Chapter 2:
Rachel looked at the small girl who had smiled at her in the doorway, she had instantly recognized Rachel. Rachel didn't acknowledge the smile - she just wanted to hug her, she just wanted to stand there and hug her for eternity, she couldn't bare it - how could she say what she was about to say? Janet interrupted her gaze. 'Can we come in please?' The girl nodded and moved aside, signalling to go into what was a modern and open plan kitchen/dining area.
'Sit down love' Rachel put her hand on the girls shoulder. Her face turned from warmth to panic, she had heard those three words before, those three words which had ripped apart her family, leaving her to cope with a young brother - when she was only a child herself. Janet nudged Rachel who was looking out the massive window that over looked Manchester, she could see a tear rolling down her face.
Janet turned back to the girl, 'a woman was found dead this morning at her home, and it looked as if someone had tried to asphyxiate her. At the moment we have no leads as to who could have done this, but we believe that dead woman is Nora Jones'
Whilst Janet was saying this Rachel had turned back to face the girl, seeing the colour draining from her face at every word Janet was saying. She looked pale, she looked ill, she was as thin as anything, she had no meat on her whatsoever but she didn't look under nourished.
The girl burst out crying, she was uncontrollable, immediately Rachel got up and went to hug her, she sat back down with the girl in her arms, crying like there was no tomorrow. Rachel ignored the looks she was getting off Janet, when delivering a death message you're supposed to do your job, and not show any affection to the victims - but Rachel didn't care about that now; she was going to do exactly what she did 5 years ago, with the same girl, in the same situation. Gosh, this girl had already lost her dad, her mom had run off leaving her to cope with her brother - and now she had lost her Nan, no-one deserves this amount of life ripped away, especially not a girl whose only 18...
Rachel and Janet left the broken soul of a girl, who by now was on the phone to her brother, he must be 15 by now, Rachel thought, and she needed to catch up with Melanie privately. She grabbed the notepad on the side of the table, and scribbled a message down and her phone number then left, with a sympathetic smile behind her.
As they got back in the car Rachel was silent again, before Janet spoke up: 'so are you going to tell me what's going on? You've been acting weird all day, you were crying when we delivered the death message and you went and hugged the girl. And don't say your fine because you're not' Rachel sighed and turned to face Janet: She only said two words, but those to words made Janet freeze at the wheel, narrowly swerving and missing a bollard. They pulled into a lay-by and Janet turned to face Rachel, she was as white as a sheet; those two words were 'Melanie Robinson'.