Chapter 5
Noa
Every encounter I’ve had since I’ve been here has been a strange one.
I was realizing that as I sat inside Magnolia & Pine holding the hot mug of coffee.
It was not too sweet and not too bitter, but perfect.
What I didn’t understand was that I never told Seraphine that I wanted a cup much less how I liked my coffee.
"That’s insane,” I chuckled as I stared down into the cup of coffee then back up at her.
"What’s wrong? You need more cream or sugar?"
"Not at all. It’s actually just the way I like it. Either you're a psychic or I’m tripping."
Her smile widened. "Might be a even mixture of both."
I couldn't help but laugh, a real long laugh and it wasn’t the forced kind I'd been giving people for weeks. The sound surprised me, hell it surprised Seraphine too and for a few seconds her eyes softened like she was happy to hear me laugh.
"Now that's a whole lot better.”
"What?"
"Laughing and smiling is way better than that guarded thingy you had going on when you first walked in."
"It feels good too. I haven't laughed that much lately."
Her smile slowly disappeared. "I figured that much."
Neither of us spoke as the scent of cinnamon and fresh bread drifted throughout the shop. In the distance the low hum of conversation filled the air behind us. Things felt pretty normal, comfortable and safe.
"Hold up… stay put for a second."
Before I could ask her why, Seraphine walked away, disappearing through a swinging kitchen door. Minutes later she was back with a plate that had a warm croissant sandwich, with eggs, cheese, some kind of sausage and some jam on the side.
The jam looked like apple butter and instantly it warmed my heart because apple butter was one of my mom’s favorites. The food smelled so good that my stomach started growling… and so loudly that it had me lowkey embarrassed because I knew she heard it.
Seraphine chuckled. "See, I knew it."
"What?"
"Yo tail is hungry."
"More like starving. How’d you know?"
She placed the plate in front of me. "Suga, you got that look."
"What look?"
"The grief hunger look."
“Thank you for the sandwich and coffee. I know you said it’s on the house, but I can pay for it.”
“Nonsense…I’m the owner and when I say it’s on me…it’s on me.”
Her answer took the humor right out our conversation because she was spot on, I was starving.
I thought it was pretty impressive that she was the owner of the shop, especially with her being so young looking.
I picked up the sandwich and wasted no time taking a bite.
The first bite nearly made me emotional because it was so good.
Seraphine joined me at the table and sat across from me like she intended to stay awhile.
Once I swallowed, I asked the one question that hadn’t sat right in my chest since I met her.
"You never told me how you knew I was a Sinclair?"
Seraphine looked down at the table for a quick second then back up at me.
"You look like them."
My stomach tightened and chest heaved “Them?"
She nodded. "Some people favor one parent, but you favor both of your parents."
“Do you know much about my mom…my parents?”
“They both were brave…almost a little too brave.”
The words were caught in my throat. What were the odds that on day two I’d run into someone who knew not one but both of my parents.
I really didn’t know what to say but I was doing everything I could to hold back the excitement.
I never got to meet my dad all I had was a few pictures of him, but I didn’t know much about how he died because it was a triggering topic for my mom to discuss so she didn’t share much with me about him.
But now, I was sitting in front of someone who could answer questions about my people, and I was legit at a loss for words.
Instead of responding, I looked around the coffee shop and that’s when I noticed that every table was made out of dark wood.
But what stood out the most was that every last one of them had the emblem that I saw around town burned into the center of them, including the one I was sitting at.
I traced my finger along the carving then looked back at Seraphine who was watching me intently.
"What does this symbol mean?"
Seraphine looked down and the smile she had faded. "It depends on who you ask."
"What you mean by that?"
"Exactly what I said."
“It has to be something important because it’s literally everywhere.”
Seraphine leaned all the way back in her chair. "The Dubois claim it represents heritage."
