The Ford Heights Murders: Your Friends Came to See Me Book 1 by DL Benning

Author:DL Benning [Benning, DL]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: McCrady Park Books
Published: 2021-09-14T22:00:00+00:00

—Chapter 6—

Julia

Julia was a free spirit as a young girl. She loved the outdoors. Running, climbing trees, and playing sports were some of her favorite activities. She had an athletic build and long, blond hair that she often wore in braids. Julia seemed to sport a suntan year round.

Julia was a gifted athlete and loved competing in many sports. In high school, she played on the women’s golf, softball, and tennis teams all four years. She was also a track star. Julia graduated from Bloom High School in Ford Heights, where Fred also attended in the early fifties.

Fred was quiet in high school, a real loner and extremely shy. Julia knew he fancied her because he would stop by her school locker most afternoons to say hello. That was it, just hello. He would linger there, like he wanted to say more but was at a loss for words. Julia thought he was nice but not her type—he was a boy, and Julia was attracted to girls. Of course, in those days, no one spoke of being gay. Julia was curious about her sexuality, but she kept her feelings to herself. It was a closely guarded secret.

Otherwise, Julia had a good childhood. Her parents were involved in the community, their church, and all their daughters’ sports. Her dad was the coach of the softball team and was also Julia’s biggest fan. Julia’s mother liked to come to the games from time to time. Julia’s dad, though, never missed a game. He had five daughters. Julia was thought to be his favorite. The girls joked that she was the closest their dad got to having a son.

Julia’s sisters were fun. She had four of them: Emma, Jolene, April, and Paulette. Emma was her favorite. She shared Julia’s love of sports and was her confidante. They could talk for hours about everything. Jolene was the oldest and was very strict. Emma and Julia joked that Jolene was never a kid. Their mother depended on Jolene a lot to help with meals and household chores.

April was a sweet child. She was very short—her legs and arms were crippled, and she spent most of her childhood in a wheelchair. Their mother hid April from the public because she was ashamed of the girl. Julia and Emma hated when this happened. They made it their mission to include April in the neighborhood activities and fun.

And then there was Paulette. She had died at birth, and the girls never got to meet her. Every year on Paulette’s birthday, the family visited her gravesite. They would plant flowers and say prayers for her. It was always a depressing day for Julia’s family.

Every spring and summer, Julia played on the girls’ softball team. Julia had such a natural talent that the neighborhood boys wished she was on their team. Co-ed sports teams were not allowed in those days. On weeknights in the summer, the neighborhood kids would play pickup baseball games. The games would stretch for hours. The kids only headed home when the sun went down, and they heard their mothers calling for them.

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