by Lori Wick
“More than anything, but I’m afraid. I’m so afraid that I can’t work or think straight.”
“This is what I said to God, Doyle. I told Him that I’m a sinner, and I believe that Jesus Christ is His Son. I told Him I believe that His blood alone can save me.”
“That’s all?” Doyle asked.
“No, Doyle, that’s not all. I didn’t come with my mind made up—I came in humility and desperation. The words weren’t complicated, but that doesn’t diminish the huge work Christ performed on my behalf when He died to save all men. I had to see my need, Doyle, and until I did, I couldn’t go to God with a repentant heart.”
“So I have to believe that my sin will condemn me?”
“Yes, and that God has the only answer through His Son.”
The word answer got Doyle’s attention as nothing else had. He was full of questions, and Jace had been answering those questions, but he didn’t like what he was hearing. Nothing Jace could tell him would work if he wasn’t willing to listen.
“Tell me one more time,” Doyle asked.
“Do you know you’re a sinner, Doyle, or do you think you’re all right?”
“I know I sin,” Doyle admitted, his heart paining him.
“There is no hope outside of the saving blood of Christ. He provided a path to God through belief in Him. When we confess our sin and need to God, and believe that His Son will save us, He does.”
“How will I know it’s true, Jace? How will I know?”
“You’ll be changed. On days when your heart doubts, you must go to Scripture and not rely on feelings or experience, but if your belief is true, you’ll be a changed man.”
“I have to do this,” Doyle whispered. “I have to take care of this now.”
“You can, Doyle,” Jace told him with a smile. “I found out that God doesn’t turn anyone away.”
And in the quiet store, with a sense of aloneness in the world, Doyle Shephard confessed his need to God and asked God to save him. Jace said little but listened as this man he cared for, his first friend in Tucker Mills, accepted the gift that only God could provide, and nearly cried himself when Doyle finished praying and wept like a child.
“Tell them about the time you helped old Mrs. Hyde,” Douglas urged Dalton once the adults had finished dinner and settled in the large parlor.
“With her dog?” he clarified.
“Yes, that one.”
Dalton rolled his eyes, and Conner’s shoulders began to shake.
“Mrs. Hyde was the meanest woman in Linden Heights. It’s true!” Dalton declared when the group began to smile, sure he was exaggerating. “She watched out her window to make sure we stayed out of her yard, and when we didn’t she’d send the dog out after us.”
“And he was mean,” Conner put in.
“He certainly was. Well, anyway, my father had been talking to me about doing good works and thinking of others, so I went to Mrs. Hyde and offered to cut down an old tree she had in her front yard. At first she seemed pleased, so I went to work. The tree wasn’t that large, and I could reach all the branches from the ground, but my work only lasted about ten minutes before she sent the dog after me.
“I heard this terrible growling and barking, so I climbed the tree I was cutting, but it was old and rotting, and I wasn’t small. On top of that, this dog could jump. Every branch sounded like it was going to break with me on it, so I kept moving and yelling for help, and all this time the dog was going crazy, jumping up and trying to bite me.”
Dalton shuddered with the memory. “I thought I was a goner.”
“So what happened?” Alison asked.
“It gets worse,” Dalton said. “The branch I was on gave way, and both the branch and I fell on the dog.”
“Was he hurt?” Reese asked this time.
“He was more than hurt—he died,” Dalton revealed, still horrified at the memory. “Mrs. Hyde must have been watching from the window, because suddenly she came out with the broom and chased me off the property.”
Every mouth in the group was open with shock and laughter. Dalton was in his element, recounting the old story.
“I ran all the way to the bank and told my father what had happened. He went to see Mrs. Hyde, and we buried the dog for her, but she never forgave me. Thankfully she didn’t replace the dog, but I still gave her yard a wide berth until she died about five years later.”
“Is that all true?” Reese asked, still laughing at Dalton’s voice and antics.
“Every word. You can ask Dooner.”
“Where were you in all of this, Conner?” Douglas asked. “I can’t remember.”
“Probably at home. I remember hearing about it at tea that night and being relieved that the dog couldn’t bite me anymore.”
Voices could be heard just then coming down the hallway from the small parlor where the three boys played. Douglas got up to check on them, and Reese, not thinking about whether or not it was her place, offered coffee and dessert.
Dalton was all for that, so she went off to do the honors, cutting the pie she’d made as well as the berry crisp that Alison had brought. Hillary went to help her, and the Muldoons stayed for another two hours.
Reese walked as far as their house with them and then continued on home, looking forward to spending the evening with her landlady and even telling her some of Dalton Kingsley’s stories.
That night when Reese climbed into bed, she realized that life had taken on a pattern that varied little. Reese liked change, and even enjoyed the unexpected, but she was not discontented right now with her schedule.
The days were predictable, seeing the same people all the time, but she wasn’t the same person she was a year ago. How many years did she stand in Doyle’s store and never once think about praying for him? Such a thing had never occurred to her. But now God’s Spirit lived inside, and she was aware of people, how much God loved them, and how important His death was because of them.
