Insight

by Jennis Slaughter

  Rori jumped onto her lap, not sure what to do but be there for her. “Raelin I’m sorry. I don’t think he was ashamed of you; nobody could ever be ashamed of you. You are a wonderful person and I’m sure he would be proud that you are helping to clean up this town. You yourself know that he was a good man. If he is your father, then the situation was complicated and he probably didn’t want your mother to be any more isolated then she already was. You know the town and Regina would have been after her if they’d known. He was probably trying to protect you and your Momma,” he nuzzled her chin, trying to comfort her in the only way he could.

  Holding her friend close, Raelin felt the tears welling up in her eyes. “Why couldn’t Momma have told me? I wouldn’t have said anything to anyone. I was old enough when she died to have known the reason why I wasn’t told sooner. And you’re right; he was always a good man. There is no way that he could be involved with any of this mess. We need to find him Rori, and get this straightened out.”

  “I don’t think she knew how to tell you Raelin. The mother is God in the eyes of a child, and it’s probable that she didn’t want to taint your view of her. That might sound selfish, but you were her world. She loved you Raelin, she still does,” he purred, licking her chin. “As far as finding him, perhaps you could ask Del. It’s her profession after all,” he suggested gently, not sure how she would react to the idea of telling Del about her father.

  “They are already looking for him now, and from what I gather, there is no trace of him at all...now that I honestly think about it, he did leave town right after Momma died. Maybe he did love her after all...aw Rori, I don’t know.” Rae buried her face in his fur.

  “It’s going to be okay Raelin. You still have me, and you always will. Plus, now you’ve got Dick Tracy over there too,” he said with good humor. “She loves you Raelin. You don’t have to tell her, and I don’t think she would ever force you to, but I know she would want to help you carry whatever is weighing on you.”

  “I know that she does Rori, I just don’t want to put too much on her all at once. She already has so much on her plate.” Raelin smiled as she looked at the blonde still napping.

  “I’m not asking you dump on her. She can’t make things okay for you. She can, however, make it safe for you to make it okay for yourself,” he purred reaching up to place his paws on her shoulders, the closest thing to a hug he could manage.

  “I am so glad that you found me Rori. I don’t know what I would have done without you,” standing up, the brunette placed the cat back on the table. “Would you mind telling Del that I’m going for a walk? I think I’m going to talk to Momma. Give her directions if she wants when she wakes up.”

  “I will let her know,” he stood on his hind paws long enough to rub her hand. “I love you Raelin, tell Momma I said hello.”

  Scratching the cat behind his ears, Raelin left the front porch and headed down a well-worn path towards the Montrose family plot. Walking underneath live oaks laden with Spanish moss, Raelin could almost feel her ancestors looking down on her and smiling. Coming to the newest stone in the area, Raelin knelt down, and brushed aside some leaves and dust. “Hi Momma...sorry that it’s been awhile.”

  Sitting back on her heels, Raelin took a big sigh. “Momma, why didn’t you tell me? At least before, you died...I have the right to know. I wouldn’t have told anyone, and now it may come out anyway, and in such a way that it will smear both his and your name, and I don’t want that to happen.”

  Bowing her head, she smiled. “I’ve found someone special Momma. Someone who loves me. And I love her. I know that me loving a woman may not be what you wanted for me, but she makes me feel so much.”

  Del watched as Raelin spoke in front of what she knew was her mother’s final resting place. She smiled watching her, taking in the simplicity of this moment. The gentle breeze that had lulled her to sleep earlier, was ghosting across Raelin’s shoulders, tossing her dark hair across her face. The light falling through the leaves, danced across her bronze skin, setting it aglow as she spoke softly.

  Del closed her eyes, just listening as she spoke, taking comfort in the soft voice that the gentle wind carried to her ears. She leaned against a nearby oak, waiting until Raelin was done. She knew the witch could sense her presence so she just waited and listened, thanking whatever God was up there for leading her to the amazing woman in front of her.

