Disclaimer: I don't own Glee.

Chapter 11: Let them talk

Later that day, Santana was impatiently waiting for the night to come to go see Rachel at their secret spot. As hard as it was to admit it, she was somehow becoming dependant on the brunette and a Lopez never depends on anyone. Ever. Sure it was nice to have Mary around but it was her meetings with Rachel that lit up her mood the most. Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a knock on door. Since it was Mary's house, the girl hesitated for a moment before finally deciding to open it. To her surprise, Santiago's mother was standing on the porch. "What are you doing here?"

"That is no way to greet your mother, Santo." Anita chastised before smiling.

"I'm sorry, Mami. I was just surprised, please come in." The raven-haired girl stepped aside to let the woman enter. She sat at the kitchen table and motioned Anita to do the same.

Mrs Cruz sat next to Santana. "And to answer your question, I wanted to talk to you."

Santana crossed her arms defensively. She liked the woman but it was too much talk for one day. "If it's about going back to the ranch, you should save your breath because I won't."

"Santiago please, your father needs you there." Santiago's mother insisted. "He might not say it but you are really helping him with all the tasks."

"He should have thought about that before asking me to stay away." The former cheerleader argued.

"Dios mio, you're as stubborn as he is" Anita exclaimed, shaking her head. "He asked you to come back; it's his way of apologizing."

"Well, that's not enough." Santana stated. "At least here I'm free to do what I want."

"People are talking about Ms Quinn and you." Mrs Cruz said, almost hesitantly. "You could get her in trouble just by sharing a house with a woman you are not married to."

"Then let them talk, we're just friends!" The raven-haired girl cried in frustration.

"I know that." The woman replied calmly. "I can see how you look at Mrs Bercoran's daughter but other people don't know that… And they also talk about you and Michelle..." She sighed. "I don't want anything to happen to you and that is why I think you would be safer at the ranch."

"I can take care of myself." Santana declared, standing up. "Please, go home before Ricardo notices you're gone." She really wanted to go home and if they were stuck here until the fire started, then it couldn't come soon enough.

Anita stood up and moved to hug her. "Please think about it." She kissed her cheek before walking toward the door. "I miss you…" She said before the door closed behind her.

Not even five minutes later, there was another knock on the door. Thinking it was Anita; Santana rolled her eyes and opened the door forcefully. "I thought I made myself clear…" She stopped when she saw Pablo – Ricardo's handy man- standing in front of her. She raised her eyebrow. "What are you doing here?"

"Your mother sent me. Something happened at Doctor Quinn's practice and she thought you'd want to know." The man explained with his thick Mexican accent.

"What? What happened?" The Latina asked concerned.

Pablo shrugged. "I don't know. We saw some broken glass and a busted window. Your mother had to go home but she asked me to come and get you."

The raven-haired girl frowned. "Where is Mary?" She grabbed her gun and her hat before exiting the house.

"Dr Quinn is at her practice."

The tan girl nodded. "Okay, go back to the ranch. I'm gonna take care of this." She hastily got on her horse and rode it as fast as she can toward Mary's practice.

When Santana arrived downtown, Mary was sweeping the shattered glass on the floor. She quickly attached the reins of the horse and rushed next to the girl. "Are you okay?" She scanned the girl's body for any sign of injury as she squeezed the girl's shoulder for comfort.

Dr Quinn looked up and said. "I am, thank you." She smiled softly. "You shouldn't be here."

"I don't care. Who did this? What happened?" The Latina questioned while inspecting the window. There were a few holes in it and the rocks were scattered inside.

"No one wants to talk but I'm guessing Cole and his crew." Mary shrugged.

"But why?" The tan girl frowned, slowly getting angrier. "I'm the one they have a problem with!" She already hated the guy but it was now turning into pure loathing.

The doctor sighed. "I had an encounter with Cole earlier. He wanted to know what was happening between you and Michelle and when I refused to answer, he asked me what was happening between you and me. I told him to leave us alone but I guess this is his way of telling me he won't…"

The former cheerleader growled. "I'm gonna ends him! This douche is getting on my last nerve, like seriously!" She turned around, ready to march toward the saloon where she guessed Cole was but Mary grabbed her arm.

"Santiago, please don't." The blonde shook her head. "Thank you but you would only get hurt and it looks like the whole town supports him. We should just ignore them and…"

Santana rolled her eyes before interrupting her. "God, you sound just like the hobbit."

Dr Quinn looked at her confused. "The what?"

