give _____ the last journal. Not until you have a love of your own, can
you know the joy and heartbreak ___ ___ _____ and then perhaps, ____ ____ understand why I did ____ __ _____ . My __________ is that you hide or __________ the
journal, but I will be gone so ______________ . Do ______ will with it. Nothing can __________ me any
longer, and I do not ______ anything.
Ta Mémé, Lilibelle Guillame
Delancey
20 Février 2001
Even with all the words he couldn’t decipher, Jack was sure
that Lilibelle’s letter was her confession.
He sat back and watched Cara Lynn. She was bent over Papi’s
letter and seemed to be having as much trouble reading it as he’d had reading
Lili’s. But for her, penmanship was not the problem. Papi’s words were written
in neat block letters. It had to be the content that Cara Lynn was frowning
over.
When, at long last, she looked up, he saw sadness and fear in
her expression. For a long moment, the two of them stared at each other. Jack
could read her thoughts as easily as if she’d spoken. She knew, just as he did,
that each one of them held a document that could potentially destroy the
Delancey family, if the words were true.
Alone, neither could be called evidence, but together they
might be enough to convince a judge to reopen the case and allow DNA evidence to
be presented, especially if the indecipherable words in Lili Guillame’s letter
said what Jack was sure they did. And Jack believed with all his heart that his
grandfather’s DNA would not be on the murder weapon. The police report he had
indicated that there were two types of blood on the weapon, O positive and O
negative. Con Delancey had O negative blood, while Lilibelle and his grandfather
both had O positive.
But right now, he wasn’t willing to share that much with Cara
Lynn. He wasn’t yet sure he could trust her. She hadn’t promised him that she
wouldn’t go to her brothers. If she told them about the possibility of DNA
testing, would they intercept and block his request?
Jack stood and stretched, then went around the table and opened
the refrigerator door. “Want some water?” he asked.
“Hmm?”
He looked at her. She was still looking down at the letter in
her hand. Obviously she hadn’t heard him.
“Water?” he said again.
“Oh. Yes, please.”
He set a bottle beside her and went back to his chair. As he
sat, she reached for her grandmother’s letter.
He snatched it up. “Hang on. I can’t read everything. I want to
take another look at it.”
“No. I want it back,” Cara Lynn said. “I don’t want anything to
happen to it.”
“Hey,” he said, holding it out of reach when she tried to take
it again. “Watch out. I’ll give it back to you when I’m done with it.”
“I don’t want it torn or wrinkled.”
“Then stop grabbing for it. Come on, Cara Lynn, why would I
want to destroy your grandmother’s letter to you. It confirms what my
grandfather said. He didn’t kill Con Delancey. She did.”
“What?” Cara Lynn snapped. “She does not say that.”
“Oh, come on. She says right here, ‘I shall wait until you
marry to give you the last journal. Not until you have a love of your own, can
you know the joy and heartbreak of love and then perhaps, you can understand why
I did something, something —”
“Well something is not kill my husband .”
“No,” Jack said. “But I think it says did
what I did or what I had to do . Then she
goes on to say, ‘My hope is that you hide or something the journal, but I will be gone so it is yours. Do what
you will with it. Nothing can something me any
longer and I do not something anything.’ I’m sure
that’s nothing can hurt me and I do not regret anything .”
“You don’t know that. You said you couldn’t read her
writing.”
“I can read it well enough to figure out what she’s saying.” He
waved the letter. “You can’t deny that this sounds like a confession.”
Cara Lynn thumped the paper with her
you know the joy and heartbreak ___ ___ _____ and then perhaps, ____ ____ understand why I did ____ __ _____ . My __________ is that you hide or __________ the
journal, but I will be gone so ______________ . Do ______ will with it. Nothing can __________ me any
longer, and I do not ______ anything.
Ta Mémé, Lilibelle Guillame
Delancey
20 Février 2001
Even with all the words he couldn’t decipher, Jack was sure
that Lilibelle’s letter was her confession.
He sat back and watched Cara Lynn. She was bent over Papi’s
letter and seemed to be having as much trouble reading it as he’d had reading
Lili’s. But for her, penmanship was not the problem. Papi’s words were written
in neat block letters. It had to be the content that Cara Lynn was frowning
over.
When, at long last, she looked up, he saw sadness and fear in
her expression. For a long moment, the two of them stared at each other. Jack
could read her thoughts as easily as if she’d spoken. She knew, just as he did,
that each one of them held a document that could potentially destroy the
Delancey family, if the words were true.
Alone, neither could be called evidence, but together they
might be enough to convince a judge to reopen the case and allow DNA evidence to
be presented, especially if the indecipherable words in Lili Guillame’s letter
said what Jack was sure they did. And Jack believed with all his heart that his
grandfather’s DNA would not be on the murder weapon. The police report he had
indicated that there were two types of blood on the weapon, O positive and O
negative. Con Delancey had O negative blood, while Lilibelle and his grandfather
both had O positive.
But right now, he wasn’t willing to share that much with Cara
Lynn. He wasn’t yet sure he could trust her. She hadn’t promised him that she
wouldn’t go to her brothers. If she told them about the possibility of DNA
testing, would they intercept and block his request?
Jack stood and stretched, then went around the table and opened
the refrigerator door. “Want some water?” he asked.
“Hmm?”
He looked at her. She was still looking down at the letter in
her hand. Obviously she hadn’t heard him.
“Water?” he said again.
“Oh. Yes, please.”
He set a bottle beside her and went back to his chair. As he
sat, she reached for her grandmother’s letter.
He snatched it up. “Hang on. I can’t read everything. I want to
take another look at it.”
“No. I want it back,” Cara Lynn said. “I don’t want anything to
happen to it.”
“Hey,” he said, holding it out of reach when she tried to take
it again. “Watch out. I’ll give it back to you when I’m done with it.”
“I don’t want it torn or wrinkled.”
“Then stop grabbing for it. Come on, Cara Lynn, why would I
want to destroy your grandmother’s letter to you. It confirms what my
grandfather said. He didn’t kill Con Delancey. She did.”
“What?” Cara Lynn snapped. “She does not say that.”
“Oh, come on. She says right here, ‘I shall wait until you
marry to give you the last journal. Not until you have a love of your own, can
you know the joy and heartbreak of love and then perhaps, you can understand why
I did something, something —”
“Well something is not kill my husband .”
“No,” Jack said. “But I think it says did
what I did or what I had to do . Then she
goes on to say, ‘My hope is that you hide or something the journal, but I will be gone so it is yours. Do what
you will with it. Nothing can something me any
longer and I do not something anything.’ I’m sure
that’s nothing can hurt me and I do not regret anything .”
“You don’t know that. You said you couldn’t read her
writing.”
“I can read it well enough to figure out what she’s saying.” He
waved the letter. “You can’t deny that this sounds like a confession.”
Cara Lynn thumped the paper with her
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