Fatigue finally set in. Remembering the words from the sermon just that morning, Reese drifted off to sleep with the Psalm 25 verses on her mind and her nightly prayer that God would save Mrs. Greenlowe.
“I need to tell you something,” Jace said to Maddie as soon as they were back at the house. “I’ll put these two up,” he referred to the horses, “and be right in.”
“All right,” Maddie agreed, wondering at the odd expression on her husband’s face. He looked excited and tense at the same time.
Maddie didn’t want to go inside but forced herself into the kitchen and waited right next to the door for Jace to come. The wait felt longer than it was, and even more confusion set in when Jace stepped in the door and hugged her, holding her tightly.
“Come here,” he said at last, taking her hand and leading her to the parlor sofa.
“What is it, Jace?”
“It’s Doyle. He believes in Jesus Christ.”
Maddie’s hands came to her mouth, and tears filled her eyes. She had so many questions but couldn’t speak one of them.
“I regret lying and saying I needed to look at boots, but your Aunt Cathy is having a hard time with Doyle’s questions, and I knew he wanted to see me alone.”
“And he prayed with you?”
“Yes. He was terrified of dying in his sin.”
Maddie wanted to throw her arms around Jace, but something in his face held her back.
“What is it, Jace? What’s bothering you?”
“I don’t know enough, Maddie. What if I told him the wrong thing? What if I didn’t present it right?”
Maddie did hug her husband then.
“It’s all right. You don’t have to save him. God does that. I’m sure you just told him what you did, and he understood, didn’t he?”
“Yes,” Jace agreed, relaxing a little.
“Now tell me,” Maddie moved away a little. “What’s this about Cathy not wanting to hear Doyle’s questions?”
“He didn’t go into detail, but he didn’t want her to kno
w we had talked.”
Maddie nodded. This made sense. Cathy would not want to think about death or someone not being good enough to go to heaven.
“I’m busy right now, Maddie,” Jace suddenly said. “The fields own me at this time of the year. I need you to go to town this week, maybe Wednesday, and see how he’s doing.”
“I’ll do it. Maybe he’ll have told Cathy by then.”
“Maybe,” Jace said, needing to hold his wife again.
They sat, just holding each other, neither one speaking for a long time. Eventually, Jace began to pray, but it was brief, his heart overwhelmed with what had happened that afternoon. He asked God to let Doyle’s heart be real and to keep his and Maddie’s hearts forever His.
“Good morning,” Conner said as soon as he tracked Reese down. She was working on breakfast but also bringing some things up from the buttery.
“Good morning,” she greeted him on the stairway, stepping aside so he could go down.
“I’m not going down. I’m looking for you.”
“Oh?” Reese questioned, her eyes watching him. Conner backed against one wall so she could pass and then followed her back to the kitchen.
“Did you want something specific for breakfast?” Reese asked, knowing this was not the case.
“I’m sure I’ll enjoy whatever you’re making.”
“Something special cleaned?” Reese now suggested, not quite able to hide a glimmer of a smile in her eyes.
“No.” Conner was fighting his own smile. “Something more serious than that.”
“I have to go outside to do my work,” Reese said, coming right to the point. “You can see that, can’t you?”
“I can see that you need to stay visible. You can still do your work, just not at the back.”
“That’s the best place for some jobs,” Reese began, but Conner shook his head.
“I can move all of my work home until we know what’s going on.”
“I don’t want you to do that,” Reese returned, becoming very sober. “And I’ll do as you ask, but you’re still not listening to me.”
“Tell me again what I’m not hearing.”
“I’m not the one in danger. It’s you and Troy.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Yes, I do. I didn’t do anything to Mr. Jenness. You, on the other hand, seem to have taken his bank from him.”
“You might be right, but I’m not willing to take that chance. If you’re not inside, stay where you can be seen from the green. Please, Reese.”
Reese nodded and turned back to the oven. Conner watched her, guessing she wasn’t very happy with him. Leaving her to do her work, Conner wondered if she was upset with him or just getting back to business. He hoped he would know before he left for the bank.
“Hello, Maddie,” Reese said when she answered her knock. “Come in.”
“Thank you, Reese,” she said, stepping inside. “Oh, my, this is beautiful.”
“You haven’t been here?”
“Not for many years. I’d forgotten how large it was.” She turned and smiled at Reese. “I’m glad you have to clean it, Reese. I’m not sure I’d ever get done.”
“There’s always something to do,” Reese explained, completely at ease with the whole idea. “Come in the kitchen.”
“Thank you. I came for that recipe. Did you remember it?”
“No, but I can write it down for you now.”
Maddie looked as they walked. As with everyone else, she wanted to ask for a tour but remembered that this was not Reese’s home.
“How are you feeling?” Reese asked, writing down the ingredients for a basting sauce to put on pork.
“Mostly just tired. Sometimes my stomach is upset, but not often.”
“What do you do for that?”
“Eating sometimes helps.”
“I’ve never had a stomachache a day in my life. I wonder what it will be like when I’m pregnant.”
“Well, Reese,” Maddie said softly. “Is there something you want to tell me?”
