Signed, Anonymous
Chapter Four:
Truth

"Frankly, I'm not surprised."

Lucy stared, trying to determine if her husband had just said that. The married couple was sitting at the dining table in their humble garage apartment discussing the nature of Ruthie's situation. Lucy had come back from explaining to Simon just half an hour ago. Being her and Ruthie's sister, he immediately felt sympathy and anger. Kevin's response, however, was a little less predictable.

"What?" she asked, still feeling a bit stunned by his words.

"Luce, everyone is their own person. They aren't all detectives who want the facts of one case before they judge it. People are going to believe what they want to believe, even if their ideas are a little outrageous." Kevin reached for his coffee mug and raised it to his lips.

Lucy sighed. "A little? Kevin, you weren't in church on Sunday. You don't know what people were saying, what hurtful words they were saying, about my sister."

"Yes, I do." He set the mug down in front of him.

Again, Lucy was confused. "How could you have known? You were out on a special assignment with Roxanne."

It was Kevin's turn to sighed. "Luce, word gets around. I don't need to be in church to hear what is being said."

She didn't think it was possible for her heart to sink any lower on this subject, but it did.

"There's gossip going around the station?" she asked nervously.

Kevin cringed slightly. "Not just around the station; people are talking about Ruthie everywhere."

Thoughts ran through Lucy Kinkirk's mind. The words that she had wanted to forget so badly, replayed themselves without her liking. Then, Ruthie's tearful eyes looking at her with such hurt and sadness.

"How can people be so cruel and judgmental?" Lucy asked as she watched her spouse come to stand by her side.

"I don't know, Luce. I wish I could change things for you and Ruthie and your family, but I can't." Kevin tucked her hair behind her ear and kissed her forehead. "I don't mean to leave you here alone, but I have to get going or I'll be late for my shift."

"I understand. I love you," she said softly.

Kevin smiled and Lucy felt as if her heart skipped a beat. It amazed her at how one smile from the man she loved seemed to take her breath away and freeze that moment in time where everything was right and she felt nothing but happy.

Reverend Camden sat in his quiet study that evening, going over the letter whose author was still "anonymous." He must have read it about a hundred times now, and still, there was no answer. His mind kept dragging him back to the possibility of Ruthie, but denied it every time. Annie had to be right: Ruthie couldn't have written the letter, for the simple reason that she wasn't raped. Ruthie wasn't one to keep secrets like this.

Besides, you already spoke with her about it, and she said she didn't write it, he told himself. Let it go.

"I know that I can talk to you and Mom about anything. You tell me all the time."

Frustrated, Eric removed his eyeglasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, hoping to ward off the on-coming headache. As he sat there, not knowing what to do, he felt it. He felt that he might fail in finding this person in need of help. The feeling was extremely slight, but it was big enough to feel. That scared him.

There was a soft knock on the door.

Eric folded the letter and put it aside. "Come in," he called.

Ruthie entered the room in her sleeping attire. "Um, can I talk to you for a second?"
Eric patted his knees, gesturing for her to come and sit on his lap like she used to do when she was just a little girl.

Shutting the door behind her, Ruthie came to him. His arms wrapped around her, and instantly she felt uncomfortable. Ever since the incident, people touching her was a problem. She supposed that it was natural for a victim of that kind of invasion to feel like this. It was just another side effect.

Eric felt Ruthie flinch as he held her in his arms, so he loosened his grip. Not questioning her on it, he let her start the conversation.

"Dad, all of my life, you've really cared about people. Even the bad eggs that do nothing but spread gossip. It's never really bothered me, even when they were talking about Mary and why she got kicked out." Ruthie sighed. "But now that they're talking about me, it's different."

Eric tensed. "What are you talking about? You think people are gossiping about you?" he asked.

Ruthie twisted to face him. "Dad, ever since you brought up that letter in church, people have done nothing but talk about me."

"Honey, I haven't heard anyone speak badly about you," Eric explained.

Ruthie smiled. "That's because you listen with your heart. We all know that." She turned, resting her head on his shoulder.

