Kate let Paul field the sheriff’s questions and assist with the investigation while she joined Aleeda.
“Let’s start making calls to let everyone know what happened,” Kate suggested. “Do you have the list of volunteers?”
“Sí. In my folder at your house.”
“Then let’s go over there.” Kate headed for the car. “We can call while we’re cooking.”
Aleeda had created a detailed inventory, and the list of volunteers showed what they were contributing to the dinner. In very short order, Aleeda and Kate had people up in arms and as determined as they were to continue their plans.
Paul called at ten. “The sheriff and Skip just left. You can start cleaning up.” He chuckled. “You’ve got half a dozen ladies waiting here to start work.”
“Wonderful. Tell them to go ahead. Aleeda and I will be there as soon as we take the last of the cookies out of the oven.”
BY TWO THIRTY, the Faith Freezer house had been restored to its normally clean, spit-and-polish self and several of the women who’d helped clean had gone home. All evidence of the vicious vandalism had been eradicated. Outside, however, a large garbage Dumpster contained painful proof of the destruction.
As Kate had thought during her walk-through with the sheriff, many of the foods from the freezers were still frozen and just needed to be repackaged. Still, they had lost hundreds of dollars worth of food.
Kate forced herself to keep moving forward, believing that God would want them to care for the people he’d placed in their path.
At around four, Kate, Aleeda, Livvy, Renee, Paul, Lucas, Jake Saunders, Eli Weston, and Danny Jenner headed out, laden with food and other supplies they’d gathered for the homeless.
They were nearly to Ash Grove when two heavy-duty pickup trucks blocked their way. The two Brainerd boys stood in front of the vehicles. They wore camouflage pants and T-shirts, along with what looked like combat boots.
Several other men stood to the side. One she recognized as Joe Brainerd. A rifle rested on one arm.
Kate pulled out her cell phone and called the sheriff. Paul and Jake both stepped out of their vehicles.
Oh, Lord, Kate prayed. Please don’t let anyone get hurt.
“Looks like we may have found the culprits who ransacked the Faith Freezer house.” Jake turned to Joe. “I thought I told you guys to leave it alone.”
“Since when do I take orders from you?” Joe threw the question back at him.
Kate’s gaze sprang from one to the other. She came around to stand beside Paul. Anger stormed through her again. In the next moment, she was standing in front of the boys.
“Katie!” Paul started forward, but Lucas stopped him. “She may be better able to handle this than we are.”
Kate squared her shoulders, wondering about her sanity. She glared at Corey, the boy who’d come out onto the porch at the Brainerd house. His cheeks flushed, and his gaze dropped to the ground.
Hands on her hips, she glared next at Chad. “What on earth do you boys think you’re doing?”
Corey took a step back and glanced over at his father.
Chad straightened. His Adam’s apple rose and fell. “Ah, we ain’t gonna let you through, so you might as well go back where you came from.”
His nervousness prodded her on. She turned to the boys’ father. “Joe Brainerd, you are worse than a coward, letting your boys do your dirty work.”
Joe’s gaze pierced Kate’s. “We all feel the same way. We don’t want the homeless around here. We can’t be feedin’ ’em and givin’ ’em jobs that belong to us.”
Kate tried her hardest to keep her tone even. “Why are you so angry? Those people aren’t a threat to you. They are regular folks, like you and me.”
“No, they’re not.” Joe came toward her, rifle in hand.
Kate stood her ground and crossed her arms.
“They’re dangerous,” he growled. “They’re no better’n animals, and if I had my way, we’d go in with our shotguns and chase ’em all out. Let the government take care of ’em.” Joe punctuated his statement by spitting on the ground.
His words broke her heart. How could someone respond that way? “They’re people like you. God has provided you with food and clothing and a home. You’ve been very fortunate.”
“You don’t know what you’re talkin’ about.”
Kate looked over at the other men, then back to the aggressor. “Your boys are too young to remember, but there was a time when most of the people in this town lost their jobs and didn’t know where their next meal was coming from.”
