Disclaimer: I don't own Glee

A/N: I'm going away on vacation, I don't know when I'll post the next chapter yet.

Chapter 14: Helping hand

The first thing Rachel did when she was alone was read the journal she had found in the barn. If the fire was happening soon, they needed all the information they could get. The first entries were about Michelle's father, how he liked Cole and wanted his daughter to marry him so they could take over the shop once he'd gotten old. Mr Bercoran seemed to be like a nice man, a good husband and a good father - well except for his definition of a good man since he rooted for Cole - which was why Rachel couldn't understand why someone would want to kill him. She wished she could find out who did it but it wasn't the reason why they were sent here in the first place and she was already in enough trouble without investigating old crimes.

A few pages further, Michelle was talking about Dorothy, how she was glad for the girl's friendship even though she didn't want to share the confusing feelings she had for Santiago. The diva raised an eyebrow at this comment. In the older journals, she could tell the girl was attracted to the boy without even being aware of it but here, it was clear she was slowly realising what the tension between them was all about.

Michelle also wrote a long part on Cole. The man kept showing up out of nowhere every chance he got, finding excuses to spend time with her. She was becoming uncomfortable around him but since she still cared about the tall boy, she couldn't find it in her heart to ask him to leave her alone.

The brunette finally reached the pages she had starting reading in the barn. Unconsciously, she reached for the necklace she hid under her dress, playing with the ring Santana had given her when they tried to leave town. It was a habit she had picked up for a while now without even noticing. It said things had been tense at home for both Michelle and Santiago and they couldn't help but find comfort in each other. They had grown a lot closer in the past few weeks and her feelings were more confusing than ever. After a bad encounter, they had decided to meet out of people's sight, choosing the Blake's old barn as their safe place.

"What were the odds that Michelle and Santiago would choose the same secret spot as us?!" Rachel mused at loud. Could it be possible that the 'force' that brought them here could also influence them in their actions?

As Rachel kept reading she saw that the girl seemed to be jealous of one of Santiago's friend with whom he was spending his afternoon with despite her knowing full well it was just a friend of the family. Michelle had decided to voice her concern to the boy but things didn't go as expected. Santiago had kissed her in the middle of the argument, leaving her breathless and yearning for more. The diva smiled, it was cute and passionate. But did it mean they were already a couple before Santana and her travelled back in time?

The petite girl turned the page, eager to read more but she frowned when she found a blank page. Her frowned deepened as she kept skipping through blank pages. She went back to the previous page and looked closer. It looked like the last page Michelle wrote had been ripped out. But why?

Unfortunately, it was time for her to leave and go meet Santana at the barn. She knew she should share this with the Latina but she wanted to know more before telling her anything…

A few days later…

Santana entered the Cruz's house after spending her morning taking care of the horses. The first week at the ranch had been hard for her but soon, she had found a way to delegate most of her tasks to some workers, using her HBIC attitude to force people to do what she wanted them to do. It was like the ranch had became the new McKinley and just like at school, she wasn't planning on doing the dirty work, that was what minions were for. Just like in high school, she had to use the right threats to keep them silent but it seemed like they were used to Santiago telling them what to do so she just had to continue his work.

She still had to look busy whenever Ricardo was around so she was taking care of the horses, which wasn't so unpleasant, or chopping wood. To her surprise, it was something that was helping her release her anger and frustration.

That Latina hadn't share all that with Rachel because she was sure the girl would lecture her on how it wasn't okay to use people so it was better to keep it to herself.

The raven-haired girl yawned and stretched as she wandered into the kitchen. She would kill for a caramel macchiato right now and maybe a burger with some fries. Her stomach growled at the thought; she missed 21st century food.

"Ah, Santiago, there you are," Anita said, looking up from the food she was preparing. "Go outside and bring in the chicken."

The tan girl blinked confused. "Qué?"

"Go to the henhouse and bring me a chicken for dinner." Mrs Cruz repeated.

The former cheerleader looked at the woman blankly. "But like, alive?" She asked dumbly. Usually, when her mother was asking that, she had to go to the store and buy the already prepared chicken.

"No, tonto!" The older woman chuckled. "I need it to cook." She shook her head before going back to her task. When she noticed her son wasn't moving, she made a shoo movement with her free hand. "Sube!"

