A Sister's Heart

Chapter 12

A phone call from her office woke Veronica at a quarter past seven and since it was her first Sunday off in a while, she had tried to sleep in; something she could never do back in New York, but apparently her work had followed her all the way home to Pittsburgh. Amanda, her assistant, had called with regards to an emergency with the launch of their latest product, and now her lazy Sunday had turned into another workday.

She had been so busy making phone calls and sending e-mails, that when her two sisters entered the kitchen three hours later, Veronica had to do a double take when she looked at the clock. "Wow, is it ten already?" The question was aimed more at the universe than at any one particular person and once she noticed Ivy's red, puffy eyes, she carried on. "Everything okay?" Choosing to focus on her sister, she closed her laptop.

Diana however, flashed her a look as if to say *don't *. Something was going on and although she would normally pry, on this occasion she chose to heed her sister's warning.

"It's okay. She should know." Ivy must have picked up on Diana's look too.

"Know what? What's going on?"

"Brad called!" That was all Diana had to say for Veronica to know it was serious. Nothing good ever came after those words and as Ivy closed the door to make sure the kids couldn't hear them and then she launched into the whole story all over again. This time she had Diana for support; something which Ronnie had already caught on to from the fact that their sister's arms had been interlinked with one another when they first came downstairs. She sat through everything Ivy said, holding her breath and instinctively reaching for her hand as she recounted every horrifying detail of the a***e Brad had inflicted upon her little sister.

When it was over, Veronica found that she was more angry than upset. She was angry at Brad of course; so angry that she wanted him dead, but she was also angry at herself for not realising what was happening sooner and not being there to protect Ivy like a big sister should. "That Bastard!" She yelled. "I'm gonna kill him!" Making it clear just how she felt about her ex-brother-in-law, she couldn't contain the anger.

"Tell me about it!" Diana seemed to agree with her sentiment.

"Guys, this is really sweet and all, but can you keep it down? The kids don't know the details of the divorce and for now I want it kept that way." Ivy pleaded with them not to say anything around Lauren, Matthew or Alexis. For now, it was to be their secret. "I'm glad you guys know now though. It's like a weight has been lifted." Again, tears welled in her eyes and Ivy yanked a tissue from the box on the counter and dabbed at them until they were dry.

"Well, we're here now, and we're not going anywhere. And, if Brad tries to contact you or come anywhere near you again, he'll have to deal with us first!" Veronica joked, although both she and Diana knew that it was really more of a promise.

Now that she knew what had really happened between Ivy and Brad, Veronica made another promise; this time to herself, that she was going to make more of effort with her sisters from now on. Yes, work was important, but after Ivy's revelation, she realised that without her family it was all worthless. Her sister could have died had she not escaped from her marriage. Thankfully, she had done, but that wasn't the point. The point was that she hadn't been there for her when she had needed her the most, and that was going to change.

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Author's Note - So here is a new chapter. I know it's a short one but its also an important one and I hope you like it. Again, please don't hesitate to leave a like or comment. I love hearing from my readers and finding out what they think. Also, if yiu have any questions, olease do ask away. Thanks you for reading. Emma x