I got ahead of myself and wrote the next chapter. Let me know what you think, and if anyone is actually reading it. I'd like to know where I stand. :)
Chapter 2: Everything Changed
It was Thursday night, a week into her being in Broadchurch. Lisette had had a nice day working with Jack. He'd even told her she could come in and work Fridays as well.
Despite losing her backpack, she'd still been able to make money. She had actually been able to buy the children their first real meal for supper, something she was infinitely proud of.
It had only been fish and chips, but it was better than the stuff she'd been pulling from the garbage for the last month.
The children were fast asleep. She had been too, but something woke her up. A sound. She wrapped the children up tightly before tugging her sleeves down and making her way out of the pavilion.
Danny was skateboarding by. It was late though. Extremely late. He shouldn't be out that late. Lisette took a few steps closer. When he saw her, Danny stopped. He picked his skateboard up and took another step towards her.
"What are you doing out right now?" Lisette asked him.
"I could ask you the same thing," Danny said, eyes darting around almost suspiciously.
"I've been sleeping over there," Lisette admitted, pointing to the pavilion.
"Jasper and Emmaline too?" Danny asked. Lisette had seen him around town a few times; he was one of the few people that knew about the twins and he'd even brought them a toy to play with Tuesday when he dropped off his bag from his route.
"Yeah. Your turn," Lisette said.
"I'm meeting someone," Danny said, eyes glancing to the side.
"Do your parents know?" Lisette asked him softly.
"No. They don't need to know either," Danny said defiantly. Lisette stared at him for a moment. He never mentioned his parents before.
"Your parents. Are they nice? Kind? Do they love you?" Lisette asked.
"Did yours?" Danny shot back. His words stung.
"I never knew my mother. I had a string of stepmothers but they never lasted long. My dad wasn't a nice man," Lisette admitted.
"Is he why you have scars?" Danny asked.
"Yeah," Lisette admitted.
"My dad hit me once," Danny said.
"Only once?" Lisette asked, hoping for him to clarify.
"Maybe twice," Danny mumbled.
"Still. If they aren't hurting you, you shouldn't sneak out. They would be sick with worry if they knew you weren't in your bed," Lisette told him.
"No they wouldn't. They wouldn't care," Danny mumbled. Lisette grabbed his chin lightly, forcing him to look directly at her.
"Danny, most if not all parents would care. My stepmothers would have cared, and they barely knew me. Your parents. Your mother, at least. She would be hurt if she knew," Lisette told him softly.
Danny nodded and ducked his head.
"Oh! Yeah. I forgot. Here," Danny said, pulling something from his pocket.
He was holding a roll of cash.
Lisette's eyes widened.
"Danny…where did you get that much cash?" Lisette asked him.
"It doesn't matter. I don't need it. You could use it. You could take care of Emmaline and Jasper with it, right?" Danny asked. Lisette gently pushed it away from her.
"No. It's your money," Lisette told him.
"Please. Take it," Danny begged. Lisette took it from him reluctantly as he placed his skateboard down on the ground.
"Be safe, Danny. Just be safe," Lisette told him.
"I will, Mum," Danny said with a roll of his eyes.
And he rolled away.
Lisette tucked the money into her pocket. She didn't plan on using it. If anyone else had given it to her, she might have, but Danny? She didn't feel right taking money from an eleven year old.
And she didn't feel right just letting him wander off.
She wished she knew where he lived. Or what his parents' numbers were. The only number she did have was DI Alec Hardy's.
She bundled the children up, not wanting to leave them alone much longer, and made her way to a payphone. The payphone was about a block away from where they were sleeping, and the children were out. She made it there and dug through her precious cash, putting in the designated amount and dialing the number on the card DI Hardy had given her last week.
It went to voicemail.
Lisette really didn't have the money to spend on another call, nor did she know if he'd answer a second call.