"Hum, yeah, okay." Santana hastily left the kitchen and went outside. There was no way she was going to kill a chicken. The only way she liked it was already cooked and on her plate, not running around in a field. She was so not in the mood for that. She looked around to see if she could ask someone to help her but there was no one in sight. 'Great, the one time I need one of those morons, no one's here.' She sighed defeated before making her way towards the henhouse.

Santana stared at all the chickens for a moment, living, breathing, clucking chickens. "Fuck it!" She said under her breath as she silently entered the henhouse, rolling her shirt sleeves up in preparation of her task. She walked around searching for her prey and when she spotted a white yellow-ish chubby chicken which didn't seem to move much, she approached it slowly. She leaned down in an attempt to catch the animal but it ran away quickly. She growled. "Come on Feather Locklear, don't be scared. Auntie Snixx just wants to have a little chat with you." She chased it around for a moment, scaring all the other chickens. Once she was close enough, she leaped forward, smiling in victory. Her smile faded away quickly when she landed in the dirt, the chicken clucking and pecking a few inches away from her face as if nothing had happened. She glared at it. "You fucking… This is war!" She stood up and dusted her clothes off before running after the chicken again.

After another 15 minute of chasing, Santana finally caught the chicken and hurriedly went back inside the house, holding it in front of her as the animal flapped its wings in panic, sending feathers everywhere.

Anita turned around as soon as Santana entered the kitchen. "Santiago, what are you doing? Don't play with that poor little thing; you're making a mess of my kitchen!" She wiped her hands on a towel and stepped forward. "I told you dead, this is not funny." She grabbed the chicken and calmly wrung its neck.

Santana's eyes went wide and she gasped despite herself. She felt bad for the poor animal. She shuddered when Santiago's mother handed her the chicken. Her mind instantly went to Rachel and how she would be disappointed in her for letting that happened. Why was she feeling a pang of sadness at the thought? Why was she even thinking about that?

Anita looked at her son expectantly. "Well? It needs plucking and gutting. Vamos!"

"Eww…" The former cheerleader took a step back as she shook her head.

"No seas un lloron!" Mrs Cruz put the animal in her hands. "You have strange behaviour lately, mijo. Are you sure everything is okay?"

The young girl forced a smile as she looked at the dead chicken. "No te preocupes, mami. Todo esta bien."

The older Latina raised her eyebrow. "How is Michelle?"

"What? Why?" Santana questioned suspiciously. Anita sounded too much like her mom when she knew something but wanted her to come clean about it first.

Anita smiled knowingly. "I saw her yesterday, she was very smiley. More than usual… You had the same smile on your face when you woke up this morning…"

"I have no idea what you're talking about. I better go and take care of the chicken." The raven-haired girl rushed out of the house without looking behind. It was like with her Mami, it was better to flee the place than face the kind of talk that was about to happen. The less Anita knew, the better. The woman was nice and she didn't want her to get hurt because she tried to interfere.

Once outside, Santana found Pablo and asked him to take care of the chicken. There was no way she could touch it again after that.

Rachel had been working at the shop all morning as usual. It was a busy day for Abigail and her because they had to deal with a delivery of fruits and vegetables from their local farmer.

The diva was carrying a heavy basket of apples inside the shop when a dog ran past her and made her lose her balance, spilling some of the apples on the floor. She sighed tiredly, she really wanted this day to end. She was so caught up in her thoughts, Michelle's journal, the fire, how to go back to her time and Santana. Her relationship with the Latina had evolved so much since they arrived. They were close now but lately, there was something else but she couldn't pinpoint what…

The brunette kneeled down to pick up the fruit and saw a hand reach for one of the apples. She looked up and saw Santiago's mother. "Mrs Cruz, you don't have to, it's okay." She smiled.

"It is no problem." The older woman said kindly, helping Rachel gather the apples in the basket.

"Thank you." The petite girl stated as she stood up. "You are very kind."

Anita stood up and smiled. "You are very kind too, Michelle, and very good to my son."

Rachel looked around to see if anyone was looking. She cleared her throat. "Santiago is a good friend." She nodded at the woman, hoping it would be the end of the conversation before going inside the shop.

