Samantha leaned over and kissed Benjamin affectionately on the lips before hopping out of his car in front of the Fate Valley Hotel. She had an interview with Becky Black in just a few minutes and she had to gather her interviewing equipment from her room. After she gave him a warm hug, they parted, promising to see each other again very soon.

Inside her room, she packed up her interviewing bag with her camera, her notepad, and her audio recorder. She took everything down with her to her rental car. Checking her phone for Becky’s address, she Googled the directions before turning on her car and backing out of her parking spot.

A few moments later, she pulled up the driveway of a big new mansion. It was huge, three stories high, with multiple balconies. Gray smoke billowed from multiple chimneys into the afternoon air. A big oak tree stood in the front yard. It must have provided ample shade in the hot Missouri summers, but now it was dark and bare.

Samantha parked outside and noticed the dock out on the water. She grabbed her backpack and made her way to the front door. Pressing the doorbell, she stood in front of the carved hardwood door with stained-glass windows. She took a deep breath, exhaled, and smiled. A moment later, an attractive woman with cascading hair, full lips, and artificially accentuated curves opened the front door.

“Samantha Cooper?” the woman asked warmly.

“Yes, that’s me,” she said.

“I’m Becky, come on in,” she said, stepping back to offer Samantha room to walk inside.

Becky led her through a comfortable front parlor to a café table by the window with a view of the lake. A tray of tea and cookies sat beside the table. Samantha slipped into her chair, removing all her equipment for the interview. Becky poured two cups of tea into flower-printed porcelain cups and handed the cup and saucer to Samantha. Cream and sugar sat on the table. Samantha helped herself, stirring her tea with a silver teaspoon. Becky set the cookies in front and looked up at Samantha with a big bright smile on her face.

“So why don’t you tell me a little bit about the Fate Valley Wives’ Club,” Samantha said, turning on her audio recorder.

Becky folded her hands in front of her on the table and smiled in a self-satisfied way.

“The Fate Valley Wives’ Club was founded thirty years ago by Patricia Biggs of the Fate Valley Biggs. She came up with the idea of creating a Wives’ Club that would overlook the community at about the same time the Shifter Community Association was founded.”

“Was there a connection between the two?”

“I think for the most part, the Wives’ Club wanted to protect the moral standards and the safety of the non-shifter community,” Becky said.

“Oh,” Samantha said, biting her lip.

She understood that there were still pockets of people who hated shifters. Shifters had made their existence known only fifty years ago. There had been a tremendous amount of backlash against them at the time. It wasn’t until after the Great War, when shifters had helped end the violence, that the government had declared them heroes and passed the Shifter Equality Act.

“So, was the Fate Valley Wives’ Club founded before or after the Great War?”

“Just around the beginning of the war. Shifters were starting to organize because they were being drafted into the military when humans were not. A lot of shifters were angry, but many humans supported the idea, thinking it was the shifters’ duty. I know how it sounds, but Fate Valley Wives Club doesn’t stand for the same things anymore. We are mostly concerned with doing charity fundraisers and beautifying the town. I, for one, adore shifters.” There was a gleam in Becky’s eye. Shifters were handsome.

“So, you did a fundraiser for the statue of Ambrose Morgan?”

“That’s right.”

“And you were able to raise the fifty thousand dollars to have the statue created.”

“We commissioned one of the best statue sculptors in the entire country. The reproduction of Ambrose Morgan is dead on to his photographs and portraits. It was such a beautiful statue. I can’t believe it’s gone missing like this. All that work. We really had the best intentions at heart. You must understand, we just wanted to honor the man who was responsible for creating this community in the first place. This place that we all call home, humans and shifters alike.”

“What gave you the idea to commission his statue?”

“It was first proposed by Cynthia Morgan-Whitmore. She’s Ambrose Morgan’s great-granddaughter.”

“Ambrose Morgan’s descendants still live in Fate Valley?” Samantha asked.

“Why, of course they do,” Becky said.

“Could you tell me a little bit more about that?” Samantha asked.

