A Picture's Worth
Copyright© 2026 by Evie Olivia Niven
Chapter 17: From Long Ago
Ethan felt numb. He wasn’t quite sure whether it was relief or shock. On the one hand, once he’d gotten Jill calmed down enough, he found out that Aria wasn’t seriously hurt. On the other hand ... God, why is this happening? he wondered, reaching up and rubbing his temples. An hour ago the world was a safe, happy place, and now ... He glanced into the room where Aria was, sitting on a hospital bed and talking to a female nurse. She seemed all right, as far as he could tell.
“I just can’t believe it,” Jill said. She was sitting down on a chair that had been brought for her. “I thought ... I’ve known Roger for ... god, since I started working there. He’s been there for years.”
“Years?” Bea, who was standing just a few feet away, frowned. “And you’ve had no trouble before now?”
“It’s ... it’s hard to tell,” Jill stammered, her voice harsh and ragged. “I mean, we get a lot of trouble cases. That’s why we thought ... Ellery ... oh god...”
Ethan felt his stomach lurch. Jill had been so hysterical over Aria; when the doctors had given them the news about Ellery she had broken down again. It was bad enough, what Roger had tried to do to Aria. The evidence that he had been abusing Ellery for months made Ethan feel sick. I was there the whole time, he thought, and I didn’t even notice. The guilt was so bad that it made his chest constrict. He should have paid better attention.
It was a cruel irony, he thought, that the thing that limited Aria in so much had been what had protected her. Whatever had set Roger off and made him so careless, it also seemed to make it hard for him to deal with her braces. I’m going to be sick, Ethan thought, swaying on his feet. He couldn’t even think of the details; didn’t want to think of them. They’d told him everything and it would haunt him for the rest of his life.
“I just don’t understand it,” Jill said, looking up at Ethan. “I mean ... it was your cousin Gabriel that recommended him all those years ago.”
Bea gasped. From the corner of his eye, Ethan saw the color drain from her face. Concerned, he caught her around the waist, pulling her against him; she looked like she might faint. She’s trembling, he thought, holding her tighter. Why? And if Bea reacted this way, what was everyone else going to do? Ethan didn’t know how he was going to explain any of this to the rest of the family.
“Jill ... do you have ... records of some sort?” Bea asked, easing herself out of his arms. “Maybe ... a picture?”
“I think so,” Jill replied, frowning. “Back at the home. Why?”
Bea hesitated. “I um ... I’ll explain on the way...” she said quietly. “Ethan, maybe you should check up on Aria...”
For a long moment, Ethan just stared after Bea, confused. Never before had she failed to tell him the truth about something. He watched her and Jill walk off down the hospital corridor. She’ll tell me, he thought, turning back to the room Aria was in. She’s always been honest with me ... she’s just upset right now. Still, it made him uneasy. He might have gone after her, if he wasn’t so concerned for Aria. Ethan stepped into the room, quietly and cautiously. Even then, she must have heard him, because her head snapped up, her eyes darting immediately towards the door.
It killed him to see that look in her eyes. She smiled tentatively as he approached, her blue eyes unsure. It’s a good thing they carted him off to jail, Ethan thought, as he sat down in a chair next to the bed. Otherwise, they’d be carting me off to jail for murdering the bastard. He’d never really been the angry, temperamental sort, but he was more than ready to pull Roger apart limb from limb ... slowly.
“You don’t have to look at me like that, Ethan,” Aria said quietly, startling him.
His eyebrows rose. “Like what?” he asked.
“Like ... like I’m gonna break or something,” she grumbled, scowling at him. “I’m not ... there’s nothing wrong with me...”
She was a brave little thing, no doubt about it. Oh Lord, Ethan thought, she does that same grumpy growly thing Bea does when she doesn’t want to admit that something’s wrong. He reached out a hand to her and waited patiently until she placed her fingers against his palm. As long as Aria trusted him, he knew he could help her get through this. Ethan smiled when she looked up at him, no longer scowling.
“I saw Bea with you,” Aria said, a hint of her usual mischievousness in her voice.
