# Chapter 16: The Night Brother Beaumont Spoke First
Hello everyone, it’s me again! How are you all doing? Today I will continue to walk with you and review Chapter 16 of *Forget You Saw Her free digital audiobook*. And wow—this is the kind of chapter that leaves your stomach tight and your heart aching, because it shows exactly how quickly a victim’s truth can be stolen, twisted, and used against her.
Isabel runs home from the church building, her sandaled feet slapping the pavement, her maxi dress billowing behind her as she tears through the gray half-dark of her neighborhood. For four blocks, she lets her mind go blank. She just gulps air, lets the wind dry the tears on her face, and tries to outrun what happened in that office. But when she stops in front of her house, the relief vanishes. The questions crash in. What is she going to tell her parents? That Brother Beaumont asked invasive questions? That he touched her leg? The first threads of shame begin to weave through her fear, making her wonder if it was even “that bad.” She sits on the porch, steadies her breathing, and decides she has to tell the truth. What Brother Beaumont did was not right. Being that close to her, touching her during an interview—it was wrong. But the doubt creeps in: Was it another test, like the Hershey’s Kiss? Had she failed? She shakes her head. No. Everything about that interview was wrong. She balls her hands into fists and prepares to speak.
Inside, the house is warm with the smell of her mother’s rolls and the sound of her sisters laughing at *Downton Abbey*. Her father is likely in his office reading, since *Downton Abbey* is a “girls show.” Isabel doesn’t want her sisters to see her tears or know what happened. She plans to knock on Dad’s office door, tell him something important, have him get Mom, and then the three of them will talk privately. She will start with the Hershey’s Kiss, then explain everything about Brother Beaumont—leaving out the details about Archer, who her parents already dislike because he is not a member of the church. She imagines them hugging her while she cries. They will call the bishop together. Brother Beaumont will be released from his calling, maybe even disfellowshipped or excommunicated. She can still go into Laurels and forget that office. Everything will be okay. And she will never let Archer do more than kiss her.
But the house is not following her plan.
Dad’s office door is closed. She hears muffled voices inside—her father’s, then her mother’s. That isn’t normal. Not with the door shut. Before she can wonder further, the door swings inward, casting a triangle of orange light into the dim hallway. Her father’s face, usually all smiles and crinkled brown eyes, looks solemn and worried, like a stranger. He rubs the gray and white stubble on his jaw and tells her to come in and talk with them. For the second time that night, Isabel’s mouth goes dry as sand. Her father’s expression is so sad that she briefly thinks someone has died. Shaking with fresh fear, she enters and sees her mother standing beside the desk, eyes on the floor.
Then the blow comes.
Her father gestures to his Blackberry. Brother Beaumont just called to tell them about her interview. Isabel feels zapped by an electric fence. Her ears go numb. She can’t breathe. Brother Beaumont called them? That doesn’t make sense. Her father says Brother Beaumont told them what happened—how upset Isabel got when he said he would have to tell them about her and Archer. A current of shame, rage, and horror zips through her. Brother Beaumont was not supposed to tell them anything she confessed. Brother Beaumont touched her thigh. Brother Beaumont is lying. And her parents believe him.
Her mother steps forward, wringing her hands, tears spilling down her cheeks. She says she is so disappointed in Isabel. Brother Beaumont claimed Isabel ran out of the interview and threatened to make him regret it if he called them. Then her mother says the word *intimate*, and Isabel wants to throw up. She blurts out that it is not what happened, that Brother Beaumont put his hand on her knee—but her voice sounds shrill, unconvincing, even to her own ears. Her father clears his throat and asks if she knows what statutory rape is. She doesn’t, but she knows the word *rape*, so it must be something awful. She wants to curl up on the floor and die. Her father says it means they should really be calling the police right now. But then he sighs and adds that kind of charge can ruin someone’s life. So instead, they are calling Archer’s parents—for now. And just like that, Isabel and Archer are no longer allowed to see each other.
Her mother nods, fingers laced in front of her heaving chest like she is praying. Maybe she is. Then her mother asks if they should drive Isabel back to the church so she can apologize to Brother—and Isabel screams, “No!” The word slices through her raw throat, louder than she planned. Her parents stare in shock. The TV has gone silent in the living room, which means her sisters are probably listening in the hall. Her mother tells her to go to her room. Now. And for the second time that night, Isabel turns and runs through an open office doorway as fast as she can.
This chapter is brutal because the worst thing isn’t just what Brother Beaumont did. It’s that he got to speak first. He called her parents, framed the story, painted Isabel as the disobedient girl who threatened him, and buried the truth about his own inappropriate touch. The parents, trusting their church leader, believe him. Isabel is left isolated, shamed, and silenced, with the one person she might turn to—Archer—about to be cut out of her life. The chapter captures the sickening moment when authority is believed over a teenage girl’s raw, frightened testimony. It is a masterclass in tension, betrayal, and psychological pain.
## Reader’s Impressions & Star Rating
As a reader, I felt furious, heartbroken, and completely hooked. Isabel’s panic is so real—the way she rehearses what to say, the way she doubts herself, the way she still hopes her parents will protect her. That hope makes the betrayal hurt even more. The chapter is short, but it lands like a punch. It also shows how shame works: Brother Beaumont’s lie doesn’t just fool her parents; it makes Isabel question her own memory and worth. The ending, with her sisters possibly listening and her mother suggesting she apologize to the man who violated her boundaries, is devastating. This is the kind of chapter that makes you want to scream at the page and keep reading at the same time.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4.8 / 5 Stars
## Next Chapter Prediction
I predict Chapter 17 will deal with the immediate fallout. Archer’s parents will be contacted, and Archer may finally learn what happened—but probably through a distorted version of events. Isabel will be trapped in her room, possibly grounded or watched more closely, while her sisters might confront her with what they overheard. The biggest question is whether Isabel will find a way to tell the full truth to someone who will believe her—maybe the bishop, maybe Archer, maybe even her father if he starts to doubt Brother Beaumont. I also suspect Brother Beaumont will try to tighten his control, possibly pressuring Isabel to apologize or stay silent. But Isabel has been pushed too far. The next chapter may be where she stops running and starts fighting back, even if she has to do it alone.
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