“Are you sure you don’t want me to accompany you, Charlotte?” Stella looks over at her wife as she packs for her trip back to the States for the holidays.

Charlotte stops packing her luggage and looks towards her wife. She has so much love for her. She knows her wife would accompany her if asked, but she must do this alone. It is time for her to face her family.

“I’m sure, sweetie. Besides, I don’t think my family could survive if you decided to go all British on them.” Charlotte knew how proficient her wife was in inflicting punishment on people who pissed her off. Her wife came from a family of law enforcement agents, special forces officers, and British agents.

“I wouldn’t use those skills on your family, sweetie.” Stella walks over to Charlotte and hugs her. She loved holding her wife and wanted to protect her.

“Really? I know your temperament and what you would do to anyone who hurt me.” Charlotte looks into Stella’s amber eyes. She had never seen anyone with eyes like that before.

“You know, I never make a promise I won’t keep, even if I have to bite my tongue.” Stella knew she had a protective streak regarding the people she cared for.

“I know, and it is one of the qualities I fell in love with you.” Charlotte kisses her wife.

Stella returns the kiss and pulls Charlotte closer to her body. She hates letting her wife go back to the States without her, but she is busy with an assignment MI 5 gave her and cannot leave it. At least she could have her cousin track her wife and have her relatives in the States look after her, if need be.

Stella helps her wife finish packing and ensures Charlotte has everything she needs for her trip. Instead of having dinner at home, Stella takes her wife to one of their favorite restaurants in London. She knew her wife wouldn’t return until after the New Year, so she wanted to go with her.

The following day, Stella drops her wife off at the airport. Before she lets her go, she looks into her wife’s green eyes: " Be careful and come back to me. Also, if you need help or want to get away from your family, my uncle’s and cousin's phone numbers are programmed in your phone.”

“Thanks, sweetie. I hope I won’t need to disturb them.” Charlotte hugs her wife one more time before going through security. She could have taken the family private jet but decided not to.

Charlotte finds her seat in first class and sits down. It will be a long flight from London to New York and from New York to Rexburg, Idaho. She has debated for years since she left home when she was sixteen if she will ever go back.

The only reason she was going back now was to attend her grandmother’s funeral and to try and patch things up between her and her family. It’s been seven years since she left and went to England. She has even developed a British accent since moving to England.

Charlotte tried to get some sleep on the flight to New York. It felt weird traveling back in time. Her flight left England at six in the morning and landed in New York around midnight. She had an hour layover, which she spent on her laptop renting a rental car. Her hotel accommodation was already arranged when she booked her flight to the States.

Her grandmother’s lawyer had contacted her to inform her that her grandmother had passed away. It was also her grandmother’s final request that she come home. Charlotte brings up the email she received from her grandmother’s lawyer and rereads it. The funeral wouldn’t be until she returned to the States. Of course, her father and other relatives were a little upset that her grandmother had put that request in her burial instructions.

By the end of the hour, Charlotte was on her way again to face the people she left seven years ago. She steels herself for the emotional assault that she knew would be coming from her family. If her grandmother hadn’t requested that she come home, whom she loved a lot. She probably wouldn’t have ever come back to her hometown.

When Charlotte finally lands in Rexburg, Idaho, she feels exhausted. She has crossed so many time zones that her body is trying to adjust to the time differences. She picks up her rental car and drives herself to the hotel she is staying at.

She parks her rental car, exits the warm vehicle, and shivers. It is twenty degrees out and a little windy. Even with her warm, full-length leather jacket, the wind finds its way beneath her coat. She carries her luggage up and inside the hotel. She manages to grab a trolley cart and load her luggage onto it.

As Charlotte approaches the reception counter, she vaguely recognizes the young woman standing behind it. Something about the woman reminds her of a girl from high school who used to bully her, but she can’t put her finger on it.

“Can I help you, ma’am?” Brenda looks at the auburn, curly-haired woman standing before her.

She couldn’t believe how expensive the woman looked. The leather coat she was wearing looked extremely expensive and well-tailored. Something about the woman’s face reminded her of someone she used to know back in high school, but she couldn’t remember who it was.

“Yes, I would like to check in, please.” Charlotte removed her gloves and tucked them into the pockets of her jacket.

“Your name?” Brenda watches the woman and tries to place her voice, but she can’t because of her accent.

“Charlotte Bounty.” When they married, Charlotte had taken her wife’s surname instead of keeping her own. She had changed her birth name to
Charlotte after her grandmother when she left home.

Brenda checks the reservations and spots the name. She noticed it was one of their nicer suites.

“I have you booked in room 520.” Brenda grabs a key card and programs it with the room code.

Brenda hands the card to the woman and has her sign for it. She watches as the woman signs the electronic pad. Afterward, she hands the card to the woman.

“If you need anything, ma’am. Feel free to call down here to the front desk.” As Brenda smiles at the woman.

“Thank you.” Charlotte takes the card and slips it into the pocket of her jacket.

Charlotte spots where the elevator is and walks over to them. She presses the button and waits for the elevator to open. As she stands there, she looks around. She had never been to this hotel before, but the receptionist kept reminding her of someone she knew. She’ll have to do a Google search for her when she settles in.

The elevator doors finally open, and she enters with the trolley cart and several other patrons. She lets them select their floor before she presses her floor. After a few minutes, she managed to get to her floor and finally her room. She texts her wife to let her know she arrived safely and sound before getting undressed and taking a relaxing hot shower.

As Charlotte stands under the water, her fingers brush against a scar on her right arm. The scar was from an accident she had been involved in that led to her parents discovering her secret. That night, it was reckless of her to accept a ride from someone she didn’t know. She should have been more careful and not as trusting as she had been.

Charlotte breaks out of that memory and gets out of the shower. She dries off and slips on the nightgown she brought with her. It wasn’t her favorite one, but it was still comfortable.

She plugs her cell phone into the charger and lies in bed. She closes her eyes, and before long, she is off to dreamland. She falls into a deep sleep between the long flight and the time differences she crossed.

The next day, Charlotte arrives at her grandmother’s lawyer’s office. She stops at the funeral home, where her grandmother’s casket is on display. She is the only one there but sees in the guest registry that her family members have already stopped by to pay their respects. The flowers she ordered for her grandmother are also on display.

The flower arrangement was expensive, but it had been worth it. She had ordered her grandmother’s favorite flowers. None of the florists in town had the flowers, but she managed to have them shipped from a supplier to a florist who said she would be willing to handle the arrangement.
Charlotte looks down at her grandmother’s lifeless body. Whoever took care of her grandmother did a fantastic job.

“I’m sorry I never returned while you were still alive, grandmother. Out of everyone who hurt and disowned me, you were the only person who
accepted and protected me. When I needed help, you helped me out. I’m going to miss you dearly, grandmother.” Tears stream down from Charlotte’s eyes. She places a kiss on her grandmother’s forehead.

Charlotte spends an hour standing by her grandmother’s casket, just staring down at her lifeless body, remembering everything she did for her. Her grandmother reminded her so much of Stella’s grandmother and mother. She wishes her grandmother could have met them in person instead of over video. She wishes her wife could have met her grandmother in person as well.

As she was about to leave, Charlotte spots her mother and father walking into the funeral home. She wasn’t ready to deal with them here. It wasn’t the time or place, as she used a little trick to hide her face, as her wife had taught her.

As she walked by them, she glanced at her mother and saw how tired she looked. She could tell this was hurting her mother a lot. However, she knew things had been strained between her mother and grandmother’s relationship. Her grandmother had tried to patch things between them several times, but her mother and father refused to acknowledge her existence.

Andy and Jessica passed a young woman with shoulder-length curly auburn hair as they walked into the room where Jessica’s mother's casket was set up. As she passed them, they caught the scent of her perfume. Jessica stopped because it reminded her of the perfume her mother wore.

She knew it wasn’t a typical scent, and the only person she had ever encountered who wore it was her mother. She turned and watched as the young woman walked out of the room towards the front door.

Andy stops after a few seconds when he notices his wife stopping. He had seen the young woman but didn’t notice her that much. He notices his wife looking in the direction the young woman just left.

“Is everything all right, sweetie?” Andy wondered why his wife was looking at the young woman.

“Do you know who that young woman was?” Jessica was curious.

“No, I’ve never seen her before. Maybe she signed the guest registry.” He walked over to the book and saw the latest entry.

Jessica turned to look at her husband as he scanned the book. She wondered if the young woman had written her name on it.

“Did she sign in?” Jessica walks over to her husband.

“Yes, according to this, her name is Charlotte Bounty.” Andy looks towards his wife.

Jessica looked at the name and saw how beautiful the signature was. She wondered who the woman was and how she knew her mother.
“I wonder how she knew my mother?” Jessica couldn’t remember her mother ever speaking about or mentioning a Charlotte Bounty.

“Your mother did have many friends.” Andy looks at all the flowers that had been delivered.

“I know.” Jessica looks at all the arrangements and notices the one with her mother’s favorite flowers.

Charlotte makes her way to her rental car and gets in it. Once inside, she sits while trying to control her emotions. She knows she will have to inform her parents about who she is sooner or later. Right now, just wasn’t the time for that. Once her grandmother was buried, she would tell them who she was.

Charlotte knew she didn’t look like she used to when she was sixteen. So, much about her had changed, either from the hormones or from the surgeries she has had to make look more feminine. Even her grandmother didn’t recognize her when they talked over video.

