Rula Sinara - After the Silence

Dear Reader Dear Reader Dear Reader Title Page About the Author Dedication Acknowledgments PROLOGUE CHAPTER ONE CHAPTER TWO CHAPTER THREE CHAPTER FOUR CHAPTER FIVE CHAPTER SIX CHAPTER SEVEN CHAPTER EIGHT CHAPTER NINE CHAPTER TEN CHAPTER ELEVEN CHAPTER TWELVE CHAPTER THIRTEEN CHAPTER FOURTEEN CHAPTER FIFTEEN CHAPTER SIXTEEN CHAPTER SEVENTEEN CHAPTER EIGHTEEN Copyright , Silence is something that—as a mother of three boys and an outrageous number of pets—I’ve begged for at times. Anything for a little bit of soothing peace and quiet in which to work, think (and actually be able to hear my thoughts) and decompress. But, as a mother, I also know firsthand how frustrating and destructive silence can be, especially for a child. Although my kids have come a long way, two of them struggled with being able to cope with and express overwhelming emotions when they were younger. As a result, they’d shut down. The teacher calls, school visits, hours of trying to get them to open up...I’ll never forget any of it. It’s heartbreaking for a parent not to be able to get through to their child. For my kids, the silence would last from endless minutes to hours. But for Maddie, the young girl in this story, it has gone on for months...triggered by the tragic loss of a parent. I’m so grateful that my kids didn’t have the same diagnosis or trigger as Maddie, but nonetheless, it still comes down to internal suffering. An inability to cope. A cry for help. And whether it’s a child or adult withdrawing, silence can be a dark, stressful and lonely place...until love and trust finally break through. I hope you enjoy this story of how two people suffering on opposite sides of the world discover each other, rediscover the power of love and family and, together, show a little girl that it’s okay to be happy again. My door is always open at rulasinara.com , where you can find links to my blog, all the places I hang out and more, so feel free to drop by! Rula Sinara

Title Page After the Silence Rula Sinara www.millsandboon.co.uk

About the Author RULA SINARA lives in Virginia’s countryside with her husband, three boys and zany but endearing pets. When she’s not writing or doing mom stuff, she loves organic gardening, attracting wildlife to her yard (cool bugs included) or watching romantic movies. She also enjoys interviewing fellow authors and is a special contributor for Happy Ever After on USATODAY.com. Her door is always open at rulasinara.com or awritersrush.blogspot.com .

Dedication To each of you who has helped a child to heal and rediscover joy.

Acknowledgments Acknowledgments Acknowledgments PROLOGUE CHAPTER ONE CHAPTER TWO CHAPTER THREE CHAPTER FOUR CHAPTER FIVE CHAPTER SIX CHAPTER SEVEN CHAPTER EIGHT CHAPTER NINE CHAPTER TEN CHAPTER ELEVEN CHAPTER TWELVE CHAPTER THIRTEEN CHAPTER FOURTEEN CHAPTER FIFTEEN CHAPTER SIXTEEN CHAPTER SEVENTEEN CHAPTER EIGHTEEN Copyright Infinite thanks to my author sisters for their support and shared stories of surviving deadlines when life throws a few curveboulders...and to my reader friends for your generous and beautiful words about my first book in this series, The Promise of Rain. You all kept me going. And, as always, thank you, Victoria Curran, for your patience, incredible insight and for encouraging me to be cruel to my characters. Plain and simple, you make me a better writer. I’m blessed to have such a gifted editor and teacher to guide me.

PROLOGUE

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Copyright

PROLOGUE

ZOE CORALLIS HELD her breath as the door to the baby’s room clicked shut. She counted five seconds before daring to tiptoe away, cleared a good five feet before exhaling, then scurried to the kitchen.

“Mommy, I finished copying down my spelling words and the oven just beeped,” Maddie said, jumping off the kitchen stool and stuffing her notebook into her brown-and-pink gingham backpack. “Did you want to check them?”

Zoe chuckled as she turned off the oven timer before it could ring and wake up Ryan. Maddie, knowing full well there wouldn’t be homework checks this afternoon, already had her backpack zipped up.

“I trust you, sweetie,” she said as she pulled two round pans of Ben’s favorite banana cake out of the oven and set them on the stovetop to cool. She dipped her head, teaming up with the effervescent light spilling through the window, and scanned the counter for rogue crumbs. Spotless.

“Is he almost here?” Maddie asked.

Zoe glanced at the oven clock for the hundredth time since morning. Three-fifty. Which meant the cream-cheese frosting and strawberries weren’t going to make it onto the cake until after Ben arrived, and she’d wanted everything perfect and ready. After ten months of hell, he deserved to come home to peace and quiet. And Zoe knew how much having the house calm and clean helped him recover from experiences he never discussed and she didn’t dare imagine.

Zoe held Maddie’s cheeks and kissed her pert little nose. “Almost.” She gave Maddie’s two dark braids a playful tug, then took her backpack from her hand. “I’ll put this away. Do me a huge favor and go help Chad pick up his toys so Daddy doesn’t trip on them.”

“Okay.” Maddie tucked her stool under the counter, then cupped her hands against her chest. “Can we tell him about the puppy yet?” she whispered. Chad was too young to be trusted with a secret, and Maddie was nearing bursting point, not being able to share their plans to raise a puppy. Zoe was so exhausted today that she had fleeting second thoughts about the yearlong commitment—raising a puppy for a service-and-guide-dog-training organization that was known for helping veterans—but seeing her daughter’s face beaming reaffirmed her decision. Maddie loved animals, and the experience would not only be great for the kids, it would be great for Ben, too. Her gift to him. A way to serve...from home.

“Let’s give Daddy a day to settle in before we tell him. Think you can keep it hush until tomorrow morning?” With the pup scheduled to arrive in five days, they’d definitely need to tell Ben as soon as possible. Breakfast time would be good. Maddie scrunched her face as if she’d sucked on a lemon and dropped her arms.

“Fine. I’ll survive,” she said with a dramatic sigh.

Zoe watched her daughter skip into the family room off the kitchen and half listened to her coaxing her four-year-old brother to clean up rather than play. He protested. Loudly. Peace and quiet were near impossible on a good day. She sure hoped the antibiotics for Ryan’s ear infection would kick in so he’d sleep through tonight. That, or Ben was going to need earplugs. Zoe rubbed her forehead. With no caffeine because of nursing and no more than three hours of sleep last night, she knew anticipation was the only thing keeping her from crashing. She felt guilty for not taking the kids to get Ben, but with a sick baby and the wait time involved, it just wasn’t possible. It wasn’t his first homecoming, but it felt like it. Every time he made it home safely, she couldn’t shake the niggling fear that they’d used up their good luck. Zoe’s eyes burned. She’d give her life to know that Ben would be safe and sound forever.

She swallowed hard and reached for the baby monitor perched on the counter by the fridge, and made sure Chad hadn’t fiddled with the volume setting. She would not break down. Not in front of the kids, and certainly not in front of Ben. He’d be dealing with jet lag and exhaustion. He didn’t need her falling apart at the sight of him, too. Not when she wanted so badly to convince him not to reenlist—again—and that this was the place to be.