Joe’s eyes narrowed. “That was different. The mill closed, and...”
“And left some people homeless and hungry. From what I understand, the residents of Copper Mill pooled their resources and made sure their friends and neighbors were taken care of.”
“She’s right.” Paul came up and placed his hands on her shoulders, drawing her back a step. “Any one of you could be in the same fix as the folks having to live out at the campground. As I see it, we have a responsibility to take care of the less fortunate. A lost job, too many medical bills, no insurance could pull any of you down, and you know it.”
Paul drew in a deep breath and took a step forward. Kate knew it was to protect her, but she didn’t sense any real danger. She felt certain the men wouldn’t hurt them. In fact, she thought she’d seen a softening in Joe’s expression.
Paul continued. “My father always used to tell me to treat others as I’d like them to treat me. I know for sure that if I was hungry and without a home, I’d want my neighbors to help me. How about you?”
Several of the men mumbled among themselves. One man, whom Kate had seen at Faith Briar, came forward.
“I’m sorry, pastor. But Joe’s afraid the homeless will start settin’ up camps all over the community and bring a crime wave with them.”
“Y’all might want to take the time to check out the programs the local churches are putting in place,” Jake said. “The idea is to integrate these folks into the community. Maybe help them turn things around, make sure they have food to eat and wherever possible, find them jobs.”
Sheriff Roberts drove up. Stepping out of his SUV, he shook his head. “Don’t you pastors have anything better to do than harass these fine folks?”
Kate opened her mouth to protest and then realized the sheriff was joking.
Skip pulled up behind the sheriff. In short order they managed to clear the road and arrest Joe and his two sons for vandalism. Apparently he and Skip had found some incriminating evidence at the Faith Freezer house.
Kate felt sorry for the boys. Judging from their reaction, she suspected they were only following their father’s orders. She took Paul aside and talked to him about doing something for Corey and Chad.
“Good idea.” Paul stopped the sheriff as he was getting into his SUV. “I wonder if you’d leave the boys with us. That is, if they’re willing to help us serve dinner at the campground.”
“Not a bad idea. My guess is they wouldn’t even be out here if their dad hadn’t twisted their arms.” Sheriff Roberts released the boys. “I want to see you two tomorrow. I’ll come by your house.”
“We’ll be in school till four,” Chad said.
Sheriff Roberts glanced at Paul. “If they give you any trouble, you call me.”
Paul eyed the boys. “Sure will.”
With the entrance reopened, the volunteers got back in their vehicles and headed down the road.
At the campground, they unloaded the supplies, then set out the Thanksgiving feast consisting of six turkeys with all the trimmings, steaming-hot casseroles, hot rolls and butter, salad, and all manner of cookies, pies, and cakes for dessert on picnic tables in a sheltered pavilion.
Then Paul led the group of seventy or so in prayer. By the time they started eating, Kate felt a rightness in it all. They had been strangers, and now they were friends. Even now, the homeless were part of the Copper Mill community.
Kate looked over the group. Marie held Sophie in her arms as Lars, balancing three plates, took a seat beside them. She still didn’t know what to make of Marie’s comments about her husband. Had she been leading Kate on to protect herself and Charlie?
“Mrs. Hanlon?”
The voice behind her sounded familiar. Kate felt a sense of déjà vu. She smelled the same sweet-spicy scent the first night she’d been out to the campground and recognized it as cloves. She knew before she turned around that this was the person who had thrown the rock at her Honda and stolen her purse. Kate turned, not at all surprised to see Corey Brainerd.
He slipped something into her hand. “I’m the one who stole your purse. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I didn’t have a gun or anything...just a stick.”
She opened her palm and found fifteen dollars.
“I...um. My dad was totally freaked out about the homeless guys settin’ up camp around here. At the drugstore, I heard what you said about helpin’ them and thought if I could scare you, you’d stop wanting to help them, and my dad would stop bein’ so mad.”