"Hi. This is Lisette. You gave me your card last week. I…I just saw Danny Latimer. He was wandering out by the edge of town. He said he was meeting a friend. I…I didn't know his parent's numbers, and I'm worried. He shouldn't be out alone so late. Just…when you get this, can you call his parents, or go get him? I tried telling him to go home but he wouldn't listen to me. Um, I don't know what time it is. He was heading out of town though," Lisette said before awkwardly hanging up the phone.
With that, she bundled the children back to the pavilion and fell into a fitful sleep.
She woke up with the sun, bundling the children up as she carried them in the dim light to Jack Marshall's shop.
She laid them down as she got to work restocking the shelves and rearranging the newspapers, just as she had the last three days she had been there. Jack offered her a smile as he continued rolling newspapers.
"Don't the boys do that?" Lisette asked.
"One didn't show up today. Danny Latimer," Jack said. Lisette's heart dropped at his words.
"If you have a map, I can take it out for you," Lisette offered, wrapping an arm around herself as she did. If she did that, she'd have to leave the children there at the shop.
Still, if anyone in town had her trust, it was Jack. Jack had helped her and had not asked her any questions.
"Are you sure?" Jack asked, eyeing her. Lisette nodded slowly.
"As long as you take care of the children," Lisette said, her voice weak.
"I'll watch them," Jack told her as he pulled a map out. He started marking on it carefully, consulting a sheet of paper as he did. When he had finished it, he handed it to her with a small smile.
"Here you go. I'll keep a close eye on the children. Don't worry," Jack told her. Lisette gave him a weak smile before wrapping both children in a quick hug. She then pulled back and took the bag from Jack, slinging it over her shoulder. It was heavy – almost too heavy for her to carry.
"If someone comes looking for the children, please, don't let him near the children," Lisette begged. She hoped – oh, she hoped – he wouldn't find her here, but she didn't dare leave the children alone with Jack before at least giving him a warning.
She made her way along the route, tossing the newspapers to the house as she quickly made her way through the town. The sooner she got done, the sooner she'd be out of sight of the townspeople.
She could feel their eyes following her every movement. As she finished up the route, she hurriedly made her way back to the shop.
On the way, she heard an ambulance roaring in the distance. Her fears increased as she took off running for the shop. Jack was standing outside, the children next to him clutching his hands as he watched an ambulance fly by.
"What's happening?" Lisette asked as she clutched the children tightly to her.
"I don't know. It sounded like it was heading towards the beach," Jack said. Lisette's heart stuttered once more at his words.
"You look pale. Did you finish the route?" Jack asked. Lisette nodded and allowed Jack to usher her inside.
Lisette allowed Jack to lead her to a chair and sank into it. Emmaline and Jasper crawled into her lap, immediately wrapping their tiny arms around her neck.
"I'm sorry. I heard the ambulance and thought…" Lisette drifted off.
"You thought the worst. Just relax for a bit. When you feel better, you can help restock some shelves again," Jack told her with a small smile.
DI Hardy:
"I need all CCTV collected from around the house," Hardy finished as he moved away from the board. The Chief Superintendent was staring at him, waiting for him to finish.
"I need to talk to you," she said. Hardy nodded.
"Let me grab my coat," Hardy said as he moved towards his office. He grabbed his coat but before he could put it on, he noticed a light flashing on his office phone. He sat down quickly, calling the voicemail.
"Hi. This is Lisette. You gave me your card last week. I…I just saw Danny Latimer. He was wandering out by the edge of town. He said he was meeting a friend. I…I didn't know his parent's numbers, and I'm worried. He shouldn't be out alone so late. Just…when you get this, can you call his parents, or go get him? I tried telling him to go home but he wouldn't listen to me. Um, I don't know what time it is. He was heading out of town though."
DI Hardy's eyes went wide at the words. That was the last thing he was expecting. He quickly jotted down the information on a piece of paper before saving the message. He stood, grabbing the envelope that was on his desk as well.
As the Chief Superintendent led him out of the police station, Hardy opened up the envelope. It was his DNA test results from Lisette.
"What is that?" the Chief asked, staring suspiciously at it.
