Chapter 9 #3
"Ezekiel told me I wouldn’t find anything at the church, but I'ma still go back and search through more archives."
"As you should. Don’t listen to him. You do what yo heart leads you to do. If it’s tellin’ you to keep diggin’ than that’s exactly what you do.”
I was shocked by her answer, I thought she was going to tell me I’m wasting my time.
Or that I’m looking for something that’s not there.
But her answer basically made me feel like I should keep looking because there was something there that I may need to find.
That’s what made me feel comfortable with Seraphine.
She made me feel like she wouldn’t steer me wrong and I needed someone like her in my corner.
“So, you don’t think I’m wasting my time on nothing? I really came down here to find my family roots and somehow, I’ve gotten side-tracked.”
“Side-tracked in what way suga?”
“The whole scholarship fund, something just seems off. I feel like my dad knew something and something happened to him because of it. And whatever that something is, just might be the reason why my mom never wanted to return and never wanted to tell me anything about my family. Now that it’s just me, I feel compelled to not leave here without knowing where I came from. ”
Just as I said that I stopped talking because something in my heart told me what I needed to find was confirmation of how my dad died and who the town said was responsible for his death.
That was something that wasn’t mentioned in any of the articles that I read.
It wasn’t even mentioned in the article about the scholarship fund.
“Do you know what happened to my dad? Like, how’d he die?”
“Suga I was way too young. I was raised in a home where kids were to be seen and not heard and if you made your presence known you got dealt with. I had to stay in a child’s place and mind kid business, not adults.
But I will say some things deserve to be found.
And again, if yo heart is leadin’ ya to it, then follow yo heart. "
I left Magnolia & Pine with a smile across my face and my heart not as heavy because Seraphine’s conversation was just the confirmation I needed.
Just as I finished my sandwich a large crowd of people came in so Seraphine had to get back to work.
As I was leaving her coffee shop I bumped into a man just as he stepped out of an all-black Denali.
His strong, large hands grabbed me just in time, saving me from colliding into the ground. When I looked up, I immediately knew who it was, it was Solomon Dubois.
"Woah dere…Easy nah." Solomon said.
“My bad…I’m so sorry bout that.”
“Well look who we have here…I’m starting to think this place might actually be growing on you. It looks good on you. I can see you staying here for the long haul.” He smiled.
He beamed with so much confidence you could tell that he was comfortable in his own skin. His smile was so smooth and effortless, it was the kind of smile that probably got him out of trouble just as much as it got him into trouble.
“I wouldn’t exactly say all that,” I chuckled.
"You don’t? You lookin’ pretty settled in to me. Seems like you gettin’ round just fine. Meeting all sorts of interesting people and all. How's all the digging going by the way? Find anything interesting?"
His question caught me completely off guard. "Who told you I was doing any digging?"
“You’re a Sinclair… it’s in your blood. Doesn’t help that you walk around with a camera dangling round your neck either.”
“It’s a beautiful town… I love to sightsee and take pictures.”
“Sure you do. What’d you think of the church? Heard you been spending time at Saint Mercy.”
“I see people around hear do a lot of talking.”
“More than you know. Especially in a small town like this.”
Before I could say anything, his phone started ringing so loud it startled me, causing me to jump. He pulled it out of his pocket and sighed hard. “Welp, gotta go. Duty calls. Take care, I’m sure I’ll be seeing you soon. Maybe we can do lunch some time.”
He turned to get back into his SUV, and just as he opened the driver side door he turned back toward me and said, “Slow down just a bit on all that digging. You don’t want to uncover any town-ending, earth-shattering conspiracies before dinner.”
As he got into the SUV he was laughing like he’d just told a funny joke but something cold in the way he said it let me know he wasn’t joking at all.
My exhaustion was at an all-time high by the time I made it back to the hotel. As I slid my keycard into the door, all I could think about was taking a shower and diving into the California King with that was waiting for me.
When I opened the door to my hotel room, my heart skipped a beat.
The first thing I saw was the biggest, most beautiful bouquet of peach-colored flowers that were being held by Julian.
He was standing near the window, and for a second, I didn’t move.
Then once it settled in that he was actually here in the flesh, I practically lunged myself across the room and leaped into his arms. The place, I always felt the most safest.