  Turning her head slightly, Raelin held out her hand to the blonde. “Momma, this is Delaney Delacroix. The woman that I’m in love with.”

  Del approached her witch, letting her fingers entwine with Raelin’s as she stood next to her. “Hello ma’am. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  Standing there in silence for a few moments, Raelin finally admitted. “Arthur Kingsley Senior is my father. He made that desk for my mother.”

  Del didn’t even try to hide her surprise. She looked over at the woman next to her, squeezing her fingers gently. “So that’s what I felt earlier. You want to talk about it?” she asked, letting Raelin know that she didn’t need to, but that she could if she wanted.

  Raelin wiped her eyes. “I just don’t understand why she didn’t tell me...or why he didn’t come to me after she died.”

  “It’s hard to know. I think that he loved your mother. That desk says as much. It was built with lots of love Darlin’. My guess is that things were a little more complicated than we can imagine. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over these last few days with you, it’s that everything happens for a reason. You’ll know when you’re supposed to,” she reached up and wiped the tears on Raelin’s cheeks.

  Leaning her head against Del’s shoulder, Raelin sighed. Right at that moment, she felt that she was surrounded by love; by her mother’s and Del’s love.

  Turning her head, Del buried her nose in Raelin’s silky hair, dropping a couple of kisses to the top of her head for good measure. Feeling Raelin’s love deep in her chest as they stood together. “I love you too.”

  “Let’s go home Del. I’m sure that Amelia and Jenny are done talking, and I’m rather hungry.”

  “Sure, let’s get you fed,” she turned to start towards the house but paused to look back at the marker, smiling. “It was a pleasure meeting you. I hope I’ll be able to visit again,” she gave a polite bow before heading for the house again, wanting to give Raelin a moment with her mother before they left, knowing she would catch up.

  Raelin smiled at Delaney’s retreating back. “I got my Southern gentleman Momma, but she a gentlewoman, and I love her something fierce. I think that you would like her. We’ll come back again soon. I love you Momma.”

  Del knew Raelin was finished when the soft wind that had been blowing picked up for a second, rustling the leaves around them. For years after, Del would always swear that as she had turned to wait for Raelin, she’d heard a woman’s whispered I love you in the sweet spring breeze as it moved across the clearing, warming her from the inside out.

  A Chapter 15 a

  They took their time returning to the house, enjoying both the day and the company. They didn’t talk much; there was no need to aside from Del asking a few questions about the grounds. Soon enough they found themselves back at the house and knew that there was still work to be done. Del pulled Raelin to a stop at the bottom of the porch steps and looked at her witch.

  “You going to be okay?” she asked, swinging their linked hands lightly between them.

  “I have you in my life, so I am perfect...or as close as I want to be. Thank you for meeting my mother. I’m sure she would have loved you.” Raelin stepped close to caress the blondes face. “I love you Delaney.”

  Smiling, Del brushed her lips over Raelin’s in a tender kiss. ”I love you too Raelin. Let’s go get supper made.”

  She held the door open for both Raelin and Rori as they entered the house. Peeking into the living room revealed that Jasper had stuck around and was talking quietly with the mother and daughter. Having made sure that all was well, s
he rejoined Raelin in the kitchen. “What do you want for supper? I’ll help you get it started before we bring up the case with Amelia and Jenny. I’d rather enjoy dinner before we taint it with work.”

  Quickly looking through her food stock, Raelin looked over her shoulder at the blonde. “How do you feel about Shepherd’s Pie? It wouldn’t take me long with whip it up with your help.”

  “I love Shepherd’s Pie. Just tell me what you need me to do. I’m not exactly a pro in the kitchen, although I do peel a mean potato,” she joked, hopping up onto the counter. “Wow, it’s a little weird not having to look up to see you.”

  Turning around, Rae stepped in close to stand between Del’s legs and growled. “I, on the other hand love looking down at you beneath me,” her eyes went wide as she realized that they had company in the room and she didn’t mean Rori.

