The next day, a Friday, Ruthie, Hope and Rita were sharing breakfast at the home of Peter and Felicity, and James and Heather. Rita really enjoyed having breakfast with her brother and sister as before she was adopted she was an only child. As they were eating, Peter noticed the children were all wearing buttons with the transgender flag.

"Why are you wearing those?" he asked.

"Our friend Charlotte got beaten up pretty bad by some thugs at her high school," said Heather. "She's okay, but she needs to know she's got support. So today at lunch, everyone at school is walking out and walking the few blocks to the high school, and joining the students there who are also walking out. Think of it as a picket line in support of our friend."

"Wow, that's amazing!" said Ruthie. "I'm really proud of you guys."

"The attack has also made Charlotte change her mind about something," said Rita. "She was going to get the change next year, but she's more determined than ever that this won't change her. So she's getting the transformation this summer, and becoming a woman permanently, in time for her senior year."

"Good for her!" said Felicity.

At this point, Kaitlyn walked into the kitchen. She was also wearing a transgender button. She was carpooling the children and asked if they were ready, especially as it was a cold day.

"Two minutes," said Heather. "And thanks for the ride."

"The car is warmed up, but I need to talk to Ruthie for a minute in private first," said Kaitlyn.

"Not the rest of us?" asked Ruthie.

"Just us. It's kind of important."

"Okay. Kids, the car is waiting. Kaitlyn will be with you in a few minutes."

After the children bundled up then filed out, Ruthie led the way to the vestibule. After shutting the door behind her, Ruthie asked what was going on.

"Well, there are three things, actually," said Kaitlyn. "The first is about your father. Mom talked to Eric last night and took a long time to talk him down from his position. Finally he agreed to stand down. He won't get an assisted suicide - at least, not for now, not until he tries a rather unusual treatment Mom told him about."

"What's the treatment?" asked Ruthie.

"Well, ALS is both a neuro-muscular disorder as well as an autoimmune one. There are several patients in Canada who have been able to arrest the progression of the disease using - if you can believe this - the AIDS cocktail."

"What?"

"It's true. After it was explained to him, Eric thinks it may be his best hope to get into remission and have a normal quality of life. He hasn't changed his mind about quitting the ministry, though - he's retired, period."

"This is a very risky path for Dad to take. Okay, what is the success rate?"

"About 85 percent."

"Well, good enough for a betting woman, if I was one. Okay, tell Tammy thanks."

"Mom said she's just doing her job, making people feel good about themselves - like the rest of us do."

"All right," said Ruthie, "what's next?"

"Last night," said Kaitlyn, "Chester was telling me about his relationship with Heather. They absolutely love each other and it's like there isn't a thing they wouldn't do for each other. Um, literally."

"Why don't I like the sound of this?"

"Chester said that he and Heather are making out, heavily. A few days ago, according to him, he says Heather asked him to reach up inside her skirt. She told him to stop when he was a few inches away from - um, you know - and then she reciprocated, grabbing his jeans near his crotch. I'm telling you this, Aunt Ruthie, because I suspect your other children may be getting a bit too intimate with their Plus Ones as well. At least for their age. I never let my boyfriend, Alex, even come close to touching me like that, for the six years we were dating from when we were eleven, until we were ready to make love, which as you know we did about a year ago. I told Alex about my worries this morning, and he told me to come straight to you."

Ruthie thought she was going to feel sick. She didn't think any of her children - at least the ones who could talk - would carry things this far and this soon.

"I'll talk to Rita tonight, and Peter and Felicity can talk to James and Heather. Thank you Kaitlyn, for letting me know, and telling me the truth. Okay, is there anything else?"

"Well," said Kaitlyn, "now that all the espionage stuff is over with, the vault has been dismantled, and there are renovations going on to put in offices in its place. Eight, I think."

"Eight, maybe ten. Our congregation has 20,000 members. Eight ministers can't handle it all. We need all the help we can get. I know you're going to be a minister, Kaitlyn, but that's four years down the road. There might not be a space for you."

"Wherever God leads me, Aunt Ruthie," said Kaitlyn, "I'll follow Him wherever He leads me."

"So what's up, then?" asked Ruthie.

"Rod and Shelby made their first hire yesterday. They told Mom and Dad last night. And you are not going to believe who they go to join our team."

"Who?"

There was a pause of about five seconds. Finally, Kaitlyn said it.

"Jimmy Moon!"

Ruthie shrieked.

