Two hours later, the food had arrived and been eaten. Rachel was washing the dishes and tidying the kitchen, whilst Eddie helped Philip with his maths homework.
They'd had a lovely evening so far. Instead of watching a film, they'd played Monopoly, a game that Philip seemed to be an expert at. All three of them had enjoyed it; it had helped them to bond better than watching a film would have.
Rachel felt like she was getting to know Philip better minute by minute. That meant that reading him was getting easier too, and she was glad of that. Because something didn't seem right with him. He was more quiet than usual, and there was a sadness in his eyes that she hadn't seen before. Even though tonight he had started to be chattier, she couldn't help but feel he was hiding something. There was something he wasn't saying, but Rachel didn't know what.
As she was drying her hands, her phone pinged. She picked it up; sighing when she saw the message was from Melissa.
"I know Philip is with you. Tell him he needs to come home, NOW"
She rolled her eyes at Melissa's abrupt tone. Normally she didn't seem to care where her son was. Why did she all of a sudden?
Still, she wasn't about to get Philip into trouble.
She went into the living room, smiling as she watched Philip and Eddie. Eddie was explaining some maths equation that she didn't understand. But Philip was hanging onto his every word. She had wanted Eddie and Philip to get along, just like she herself wanted to get along with Philip. It seemed like things were heading in the right direction.
"Everything ok, Rach?" Eddie asked, pulling her from her thoughts
"Yes, fine. Uhm- I've just had a text from your Mum, Philip. She wants you to come home" Rachel explained
Philip suddenly began to tremble, his eyes growing with fear. Rachel frowned, she knew Melissa was difficult, but she hadn't expected Philip to be scared of her.
"Philip? Are you ok?" She asked
He nodded quietly. His face had become deathly pale. He packed his things away quickly.
"Philip? What's wrong?" Rachel questioned, her tone laced with concern
"Nothing, I'm fine" he mumbled
"Alright, well, we'll drive you home" Rachel sighed
Philip nodded, throwing his bag onto his shoulder.
They drove to Melissa's in an uncomfortable silence. Rachel knew something was wrong, but she wasn't about to push Philip on the subject. He would tell her eventually.
Phillip sat nervously in the back of the car, trying to stay calm. Rachel and Eddie didn't know it, but he'd received a text from Melissa, and she wasn't happy.
"You are in big trouble. Get home NOW"
He already knew it was about the passport. Taking it now had been a mistake. He should've stuck to his plan and taken it on Friday, just before she left with Marcus for the airport. Of course she was going to notice it was gone now.
They pulled up on the side of the road outside Melissa's house. Philip hastily unbuckled his seatbelt.
"Thanks for dinner" he mumbled
"I'll walk you to the door" Rachel offered
"No, it's ok. I'll see you soon" he insisted, getting out of the car
Acting on instinct, Rachel unbuckled her seatbelt.
"What's the matter?" Eddie frowned as she jumped out of the car
"Something's wrong, I can feel it. Stay here" Rachel explained quickly, closing the door behind her
Eddie resisted the urge to follow her. He turned his head in an attempt to get a better view of where she and Philip were. He unbuckled his seatbelt, ready to leap into action if something went wrong.
Rachel and Philip walked up the small driveway.
Before Rachel could even knock, the front door swung open. Melissa shot out, lunging for Philip.
"WHERE IS IT YOU LITTLE BRAT?!" She screamed, grabbing him by the collar
"Melissa!" Rachel cried, pulling the two of them apart
"Get off me, Rachel! He's taken my passport, I know he has!" Melissa snarled, wriggling out of her sister's grasp
"What are you on about?" Rachel questioned with a frown
Melissa rolled her eyes. Did she really have to spell it out?
"Your perfect angel of a nephew took my passport this morning! It was on the top of my suitcase this morning, and now it's gone!" She huffed
She lunged for Philip again. Rachel stood in front of her calmly, holding her by the shoulders.
"Ok, ok. Just calm down, I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation here"
"There is"
Rachel turned to Philip. Her heart sank when she saw the passport in his hand.
Melissa stormed up to him, snatching her passport from him. She pushed him, smacking him frantically.
"YOU STUPID IDIOT!" She screamed
Rachel and Eddie leapt into action, Eddie grabbing Melissa whilst Rachel pulled Philip away.
"That's enough, the pair of you! Let's sort this out calmly and rationally" Rachel reasoned
"What's going on?"
