Sorry about the long wait. I've been real busy. I can't promise frequent updates, but I can promise I will be continuing this as much as I can. You get a lot of information here. Prepare yourselves.
Chapter 4: A Friend
The inside seemed empty when she entered. Lisette remembered that Paul had an office to the side, so she slowly made her way towards the office. The door was open, and she could see Paul and a woman speaking. She tentatively knocked on the open door, sleeves completely covering her hand as she did.
Both the woman and Paul looked up. Paul offered her a smile before gesturing towards a chair. Lisette moved quickly and sank into the chair, tucking her hair behind her ears nervously.
"Lisette, this is Beth. Beth, this is my sister, Lisette," Paul introduced.
"Hi," Lisette said quickly, trying to give her a reassuring smile. Beth attempted to smile back at her, but Lisette could see the pain there. It was pain Lisette constantly tried hiding.
"I'm going to go get some things ready in the main area of the church. Holler if you need me," Paul told them as he stood. He shut the door firmly behind him as he left.
"Paul said you wanted to talk," Lisette said quietly, glancing at her. Beth nodded, glancing at Lisette's stomach.
"How far along are you?" Beth asked her.
"Two months," Lisette answered.
"I'm about that far along as well," Beth said with a shaky laugh.
"Was it unexpected?" Lisette asked politely. Beth nodded.
"First time we had sex in weeks, only time we've had sex in weeks," Beth said bitterly.
"What about you?" Beth asked her.
"Wasn't expecting it. Should have been. Just…too much on my mind," Lisette said.
"Paul mentioned that you recently lost your husband. You don't look old enough to have been married," Beth said gently.
"I'm twenty. I get that a lot. I have twin two year olds that Joe Miller is watching for me right now," Lisette said, her voice sounding a bit stronger.
"Wow. You got married young then," Beth said. Lisette nodded.
"I did too," Beth said, a faraway look entering her eyes.
"Do you love him?" Lisette asked curiously. Love had always interested her. She'd never felt romantic love, and sometimes wondered what it would feel like.
"I guess, yeah. We have two children. A fifteen year old daughter and an eleven year old son," Beth said, her voice cracking at the last word. Lisette stared at her.
"Your son is dead," Lisette realized. Beth nodded, her eyes filling with tears. Lisette debated with herself before she opened her mouth.
"I have twin two year olds, a boy and a girl. And I should have had another baby. I had a miscarriage six months ago," Lisette said, speaking words she'd never admitted out loud.
"You just lost a child too," Beth realized, eyes wide.
"But I didn't have very long. I was only a few months pregnant. They told me it was stress and trauma," Lisette said sadly.
"And now your husband is dead too," Beth said.
"But it's different. Your son died recently. I can tell. You loved your son. I…I didn't love my husband. We were married because we were told to marry," Lisette tried explaining.
"Who could force you to marry someone?" Beth asked.
"My father. But my husband and I were friends. We liked one another," Lisette admitted.
"What happened?" Beth asked her.
"After I got pregnant the first time, he met someone, a girl. He fell in love with her, but my father was in control of the town. We couldn't get a divorce and separate – it would upset Daddy. My brother – adopted brother? I'm not sure what he was now. He was also a priest. He drew up a secret divorce contract for us and we got a divorce. We pretended to still be married so Daddy wouldn't find out, but once the children were born the girl moved in with us as a nanny," Lisette recounted.
"How horrible," Beth said in disgust. Lisette shook her head.
"No. Kelly and I were friends. And I was glad to see her and the man I had married happy. I didn't love him, so it didn't upset me to see him with her," Lisette explained.
"If you two were legally divorced so soon, how did you get pregnant the next two times?" Beth asked, fully enthralled by her story. Part of Lisette wanted to shut down and run away, but she was aware that this was distracting Beth. And Lisette knew that if she was Beth, she'd want any distraction she could get.
