"We're good to go," she finally said. "All we need now is to get the ball rolling and convince the city of Cats Peak to allow Southwind to operate a charitable business, but we can start finalizing the contracts."
Chapter Thirty-Six
Iwas starting to feel like I had overreacted when I'd called in the rainbow. Piece by piece, things were starting to come together, and it looked like Southwind might actually happen. And yet there were still little hints that this fight was still waging. The fire marshal was one example. The next was when Cessily called to get that report from the police. The woman who answered the phone asked, "What report?"
She eventually found it, but it took four hours. Then, on Wednesday morning, I headed to the feed store with Luke to buy grain for our horses. Three different people called Luke some homophobic slur - although they were starting to get a little inventive, at least - and the hag who worked the register walked away, refusing to serve us. A girl who could barely be out of high school stepped up instead.
"Sorry about that, Luke," she said. "She's part of that prayer group April had for you."
"There was a prayer group for me?" Luke asked.
The girl nodded. "Yeah. I mean, Jodi's been showing everyone those pictures of you and your boyfriend, and your ex has been telling everyone about how Southwind made you gay." She rolled her eyes. "It's like the older generations just can't wrap their minds around the fact that people are born how they're born, you know?"
Luke just nodded, looking over at me like he desperately needed help. "Yeah, um, something like that. Can I get the usual?"
"Sure." She rang it up, then smiled at me. "Did you need anything, Violet?"
I didn't have a clue what this girl's name was, but she clearly knew mine. "If I wanted to hire some people," I asked, deciding it was worth trying, "where would be the best place to list the positions?"
"Are you talking about gig stuff?" she asked. "I mean, like handyman stuff, or full-time jobs?"
"Both," I admitted, handing her a credit card for the feed bill.
She swiped the card, then passed it back. "Well, there's a bulletin board over by the door in here, and the Grill has one just like it. That's a great place to find people offering services like hay mowing and horse training. Um, if you have a real job, though, then talk to David, the pastor up at the church. I mean, you can run a listing in Bonham, but that's hit or miss, you know?"
"That's what I was thinking," I admitted. "What about things like retired people who might want some part time work?"
"Church," she told me. "I mean, you can put an ad on the bulletin boards too, then see if anyone calls you." She made a face. "But people aren't saying nice things about Southwind."
"And yet you don't seem to have a problem with us?" Luke asked.
The girl shrugged. "I don't care about who's gay or who's Black. I mean, I went to middle school in Denton, so it was pretty normal. Here? Everyone's so uptight about things. Can't wait until I've saved enough to go to college."
"Sometimes the loans are worth it," Luke told her. "I'll get my truck backed up to be loaded."
"Yep, should be ready soon," the girl promised.
Luke and I didn't say anything until we were back inside the truck. Then he looked at me. "I don't think that sounds like we're doing as well as we'd hoped," he admitted.
"A fucking prayer group for you?" I huffed. "What kind of - "
I didn't get to finish before someone spit on his window. The man didn't even stop as he headed into the feed store, but the large glob oozing down Luke's window made the point the man wanted. It was disgusting, and clearly some people had strong opinions about what anyone did with their own body - or who.
I reached for the handle of the door, but Luke caught my arm. "Let it go, Vi. You can't win them over if you're always picking a fight. We need to convince them that Southwind will make their lives better before we can expect them to like us."
I grumbled under my breath, but stayed in the truck. The young man loaded all the grain for us, then slapped the back of the truck to let Luke know he was done. Thankfully, he also waved, and from the smile he was wearing, the kid either didn't know or didn't care about our reputation.
That was on my mind for the rest of the day. I kept trying to get to work, and then my thoughts would shift back to how that man hadn't even been ashamed of spitting on Luke's window. Other times it was the sneer on Marge's face as she'd simply turned to leave the front counter as if our money wasn't as good as everyone else's.
I was staring at the blank wall when someone tapped at my open office door, saying nothing. I blinked my attention back to the here and now, then turned to find Zeke standing there, shifting on his feet almost nervously. I hadn't even realized the kids were home from school!
"Hey, Zeke," I greeted him.
He made a face that was nearly a grimace. "Um, Mom wanted me to ask if someone might be able to give her a ride."
"Is there something wrong with her car?" I asked, grabbing my keys from the top drawer of my desk.
"No!" he assured me quickly. "It's just that one of the ladies she used to work with cleaning houses called. She was hoping Mom could pick her up for work tomorrow, but Mom doesn't work there anymore. So, Mom thought that since she doesn't really need her car, maybe Helen could use it until hers is fixed. She just needs to drive it over there and get a ride back." He made another face. "And all the guys are working on the cameras."