Charlotte starts the car and drives towards her grandmother’s house. The lawyer wanted to give Charlotte the key to the place. According to her grandmother’s will, the house and everything in it, including her car, were left to her.

Charlotte pulls into the driveway at her grandmother’s house and parks her car. She gets out of the vehicle and walks towards the front door. She stops and looks around the yard and how her grandmother has decorated the yard. It may be December, but she knew how her grandmother laid things out.

The last time she was here was the night she ran away from her parent's house. Her parents had found out about her secret, and she had just gotten home from the hospital. Her parents were more upset about her secret than the fact that she had been in a car accident.

She had been stumbling down the street because someone at the party she went to had drugged her drink. A guy stopped to give her a ride home. He was already a little intoxicated. Since she was passed out, he let his hand roam under her dress. He panicked when he discovered her secret. By then, he had drifted into oncoming traffic, and they ended up in a head-on collision with a pickup truck.

When the police called her parents and informed them what had happened to her, the shit hit the fan, and her secret came out to her whole family. Her parents were furious that she was dressed as a girl. Then, they were more enraged when she told them she had been dressing like a girl for a while and going out to meet with others like herself.

They threatened to send her to a Catholic school for boys that had a reputation for setting people like her straight. She knew they meant it and had the money to do it. Then, she decided to run away and headed for her grandmother’s house.

Charlotte takes a deep breath, unlocks the front door, and lets herself in. She walks into the house and reaches for the light switch to turn the lights on, but nothing happens.

“Of course, the power would be turned off.” She makes a mental note to call the power company to have the power turned back on.

She closes the door behind her as she walks towards the kitchen. She knows her grandmother always kept a flashlight in the kitchen. She locates the right drawer and opens it. She finds the flashlight and tests it. It still has power as she turns it on.

She walked through the house, checking everything. The water also had to be turned on. After checking the rest of the house, including the spare bedroom, where she slept briefly, she stayed with her grandmother.

She makes her way to her grandmother’s bedroom and enters it. Everything is still as her grandmother kept it: all the pictures, jewelry boxes, keepsakes, and books her grandmother loved. Even her grandmother’s favorite perfume—which happens to be the same one she loved so much—is there.

Charlotte notices that all the medicines her grandmother had taken are gone. Her parents must have come in and tended to the place. She knew she would need to register the property in her name before she could have any of the services turned back on. She’ll do that tomorrow before the service. She’ll also cancel her reservations at the hotel and stay here at the house while she is in town.

Charlotte leaves the house and arranges for a locksmith to change all the locks tomorrow. She backs out of the driveway and notices her uncle’s truck approaching the road. She wonders why he was coming by the house.

If she could see him, then she knew he could see her. She stops backing up and waits for him to stop at the house. She knew her uncle James hadn’t seen her for seven years, and he might not even recognize how she looked and sounded.

James spots the strange car parked in his mother’s driveway. Old man Watson had called and told him that a strange vehicle had parked at his mother’s residence, and an auburn-haired woman had gotten out and let herself into the house. As far as James knew, no one else had a key to the house other than family.

He grabbed his truck keys and drove to his mother’s house to find out who this mysterious woman was. As he got closer to the house, he spotted the car in the driveway, and the woman he had been informed about came out and walked towards the car. He saw the taillights on the car light up, and the car was about to back out of the driveway when it stopped and sat there.

He pulls in right behind the car, blocking it in the driveway. He ensures he has his pistol with him as he exits the truck and carefully moves toward the vehicle.

“Excuse me, but whoever you are, will you exit your car so we can talk?” James was observing the woman inside the car.

Charlotte turns the car off and exits from the vehicle. She looks towards her uncle James. She kept the car between her and him just in case he did something stupid. She couldn’t go anywhere anyway because he blocked her.

James watched as the woman exited the car. He noticed she kept the car between them, which was brilliant.

“Can I help you, sir?” Charlotte looks directly towards her uncle.

James noticed that when the woman spoke, she had a British accent. “Yeah, you can tell me what you are doing here at my mother’s house?”

“I was inspecting it to see what she left me.” Charlotte figures she’ll see how her uncle reacted to what she said.

“What do you mean, she left it to you? No one informed us about my mother leaving her house to anyone.”

“She left me the house and everything inside it. That includes the garage as well.” Charlotte kept her attention on her uncle.

“I don’t believe you. Do you have any proof of what you are saying?” James didn’t believe what this woman was saying. He and his siblings were talking about renting the house out or having one of them live here.

“I have the letter from her lawyer telling me that the house is mine if you want to see it.” Charlotte knew the letter didn’t give her away.

“Yes, I would like to see that letter.”

“Okay, but you'll need to come here to see it.” Charlotte wasn’t going to give up her protection.

“Fine.” James walked over to the car and kept to the other side of it.

Charlotte kept her eyes on her uncle as she reached into the car and pulled the letter out of her purse. It was in a side pocket, so it was easy for her to grab. She handed it across the car roof. She had already taken a photocopy of it with her cell phone.

James accepts the envelope from the woman. There is something about her that he cannot put his finger on. It was in her face and eyes that was bugging him. He opens the letter and reads it. He reads it twice to make sure he isn’t missing anything.

He folds the letter back like it had been, puts it back into the envelope, and hands it to the woman. According to the letter, her name is Charlotte Bounty.

“How did you know my mother, Mrs. Bounty?” James wanted to know how a woman like Mrs. Bounty knew his mother.

“I met her online. She was part of a book club I was in. She loved the same type of books that I did, and we video-chatted with each other. I meant to come to America to visit her, but my work schedule kept me busy.” Charlotte was only partially lying to her uncle.

“And what type of work do you do, Mrs. Bounty?” James wanted to know more about this woman.

“I’m the bass guitar player for the band The Manics. I have been on tour with my band for most of the year, and we are relaxing right now.” Charlotte wasn’t lying when she told her uncle she was in a band. She played the bass guitar, and the band has been on tour for most of the year.

James was surprised when Mrs. Bounty informed him that she was in a band and was the bass player. He’ll have to Google her and the band later to check out her story. As for his mother being in an online book club, that was hard to believe, but he knew she loved books.

“Is there anything else you would like to know about me?” Charlotte was going to see what her uncle wanted to know about her.

“Are you going to stay here or where you are from?” James was watching the young woman.

“I haven’t decided yet, but to answer your other question, I am a British citizen.” Charlotte would have ended her American citizenship and kept her British citizenship. But, her wife and father-in-law thought she should keep her American citizenship if she ever decided to return to the United States.

“Well, if you ever decide to sell the property. My family and I would like to have the choice of buying the property from you.” James couldn’t see letting his mother’s house go.

“You will, Mr. Moore. I knew your mother would have wanted me to do that.” Charlotte hasn’t decided what she is going to do yet.

“Are you planning on coming to the funeral on Friday?”

“I was planning on it. Should I be worried about anything, Mr. Moore?” Charlotte wanted to know what she was stepping into.

“Maybe a little anger from some of my family members. We were all hoping that one of us would inherit the house.”

“Maybe it might be best to keep this quiet until after the funeral. Don’t you agree, Mr. Moore?” Charlotte smiles at her uncle.

“I think you are right, Mrs. Bounty. Well, I better let you go on your way. It’s been nice meeting you, Mrs. Bounty.” James walks back to his truck and gets into it.

Charlotte watches as her uncle drives away. She continues to watch as he drives down the road before she gets back into her car and leaves the property. She wanted to do a few things before returning to her hotel room.

The first thing she does is head to the courthouse to register the deed of the house her grandmother left her in her name. That way, her family won’t be able to sell the house from underneath her. She also pays any back property taxes her grandmother might not have been able to cover.

After leaving the courthouse, Charlotte stops at a nice restaurant for lunch. She has a light meal and tea to drink. She notices the difference in the taste of tea. The tea she drinks in England tastes entirely different from the tea she is being served in Idaho.

While sitting at her table enjoying her tea and waiting for her main dish to arrive, Charlotte hears a familiar voice from her past. Charlotte puts her teacup down and looks around where she is sitting. Her gaze falls on a man who reminds her of her father.

He had the same hair color, facial features, and build as her father. There wasn’t much difference between her older brother and her father. He was wearing a business suit and enjoying lunch with several other men.

“So, I wasn’t the only one who was successful at their career.” Charlotte turns her attention back to her table.

When she left her grandmother’s house in the middle of the night, she managed to hitch a ride with a friendly middle-aged man who took pity on her. He didn’t ask her many questions and could tell she was running away from something. He dropped her off at a decent truck stop and gave her some money to buy herself something hot to drink.

She watched as he drove off. She went inside the truck and bought herself a cup of coffee. While she was sitting at a booth drinking her coffee, she overheard a couple of truckers talking about the load they were transporting for some band.

She had seen on YouTube how a person had hidden on the back of an eighteen-wheeler. She found out which truck was theirs and hid in the car behind the cab where the hoses connected to the truck. She was discovered by the truck driver when he pulled into a rest area for their mandatory rest.

She pleaded with them to let her travel and said she would be willing to earn her way. The older of the two men could sense she was running away from something. On the other hand, his partner hesitated a little about letting her travel with them. He didn’t want to get in trouble and lose his CDL.

