All Chapters of When the house fell silent : Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

Chapter 5 – Mother’s Darkness Mother sat in her favorite armchair, the soft afternoon light filtering through the lace curtains. The house was quiet, too quiet, each corner echoing memories of laughter, arguments, and whispered secrets. Yet now, the silence was heavy, pressing down on her chest. Her once vibrant energy, the pillar that had held the family together through loss and hardship, was eroding under the weight of depression. Since the father’s death, she had relocated to escape the constant pressure from his side of the family over the will. At first, the move brought relief—a small measure of peace from battles she could no longer fight But solitude, while comforting, also magnified her fears and anxieties. She thought of each child and the trials they now faced: Tshepo’s gambling, Abby’s betrayal, Mathapelo’s alcohol dependence, Aubrey’s relentless drive, and Gail’s frustration with a path she didn’t want. Even when the phone rang, she hesitated before answering, unsu

Chapter 7 – Tshepo’s Downfall Tshepo slumped in his apartment chair, staring at the crumpled betting slips scattered across the floor. The numbers bled together in his mind, each loss heavier than the last. The thrill that once accompanied every gamble had vanished, replaced by a gnawing anxiety he could neither ignore nor escape. The debts were mounting, and the calls from creditors had grown more urgent, more threatening. His phone buzzed again—another text from Gail, her concern palpable even through the brief message: “Tshepo, please answer me. We’re worried about you.” He ignored it, knowing that any reply would require honesty he wasn’t ready to face. Tshepo had always been proud, the sibling everyone turned to for advice and support. Now, he was the one hiding, ashamed and desperate. The house, once a sanctuary for the family, had become a metaphorical prison. Memories of childhood games with his siblings, of laughter echoing through the garden, now tormented him. The con

Chapter 9 – Mathapelo’s Reckoning The living room clock ticked past midnight, its rhythm unusually loud in the otherwise silent house. Mathapelo sat slouched in the armchair, a nearly empty wine bottle clutched loosely in her hand. The children were asleep, the household seemingly calm, yet tension hummed through every corner. Her strict rules had been enforced with iron precision, yet beneath that discipline lay chaos fueled by her drinking and growing frustration. Her youngest, Lethabo, had been caught sneaking snacks before dinner. Normally, this would have been a minor offense, easily corrected. Tonight, however, Mathapelo’s temper flared, amplified by alcohol and exhaustion. “You think rules don’t apply to you?” she snapped, her voice harsh, shaking the fragile silence of the house. Lethabo shrank back, tears forming in his eyes, and Mathapelo instantly regretted the volume and venom of her words. Her marriage to Rethabile, already strained by her dependency, felt more frag

Chapter 11 – Abby’s Crisis Abby stood at the edge of the mine site, the late afternoon sun glinting off the dust-filled air. The roar of machinery and the constant movement of miners around him was a stark contrast to the chaos building inside his own life. He had always prided himself on discipline, strength, and responsibility, yet the choices he had made were catching up to him. His marriage had grown fragile under the weight of secrets. The affair he had tried to justify as a fleeting escape from stress now gnawed at him relentlessly. Each smile exchanged with his wife, each dinner together, felt like a performance, masking guilt that threatened to spill over at any moment. He couldn’t bear the thought of disappointing those he loved, yet he had already betrayed their trust. Work at the mine was unforgiving. Safety regulations, deadlines, and the constant need to manage both staff and production kept him occupied, but he often felt exhausted in ways that no physical labor co

Chapter 13 – Mathapelo’s Descent and Awakening The house was quiet, save for the low hum of the refrigerator and the distant hum of city traffic outside. Mathapelo sat in the dim kitchen, a half-empty wine bottle balanced on the edge of the counter. The children were asleep, the house seemingly calm, yet tension pulsed like a living thing in every corner. Her strict rules had always been her armor—a way to maintain control in a life that felt fragile. But alcohol had become both companion and adversary, blurring lines between discipline and destructiveness. Nights like this, she oscillated between anger and sorrow, judgment and self-pity, discipline and indulgence. Her marriage to Rethabile was a delicate dance of avoidance and confrontation. Arguments flared over minor issues: the children’s education, household chores, or the allocation of resources. Each flare-up left scars that would linger long after the words had been spoken. Yet beneath the tension, a fragile love remaine