Reese’s laughter sounded in the room, and Maddie looked pleased. She also said she couldn’t linger.
“Let me know how it turns out,” Reese said, seeing her off through the front door.
“I will. Thanks, Reese.”
Maddie started down the walk toward her wagon but stopped. She turned and looked back at the house, still seeing Reese in her mind and the comfortable way she’d let her out the elegant front door.
Almost like she lives here was the thought in Maddie’s head. Or should live here.
Maddie eventually turned for the wagon to begin her errands, but her mind had stumbled onto an idea, one she thought was most intriguing.
Lillie Jenness had taken Monday morning to run errands. She had quite a long list, not having shopped for a time, and it was nearly dinnertime when she got back. She’d worked ahead of time, however, and knew it would just take a few minutes to put the meal on the table.
She was shocked to find that Gerald had already been in the stew, his dirty bowl and spoon discarded on the worktable. It wasn’t like him to do such a thing, and Lillie wondered why he’d been so hungry. Shaking her head a little, she went ahead and put the meal on, quite certain he would not be around to join her but also planning to confront him over the act as soon as he arrived home.
Not until she’d eaten and gone upstairs to put some things away did she began to doubt her own conclusion. Someone had been in her bedroom. A meticulous housekeeper, leaving everything in order each day, Lillie noticed that the closet door was slightly ajar. And the quilt on the bed looked as if someone had sat down on it.
Lillie’s next thoughts caused her heart to race. She would not ask Gerald if he knew something, since that might make him ask questions in return, but she was pretty sure that Victor had come home. Lillie looked in the closet to see if clothing was missing but couldn’t remember exactly what had been there.
Going back downstairs to sit in the parlor and watch for Gerald, Lillie debated her next move. Did she tell someone at the bank? After all, she wasn’t positive that Victor had been home. Her head began to pound. What was the man doing? Why not just come home and be done with the matter?
Lillie lay back on the sofa. When her thoughts turned to unanswered questions about her spouse, they always caused anxiety. She knew the thinking was fruitless, but her mind still tried to picture Victor in some unknown location. Wishing Gerald was home to distract her, Lillie closed her eyes and actually hoped sleep would come.
Seventeen
“Is this safe to eat?” Troy teased Reese when she put dinner on the table.
“Why wouldn’t it be?”
“Well, you were upset with Conner earlier today, and you might have given me his plate.”
Reese found this highly amusing. She laughed as she met Troy’s eyes and then looked over to Conner.
“Is that what you think—that I’m upset with you?”
“It did cross my mind,” he stated calmly, his eyes watchful as always.
Reese laughed as she went back to the kitchen and then remembered something important. She returned to the dining room and went directly to Troy.
“I forgot to thank you for the shoes,” she said. “I’m sorry it’s taken so long, but each time I remembered, you weren’t around.”
“You’re welcome,” Troy responded, pleased that she accepted the extra money. “They fit well?”
“Yes,” Reese said, biting her lip in pleasure before slipping back into the kitchen.
Conner hadn’t missed a moment of that exchange, and Dalton had not taken his eyes from his brother.
“Something on your mind, Dalton?” Conner asked rather mysteriously, his eyes on his food.
“What would be on my mind?” the older Kingsley asked when Conner finally looked at him.
“I’m afraid to find out” was all Conner would say before going back to his meal.
Troy and Dalton exchanged a brief but knowi
ng look. There was no point in confirming to Conner what he already knew was on their minds.
Reese was in Mrs. Greenlowe’s garden after tea on Monday, checking on the pumpkins and fall squash, when Conner came walking up. She had not been expecting him, but at the same time was not surprised that he’d come.
“Good evening,” she greeted when he came to the fence.
“Good evening to you,” Conner answered in kind, watching her bend one last time. “It’s at this time of the year that I feel lazy as a banker.”
“Why is that?” Reese had come to the fence.
“Jace Randall will be working every moment of daylight, and I have my evenings free.”
“He loves it,” Reese said. “And I suspect you have a certain affinity for numbers.”
“Ever since I was young. Math was always my favorite subject.”
“Was it because your family was in banking, do you think?”
“It might have been. My sister Nell isn’t great with numbers. So math didn’t come easily for all of us.”
“Is Nell older than you?”
“Yes. They’re all older than I am.”
“The baby,” Reese said, smiling at him. “You wouldn’t know it to look at you.”
“I ended up larger than my father,” he shared. “You can’t believe how proud I was to grow taller than he was. I would go shoulder to shoulder with him every time I could manage it, just to measure. He teased me and said it would never happen. I loved proving him wrong.”
“And he was proud,” Reese guessed.
“Yes, he certainly was.” Conner smiled fondly. “I’d already passed Dalton, who took it very well, so my father was the last milestone.”
“And what will you do when your own son passes you?”
“Just like my father, I can’t imagine it ever happening.”
“It would take a lot of food,” Reese said practically, making Conner laugh. He then noticed the vegetables in Reese’s hands.
“Here, give me those,” he said, taking them to the back door, which suddenly opened.