“Why, yes. They still live out at his original house, you know. It was built soon after the lake flooding. It’s in a grand old neighborhood with many historic homes.”

“Could you give me her contact information. I’d love to interview her. She may be able to give me more insight into Ambrose Morgan’s personality.”

“What a lovely idea,” Becky said, taking out a pad of paper and jotting down the contact information. “I’m sure she would be happy to speak with you. We at the Fate Valley Wives’ Club are extremely interested in historic preservation. Having an interview about our sleepy little town in the Historic Times is quite an honor.”

Samantha chatted with Becky for several more minutes, sipping her tea as Becky extolled the virtues of living in a small town like Fate Valley. Samantha could tell that Becky had a good heart and wanted nothing but the best for her club and her community.

“We really are devastated that the statue has gone missing. I’ve heard rumors that it was those miscreants at Midwest Mayhem.”

“Do you believe the rumors are true?” Samantha asked.

“To be honest,” Becky said, leaning in closer. “I do. That group has been nothing but trouble since they moved in here. A bunch of trash that needs to be thrown out, if you ask me.”

“How do you think they moved the statue?”

“I don’t know. But I wouldn’t put it past them to use all their resources just to prank our town. The stunt they pulled turning the lion statue at City Hall upside down was unforgivable.”

“What happened to the statue?” Samantha asked.

“The top of his head was crushed. It had to be repaired to the tune of five thousand dollars.”

“I see.”

“That’s taxpayer money, you know. All of the hard-working people of Fate Valley don’t deserve to be treated that way.”

“I would be angry about it too if I lived here.”

“Speaking of living here,” Becky said with a smile. “I’ve heard people have seen you around town with Benjamin Darling.” Becky poured herself another cup of tea and took a sip. “He wouldn’t happen to be your fated mate, would he?”

Samantha sighed, not sure she wanted word to get around down. “It’s true, we were matched on Mate.com.”

“I knew it! I knew the moment you walked in here. That Candy Bear certainly is attractive. I know several of my friends that have had their eyes on him. He’s been single for so long. But you know what they say about shifters, those boys only want their fated mates. Such a shame, they won’t date anyone else.”

“That’s what I’ve heard too,” Samantha muttered, feeling uncomfortable with the course of the conversation.

“So, when are you relocating to Fate Valley?” she asked.

“I haven’t decided yet,” Samantha said nervously. She began to fidget in her seat.

Thoughts began to run through her mind. She still didn’t know how to answer Becky’s question. She loved her life back in New York City. The freedom, the hustle and bustle, the music, and theater, and food. And the people. You couldn’t get all those things in a tiny little town.

Fear gripped her chest. She’d had just met Ben. How could she possibly change her whole life around, move to another state, and leave her job, for a man she just met? It was preposterous! She took a deep breath and let it out, gulping down the anxiety. She knew how she felt about Ben and she’d already told him she wanted to be with him. She’d have to sort out her fears later.

“Well, if you decide to throw him back, then there will be a lot of happy women here in Fate Valley to pick up the pieces. He’s quite the catch. He might not be rich, like Liam Nash, but he is terribly handsome. And I’m sure that candy shop is worth a pretty penny after all these years.”

“I really wouldn’t know,” Samantha said, standing from the table. “I think I have everything I need for today.”

The line of discussion had started to make her extremely uncomfortable, and she didn’t want to talk about it anymore. She began to pack her things.

“Well, I wouldn’t worry about it too much if you act fast. Shifters only want their mates. But they are so attractive. Many of the more open-minded ladies at the Fate Valley Wives’ Club can talk of little else.”

“Yes, it would seem to be a popular area of discussion.” Samantha said, clearing her throat.

She slung her backpack over her shoulder. After bidding Becky farewell, she escaped from the house and made her way back to her rental car. A lot of human women found shifters incredibly attractive. Even in New York City, there were columns in newspapers about how to get a shifter to date you, even if you weren’t their mate.

They had a distinct physique and most of them were gentlemanly in a way that human men tended not to be these days. She could never stomach the manipulative way that some women wanted to take advantage of that. Samantha threw her backpack into the passenger seat and turned on her car. She gave Becky Black’s mansion one last look and drove away.