Unfortunately, Mrs Cruz followed her. "I saw you with my son the other day…"

The Jewish girl was glad the place was empty and Abigail was busy in the back-store. "Like I said Mrs Cruz, we are friends…" She was starting to feel uncomfortable. She couldn't understand why Santiago's mother was talking to her. She knew the woman was nice but they were in the middle of the shop where anyone could see them. "I'm not trying to be rude, ma'am, but I'm a bit busy…"

"I'm just buying some groceries at your store. Am I not allowed?" The woman raised an eyebrow.

The diva frowned. This wasn't going as she wanted it to go. She didn't want Santiago's mother to hate her; she just wanted to avoid trouble. "Of course you are."

"And to be honest, I learned to ignore what people say about me and my family a long time ago and do as I please since." Anita stated, grabbing some herbs off a shelf and putting them on the counter.

The brunette glanced toward the back-shop before answering. "I applaud you on that but I don't have the same luxury."

Mrs Cruz looked at her for what felt like eternity before nodding. "Very well. Just tell me how much I owe you for the herbs."

The petite girl sighed in relief, glad the woman saw her uneasiness. "Of course." She started scribbling on a piece of paper.

"You should come to dinner at the ranch." Anita said like it was normal occurrence for her to invite people at the ranch.

Rachel looked at her in disbelief. Had she lost her mind? Santana and her were trying to keep their meetings under wraps because of all the tension in town and the woman wanted her to come to dinner "I beg you pardon?"

Mrs Cruz grabbed the piece of paper to look at the total and put the amount on the counter. "I'm sure you heard me, dear."

"I'm afraid I don't understand." The glee captain frowned. This woman was serious. Wasn't she aware of all the hate they were getting lately? What was she trying to do?

"And I understand you don't want to be in trouble but you shouldn't give up on love because people disapprove of your relationship." The Latina smiled supportively.

"Love?!" The Jewish girl choked. "We… I… No… Just…"

"A mother knows those things." Anita winked. "I'm just offering you a quiet place for the evening. My husband won't know about it, don't worry."

The diva blinked in confusion. What was happening? "I'm sorry Mrs Cruz, but I can't. It would raise numerous questions I'm not sure I can answer. And my mother…"

"Do you care for my son?" Santiago's mother cut her off.

"I… Yes, I do." The petite girl's mind immediately went to Santana and how she had come to care so much about her lately.

The Latina grinned before becoming serious again. "Then I'm sure just like me you want him to be happy."

"Of course but…"

"Spending an evening with you would make my son happy." Anita interrupted her again.

"Mrs Cruz…" The woman kept interrupting her. Rachel was completely losing the control of the conversation and she hated it. She liked to be free to express herself and she wanted people to listen but here, it was clear she didn't have any other choice than to listen and agree with whatever the woman's plan was.

Mrs Cruz raised her hand dismissively. "I won't take no for an answer, Michelle."

"But I can't just show up at the ranch!" The brunette exclaimed, slightly raising her voice in frustration.

"Don't worry about it." The Latina grabbed another piece of paper and wrote a list of groceries and utilities. "I want my order to be delivered for 6PM sharp on Friday."

"But…"

"Mrs Cruz…" Rachel and Anita turned their attention toward the back-shop door where Abigail was standing. "Is everything alright?"

"Good afternoon, Mrs Bercoran. Everything is fine. I was giving your daughter a list of goods I needed her to deliver this Friday."

"Then what is the problem, Michelle?" Mrs Bercoran asked as she stepped behind the counter.

'Improvise, Rachel, Improvise.' The diva thought but her mind went blank. Luckily, Anita spoke for her.

"I was asking her if you needed baskets and wood crates." The Latina lied. "We have a few we don't need anymore and I was wondering if you wanted them. Your family has always agreed to deliver us at the ranch even though it was a bit far so it's the least we can do."

"You're so kind, Mrs Cruz. We could certainly need them."

"Very good. We will give them to Michelle when she'll come to deliver my order." Mrs Cruz grabbed her herbs and nodded at the women. "Have a nice day, ladies. Michelle I'll see you on Friday."

