If you have any questions, please ask... but hopefully as the story goes on, I will manage to answer any questions through the story itself.

Chapter 2

It took a long time before I gathered up both the courage and the money to visit my old homestead... I was 22. Frankie, the eldest of my two younger brothers, was the only one I told besides Barry Frost. Both men offered to come with me, but I declined their offer. I was young, fresh... I had just finished police academy, and I was about to start my full time job as a police officer for the Boston PD. But I had to visit my home first.

"Hello? May I help you?"

Jane was startled by the unexpected voice... she jumped before turning around and looking at the young woman who stood behind the counter, regarding Jane with no small amount of curiousity. "Yes... yes, I'm sorry, I was just..." she gestured at the wall behind her, which was covered in a vast eclectic range of photo frames, every frame filled with what seemed to be a very old photo, "just looking at your pictures here. They... the pictures... are old. Are these people the past inhabitants of this town?"

The woman perked up, brushing fiery red hair behind her ear as she came out from behind the counter, her deep brown eyes glittering with enthusiasm. "Yes, they are! Are you... do you... I just... I'm sorry," she gasped and flushed slightly, and Jane watched in fascination as the red blush flowed from her cheeks up into her forehead and down onto her neck, almost completely obscuring her freckles, "I myself am completely fascinated with the town's history, so I tend to get a little overexcited."

"That's okay," Jane said softly, turning her attention back to the photos.

"Are you... interested... in history?" the woman spoke slowly and carefully this time, and Jane turned to her again, finally glancing down at her uniform, looking for a name badge.

"Isabelle. Hi. My name is Jane Rizzoli. Officer Jane Rizzoli."

"Oh..." the young woman looked confused. "Officer? Are we... am I... in some sort of trouble?"

"No," Jane hastily reassured her. "I'm sorry. I just... I only recently got the title, so I'm still kinda trying it on for size."

"Oh," Isabelle laughed. "I understand. Well, Officer, people 'round here just call me Belle."

"People 'round my home just call me Jane."

'Belle' laughed happily. "I'm pleased to meet you, Jane. So..." she turned her attention back to the photos and Jane did the same, her eyes still searching almost frantically for a familiar face. It was hard though... the memories that she thought were fading at 10 had been practically crystal clear compared to what she had now. The only things she had now were pictures that she had drawn, names and dates that she had thought to note down. The memories were all but gone, forced out by memories and knowledge of a current life, but the certainty remained: Jane had been here before. 'Beatie' had been here before. And so had Grace. "... what can I help you with? Are you after a room for the night?"

Jane started once more, so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she had almost forgotten that Belle was still present. "Yes. Uh, yes please. And..." her eyes swept over the wall once more, "I was wondering if... if we might be able to have a chat about the history of this town. I find it rather interesting, to be honest."

"Sure! Well... I mean to say... we're just a small town. We don't have a terribly exciting past..." Belle said, as she turned around and opened a cupboard behind her, pulling out a key and putting it on the counter, pushing it towards Jane, "I mean, I find it interesting... but I live here. Do you... forgive me for asking, but do you have a personal connection to this town?"

"I..." Jane stopped, realizing that she had been about to say to this young woman that she used to live here. But she hadn't, really, had she? 'Beatie' had lived here, not Jane Rizzoli. "I know of someone who used to live here. A long time ago. I guess... I guess I just wanted to know more about where she lived, what her life was like..."

"Really?" Belle said, her eyes lighting up as she pulled out a form and began filling it out absentmindedly. "What was her name?"

"Henderson. Grace Henderson."

"Henderson... hmm..." Belle tapped her chin with one hand as she pushed the form towards Jane with the other, gesturing at her to complete the information needed. "The name sounds very familiar, but I just can't place it at the moment. Do you know where she lived? Because, you know, a lot of this town hasn't changed. Many of the houses and stores are still the same, they've just been... modernised." She gestured awkwardly at the computer that sat on the edge of the desk as she spoke and Jane smiled slightly, admitting to herself that it did look rather out of place in such a rustic, homely place as this.

"Yes" Jane replied. "But... the street where she lived... it's all different. There are none of the houses that used to be there. At least," she added lamely, "I don't think so."

"Well, we did have a big fire back about... oh, 20 or 25 years ago now. It was pretty much the only exciting thing that ever happened in this town. It took a lot of houses with it. Maybe that's the area you're talking about?"

"Maybe," Jane answered noncommittally, finally finishing the form and pushing it back towards Belle, her gaze once more focusing on the photos. "Tell me, Belle... are these the only photos you have?"

"Oh no, I've got thousands more. My family is the oldest in Tockner Valley... we've been here from the day it was founded." Belle smiled proudly. "I reckon we've got photos of almost every person who ever lived here."

Jane felt her heart quicken slightly. If she saw a picture of Grace... or indeed, even of her past self... would she be able to recognise the person within the photo? "I'd very much appreciate an opportunity to look through those photos... with your permission of course, and your presence is welcomed."

Belle smiled brightly but her face quickly melted into a frown. "You sure this isn't police business? I mean, not that I'd want to impede a police investigation, but..."

