Chapter 45
Chapter Forty-Five
Jenny
“Ineed to get a few things from my house,” Raffe tells me after breakfast.
“Can I go with?”
Dirk looks at Raffe, interested to see how he’ll answer.
“Yeah, sure,” he says without hesitation.
As we’re piling in Dirk’s truck, Lexie and Kelsie pull into the parking lot.
“Oh shoot, you’re leaving. I wanted to talk to you,” Kelsie says, rushing toward us, her gaze fixed on me.
“Me?” I ask surprised. “Is your mom okay?”
She nods. “She’s fine.”
“And I wanted to talk to you,” Lexie tells Dirk.
“Well, aren’t we popular today,” Dirk says dryly, lighting up a cigarette. “Go on. We’re still here.”
Lexie reaches into her bag and pulls out a letter, handing it to Dirk.
He casually puts it in his pocket as if it means nothing to him, but I caught the tremble of his hand.
Lexie tips her head back. “Rachel, if you’re listening, it’s done,” she says to the sky. Her shoulders fall in relief.
Dirk looks at Kelsie, purposely ignoring Lexie. “You’re up next.”
“Oh, oh, I’ll just talk to Jenny later.”
He stares at her, and she squirms. “Okay, so.” She scratches her head. “So like, so this was more of a question …” She pauses, clearly struggling to find the right words.
“If this is about the bun you have in the oven, yes, Dan will kill Tank if you don't get hitched before it fully bakes,” Dirk says matter-of-factly.
My mouth falls open. Oh my goodness. Lily is pregnant and so is her daughter!
Raffe starts laughing beside me. “Jesus Christ. Is there something in the damn water?”
Kelsie folds her arms across her chest, looking around nervously. “Shh, nobody knows but Tank, Ash, and Lex.”
“Ash and I think they should get married with us. Like the wedding is already planned and everything.”
“And all of my family will already be there, but I want it to be a surprise,” Kelsie agrees with her friend excitedly.
Dirk looks at Lexie. “You’re okay with sharing your big day?”
She claps excitedly. “Yes.”
He nods, seemingly pleased with her response.
“Wait. What does this have to do with me?” I ask.
“I was hoping you could help me with my dress. I really want to wear my mom’s dress, but it doesn’t fit. I heard Grandma Maggie say you had been sewing all of your own clothes.”
My hand instantly goes to my chest. “I would love to help you. I’m so honored you even asked. Yes. Absolutely. When is the wedding?”
“In two weeks,” Lexie says.
I look at Raffe, and he shrugs. “Welcome to the club. You never know what the fuck is going to happen next.”
My head swivels back to the two girls standing outside of Dirk’s window. “Okay. Can you come over tomorrow and we’ll see what we’re working with?”
They both clap. “Okay, we’ll see you then,” they say, walking backward to Lexie’s car. “We’ve got so much to do. We’re going to the junkyard next to see if Elizabeth has enough flowers for me too,” Kelsie says happily.
Lexie looks at Dirk. “But remember, we’re keeping this on the DL.” She draws a zipper over her mouth.
He ignores her and turns to me. “What the fuck does DL mean?”
“No idea.”
Raffe laughs next to us. “Down low.” He shakes his head.
Dirk and I both shrug.
When we pull up in front of Raffe and Rachel’s house, the three of us sit quietly. Eventually, we get out and go inside. Raffe shows me to Jackson’s room. I sit down on his bed, my gaze trailing over the space.
“I’m going to go grab my stuff. Feel free to look around.”
I nod, biting back tears. His room is nice. I lie back on the bed, chuckling at the pinup model staring back at me.
Dirk walks in and sits down beside me. He pulls his letter out of his pocket. “Did you ever get one?” he asks.
“Yes. It was a warning that your wife was about to show up.”
He laughs. “She really does feel bad about setting your shit on fire.”
“Yeah, I feel bad she had to be the one to get me to pull my head out of my ass.”
He looks back at me. “It’s a lot easier to breathe though, isn’t it?”
I chuckle.
He hands me his letter. “Read it to me.”
I sit up and scoot beside him. “Are you sure?”
“Wouldn’t have asked if I wasn’t.”
