Bev’s eyes assessed Vogue.

  ‘I had to come back, Vogue,’ Bev said, taking a step towards her with a look of desperation on her face.

  Was this why Bev had returned? To try and find redemption? If she had, she wasn’t going to receive it from Vogue.

  Her foot on the threshold, Vogue closed the door slightly, forcing Bev to step back.

  ‘What do you want?’

  ‘We need to talk, but not out here.’

  ‘I’m not letting you in. Just say what you’ve got to say then leave.’

  ‘Please, just five minutes. I promise, just let me have my say and I’ll go. You won’t ever have to see me again.’

  ‘You say that like it’s your choice.’

  ‘I didn’t mean it like that.’

  Vogue hesitated for a moment as she tried to figure out what to do. Would letting her speak give Vogue the closure she needed to finally put Bev’s betrayal behind her, or would it only make the wound deeper if her explanation wasn’t plausible.

  ‘Please, this is for your benefit as much as mine.’

  Vogue pulled the door back to let her in and gestured for Bev to follow her to the living room.

  Vogue stopped in the centre of the room, wrapping her arms around her chest to create a protective barrier.

  ‘Well?’

  ‘Vogue, I don’t know where to start or how to explain all of this, but you need to know the truth about Melissa.’

  Vogue frowned. ‘Melissa? What the hell are you talking about?’

  ‘She’s behind all of this… she found out about me having an affair with John.’

  ‘What! So not only are you a lying bitch, you’re a cheat as well?’

  ‘It wasn’t sexual. It was emotional, but it didn’t matter, she threatened to tell Ted unless I….’

  ‘Unless you what?’

  ‘Used those designs for the clothing line.’

  Vogue burst out laughing, unable to stop herself.

  ‘I didn’t know they were plagiarized at the time. If I did, I never would’ve done it, but she said she was trying to help a friend gain confidence. That if she saw a company like Styles using them, she’d be more likely to grow. I know this sounds really stupid and naïve now, but I was at my wits’ end.’

  ‘You really think I’m going to buy this nonsense?’

  Bev drew in a shaky breath. ‘It doesn’t matter if you believe me or not. I had to warn you to be careful. Melissa has it in for you—’

  ‘And why would that be?’

  ‘I have no idea.’

  ‘Just leave, Bev. I can’t believe how low you’ve sunk, not that it should surprise me.’

  ‘I understand you’re angry. I fucked up big time. I know I should’ve come to you at the time, but I was ashamed of what I was doing.’

  ‘I’ve heard enough. I want you to leave.’

  ‘Please.’ Bev’s plea broke off and in those next few seconds, Vogue was done with hearing more of her lies.

  ‘I said enough!’ Vogue raised her voice, fighting back the tears she could feel prickling in the back of her eyes. She wouldn’t show Bev that she was still upset, she’d rather die than let her see her shed one tear. ‘Now get the fuck out of my house.’

  It took Vogue a while to calm down after Bev left. She alternated between smashing something and wanting to lose herself in a bottle of wine.

  How could she walk into Vogue’s house and lie straight to her face?

  Was it just a ploy to see her again? To witness the damage she had caused up close and personal. Well, Vogue wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction. She wasn’t going to be pushed out of the industry. She was going to leave. With her head held high.

  The battle wasn’t worth fighting.

  Day after day, Vogue had tried, despite feeling as if she had the weight of the world on her shoulders, but she was tired. Mentally. Physically. Emotionally.

  She had almost come to terms with the fact that her house would have to be sold to pay off her debts. As much as this crushed her, she knew she had to put the past behind her.

  The house. Work. Even Amelia. This saddened her the most as she thought they might have a future together. One where they worked side by side, in a job they both had a passion for.

  What the hell! She knew alcohol wasn’t the answer, but she needed something to bring her down from the edge, and quick.

  Just as she filled her glass to the rim, the doorbell sounded again. Vogue shook her head. There was no way on earth that woman would be dense enough to come back.