"I got a voicemail last night from someone who saw Danny. I don't know if you've heard of her. She's a new girl who just appeared in town a week ago with two children in tow. She left her backpack when she ran away from me last week. I found DNA there and sent it off for testing," Hardy explained.
"So you decided to try to find out something about a girl on the run? Does she act suspicious?" the Chief asked.
"She acts like she's running from someone. And she's carting around two infants," Hardy defended himself.
"Well? What does the DNA say?" the Chief asked, her tone still irritated. He pulled it out and examined the bit with the hair. That was all this one contained. The rings had yet to be examined, from what he gathered.
"DNA matched that of a cold case from nineteen years ago," Hardy said.
"Nineteen years ago. How old is the girl? Could she have committed the crime as a baby?" the Chief asked him, giving him a glare.
"No. It was a kidnapping. DNA says the girl was the kidnapped child," Hardy said.
"Does that have any relevance to our current case?" the Chief asked. Hardy skimmed the paper.
"Besides the fact that she reported seeing Danny last night? Yeah. It looks like her name was Lisette Coates. She was the vicar's sister," Hardy said.
"Hardy, focus on the case. You have a murder to solve. Question the girl if you like, but if she was kidnapped it's likely she's running from her kidnapper."
Hardy and Miller made their way to the newsagent shop where Danny worked from. When they walked in, Jack was playing with one of the children he'd seen before. One of Lisette's children. Upon their entry, the little boy scurried behind the desk, clearly hiding. A few seconds later, the little girl came barreling out of the aisles to join her brother behind the desk. Jack Marshall made his way behind the desk as well, first to set the children in a chair and second to turn to face them.
"We have a few questions we'd like to ask you," Miller said, watching Jack carefully. Jack stared at her, waiting. Hardy glanced around the store, trying to figure out where the girl had disappeared to. She couldn't be that far away, not with her children still in the store.
"Danny didn't turn up for his rounds this morning," Miller started, her eyes glued to him.
"I assumed he was sick," Jack said.
"Did he often miss his route?" Miller asked curiously.
"They all do, one time of another. I sent Lisette out on the route for me," Jack said.
"And where is Lisette now?" Hardy asked, pouncing on the statement.
"She's in the back, gathering boxes to put on shelves," Jack asked, his suspicions seeming to rise at the words.
"Has Lisette told you anything about where she came from?" Hardy continued.
"Lisette does not need to tell me anything. She shows up and works. She's trying to support her children," Jack said.
"Who's Lisette?" Miller asked, confused.
"She arrived in town a week ago. With two children. And a shady past she refuses to talk about," Hardy said, still staring at Jack.
"Do you think she had something to do with the murder?" Miller asked, eyes sharpening.
"Murder?" a quiet voice squeaked in horror. Hardy's head shot up to see Lisette standing in the doorway, eyes wide, box tumbling from her arms.
She was about to run.
Hardy moved forward quickly, stepping behind the desk and in between her and the children.
"I'd like a word with you as well, Lisette. And I don't need you running off this time," Hardy said. Lisette's hands were shaking, he noticed. He took a step aside.
"Now please, sit," Hardy ordered her, pointing at the chair the children were sitting in. He moved so he was blocking the entrance she had come through as she sat, wrapping her arms firmly around the children. Hardy nodded to Miller to continue talking.
"How was Danny yesterday?" Miller asked. Hardy's eyes watched Lisette's face carefully. Her eyes widened at the words and her arms gripped the children tighter.
"No different from usual," Jack said.
"You didn't notice anything on his mind the last couple of weeks?" Miller tried.
"He was only in here fifteen minutes first thing in the mornings. He seemed happier though the last week. Stayed a bit longer to play with the children," Jack said slowly, glancing at Lisette and the children.
"Are you married?" Hardy asked, turning his attention to Jack Marshall.
"No. Are you?" Jack shot back. The question stung but Hardy kept his face impassive as Jack continued.
"They brought him in here, Mark and Beth, three days old he was. It's not right," Jack said softly.
"Miss Lisette, we need to bring you with us to ask you some questions, if you don't mind," Hardy said. Lisette's eyes went wide at his words and her eyes darted around the room, searching for an exit.