  Del glanced over Raelin’s shoulder and noticed Jasper, grinning from the doorway. She wrapped her arms around Raelin’s waist, holding her in place so she wouldn’t pull away. She didn’t want Raelin to be ashamed or embarrassed about them, and Jasper already knew about the relationship. If she wanted to test the waters, this was as good a time as any. “Hey Jasper, we were just about to start on dinner. Raelin was going to throw together a Shepherd’s Pie.”

  The older man chuckled as he noticed how stiff his brunette friend was, and wanted to make her feel easy. “That sounds good to me, since I had to miss out on the roast the other night. Is there anything I can do to help?”

  Taking a deep breath, Raelin turned slightly in Del’s embrace. “No thank you, Little Miss here has kindly volunteered, and you know what they say about too many cooks in the kitchen.”

  “I certainly do so I will make like a shepherd and get the flock out of here.” Jasper laughed at his own joke as he went back into the living room.

  Del snorted, laughing as Jasper returned to entertain Amelia and Jenny. “He’s certainly a refreshing personality in this town. So, what do you need me to do?” she asked lightly scratching at Raelin’s calves with her toes, her thighs pressing against Raelin’s hips.

  “Ah...keep doing that and we won’t get anything done.” The witch couldn’t help herself as she reached behind the blonde to pull her tight against her. “Tell me what you want to do to me.”

  Del walked her fingers slowly up the arms around her until they landed on her neck, curling the dark hair at the base of her neck around her fingers. “I want to have all of you, so slowly that all you can think about is me, and what my hands and fingers and mouth are doing to you. I want to feel how you react when I run my fingers over your skin, so lightly you think you’ve imagined it. How you taste when I trail kisses over every inch of you, and how you sound, when I finally give you the release you beg for. Most importantly, I want to love you, so you never doubt my feelings for you, ever.”

  Raelin stood there opened mouth at the images that ran through her mind. “Goddess...I need to get everyone out of the house, and soon.” Kissing the blonde, she tried to express how much she wanted Del to do exactly what she said.

  Del let the kiss linger for a few moments, until she had to pull back before she ended up totally ditching dinner and locking them in the bedroom for the near future. “Soon love, I promise. Now, tell me where I can find me some spuds to peel.”

  The two worked in companionable silence with Raelin softly directing the blonde to shuck some ears of corn while she browned the meat and boiled the potatoes. After a short while, dinner was ready and on the table. “Would you mind asking everyone if they are ready to eat?”

  Del planted a quick kiss on Raelin’s temple. “Sure thing Darlin’,” she headed to the living room, smiling as she walked into a hail of laughter. “Dare I ask?” she asked the trio.

  j

  Dinner was a comfortable affair with nothing of the past week mentioned. Raelin stood up afterwards, and started picking up the dishes, leaving Del and Jasper to talk business with Amelia.

  “Amelia, what do you know about Jenny’s kidnapping?” asked Del, smiling warmly at Raelin as she grabbed her plate for her.

  Reaching out to grasp her daughter’s hand, the older woman answered. “She told me that she came upon some men in the woods that were putting some young girls in a van and they found her. Jenny said that she was held in a fish camp near here, but that she got away. That’s all that she really told me.”

  Del took a deep breath and looked at Jasper. Getting a silent go ahead, she looked to Raelin. “Can you get me the parchments? I’m not sure where you stashed them.”

  Going into the side room, the brunette popped open the secret door and pulled out the papers, closed the door and went back into the kitchen to hand them to the blonde.

  “Thanks Darlin’. You sure you don’t need a hand? Jasper could handle this if you need it?” she asked, brushing Raelin’s fingers as she took the envelope.

  Shaking her head, Raelin declined. “No, I would prefer that you explain it to her...and if you need to, you can tell her what I discovered this afternoon.” The witch understood that this was going be hard for the woman to find out that her daughter’s own father was partially responsible for their daughter’s disappearance.