With enough convincing and pleading from her, the two drivers let her tag along. At first, things were rough for her, but true to her word, she worked her butt off. She had to get used to the fact that sometimes, when they were waiting in traffic and needed to go to the bathroom, she had to use a trash can lined with a plastic bag to do her business.

As for them, they could step to the back of the truck where she had been hiding and relieve themselves. When they arrived at the places where the band was playing, she helped unload and set up everything. The older driver, Dirk, told anyone who inquired about her that she was his niece and she would be traveling with him. She got to see how things worked behind the scenes when bands performed.

“Ma’am, are you all right?” Debbie returned to the table where the auburn-haired woman was sitting and noticed the faraway look on her face.

Charlotte shakes her head and looks at the waitress. “I’m fine. I was lost in a memory.”

“I can understand that.” As Debbie sets the plate with the woman’s order on the table.

Charlotte looked at the ordered dish and loved how it looked and smelled. She couldn’t wait to bite into the food. She looked at her waitress and said, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. If you need anything, I’ll be nearby.” Debbie smiles at the woman and walks off.

Charlotte waits until her waitress walks off before she starts eating. The first taste was great and different from the food in England. She couldn’t understand how her taste buds had changed since moving to England. At first, she noticed the difference between how the English and Spanish cooked their meals and how Americans cooked them. However, over time, her taste buds have changed.

As Sebastian was getting ready to leave with his business associates. He glanced across the area where he was and spotted an auburn, curly-haired woman sitting by herself. Her hair reminded him of his younger brother. It was the same shade of auburn and had some of the same curls as his hair. No one knew what happened to his younger brother after he ran away from home.

All he could remember was that his parents were going to send his brother to an all-boys Catholic school to cure him of dressing like a girl. It had been uncomfortable to learn that his brother was dressing like a girl and attending meetings with others like him. Some of the rumors he heard were that his younger brother was selling his body like a common prostitute.

The last time he saw his little brother was the night their parents brought him home from the hospital. According to what he heard later, his little brother had been drugged and was involved in a car accident. Their parents thought his little brother had been picked up by the guy his brother was traveling while dressed as a girl.

When everyone woke up the following day, his little brother was gone. Even their parents had been surprised. He heard later that his little brother had stopped by their grandmother’s house to say goodbye and was never heard from again.

He walks by the auburn-haired woman to get a better look at her. There was something familiar about her, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. He snaps a picture of her as he walks out with his business associates.

Although cold outside, Charlotte enjoys her lunch and strolls downtown afterward. The leather jacket she is wearing keeps the rest of her body warm. Nothing has changed much in the past seven years since she has been gone. She stops at an antique record store and browses their selection of new and old records.

She purchases about seven old records before leaving the store. She then spots a pawn shop across the street from the record store and crosses the street. She enters the pawn shop and notices several guitars, amps, and other instruments for sale.

Charlotte spots a Gibson Fender guitar and bass guitar for sale. She also spots a nice six-string Yamaha blue bass guitar for sale.

“Sir, can I please see those three guitars?” Charlotte points out the three she wants to see.

“Do you play, ma’am?” Alvin pulls down the guitars and hands them to Charlotte.

“I play a little. Do you mind if I try them out?” Charlotte wanted to hear how they sounded.

“Sure, let me get you all hooked up.” Richie grabs a five-watt Gibson amp for the lady to use.

Charlotte lets the sales clerk hook everything up. Once he was done, she strummed the cords and adjusted the tuning. Once she liked it, she played a little riff on the guitar and bass.

Richie was impressed with the woman's bass and guitar playing. He watched her and listened to what she was doing.

“Wow! Do you play professionally?” Richie couldn’t believe how reasonable the woman was.

“I do mostly studio work. How much is this amp and that mid-range amp over there for all three?” Charlotte saw a nice amp that would be nice in her home studio.

“Let’s see,” Richie says, adding everything and giving Charlotte a twenty percent discount since everything has been in his shop for a while.

Charlotte watches as the sales clerk adds everything up. She sees he will give her a discount for buying all five pieces.

“Twenty-five hundred dollars. I think that’s a reasonable price.” Richie looks at the woman to see if she still wants everything.

“Okay.” Charlotte pulls out her wallet and takes out her charge card to pay for everything. She’ll have to make arrangements to have everything shipped home.

Richie rings Charlotte up and gets her to sign the electronic pad. Once that is done, he prints out a receipt.

“Do you mind watching these while I get my car?” Charlotte knew she needed to get her car.

“Not at all, ma’am.” Richie didn’t mind watching everything.

“Thank you.” Charlotte turns and leaves the store. She walks across the street to her car and drives it to the pawn store.

Richie helps Charlotte load the instruments and amps into her car and waves to her as she leaves. After this sale, he was going to have a nice paycheck.

Charlotte returns to her hotel and brings the instruments to her room. She knows she will have to arrange to have everything shipped to England, so she arranges to have everything shipped back home.

She calls her wife and tells her that she bought some guitars and is shipping them home. She gets Stella’s answering service and leaves a message. Later, she makes arrangements to have the power, water, and gas turned on at her grandmother’s house. She also calls a local locksmith and arranges to change all the locks.

It was around six at night when she finished arranging everything. She wasn’t too hungry, so she ordered a sandwich and a salad from room service. While Charlotte was waiting for her dinner, she couldn’t believe that in the past two days, she had encountered three members of her former life. She wonders if any of them have figured out who she is.

The next day, Charlotte checks out of the hotel and cancels the rest of her reservation. She moves into her grandmother’s place and watches the locks change. She double-checks everything before the house's power, gas, and water are restored. She hires a handyperson to change the thermostat with one she could log into from her cellphone. She also buys a security system and has it installed.

Charlotte does some grocery shopping since all the food in the house is gone. She knows her grandmother kept the place stocked with canned goods and preserves she made herself. While shopping, she notices that one of the girls she went to school with works at the grocery store.

It looked like the girl was in charge of the bakery. Charlotte racks her brain, trying to remember the girl’s name. Standing near the bakery department, she listened to what the woman said to her coworker. The women talked about how busy they would be for the Christmas and New York shoppers.

Charlotte wishes she were back in England, spending the holidays with her wife instead of here. This will be the first Christmas they have spent apart. She finishes up her shopping and drives to her grandmother’s house. When she approaches the house, Charlotte spots one of her aunts trying to use her old key to enter.

Charlotte pulls into the driveway and looks up towards her aunt. “Can I help you, ma’am?”

Stephanie hears a British woman talking to her. She turns around and looks down at the woman.

“Is this your doing?” Stephanie couldn’t believe she couldn’t get into her mother’s house.

“Yes, it is. I had all the locks changed recently.” Charlotte didn’t show any emotion except confusion on her face.

“Well, who gave you the right to do that? This house belongs to my mother. Are you some squatter?” Stephanie looks at the auburn-haired woman with an annoyed look on her face.

“Actually, no, and your mother left this house and everything inside it to me. Can I ask who you are?” Charlotte already knew that this was her aunt Stephanie. When she had left, her aunt was studying to become a nurse.

Charlotte walks up the steps towards the porch. She doesn’t think her aunt would attack her.

“Prove it!” Stephanie couldn’t believe her mother would leave the house to some stranger instead of to her children.

Charlotte pulls her cell phone out of her pocket, opens the PDF she made of the letter, and shows it to her aunt. The letter was inside the house in the desk drawer with all the documents she had paid the property taxes and receipts for her work.

“The letter I received from your grandmother’s lawyer is in the house.” Charlotte takes her key out and opens the door to the house. She escorts her aunt inside to the desk where the letter is. She opened the folder it was in and showed the letter.

Stephanie couldn’t believe the house was left to this woman. She looks at the woman and wonders who she is.

“How did you know my mother?” Stephanie watches Charlotte.

“We met online. She was a member of the book club I was in. We used to meet every Sunday.” Charlotte wasn’t exactly lying. She used to talk with her grandmother every Sunday by video.

Her grandmother kept it secret from the rest of the family, who thought she was dead. No one has heard from her since she ran away seven years ago.

“The two of you met online in some sort of book club, and she decided to leave you her house and everything inside it?” Stephanie had a skeptical look on her face.

“Yes, I was just as surprised as you when I received the letter. You see, I don’t live here in the United States. I live in England with my significant other.” Charlotte held her left hand so her aunt could see her wedding ring.

Stephanie noticed Charlotte's British accent, her more prominent wedding ring, and her designer clothes. She wonders how well off Charlotte was.

“Here you go.” As Stephanie hands the letter back to Charlotte.

Charlotte accepts the letter and puts it back in the folder. She notices her aunt’s confused look. Part of her wants to come out and tell her aunt who she is. However, she also wants to know how her parents feel about her.

“Would you like a cup of tea.?” Charlotte still had to unload the car.

“I’m fine, thank you. I’m sorry for intruding; I better go.” Stephanie walks past Charlotte and out the door.

Charlotte follows behind her aunt and watches her aunt enter a black Ford Fusion. She watches as her aunt drives off. She shakes her head as she unloads the groceries from the rental. Her grandmother's funeral is in two days. She’ll learn more about her relatives then, especially her parents.

The company she made arrangements with to ship the amps and instruments back to her studio arrived to pick them up. She watched as they packed the instruments and amps. She paid a little more for extra protection. She left a message for her wife to let her know they were coming. She sends a snapshot of the paperwork she has of them.

