The Silent Appeal #3
Hope you’re well and that the Colney Marsh envelope isn’t too triggering, but I want to say something.
I didn’t understand how completely one can be consumed by one’s “need” for another person, nor how destructive that is.
I know now I had no conscious hand in what happened last year, but nonetheless it was the result of how I felt in that terrible moment and I live with the consequences, as do the innocent victims I left behind.
Believe me when I say they are always in my thoughts.
My parents are acting on my behalf while I’m here. Lucas and Georgia have my permission to stay in the flat and are paying rent. I understand Lucas may have to serve a custodial sentence himself when his case comes up, but Georgia and baby Celeste can stay there for as long as they want.
If I am to have any hope of forgiveness myself then I must forgive others.
It was a strange affair, with Lucas and Georgia pretending to be cousins, all because Lucas couldn’t end his relationship with Amelia.
Love is so strange. It changes how we see everything else—money, home, family, obligation—and changes how we behave, in shocking ways.
We have friends in common now. Femi Hassan and Charlotte Holroyd helped me as they helped you all those years ago. I didn’t meet their mentor Mr. Tanner, as he’s been unwell, but I understand he’s recovering now.
The days here are long and the nights very dark. If you can bring yourself to write to me—and I fully understand if you can’t—do let me know what’s happening at Fairways.
Forgive me if I don’t talk much about last year. I’m still processing everything and talking it through with my counselor. I need to forgive myself and that will take time, but forgiveness is one thing, forgetting is another.
With love, Fran
44a Wormsal Road
Upper Fowey
Greater Lockwood
September 3, 2026
Hiya Fran!
Lovely to hear from you! Gigantic congratulations on winning your appeal! Are these stickers cheering you up? They were in a three-for-one bargain bin at Hobbycraft. Very happy to fill you in on what’s been happening in Lockwood!
Well, the BEST news is WE WON THREE AWARDS AT THE NADAs!
!!! Best director (Kevin), best props (Denise and Marianne), and best actor in a supporting role (John O’Dea as Gudgeon).
I didn’t go to the ceremony, because it was in Potters Bar, but everyone who did said there was a two-course dinner and a bread roll each.
It was hosted by someone who’d been on Love Island, and when they handed Denise and Marianne their trophy, he said the judge was especially impressed we’d found an authentic Edwardian moletrap, which was quite awkward.
Did you hear that Nicky-Rose left Lockwood the first night of the play? Sarah-Jane, Kevin, and Carol are all being very vague about how and why (that’s according to Celia). She never replies to my emails, but I send them anyway, for old times’ sake.
I’ve been working with Femi and Charlotte recently to free a woman who’d been kidnapped in South America. If only my eye patients knew, they’d be so impressed!
You’re right, Lucas is awaiting trial for all sorts of drug offenses. He probably won’t get away with a suspended sentence this time—that’s what Joyce and Denise say, anyway. Amelia went back to her parents, and we haven’t seen her since the last night of the play.
I see Georgia a lot because she takes Celeste to the clinic in Little Fowey and pushes her stroller past the shop. I’ve told all my colleagues the story and now we signal to each other when she passes. It’s nice when you get on with the people you work with.
Myra, Barry, Kahleesi, Arya, and baby Eddard have moved out of Joyce’s house and into a housing association flat on the Grange estate.
They were prioritized after Eddard arrived because of overcrowding.
Joyce says Barry will stick to car mechanics from now on, after their solicitor Mr. Junker gave him a talking-to about the dangers of working in nightclubs (she won’t be more specific than this).
I remember when I was in Colney Marsh how dull the days were.
But I learned to acknowledge how I felt while keeping in mind what’s positive about the situation.
The fact you won’t serve anywhere near as many years as you thought has got to be a big plus.
And I remember you saying once how working with prisoners is what you enjoy the most. Well, you’re in the ideal place!
Gasp! I’ve got THE most amazing idea! Why don’t you write a book, like the girl I helped rescue? I can write it with you! I don’t know how, but you can send me bits to read, or something. We can be pen friends!
My lunch hour is nearly up and I should prepare my visual field analyzer for the next patient.
Whenever I open my door, there’s always someone waiting to see me.
I think of them all as future friends, even if they look grumpy or scared, so I give them a big smile and say, “Come on in and sit yourself down,” just in case.
Love Issy xxx