  Del turned to the drawer behind her, opening it to pull out the files she had placed there earlier. Spreading them on the now clear table, she brought Amelia’s attention to the list of missing girls. “Jenny isn’t the first girl to go missing. This is a list of girls starting with the first about five years ago. We believe that there is a human trafficking ring working out of this town.”

  Tears welled in the older woman’s eyes, as she looked down at the table. “I heard something like that was going on, but I just thought that it was a rumor...or I wanted it to be.”

  Jenny pulled her hand out of her mother’s grasp. “What do you mean? You heard that people were being sold as slaves or worse and you did nothing about it?”

  “Wait...wait...you don’t understand.” Amelia stood up, begging for her daughter to hear her out.

  Del gave her a hard look. “Then I suggest you explain it so I can understand. Cause I hate to break it to you, but ignorance isn’t a good defense. Unless you have a good reason for not saying anything, you’re an accessory.”

  “You can’t ask me to do that,” she begged first Del, then Jasper.

  Jenny stood. “Momma, this entire town may be responsible for all of these girls disappearance, and you knew about it. How could you live with yourself?”

  “I had to go along with it...your fath...your father is involved and I couldn’t do anything against him,” Amelia admitted, and they watched as she seemed to deflate.

  Raelin dropped the dish she was washing and it shattered in the sink at the revelation. “I’m sorry it slipped.”

  Del concentrated on Raelin a moment and realized she could actually feel what her lover was feeling. Not sensing anything other than shock, she rounded back on Amelia. “This is what you didn’t want to talk to me about that day. You knew that your daughter had gone missing in a town trafficking women and you didn’t think I’d want to know! Your daughter was damn near sold to God knows who and you couldn’t be bothered to tell me?”

  “I didn’t know what to do...AJ is involved and I couldn’t turn him in.” The older woman hung head.

  “AJ Kingsley...he’s my father!” Jenny started crying. “You mean you would have kept quiet even though you had a pretty good idea where I was, just because you still love that married man?”

  Jasper felt his chest pang at the thought of the hurt and betrayal that must be running through the young woman. “Jenny, I’m sure it’s much more complicated than that,” he pointed to the deed and map. “According to the old map and deed, the Kingsleys own your home. I wouldn’t put it past them to hold it over your mother’s head.”

  Del’s gaze shifted to Jasper. “Don’t you dare try to justify this.”

  “I had to choose between my child and the man that I love...I didn’t know what to do. I didn
’t know for sure that they had Jenny, and if I said something and they didn’t, AJ would have never forgiven me and I could have been killed.”

  Del felt the anger she’d been holding since Raelin’s attack come bubbling back and this time she wasn’t able to hold it down. She smashed her fist onto the table, rattling the dishes as she shot out of her chair. “Your daughter; the girl who loves you more than anyone else on this earth, more than a married man ever could, could have been killed. How can you even compare them? He can’t even be bothered to leave his wife for you. Your daughter has been doing nothing, but worrying about you since I’ve met her. AJ Kingsley has been more worried about his own ass,” Del stopped her rant abruptly, trying to calm the anger, and for once in her life, not sure if she’d be able to.

  Turning from the sink, Raelin enveloped the blonde in a hug and kissed the back of her head. “Del, I love you,” the woman whispered in her ear.

  Taking several slow breathes; Del let Raelin’s strong presence calm her anger, settling her nerves so that she could get back to the work. She leaned back into Raelin, acknowledging the words that had been whispered to her. “Mrs. LeBlanc, you realize the seriousness of this situation. I’m going to need every piece of information you have, and don’t feed me any bullshit,” she knew she’d reverted back to her usual working demeanor, and she hated that she’d had to do it in the one house she promised she’d always been herself in, because Raelin deserved better. Del knew why she’d gotten so angry, but she’d talk about it with Raelin later.

  The older woman nodded her head. “I’ll tell you what I can, but you need to get me and Jenny out of town. If Regina Kingsley finds out that I’ve talked, she’ll do something drastic. I don’t care what happens to me, but just make sure that my daughter is safe.”