"I thought you were going to react like that," said Kaitlyn. "My sibs and I can't believe it, and neither can Mom or Dad. I mean, the father of your baby, or the sperm donor - or whatever he is - but yeah, he's selling his fishing and hunting store, headhunting for a new minister to replace him in Enid, and then he's coming here. He's due to arrive in April, just when your sisters-in-law are due to give birth. I hate to be the one giving you this news, but ..."

"No, you're just the messenger. It's okay. Well, you need to get to school yourself. Drive safe, and let me know how the picket went when you guys come home tonight."

"Sure thing, Aunt Ruthie. I love you." Kaitlyn kissed her aunt on the cheek.

"I love you too." Ruthie kissed her niece.

As soon as Kaitlyn and Ruthie's children had driven away, Ruthie grabbed her winter coat, stormed across the parking lot and pounded on the office door of Shelby. Shelby was in the middle of a phone call. She tried to wave Ruthie away through the window, but Ruthie signed, "This can't wait. We need to talk, now."

Shelby returned to her phone call. "Can I call you back in about, 10 or 15 minutes? Something came up. Thanks." As soon as she replaced the receiver, she waived Ruthie in.

"Shelby," shouted Ruthie as she shut the door behind her, "how could you hire Jimmy without telling me first? My family is complicated enough as it is, a mother and father, two stepmothers, three siblings who can talk, four who can't, and two more on the way! The four of us parents have the perfect arrangement raising our kids. Now, you're throwing in a fifth wheel."

"Fifth wheel?" asked Shelby. "Is that what Jimmy is to you? Or is he the father of the little girl you're carrying?"

"Jimmy and I agreed that he would be a parent at a distance, at least until he got his affairs in order. But that also includes finding a new house sitter for Felicity's manor in Enid. He's been living there rent free for the last year and a half. Don't tell me he's willingly giving that up just to be near me and our daughter."

"There more to this than that."

"Yes! You seem to be forgetting that Jimmy has a conviction for armed robbery. He may be straight and clean right now, but he still has a rap sheet and it hasn't been expunged. I don't think the State of Missouri will give a minister's license to someone who has a criminal record. That means he can't perform any marriages - which is this church's second stream of revenue, after weekly collections."

"So you don't want Jimmy here?"

"We need all hands on deck. The more, the better. I just want him to have a totally clean record. Our daughter deserves to have a father who doesn't have that hanging over his shoulders. And besides, I think there's something about him that he hasn't told me. Something really important."

Shelby paused, then sighed.

"You're right, Ruthie. Please sit down."

After Ruthie took a chair opposite Shelby, the senior pastor spoke.

"Before Peter and Felicity met, for a period of about three years - which ended two years prior to your ex's fateful meeting with her - she and Jimmy Moon had an affair. It was pretty torrid, from what he told me. Then all of a sudden, it ended. He faced a reality he had to deal with, and he told Felicity why he was ending the relationship. Ruthie ... Jimmy Moon is gay."

"Gay?" asked Ruthie.

"Yeah, gay. He said he'll tell you the real reason why he agreed to be your sperm donor himself. But he also figures your daughter needs to know both her parents are gay, and that's it's perfectly - "

"I already have a lesbian daughter. I don't know if I could handle two!"

"Your new baby might turn out to be straight."

"Maybe, but with that kind of influence, she might make the other choice. I'll love her just the same as I do Rita ... but it's hard enough helping one daughter fend off bullies. Two?"

"Ruthie, not many gays make the choice to be gay. You're one of the exceptions. Rita was born that way. Your new daughter may very well be born that way as well - if both her parents are gay. I'm sorry I didn't tell you everything last night, but I was blown away by everything Jimmy said to me. I was trying to figure out how to tell you, and I was going to tell you today. You need to be prepared for the challenge. You will meet it, with the help of Hope, Rita and your other children."

"I just wish you would have told me, Shelby. We're friends. We went through a lot together over the last ten years with your husband and my then husband. But ... I see you were caught in a bind. I forgive you."

"Thanks." The women got up, and hugged.

It was much later in the evening, about ten o'clock. After Chester and Emily put Chip and Dawn to bed, then went to bed themselves, Tamara went to the kitchen. She was stunned to see Kaitlyn collapsed on the kitchen table. Her hand was on a handset and she was gripping it like a dumbbell.

"Kate, what is it?" asked Tamara, concerned.

Slowly, Kaitlyn sat up. Her eyes were red as beets.

"Oh, my, let me get you something for that!" said her mother with concern. She rushed to the cabinet that contained a bottle of artificial tears. She walked to her daughter and dropped two drops in each eye. Kaitlyn blinked.

"Better?" asked her mother.

"Yeah. It's just that for the last two hours, I had the most horrible call, from my cousin, Rita."