"Nothing, just forget it." The Latina looked around before sighing. "I'm going to help you fix the window and then I'll go talk to Michelle."

"Maybe you should wait; Cole and his friends are keeping a close eye on you." Mary advised, gathering all the pieces of glass and putting them on the side of the building.

The tan girl sighed again. "Fine but he will pay for this, sooner or later." She moved toward the door of the practice but stopped before entering to look at Mary. "I'm sorry for what happened, it's my fault. If you weren't helping us…" People had warned her about this but she didn't want to believe they would do something. She kept thinking like someone from the 21st century, where there were rules and laws and more freedom. She forgot sometimes, that here, in the old west, all she took for granted in her time could get her in trouble or worse… Maybe Anita was right; it would be safer for everyone to just go back to the ranch…

"It's not your fault or mine. We are just too ahead of our time… I wish I was born in another century…" The doctor confessed, making her way inside.

"And I wish I could go back in mine…" Santana whispered.

It was night time and Rachel was the first to arrive at the barn. She had heard what happened to Mary's practice and had been worried for Santana all day since she had no way to contact the Latina. The singer was about to start panicking when she saw the girl enter their secret spot, she sighed in relief. Without thinking, she rushed toward the Latina and hugged her tightly.

Santana let out an 'oomph' of surprise when a tiny body crushed into her. "Jeez, what got into you, midget? We saw each other this morning." She patted the girl's back a few times before breaking the embrace.

"I'm sorry, it's just…" The diva took a step back but kept her hand on the girl's arm. "I heard some people threw rocks at Mary's window and I was worried they'd go after you next."

"I'm fine." The Latina assured the diva as she squeezed her hand gently. "And it wasn't just random people, it was Cole and his squad."

"What?" The brunette frowned. "How do you know?"

"I just do…" The tan girl trailed off. She looked into Rachel's eyes before adding. "That's why I'm gonna go back to the ranch tonight."

"Why? I thought Ricardo told you to not come back." The petite girl didn't expect Santana to go back after what happened.

"He came to talk to me while I was in the saloon. Long story short, he wants me back before midnight or I'm no longer 'his son'."

The Jewish girl crinkled her nose. "Is it why you want to go back?"

"No, I don't care about horse face." The raven-haired girl waved her hand dismissively. "Anita asked me to come back too, she misses her son and…"

"But it's not safe!" Rachel cut her off.

"But I can't put Mary in danger. They were sending ME a warning not her and it's not fair of us to bring her into our mess." Santana pointed out.

"Oh…" The diva never thought Santana would give up the freedom she had at Mary's house to protect the girl. She knew she was protective toward her friends but she barely knew the doctor. Santana kept surprising her and it was always a pleasure to discover another sweet side of her.

The taller girl frowned. "What 'oh'?"

"Nothing, it's just…" The brunette put some of her hair behind her ear. "Really thoughtful of you."

"Whatever!" The Latina scowled. "Besides, I know Sasquatch and co wouldn't dare coming close to the ranch so I will only have to deal with Ricardo."

The petite girl nodded. "You have a point…" She might not like the idea but after what Cole did, it seemed wiser. Like they say, stick with the devil you know.

"Anyway, what about you? How did it go with Abigail?" The tan girl questioned.

"To my surprise, it went well." Rachel answered before continuing. "She welcomed me back with open arms. Her daughter is all she has left since her husband died so she doesn't want to lose her over 'petty' arguments, even though to my mind our discussion was anything but. How a person could threaten to cut their child out of their life and then describe the action as petty is beyond me, but for Michelle's sake I let it go." She was still upset about what happened after the fair with Abigail but she would have to keep it to herself until they leave this town.

Santana snorted. "That's very unlike you, Berry. I would have expected you to launch into some verbose speech about appropriate parenting techniques until she was so bored or insulted that she kicked you out again." She joked to light up the mood. "But at least now we don't have to worry about finding you somewhere to stay. I mean, as long as she doesn't go back to the evil mother who desperately wants her daughter to get hitched, we should be good."

"That's what I thought too." The Jewish girl nodded. "Well not in those terms because it's fairly rude but I agree with the general content of your statement."

The Latina rolled her eyes but didn't say anything else. They stayed silent for a while, just sitting on some tree trunks she had brought in the barn to make the place cosier. After a moment, she said. "I was thinking, isn't it weird to have just a mom here? I mean, since you have two dads and your mother is well, you know…"

The diva raised her eyebrow, surprised by the girl's question. "You were thinking about me and my family?"

