he follows her to the table while pulling me along with him. Lottie sits down at the table and we both sit opposite her but remain quiet, giving her a minute to gather her thoughts. Only soon the silence becomes too much to bare and Nick must feel the same as he clears his throat, looking both pissed and concerned as he runs his hand through his hair before letting out a long sigh. 

“I don’t understand, Lottie. I don’t get why you said all that stuff to Bonnie. Explain it to me. Help me understand, baby girl.” The moment he calls her baby girl, I watch as her walls crumple and tears start streaming down her face, but she remains quiet. “Lottie, talk to us sweet girl. She looks up, and then back and forth between me and her dad as she wipes tears away from her cheek, but she’s struggling to calm herself. 

Finally, after what feels like an eternity, she calms herself down enough to talk. “I was jealous, OK! Is that what you want to hear?” Her tone is mixed with anger and sadness. It’s as if she feels sad that she’s angry about whatever it is that she’s feeling, like she shouldn’t feel however she does, and while the thought of her hating the idea of a sibling breaks my heart, it still doesn’t mean that she’s not 

entitled to feel that way. 

“I was jealous of the idea of you having another baby because I want all of your attention and don’t want to share it with another child. Is that what you want to hear, Dad? Is it?”