Costa Crew 3: Make or Break

Prologue - 15th September, 2038

Lisa Kleinman knew that Hannah was right. If not for Rebecca Hidgens she would be spending her days in a prison cell. She wouldn't have any of this. She wouldn't have this house. She wouldn't have this job. She wouldn't have Maya.

"All right," she said. "I'll talk to Rebecca. There's something I need to take care of then I'll pack. But no promises until I get a look at this mess for myself."

"So you'll come back to England with me?" asked Hannah, sounding relieved. Lisa nodded.

"I need to go out for a bit, but you're welcome to stay here," she continued. "Chill out. Rest. There's tea and biscuits in the cupboard, feel free to help yourself. I'll be back soon."

Before Hannah could respond, Lisa had grabbed her car keys and left the house. Before starting the car, she took out her phone and called the first number in her call history. "Hey, do you mind if I come over for a bit?" she asked. "I need to talk to you about something, it's kind of urgent. Okay, I'll be there in a minute."

She hung up and drove to a house a few blocks away, then ran to the front door and rang the bell. Immediately an Australian woman a year or so older than Lisa, with shoulder length blonde hair and emerald green eyes opened the door. "Lisa, are ya okay?" she asked, frowning.

Lisa shook her head as she stepped inside. "Maya, I'm so sorry, I'm going to have to leave for a while. I don't know how long I'll be."

Tears began to stream down her face and Maya hugged her. "Your old life caught up?" she whispered.

Lisa nodded. "Hannah Perkins asked me to come back to England with her."

"Hannah's one of the good guys, ain't she?" asked Maya as they sat down in her living room.

Lisa sighed. "She is. But there's a mess going on over there. Amelia's dead and Rebecca Hidgens is in prison for her murder. They want me to represent her."

Maya smiled. "So the girl you tormented at school needs your help proving she didn't kill your high school crush. That sounds like the crazy old life you told me about," she joked, putting her arm around Lisa. "It's okay, I know ya have to do this."

"I... didn't…okay I did torment her," Lisa conceded. "But this could take weeks. Months, even. And it'll be dangerous. I could get hurt, or you could get hurt…I can't let that happen. Maya, I spent years trying to win Amelia's affections even when I knew it was never going to happen. And I was awful. I only stopped being awful to avoid prison, and then I met you, and you made me want to be better. I'm scared that I'll go back in and the old Lisa will come back."

"The fact that you're afraid of that tells me that it won't happen," Maya said reassuringly. "Sure, the old you sounds awful. I wouldn't wanna be in a room with her for more than a minute, never mind marry her. But you've changed. I do love you and I do want to marry you."

"So you're saying…"

"Go," said Maya. "Help them. Then come back and we'll get married."