"Don't try to run. It will only make you look guilty," Hardy informed her.
"I'm not leaving my children," Lisette said, her voice wavering slightly.
"We weren't asking you to. My name's Ellie, Ellie Miller. We just have a few questions for you. Don't worry. You can keep the children with you," Miller tried coaxing her. Lisette seemed to relax slightly at Miller's voice.
Good. Hardy could use that.
He glanced at his phone to see a message from SOCO Brian. They had the preliminaries done.
"Miller, you escort her to the station. I have to go see SOCO Brian. Put her in an interrogation room. I'll be there soon," Hardy ordered before making his way out of the newsagent shop.
He didn't know what to think of the girl. He didn't really want to deal with her, especially not now when he had a murder on his hands, but he knew if he didn't investigate her, she could very well end up being the killer. And he was not about to let another killer get away.
When he made it to SOCO Brian, the man was exiting the room where Danny Latimer's body was. He glanced at Hardy before he started to read off his results.
"There are cuts and bruises to the face, traces of domestic cleaning fluid on the skin. Cause of death – asphyxiation. He was strangled. Bruising to the windpipe and top of the spine. Pattern of bruise suggest large hands, so I'd suggest a male. It would have been brutal. The angle, it suggested he would have been facing his attacker. He would have known," SOCO Brian explained.
"Time of death?" Hardy asked.
"I'd place it between 10 pm Thursday and 4 am Friday morning," SOCO Brian said.
"I received a phone call from a witness seeing him about one in the morning, so that seems to line up with her story. We have a girl in custody. About five-two, very light. Any possibilities it could have been her?" Hardy asked.
"The bruising pattern was larger than your hands. If her hands are any larger than your hands, there's no way she could have. Also, if she's as small as you say she is, I doubt she could overpower a healthy eleven year old boy. She may know something, but I do not think she would have been able to do it," SOCO Brian said. Hardy grimaced and nodded before heading back to the police station.
When he got there, he noticed Miller sitting at her desk.
"Where's my witness?" Hardy asked angrily the moment he entered.
"In an interrogation room. I called my husband and had him come by to watch her children, but she refused to let them leave," Miller said.
"Is your husband still here?" Hardy asked.
"He's outside with my youngest," Miller said.
"Get him in here. I need to talk to her, and she should not have children in an interrogation room," Hardy said. Miller took off as Hardy made his way down the hallway.
He opened the door, making his way into the room. Lisette was sitting on the floor, braiding the little girl's hair while the boy tried messing with her own hair.
She glanced up at him but didn't move, choosing instead to finish the girl's braid.
"I did one too Mommy!" the boy bragged. It was not a braid, Hardy noticed with a sniff. Still, Lisette gave the boy a ponytail holder and he attempted to wrap it around the mess he'd made. She didn't make a fuss about it.
Miller entered the room, followed closely by a man carrying a child. Her husband, Hardy supposed.
"Right. Your children will go with Miller's husband so we can ask you some questions," Hardy informed her. Both children gripped Lisette tightly at his words.
"They stay with me," Lisette said firmly.
"If you do not cooperate, we can arrest you for obstructing justice. If we do that, the children will be taken away from you permanently," Hardy informed her.
"I don't know him," Lisette said, a quiver in her voice now.
"It's okay. We have two children too. He's watching over our youngest son as well. Maybe the three of them can play," Miller suggested with a warm smile.
"You'll keep an eye on them?" Lisette asked. Miller's husband nodded.
"Don't let them out of your sight," Lisette said before releasing the children. Both children stayed at her side, confused, until Lisette gave them a tiny shove towards Miller's husband.
The children tentatively walked over to him. He held out a hand and the little girl took it before the boy grabbed her own hand. He gave her a reassuring smile before leading the children out of the room. Hardy took a seat in the chair and Miller sat next to him.
Lisette tentatively sat down in the seat across from them, her eyes already wide in fear. Hardy flipped the recording machine on and stated the date.
"Say your name for the records," Hardy said.
