A/n: Thank You for the Birthday Wishes !! 

Chapter 19 - Truth Teller (Ansel Conrad POV) Pt. 2

"As a father of three daughters," I remember Antone – Kalenah's father telling me, "I've worked hard to provide for my girls Ansel, but in turn, they've also put in the work to make them selves successful. My Lenah, she is as much heart as she is intelligence," the warning clearer than ever.

"There is nothing wrong with having a big heart when you have given your heart to an honest individual-" was something my own father told me, "Your heart is not made for everyone... it's not a free for all type of place."

Raising my own children, I expressed the same underlying basis. Luckily for my parents the people we settled down with all fit us perfectly, but that did not mean that along the way my siblings and I had not been with some that we were not meant to be with.

Not everyone is lucky to find their 'one' at their first try, my sister Angela, the perfect example. After having three serious boyfriends', she was now with her 'one' – Courtney.

When it came to my children, Brennan, Talia, Thaddeus and Harleigh, well they found their one young I believe. When it came to Samson however, he had shown interest in a few girls of our kind but not really finding his match in anyone in our circle.

But that was before Faith.

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With the knowledge that I had a full house of teens, I woke early taking over for Kalenah as she was at the guesthouse with Samson and Faith for the night.

In all honestly though, I had hardly slept at all.

I could not wrap my mind around everything, the possible repercussions when it came down to Faith and her relation to Cynthia and Andy. Worse was the turn my thoughts took long after Kalenah had left and I had bid Brennan goodnight.

Why did Cynthia show up at the house?

Not a paranoid individual, I was cautious and Samson had to get his overanalyzing tendencies from somewhere. Though I'm sure most came from Kalenah, there was a part of me that tended to look at the broader picture. So why had Cynthia randomly shown up at our house? I had easily accepted that it was because she wanted to show off their – my younger brother Danny and her's – newest baby.

However, now, with a clearer head, I was not so sure.

"Look... man... I'm –" I remember Danny sighing, uncomfortable, "I uh – I know Kalenah is in contact with some of her own college classmates," he said clearing his throat, scratching the back of his neck and glancing around us. Even then, years back, I frowned, pushing my brows together, "Yeah what's up?" I asked concerned.

"I – look don't tell anyone but do you think you can ask her if she can possibly set Cynthia up with someone – that knows about us – I – I have uhm, I just – I feel like maybe she has some secrets and I've told her she can come to me, but – just in case she needs more than I can give her..." he looked at me with defeat in his eyes as though seeking help made him less in some way. Years later I can still remember the look in Danny's eyes, but right now, that is not the problem.

The dilemma I was having now, was whether he or Cynthia had reached out to the person that I had in fact gotten contact information from Kalenah for? The same person that had a tie to the place Faith had been going to therapy. The same place where according to Kalenah, Faith firmly stated she no longer wanted to go.

With ideas floating, without Kalenah to be my sounding board, sometime around dawn, I finally stopped at; Cynthia had in fact seen or at least spoken to the person Kalenah had recommended, maybe revealing more than she had with Danny. Information about Faith, about the little girl that she left behind and now... that same person had in fact warned Cynthia of Faith's arrival.

On my own, without the blood test results I had come to the outlandish conclusion that Dmitri was hiding Faith away, but from Cynthia. It had somehow gotten back to Cynthia that Faith was in Bend, and she came to somehow harm Faith. That could be the only plausible explanation.

Wiping my hands over my face roughly, I release a low throaty groan.

You are getting ahead of yourself, I warn my inner musings.

But that's just the thing. Whenever you wanted to stop thinking of something, of course, that was when somehow it completely took over every other rational thought until second after second was spent analyzing it. That was happening now to me when it came to Faith, Dmitri and Cynthia.

It has been bothering Kalenah, worrying her endlessly: why would Dmitri hide Faith the way he had? I could almost see it in her eyes when it was what she was thinking over. And while I would try to placate my wife, tell her that there may never be answers given or found out, I worried myself privately and silently as well. When I was in the car alone, especially in the morning driving away from my home, contemplating the number of times Faith watched Dmitri drive away? Or when one of my children opened the fridge openly eating something that was not sealed.

It was endless and could take hours of useful time away in one sitting if you weren't mindful of the time.