For the rest of the day, she went through her grandmother's Christmas decorations and started decorating the house for Christmas. She’ll wait to buy Christmas presents for her relatives until after the funeral. She wanted to know if her parents regretted what they threatened to do to her when she was younger.

On the funeral day, Charlotte woke up early and laid out everything she would wear. The weather outside was windy and cold. She took a nice hot shower and put on some warm undergarments under the dress she would wear. Instead of heels, she wore her knee-high fur-lined black boots.

By the time she was ready to go to the graveyard where her grandmother would be laid to rest, she was feeling a little warm with everything on. She grabbed her thick, full-length walking jacket, gloves and put them on before walking to the rental car. She still needed to have her grandmother’s car looked over before she drove it.

She met her two older brothers at the church where they were having the service and went inside to listen to the preacher and several family members discuss her grandmother. She spotted her two older brothers and noticed that her second oldest brother had two little boys and a lovely-looking wife. Her brother’s wife looked familiar, but she couldn’t place her.

After the church services, she followed everyone to the gravesite. The preacher kept the service short and sweet because everyone was shivering from the cold. She tossed the Lilly she brought down into the grave so it landed on the coffin.

“May you finally rest in peace, grandma.” Tears were leaking from Charlotte’s eyes as she tried not to let people see her cry.

The reception was held at her parent's place. As Charlotte walked into the old house, so many memories came flooding back to her. Some of them were good, and some of them were bad.

She looked around the house and made small talk with several people there, then looked at some of the pictures on display. She noticed that any image that used to be on display that had her picture in it had been removed. There were no pictures of her anywhere in the house.

Charlotte walks over to her parents to express her sorrow about losing her grandmother. As she does so, she looks at her parents directly in their eyes. “Your mother said that she had three grandchildren. Whatever happened to the third one? Because I don’t see any pictures of him.”

“Excuse me?” Jessica looks at the auburn-haired woman with the British accent standing before her.

“Sorry, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Charlotte Bounty. Your mother and I were pen pals, and she once told me that she had three grandsons, but when I looked around your home. I only saw pictures of two of your sons. What happened to your third son?” Charlotte was holding Jessica’s attention with her eyes.

“We disowned him. He disgraced this family with his sinful ways.” Andy looks at Mrs. Bounty. He had noticed the wedding ring on her ring finger.

“Did he kill someone or commit some sort of crime that would have you take such drastic measures of disowning him?” Charlotte directs her gaze towards her father.

“He went against what god intended of him?” Andy looks into Mrs. Bounty’s eyes and notices how green they are. He has only seen eyes like that once before.

“So, you know what god intended of him? Have you ever thought maybe God was testing you and your wife to see how much of a Christian you were? Perhaps he was testing you and everyone else to see how tolerant and understanding you could be to someone different from you. Or maybe he made a mistake and was seeing how your son would handle how different he was or how those around him would?” Charlotte glares at her parents with anger in her eyes.

“It doesn’t matter because he is dead. If he cared about how we felt about him, he would have called us and asked for our forgiveness.” Jessica looks into Charlotte’s eyes.

The eyes looking back at her triggered a memory buried in her mind. She looked at the woman closely and could see some resemblances to her son. Only her third child was born with auburn hair and green eyes.

“No, you can’t be.” Jessica covers her mouth with her hand.

“Are you sure, mother?” Charlotte says the last word in a low voice.

Andy looks down at his wife and then back towards Mrs. Bounty. He looks closely at Mrs. Bounty's face and eyes. It finally dawns on him who she is.

“You’re not welcome here.” He goes to grab Charlotte.

Charlotte bats his hand away from her and looks at her father. “You don’t want to do this, father.”

“GET OUT OF HERE! Or I’m going to remove you myself!”

Everyone in the house looks over towards them when Andy raises his voice. They could hear the anger in his voice. They wonder why he was so pissed at the auburn hair woman standing in front of him and his wife.

Sebastian looks at his parents and the auburn-haired woman standing before them. He wonders what she did to piss his father off. He tries to make his way over to them to try and stop his father from making a big mistake in attacking an unarmed woman.

“If you lay one hand on me, father. You will regret it.” Charlotte was thankful that her wife taught her how to defend herself.

“What is going on over here?” Sebastian looks towards his parents and Mrs. Bounty.

“Just a little disagreement about your younger brother and what god had planned for him.” Charlotte looks towards Sebastian when she says those words.

“What do you know about my younger brother? And who are you?” Sebastian looks at Charlotte.

“Oh, I know a lot about your younger brother. For example, he was forced to run away from home because your parents couldn’t accept that he was different. He had also experienced a terrible incident that wasn’t his fault.” Charlotte was holding back her tears as she watched her brother and father.

“How do you know so much about him?” Sebastian was wondering how this woman knew so much about his little brother.

“Look closely at me, Sebastian, and tell me who you see?” A smile appears on Charlotte’s face.

“Enough! I told you to leave.” Andy grabs Charlotte’s arm again to force her out.

“Some people never learn.” Charlotte grabs her father’s arm and makes him release her arm.

She twists his arm around and behind his back, forcing it upwards. The way she secured his arm, she could make him do anything she wanted. “I told you, you would regret grabbing me, Father.”

“Let him go, please.” Jessica looks at her daughter.

“Only if he promises to behave himself. Do you promise to behave yourself, father?” As Charlotte pushes up on her father’s arm.

“Yes.” Andy couldn’t believe how skillful his sissy son was.

“Good, boy.” Charlotte loosens her grip on him.

She looks at her mother, her older brother, and her father. “Now, why don’t we continue this tomorrow? I think we have made more than a ruckus for now.”

Charlotte gets her jacket and puts it on. She looks at everyone before she walks out of the house and towards her car. She gets in her car and drives back to her grandmother’s house. She keeps it together until she gets into a tub of hot water and lets everything out.

After her bath and emotional breakdown. Charlotte puts her nightgown on and house robe. She slips her feet into the slippers she bought a couple of days ago and heads downstairs to fix herself a hot toddy. She wishes her wife was here right now, but then again she was grateful she wasn’t because her father would have a broken arm.

As Charlotte is in the kitchen fixing herself a hot toddy, the doorbell rings. She pulled her cell phone out of her robe pocket to see who was at the door. She spotted her older brother outside on the front porch.

“What do you want Sebastian?” Charlotte kept looking at her brother.

“Can we talk, please?” Sebastian heard his brother’s voice come over the speaker.

“I told you when I left, we could continue this discussion another day.” Charlotte didn’t know if she was up to talking with her brother.

“Look, Charlotte. I don’t agree with what our parents were going to do to you. However, I do want to hear your side of everything. I promise to keep an open mind.” Sebastian in the past had a temper like his father, but he learned over the years how to control it.

“Fine.” Charlotte walks towards the front door and opens it.

She looked at her older brother and saw that he wanted to see her. She steps aside to let him in.

“Please come in.”

Sebastian looks at Charlotte and notices how she is dressed. He steps into his grandmother’s old house and waits for Charlotte to tell him where they are going to sit.

“So, where do you want to talk?” Sebastian looks at his sister.

“The den will be fine. Would you like something to drink?” Charlotte looks at her brother as she follows behind him.

“Do you have any Scotch or Bourbon?” As Sebastian walks to the den.

Once they arrive in the den, he sits down on the loveseat in there. He notices Charlotte has kept the place like their grandmother did. He looks towards her.

“I have both, which would you prefer?” Charlotte observed her brother and could tell he was curious.

“A glass of Scotch would be nice.”

“Give me a second and make yourself comfortable.” Charlotte walks back into the kitchen pours a glass of Scotch and grabs her hot toddy.

She walks back into the den and hands the glass of Scotch to her brother.

“Thanks.” Sebastian noticed Charlotte still had her British accent.

“You’re welcome.” Charlotte walks over to her grandmother’s favorite chair and sits down.

She takes a sip from her glass, as she watches her brother drink some of the Scotch from his glass. When she went to the ABC store, she bought the best alcohol. Her wife once told her she should never buy the cheap stuff unless it was for a bunch of people she didn’t like or she was trying to get drunk.

Sebastian was surprised when he took a sip of the Scotch. He knew this was the good stuff, not the cheap stuff. He noticed his sister was drinking something spicy because he could smell it.

Charlotte enjoyed the taste of the warm whiskey as it slid down her throat. She wasn’t like the rest of her bandmates who enjoyed the cheap stuff. She liked the good stuff.

“I looked you up on Google.”

“Oh? And what did you find?” Charlotte knew what her brother would find.

“What I found, was that you are a famous musician and that you’re the only female in a British rock band called The Maniacs. Is that true?”

“Yep, it is. It also says my nationality is British.” Charlotte takes a sip from her glass.

“Which we know is false. You were born here in the United States.” Sebastian looks at his sister.

“Not anymore. That life is behind me and has no meaning to me.” Charlotte spoke to her grandmother at great lengths when she decided to change everything about herself.

“Why? Also, why did you come back here?” Sebastian wanted to know what his sister was playing at.

“The reason I came back here, is I loved our grandmother. She was the only one who didn’t judge me and supported me. She was the only person I kept in touch with these past seven years. She also had her lawyer contact me and request that I try to patch things up between me and our family. That is the only reason I am here.” Charlotte takes a sip of her drink. She had a feeling that she might have a second one.