Rachel and Eddie looked up at the man who was now standing next to Melissa. Rachel studied him carefully. He had tanned skin, brown hair and green eyes. He was tall and around Melissa's age, maybe a little older.
"Rachel, this is Marcus, my fiancé" Melissa explained
"Marcus, this is Rachel, my older sister"
He smiled weakly at Rachel
"Ah, the former prostitute" he said, rather bluntly
Rachel felt Eddie moving forward, his body tensing with anger. She pulled him back by his sleeve firmly. He wasn't worth it.
"Just Rachel is fine" she retorted with a false smile
"And that's Eddie, her... actually I don't really know what he is to her" Melissa huffed
"I'm her boyfriend" Eddie replied through gritted teeth
"Debatable, but ok" Melissa mumbled
Rachel glared at her
"Why don't you come in for coffee? There's plenty to go round" Marcus offered
"Oh, no it's ok. We really should be getting home" Rachel insisted
"Oh, please, I insist. Who knows when we'll see each other again!"
"Yeah, Rach. You could disappear from our lives for another 20 years at any time!" Melissa taunted
She and Marcus cackled loudly
"Funny" Eddie grumbled sarcastically, placing a hand on Rachel's arm gently
Melissa rolled her eyes
"Seriously, come in" she insisted, practically dragging Rachel inside
They all headed into the house. Melissa and Marcus went straight into the kitchen. Rachel grabbed Philip and Eddie, ushering them into the living room.
She closed the door behind them, ignoring the puzzled look on Eddie's face.
"Philip, why did you take the passport?" She asked
Philip shrugged, refusing to make eye contact with her.
Eddie placed a hand on her arm to calm her.
"Philip, WHY?" She demanded, raising her voice a little
"I just... thought it would be a laugh" he mumbled
"No, there's more to it than that" Rachel challenged
Philip refused to look at her. He couldn't tell her the truth. But he owed her an explanation.
Rachel studied Philip carefully. That was when her eyes fell on the poorly applied concealer on his cheek. How had she not noticed it before?
She looked to Eddie, who was still oblivious. He followed her gaze, sighing painfully when he saw it.
Philip looked away. He knew that she knew. He could feel her eyes burning into his skin. There was no point trying to hide it anymore.
"Philip, come here" Rachel instructed gently
"Rachel, please" he mumbled
"Just come here" Rachel ordered, her voice barely a whisper
Philip shuffled toward her.
Rachel took a tissue from her pocket, wiping the concealer away. She couldn't stop the tears welling up in her eyes when she saw the bruise on his cheek.
"Oh Philip" she breathed
"Its fine, Rachel" he mumbled
"No, no! It's not 'fine', Philip! Who did this?" She questioned
"I can't tell you" he sighed
"Why not?" She asked
"Because I can't" he shrugged
Rachel sighed, placing a hand to her head.
"Philip, if you tell us what happened, we can help you. We're here for you, mate" Eddie reasoned
Rachel already had her suspicions. She desperately wanted to be wrong. She wanted to believe Melissa wasn't like their Father, that she wouldn't beat or hit her son. But there was no other explanation, not really.
"Melissa did this, didn't she?" She questioned, staring at Philip
Eddie looked at her. That was a big accusation.
"Rachel," Philip started
"Philip, did she hit you?" Rachel demanded
Philip nodded quietly
Rachel suddenly felt like the world was caving in on her.
How could Melissa do this?
Why?
In her time working in education, she'd seen countless situations like this. It never got easier. But now that Philip, her own nephew, was the one stood in front of her with a bruise on his face, it just made it one hundred times harder. Especially when her sister was to blame.
"What happened, Philip? You have to tell me" she pleaded
Philip sighed heavily
"Mum lied. She hasn't told Marcus about the marriages. They're getting married on Saturday" he explained
Rachel sat down on the sofa, processing Philip's words carefully. She'd been so naive. Of course she hadn't told Marcus. As long as Melissa was happy, what did it matter?
"She hit me because I threatened to tell you" he admitted
Rachel suddenly felt rage bubbling inside her, something she very rarely felt. How could Melissa do this? It made her so angry.
And she wasn't going to stand for it.
She stormed out of the room and into the kitchen. Melissa and Marcus were giggling away over a glass of wine. Rachel's rage only increased.