"We used artificial insemination. He had an acquaintance outside of town who owed him a few favors and we used that as a favor. Pretended it was natural to keep people from questioning our relationship," Lisette explained.
"Wow," Beth said.
"But I ran away before we knew if it had been a success, so I never thought about it," Lisette explained.
"Why did you run away?" Beth asked curiously.
"My husband died. I couldn't stand the thought of living with my father again. And he would have made me move back in with him," Lisette said.
"Your father…as in yours and Paul's father?" Beth asked.
"No. My father, as in the man who kidnapped me. I thought he was my father until I got here and DI Hardy ran a DNA test on me and found the cold case of my kidnapping," Lisette explained, the words tumbling from her lips.
"I don't know why I'm telling you this," Lisette said.
"Because I don't know anyone you're speaking of. I…my son was murdered," Beth said, her voice quivering.
"How long ago?" Lisette asked.
"A day," Beth admitted. And Lisette's blood ran cold.
"Danny?" Lisette asked, her voice strangled.
"How do you know Danny?" Beth asked, eyes going wide.
"He was kind. When I worked at Jack's shop, he sometimes stayed and played with my children. He brought them a toy one day," Lisette said.
"I didn't realize you knew him," Beth said.
"I'm so sorry. Danny….the kids adored him. He was so kind," Lisette said.
"When did you last see him?" Beth asked anxiously. Lisette looked down, shifting her hands anxiously.
"The night he died," Lisette admitted. Beth was silent.
"I heard him outside. I asked him where he was going. Told him to go home. I called DI Hardy to tell him I saw him. I didn't want him out, but I couldn't follow him, not with my own children I had to watch. But I called DI Hardy. His was the only number I had. I left him a message. I wish I'd known you before. So I could have called you and let you know," Lisette said, feeling the anguish ripping through her.
"You saw him that night?" Beth asked in horror.
"I should have followed him. Or got help. But I was scared, and couldn't leave my children. It took all my effort to drag them with me to a payphone in the middle of the night," Lisette admitted guiltily.
"So if DI Hardy had answered his phone, my son could have still been alive?" Beth asked angrily.
"No. I…I don't know. I should have followed him," Lisette repeated, hands drifting down to her stomach.
"What are you planning on doing about your baby?" Beth asked, switching topics.
"I have to keep it. I love it. It's not his or her's fault I have nothing. They deserve to be loved too. And I'll fight to protect them like I've fought to protect my other children," Lisette said.
"What about the baby you lost?" Beth wanted to know.
"I was ready to love him or her the same. I named it, you know. My husband and I had a little grave set up for the child. We named it Blake. The new baby can't replace what we would have felt for Blake. I'll feel something different for him or her. Probably more fear," Lisette admitted, hands creeping over her stomach.
"What about you?" Lisette asked.
"I don't know," Beth said honestly. Lisette stared at Beth for a moment, trying to gather her thoughts into words.
"You need to think about why you wouldn't want the baby. Why specifically. Once you know why you don't, you can determine whether that is a valid reason or just anxieties," Lisette said. Beth blinked at her, uncertain as to what to say.
"You never said. How did your husband die?" Beth asked. Lisette wrapped her arms firmly around herself.
"He was murdered," Lisette whispered.
"Like Danny?" Beth asked.
"No. Because we knew who did it. Everyone knew. But we couldn't do a thing about it. He was one of many examples," Lisette explained.
"Who would make an example of someone by killing them?" Beth asked, aghast. Lisette shook her head, holding herself tighter to try to keep herself from shaking.
"I shouldn't have told you any of that," Lisette whispered, her voice barely above a whisper.
"You have to tell someone. You can't bottle it up," Beth pointed out.
"I wouldn't have. If I didn't think you needed a distraction," Lisette blurted out.
"It was a distraction," Beth agreed.
"I should go. I…Joe said he'd watch the children, but I've never been apart from them this long," Lisette said, her anxiety rising a bit at the realization.
"Never?" Beth asked.