"That one, I've heard before." Eric kissed Ruthie's temple. "What are people saying about you?"

Ruthie's eyes wandered to her father's desk, where she saw the familiar piece of white tri-folded paper. She reached for it. "They think I wrote this." A moment passed before Ruthie said anything more. "But they don't think I was raped. They think I 'brought it on myself.' You know, the old 'minister's daughter' standard."

Eric gave Ruthie a squeeze. "Ruthie, that is ridiculous, and you know it." Eric looked into Ruthie's eyes, and for the first time during their conversation, he noticed that she had her guard down, but only for a second. Yet, that second lasted long enough for him to recognize the tremendous pain and rage. It seemed like too much for a single woman to accumulate in one lifetime.

Ruthie knew that her father had seen inside her, had seen what was really going on. She had been stupid to even come and talk to him in the first place. He was too smart a man to be fooled by her act forever.

Eric took the letter from his daughter and opened it with his free hand. "Ruthie, you know that you can tell your mother and me anything. Anything at all, even if you think we can't handle it. So if there's something that we need to know, now's the time to get it out."
She was silent, and her expression revealed nothing to him.

"Honey, really, if there's anything -"

"No." Ruthie stood and faced her father. "No. There's nothing."

She closed the door behind her on the way out, not leaving time for her father to say a word.

"Hey, Mom. Kevin's gone for the night, so I thought I'd stop in for a while."

Lucy had caught up with her mother in the kitchen of her childhood home, wiping the table with a damp cloth. Annie looked over at her daughter and smiled. She was just about done cleaning, and Simon was getting the twins ready for bed. For once, she had time to have a chat with her second eldest daughter, who was often wrapped up in her own life and Kevin.

Lucy took a seat at the table, as her mother brought a cup of coffee for her and one for herself.

"Anything interesting happen lately?" Annie asked.

Lucy shrugged. "Nothing interesting, per say. More like, disturbing."

Annie's brow knotted. "Does this have anything to do with Peter's visit today?"

Lucy sighed, looking into the black sea of coffee. "Sort of. I don't - It's just - Something's up with Ruthie. More than just the gossip. She's hiding something, I know it."

This concern for Ruthie was nothing new to Annie. She had sensed it, too. Everyone in the family had - even the twins. Annie knew that Peter and Ruthie were very close. After all, Ruthie tells him everything. So, anything that was going on with Ruthie, Peter knew about, but Annie wasn't about to go digging for something from Peter that she should be told about by Ruthie.

"Have you talked to her?"

"She didn't tell me anything. She says that she's just upset about the rumors going around, but I don't completely believe her."

Annie bowed her head for a moment. "I know what you mean. Ruthie knows that she ask any one of us for help if she needs it. She just has to do it herself."

Lucy nodded and took a sip from her mug.

Ruthie locked herself inside her bathroom, hoping to avoid all family members. They all knew that something was wrong, except for Mary and Matt. How lucky they were to be thousands of miles away. She wished that she was somewhere in New York, or just about anywhere that wasn't Glenoak. There were too many people that knew her here, too many people who knew what happened.

She couldn't keep this secret forever, that she knew. Truth was going to surface sooner or later, whether it came from her mouth, or Peter's. He knew, and her father was going to catch on. She was such a stupid girl. Stupid to have told Peter. Stupid to have gone to her father in search of a feeling that she was loved. Stupid to have shied away from help and happiness for the second time. That was her second chance that she had been praying for, hoping for. And just like the first, it was shattered...by her.

Ruthie had flirted with the idea of telling her family, but the ideas of how they would react scared her, no matter what her father said. He would be angry with her, and so would the rest of them.

On the other hand, it would be nice to get this off her chest. It would be nice for her to share the burden. It would be nice.

"I know you're in pain, but not telling your family won't help you. You'll be in pain forever."

Deep down, on some level, Ruthie knew Peter's words were right. If she never got rid of this secret, she would be miserable throughout the rest of her life. The people she loved couldn't keep guessing. They had to know the truth.