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“Of course.” He motioned to the doors. “Would you like to come in?”
I shook my head. “You have a busy day and this won’t take long.”
He settled in.
His wife (I was so hazy when I met her, I forgot her name, though I was sure someone told me), wrapped her fingers around her husband’s arm, totally feeling my vibe.
Welp.
I was here, no going back.
So I launched in.
“I want you to know that, yes, what happened to Elsie Fay was a lot. But the reason I reacted the way I did was because my sister Macy was taken when she was six.”
“My dear,” he whispered, his body jolting at hearing this news.
His wife’s fingers visibly started clutching his arm, and it occurred to me then how his job had a lot to do with helping people navigate the shitty parts of life.
In other words, he had to bear some of that weight, and considering how much of it he probably had to take on, that weight must feel like he was carrying around a mountain.
It sucked I had to add to it, but at the end, they’d see the light.
Though, I had to give him more weight first.
“She was never recovered,” I went on.
The reverend moved, like he was going to grab hold of me, probably to give me a hug, but he stopped himself.
Yeah, he knew how to do this.
I kept going.
“The favor I need to ask, and I know this isn’t about me, and it’s definitely not the time…I also know that if anyone will understand when the time is, you will. So I wanted to ask you to explain that to them. I didn’t handle our visit well, and I’m embarrassed I had my episode when they’re dealing with so much. So it’s that. But also, I hope they’ll learn healthy ways to deal with it, but we both know they’ll never get beyond what happened. I just want them to understand they can hold on to the joy that they got her back.”
“Thatyougot her back,” the reverend said.
“Well…” I demurred.
“The way you reacted, Rachel, said you cared,” he told me. “That’s it. They thought nothing of it. When something like that happens, we need to remember how very many people are out there who care. I think you’ve learned that. Am I right?”
Oh, I’d learned that.
I nodded.
“So don’t worry yourself about it. But yes, I’ll do you that favor. I’ll find the time. And I’ll share your story so they’ll remember to hold onto that joy.”
“Thank you.”
“My pleasure. Thank you for trusting me with your history and giving me the honor of sharing it with Ben and Emily.”
What a nice guy.
We said our farewells, and with his arm around me again, Cap took me back to the Porsche.
We got in and he turned to me. “You good?”
I nodded. “I’m good, honey.”