"No. I stayed at home and raised them. It's what Daddy wanted me to do," Lisette said. There was a knock on the door and Paul opened it.
"Hey. I just wanted to let you know it's half past six," Paul said.
"Oh. I should get back to the house," Beth said.
"It was nice talking to you," Beth said.
"Please. Don't tell anyone what I told you," Lisette pleaded.
"I won't," Beth said before she sent Paul a smile and made her way out of the church.
"What all did you tell her?" Paul asked curiously. Lisette sucked in a deep breath.
"Everything."
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"Are you sure they will be fine?" Lisette asked Paul for the hundred time.
"They'll be great. Joe does have two children of his own. And he volunteered to watch them," Paul reminded her.
"But I feel like I'm taking advantage of him. And I'm worried about them," Lisette said, biting her lip.
"You need to relax. I want to spend time with my sister," Paul told her.
"You didn't even know you had a sister until yesterday," Lisette pointed out quietly.
"No, I knew I had one. I just thought you were dead. It's a miracle, really. And I want to make use of that miracle," Paul said.
"Where are we going?" Lisette asked him, glancing around nervously. She didn't like walking around town when people were out. She felt so vulnerable. People were whispering, pointing at them.
"To get some food," Paul told her, giving her a welcoming smile as he pulled her into a small sit-down restaurant.
"It's okay. I'm not really hungry," Lisette said immediately.
"Have you eaten anything today?" Paul asked her critically.
"I don't need to eat every day," Lisette argued. And she really didn't.
"You do too need to eat every day. You're eating for two now, remember?" Paul pointed out. Lisette winced at his words. Because he was right.
"My body doesn't need much though," Lisette pointed out.
"Well it needs more now. Come on," Paul said with finality as he gave her a light shove towards one of the booths. She slid in, watching as Paul slid in the booth across from her. Even in the semi-privacy of the booth, she could still feel eyes on her.
A waitress sauntered up, pad in hands.
"Hello, Paul! Haven't seen you around in awhile," she said conversationally. Paul nodded.
"I tend to eat at home when I don't have a reason to eat out," Paul said, glancing at Lisette. The waitress followed his eyes and her own widened.
"No! I thought priests were supposed to stay single or something!" the waitress said. Paul's eyes shot up to hers, wide.
"What? No. No! She's not my girlfriend," Paul protested quickly. The waitress shook her head.
"Right. Forbidden love," she said with a lovesick expression on her face.
"No. She's my sister," Paul said. The waitress stopped, staring openly at them.
"Your sister?" she asked in disbelief.
"Yes. My sister," Paul said.
"Then why is she wearing one of your shirts?" the waitress asked.
"Because she was over when one of her children spat up on her, so I let her borrow one of my shirts," Paul lied.
"Children?" the waitress asked.
"Yes. My niece and nephew. I'd like a coke to drink. Lisette?" Paul asked, interrupting the waitress.
"A coke also," Lisette said, mimicking him. The waitress nodded, mouth still gaping as she scurried away.
"Sorry. Small town gossip," Paul said with a sigh.
"I wish they wouldn't," Lisette murmured.
"It'll be fine. Now, the chicken strips here are great. So's the cheeseburgers," Paul recommended as he opened the menu. Lisette opened her own menu, using it as a way to hide from all the eyes. She could see the waitress talking to another waitress by the soda station. She even pointed to their table.
"I don't think this was a good idea," Lisette whispered.
"It'll be fine. Now. Please. I just want to get to know you," Paul begged. The waitress returned, setting the sodas down on the table. She opened her mouth, ready to ask more questions, but Paul shook his head.
"I want chicken strips," Paul said.
"Me too," Lisette added. The waitress sighed before making her way to the kitchen.
"What do you want to know?" Lisette asked with a slump of her shoulders.
"Everything. What was your favorite subject in school? What are your hobbies?" Paul asked her.
"I loved English. Especially literature. That's the one thing I miss. Reading. I don't really have a lot of hobbies. I just take care of the children," Lisette said.