  If it was her, Vogue wasn’t going to be as restrained this time around. Swinging the door back with force, her words caught in her throat upon seeing Amelia.

  ‘We need to talk.’

  Amelia didn’t wait to be invited in, she simply brushed past her and headed down the hallway, disappearing from view when she entered the kitchen.

  Amelia was drinking Vogue’s wine when she returned.

  ‘Are you here to apologise?’ Vogue asked.

  ‘What? No – why should I? You both lied to me.’

  ‘No, I didn’t. I just assumed Cecile would’ve told you. Also, for your information, I am not working my way through the office.’

  Amelia’s cheeks flushed as she gulped the last of the wine. ‘Okay, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.’

  ‘So what’s the matter?’ Vogue said in response to her near empty glass.

  ‘I think you’d better sit down.’

  ‘You’re not pregnant, are you?’ Vogue said grinning.

  ‘This isn’t a joke.’ Amelia poured another glass of wine which she handed to Vogue.

  ‘Sounds serious.’ Vogue took the glass, pulled out a chair and sat down.

  Amelia kneeled in front of her. ‘There’s no other way to say this, so I’m just gonna say it. Melissa’s your sister.’

  Vogue stared at her blankly, unable to fully comprehend what Amelia had just said.

  ‘Amelia, has that drink gone straight to your head?’

  ‘No, it’s true. She has a picture of your mum and she is holding a baby, but that baby isn’t you. It’s Melissa. She gave her up for adoption.’

  ‘She told you it was my mum?’

  ‘No, she never said a word about you. Vogue, I’d recognise your mum’s eyes anywhere. And I swear, I’m not imagining things.’

  It was Vogue’s turn to down her drink this time. She remembered the letter received from a woman near the end of her mother’s life. At the time, Vogue thought the woman was obviously mistaken, as her mother had never mentioned having another child. She had even gone as far as enquiring with each family member and they all assured her that her mother would never have been able to keep a secret like that. There wasn’t any reason why she would have to. It wasn’t as if her grandparents had been ogres. They loved her mother and would never have turned their back on her if she was pregnant.

  But what if they were all wrong? What if she had been too quick to accept their word for it? Why hadn’t she met her in person, if only to hear her side of the story.

  Vogue knew why. She was grief stricken. Not in her full senses. But if it was true and Melissa was her sister, Vogue had denied her the one opportunity to meet her biological mother.

  ‘I can’t believe it.’

  ‘I swear—’

  ‘No, I believe you. I mean, I can’t believe Melissa is… Bev came around earlier. She said Melissa set me up and I didn’t believe her because I couldn’t think what her motive would be. Guess I now know.’

  ‘What’re you going to do?’

  ‘I think I need to talk to Bev.’ Vogue stood. ‘And there’s no time like the present.’

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Amelia sat in the cab next to Vogue, feeling as if she was in the twilight zone. From this morning’s bombshell about Vogue and Cecile sleeping together, to now finding out that Melissa and Vogue were sisters. What could possibly happen next? The Prime Minister announcing contact had been made with aliens? To be honest, it wouldn’t surprise her.

  Amelia was stunned to think of the web of lies and deceit she had unassumingly walked into. All since arriving in London. Smoke and mirrors came to mind. No one was who they first portrayed themselves as, apart from Vogue. It seemed she was the only authentic person out of them all. The only one who hadn’t lied.

  And now they were going to face a woman Vogue had thought betrayed her, only to find out she hadn’t. Not for the reasons she first thought anyway.

  Amelia’s temples pounded.

  Just to think, this time last night I was wrapped up in Vogue’s arms, having the time of my life.

  Another twenty minutes of driving and the car finally came to a halt outside a row of similar looking houses.

  Amelia thanked the driver and followed in Vogue’s footsteps up a narrow path.

  After pressing on the bell several times and getting no response, Vogue turned to Amelia in frustration.

  ‘Great, she’s not—’

  ‘Vogue?’

  Vogue and Amelia turned in the direction of the voice at the same time. Amelia stood back and watched as the woman, who she assumed was Bev, approached Vogue.

