Come Home- A Lindsay and Emily James One Shot

Chapter Three

The bell finally rang for break. Emily hastily packed her things into her bag, giddy with excitement and nerves.

"Why are you in such a rush?" Denzil frowned

"I'm going to surprise Lindsay at the Police Station. She's being released at twelve so I need to go now to get there in time. Cover for me, yeah?" she replied

Denzil nodded

She smiled at him, dashing out of the classroom, crashing through the front doors of the school building before running out of the school gates. She couldn't wipe the smile off her face as she skipped down the road. She couldn't wait to see the look on Lindsay's face when she saw her there, waiting for her. All she wanted to do was leap into her arms, hug her tightly and never let go. This was going to be the best day of her life. Even if she got into trouble with Mr Byrne, she didn't care; it was worth it for Lindsay.

Finally, she approached the Police Station. The clock on the front of the building told her it was 11:30AM.

Perfect timing

She walked into the building, looking around for her Mum. Emily knew she would already be there, she was just as eager to get Lindsay home as she was. And she was never late for anything.

After a few minutes, she spotted her, sat in the corner. She skipped over, standing in front of her, a smug grin on her face.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she hissed

"Nice to see you too, Mum! I came to surprise Lindsay, I'm sorry I had to! I want to see her!" Emily explained

Emily watched as her Mum burst into tears. She frowned.

"Mum? What's wrong? Has something happened?"

"Sit down, darling, I need to talk to you" Marion instructed, patting the seat next to her

Emily did as she was told, looking on at her Mum with concern.

"Mum, you're scaring me. What's going on? Is it Lindsay?"

"Oh, Emily, I'm so, so sorry" she whimpered

"Mum? Please, tell me what's happened!" Emily begged

Marion sighed heavily. She had to tell Emily the truth.

"It's Lindsay. She's not coming home"

Emily frowned, she didn't understand.

"But, I thought you said you'd arranged it all with her? You said she was looking forward to coming home?"

Marion shook her head frantically

"I lied to you, Emily. She hasn't been in contact for two months. She called this morning and asked to see me, she told me then. I'm so sorry darling; I should have told you the truth. I just wanted to protect you"

Emily stared at her Mum in disbelief. There had to be a mistake.

"Mum, you've got it wrong! We can fix this, we can talk to her!"

"No Emily, I'm sorry. She's made up her mind. She's not coming back"

"So you've been lying to me all this time? Mum, you told me she was coming home!" Emily cried angrily

"I know, I know, I'm sorry!"

"Can I see her?" Emily requested

"No Emily" Marion replied firmly

"Mum, please I want to talk to her!" Emily pleaded

"You can't Emily! She doesn't want to see anyone!" Marion argued

"BUT SHE'S MY SISTER!" Emily screamed

Emily burst into tears. Her whole world suddenly felt like it was crashing down around her, just like it had the day Lindsay had been taken to prison. It wasn't fair.

"I know, I know. And she loves you, but she doesn't want to come home, we have to respect that decision"

Emily sobbed, pushing her Mum away from her as she tried to comfort her.

"She wrote you a letter" Marion added, handing her the envelope

Emily took it from her, opening it quickly, desperate for answers to the endless questions she had. Her eyes skimmed over the page.

"Dear Em,

I'm sure you'll have heard by now that I'm not coming home. I just want to say I'm sorry. I can't face coming back to Rochdale, it's too painful. Maybe one day I will come back, but right now I can't.

Please know, Em I didn't make this decision lightly. From day one, you've always been the light in my life, my gorgeous little sister. The thought of you, waiting for me, has been the only thing keeping me going in this place. You're my everything, and I will do everything in my power to protect you. Not coming home, means I have to pay a price, not being able to see you every day. I've missed so much of you growing up already, and now I'm about to miss more, but please know and understand that this is for the best. I need to find myself again and get myself back on my feet before I can be your sister again. That's why I'm going to Leeds for a while, I have a flat there and I'll get a job. When I'm settled, you can come and live with me, we can be together and we can start over, I promise, but for now, I need you to be patient, ok?

I love you, and I will do anything to protect you. Write to me, yeah? This is my new address in Leeds:

52A, Green Street

Be good and don't worry about me. We'll be together soon.

Love,

Lindsay"

Emily wiped her tears, folding the letter back up. There was only one solution for Emily to get Lindsay back.

She grabbed her bag, storming off.

"Emily, where are you going?" Marion called after her

"Leeds!" Emily shouted back

"Emily, no! She won't even be there yet!" Marion exclaimed, following her outside

"I don't care, Mum! I'll be there when she gets there!" Emily shrugged

She stormed away furiously in the direction of the Train Station. One way or another, she would persuade Lindsay to come home. She knew it would be difficult and painful for her, but they could get through it together.