"Lisette," she said quietly.
"Last name?" Miller asked her. Lisette shook her head quickly.
"She refuses to say her last name," Hardy says to the machine.
"You called my phone last night to report seeing Danny. Explain exactly what happened," Hardy ordered.
"I woke up and heard something so I went outside and saw Danny skateboarding by. He stopped when he saw me and we talked. I asked him where he was going and he said to meet up with a friend. I asked him if he told his parents where he was and he said he hadn't. I…I asked him if his parents were nice," Lisette admitted, wrapping her arms around herself.
"What did he say?" Hardy asked, glancing at Miller from the corner of his eyes.
"He said they were but his dad hit him once or twice. I told him he should go back and that his mother at the very least would be worried about him if he didn't," Lisette said.
"Did he act like he was going to do it?" Hardy asked.
"No. He didn't. He…he gave me this before he left. Said it was for me to take care of Jasper and Emmaline. My children. I tried refusing but he wouldn't take it back. I figured I'd give it back to him and make him take it back when I saw him this morning. But I didn't," Lisette said, holding out a roll of cash.
Hardy took the roll immediately, setting it down.
"Where did he get that much cash from?" Miller asked in shock.
"I don't know. I didn't want to take his money," Lisette answered.
"Which way did he head?" Hardy asked.
"Out of town," Lisette answered immediately.
"And from there, what did you do?" Hardy asked.
"I bundled up the children and walked to the payphone to call you. I didn't know his parent's numbers, or where they lived, or I would have gone to them. I'd…I'd want to know if my children were wandering about at night. I…you're the police. I thought you could do something. But I didn't have enough money to spare a second call, so I left the message," Lisette admitted, playing with the edges of her sleeves.
"You said you woke up and went outside. Where are you staying?" Miller asked. Lisette's eyes drifted downward quickly.
"A little pavilion near the edge of town," Lisette mumbled.
"For the record, she said a pavilion near the edge of town," Hardy repeated louder for the recording.
"You and those children are staying outdoors?" Miller asked her. She just kept staring at the table.
"I think a better question is who are you running from?" Hardy asked. Lisette's fingers turned bone white as she gripped her arms tightly.
"What does this have to do with Danny?" Lisette asked quietly.
"If you are running from someone, how are we to know that they didn't hurt Danny because you were talking to him?" Hardy asked. He doubted that was the case, but he needed to figure it out.
"My father," Lisette murmured.
"Your father? But you have children…how old are you?" Miller asked in confusion.
"She's twenty years old. And you had a wedding ring. Two, actually. A woman and a man's wedding rings. They were in the backpack you left when you ran off last week," Hardy said.
"I was married," Lisette said.
"Did he abuse you?" Hardy asked.
"No," Lisette answered, her eyes flying up to him. She looked almost horrified at the thought.
"So your father abused you. And he continued to, after you were married," Hardy guessed. Lisette bit her lip and nodded.
"Is your husband still alive?" Hardy asked.
"No. He died," Lisette said.
"And instead of going back to your father who was abusing you, you ran away," Miller realized.
"My father…he's a bad man," Lisette said.
"Do you have custody of the children?" Hardy asked her.
"Yes. They are mine," Lisette answered.
"Is there any chance that your father committed the crime?" Hardy asked.
"Did Danny drown?" Lisette asked immediately. Hardy glanced at Miller, who was waiting for him to answer.
"No. He didn't," Hardy admitted.
"Then no," Lisette answered.
"Did your father regularly drown people?" Hardy asked sharply. Lisette seemed to curl up on herself.
"Daddy made an example of people," Lisette murmured.
"What is your father's name?" Hardy asked.
"I can't tell you. He'll find me," Lisette said, her eyes widening once more. Hardy stared at her for a moment before reaching into his pocket.
"Your backpack had your DNA on it. I sent it in to have it analyzed last week," Hardy said, pulling out the results. Her eyes widened at his words.
"I'm afraid, Lisette, that the man you called your father was not your father. Your DNA matches that of a girl who was kidnapped nineteen years ago," Hardy said.
