Rachel bit down on her hand. This was nerve racking. She had the letter in her book bag. It had taken her months to finally work up the courage to look up Gordon Kindly. He was a janitor at a school called Private Oaks. He didn’t live that far from her house though, so after school she caught the city bus and was riding it to his house. She bit down harder. “Kid, you’re gonna bite your hand off if you don’t stop.” An old man chuckled. Rachel took her hand out of her mouth and sat on it. “Where are you headed young lady?” the old man asked. He adjusted his straw hat and moved to the seat in front of her. Rachel smiled and replied, “To my father’s house.” “Neva seen you on this bus before.” He said. Rachel just nodded and decided not to answer. This guy was creeping her out. She looked out the window to show the old man she didn’t feel like talking. She sat like that until the bus driver called her stop. She waved good bye to the old man and stepped off the bus. She saw the old man looking out the window at her. He was smiling.

Rachel walked down sidewalk looking at the addresses. The sidewalk was shielded by large oak trees. They made the street seem sinister and dark. Rachel walked faster. She finally saw it, 7898 Chesapeake Rd. She gapped at the house. It was practically a mansion. It was about three stories with twenty windows. The porch was a wraparound and there were chairs and a swing sitting on it. A dog was also sitting there. At first Rachel had thought it was fake, but then it lifted its head and looked at her. It didn’t bark just stared at her. She took a deep breath and started up the walk way. The dog jumped up and ran to her. It sniffed her then jumped up and landed on her shoulders. It was a big dog. “Nash, down.” A voice with a British accent commanded. The dog whined but got down and rolled over on its back, asking for a belly rub. “Sorry.” The man apologized. He came from out of the house and grabbed his dog’s collar. It was a young man in his early twenties with light brown hair. “She always is happy to see new people.” He said. “It’s okay.” Rachel whispered still nervous. “What can I do for you?” he asked. “Does Gordon Kindly live here?” she asked sheepishly. The young man looked at her curiously. “Yes he does. He’s in the house. Would you like to see him?” the young man asked. Rachel nodded and followed the young man into the house. He led her up the stairs to a room. The door was open and a man in his early forties was sitting at a desk. “Dad, you have company.” The young man said. Rachel looked at the young man and just stared. This young man could be her brother. The man turned around and Rachel saw the male version of her sister, Taylor. She took a step back and practiced her deep breathing. Her shrink had taught her that. “What can I do for ya lassie?” he asked. His voice sounded like he had had a British accent when he was younger. “I’m Rachel Crate.” She said. The man’s smile disappeared and worry lines appeared. “What are you doing here?” he asked. “My sister was looking for you.” She explained. “Taylor?” he asked. She nodded and continued, “She died six months ago though and I thought I would find you instead.” The man nodded. “Dad, do you know her?” the young man asked. “Ronnie, this is my daughter Rachel and her sister Taylor was also my daughter.” The man answered getting up. “Your mother was a student at Private Oaks College Academy. She was a freshmen and I was just a janitor. I was twenty- four when I met your mother. I already had a son and girlfriend but there was just something about her that I couldn’t forget. We soon got to talking and then we were dating in secret. Secret because my girlfriend and her parents. Your mother was only sixteen because she had graduated early but she was turning seventeen soon. I got her pregnant with Taylor on her seventeenth birthday. We were screwed. We kept the pregnancy secret. She didn’t gain any weight so it was easy. When she had the baby we gave her up and nobody knew about it. I had taken her to a hospital in a different county. Everything was fine until I got her pregnant again when she was nineteen. We just couldn’t stay away from each other. This time it was harder to hide. Your mother gained a lot of weight and soon her parents knew. She wouldn’t tell them that I was the father though. She blamed it on her boyfriend. Her parents then hated him and they moved to a different city. They enrolled her in a different college and they made her give the baby up for adoption. I didn’t think you guys would end up together.” The man explained. His son looked at him accusingly. “You cheated on mom?” he asked with disgust in his voice. “It was a long time ago.” His dad answered with no regret. He got up and pulled Rachel into a hug. “This is my youngest child and it’s a girl.” He said with his face in her hair. Rachel could tell he was crying. She was. “Dad?” she asked. He pulled back and looked at her and nodded. Ronnie just looked at her from the stairway. “Taylor died?” he asked. “Yes the man that we live with now found a cigarette bud and he accused Taylor of it. He said he wouldn’t have any smokers in his house and kicked her out. He started throwing all her stuff out the house. Then he took the only thing we had left of our adopted mother into the street. It was a stuffed pig she had given us before she had died. Taylor went to retrieve it and at that moment a drunk driver driving a truck hit her. She died instantly. But the bud was mine. It was my friend’s. She was trying to stop smoking and she had given all her cigarettes to me so she wouldn’t have them. I guess I dropped one.” Rachel admitted starting to cry again. Her real dad hugged her tighter. His son Ronnie just watched from where he was standing. “It’s okay.” Her dad said soothingly. He stroked her hair until she calmed down. Then she turned to Ronnie. “I’m sorry I just came into your house and did this, but I had to see my real father.” She explained then turned to walk down the stairs.