  ‘I’m sorry I didn’t believe you.’ Vogue reached out and embraced Bev as she neared.

  ‘So am I. So am I,’ Bev sobbed as the two women held each other tightly. Amelia couldn’t hear what they were saying but there seemed to be a lot of apologizing going on. When they finally parted, Bev led the way into her house.

  Inside Bev’s house, Amelia felt like a stranger looking in as the two caught up. Vogue and Amelia sat at the kitchen table while Bev put the kettle on. Had Amelia been a tad more confident, she would have asked for a large brandy from the bottle on the worktop.

  ‘Sorry, I should have introduced you. Bev, this is Amelia, one of the trainees we recently hired.’

  Amelia didn’t miss Bev raising her eyebrows at Vogue in a ‘Oh really’ look.

  ‘She’s amazing,’ Vogue said. ‘Wait until you see her designs.’

  ‘I’m sure she is,’ Bev said and gave Amelia a warm genuine smile. ‘Nice to meet you, Amelia. Just sorry it’s under these circumstances.’

  ‘Me too,’ Amelia said, getting ready to tell her how much she admired her work, but decided now wasn’t the time.

  Bev went about getting mugs out of the cupboard and dropping a spoonful of coffee in each of them.

  ‘I came back to warn you. Once I read online that you were gearing up for a new collection, I knew Melissa would be up to her old tricks again.’

  ‘This has all been such a shock, I can barely take it in,’ Vogue said.

  ‘Are you going to tell her you know?’ Bev poured the hot water in the cups and added milk before placing a mug in front of them both.

  ‘I don’t think so. Not yet anyway.’

  ‘So what’re you going to do?’ Bev took a seat at the table.

  ‘I don’t know. It’s not every day you find out you have a sister.’

  ‘An evil one at that,’ Bev added.

  ‘I don’t think she’s evil.’ The words were out of Amelia’s mouth before she could stop them.

  The women turned towards her.

  ‘Are you saying you think what Melissa did was okay?’ Vogue asked.

  It was one of those moments when Amelia wished the floor would swallow her whole. It was a bad habit of hers – engaging her mouth before her brain. Melissa had put both women through hell, yet here she was about to defend her.

  ‘It’s just that…’ Amelia’s voice was weak and high-pitched. She had to clear her throat in order to speak in a normal tone. ‘I don’t think any of this would have happened if it wasn’t for the fact that she found out she was adopted. Look, I’m not saying I know Melissa that well, but I can tell you something, she is genuinely broken. Can you imagine people lying to you all your life, then one day the world you thought you knew turns upside down? Stupid question, of course you both do. So, if it was traumatic for you, imagine what it was like for Melissa then to find out her mother was dying. I’m sorry, Vogue, I realise in the whirlwind of your mother’s illness, nothing but your mum mattered, but you had her in your life, while Melissa – she never got a chance to say hello or goodbye. Never got the chance to ask the questions only your mother could answer.’

  ‘But that doesn’t excuse what she did, Amelia,’ Vogue said.

  ‘Hurt people hurt people,’ Amelia said softly. ‘Thanks for the coffee but I’m gonna get going.’

  ‘You don’t have to go,’ Vogue said.

  ‘I do,’ Amelia replied, ‘You two look like you’ve got a lot to talk about.’

  After saying their goodbyes, Amelia left. Standing outside on the pavement, she looked heavenwards and inhaled a deep breath. If anyone’s up there and you can hear me, please sort this mess out before it gets any worse.

  Taking her phone from her pocket, she tapped on the Uber app and was about to put her home address in when she had a change of heart. Something told her she needed to be somewhere else tonight.

  Twenty minutes later, Amelia was in Melissa’s flat on the sofa, Melissa’s head resting on her lap.

  ‘Thank you for coming back,’ Melissa said, her words slurring.

  ‘It’s okay.’ Amelia stroked the top of Melissa’s head, feeling Melissa’s tears soak through her trousers. ‘Something told me you’d need a friend tonight.’

