“But they’re in Europe!”
“Well, why don’t you come and talk to them anyway.” Pastor Young suggested with a smile.
Tiffany hurried into the lodge and took the phone in the office from Pastor Young. “Hello?” she said.
“Darling, it’s your mother!” she heard.
“Mom? Where are you? Why are you calling?”
“We’ve been so frightened! When they called us last night to tell us you were missing we caught the first plane back to the United States! We’re in New York, trying to get another flight back to California. We’ll be home as quickly as we can, darling.”
Tiffany was silent for a moment. Finally she said, “You don’t have to do that, Mom. I’m fine.”
“Nonsense. You must have been terrified! Of course, we want to come home and be with you! We’ll be there sometime tomorrow.”
“Okay then, Mom,” Tiffany said softly. “I’ll see you to morrow.”
“We can’t wait! We’ll call again in the morning and let you know when our flight comes in.”
“Thanks, Mom.” There were tears in Tiffany’s eyes as she said, “Oh, and Mom—”
“Yes, dear?”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too, Tiffany. Bye!”
“Bye!” Tiffany whispered.
Kristi was waiting for her when she came out of the lodge. “Was it your mother?” she asked.
“Uh-huh. They’re coming home.”
“Were they mad?” Kristi asked with concern.
Tiffany stopped and looked at Kristi. “No. Actually they sounded like they’d been worried! My mom said they—they couldn’t wait to get home and be with me!” Tiffany’s voice choked up. “She said she loves me.”
Kristi put her arms around the other girl. “That’s wonderful, Tiffany! I’m so happy for you! I hope things will be different for you now.”
“I think they will be, Kristi. For one thing, I feel different now that I’ve accepted the Lord. I can hardly wait to go home and kind of—start over. You know?”
“I understand, Tiffany. And having the Lord really does make a difference in our lives,” Kristi agreed. They went up the path to Redwood Cabin. Bright light spilled through the windows, lighting the night. It was good to be home again, even if it was just a little log cabin in the woods.
Kristi was lying in her bunk a little later than night, just drifting off to sleep when she thought of all the times she had prayed for Tiffany that week. She remembered praying that the Lord would show them some way to reach her. He had His own way of reaching her, though, Kristi thought with a sleepy smile. Our best efforts weren’t enough. But He did it. And just think—all it took to reach Tiffany was a retarded girl, a mountain lion and allowing us all to be lost in the wilderness in a thunderstorm—that’s all!
The End
Storm Over Hidden Lake (Kristi Cameron Book 6) Page 11