Rachel watched Anita leave mouth open. She wasn't sure what just happened but it seemed like Santiago's mother had given her the perfect opportunity to spend time with Santana without being afraid of someone 'seeing' them.

"I don't know why the Cruz woman is suddenly so generous and I hope it has nothing to do with you, Michelle, because I told you to stay away from them but we can't refuse her offer." Abigail looked at Rachel who tried to compose herself. "Sadly I can't come with you, Mrs Andrews is coming for dinner so you'll go alone Friday."

The diva nodded. Did Anita choose Friday on purpose? She really needed to talk to Santana about that…

"Go back to work now, we still have things to do." Mrs Bercoran ordered

"Yes, mother." The brunette replied absentmindedly, hoping the evening would come faster.

Rachel was cleaning the front of the shop after finishing sorting out the delivery of fruit when Cole appeared in front of her.

"So are you friends with Mrs Cruz now too?" The man asked, his tone anything but friendly.

The diva sighed tiredly. As if her day wasn't tiring enough, Cole had to show up. "Good afternoon, Cole." She greeted as politely as she could master while ignoring the boy's question.

"Are you planning on becoming friends with all the Mexicans in this town?"

"So what if I am?!" The brunette snapped. She didn't have the patience to deal with the boy anymore.

"Michelle…" Cole said in a warning tone. "I told you to stay away from those people and I hate to repeat myself. You better do as I say or..."

"Or what?" The petite girl cut him off, putting away her broom to face the man. "You're going to threaten me? Hit me? Throw rocks at my window? Like you did with Santiago and Mary?"

"They should know better than to go against the rules." The tall man stated through gritted teeth.

The Jewish girl crossed her arms defiantly. "What rules exactly?"

"Those bean eaters shouldn't mingle with us. And you shouldn't spend time with the Cruz. They stole our lands!"

"What?" Rachel crinkled her nose. It was funny how racist people still have the same argument a century later. "They bought them!"

"With money they stole from the whites!" The brown-haired man declared loudly.

"Oh my god!" The petite girl raised her hands in frustration. "Unbelievable…" She shook her head. She was done with all the close-minded people of this town. She already had to deal with them on regular basis at school, she would appreciate a break. "I think you should leave now, Cole." She took a step toward the shop but the boy grabbed her arm tightly.

"If you don't stop this nonsense, I might not be able to protect you next time Santiago or his people step out of line."

"Cole, let me go, you are hurting me." Rachel tried to pull her arm away from his tight grip but he kept squeezing it. She was sure she would have a bruise just like she had after the fair.

"That's enough gringo, let the lady go." Ricardo appeared behind them and grabbed the boy's shoulder.

Cole shrugged the hand away. "That's none of your business, old man. This is between me and my girlfriend. You should leave."

"I am NOT your girlfriend." The diva exclaimed angrily, still trying to free her arm.

Mr Cruz gripped Cole's shoulder again and pushed him away. "I'm afraid this is my business since the moment you insulted my family."

The tall boy let go of Rachel to face Mr Cruz. "What are you going to do about it, hombre?" He sneered.

"You may think you are a big man, Cole, but all I see is a scared little boy who likes to bully people and hide behind daddy when things get tough." Ricardo leaned close to his face. "I will warn you only once. Insult me or my family again and I will knock your ass in the dirt in front of all your little friends here. I am not scared of you or your little gang."

Cole glared at the man for a moment. "This is not over." He huffed before leaving.

Mr Cruz followed the boy from the corner of his eyes, making sure he was leaving before turning his attention to Rachel. He looked at her arm, like he was making sure it was okay. "You might want Dr Quinn to take a look at it." He stated before turning around to leave.

"Hum, Mr Cruz…" Rachel said hesitantly. The man had come to her help when he didn't have to and despite the fact that she wasn't so fond of him, she wanted to thank him. "Thank you."

Mr Cruz nodded at her with the hint of smile before walking toward the saloon.

The brunette sighed for the hundredth time today. She really needed to see Santana. More than that, she longed to see her. She needed to feel close to her, to feel comforted by her, to have the girl hold her close and tell her everything would be okay. The thought scared and confused her but left her feeling somehow exhilarated, like everything would be okay if they were just together.