Slowly, I unfold it and read:
“Dearest brother,
I bet you’re wondering why you are the last to get a letter.
I wish I had a good answer for you, but I don’t.
You’ve been the hardest one for me to come clean with.
And I didn’t need to leave you a letter explaining the situation; I knew you’d eventually see it from my eyes and give Jenny a fair chance.
You may seem grumpy most of the time, but I know you are quietly watching everyone, keeping things balanced and fair.
I also know you spent years looking for Jenny and me.
I’m sorry for my hand in both of those situations.
I’m sorry I wandered away from you that day at the park, and I’m sorry for hiding Jenny while you and Raffe still searched.
I know it left you with a feeling of helplessness. I’m so incredibly regretful of that.
As you’ve seen, I’m trying to correct my mistakes. I know it’s late, and I’m already gone, but it gives me peace to know that someday everything will be aligned.
Now comes the part where I ask one last favor of my big brother.
There is a file hidden under the drawer in my bedside table.
Inside you will find the dental records for the girl who is buried under Jenny’s name.
I know you’re curious as to how I pulled this off.
It’s simple. I paid the coroner. It’s not something I’m proud of, but I panicked when Lily arrived with news of Jenny, and I didn’t know what else to do.
I’ve worked tirelessly trying to figure out who Jane Doe really is, and after months of searching I think I finally have a name.
All I need you to do is find her family.
I’m certain you will be able to find them with today’s technology.
I would have done it myself, but it seems I’ve run out of time.
She deserves to go home, Dirk. Please help me make that happen so my soul can finally be free.
I love you … always, Rachel.”
Dirk and I stare at the wall for a few seconds before jumping into action. I follow him closely as he hurries into Raffe and Rachel’s bedroom.
“What the hell?” Raffe says, dropping a pile of clothes onto the foot of the bed.
Dirk doesn’t answer; he’s focused on pulling the drawer out of the nightstand.
“Rachel left Dirk a file under her nightstand.”
I hand Raffe the letter as Dirk finds what he’s looking for.
He pulls a bunch of papers out of a manila folder and begins reading. He pauses and looks at me. “Her name is Melody Brown. There’s a newspaper article here from Georgia. She was reported as a runaway.”
I lower myself to the bed, my hands shaking as I take the article from him. “Then it should be easy to find her family.”
“It looks like they may have moved, and … well, like Rachel said in her letter, she ran out of time.”
Raffe sits down heavily beside me, and we read the article together. He runs his thumb over the small black and white picture of the girl. “She looks like you,” he whispers.
I close my eyes. “I saw her that day on the bridge. Our eyes connected. We were both there for the same thing … to escape. But then I heard someone calling my name.” I pause, lost in the memory.
“Rachel?” Dirk asks hesitantly.
I nod, biting back tears. “I was so confused as to how she knew my name, and then we heard screams. I turned to see …” I pause to wipe my face. “It was so violent. I … I was so shocked, but Rachel was there, and she walked me away from the bridge.”
Raffe takes my hand in his. Dirk gets up from the floor and sits on the other side of me, taking my other.
“You’re here now,” he says. “She brought you home when the time was right, and now we’re going to get Melody home too, okay?”
“Okay,” I whisper.
“Let’s finish this up and get back to the warehouse.” He slaps the envelope on his leg before standing.
Raffe stands too, and the two of them begin packing up the last of his clothes. I leave them to it, feeling a bit uncomfortable at being in his and Rachel’s bedroom.
I go out to the living room, my gaze roaming over the many pictures of their lives together. Jackson looks so happy in every one of them. They all do.
I’m moving around the room when I come to a picture of Lily and me. How … oh my god, it’s the selfie we took together the day we bought our burner phone.
Raffe steps behind me and rests his chin on my shoulder. “You’ve always been a part of our lives, Jenny. Just like we’ve always been a part of yours.”
“Is there ever going to be a day when this all doesn’t feel so heavy?” I ask.
“I don’t know the answer to that,” he says. “But what I do know is that love has always kept us connected, and it always will.”
“We should take your pictures with us and hang them in our room at the warehouse.”
“All of them?”
“All of them,” I say confidently. “I don’t want you to leave any of your memories behind.”
The way he hugs me tight tells me he likes the idea. He’s missed them.