“Alright, I can understand that. Will you tell me what happened that night that caused you to leave, please?” Sebastian wanted to get to the truth of that night.

“Fine. As you know Mom and Dad were called to the hospital and found me dressed as a sexy saloon girl. What you don’t know is someone had spiked my drink at the birthday I went to. The party was for another member of the transgender group I was part of. Well, I was walking home drugged out of my when a middle-aged man pulled up and offered to give me a ride. I knew I shouldn’t have accepted his offer, but I was so drugged out of my mind, that I would have passed out before I got here to grandmother’s house.”

“So, grandmother knew about you?” Sebastian knew his little brother and their grandmother were close.

“Yes, she knew everything. She caught me one time wearing some of our mother’s old clothes she still had up in the attic. She saw how much I enjoyed wearing them. So, she helped me become the girl I was. She said that if I want to be a girl, I should be a proper one, not a hussy.”

“That sounds like our grandmother. Alright, so you were in the guy’s car, drugged out of your mind. I guess he made a move on you?” Sebastian knew several of his friends would have done the same thing back in high school.

“Yes, his hands started to roam and going up my skirt. I tried fighting him off, but I felt so weak. When he discovered that I wasn’t a true girl, he panicked and we ended up ramming a tree over there off of Clarance Street. Someone called 911 and I was rushed to the hospital. As you know, Aunt Stephanie was on duty that night. She called our parents to let them know I was in the emergency room.”

“According to what Mom and Dad said, they said you were out selling yourself like a common whore and the guy was one of your johns,” Sebastian remembers hearing those words from their parents.

“It's amazing how they got things wrong. Then you know they wanted to send me to St. Joesph Catholic Boy School. One of the strictest and most religious private schools around.”

“I knew they wanted to send you to a Catholic school, but I didn’t know it was that one.” Sebastian had heard his parents talking about it.

“Well, I ran away that night after they threatened to send me. I came here to grandma’s house and stayed a few nights, before hitching a ride on an eighteen-wheeler.”

“I bet that wasn’t pleasant.”

“No, it wasn’t. However, I was lucky that the drivers of that eighteen-wheeler were willing to let me travel with them. They taught me how to do all sorts of things and I earned my way with them. One night, two years later while at a truck stop. Dirk, the owner of the truck said it was time for me to move on. It wasn’t that he didn’t want me around anymore. It was the fact that he was going to retire and sell his truck. He had a lot of medical problems that were making it hard for him to drive long distances. So, I became a roadie for a band that was going to be traveling Europe.”

“So, that’s how you got into music?” Sebastian could see the connection.

“Yeah, but it was Dirk and his partner along with several truck drivers I met while traveling with them, who taught me how to play a guitar. At first, it was just a normal guitar, but later I learned how to play an electric guitar. So, while I was a roadie in Europe, I kept learning from other guitar players and practicing on my own. The manager of the Maniacs heard me playing and invited me to try out for the band. Their old bass guitarist was leaving the band for another gig and he was looking for someone to replace him.”

“So, I take it that you impressed the band and they took you on.” Sebastian was impressed with his sister.

“Yep. I blew their minds away with my playing. After they heard me play, they sent the rest of the people who came to try out home that day.”

“I noticed you're wearing a wedding ring. I take it you’re married?”

“My wife’s name is Stella Bounty. She comes from a huge family.” Charlotte was impressed that her brother noticed her wedding ring.

“So, you’re a lesbian as well? Does she know everything about you?” Sebastian could never understand why someone who was a male and became a woman would marry another woman.

“She and her family know everything about me. I’ve been married for the past three years and a British citizen for five years. I wouldn’t have come back here if it wasn’t for our grandmother.” Charlotte finishes drinking her toddy.

“You do know, everyone thinks you’re either dead or out in California selling your body.” Sebastian had heard the rumors among their family.

“So, that’s how everyone feels about me?” Charlotte had a sad look on her face.

“No one knew what was going on with you, because you never called or contacted anyone.”

“Except grandmother. I kept in touch with her and asked her to keep my existence secret.” Charlotte stayed in touch with her grandmother.

“Did she meet your wife?” Sebastian was curious.

“Yes, we would talk all the time over video. Who do you think sent her that laptop and Apple tablet?”

“You. So, how long are you going to stay here?”

“For the whole month and after New Year, I’m going back home to my wife and job.”

“Your wife is letting you stay away that long? I don’t think I could do that to my wife.”

“Well, it's not something either one of us likes, but she is working on an important case. So, this time away will help her with the case.” Charlotte wishes she could tell her brother what her wife does.

“What does your wife do?” Sebastian was curious.

“She’s an investigator for a private company. I can’t tell you their name, because they liked to keep their existence quiet.”

“Is she British as well?”

“Yes. So, what type of work do you do?” Charlotte wanted to know more about her brother.

“I work for an investment company. I’m a partner in the firm and I like it.” Sebastian finishes his Scotch.

“I would have never pegged you as the investment type of person. You were a popular jock in school.” Charlotte figures her brother might have gone pro.

“I did go pro for a short time before I injured myself. I was lucky that I listened to our Uncle Jason and went to college while I was playing. My injuries were so severe, that if I went back, I would be crippled for life. So, I got a job and a degree with the investment firm. A position opened up at the firm and the other partners were impressed with how well I did. They offer me a partnership. It also helped that my reputation as a pro football player would benefit the firm.”

“When did Mark get married?” Charlotte didn’t know her next oldest brother was married. She never bothered to ask her grandmother.

“I’m surprised Grandma didn’t tell you. He got his high school sweetheart pregnant and ended up marrying her after the baby was born.”

“I never bothered to ask Grandma about our family. I was just concerned about her and how she was doing.” Charlotte didn’t want her family to know anything about her.

“It seemed, you wanted to forget everyone. Why would you do that?” Sebastian did care if his little brother was transgender.

“Because, according to what I gathered from grandma. No one bothered to look for me or cared if I was still alive.” Charlotte stands up and walks towards the kitchen to fix herself another toddy.

Sebastian stands up and follows his sister to the kitchen. He had to admit, he was as guilty as everyone else.

“I’m sorry.” Sebastian gathers his sister into his arms and hugs her.

Charlotte is woken up by her cellphone playing the ring tone assigned to her wife. She reaches for it, while staying under the covers. She presses accept “hello?”

“Good morning sleepy head. How are things going so far? And how are you doing?” Stella was enjoying a fresh cup of tea. She knew it was six in the morning where her wife was.

“You know its six in the morning here, don’t you? I haven’t had my first cup of coffee yet.” Charlotte felt tired after staying up late last night talking and drinking with her older brother.

“I know, so how did things go at the funeral and with your family members?” Stella was concerned about her wife.

“Not so good with my parents. They had me declare dead and removed all pictures of me from their home. They still can’t accept the fact that I became a woman. Also, no one recognized me here, until I came out to them at the reception at my parents’ house.” Charlotte knew she looked different then she did seven years ago.

“Well sweetie, you’re not the same person as you were seven years ago. Between the hormone pills, the numerous surgeries, and exercise you are an entirely new person. If I didn’t know what you had looked like seven years ago and what you look like now. I wouldn’t recognize you either.” Stella knew the hormone pills Charlotte has been taking has changed her body.

Not only had the pills/shots redistributed the fat in her body. But it has flooded her system with so much estrogen and progesterone that Charlotte’s body become very curvy and busty. She knew Charlotte had to cut back on the dosage she was taking, because she started lactating.

An evil smile appears on her face when that memory popped into her mind. She enjoyed milking her wife when that happened. It lasted for a few months and they sold her breasts milk.

“True, I do look different then I did seven years ago. However, I’m the only one in my family, besides one of my aunts who has the deep rich auburn hair that I do.” Charlotte knew there was only one other person in her family that she took after. It was her Aunt Margrethe.

A lot of her facial, body curves, bust, and hair color came from her aunt on her father side of the family. She inherited a few things from her mother side of the family. She was only a few inches taller than her mother.

“So, who has accepted you so far?” Stella was curious.

“My older brother has accepted me. Well, I think he has. He came over after I stormed out of my parent’s house. We talked and enjoyed a few
drinks until four in the morning.” Charlotte turns to lay on her back and stare up at the ceiling in her grandmother’s old bedroom.

“How is your other brother accepting you?” Stella knew Charlotte had two brothers, where she had an older sister, an older and younger brother. She was the middle child and the only spy in the family.

“Don’t know yet. I did find out that he is married and has two children from his high school sweetheart. According to my older brother, he got his high school girlfriend pregnant while they were still in high school. But, they didn’t get married until they graduated.”

“Boy! Your family can accept the fact your brother got his girlfriend pregnant, but can’t accept that you want to be a girl?” Stella shakes her head on that.

“You have to remember, sweetie. My family is very grounded in religion and personal beliefs. My grandfather on my father side uses to be a preacher in his younger days. He was very involved in the church. As for my grandfather on my mother side, he was a hard-working Irish man. He believed in hard work and a strong work ethic. He also believed in family. My mom changed after she married my father.” Charlotte remembered some of the things her grandmother told her about her mother. How her mother was more relaxed and freer spirited.

“I wonder what changed your mother?”

“I don’t know; however, I still need to see how the rest of my family here will accept me. I promised my grandmother that I would at least try to patch things up between me and them.” Charlotte knew she needed to keep her promise.

