Meanwhile at Madison house
Linda Madison was sitting in the living room, waiting for the guest she knew will arrive soon with some nervousness. Her husband and other children already left for work and school so she was currently alone in the house. Linda prepared some snacks for when Ember would finally arrive, cleaning up and tidying things a bit as she waited. She already made a phone call to her sister and she said she was on her way here, so all she could do was to will time to go by faster so they would have their reunion.
Linda honestly was rather excited. It have been few years since she last saw her sister. They did not even met during their father's funeral because Ember was late in getting notice, something for which she apologized hundreds of times after the fact. Linda did not blame her much. Ember never was that close to their father, she was much closer to their deceased mother. Both of them shared few... unusual interests, something that Linda herself did not bought into when she was young, being much more interested in her father's tales of expeditions and discoveries. The stories about occult which both her mother and sister enjoyed seemed like fairy tales to Linda, so she did not really ever got into them. Nonetheless she was always close to her sister and they often did things together, even though Ember was younger and their interests varied.
As far as Linda could remember Ember always was active and ambitious girl. She was always smart and headstrong, able to get through any obstacle to get what she wished for. Her strong personality and her natural smarts resulted in Ember building up one of largest companies in the world from ground up. She was so successful that it almost seemed that all the stars aligned perfectly to grant her success or it was divine intervention of some sort. Or magic. Linda herself was not as naturally gifted in school work, but she was nonetheless successful in her own right. She herself owned a small, but very profitable business dealing with real estate and interior design. Her work hours were pretty flexible and she could take some time off when she needed.
Like now for example.
While Linda continued to wait for Ember she thought a bit about the current situation with her family. She was glad her daughter Jennifer had support from her girlfriend and spent last couple days at Black house. Without Jennifer around, though, the family meals were... tense. Zoe seemed to be glad 'the freak' of the family was gone, though after stern talking down from Linda she shut up. Jacob acted in quite mature way for 10 year old and gave her a hug, saying that everything will be okay and he would support her. Linda was really touched by the gesture and gave him back a warm hug, happy to receive support from her young son. Linda's husband Adam returned home really late at night, completely drunk and just slipped into bed without word. He was also gone in the morning before Linda woke up.
Linda actually suspected that alcohol was not the only vice her husband partook in. She checked some of their savings and noticed that some of the money was missing as well. She honestly worried that her husband started to gamble. These last few days she felt that her husband was becoming a stranger to her. They hardly saw each other and when they did they almost never talked. She wondered what went wrong in their marriage - how could the kind and handsome man she fell in love with turn into complete stranger?
Her inner thoughts were interrupted by a sound of doorbell and Linda walked to door, smiling as she saw her sister Ember standing behind them. She quickly opened the door and embraced her sister into warm hug "Ember! By god, it feels like it have been ages since I last saw you." she said and released her sister, looking her over "My, you look so young. Could not tell that you are in your late thirties in any way." Ember giggled "Nice to see you too, sis. And you are not looking so bad either. Soooo, will you invite me in?" she gave Linda cheeky smile which she so well remembered. Linda chuckled "Of course, come in. Sit in the living room, I prepared some snacks. Would you like some tea or coffee?" she asked as she ushered Ember in. "Tea would be fine, thank you. I remember you made simply the best herbal tea." she said as she stepped inside, looking around "House did not change much. I see you are still great interior designer. It feels comfy. When was last time I visited? When Jennifer was 14 or something?" she asked as she sat on couch, waiting for her sister to join her. Linda was quick to bring couple plates full of snacks, setting them down on coffee table as she hummed "Think so? Honestly feels like forever. I will be right back, tea should be ready soon." she said and made way to the kitchen just as the kettle boiled. She made two cups of tea and brought them back to living room, putting them down on table and then joining her sister on the couch.
Ember took one of little snacks her sister made and ate it in one bite "Mmm... Delicious. You became quite great cook. Though you were always good at that. I probably would even manage to burn the water." she joked slightly and winked at Linda. "It feels really great to see you. I am sad that circumstances are not the best for your family currently." Ember took Linda's hand and gently squeezed it in a show of support. "How are you holding up, sis?" she asked in a concerned voice. Linda took in a deep breath and offered Ember a grateful smile "I am... holding up, so far. I am really worried about Zoe, though. And Adam... Well, I think he started gambling." Ember sighs "I am concerned about Zoe's behaviour too. She did not look so angry when she was little. Though last time I saw her she was what? 11 or so?" she shook her head "And honestly I never liked Adam. I never got what you saw in him. But that is not important right now." she said. "What are we going to do? I will offer my support in whatever you decide. I have several lawyers on standby to help you get divorce, if you want and I know a great marriage counsellor that owes me some favors. I even know a great psychologist that could maybe help Zoe..." she offered, but then noticed how distraught her sister looked, pulling her into a hug. "Everything will be alright, sis. You have my full support. And you have Jennifer. And Jacob. And friends that would help and support you. You are not alone and you are strong. We will get through this together."
Linda almost melted into a warm hug of her sister, almost as if taking strength from more confident and younger sibling. Her mind was swirling in various thoughts, struggling to come up with decisions. She took a few deep breaths, feeling really grateful for moral support her sister gave her, thinking over the things she said. "I think I might take up your offer on getting Zoe some professional help. As for Adam..." she paused for a moment, inwardly coming to terms with her decision...