Samantha put her Bluetooth headset in her ear and called Cynthia Morgan-Whitmore as she drove toward town.

“Hello?” a woman answered the phone.

“Hi, my name is Samantha Cooper. I’m with the Historic Times. I’m in town, writing an article about Ambrose Morgan, and I’d like to do an interview with you.”

“Oh, lovely. I do have a little time today, if you wouldn’t mind coming by the house.”

“I’m out and about right now and have time.”

“Why don’t you swing by, and we can chat.”

“I’ll be right over,” Samantha said.

The woman texted Samantha her address and she made her way to the neighborhood that Becky had mentioned. It was full of stately old mansions with all their historic flair well preserved. Big front lawns were guarded by ancient trees. Samantha pulled up in front of the address and grabbed her backpack from the passenger seat. She was greeted on the front porch by Cynthia, a middle-aged lady with dark bobbed hair. She wore a pink twin set, a string of pearls, and gray slacks. She had a big smile on her face and offered Samantha a warm handshake.

“Come on in,” she said, opening the front door for Samantha to step inside.

Samantha scraped her boots off on the welcome mat and stepped into the warm house. Cynthia indicated she should walk into the front parlor. A big brick fireplace glowed with a crackling fire. Cynthia offered Samantha a seat on the big overstuffed brown leather couch and took a seat beside her in a matching armchair.

Tea sat ready on the coffee table and Cynthia poured her a cup. Samantha was more of a coffee drinker. This was more tea than she usually drank in a week, but she accepted the cup anyway. She took a sip and enjoyed the lovely spicy flavor, so she took another sip before setting it back down on the table.

“Why don’t you tell me about your ancestor, Ambrose Morgan? Are there any personal stories that have been handed down through the generations that you can share with me?”

“Well, my family remembers my great-grandfather as being a dignified and intelligent man. He died when my grandfather was still young.”

Samantha took another sip of the spicy, sweet tea and looked around the room. There was a big painting of Ambrose Morgan over the fireplace, wearing a tweed suit. On the wall across from her hung a huge landscape painting of the flooding of the Lake of the Fates. The room was full of historic antiques. Samantha couldn’t help but feel there were many secrets yet to be revealed.

“Ambrose came from a prominent St. Louis family. He became a successful civil engineer and joined the Missouri Hydroelectric Company after college. He was the mastermind behind the flooding of the Valley and the creation of the lake.”

“This was his house?” she asked.

“It was. It’s been renovated and restored multiple times, but it still maintains the same charm and atmosphere. He had it built for our family.”

“And Ambrose had two sons, Henry and Clark? Your grandfather and your great uncle?”

“My grandfather was Henry, the eldest.”

“And where does you great uncle’s family live?”

“They live in Pennsylvania,” she said. “But I can’t see what this has to do with your article.”

Samantha exhaled deeply, and her shoulders slumped. She had to tell Cynthia the truth.

“Well, you see, it isn’t exactly for my article. Although this is great information about your great-grandfather,” she said, gulping. She had to just spit it out. “I took a DNA test recently, and it came back that I’m related to Ambrose Morgan. I don’t know how. I’m an orphan, you see. I never knew my father. I came here to write my article about the statue and to discover my connection to Ambrose.”

Cynthia gasped and clutched the pearls on her neck.

“How is that possible?” she said, looking at Samantha.

“I don’t know,” said Samantha. “I was hoping you could help me.”

Cynthia frowned and looked away, biting her lip. She then looked back at Samantha.

“I think I know the answer to your question,” she said, with a long sigh. “Most of the family suspected it was just a rumor. And we buried that rumor so deep that no one would ever know about it.”

“What rumor?”

Cynthia sighed again, and Samantha was growing nervous. Cynthia looked Samantha up and down, opened her mouth, closed it, then tapped her lip with the pad of her index finger.

“I’m just going to come out and say it,” she finally said. “I only know about it because I heard my grandparents whispering about it one Christmas Eve as a child. I was sworn to keep it a secret. But I just can’t do it anymore. Not with you sitting here in front of me.”