"Jesus," Miller cursed, staring at Hardy.
"What?" Lisette asked, the air rushing from her lungs in one swoop.
"Convenient, actually. Your birth parents seem to have died years back, but you have a brother," Hardy said, dropping the file in front of her. Lisette stared at it, wide-eyed, as if she were unsure as to if she wanted to know. When she didn't reach for it, Miller did. She flipped the file open and her own eyes went wide.
"I…was kidnapped?" Lisette asked slowly, rolling the words in her tongue. Miller dropped the file back on the table and Hardy grabbed the recorder as he stood up.
"We will be back soon. You can look at the file if you want," Hardy said, pulling Miller out of the room.
"Where are we going?" Miller asked.
"The Chief needs to hear this. I'm sure she will have something to say about this," Hardy said. He made his way into the Chief's office, setting up the recorder and ignoring the Chief's questions.
"You need to listen to this. It's about Lisette. We have her in custody," Hardy explained. The Chief looked furious at his words but listened.
By the end of it, her eyes were wide.
"Christ, Alec. I told you to leave her alone," the Chief said.
"But it's a good thing I didn't," Hardy persisted.
"If she's still running, we can't let her leave town. She is part of the murder investigation, even if this has cleared her from being a suspect," the Chief said.
"How are we supposed to keep her in town? Have a policeman tail her?" Miller asked.
"We'll find a way. Make sure she knows she can't leak who was killed. We will keep the tape on the records but not public knowledge. If we have time after we find Danny's killer, you can try going after the man who she claims was her father. Otherwise, keep your mouths shut. It might be a valid threat," the Chief said.
"But she can't keep sleeping outside," Miller protested.
"She's been doing it for awhile. Why should she stop now?" Hardy asked.
"If you want to take her in, Ellie, you can. We really can't afford to keep a man on her at all times, not if we want to solve Danny's murder," the Chief said.
Hardy and Miller made their way back to Lisette's interrogation room. When the entered, Hardy was surprised to see her still staring at the file, eyes glued to a photo.
A family photo, one taken right before she had been kidnapped.
"The brother. My brother. He's the vicar, yes?" Lisette asked, tearing her eyes from it.
"Yeah," Miller said softly.
"Can I go now?" Lisette asked.
"You have to stay in town. You cannot leave Broadchurch while the murder investigation is ongoing. You are our witness as of now. Also, you are not allowed to tell anyone the identity of the boy who was murdered. We do not want that getting out until we release his name," Hardy said firmly. Lisette nodded.
"Can I please go to my children now?" Lisette asked, wrapping her arms around herself.
"Yeah. I'll take you to them," Miller said, taking her arm and gently ushering her out of the room.
Lisette:
The moment she saw her children on the playground, she let out a sigh of relief.
They were safe.
They were having fun, too, it appeared. Lisette walked next to Ellie as they approached Ellie's husband. Lisette remembered them introducing him as Joe.
"How've they been?" Lisette asked quietly.
"They've been angels," Joe said with a smile.
"Why don't you call them over?" Ellie asked. Lisette nodded, moving towards the children. When they saw her, Jasper and Emmaline ran to her, clutching her knees tightly. Fred, confused at his loss of playbuddies, made his own way over to them, toddling along less steadily than Emmaline and Jasper were.
Lisette scooped her children up, placing one on each hip. The other, Fred, stared up at her mournfully until Lisette shifted the children so that they were holding themselves up before scooping Fred up as well. She made her way over to Ellie and Joe, who were talking. They both turned to her as she approached and Ellie took Fred from her with a grateful smile.
"We have a question for you," Ellie said, offering Lisette a wide smile. Lisette's suspicions rose at the sight.
"We don't feel comfortable with two children sleeping outside. It's not safe, and they'll get sick that way," Joe supplied.
"We were wondering if you would like to crash on our couch. We know it's not the most comfortable, but that way you'd have a roof over your head. You wouldn't even have a room, so you wouldn't worry about having to feel like you had to pay rent," Ellie added. Lisette gripped the children tightly.