  ***

  The following morning sat across the table from Melissa having breakfast, Amelia felt like Judas. Was she sitting with the enemy? While she totally sympathised with Melissa’s plight, she couldn’t help but feel she was betraying Vogue by being there. On the other hand, she felt like a bitch not forewarning Melissa about Vogue being in the know about their relationship.

  ‘You’re quiet this morning,’ Melissa said, looking sheepish. ‘I’m sorry about last night.’

  ‘Hey, you’ve got nothing to apologise for. You were upset. There’s no shame in that.’

  ‘But crying….’

  ‘D’you think I don’t cry? Come on, Melissa, we’re all human.’

  ‘You’re a really nice person, you know that?’

  ‘You say it like you’re surprised.’

  ‘That’s because I am. It’s not every day you meet genuine people. Especially in this business.’

  ‘Talking of business, have you decided what you’re going to do?’

  ‘Take off for a while. Clear my head. When I get back, who knows?’

  ‘If you don’t want to talk about this just tell me to mind my own business, but do you think it’s worth trying to get in touch with your sister again?’

  ‘Never! And you’re spot on. I don’t want to talk about it.’ Melissa rose to her feet and took her dishes to the sink. ‘That part of my life is well and truly over.’

  ‘It just seems so sad that you’re both missing out on getting to know one another.’

  ‘Trust me, I’m not missing out on anything.’

  Amelia wished she could talk about the positives of Melissa’s relationship with Vogue. Together they had built something great – a feat neither could have achieved without the other. They were stronger together but just didn’t know it. But she wouldn’t say anything. She was becoming quite apt at being the good liar herself. The one who could hide words behind a veil. Who knew what she’d be in a year’s time? A politician?

  ‘I just thought I’d throw it out there. You know how you feel.’

  ‘Yes, I do,’ Melissa cast a glance over her shoulder, ‘and it’s far from sisterly love.’

  ‘Suppose I’d better go home and change for work. That’s if I’ve still got a job or a roof over my head for that matter.’

  Cecile had been messaging her, but Amelia couldn’t find the right moment to reply, and even if she did, there really wasn’t much to say. But it was another thing she had to straighten out. She couldn’t leave things the way they were.

  Melissa dried her hands on the kitchen towel as she turned to face her. ‘You know you can stay here. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone but you can flat sit.’

  ‘No, I couldn’t,’ Amelia said, feeling even worse at her generosity.

  ‘What’s your other choice? Go back to Bournemouth? I’m not being mean but there aren’t many opportunities up there for you. You need to be in London where everything’s happening. You know what they say about looking a gift horse in the mouth.’

  ‘I’m not. I’m just trying to say... I don’t think you should leave. Not until you sort things out with your sister.’

  ‘And I’ve told you, there’s nothing to sort out,’ Melissa said with finality. ‘I’m not contacting her again

  ‘Okay, thanks for the offer. I don’t know what I’m going to do either. I’ll just have to play it by ear for now.’

  That went for everything. Except when it came down to Vogue.

  She hoped that part of her life was now sorted.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Alone in her flat, Melissa stared at the empty seat that had been filled by Amelia moments earlier. Her words still doing their rounds in her mind – reconcile with Vogue, forgive her. In all the months that had passed, she had never once even considered such an idea. After all, Vogue had rejected her at the outset, why would she change her mind now? Especially if she found out it was Melissa, after all of this time playing her side kick. All of the lies.

  What was she doing even giving Amelia’s words any weight? Amelia didn’t understand what she’d been through. And yet, in that moment, it came to her clearly. What had Melissa actually achieved in all this time feeling bitter, plotting for the right moment to strike?

  Nothing. That’s what. A big fat zero.

  When Melissa compared it to what she’d lost, she realised it was everything. Most importantly, she’d lost herself in the process of trying to get even in a fight with another person who didn’t even know one was taking place.

  This had to stop. Since she was the one who’d started it, it was up to her to put an end to it once and for all, and to hell with the consequences.