Samantha gulped, sweat breaking out on her brow.

“There was a rumor that Ambrose was having an affair with his African-American maid. There. I said it.”

Samantha’s eyes went wide, and her mouth dropped open in shock. She sat back on the couch and crossed her arms over her chest. That would explain everything!

“What was her name?” she said in a low voice.

“I’m not sure. No one ever told me.”

“What happened to her?”

“She left his employment after his wife Mary died. They said she left town. But that’s about as much as I ever learned about it. I did hear my grandparents say they believed it had been going on the entire time Mary Ashworth was sick. It would have been such a scandal if anyone found out. You know, men back then had plenty of affairs, even with the help. But if he’d had a child with her, it would have been unacceptable.”

Samantha couldn’t help but be offended. That child would have been her own grandparent. She shook her head, not able to understand anything that was going on. She felt like jumping out of her flesh. This was the last thing she had expected. In some ways, she couldn’t really believe it, and thought maybe it was all a big mistake.

But deep down, she knew it was true. Then she began to grow angry. How could Ambrose have an affair with his maid and then leave her with nothing? Samantha had spent her entire life in foster homes after her mother died.

All along, she’d thought she was related to Ambrose because her father’s parents had loved each other, against all odds. But now, she learned it was this. A wealthy man and his maid. She felt so betrayed and hurt she wanted to cry.

“This is all a shock for you, isn’t it?” Cynthia said, her voice softening.

“It’s beyond shocking, to be honest,” Samantha said. “I’m afraid I need to go.”

She stood, grabbed her things, and shoved them into her backpack.

“I hope I didn’t offend you,” Cynthia said. “It’s just that it’s such a guarded family secret, it’s hard for me to share it.”

“No, I’m not offended at all,” Samantha lied. “I understand what men were like back then. He probably just used her while his wife was sick. It’s really quite disgusting. I just…have another appointment I need to get to.”

“I’m so sorry,” Cynthia said sincerely. “I should have known this news would upset you.”

“I’m not upset,” Samantha said, clearing her throat and trying to regain her composure. “Not at all. Now I understand where I come from. It all makes perfect sense.”

“You are upset,” Cynthia said. “Why don’t you sit back down and try to catch your breath. I’ll pour you some more tea.”

“No, that’s fine, that’s perfectly fine. I’ll be in touch. I’ll send you a few copies of the magazine when the article comes out.”

“That’s very kind of you, dear. But I’m more concerned about your state right now.”

“Don’t worry about me,” Samantha said. “I’ll be just fine.”

“All right then.”

Cynthia showed her to the door and apologized again. But Samantha really couldn’t hear it. Her ears were buzzing with the pounding of her heart, and all she wanted to do was escape the house where her own grandparent had been illicitly conceived. It was a scandal on both sides.

Samantha couldn’t believe that after all this searching, this was where she’d come from. She was so angry she wanted to tear down the statue of Ambrose Morgan herself. How could he have done such a thing? He’d probably left her nameless great-grandmother to fend for herself and the child. Tears slid from her eyes as she got behind the wheel of her car. Just then Benjamin called, and she answered the phone with a sob.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“I found out how I’m related to Ambrose Morgan,” she said.

“That’s great news. Why are you crying?”

“He had an affair with his maid.”

“Oh…”

“I thought it was my father’s parents and that they loved each other. People are so horrible. I just don’t know what to think anymore.”

“Why don’t you come over to the shop, and I’ll fix you a cup of hot chocolate,” he said.

“I have to be alone right now. I’m headed back to the hotel for a bath and a nap.”

“Well, why don’t I come by after work and check on you then?”

Samantha let out a deep breath as she turned on the car. Ben’s voice had a way of calming her down and soothing her soul.

“I’d like that,” she finally said.

“Well you take your bath and get some rest, and I’ll see you soon.”

They hung up the phone. Just knowing that Ben was there for her somehow made her feel so much better, even after she’d been handed some of the worst news of her life.