Immediately I recognized the name. It was the same name the man at the gas station dropped as well as the name all over the town especially The Dubois Hill Estates that housed the infamous Saint Mercy church, funeral home and Magnolia cemetery where the emblem was literally everywhere.
"Who are the Dubois? The name appears throughout the town. They gotta be pretty important people I suppose."
Something unreadable changed in Seraphine’s expression.
"They’re a really big family. And a really big deal."
"How big is big?"
"Bigger than they should be."
Now that was interesting. It seemed like she knew more but was being very vague about them.
"Some say the symbol represents roots, others say it represents blood." Her eyes drifted toward the front door.
"So which do you believe?"
Seraphine's gaze returned to mine, "I think it means this town never forgets."
When I say a chill rose up my spine, it was so cold that it caused me to shiver.
In an effort to shake the eerie feeling, my attention shifted to the old photograph hanging behind the counter.
Several women were standing in front of Saint Mercy Baptist Church dressed in all-white.
Wanting to know more about it, I pointed toward it.
"The lady in that picture is a spitting image of you. Who is that?"
"My grandmother."
"You are legit her twin."
"Trust me. I've heard it my whole life," she smiled then laughed.
Even though she was smiling and laughing, something still felt strange.
Before I could ask more about the picture the bell above the door chimed, and Seraphine looked over in the direction of the door.
Every muscle in her body immediately tensed.
It was so immediate that it was hard not to notice so much so that it caused me to look over at the door.
The man who walked inside looked like he'd walked straight out of a GQ magazine or an ad for an expensive bourbon and bad decisions.
He was tall, wearing a dark suit that was perfectly tailored and he walked with the kind of confidence that money couldn't buy unless it had existed in your family for generations.
You could feel the energy shift in the room because of his presence, and it wasn’t because he walked in being loud or demanding attention it was because he had this aire about himself that could be felt a mile away that he expected it. The low hum of talking that could once be heard had ceased.
When I looked over to my right at an older couple they immediately looked away and avoided eye contact with him. There was even this teenaged boy who worked at the shop who was sweeping near the pastry case that looked down suddenly like he found the floor to be fascinating.
It was all very interesting. The man looked around the room then his eyes fell on me and he smiled. It was polite, almost practiced.
"Afternoon, Seraphine." He said without even looking in her direction.
I looked over at her and the smile she had for most of the time since we’d been talking was now completely gone.
"Solomon."
The way she said his name told me that she knew exactly who he was and why he was there.
He walked up to the table we were sitting at and placed one of his hands on the empty chair.
At first, I thought he was going to pull it out and sit down with us, but he didn’t.
Instead, he just looked between me and Seraphine.
"Making new friends I see."
Seraphine crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "You could say that."
“That’s a bit fast.”
He gave her a smile, but it wasn’t the kind of smile that reached his eyes. As I looked at their interaction, I noticed the magnolia emblem engraved into a thick gold signet ring that was wrapped around his pinky finger. Something about him was familiar, almost like I’d seen him before.
When I looked at his tie it had a cross pin in the middle and on his suit jacket in small, fine lettering, funeral director was embossed on his lapel and that’s when it hit me… He looked like one of the funeral attendants from the service I drove past yesterday…he was a Dubois. He had to be.
For several seconds, nobody moved and the tension that sat between them was so thick it could be cut with a knife.
Solomon dipped his head toward me. "Welcome to Magnolia Graves."
And it was something about the way he said it that didn’t settle with me.
Then without saying anything else he turned and walked back outside and was gone just as fast as he came.
The atmosphere in the shop changed instantly the moment he left.
I looked at Seraphine who was watching the door like a hawk then she looked over at me and for the first time since we'd met, I saw genuine concern in her eyes.
"Noa, I need you to listen to me carefully, suga."
"I’m listening…"
“If you plan on snoopin’ and askin’ questions about your parents..." She peeked over at the door again then lowered her voice, "Make sure you be careful who hears them and the answers."