"What about?"

"What her father did to her all those years. And she detailed everything. Every time he touched her, every time he was inside of her, every time he went down on her - and forced her to go down on him. It was awful, Mom! About half way through, I started bawling and I wasn't able to stop until a few minutes after we finally hung up. First of all, how can anyone do that to another human being? And how could that bastard do that to his own daughter, his own flesh and blood? I know about what Dad went though, but he was a teenager when the abuse started with him. Rita - she was just four years old. She's eleven now. How can she ever get past that?"

"I don't know, sweetheart," said Tamara. "But she is an incredibly courageous young woman. Especially hiding from her father the fact she was a lesbian. If he had known about that, she's probably be dead."

"I know that, and so does she," said Kaitlyn. "But here's the part I don't understand. Why did she confide in me? She has two mothers now, Aunts Hope and Ruthie, who love her so much and would do anything for her. Why not tell them? Why not you or one of the other ministers? Why did Rita unload this on me?"

"I don't know that either. Maybe she needed to talk to an adult she could trust. She still has a lot of trust issues. That's probably why she is calling her mothers by their first names, instead of 'Mom', or even 'Mom Ruthie' and 'Mom Hope.' Why she calls Peter and Felicity by their first names without 'Aunt' or 'Uncle' - "

"They're not her aunt and uncle, Mom."

"You know what I mean. She figured since you didn't have any kind of agenda, she could trust you. And believe me, I'm not going to ask you to repeat any of what she said. That's between you and her. Neither will your father ... and I will tell your siblings to butt out, too."

"Well ... thanks, and I hope she's okay after our talk. But what about the other thing, about Chester? I was shocked when he told he what he and Heather were doing - and the other guys were doing it too. You know I never let Alex touch me in any way like that, until we were ready to have sex. And we were dating for years before that. How does a twelve year old, a nine year old even, think that kind of play is okay? It's not, it's dangerous!"

"Your father and I had a talk with Chester, and he's agreed to back off - for a while, anyway. He knows that a relationship has to be built up slowly, and that he and Heather were rushing things. But Kate, be grateful they didn't go all the way. I counsel kids that age who have done it and wish they could take it back, which of course they can't. You only get one chance at your first time. I'm so happy it worked out for you, and I know you and Alex have made a lot of plans together. When he's ready to pop the question, we'll be happy. But in the meantime, you need to get an example for Chester. So I'm suggesting - I'm not forcing you, I can't anyway since you're 18 and an adult now, just suggesting - you and Alex take a break from sex until the end of the school year. If Chester can see you two have an intimate relationship without sex, then it will set a good example for him."

"That's actually a good idea. Alex and I were talking cooling off anyway. I'll do it."

"Thanks. In the meantime, the two of you are both safe, or have been?"

"Always. But just to be sure, in case Chester goes overboard, I will make sure he has some condoms. I know Heather is on the Pill like I am, so no issues there. I actually check up on her to make sure she is taking it. Same with the other girls."

"Good for you. Now, honey, would you like some cocoa?"

"I can't remember the last time you asked me if I wanted cocoa. Thanks, Mom!" The mother and daughter got up and hugged. Tamara went to the cupboard, pulled out a large yellow can, and took out a couple of scoops for Kaitlyn and herself.

Over at Ruthie's and Hope's, the wives were in bed, on the comforter. They were wearing their nightgowns while taking notes for the Saturday business meeting. There was a knock on the door. It was Rita. She was wearing her pajamas.

"Can I talk to you guys for a minute?" she asked.

"Sure. Slide up," said Ruthie.

Rita made her way to the bed and did as asked. The mothers noticed their daughter's red eyes.

"Tired?" asked Hope.

"No," said Rita. "I just poured out everything to Kaitlyn. What happened to me. I still can't bear to tell you guys, yet. But it felt good talking about it."

"Well, that's a good first step," said Ruthie. "When you're ready to talk to us, we'll be ready."

"Thanks. Well, I know you two wanted to talk to me about something else. You wanted to talk to me about me and Rhiannon and how close we've been the last little while."

"Yes, we did. And I get the fact you two love each other, that you share a bond because you're both lesbians, and you want to take things to the next level. But Rita, that is a bit too intimate for someone your age. You're eleven, and Rhiannon is only nine. What exactly did you do? Don't worry, we won't hurt you."

"We reached under each others' skirts," admitted Rita. "We stopped a few inches short, but we hit the miniskirt line."

"Did you want to go further?" asked Hope.

