The Sisters (9 page)

Lucinda felt her before she saw her. Sal, their old manager, had always said that the LeSoeur sisters walked with a presence. She’d never quite understood what it meant when people said that but when she turned her neck and saw how the conversations stalled and the waiters stopped when Jessica walked through the room she now knew exactly what he meant. Lucinda stood up as Jessica approached unsure of what the etiquette was now that they’d technically been estranged. Should she hug her, kiss her on the cheek? She couldn’t just shake her hand and then sit down. That would be ridiculous. The decision was made for her when Jessica walked up to the table and immediately sat down.

‘You look well,’ Jessica said, and annoyingly she actually meant it. Lucinda looked beautiful as she stood there and had caused more than a few heads to turn as she walked into the restaurant earlier wearing a floral print Chloe dress and gold sandals.

‘My hair is a mess. The humidity is playing havoc with it,’ Lucinda said as she pushed back the black curls from her forehead and sat down with the sad realisation that there wasn’t going to be the onslaught of screams and hugs that normally went on between sisters who hardly saw each other.

‘I like your hair. I always thought that you had the right face for short hair,’ Lucinda said as she indicated for the waiter to come over. ‘You’re ok with red aren’t you?’

‘Yes, that’s fine thanks. How are the twins?’

‘They’re good. I think that they’re pleased that we’re here. It’s good for them to be here with their family. I mean look at Lena and Katelyn. They’ve hardly got off the phone with each other.’

Jessica couldn’t deny that. Lena didn’t have any siblings and she often thought that she was being selfish by not having any other children. To rob her of the sisterly relationship that she had with Katelyn would be cruel. Both sisters breathed a sigh of relief as the waiter came over and took their orders.

‘So, why are you back?’ Jessica asked as soon as the waiter left.

‘Talk about getting straight to the point.’

‘Well there’s not much point in trying to make small talk. So, why are you back?’

Lucinda said nothing as she lifted her wine glass to her lips. As she did so, it occurred to Jessica that Lucinda was giving her the same look that her clients did when they were being challenged and they didn’t like it.

‘I outgrew New York.’

‘You outgrew it?’

‘Yes, I outgrew it and anyway, London is a better environment for the twins.’

‘So, you’re doing this for them. It’s not all about you.’

‘Not everything is about me.’

‘Could have fooled me,’ Jessica said bitterly. They’d both decided not to have starters and had moved straight to their main course. They’d both chosen a medium rare fillet steak however whilst Lucinda went for a smoked garlic hollandaise sauce, Jessica chose a classic peppercorn sauce.

‘And now that daddy is sick,’ Lucinda said ignoring Jessica’s tone, ‘It’s more important that we’re close by.’

‘That would be a first. You barely called when he was ill the first time around and now you sit here telling me that you want to be with the family. Do me a favour Lucinda…’

‘I did what I could. I mean for Christ sakes, he wasn’t dying and I was going through a divorce. I couldn’t just pick up and leave.’

‘You’re just making excuses.’ Lucinda took a bite of her steak and as she ate she tried to focus on the bigger picture. She wanted something from her sister and she wasn’t going to get it if she fought back, but she was the oldest and she wasn’t used to just sitting back.

‘Jess as much as I prefer arguing with you as opposed to sitting here in complete silence I didn’t invite you out to dinner to spend the entire evening being a target board for all of your digs.’

‘If that’s how you felt you could have sent me an email.’

‘Dad wants us to behave like sisters so it’s the very least we could do for him. You haven’t spoken to me for five years, Jess. The only reason that you’re sitting here now is because dad is ill. At least being out in public, sitting at a table, forces you to be civilised.’

‘Don’t pretend for one single minute that you’re here because of dad. You’re not doing this for dad, Lou. I know you. You always have an agenda for everything you do,’ Jessica said angrily. Her raised voice caught the attention of the diners around them. Lucinda sat back and waited for the moment to pass. If she jumped too much then Jessica would know that there was more truth to that statement then she realised.

‘I have no agenda Jessica,’ Lucinda said slowly as she cut into her steak.

‘I don’t believe you and I don’t trust you.’