"I like to read too," Paul said with a smile.
"Come on. Tell me something about yourself. Anything," Paul urged her.
"My brother was a priest," Lisette blurted out. Paul's expression shifted as he watched her, waiting for her to continue.
"Well, I always thought he was my brother. He was a priest too, back home. He's the one who performed my marriage ceremony. He was always looking out for me. He was ten years older than me," Lisette said.
"Did he know you'd been kidnapped?" Paul asked.
"I don't know. I guess he had to have known. He would have been ten when I arrived. He'd have to have known. Maybe he was kidnapped too. He was nothing like Daddy," Lisette said.
"You call him your father when you're talking of him, but when you sound like you're addressing him, you call him Daddy. Why the shift?" Paul asked.
"He preferred to be called Daddy. That's what we were to call him," Lisette answered. Paul stared at her for a moment before his eyes widened and he leaned closer.
"You said your brother was a priest. Is he not anymore?" Paul asked. Lisette swallowed, taking a long sip of her soda.
"No. He's dead," Lisette said.
"Dead. Like your husband?" Paul asked.
"Yeah. Gray helped my husband and me. So he was helped into his grave too," Lisette said.
"Gray?" Paul asked.
"I called him Gray, he called me Grey. A lot of people couldn't tell the difference. We liked it though," Lisette said, a bittersweet smile sweeping across her face.
"So you went by Grey?" Paul asked.
"Grey was my first name. And Gray was his," Lisette said.
"But when you showed up here, you were going by Lisette. And that's the names in the records," Paul said.
"Yeah. My name was Grey Lisette. I figured I'd be safer going by Lisette rather than Grey. Imagine my surprise when I learn it was my real name. I guess that means Gray's real name might have been David. That was his middle name," Lisette mused.
"Do you think he was kidnapped as well?" Paul asked.
"I don't know," Lisette said, tugging on a strand of her hair.
"Right. Something else. A different topic, perhaps?" Paul asked her. Lisette nodded quickly.
"Any idea what you're going to do with the baby?" Paul asked her. Lisette swallowed once more. He had only shifted from one difficult subject to another.
"I'll keep it," Lisette said. Paul's face lit up, although he kept his mouth shut.
"I can't just get rid of it. It's not the child's fault this is a bad time. I even planned having it," Lisette admitted.
"Planned it how?" Paul asked her.
"My husband and I weren't really married. Not anymore. So we didn't sleep together. But Daddy thought we were, so we had to keep having children. We went to an in vitro place. It was our third time," Lisette said. Paul nodded before freezing.
"Third time? But Jasper and Emmaline are twins...aren't they?" Paul asked. Lisette nodded glumly.
"I had a miscarriage," she admitted sadly.
"Oh. I'm so sorry," Paul said earnestly.
"If I hadn't, my husband would probably still be alive. But it was my fault. I was stressed and miscarried. That meant there was a longer time in between children, and Daddy got suspicious. A month later and we'd have been able to announce another child on the way," Lisette said sadly.
"That probably wasn't the best of topics either, was it?" Paul realized. Lisette shook her head before glancing up.
"Tell me about our parents?" Lisette asked tentatively. Paul offered up a small smile before nodding.
The two of them talked until their food arrived, and the food quickly. Paul dropped her off at the Miller's house.
"Can we spend some more time together soon?" Paul asked her. Lisette nodded shyly.
"You could come to church tomorrow. I'm preaching. You said your brother was a priest," Paul offered.
"Will people stare at me?" Lisette asked.
"I only have a handful of parishers. Don't worry," Paul told her. Lisette tugged on her hair once more.
"I don't have anything to wear," she admitted quietly.
"Come as you are. If you feel nervous, show up five minutes late and sit in the back. It starts at ten," Paul said hopefully.
"Okay," Lisette whispered. Paul smiled at her.
"I'll see you tomorrow then," he said before kissing her cheek gently and taking off.
