Page 62 of A Girl, Unbroken
“Who is it? Your old friend Pierre?”
Mom doesn’t say anything, which seems to be answer enough for Dad.
“And that’s definite?”
“I had the test done anonymously online with a provider. I just needed hair from everyone involved.”
I don’t understand that. Not a word. Dad obviously doesn’t either because he doesn’t say anything else. He’s standing in the open kitchen of the Voyageur II and fiddling with the cupboards. I see Mom disappear through the door onto the sun deck and Dad watches her. Then he takes four pans and pours a huge amount of oil into them. Much more oil than any of our cooks have ever used, but Dad can’t cook.
I run to him and hug him. “That’s too much oil,” I tell him before I let go.
Dad smiles strangely. “Why don’t you go outside? We’re about to eat.”
“Dad…” I shift from one foot to the other. “Mom…she’ll be okay, right?” I don’t want to tell him that I’ve been eavesdropping.
Dad pats my head. “Oh, yes, love, I’m sure.”
“I don’t want to go away.”
“I know, darling. You don’t have to. I promise.” Dad kisses the top of my head. “Now let’s go out to your mom.”
I do what he says, but I can’t look at Mom outside. What she said hurts. You can’t lie like that. Not even when you’re arguing. I sit down on my lounge chair, which is more of a recliner and take a few sips of orange juice from a champagne flute. Mom watches me, peers inside, and then back at me. She does this for a while and finally comes over and sits next to me.
She is silent for a long time before she starts talking. “Nevaeh… Your dad knows we want to leave. He found out.”
I feel a little like a traitor, but my anger is stronger. “I don’t want to leave. You want to leave!” I say.
“Honey, I think…” Mom stops and her eyes widen.
Something about her look suddenly scares me. “What’s wrong, Mom?”
“It…it’s burning!” she stammers as if stunned, but then she jumps up. “Nic? Nicholas? Oh my God, it’s burning!”
I turn and that’s when I see it. Dark smoke is pushing out of the door to the living area like a sinister figure.
“Dad!” I start to scream. “Daddy?” Trying to get to him, I run toward the dark smoke and notice the faint taste of ash in my mouth. Mom grabs my arm. “Don’t go inside!”
I smell burnt plastic. Scorching heat settles on my skin and then Dad comes out of the door. Oh, thank God nothing happened to him! He coughs and presses his wet shirtsleeve to his mouth and nose.
“Up!” he calls out and grabs my hand, pulling me up the steps to the upper sun deck.
Mom follows me and screams the whole time. “Where are the life jackets? Where is the fire extinguisher?” Again and again. In a panic, she runs to the outside control station and presses a few buttons. “There’s no connection! Nic, there’s no connection!” She runs back down to look for the fire extinguisher and life jackets but comes back because everything is on fire.
“We have to jump!” I hear Dad shout as I cling to his arm while he fiddles with a satellite phone.
“I can’t swim! And neither can Willa!” Mom starts crying and pulls me away from Dad. “You did this on purpose!” she screams. “You did this on purpose!”
Now I’m crying too. Suddenly, I’m terribly afraid. Scared to death. I don’t want to jump into the water. I’ll sink like a stone! I cry and cry and hear Dad screaming.
“Give her to me! Give her to me!”
Mom takes several steps back, clinging to me as if she was already drowning. As if I was her last hope. “No,” I hear her shout through the dark smoke. It’s everywhere and my eyes start to sting.
“Dad!” I scream, reaching out to him. “Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!”
“Give her to me!” Dad screams. “Give her to me before the tanks explode!”
Mom stands there stiff as a board. Then there is a huge bang beneath us. It is like the tremor inside me and everything shakes. Mom and I are thrown against the steering wheel, bounce back, and land on the floor. The next moment, Mom throws herself over me to protect me. There is a terrible creaking in the belly of the yacht as if the hull was breaking apart.
