Trust Me - Sheryl Browne Page 0,97

in the woods, he’d stayed where he was, kneeling beside him, until the emergency services had taken him away.

I’ve failed him was all he’d said, over and over, tears running unashamedly down his face, as Emily had driven him home. She’d tried to reassure him that he hadn’t. That he might well have saved him, in fact. Lost in his anguish, he wasn’t hearing her.

Her mind went to poor Joyce, the devastation in her eyes when they’d called around to tell her. Her heart had been broken. Even then, she’d been so grateful to Jake. Emily truly believed that she and Edward loved him like their own son. It broke her heart that he believed Edward attempting to take his own life was his failure. He’d spent his entire life trying to oust the ghosts of his past, just as she had, tormented by the thought that he’d failed his mother in some way. At just sixteen, for God’s sake, he’d blamed himself, carried his guilt with him every day since. And now it had come back to haunt him. Emily wasn’t sure he would ever recover fully from it. Whatever he might or might not have done, she had to try to forgive him. He might have lied, but wasn’t hers the biggest lie between them?

‘I think your father might need some time,’ she said to Ben, as Jake hesitated, appearing disorientated, before slowly climbing the stairs.

Ben gazed after him, then looked back to her, his eyes full of apprehension. ‘Do you think he’ll make it?’ he asked, his voice choked.

Emily hesitated. Her first instinct was to protect her son, but there was no way to lie to him. When they’d first come to the village, Edward had been like an uncle to Ben and Millie, taking them under his wing and making sure they were involved in village activities, convincing Ben to join the local football team.

‘I’m honestly not sure, Ben. They’ve promised to ring your dad as soon as they see any signs of a clinical recovery.’

Ben nodded and dropped his gaze to the floor. ‘Fuck,’ he muttered, swallowing hard. ‘Why did he do it?’

Emily saw the tears squeeze from his eyes, and went to him, instinctively pulling him into a firm embrace. He didn’t fight her, allowing her to hold him. ‘He wasn’t in his right mind,’ she whispered, stroking his back, holding him closer as a shudder shook through him. ‘Your dad’s broken-hearted, blaming himself. He might need your support, Ben. Joyce, too. Do you think you could be strong enough to help them?’

He sucked in another breath and nodded into her shoulder, then eased away. ‘I’ll go and see her. See if there are any jobs she needs doing,’ he said gruffly, wiping a hand across his eyes and glancing towards the stairs. ‘Do you think he … Dad … could use a cup of tea?’

‘Definitely.’ Emily smiled and swallowed back emotion of a different kind. She was more grateful than he could ever know for this sensitivity she hadn’t been sure he was capable of. ‘Is Millie back?’ she asked, suspecting she wasn’t. Ben would have told her what had happened. Knowing why they were searching for Edward, she would have come downstairs, not stayed ensconced in her room.

‘No. I left her a message, but she obviously couldn’t be arsed to ring back.’ Ben shrugged agitatedly. ‘She really is acting like a brat.’

‘Ben …’ Emily admonished him.

‘Well, she is, let’s face it. I know she’s dealing with shit, but we all are, aren’t we? If she wants to be treated with respect, then she needs to stop thinking about herself and grow …’ He stopped, an alarmed look on his face as his gaze travelled past Emily to the front door.

Emily turned around, her heart catching as she recognised the unmistakable silhouette of a uniformed police officer through the opaque glass, along with another person. DS Regan, she realised.

‘They’re probably here about what happened,’ she reassured Ben, trepidation prickling her spine nevertheless as she went to the door, wavering briefly before pulling it open.

‘Mrs Merriden.’ DS Regan gave her a short smile. ‘Do you mind if we …’ Her expression unreadable, she nodded past her to the hall.

‘Yes, of course.’ Stepping back to allow them access, she glanced at Jake, who was descending the stairs.

‘Is this to do with Edward Simpson?’ he asked, his face taut. Emily hoped it wasn’t. They’d given the police all the information they could.

DS Regan looked cautiously between