When she entered the house, Joe was feeding the children. Tom was sitting in his chair, Fred in his chair, and both Jasper and Emmaline were in another, glued to each other as they watched Tom intently, mimicking his movements. Lisette stood in doorway, watching them. Tom seemed to notice the children's attention and started using his fork oddly. The twins tried copying him.
"Tom," Joe said.
"What? I was only having fun," Tom complained.
"I thought it was funny too," Lisette said. Joe glanced up.
"Hey! How was your visit with your brother?" Joe asked.
"It was good. Thanks for watching them for me," Lisette said. The children glanced up and looked as though they were going to run for her, but Lisette shook her head.
"No. You need to eat. Finish eating first," Lisette told them sternly. Both children pouted but attempted to use the forks like Tom had been.
Once they had eaten enough, the two children glued themselves to Lisette's sides. Lisette smiled once more at Joe.
"I really appreciate you watching them for me," she told him with a warm smile. Joe shrugged it off, moving dishes to the kitchen. Lisette wasted no time in gathering the rest of the dishes and following him to the kitchen.
"It's really no problem. They kept Fred and Tom entertained. Less work for me, really. You don't have to do that," Joe protested as she started rinsing the plates off. Lisette shook her head.
"No. It's okay. I'm good at dishes and cleaning. That's all I ever did, really. Let me do them. To say thanks for watching the children and letting me stay here," Lisette begged. Joe relented, nodding.
"Just this once," he told her before making his way into the living room where Tom had already started playing a video game.
When Lisette woke up the next morning, she pulled Paul's shirt back on – she'd discovered a rip in hers the night before and chose to use it as a nightshirt – before rousing the children. She got them cleaned up as quietly as possible and fed each of them a fruit cup she'd bought the day before. She shoved her things in her backpack quickly before placing a sleepy child on each hip and heading for the door.
"Hey. Where are you heading this early?" Ellie's voice called out. Lisette jumped and spun around, eyes wide. Ellie was in a dressing gown, appearing just as sleepy as the children.
"Paul invited me to go to church. I told him I'd go if I could sneak in late to avoid stares," Lisette said, feeling smaller as the words left her mouth. Ellie nodded and Lisette turned to leave.
"You're not going to church like that, are you?" Ellie asked her. Lisette's shoulders dropped.
"I don't exactly have any other clothes," Lisette whispered.
"Come up here. I have some clothes of my sister's that might fit you. She grew out of them years ago and left them here," Ellie said, gesturing for Lisette to follow her. Lisette dutifully followed Ellie up the stairs and to a room with boxes and bags lying around. Ellie rummaged around for a few moments before pulling a box out. She pulled a short sleeved dress out and tried to hand it to Lisette, but Lisette shook her head.
"No. I'm sorry. I…I can only wear long sleeves," Lisette said quietly.
"Why?" Ellie asked suspiciously. Lisette shook her head. Ellie sighed and pulled out a long sleeved button down shirt and handed it to Lisette along with the dress.
"There. Try that," Ellie said. Lisette nodded and moved towards a bathroom.
"Why can't you wear short sleeves?" Ellie repeated as Lisette moved into the bathroom. Lisette sighed and glanced out at her.
"It's not a pretty sight," Lisette admitted before closing the doors. She slipped out of her jeans and Paul's shirt and into the new outfit. When she came out, Ellie was still waiting there.
"If you leave your clothes on the couch, I'll throw them in the wash for you. Are you coming home directly from church?" Ellie asked her. Lisette shrugged.
"I don't know. I work at seven at the Laundromat," Lisette told her. Ellie nodded.
Lisette made her way to the church, children still in her arms, half asleep. She snuck in the back just as Paul made his way up to speak. He smiled at her as she sat in the back row, listening to his sermon. It was comforting. She hadn't realized how much she missed church.
She'd avoided churches in her time on the run. Churches, she'd noticed, tended to ask more questions. It was more trouble than it was worth.