‘Are you going to be like this for the whole dinner? Because quite frankly, sweetheart, you’re behaving like a spoilt brat,’ Lucinda said finally having enough of her sister.

Jessica opened her mouth to answer but stopped. ‘Are you paying for this?’ Jessica asked as she reached for the side dish of sweet potato chips.

‘I suppose so. Why, is that a problem?’

‘No. Not for me. It’s just that I read that Paul had gone bankrupt.’

‘Paul’s business isn’t my business.’

‘I’m just making conversation.’

‘Well change the subject.’

They sat eating with nothing more said between them. Jessica felt grateful for the food. In fact if it wasn’t for the fact that her head had been spinning from the effects of vodka on an empty stomach, when she’d entered the restaurant she’d never have sat down to eat. They used to be close as sisters. Yes, they’d fought like cat and dog when they were younger but Jessica had always known that Lucinda would defend her to the ends of the earth. Being so physically close to her now but with none of the warmth and love that once was, Jessica would have to be made of stone to admit that it didn’t hurt.

‘I know that dad wants us to be one happy family but I doubt that’s going to happen.’

‘You’re not even going to try?’

‘Why should I be the one who has to try after what you done? You’re delusional, Lucinda.’

‘I’m delusional? None of what happened was my fault and you know that,’ Lucinda said sternly. ‘For the love of God, Jess, why can’t you just let it go and move on?’

‘Unfortunately, I can’t let go of my own flesh and blood stabbing me in the back.’

‘When are you going to stop walking around with bloody blinkers on? I didn’t stab you in the back. I’ve never stabbed you in the back. Why are you here if you really feel that way?’

‘Because I reckon that enduring an hour with you is much better than putting up with mum and dad having a go at me because I won’t make amends with my sister.’

From the way that Jessica was attacking her steak, Lucinda knew that as soon as dessert was over, if they got that far, her sister would grab her bag and head out of the restaurant before she had a chance to enter the first digit of her pin number in the chip and pin machine.

‘Jessica. I know that I’m asking a lot but I want this dinner to be the start of new beginnings for us,’ Lucinda said as she took the slim leather cardholder from her clutch bag.

‘I’m prepared to be civil for dad but that’s it,’ Jessica said as she downed the rest of her wine; grateful that the bottle was now empty.

‘I also need a favour.’

‘You want a favour from me? I knew you wanted something.’

‘Don’t sound so pleased with yourself.’

‘Lucinda, I’d never in a million years do you a favour.’

‘Jessica, I’m talking business not honouring family obligations.’

‘I’m surprised you even know what the word
honour
means.’

‘You’re being facetious.’

‘And you’re a bitch.’

Lucinda could do nothing as she watched her sister collect her bag and stand up.

‘I haven’t seen you or heard from you for five years and now, all of a sudden, you’re back and mum and dad are acting as though you’re the fucking messiah. Whatever it is that you want, I’ll never help you. Not even when you haven’t even got the fucking decency to apologise for acting like a slut.’

IF LUCINDA didn’t know better, she could have sworn that Jessica had been drinking well before she stepped into the restaurant. You didn’t spend nearly 10 years practically living, sleeping and travelling in planes, trains and coaches with someone without knowing the signs. The taxi driver didn’t seem interested in talking, although he kept taking sneaky glances in his rear-view mirror, and that suited Lucinda fine as they drove through the city. For the first time she felt as though she was leaving a part of herself behind. No matter how angry you were with your sister. No matter how much pain they may have caused each other, the sisterly bond still should have remained. But it was broken. So Lucinda did what she did best and pushed the sadness and anger she was feeling into a box and then she began doing the calculations…the same calculations that she’d been doing non-stop since she’d realised the extent of her financial mess. She had to stop herself from laughing out loud as the word budget formed on the edge of her tongue. Even though it was the buzzword in these times of financial austerity, it’d never ever formed part of her vocabulary.

She’d signed a six-month lease on the house and hoped she’d be back in her own home by then. If she
budgeted
properly then she could probably make it to the beginning of the New Year without anyone knowing that she was living on borrowed time. For the first time she understood what it felt like when people looked at their bank account and their heart sank when they realised they had another 10 days to payday.