"Where the hell have you been?" Melissa asked, suddenly realising she was there
Rachel glared at her
"How could you, Melissa" she spat
Melissa sighed
"What are you accusing me of now?" She questioned
"Oh I don't need to accuse you! The evidence of what you've done is right there on Philip's face!" She snapped, pointing at Philip's face
Melissa snorted, rolling her eyes
"You seriously think I did that to him? Grow up, Rach!" She huffed
"Drop the innocent act Melissa! I know you did it, Philip told me!" Rachel argued
"And what? You believe him over your own sister? Thanks a lot!" Melissa retorted
"You're a liar, Melissa! Everyone knows it!" Rachel snarled
Marcus stood up, moving so he was face to face with Rachel. Rachel didn't budge, holding her ground.
"Take that back!" He growled
Rachel glared at him. She could see in his eyes that he'd been brainwashed by Melissa and her lies. He'd believe anything Melissa told him.
"I'm sorry, I won't. Because it's the truth. She's been lying to everyone, especially you, Marcus!"
"What are you talking about?" He frowned
"Don't listen to her, Mark! She's talking rubbish!" Melissa interrupted
"Am I? Really? Fine. Why don't you tell Marcus that you're NOT still married to both of your previous husbands then! Go on, if you're not a liar, tell him the truth!" Rachel retorted
Silence filled the room. The secret was out. Rachel didn't care. She was seething with anger over what Melissa had done to Philip. Marcus had a right to know who he was marrying.
Melissa was staring at the floor, avoiding Marcus's gaze completely. Marcus, however, was staring at his fiancé, wanting and needing answers from her.
"Is it true?" He asked her
Melissa's head shot up at this. She walked over to him calmly, placing her hands on his muscular arms.
"Mark, listen," she started
Marcus pulled away from her angrily
"No, no more lies, Mel! Is it true?" He repeated
Her eyes widened. She wasn't squirming her way out of this one.
She nodded weakly, cringing as Marcus put his head in his hands in despair.
"Marcus, please let me explain" she pleaded
He shook his head, storming out of the kitchen. Everyone jumped when the front door slammed.
"Happy now, are you?" Melissa snapped angrily, glaring at Rachel
"He had a right to know, Melissa" Rachel sighed
"How dare you?! You think you have the right to just come back into my life after 19 years, turn my son against me and ruin my life?"
"Don't you dare blame me for your broken relationship with Philip! YOU did that yourself!" Rachel exclaimed
Melissa rolled her eyes
"And let me remind you, Mel, YOU were the one who found me. YOU waltzed back into MY life! YOU were one who was going to dump your son on me at the last minute to run away to Spain! That was all YOU!" Rachel added
Melissa scowled at her
"Dad was right about you. You're a selfish bitch who cares about no one but herself! I hate you!" She growled
Eddie had been stewing quietly in the background, bubbling with anger.
"Watch your mouth, Melissa" he growled
Melissa smirked, her eyes darting from Eddie to Rachel.
"It's no wonder you were raped" she spat
The words stung Rachel like a slap in the face. She stared at Melissa, tears welling up in her eyes. Melissa smiled smugly. She'd hit a sore spot.
"At least I'm not a selfish bigamist"
It was a cheap comeback, Rachel knew that. But it was all she could come up with.
It hurt Melissa enough to make her angry though. She lunged for Rachel, her hand swiping across her face. Her nails dug into Rachel's lip, cutting it. Blood flowed down her chin immediately. Eddie pulled them apart, moving protectively in front of Rachel. Melissa cackled.
"You have no idea how long I've been waiting to do that!" She grinned
"Back off, Melissa!" Eddie growled
"Aww, check you, Rachel! You've got your own bodyguard!" Melissa teased
Rachel glared at her
"Tell me, Eddie, can you not afford to have sex with her? Does she charge too much?" Melissa taunted
Eddie clenched his fists, anger rising within him as he watched Melissa smile triumphantly.
"Does she not give you staff discount, Eddie?" She continued
Rachel snapped, pushing passed Eddie and lunging for her sister. They kicked, punched and scratched at each other violently.
Eddie and Philip quickly jumped in, pulling the sisters apart. Eddie moved Rachel so she was behind him again and out of reach from Melissa.
"Let's get out of here, yeah?" he said to her
Rachel nodded, pressing her hand against her bleeding lip.
"Take him with you. I never want to see any of you again!" Melissa snarled, pushing Philip toward them
Rachel glared at her, putting an arm around Philip as they headed outside into the cold. Melissa slammed the door behind them.
"Are you both ok?" Eddie asked, looking from Philip to Rachel
Philip nodded quietly, getting into the car
"Rach?" He whispered gently, moving her hand to look at her lip
"I'm fine. Let's go home" she nodded, joining Philip in the car