"I don't know," Lisette mumbled.
"You'd be able to keep the children safer," Ellie offered. Lisette sucked up any insecurities she felt over it at that moment. Because if it kept the children safe, she'd do it.
She'd do anything to keep her children safe.
"Okay," Lisette said. Ellie's face lit up.
"Great! Joe can take you home and show you around. I don't know when I'll get off though with the case," Ellie explained.
"I work overnight tonight actually. I need to get back to Jack and finish working for him. Then I work at a 24 hour Laundromat all night," Lisette said.
"What time do you get off?" Joe asked.
"Seven in the morning," Lisette responded. He nodded.
"When you get off, if you can meet me at this address I'll show you the place. I'm sure you'll want to sleep after that, and I can watch the children while you do. I already watch Fred. I'm sure he'd enjoy having some friends," Joe offered. Lisette offered up a smile to the two of them.
"Thank you. You have no idea how much this means to me," Lisette said. Ellie smiled right back at her.
"No, but I do know how it feels to be raising a two year old. And you're raising two of them," Ellie said. Lisette smiled and shifted the children in her arms.
"But mine are extremely well-behaved. It really isn't that difficult," Lisette admitted.
Lisette bid them goodbye before making her way to the newsagent shop. Jack gave her a little work but nowhere near as much as she had had before. When she left that afternoon, he gave her the money and offered her a sad smile.
There were hours to kill. The children had dozed off on her while she had finished up with Jack, and Lisette had nothing to do. She began walking, figuring she'd end up somewhere. In her daze, she collided with someone. The force was enough to knock her to the ground. Lisette curled around the children, hoping they didn't get hurt in the fall. It was the first time she'd actually carried them around town without them being covered or wrapped up.
She already felt exposed.
"I'm sorry," a voice said. Lisette opened her eyes and tentatively sat up. Her arm ached from where it hit the ground. So much that it hurt to continue holding Emmaline with that arm.
Lisette glanced up to see a blonde girl and a guy standing next to her. The girl was clutching a stuffed animal and had red eyes.
"I should have been paying attention to where I was going," Lisette responded automatically, laying Emmaline down on her lap. Both children were still asleep. They'd played off their energy earlier with Fred.
"Let me help you up," the girl said. Lisette shook her head quickly.
"It's okay. I just…need a moment," Lisette answered, trying to come up with a way to shift Emmaline and Jasper to the one arm. They were a bit too heavy for that.
"You hurt your arm," the guy said.
"I'll be fine," Lisette responded.
"Here," the girl said, scooping Emmaline from Lisette's lap. Lisette fought the urge to pull the child back. With Emmaline out of her arms, Lisette managed to awkwardly launch herself to her feet, her left arm dangling at her side nearly useless. Her arm hurt even more at the movement. She spotted a bench a few feet away.
"If you can carry her to that bench, I'll be fine," Lisette amended. The girl quickly moved to follow Lisette to the bench, settling the child down next to her. But she didn't move to leave.
"I haven't seen you here before," the girl said.
"I just got here a week ago. I'm passing through, or sorts," Lisette answered.
"I'm sorry for running into you. It's been a bad day," the girl said. Lisette nodded.
"I understand that," she said with a nod. The boy and girl stared at her awkwardly, as if they were trying to figure out what to do next.
"Is there anywhere we can help you to? Anyone we can call?" the man finally asked.
"No. It's okay. I'll be okay. I appreciate the offer," Lisette said, giving the two of them a smile. The two shared a glance before making their way off.
Lisette sat there for a few minutes, unsure as to how she was going to make it anywhere.
"Hey! Are you okay?"
Making his way towards her was Paul Coates.
Her brother.
There you go. Chapter two. Let me know what you think guys. I wanted something new, so I wrote what I wanted to read. I want to know if anyone likes this idea or where it is going. I do plan on continuing it either way, but if people are reading it and loving it and wanting more, I can schedule to work on it more. Otherwise, my priority is my Doctor Who fanfiction.
Andi