Point in case? Last night up to now. In the end, no matter how I turned the facts around, Cynthia showing up here rang of personal gain. The way she looked around the room, her jumpiness at each person coming down the stairs. Everything I first took as her normal behavior now, with more context I knew she came to our home for a reason.

Placing everything revolving around Faith aside, I prepare for the morning and head downstairs to the kitchen when I overhear, "I'm going to tell him... it's time," Taylor says, "I'm running out of time-" I shake my head but otherwise move past Taylor and whoever she was speaking too now.

In truth, I believe that Samson will let her down easily, privately.

I'm at the stove when the same conversation I left behind is sounded again, "I know Samson, Taylor. He's gone out with other girls, you know that... he won't say no to a date, but then you just have to make it a date he won't forget," Devin says and my hand with the whisk stills, as I frown. Hopefully, Devin wasn't insinuating what I was I assuming. Quickly pulling myself from my stupor, I'm taken aback when I see not only Taylor and Devin but also my oldest son Brennan coming down the stairs.

Devin and Taylor I understand speaking about Samson the way they were but, not Brennan. Surely I was not the only one that witnessed the connection between Samson and Faith?

When the two girls see me, they flush and scurry from the room, "hey son," I call out to Brennan when he starts to go after them, "yeah dad?"

I stop all preparations, "I would hope that you are not building up hope where you should not be," I tell him pointedly, but when he gazes back at me with fake innocence, "What is between Taylor and Samson, is between them. Your relationship with Devin is separate Brennan. It is a tough place to be, but the two of you are not you, Samson, Taylor and Devin. Talia and Javier are together. You and Devin are together. It is not written anywhere that Samson must be with Taylor for you to be with Devin, or for Talia to be with Javier, son," I cut right to the chase getting to the crux of what I'm sure is Brennan's line of thought.

In true teenage form, Brennan just cocks his eyebrow right back at me, "Who says Samson isn't into Taylor?" I snort, laughing quietly, I take a step back, opening the cupboard. "These three assortment boxes of tea that Samson made sure we purchased because Faith said she's never tried them..." I eye the boxes closing the cupboard, "Or maybe it's the fact that Taylor spent the night in this house, and if Samson was interested, he'd have spent the night in this house and not the guesthouse." One thing I've become aware of and able to pinpoint when it came to my children was the millisecond lasting look in their eyes when – unfortunately to them – either Kalenah or I are speaking the truth.

Shaking my head, I just shoo him off after I've said what I had to, this was not the first time that Brennan had heard such a lecture from Kalenah and I to be honest. We had it with them when Talia and Javier began dating as well. Surely though, Brennan could see that Samson had no interest in Taylor.

Thirty minutes later Harleigh comes down; the rest of the troupe with her and Kalenah enters the kitchen as all the children speak amongst themselves, planning their day. I'm expecting Samson and Faith to be right behind her, but realize chances are Faith probably went straight to her room using the front door to avoid all our extra guests.

"Hey Kalenah, is Samson upstairs?" Taylor asks when she's finished eating and brings her plate to the sink. With my back turned to her, I have no reason to school my face. Shaking my head, a part of me still feels sadden by this situation – in a perfect world no one would get hurt but this was just going to be a learning experience for the kids. It would create a shift; a new dynamic and hopefully, the damage will not be too severe. "Oh no dear, Samson and Faith went out on a daytrip," my wife says nonchalantly before hurrying our youngest up the stairs to bathe and really dress for the day.

I leave the kitchen, but not going far, I can still make out what is being said, "Don't worry, it's not like he's taking her out on a date," Devin says fully consoling Taylor, and I only listen in to make sure Brennan was not adding fuel to the fire. "Maybe it is a date," Harleigh chimes in, "I mean who cares if Samson takes Faith out on a date, as long as their happy and they have fun, that's their business-" shaking my head, I walk away going up to my office.

I had already said what had to be said when it came to Samson and his feelings, the truth was only Samson knew how he felt... if he already realized his feelings that is. However, I was a firm believer that actions scream louder than words, and his, well he was on the top of the tallest mountain professing his feelings for Faith.

In truth I had assumed that Samson was helping Faith, but it wasn't until they had returned from their day trip that I realized with an aching heart that Faith was helping Samson right back. It was like my father had said, "everyone has their match, son."

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