‘You’re her aren’t you?’ the taxi driver said as he stopped at the traffic lights on Lancaster Road. He turned around and lifted his Ray bans to the top of his head. He couldn’t have been more than thirty-five and looked as though he should have been sitting in a boardroom as opposed to driving a black cab through the streets of London. Even his accent suggested someone who had benefited from private school and a university education. ‘You’re her aren’t you? Lucinda from Euterpe.’

Lucinda sat back in her seat. She could be walking up and down Fifth Avenue naked and hardly anyone would ask if she’d once been a member of the biggest girl band in Europe; but now that she was home.

‘Yes. Yes I am. I’m surprised that you recognised me.’

‘Recognise you? I knew as soon as you poked your head through my cab window. I just thought it’d be a bit rude to ambush you.’

‘That’s fine. I really don’t mind.’

‘I had you plastered all over my bedroom door,’ the driver said as the light turned green, but he was prevented from driving off as a procession of horses from the local riding school trotted into Hyde Park. ‘But Beatrice was my favourite.’

Lucinda laughed. They all had a favourite and she was more than used to fans telling her that they preferred one sister over the other.

‘How long have you been driving a cab?’ Lucinda asked as she lowered the volume on the TV in the back of the cab.

‘Only five years.’

‘Five years? That’s not long. What did you do before?’

‘I was an associate at Lehman brothers. Was there for about 3 years before the crash. Went into work at eight and I was watching myself on Sky news at eleven. Weirdest day of my life.’

‘And you decided to become a cabbie?’

‘Not straight away,’ he replied as he continued onto Notting Hill Gate, driving past people standing outside crowded pubs or sitting at cafe tables enjoying the best of London on a summers evening. ‘I tried looking for another job but I was just one of a thousand other associates traipsing through the city banging on doors. After a year of getting nowhere, my savings were running out and then a mate suggested this. So here I am. I don’t mind it really. I’ve met all sorts of people but funny enough you’re my first pop star.’

Lucinda sat back and pondered what the cabbie had just told her. Everyone had a story. Everyone’s life was subject to change.

Lucinda turned the key and pushed open the front door. The smell of the house was not yet hers and it unnerved her but then she heard the excited and combined voices of her baby sister and the twins coming from the reception room. All of their voices running over each other. Even Reece was joining in and he usually ran from a room that had more than one woman in it.

Her relationship with Emma was an odd one. The truth was that they had not grown up together but that didn’t stop her from being immensely proud and protective of her baby sister and doing everything she could to keep Emma out of the battles she had with Jessica, but that was difficult to do when you were almost 3000 miles away.

‘Lulu is that you?’ Emma shouted out.

‘Who else would it be?’ Lucinda felt as if the wind had been punched out of her as the full force of Emma came at her.

‘Let me look at you,’ Lucinda said as she pushed her sister gently back.

‘Bloody hell, you sound like gran.
“Bon Jé, let me look pon you,”
’ Emma said in a convincing impression of their maternal grandmother. Emma was 31 but looked five years younger. Her shoulder length hair was jet black with the occasional streaks of auburn. The dye had struggled to cover the streaks of grey hair that all of the LeSoeur sisters had been cursed with from an early age. She wore a navy maxi dress with a single gold bracelet. Lucinda instantly recognised it as the one their parents had bought them all on their 18th birthday. From the look of her, Emma had been spending a lot of time in the gym or she’d become close friends with Gwyneth Paltrow.

‘You look amazing,’ Lucinda said. ‘Gorgeous and amazing. What have you been doing?’

‘Spinning classes, running around like I’ve got a rocket up my arse and having no time to eat. Oh and spanx. I’m being held together by big support knickers and have probably cut off the circulation in my legs. Also, I’ve got a new weave. I was going for a Gabrielle Union sort of look. What do you think?’ Emma said as she flicked her hair.

‘I love it. You look great.’

‘You don’t look too bad yourself for forty something.’

‘What can I say? Support knickers and a good concealer. What time did you get here?’

‘About eight. I was in Birmingham for a book launch and then I had to go to Manchester and then got back from Edinburgh this morning. It’s been hectic. Anyway, I was in the area so I thought,
Em you’ve got no excuse. Go and see your sister
.’