"Mmm-hmm. Not so much me to her. I wanted her to touch me, but she stopped. She said she wasn't ready. But I thought I was ready for it. For her to touch me."

"Why?"

A tear came down Rita's face.

"Because," she said, "Dad hurt me so much it still hurts. I thought, if she touched me there, it would be a good touch, and I would be healed."

Hope understood. Her brother had experienced so much abuse that when he finally found Tamara and her family, it was pretty much the same thing - having someone who loved him unconditionally and gave that love totally, in and out of bed, had transformed and healed him. But as far as Rita was concerned, it was a bridge too far.

"I get the part about wanting to be healed," Hope finally said. "I know you're thinking in terms of your uncle and that it could apply to you. But Rita, healing in your case involves much more than that. You need to ask Jesus to heal your soul and mind, as well as your body. Then, and only then, can you seek healing from others. So, Ruthie and I talked about it, and while we're not going to tell you to dump Rhiannon, the only things you can touch on each other are the lips, neck and earlobes. Kissing and nibbling - and the occasional hickey. We're enforcing this for two years, as are Rod and Shelby. I've also put a similar restriction on Heather and James and their Plus Ones, as have Peter and Felicity, and your Uncle Patrick and Aunt Tammy. Ruthie and I are your parents, and not your friends. We'll let you have as much freedom as you need, because you deserve it, but while you're in this house there are some basic rules you need to follow - and the most important is knowing when to keep your distance, especially with the ones you love."

"You're right," said Rita. "I'm sorry. I'll do as you say. Um, and thanks for not spanking me."

"We'll never raise our hands on you. Peter and I never have with James and Heather, and neither has Felicity. But consider this your lesson learned. Now, it's bedtime. Go to sleep, Rita."

"Good night, guys, I love you both." Rita kissed both Ruthie and Hope, and went to bed.

An hour and a half later, the phone started ringing. It rang seven times before Rita finally stirred awake and answered. It was Lucy, who identified herself as soon as Rita picked up.

"Aunt Lucy, what's up?" Rita said, turning on the light on the bedstand. "It's after 12:30 am here. Don't you know we're trying to get some sleep?"

"Rita, it's urgent," said Lucy. "Get your Moms. Both of them. I'm not kidding here."

Rita got up and walked to the room next door. She banged on the door hard, five times. Then she let herself in.

"Ruthie, Hope," she said loudly.

The women groaned and slowly stirred awake. Finally, they sat up.

"It's Aunt Lucy. She says it's important," said Rita.

"What the fuck?" the mothers said together.

Rita handed Ruthie the handset. Ruthie put it on speaker.

"Luce, this better be important," she said. "We all haven't had the best day here. And that's the whole pastoral team - all eight of us. What's going on?"

"Ruthie, Dad's been arrested," Lucy said.

The three women in the bedroom looked at each other. Their jaws dropped.

"What for, Aunt Lucy?" asked Rita.

"Uh, Rita, I think you may want to step out of the room for this," said Lucy.

"No, I've been through hell and back, I can take it. What's the charge?"

"Chief Michaels says that four women, all in their twenties, signed statements saying that when they were teenagers and were being counseled by Dad, he molested them. I can't believe it, I don't want to believe it, but Michaels says the police have a strong case. The other sibs are flying here and will be here by Monday. Ruthie, you, Sam and David need to get here ASAP, too."

"Fine," said Hope, "we'll use the corporate jet."

Rita and Ruthie looked at Hope, shocked.

When Hope's and Patrick's parents died, they inherited their parents' ministries vast estate, or what was left of it after the IRS moved it. It was still substantial, and one of the assets was a corporate plane. The siblings vowed they would never fly in it until it was sold - unless there was an emergency. In the meantime, it was sitting on the tarmac of a private airport outside of Saint Louis.

"What did you say?" asked Ruthie.

"We're using the jet. If your father needs help, then he'll need everything he can get, and as soon as possible. I'll fly out too. We can leave Rita at Peter and Felicity's for a few days ..."

"Yay!" whispered Rita. If it was a few days, it would be the most time she had spent with her siblings and she looked forward to that.

"... and I'll bring my checkbook. How much bail?"

"The DA is asking for two million, cash. No bond," said Lucy.

"I think I can negotiate with the DA to lower that," said Hope. "Thank you Lucy. We'll be there by noon tomorrow."

The call ended.

"You don't think your father is capable of that, do you?" she asked Ruthie.

But Ruthie was presuming the worst. She knew her father was cheating on Annie ... but teenagers?

"Oh Dad, how could you?" she moaned.

"Say it ain't so, Grandpa," wailed Rita.

Ruthie and Hope comforted her.