“I know sweetie. If you have any problems or get in any trouble. You can always call my cousin in Montana.” Stella knew her cousin in Montana would help her wife out.

“I hope it doesn’t come to that. He’s a scary person and I know from meeting him at the funeral, that he isn’t the type of person to piss off.” Charlotte met Stella’s older cousin and knew he wasn’t the type of man to piss off.

“That may be true about my cousin, but he has daughters that have gone through what you are doing now and he can make sure you don’t get hurt.” Stella knew the history of all of her cousin’s daughters.

“I don’t think my family will go to that extreme, but if they do. I’ll make sure to call your cousin for help. So, how is your case going?” Charlotte knew Stella’s case was important.

“You know I can’t talk about it, sweetie. Just be careful and remember that I love you.” Stella makes a kissing sound on her phone.

“I love you too.” Charlotte returns the kissing sound.

She puts her cell phone back on the charger and gets out of bed. Since she was already awake, she’ll grabs some breakfast and a cup of coffee. She puts her house robe on and her slippers and walk downstairs towards the kitchen.

While Charlotte is brewing some coffee, she looks outside into the backyard and spots a little dog chasing a rabbit. She wonders who the dog belongs too. She fixes her coffee the way she likes it and began making some eggs, hash browns and sausage for herself.

As Charlotte is eating her breakfast, while speaking to Sebastian last night. She thought she would ask Mark out for lunch and see what he thought of her and explained things to him. Sebastian thought it was a good idea, but would like to be there to help smooth things over.

She agreed to his suggestion. She asked him which restaurant was one of the best around and he informed her. She looks the number up in the old-style phone book her grandmother kept and made reservations for the three of them for tomorrow. Afterwards, she sends a text to Sebastian letting him know the time and place for the meeting/lunch.

The rest of the day Charlotte has her grandmother’s car towed to a mechanic Sebastian recommended. The two of them were best friends in high school and later when they went to college. Charlotte has the mechanic check everything over and give it a full tune up.

Black Diamond Steakhouse:
Charlotte arrived early at the restaurant and requested a table away from the general public. Her brothers were supposed to show up at one o’clock. She checks the time on her cell phone and notices it is just twelve-forty.

The hostess escorts Charlotte to a private area. Charlotte let the hostess know she was expecting two others to join her. She informs her that her waitress will be with her in a minute.

Charlotte sits down and waits for her waitress to arrive. When the waitress shows up, she orders a rum and coke. It doesn’t take her waitress long to bring the mixed drink back to her.

While Charlotte is waiting for her brothers to show up, she gets a text from a member of the Manics. A smile appears on her face as she looks at the insane picture Nicky sent her. He had just jumped out of an airplane and was parachuting down towards the ground.

Charlotte shakes her head because Nicky is the adventurist in the group. There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do to get a rush. “You are so crazy, Nicky.”

“Who is so crazy, sis?” Sebastian had heard Charlotte’s comment.

Mark looks at the auburn-haired woman he saw at his parents’ house. According to his older brother, the woman was his younger brother who
had left seven years ago.

Charlotte looks at her older brother who had come dressed in a three-piece suit. She directs her gaze to her next older brother who is wearing a dress shirt, dress slacks, and a tie. He was also wearing a nice heavy sweater that she hadn’t seen before.

“The guitar player from my band. He’s an adrenaline junkie.” Charlotte looked at her younger brother and could tell he was feeling a little uncomfortable.

“I don’t bite, Mark.”

“So, it’s true. You’re my little brother?” Mark sits down at the table, while still maintaining eye contact with Charlotte.

“I used to be your little brother Mark. Now, I’m your little sister.” Charlotte takes a sip from her drink.

When the waitress arrived everyone was deciding what they wanted. Charlotte looks at her two older brothers “Order what you want. This is on me.”

“Really?” Sebastian looks towards Charlotte when she says that.

“Yes really. I’ve eaten at places that would cost you a week’s worth of pay or more.” Charlotte remembers some of the places she and the band ate at.

“If you say so.” Sebastian already knows what he is going to order.

When the waitress comes back over to take their order. Sebastian gets the surf and turf special and a rare bourbon that costs one hundred, twenty-five dollars per shot. Mark on the other hand orders a Tbone steak, cooked medium well with a loaded baked potato and macaroni and cheese as a side.

Charlotte didn’t want anything too heavy, but she did like a good steak. So, she orders one, cooked well done. She also gets a baked potato, but instead of macaroni and cheese. She gets a chef's salad with Italian dressing.

When the waitress leaves, Mark looks at Charlotte “So, what happened that caused you to run away and turn mom and dad against you?” Mark wanted to know the truth.

Charlotte takes a breath and looks directly towards her brother, Mark. “Here’s what happened that night and why Mom and Dad have declared me dead.”

Charlotte tells her brother what happened that night and why their mom and dad have declared her dead. She also tells him about what happened during the seven years and shows a picture of her wife. She could tell her little brother was listening to her and mentally going over everything she said.

“Here’s a question I have for you, Mark. What would you do if one of your kids had been in the same situation as me?” Charlotte knew it was a loaded question, but Mark was a father and hoped he was different than their father.

“That’s playing dirty, Charlotte.” Sebastian couldn’t believe his sister asked that question.

“No, it's all right, Sebastian. I’m not our father and I would never turn against my children like him and mom did you, sis. My wife faced some push back from her parents when she told them she was pregnant. They almost sent her to live with her grandmother in Ohio. However, I stood up to them and told them I would take care of her and the babies. So, I understand what you did.”

“Thanks.” Tears were starting to leak from her eyes.

Charlotte wipes the tears away and takes a sip from her glass. When their food is delivered, she orders a second round of drinks. She and her brothers catch up on what happened to them during her absence and how she should approach their parents.

Charlotte’s brothers couldn’t believe she was a bass guitar player in a popular band in Europe. Even after she showed them a video of her performing on stage.

“When did you learn how to play?” Mark was learning more and more about his sister.

“My second year out. I first learned from some of the truckers I used to hang out with. Then, when I became a roadie, I started hanging out with professional guitar players and learned from them.”

“Man, it sounds like you have had an interesting life so far.” Mark wonders what his life would have been like if he hadn’t become a father.

“It’s had its moments. I’m just glad you have accepted me. Now, I have to work on Mom and Dad.” Charlotte knew that might be impossible.

“Good luck, sis. Mom and Dad are set in their ways. But at least you have us, now.”

“Which I am happy.” Charlotte meant what she was saying to her brothers.

After having lunch with her brothers, Charlotte does some window shopping. Any gifts she was going to buy, would be shipped back to England to her friends there. She didn’t have anyone she kept in touch with here in her hometown.

Most of the people she knew here either moved away or were living under new identities after their surgeries. There was a new store that sold unique items that weren’t here seven years ago. She steps into the store and is immediately hit by the scents floating around in the store. It wasn’t a bad scent, but nothing she had smelled before.

“Welcome to Wicked Candle & Spice Haven.” A woman with short white hair and an angelic face wearing a silver pentagram necklace appears from behind a wall of books.

Charlotte looks at the woman and smiles. The woman reminded her of a woman she knew back in England who had rented her a room in her family home. The woman seemed to know she wasn’t a true woman but treated her like one and even suggested a few things that she should improve.

“This is a nice store. How long have you been here?” Charlotte noticed the woman had an Irish accent to her speech.

“Going on four years now. It was through my first year, but the people around here finally accepted my little store.” Cassandra was proud the people around the town finally accepted her store.

“Well, I don’t know how anyone could ignore the wonderful smells floating around in the air.” Charlotte loved how the place smelled.

“Thank you. So, how can I help you today?” Cassandra looks at the auburn-haired woman standing before her.

“I’m just browsing today. What type of spices do you sell?” Charlotte wonders what type of spices Cassandra sells.

“I sell, every type there is. If it's on the market, I sell it.”

“Man, you must have a good supplier.” Charlotte knew some spices were hard to get.

“I do. Before I decided to settle down and open my store. I traveled the world for years establishing suppliers and seeing the world.”

“That must have been nice. Weren’t there countries or areas you had to be careful, being a woman?” Charlotte knew there were some countries where being a woman and alone was dangerous.

“There were some countries where I had to hide who and what my gender was, but I managed to explore those countries with help from trusted friends. What type of work do you do?” Cassandra was curious.

“I’m a musician from England.” Charlotte knew her British accent came through in her speech.

“So, what brings you to Rexburg?” Cassandra was curious about this woman.

“Keeping a promise, I made to someone special to me.” Charlotte knew if her grandmother hadn’t asked her to return and try to make up with her family, she wouldn’t have.

“That person must have been someone special to you.” Cassandra could sense the person Charlotte was speaking about was special to her.

“She was.”

“Why don’t I give you a tour of the store.” Cassandra hopes this young woman will be a returning customer.

“I would like that.” Charlotte follows Cassandra around the store and listens to the description of spices on display.

By the time Charlotte checks out of the store. She had ended up spending over a hundred dollars on a unique collection of spices and several nice-smelling candles. Some of the spices reminded her of her childhood where she spent baking and cooking with her grandmother before she left.

By the time Charlotte arrived home. The sun was going down and she couldn’t wait to get out of the clothes she had on. As she was getting out of her rental car. She spots a person wearing a grey sweatshirt and a pair of patched blue jeans leaving behind a piece of paper at people’s houses.

