Emma’s ownsocials were locked down tight. In part because of her job. Shedidn’t want ex-students looking her up once they were old enough,or dead-beat dads sending her messages and hoping she’d take on hiskids simply because he wanted a free baby-sitter. But in part, herreticence was because she’d been abandoned by her father and sisterand she never wanted that to happen ever again. If she didn’t letanyone get too close it wouldn’t hurt as much when they left her,right?
Two burly mensuddenly appeared over Michelle’s slender shoulder.
“Who areyou?”
“I’m Emma,Mich—”
“She’s no one.Get her out of here,” Michelle ordered.
What?Before Emma could speak, the men had firmly grabbed her arms—oneeach—and roughly pulled her towards the door to the hotel. “No.Wait—”
“Get out ofhere,” one of the men growled. “Or we’ll slap a restraining orderon you so fast you won’t know what hit you.”
The otheropened the door and flung Emma through it. Staggering on thecarpet, she was suddenly aware of the murmurs in the crowd ofpeople in the corridor.
Tearsthreatened but she blinked them back. What had just happened? Thatwasn’t the loving family reunion she’d dreamed of for so manyyears. How could it have gone so wrong?
She wasn’tgoing to argue. Her eyes burning, she turned on her heel andfled.
Tears burnedEmma’s eyes as she weaved through the crowded corridor as fast asshe could.
Her own familydidn’t want to know her.
She hadn’treally thought this part through. Ever since discovering thatpicture of happy families on her sister’s social media accounts,Emma had dreamed of making contact and being included. She’d spentweeks agonising over whether a long-distance phone call was best,or whether she should take the plunge and travel overseas for thefirst time and meet Michelle and Dad again face to face.
The first timeshe’d dialled the number of Michelle’s modelling agency and itbegan to ring, she’d slammed down the phone in a fit of panic. Howcould she explain to a stranger that she and Michelle were related,and then ask to speak to her?
No, this wasfar too important so the face to face option won. She longed togive both Michelle and Dad a hug. At first, she hadn’t had a realplan. She began saving money from each pay packet and putting itaside. When she’d discovered that Michelle was doing the shoot inLas Vegas, Emma couldn’t believe it. The fact that the datescoincided with her school vacation had to be Fate, and Emmacouldn’t let the opportunity pass. Who knew when she’d get anotherone?
She applied forher passport, bought a plane ticket, booked the hotel with themoney she’d saved, and here she was.
She wanted tosee the recognition in their eyes when they met after all theseyears and ask why Michelle had stopped writing, stopped staying intouch. Emma had sent letters too, faithfully, every month, lettingher sister know about school and about Mum and what their friendswere up to. But by the end of that first year, Michelle’s lettersstopped.
Just beforeEmma’s eighth birthday, she and Mum were watching the news onenight. Mum let out a shriek as Michelle’s picture flashed on thescreen under the headline “Local Girl Makes Good!” They’d watchedin wonder as the newsreader went on to say that Michelle had beenpicked up by a New York modelling agency. Emma had beamed withpride for days. She’d written a letter straight away but Michelledidn’t reply again.
Emma’s lettersbegan to arrive back, with “RTS—not known at this address”scribbled in an angry red circle on the front. Mum had tried tocomfort Emma, saying perhaps Dad and Mish had moved. And Emma hadtried to blink back her tears, saying “But we haven’t. They knowwhere we are.”
Now, blinkingback tears again, Emma bit back a sob.
She couldn’twipe the condescension in her sister’s eyes out of her mind—thejudgement and disapproval—like there was no conceivable way someoneas ordinary as Emma could be related to the gorgeous model, Mishka,who’d been voted the Most Beautiful Person Alive for three yearsrunning.
Emma shuddered.She’d take that humiliation to her grave.
No, in all ofher preparation and planning, she hadn’t thought about what mighthappen afterwards. She’d assumed they could discuss the past likereasonable adults. Like it was water under the bridge. Because forthe most part it was. Emma didn’t believe in holding grudges. Lifewas just too short. Losing Mum had taught her that; that, and theimportance of family. Emma just wanted to get to know her sisterand meet her father’s new young family. She had brothers now.
Was that toomuch to ask?
Apparentlyso.
Reaching herroom, Emma fired up her laptop and typed in the Wifi password. Sheneeded Amber and Tash. Talking it out with her friends would helpher figure out what to do next.
But how couldMichelle have treated her so cruelly, and in front of hercolleagues too? That wasn’t the sister Emma remembered. Yes, she’dshown up where she shouldn’t, but what other option did she have?Thanks to her sister’s stalker—which Emma had read abouton-line—Michelle had tight security. Perhaps they were embarrassedat her having caught them out. Maybe that’s why they’d been soheavy-handed with her.
Emma had beenso determined to succeed without Michelle’s or Dad’s approval, yetthere was always a little voice in the back of her head whisperingthat she wasn’t quite good enough. Why hadn’t Dad taken both ofthem?
Emma had hadtwo long term relationships in her life. Both had ended because, inpart, she’d been too worried she’d do something to make them leaveher. In the end, that’s what had driven both men away.
Could she blameher father for that? Why, yes. Yes, she could.
Emma opened theprogram to call her friends but paused before clicking the Callbutton. Her breathing was shaky and her voice would be breathless.Then the tears would start. Amber and Tash would become upset aswell, and then they’d feel helpless being so far away.
She needed tocalm down first. Then she’d call. Then she’d go home and try andforget all about Michelle.
No,Mishka was how she needed to think of her sister now.
Michelle wasgone,