"No," Jane interrupted, smiling slightly, making Belle smile once more in return. "It's just... curiousity, I guess. Wanting to know m... her past." She winced, hoping Belle hadn't caught the momentary slipup, but the expression on Belle's face never wavered.

"Okay then! Well, I'm happy to help. How about we get your luggage up to the room and you can get settled, and we'll get started in an hour or two?"

"Oh... well..." Jane hefted the fairly large tote bag she had slung over her shoulder. "This is pretty much it, actually, so I can be up and back in about ten minutes. I mean," she added, suddenly self conscious and aware she was possibly being over eager, "if that's okay, of course."

"Oh, of course!" Belle said, a smile instantly lighting up her pretty face. "I'll just be in the back office, sorting things out..." she hooked a thumb over her shoulder, gesturing to the office door that Jane had barely noticed before, "so you just knock on that when you're ready, okay?"

"Okay..." Jane said hesitantly. "Thank you." She glanced down at the key she held in her hand, suddenly feeling overwhelmed. Could it be possible? Was she actually about to see a picture of the woman she had loved in a past life? Was she about to see the face and the body that she herself had worn in that past life? It felt like a dream... she could scarcely believe that she was actually here.

"Oh, I'm sorry... it's up the stairs, third door on the left," Belle said, and Jane jumped, startled, almost dropping her key.

"What?"

"The room? You looked a bit lost... so..." Belle trailed off, frowning, and Jane made sure to instantly paste a reassuring smile on her own face.

"Sorry. Yes. Thank you. Just... you know, a bit tired. From the journey here and everything."

"Oh," Belle nodded understandingly. "Well, if you decide to take a nap, that's fine... I'm here in this office until 7pm, so you'll catch me any time before then."

"Thank you," Jane said softly. "I'll be down here shortly."

Belle smiled warmly. "I look forward to it."

It was the hardest thing in the world for me, to go upstairs and wait that extra few minutes before demanding to see the photos. Funny, isn't it? I had waited 22 years to get here, and yet I felt ready to burst waiting that extra 10 minutes. The wait, however... it was worth it.

Jane knocked on the door sharply. She had counted down the ten minutes on her watch and almost bolted down the stairs the very second that the time was up. Now she felt as though her heart was going to pound right out of her chest. Pictures of her past life potentially lay in the room just beyond that door, and she didn't know how much longer she could wait...

Thankfully, she didn't need to find out, as the door swung open and Belle stood there, beaming widely. "Hi Jane! You decided not to take a nap then?"

"No," Jane said, smiling slightly. "I guess curiousity got the better of me."

"Where are you from, anyway?" Belle asked, standing aside and beckoning Jane in with a crooked finger.

"Uh... Boston," Jane replied, her mouth falling open as she surveyed the room. It was utter chaos, overfilled boxes and bits of paperwork lying everywhere. In fact, there were only two places that didn't seem to be covered in paperwork: the set of filing drawers that sat in one corner of the room, and the desk chair that Jane could only assume Belle sat in most of the time. Belle rushed forward and hurriedly took a stack of papers and photos off the other chair in the room, nodding her head towards it, so Jane took the unspoken invitation and sat down. "Is this all hotel...?"

"Oh no," Belle said. "That's all in there," she nodded her head in the direction of the filing cabinet. "I don't let that get mixed up with this stuff." She picked up a couple of papers, looking through them quickly before moving them on top of what seemed to be an empty bird cage. At least, Jane hoped it was empty. "So, Boston, huh? Is it nice there?"

"Busy," Jane replied, still trying to discreetly look into the cage. "Not peaceful like it is here."

"Boring, I think you mean." Jane glanced up sharply and Belle laughed. "Don't get me wrong, I love it here, and I think I'd be overwhelmed in a big city... but sometimes I do wish for just a little more excitement."

"You'd get excitement in Boston, believe me," Jane smiled crookedly, and Belle smiled back.

"Yes, well... enough about that. Now, you said Henderson?" Belle asked and Jane sat up. She was fully prepared to go through the niceties a little bit longer before getting down to business, but she was most definitely not complaining.

"Yes. Grace Henderson."

"Well," Belle said, pulling out a small stack of papers from underneath three books and what looked like an old feather quill, handing the papers to Jane, "I told you the name sounded familiar, didn't I?"

"Ye-e-es..." Jane said slowly, looking down at the mismatched stack of papers in her hands, trying to make sense of them, but the words on the paper were not seeping through the cloud that seemed to be obscuring her brain.

"Well, that's 'cause she's one of the most famous residents of this town!" Belle blurted excitedly, then flushed. "I mean, it was 26 years ago now since she died, so not many people still remember her, but she... well, she was quite famous."

"26?" Jane asked curiously. She was only 22 now... even if you factored in the nine months she existed inside her mother's womb, there was still 3 years that remained unaccounted for. Why was that?

"Yes." Belle had pulled out another stack of papers, this from somewhere under the desk, and was now looking through them. "She was a doctor, and she once saved a man and a woman from drowning."

"She did?" Jane looked through her papers, her fingers moving rapidly, looking for a photo, a news clipping, anything that would show her Grace's face.

