It is the little things that Lindsay O'Brien will miss most about her sister. The siblings did so much together.
Elinor would visit her most weekends for Sunday lunch, and Lindsay was her sounding board for any problems or worries she had. They even had matching tattoos.
The picture above shows the pair out together - Elinor's first night on the town - while she was guided and protected by her older sister. Elinor's smile, her laugh and her sense of humour were infectious. She and Elinor were inseparable.
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But Elinor was just 22-years-old when she had her life stolen from her. Their sisterly bond was cruelly ripped apart when Elinor was brutally murdered by a man who claimed to love her. They will never again share a night in the pub, a Sunday roast or have another tattoo together.
Elinor was stabbed to death by her 45-year-old boyfriend Kevin Mannion in August last year. Mannion, an MMA loving thug with a violent past, knifed Elinor to the groin after the couple had an argument in his Manchester city centre apartment.
He'd previously told Elinor that a woman he'd also been seeing behind her back had revealed she was pregnant. After knifing her at the Great Northern Tower off Peter Street, Elinor fought for her life but died three days later.
Mannion called 999 but within half an hour he called his solicitor and asked him to be 'available'. Two days before the fatal knifing, Mannion had stabbed Elinor to the breast.
Normally Lindsay was Elinor's first point of call for some sisterly support. But Elinor was so terrified of Mannion that she didn't feel able to ask for help. Elinor had spoken with police about suffering from domestic violence, but was too frightened of Mannion to name him as the perpetrator.
Lindsay was in court to see Mannion receive a life sentence for her sister's murder. He will serve at least 23 years before he can be considered for parole.
She shared a moving tribute to her sister with the Manchester Evening News, on the day Mannion faced justice at Liverpool Crown Court. Lindsay said: "A great big gaping hole has been left in our hearts. Our Elli was the most loyal and beautiful young lady to walk this earth.
"She was funny, outspoken, stubborn but most of all courageous. She had the most infectious laugh and the brightest smile that could light up any mood, and with that also came the best resting bit** face, which we could never take seriously!
"Elli was loved by everyone anywhere she went. She had the purest heart and would do anything for anyone.
"It still hurts every day knowing that you are gone. We never got to say goodbye, we never got to tell you how much we love you.
"Your whole life was robbed, our hearts are broken. But your memory will live on forever, I promise you that my girl. So until we meet again please keep watching over us and help me guide my girls.
"I love you Ells forever and always. Now I know the reason and meaning of our matching tattoos #togetherforeverneverapart.
"No amount of justice will make up for your life that was cowardly taken, but we can be rest assured he will never hurt another woman."
Her sentiments were echoed by Elinor's mother, Gail Smith, in a statement read out on her behalf at Mannion's sentencing hearing on Thursday afternoon.
"She did not deserve this, her family and friends did not deserve this," Mrs Smith said. "There will never be any justice for Ellie, no matter how long Mannion gets. It’s simple justice served. The best hope for during that time in prison is that he does not get to ruin any other woman’s life.”
Elinor had previously been in a controlling relationship before she met Mannion. It created friction between her and her mother.
"She did attempt to break free but it never lasted long as he would visit her and they would resume the relationship before too long," Mrs Smith said. "By March 2021 after being released from prison he went straight back to her house.
"At that stage I carried out a threat I made more than once, and said I would have no further contact with her if she got back with him. I could not bear to see her waste more time with him.
"It broke my heart. It was one of the most difficult parts of my life. In April 2022 I got a phone call from her from a withheld number and she said she was at a police station. She had been assaulted, not by him, he was back in custody.
"It was the hands of Kevin Mannion. She had gone to the police, she had never done that before. From that point we began to rebuild our relationship. We had some happy times. She appeared mature, calmer and more responsible."
Mrs Smith slammed Mannion, labelling him 'pathetic'. She said: "Unfortunately she [Elinor] did not tell me about how he really treated her. He turned out to be a monster, there are no other words to describe him.
"Elinor often acted as a confident, some might say cocky, young woman, but she was extremely vulnerable and easily impressed by displays of wealth and status. These two things made her an easy target for pathetic men like Kevin Mannion. He made her suffer, not just in body, but her self esteem and her sense of worth.”
Senior investigating officer Duncan Thorpe of GMP’s Major Incident Support Unit said: "Firstly, my thoughts are with Elinor’s family and loved ones. No parent or siblings should have to see a loved one die in this way.
"Elinor was subjected to controlling and coercive behaviour throughout her relatively short relationship with Mannion. He assaulted her a number of times and in the early hours of Sunday 14 August 2022 stabbed her in her left breast.
"Two days later, following an argument Mannion threw Elinor out of his apartment and stabbed her in the groin.
"Elinor sadly died as a result of her injuries despite the best efforts of medical staff. Mannion is an extremely dangerous individual. His lack of remorse for Elinor and her family is shameful."
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