When the person entered the gate at the house. The person stops and looks at her. She noticed the person had their hood up and had a bruised right eye.

“Can I help you?”

Jamie looks at the auburn-haired woman standing on the porch she is going to leave a piece of paper. She tries to hide her bruised eye with her hood “I wanted to leave this piece of paper behind.”

Charlotte holds her hand out to the teenage girl.

Jamie hands the piece of paper to the auburn-haired woman. She hasn’t seen this woman around before. She watches as the woman accepts the paper.

Charlotte accepts the piece of paper and notices it is a list of jobs and how much this person charged to do them. It had everything on it from racking to working inside the house and cleaning things. As she looked at the list of chores the person was willing to do, she heard the person's stomach rumble. She looks towards the person “Have you had anything to eat today?”

Jamie felt embarrassed when her stomach rumbled. She thought the crackers she had earlier would sustain her until tomorrow.

“I had some crackers this morning, ma’am.” Jamie tried to hide how embarrassed she was.

“I was about to make some dinner. Why don’t you come inside and be my guest tonight?” Charlotte noticed how the sweatshirt the young girl was wearing was just hanging on the girl’s body.

Jamie looks up at the auburn-haired woman. She hated the fact her stomach betrayed her, but she didn’t have anything at home to eat and it’s been several weeks since she has had a home-cooked meal.

“I would like that ma’am.” Jamie wasn’t too proud to turn down a nice meal.

“I’m Charlotte Bounty by the way.” As Charlotte opens the front door.

“Jamie Wreath, ma’am.” Jamie follows Charlotte into the house.

Jamie looks around as she follows Charlotte into the house. The way the place was decorated didn’t seem to fit the way a young woman lived.

“Ms. Bounty, I don’t mean to be rude, but is this your place?” Jamie stops at the front door.

“Yes, it is. It used to belong to my grandmother before she passed away.” Charlotte puts her jacket in the hallway closet.

Jamie lowers her hood and looks around. She missed her grandmother and wondered if her grandmother was friends with this woman.

“Would you like something hot to drink?” Charlotte looks towards Jamie and notices the young woman’s hair is a mess. It looked unkempt and messy.

Jamie looked towards Charlotte when she spoke “Hot chocolate if you have it.”

“I think I have some. Would you like it with marshmallows or whipped cream?” Charlotte knew she liked hers with whipped cream.

“Marshmallows, if you have them.” Jamie sits down at the dining room table and watches as Charlotte disappears into the kitchen.

“I have them. So, tell me a little about yourself, Jamie. Did you grow up here?” Charlotte puts a kettle of water on the stove to heat up.

“Yes ma’am, but I wasn’t born here.” Jamie was watching Charlotte as she moved around in the kitchen.

“Where were you born?” Charlotte puts away the spices she bought and pulls out the tray of pork chops she was planning on cooking.

“In Baskin, Louisiana. My folks came from there and I left there with my boyfriend.” Jamie wishes she never left.

“Do you miss your family?” Charlotte was keeping an eye on Jamie as she moved about in the kitchen.

“A little, we were never close.” Jamie wished she had a better relationship with her family.

“So, where’s your boyfriend?” Charlotte wonders if Jamie’s girlfriend gave her the black eye.

“In jail right now. He and I got into a fight a couple of nights ago.” Jamie knew her boyfriend wasn’t getting out of jail any time soon.

“So, where are you staying?” Charlotte puts the pork chops into the oven.

“At the women’s shelter over on Bryd Street.” Jamie hopes she can get there before they close.

“Look, dinner is going to be a while. Why don’t you stay here tonight? I have the room and I might have some clothes you can wear. They might be a little big on you, but I don’t think you’ll make it back to the shelter.” Charlotte knew what time that shelter closed and how far it was from her house.

“I…” Jamie was unsure about spending the night.

“Look, I’ve been where you are now. I was lucky I had people who were willing to help me. I promise you’ll be safe here. Do you have anything at the shelter?”

“No, I just have what I’m wearing.” Jamie had everything she owned on her.

“Alright. While the food is cooking. Let’s go upstairs and see what clothes I have that will fit you.” Charlotte didn’t mind sharing her clothes.

“All right.” Jamie follows behind Charlotte as she walks upstairs.

Once upstairs, Charlotte goes through the clothes she brought with her and hands them to Jamie to try on. She figures that she might have to go and buy Jamie some panties and such.

“You can sleep in the bedroom across from mine.” Charlotte opens the spare bedroom for Jamie.

“Thanks.” Jamie walks into the bedroom.

“Oh, the bathroom is at the end of the hallway. There are towels and wash clothes in the linen closet next to the bathroom. Here’s a nightgown you can wear tonight. It might be a little big on you.” Charlotte hands Jamie one of her spare nightgowns.

“Thanks.” Jamie accepts it.

“You’re welcome. Now, why don’t I go and check on dinner.” Charlotte turns and leaves Jamie in the spare bedroom.

Jamie tried some of the clothes on and found that some of them were a little big on her skinny frame. She looked at herself in the mirror mounted to the dresser and didn’t like what she saw in the mirror. She wonders if her life is always going to be like it was. She only left home, because her family was poor and she wanted to do better for herself.

As for her boyfriend Jarrod, he could rot in the jail cell he was currently in. If she had known how much of a douchebag he was, she wouldn’t have left home. Jamie turns and leaves the bedroom and heads downstairs.

Over the next few days, Charlotte finds out a lot about Jamie. How Jamie’s father was a worker at the local burial vault company. How her mother worked as a maid for a company called Service Master Cleaning. Her mother worked nights and barely made enough to support the family and pay for her father’s medical bills. Neither company her parents worked for had any decent health plans for their workers.

The guy Jamie fell in love with was nice at first, but soon afterward she started learning things about him. How he was involved with some unsavory people and committing crimes. When she confronted him about it, they got into an argument and then into a fight.

Jamie managed to knock her boyfriend out and press charges against him. As for where Jamie had been living, Charlotte learned Jamie’s boyfriend never paid their rent or any of the utility bills they had and Jamie was forced out of the apartment. As for Jamie’s grandmother who lived here in Rexburg.

Jamie’s grandmother died a few weeks ago from cancer, unlike her grandmother who died of a heart attack. Her grandmother passed away in her sleep. The only reason anyone knew about her grandmother’s death, was because of the private nurse Charlotte paid to look after her grandmother.

“How many cookies are we going to make, Charlotte?” Jamie couldn’t believe how much baking they had been doing since she moved in with Charlotte.

She loved the new clothes and hairstyle she got after she moved in with Charlotte. They had gone shopping to pick out some new clothes for her and afterwards, they went to the saloon. After the saloon, Charlotte treated her to a nice meal at one of her favorite restaurants.

Charlotte even took her Christmas shopping to buy gifts for her parents. Jamie found out that Charlotte was a lesbian and was married to a woman named Stella Bounty. Charlotte informed her that she couldn’t go into what her wife did for a living.

Charlotte looks towards Jamie “What, aren’t you having fun?”

Charlotte had gone through her grandmother’s recipes and was baking all her favorites to send to people. She already bought Christmas gifts for her brothers and their families. As for her parents, she invited them to dinner, but she was turned down. They didn’t want to have anything to do with her.

Her other relatives didn’t feel the same way. Her aunt and uncle who she first encountered when she arrived, came by while Jamie was out. She spoke to them and explained everything to them. Her aunt told her, that it would take her a while to accept what she did. Her uncle, on the other hand, was impressed by what she did and the courage it took. He was also proud of her when she told him, that she looked after his mother/her grandmother.

They all wondered where the money had been coming in for the private nurse and the medical bills being paid. He knew something was up when his mother avoided where the money was coming from.

“It’s not I don’t enjoy all the cooking we are doing, but what are we going to do with all these cookies?” Jamie thought they had a lot of cookies.

“Oh, don’t worry about that. So, what do you want for Christmas?” Charlotte already had some of what Jamie wanted.

“A nice job and a place to live.” Jamie felt guilty letting Charlotte take care of her.

“Well, I’ve been thinking since I’m heading back to England after New Year’s. Why don’t you stay here and look after my grandmother’s house?
I’ll establish a fund for repairs and keep a handyman on call for you to call and fix anything that breaks.”

“I couldn’t do that, Charlotte. I feel guilty for everything you are already doing for me.” Jamie didn’t want to feel she was taking advantage of Charlotte.

Charlotte looks seriously at Jamie “You shouldn’t feel guilty about anything I do for you, Jamie. Like I told you before, I’m repaying what people did for me. You know those truckers I told you about?”

“Yeah, the ones you said that you hitched hike with.”

“If they hadn’t taken me in and bought me clothes, meals, and let me travel with them to learn a trade. I wouldn’t be where I am today. It was because of what they did for me, that I’m doing for you. As you know, I’m heading back to England after New Year. I have a family there and a job. I don’t mind you living here and looking after the place after I go back to England.”

“What if I decide to get a place of my own?” Jamie knew taking care of a place like Charlotte’s grandmother’s was a lot of work.

“Then, I’ll either rent it out or let my uncle buy the place from me. He has been hinting that he wants to buy the place and keep it in the family.” Charlotte also thought about letting her brother live here with his family.

“Alright, but at least let me pay you something for letting me live here.” Jamie felt that it would be fair.