After the sermon, right before it ended, Lisette snuck out of the way and hid as the parishers left. She made her way over to Paul once everyone was gone.
"I thought you'd left already," Paul said.
"I wanted to stay but didn't want people staring," Lisette admitted.
"Nice dress," Paul told her with a smile. The twins had only started to wake up and were starting to tug at her. Lisette sat them down on their feet, allowing them to cling to her legs as they chattered with each other in their own twin language.
"Ellie let me wear it. She said her sister outgrew it and left it there. She said my clothes wouldn't look good at church," Lisette mumbled.
"I can get you some new clothes," Paul offered. Lisette shook her head quickly.
"You don't need to do that. I can take care of myself," Lisette responded automatically.
"You could, but you're family. You're an expecting mother of two. You need help," Paul argued with her. Lisette opened her mouth but closed it once more. Her shoulders dropped in defeat.
"I've almost got the back bedroom cleaned out for you. It should be cleaned out by tomorrow, if you want to come and move in," Paul said.
"You don't have to do this," Lisette muttered.
"Yes. I do. You're my younger sister. It's in the job description," Paul told her with a soft smile.
"But you didn't even know me before!" Lisette blurted out.
"No. I knew I had a sister. I didn't know what happened to her. It only means I have years to make up for taking care of you and spoiling my niece and nephew, and the new one when he arrives," Paul said with a wider smile.
"He?" Lisette asked. Paul nodded.
"I'm leaning towards a boy," he said.
"I'm sure your opinion will be taken into account," Lisette told him with her own grin. Paul beckoned for her to walk with him. He stopped outside of his office.
"I'm going to change clothes real quick. Then maybe we can go on a walk by the beach?" Paul asked. Lisette's spine stiffened at the words.
"Anywhere but the beach," Lisette said, the words leaving her in a whoosh.
"What's wrong with the beach?" Paul asked in confusion.
"I don't like water," Lisette said.
"Sure. Give me a few minutes," Paul said, making his way into his office. Emmaline started running, Jasper chasing her. The two of them erupted into a fit of giggles as they ran in circles around a pillar. Lisette couldn't help but smile at the two of them.
Jasper jumped out at Emmaline, causing her to shriek and fall backwards. Paul was out of the room in an instant as Lisette started towards them. Before either adult could reach them, Jasper was in front of her. He grabbed her hand, which she seemed to have fallen on, and kissed it. Emmaline, who had started crying when she hit the ground, stopped crying at the motion. Before she pushed Jasper to the ground herself.
"They're interesting, to say the least," Paul said.
"I used to kiss their ouchies for them. Jasper was trying to make her feel better, but Emmaline wasn't about to not get revenge," Lisette said with a laugh.
"Siblings at their very best right there," Paul told her with a grin.
Hardy:
"His facebook posts were interesting," Miller was explaining. Hardy glanced up from what he was looking at. He'd gotten the test results back from the blood on the rings. He wanted to see what was on it, but he also needed to focus on this murder.
"Oh?" Alec said, waiting for her to continue.
" 'She's totally having sex with Dean.' And here, 'Dear Dad, remember me? I'm the one you used to play with.' This one's creepy. 'I know what he's doing'. And then this. 'How do people walk past someone every day and not see how badly they're hurting? How badly they've been hurt?' Do you think he was depressed?" Miller asked cautiously.
"He might have been talking about Lisette," Alec found himself saying.
"True. I hadn't thought of that. And he knew them. He'd seen them a few times," Miller added Alec nodded along with her.
After she had left his office, Alec pulled open the results. Lisette's blood. And another man's. Dan Teds.
Alec turned and typed the name into the computer, waiting for the name to pop up. He had to have been in the system if they had been able to give him a name for the DNA.
His blood ran cold as the results came up on the screen.
Dan Teds. A serial killer from twenty-five years ago who had disappeared, presumed dead.
Alec guessed it was safe to say he was not dead.
Lisette just got a whole lot more complicated.