The raven-haired girl scoffed. "Don't put it like that, you make it sound like I care about your personal life. I just had a lot of time to think since there is nothing else better to do in this joint."

The brunette fought a smile, not wanting the girl to get annoyed and leave. "I miss my dads and my home." She paused for a moment. Her relationship with Shelby, if she could call it that, was complicated and far from what she had imagined her mother would be. "I'm not Michelle so I don't see Abigail as a mother. And Abigail isn't Shelby and Shelby isn't well…"

"The mother of the year?" Santana offered.

"You can't be mother of the year if you don't want to be a part of your child's life because they are too old…" Rachel replied sadly.

"Shelby is good coach but she was a real bitch to you. Fuck her, it's her loss." The former cheerleader stated. "You keep talking about how great your dads are, they shower you with love so just be thankful for that."

The petite girl smiled wildly this time, not able to restrain herself. She was really starting to like this side of the girl. "Thank you."

"Yeah, don't get all mushy about it, I'm just keeping it real."

They fell into a comfortable silence again until Rachel spoke. "I miss singing too."

The Latina chuckled. "I can't believe I'm saying this but, yeah me too."

The brunette smiled. "Don't worry, I won't tell. Your secret is safe with me." She winked exuberantly as she made a zipping lips motion with her hand.

Santana laughed. "You're ridiculous!"

"I made you laugh." The diva grinned proudly before looking at her pocket watch. "It's late, I should go." She stood up. "You too, Santana, if you have to be at the ranch before midnight."

"Okay, be careful." The tan girl stood up too and walked with Rachel toward the door. "After what happened today, we need to stay alert."

Rachel smiled softly. "I will." She stepped closer to Santana and kissed the girl's cheek. "I was wrong about you, Santana Lopez; you're far from being heartless …" She smiled once again before leaving the barn.

Santana stood there dumbfounded as she watched the singer go. Damn. She could swear her heart had missed a beat…

A few days later, things had calmed down for the two of them. A new drama involving Sam Owens cheating on his wife had taken the spotlight away from them. Ricardo had left Santana alone for the most part and Abigail was still happy to have her daughter back.

It was Sunday morning and Michelle's mother had insisted they should go to church. Since her dad was Christian, she had already went to church even though she had chosen the Jewish faith so it wasn't a problem but she just wanted to use this opportunity to search the house while Abigail was away and it wouldn't be possible.

The diva was sitting in front of the church, looking at all the people going inside while Mrs Bercoran was talking with one of her friends. When she heard some footsteps coming closer to the bench, she turned her head and saw… "Santana? What are you doing here?" She questioned in surprise.

"What are you doing here, Berry? Aren't you Jewish?" Santana asked, glancing around her to see if anyone was paying attention to them.

"I am, Michelle isn't." The brunette simply stated. "What about you?"

"Ricardo insisted we come. He said we needed to show the people of this town that we were good people who were going to church or some bullshit." The Latina rolled her eyes at the thought.

The petite girl smiled sympathetically. "I'm afraid it won't be enough…"

The tan girl snorted. "Yeah go tell him that!"

Rachel was about to answer when she noticed a girl staring before smiling at her. "Someone is watching us. You should go inside. I will meet you at our spot tonight." As soon as Santana walked away, the girl who was looking at them approached her.

"Michelle. I'm so happy to see you." The brown-haired girl leaned down and hugged her tightly.

'This girl must be a friend of Michelle seeing the way she is greeting me. But why didn't I see her sooner? She hasn't come to the shop since we arrived.' The diva broke their embrace and smiled politely. "Hello."

"Is this how you're greeting an old friend? I know I left for almost a month to see my grandparents but I still look the same." The girl joked.

The brunette stood up, giving herself some time to think about a reply. "I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting you here."

"It's okay." The girl smiled. "Since I'm back you have to come to lunch soon."

"Dorothy. It's time to go inside!" A man that Rachel recognized as the mayor called.

'So Michelle was friend with the Mayor's daughter… But wait a minute…Isn't the manager of Glesswood park a descendent of the last mayor? I remember Mrs Harper saying something about it. Maybe I should accept her offer to have lunch to gather more information.' The petite girl looked at Dorothy. "I would be happy to eat lunch with you."

"Great. I will talk to you after the service." Dorothy stated before leaving.

The diva needed to know more about Glesswood and this was the perfect opportunity…