Thank you everyone who read, reviewed and opted to follow this story – or a combination of all those things. I really appreciate it and I hope you continue to enjoy it. Love, IJKS xxx
Chapter Two
June 2012 (Age 30)
After work, Charlie headed round for dinner with Pippa and Michael. Bobby, Sophie, Sally and another foster sister, Shannon Reed were also invited. The meal was in honour of their foster brother, Jack Wilson, who was back from the Navy for a few days to visit his family.
"Hey, Jack," Charlie greeted when she arrived, pulling him into a hug.
The pair had never really got on wonderfully and he had found himself in trouble on a regular basis, having enjoyed winding everyone up as much as he could. But like her other siblings, she had a strong love for him.
"Hey, Charlie," he greeted warmly. "It's great to see you again."
He was shorter than her and in good shape, thanks to such rigorous training. He had dark hair and a cheeky, boyish smile. He and Sally had been together briefly but Michael had been quick to put a stop to that – not wanting boyfriends and girlfriends under one roof. Since then, Sally had met and was engaged to a lovely Doctor named Flynn Saunders.
"And you, Jack," Charlie said sincerely.
She ventured further into the house where Pippa was cooking their meal.
"Hey, Pip," she greeted.
"Hi, Charlie," Pippa greeted warmly.
She always felt proud of Charlie, who had come to her as such a vulnerable fifteen year old and now, at thirty, was a strong, capable police officer, charging up the ranks quickly. She had certainly overcome a lot to get where she was today.
"I brought a bottle," Charlie said, extracting a bottle of white wine from her bag.
"Oh, thanks, darling," Pippa said warmly, calling Michael to come and open it. "That'll go perfectly with dinner."
December 1992 (Age 10)
Christmas Day hadn't been quite as awful as Charlie had anticipated. But then, Joey always made her world a better place. They'd sat next to each other for Christmas dinner and spent time playing with their friends. Now, with play time running out, they were in Joey's room, chatting.
"Sorry I couldn't get you the present I wanted to get you," Joey ventured.
The ten year olds were sitting cross legged on the floor opposite each other, playing cards.
"What are you talking about?" Charlie wondered. "The present you got me was lovely."
Earlier in the day, Charlie had received a handmade necklace, which she had put on immediately. It was a bottle top that she had painted into the yin and yang design, tied to a shoelace. Access to pocket money was slim so both girls had had to rely on their own creative skills.
"I wanted to get you something else," Joey admitted. "I tried, Charlie. I really did."
"What did you want to get me?" Charlie asked.
"I asked if I could swap rooms with one of the girls in your dorm," Joey explained. "So that I could be there when you had your nightmares."
A few months ago, Charlie had confided in Joey that each night, she was having bad dreams about something terrible and violent happening to her.
"Mrs John wouldn't let me," Joey said glumly. "I even asked if she could put your bed in my room but it didn't work. I'm sorry."
Charlie reached out and held her hand.
"I'm touched that you even tried," she said. "Thank you."
"I don't like to think of you all frightened and alone," Joey said. "I want to protect you."
"You have no idea how much easier you make my life, Joey," Charlie replied. "No idea."
June 2012 (Age 30)
"So, where's Tamara tonight, Sophie?" Jack asked as the family tucked into their meal.
Tamara was Sophie's teenage daughter. At sixteen, Sophie had got pregnant to an older man called David. He had been a teacher at the local high school and their relationship had caused quite the stir. Unfortunately, he had died in a car crash before anyone had even known the baby existed.
"Oh, she and Sam are having a DVD night," Sophie said.
Sam was Bobby's foster son of the same age. They had been friends for a lifetime and Bobby was now married to Sam's biological father, Greg. She had been through a lot of romantic hardship in her life, including a failed marriage to the man everybody thought was her soul mate, Frank Mogan. He had gone off to America with Alf's daughter, Roo Stewart and were barely heard of now. Personally, now that Charlie had found a real home, she couldn't imagine leaving Summer Bay behind her. She hoped that in years to come, she would be considered a stalwart like Pippa, Alf, Ailsa and the local headmaster, Donald Fisher, who had turned out to be Bobby's natural father.
"Young love!" Bobby joked.
"So, when are you going to settle down and start popping kids out?" Jack bluntly asked Charlie.
She was thirty now but had no plans whatsoever to get married or start a family.
"When I'm ready," she replied rather curtly.
"Surely your biological clock is ticking a bit," he pressed. "You never seem to have a boyfriend."
"I haven't found 'the one' yet," Charlie told him, although it wasn't true.
She had met 'the one' a long time ago but alas, it hadn't worked out. And that was something she hadn't yet healed from.
"Hey, you haven't turned gay, have you?" he joked.
"You don't 'turn gay'!" Shannon snapped.
Charlie chuckled, preparing herself for her sister to get on her high horse.
"You did," Jack pointed out.
"I did not!"
"So, you went through hundreds of men and then settled with Mandy," Jack said, enjoying, as ever, the opportunity to wind everyone up.
"I did not go through hundreds of men!" Shannon protested before childishly turning to her parents for help.
"I think that's enough now," Michael decided.
Jack ignored the warning tone in his voice.
"First there was Curtis your 'brother', then Eric the Violent, oh and you had that crush on poor Shane, then Alex, Kye…"
He shook his head in disbelief.
"And now you're a vagetarian!"
"Okay, that's enough now!" Pippa snapped. "Do you have to wind all the girls up as soon as you get home, Jack?"
"I just wanted to see if they missed me!" Jack protested.
"We didn't," all the girls chorused.
Next time… younger Charlie refuses to heed some advice and she and Joey get caught out…