“Okay, so what type of work do you want to do?” Charlotte would be willing to send Jamie to school for training.

“I don’t know. How did you decide to become a musician?” Jamie cuts out some more cookies from the dough they made.

“That’s a good question. I would have to say the first time I heard my friend sing an old trucking song. A bunch of truckers I knew and traveled with live a lonely life and sometimes they are away from their families for long periods. So, they create music to express how they feel. I guess it awoke something in me, that I didn’t know I had.” Charlotte had to think about that question.

“That’s something to think about.” Jamie thinks about what she wants to do before Charlotte leaves.

Once Charlotte decided they had enough cookies and small cakes. They pack them in decorated cookie tins they bought yesterday and seal them up. While Charlotte wrote out tags for who the tins were for. Jamie orders them some dinner. The kitchen was still messy from their baking.
Charlotte looks at all the tins and starts packing them into boxes to be shipped off. She knew her bandmates were going to get a kick out of the cookies she made and her wife as well. She watches as Jamie comes back into the kitchen and helps clean up.

“Charlotte, I was thinking would it be okay to decorate the place for Christmas?” Jamie saw several of the other houses on the block decorating their homes.

“Sounds like a good idea. When do you want to go and buy a Christmas tree?” Charlotte liked helping her grandmother decorate her house for Christmas.

“How about tomorrow, morning?” Jamie wanted to get the tree early.

“Okay, we’ll go out first thing in the morning.” Charlotte wishes her wife was here with her.

The doorbell rings “I got it.”

Jamie heads towards the front door looks threw the peep hole and spots the delivery driver. She opens the door and hands the driver a tip, after
receiving the food. She knew Charlotte already paid for the meal when she ordered it.

“Foods here.”

“Cool, let's sit down and enjoy it.” Charlotte pours them two glasses of sweet iced tea.

After dinner, Jamie and Charlotte spend in the living room watching holiday movies. Charlotte texts for a while with her wife, before she goes to bed.

Several Days Later:
Charlotte wakes up and walks downstairs to grab some breakfast and fix herself a cup of coffee. She missed her wife and would love to fly back home and join her. However, she still wanted to keep her promise of fixing things with her parents. She covers up a yawn and steps into the kitchen.

She notices a piece of paper leaning against the coffee maker. Charlotte picked it up and noticed it was Jamie’s handwriting. She reads the note Charlotte, I left early this morning to meet up with an old friend. The company she works for just had a position open up and are looking to fill it right away. I’ll text you later, and let you know how things went. Jamie.

“I hope everything works out for Jamie.” Charlotte lays the note down and brews some coffee for herself.

While Charlotte is waiting for her coffee to brew. She turns the television on and sees what the weather is going to be like for the next few days. She has invited her parents to dinner twice and they never showed up. She sent flowers to the house and the floral shop she used, said that the delivery was refused.

Her parents weren’t budging at all on accepting her. She grabs a blueberry muffin and breaks the top off. She loved eating the top first and the bottom section afterward. When her coffee was done, she sat down at the kitchen table and enjoyed her simple breakfast.

Charlotte had three more weeks before she went back to England and she was going to try to keep her promise. As for the rest of her relatives, some were understanding, while a few didn’t want to have anything to do with her.

As for her brothers, they have accepted her for her. She knew it would take some time for them to accept her fully, but for now, they were accepting her. As for her younger brother’s wife. She was slowly coming around to accepting her. Charlotte knew it would take time.

After Charlotte has her coffee and a blueberry muffin. She heads back upstairs and gets ready for the day. After she is dressed, and ready to leave the house. She grabs her jacket and purse and locks the place up. She drives her grandmother’s old car downtown and does some window shopping.

Charlotte notices a food truck selling hot beverages. She walks over to it and stands in line to place her order. When it's her turn to order, she spots a red-haired woman around her age. Her name tag said her name was Carolyn.

“What can I get for you, ma’am?” Carolyn looks at the auburn-haired woman standing before her truck.

“I’ll like your hot winter apple cider, please.” Charlotte missed having apple cider. It was hard to find in England.

“One apple cider coming up.” Carolyn turns and pours a medium cup of hot cider.

Carolyn turns back around and hands the cup to the woman “That will be two-fifty, please.”

Charlotte pulls out a five-dollar bill and hands it to the young woman. “Keep the change.”

“Thank you.” Carolyn accepts the money and rings the drink up.

Charlotte took a sip of her apple cider and had to admit that it tasted unique. She walks over to a bench nearby and sits down. Sure, there was a chill in the air, but the heat from the apple cider was keeping her inside warm and her coat was keeping her outside warm.

She watches as couples and parents go about their business. She knew she’d never have children of her own, but she and her wife have talked about it and they have a few avenues they could go down. However, she was still too young to even think about starting a family. Maybe when she turns thirty years old, things will change.

After enjoying her apple cider, she tosses the paper cup away and walks back to her grandmother’s car. On her way home, her cellphone beeps letting her know a text arrived. She’ll look at the text once she pulls into the driveway.

Charlotte looks at the text and a smile appears on her face. Jamie got the job and she would be coming home late. They wanted her to start right away and were giving her a tour and run down.

“Good for you, Jamie.” Charlotte sends her congrats to Jamie for getting a job.

Charlotte gets out of the car and walks into the house. The place looked festival with all the Christmas decorations she and Jamie set up. This was one thing she missed while she was away. Her grandmother always put the Christmas decorations for the holidays.

Charlotte hangs her jacket up in the hall closet and takes her purse to her bedroom. Normally, she doesn’t use a purse at home, but sometimes she does. She walks into the kitchen and fixes some lunch for herself.

While Charlotte is fixing herself some lunch, she tries to think of a way to confront her parents or if it is even worth it.

Sorry for the short chapter.

Charlotte was getting frustrated with every attempt she made with trying to patch things up between her parents. Her mother slapped her in public when she ambushed her mother at the beauty salon her mother liked going to. She was trying very hard to keep the promise she made to her grandmother, but it seemed that this was one promise she wouldn’t be able to keep.

She already contacted her wife back in England and informed her that she was thinking about coming home early. She’ll stay until Christmas and spend it with her brothers and their family. Afterward, she’ll head home to her wife and spend New Year’s in England.

She called her wife Stella and informed her about her plan. Her wife informed her that she’d get in touch with her cousins and see who they used to handle the property they owned. True, she told Jamie that she could stay at the house, but she needed to arrange to have a handyman available to fix anything that might break. She’ll arrange for Jamie to contact the handyman.

Charlotte called her uncle Pete to see who would be a good person to hire since he was in construction. After contacting that person and making arrangements. She transferred some funds from her account to a local bank to pay for the person's services.

As for Jamie’s new job. She was enjoying it. Since meeting Jamie, she has never seen her so happy. Charlotte sips her tea as she sits down at the piano her grandmother had. She places her teacup on top of the piano and cracks her knuckles as she limbers up before she starts playing. She starts playing, letting how she feels flow out of her and down her fingers to the keys of the piano.

Charlotte lets how she is feeling flow out of her. Tears leak from her eyes as she lets out how she is feeling about the situation between her and her parents. She promised her grandmother she would try and patch things up with her parents, but they won’t let go of their hatred.

She plays for a while, before stopping and looking down at the keys of the piano. Tears leak from her eyes as she lets everything, she is feeling flood out of her. After crying for a while, Charlotte takes her tea cup back to the kitchen and heads upstairs to her bedroom.

Charlotte takes a shower and crawls into bed. She could smell her grandmother’s scent in the room. She slowly drifts off to sleep wondering what she should do about her parents.

Jamie came home late from work and couldn’t believe how many hours she was putting in this week. She was happy that she managed to find a job so close to Christmas. She walks into the kitchen and checks the refrigerator and notices a plate made for her. A smile appears on her face as she takes it out and unwraps it.

Jamie puts the plate in the microwave to heat it and pours herself a glass of sweet tea. She wonders if Charlotte has had any luck with making up with her parents. She knew she should make up with her own family. She’ll give them a call on Christmas and hope they will be willing to talk with her.

Once the plate is done reheating, Jamie takes it out of the microwave and sits down at the counter to eat. She looks out the window in the kitchen and wonders what she should buy Charlotte for Christmas.

After Jamie finishes her late dinner, she rinses off her dirty dishes and heads upstairs to her bedroom. She had another busy day ahead of her and wanted to get a good night’s rest. She’ll take a shower in the morning time.

Jamie wakes up early and gets dressed. She heads downstairs to the kitchen to fix herself a cup of coffee. She’ll stop at Molly’s to grab a muffin. She leaves to go to work.

A few hours later, Charlotte wakes up and puts her house robe on. She stretches before leaving her bedroom. She walks out of her bedroom and down to the kitchen. She brews some coffee for herself and starts making a light breakfast. As she is cooking, Charlotte listens to the news on the television while she is cooking.

After she finishes making breakfast, Charlotte sits down and thinks about what she could do to maybe make up with her parents. She was going to try at least one more time to keep her promise and if this time didn’t work, Charlotte was going to throw the towel in. She takes a sip of her coffee and sets the coffee cup back down.

After breakfast, Charlotte heads back upstairs and starts getting ready for the day. She is hoping that this last try will work. Once Charlotte is dressed, she grabs her purse and keys and leaves to start her plan.