"Yes. The man was trying to kill himself apparently! And a woman jumped in after him to try and save him, but she could barely swim herself... so Dr Henderson jumped in and saved them both! I mean, this was back when she was only quite young... possibly around your age, or a little older."

Jane glanced up at this, looking at Belle a bit more closely. She had thought, at first meeting, that Belle was around her own age, but looking at her now, she could see crows lines around her eyes and mouth that said she was actually in her late thirties, possibly even early forties. And you want to be a detective one day, Jane berated herself. Learn to pay attention!

"What?" Belle asked, and Jane flushed.

"Sorry. I just... I thought you were around my age when I first met you."

Belle beamed. "You're a sweetheart. No, but I have a son around your age. He's 23." Noting the quizzical expression on Jane's face, she smiled crookedly. "I fell pregnant with him when I was 15. Nothing much to do around this place, you know."

Jane laughed out loud. "No, I imagine not."

"Do you have a partner, Jane?" Bell asked. "I mean, if you don't mind me asking."

"No, not presently," Jane replied shortly and she glanced down at the paperwork she still held in her hands, hoping Belle wasn't about to try to set her up on a date. She had enough of that with her own mother.

"Oh! Well, actually, you might even get to meet him while you're here!" Belle gushed, and Jane winced.

"Yeah. Maybe. We might get to be friends." She hoped Belle would take the hint... she wasn't sure how homophobic people were in small towns like this, but she thought she could safely take the bet that there was at least a modicum of homophobia in many people.

"Or maybe I could set you up on a date!" Belle went on, and Jane winced once more. She wondered vaguely if she should lie, but something about this woman led her to believe that she'd see through a lie in an instant.

"I... I'm sorry. But I don't think that would be a good idea." Jane looked up only briefly before dropping her gaze once more. "I'd... I'd really like to talk about Grace now."

"Oh," Belle said, looking a bit crestfallen. "Certainly... but may I ask why you're not interested in dating?"

Jane sighed. "I don't..." she hesitated briefly before forging ahead. "It's not that I'm not interested in dating. I'm just... not interested in dating anyone who has a penis." She shrugged, looking at Belle frankly, who looked rather taken aback.

"Oh. Oh!" She frowned slightly, but not, Jane thought with a small ray of hope, like she was about to kick Jane out. "You're a lesbian then?"

"I am a woman who has intimate relations with other women, yes, but I am not defined by my sexuality."

"Huh. Oh, I mean... right. Well..." Belle looked down at the photos, "is that part of the reason you're so interested in Dr Henderson then?"

"What... what do you mean?"

"Well... there was never any actual proof of this, mind you... but many believed she entered into a relationship with the woman she saved, a Miss..." Belle looked down at her papers quickly, "Elizabeth Mills."

"I... I see." Jane could feel her heart speeding up inside her chest and she struggled to keep her breathing regulated as she asked the next question. "Do you... do you happen to have a photo?"

"Oh, yes, of course..." Putting down her current stack of papers, Belle dove into another stack, emerging only seconds later with a small rubber banded stack of photos. This office was, Jane considered faintly, the very definition of organised chaos. She stared at the pile of photos blankly, but was unable to make out any details... the top photo was covered with a piece of paper, stating clearly 'Dr Grace Henderson and (believed) partner, Elizabeth Mills'. "You can take these, if you like... you can peruse them at your own leisure in your room and return them to me before you leave."

"Are you sure?" Jane asked, almost sitting on her hands in an effort to stop them trembling.

"Of course. And, all these papers... most of them will be of no interest to you... simply things that Dr Henderson signed over the years... but you're more than welcome to look at them."

"I... thank you," Jane whispered, reaching out with still shaky hands to take the papers from her, adding them to the stack already on her lap.

"It's okay." Belle regarded her closely for a few long seconds and Jane shifted uncomfortably, unsure as to what Belle was looking for. "You know... you're an odd one, Officer Jane Razzoli."

"Rizzoli," Jane corrected softly.

"Rizzoli," Belle agreed easily. "Yes, you're definitely an odd one."

She was quiet for several more seconds until Jane, holding the papers so tightly she feared she might rip them, felt herself burn with curiousity for more than whatever knowledge that paperwork would bring. "Why do you say that?"

"Because, Miss Rizzoli. You look like a stranger. You act like a stranger. But I feel like I should be welcoming you home."

Jane looked down at the papers once more. "I... thank you for this."

"You're welcome," Belle stood up, and Jane took her cue to leave, standing up also and heading for the door, but she turned back when Belle called her name once more.

Belle regarded her with a look of such aged wisdom that it made Jane wonder how she could have ever thought Belle was the same age as herself and she spoke after several long seconds. "I hope you find what you are looking for."

Jane glanced down again. "I hope I do too. Thank you."

"You're welcome," Belle replied, and as the door shut, Jane thought she heard her add the word 'Beatie'.

END CHAPTER TWO

Please let me know what you think :-) Love to all xoxo -Katie

Italics are used to tell instances of past times. They will not be used throughout the whole story. I had a review relating to this, so thought I would clear that up. :-)