Ethan groaned. “Don’t you start,” he said, reaching over and ruffling her hair. “Yes, Bea was here. The whole family, in fact. Sada had her baby.”
“Ooo!” Aria’s eyes lit up. “Is it a boy or a girl? Can I go see? Please?”
She bounces back quickly, doesn’t she? Ethan thought wryly. He took a quick glance around the room and noticed that her crutches hadn’t been brought to the hospital yet. Aria usually preferred to walk when she could, rather than be carried or use a wheelchair, and it was a pretty easy trip to the other side of the hospital complex. Still, Ethan thought, neither she nor Sada is going to be here very long and they should both be resting right now.
“I’ll tell you what,” Ethan said. “As soon as she and the baby get settled down at home, I’ll take you for a visit.” He chuckled at her pout, and added, “It’s a girl, by the way.”
“Okay,” Aria conceded, sighing. “So um ... why did Bea leave?”
“I’m not sure,” Ethan answered, frowning. He shrugged it off. “I’m sure she’ll tell me. She always does.”
Aria smiled slyly. “You sound like you’re in love with her.”
As usual, she was just too observant for her own good. Ethan shook his head, but he couldn’t help a good-humored chuckle. He heard echoing laughter behind him and half-turned to see a woman standing in the doorway. A tall brunette, somewhere in her mid-thirties, she’d been pointed out to him as Laurie Whitman, a psychiatrist who dealt with victims of sexual abuse, young and old. She’s waiting for me, Ethan realized. He turned back to Aria, who had drooped a bit at the woman’s appearance. Taking a deep breath, he leaned towards her.
“That’s because I am,” he whispered. Before she could say anything, he was on his feet. Glancing back at her, he grinned. “I’ll be back shortly,” he assured her, “so don’t look so gloomy, munchkin.”
She stuck her tongue out at him; Aria wasn’t a big fan of being called ‘munchkin’. Laurie Whitman laughed again, quietly, and motioned him out of the hospital room. He hadn’t gotten a chance before now to talk to her, since she’d been with Ellery. I don’t even know if I can deal with hearing how that went, Ethan thought, sighing inwardly. It will be difficult enough to hear what she has to say about Aria. He was hoping his impression, that the little girl would be all right eventually, wasn’t just wishful thinking.
“So you’re Ethan,” Laurie said, smiling at him. “I’ve heard quite a bit about you.”
Ethan grinned. “Some of it good, I hope.”
“Indeed,” Laurie assured him. She continued walking down the hall, and he followed. “It’s good to see that Aria has people who care about her so much. She’s a real fighter, that one, but this will still be difficult on her.”
“Will she be all right?” Ethan asked.
“Eventually,” Laurie replied, smiling. “Since there was no penetration-”
Ethan held up his hand, cutting her off. I did not need to hear that ... again, he thought, stopping and leaning heavily against the corridor wall. It had been bad enough the first time, when they had explained to him what she had not gone through at Roger’s hands. He hadn’t been able to listen to what they had found out about Ellery. Laurie smiled at him sympathetically; no doubt she dealt with this sort of thing often enough. Although Ethan wondered if parents handled this better than he was handling it.
“She will be okay,” Laurie said, her voice firm but gentle. “Her trust has been bruised a little, but with her tenacity and people in her life who love her, she should pull through it just fine. However...”
“Ellery,” Ethan sighed.
Laurie nodded slowly. How are we ever going to convince Ellery to trust us again? Ethan wondered. I wish I’d noticed when there was still a chance to do something ... Then again, he hadn’t even been at the home when she’d first arrived. And when he’d first begun working with Aria, he had only gone on Fridays. So much had been going on in his life ... but that didn’t change the fact that he felt guilty. There must be something I can do, Ethan thought, but what?
It was probably a stupid plan. Bea knew that, but it seemed like the best way for her. Ethan had been uncertain when she’d explained it to him, but he’d agreed to go along with it. They had explained a little of what had happened at the hospital to the rest of the family, excepting Alastair and Sada; Bea had had no desire to overshadow the birth of Odelia. In the end, it was only she and Ethan, Alanna and Drake, and Aislinn and Gabriel who gathered in the kitchen.
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