This wasn’t what Kate had expected. “Why is he so against this? I don’t understand.”
Corey sighed and lowered his voice. “A couple of years ago, my dad’s sister got beaten up real bad in a homeless camp in Nashville. She lived, but she has brain damage and won’t ever be the same. All she ever wanted to do was help people, and look what she got for it. Dad never got over it. He doesn’t want anything to do with the homeless.”
Now Kate felt as though she had a glimmer of understanding into Joe’s anger. “Oh, Corey, violence and anger aren’t going to solve anything, and I’m not the kind of person who’s going to be frightened away.”
“Yeah...I get that. I’m sorry about the Faith Freezer house too.”
“Thank you for telling me.” Kate smiled at him and started to hand the money back. “You probably need this more than I do.”
He held up a hand to stop her. “No. It was never about the money.”
Kate nodded and stuffed the money in the pocket of her jeans. Later, she would tell the sheriff that she didn’t intend to press charges. Kate thought for a moment, and a realization struck her. “Are you and your dad also responsible for all those break-ins in the area?”
He nodded. “Guess there’s no use lyin’ about it. We didn’t steal anything big. Dad wanted people to see how bad it was to have the homeless around, so he made it look like people from the camp did it.”
Kate was horrified at the lengths Joe had gone to. “You need to report all of this to the sheriff.”
Corey stuffed his hands deep into his pockets. “I will...Mrs. Hanlon, my dad isn’t a bad guy; he just can’t get over what those transients did to Aunt Helen.” Then he turned and walked slowly away.
Moments later Paul sat down beside her. “I’d say our first meal was a major success.”
Kate entwined her fingers through his. “In a manner of speaking, yes.” She laid her head on his shoulder and told him about Corey.
“I’d still like to talk to Jake Saunders,” she said. “He’s connected with just about everything I’ve looked into. Did you hear what he said to Joe? That he’d told him to ‘leave it alone’? I’d like to know what he meant and where he fits into it all.”
“Jake left right after we dropped things off. He wanted to talk to the sheriff about Joe.”
Kate sighed. “Are you ready to go home?”
Before heading home, however, they had some unfinished business. After calling Cat Brainerd, Paul and Kate took the Brainerd boys home. The sheriff had called earlier to tell their mom what had happened. Cat was furious. She’d had no idea that her husband had commissioned the boys into his self-made militia.
“Thank you so much for taking the boys tonight,” Cat said to Kate and Paul. She turned to Chad and Corey. “You guys go to bed. I’ll be up in a few minutes.”
To Paul and Kate, she said, “I am so sorry they caused you such grief.” She closed her eyes and shook her head. “I know it must be hard to believe, considering what’s happened, but this isn’t like Joe at all. True, he’s a little rough around the edges, but this is bizarre.”
Kate bit into her lower lip. “Corey told me about Joe’s sister.”
Cat sighed and wrung her hands in her lap. “I thought we’d gotten through that. He’s carried such a burden...He blames himself for not going with her that night.”
Cat must have apologized a dozen times before Kate and Paul finally left.
On the way home, Kate couldn’t help thinking about Joe’s sister, Helen, and the anger he carried. She felt sad for him, but as far as she was concerned, it shouldn’t matter what Joe’s reasons were. He deserved to be punished for his actions.
Chapter Thirty-One
Kate could hardly remember climbing into bed that night. She’d fallen asleep immediately.
When she awoke on Friday morning, she felt a bit blue, probably because an exciting day like the one they’d had often led to a letdown of sorts the day after.
She went through her usual routine with coffee, her devotions, and taking in the beautiful spring day God offered. Aleeda encouraged Scott and Nate to walk to school and enjoy the sunshine. Then she joined Kate for coffee on the patio and went over her list of chores for the day.
“I have an interview tomorrow with the woman who is looking for a personal assistant.”
“Good. If you need a raving recommendation, you have it.”
“Gracías.”
After cleaning and doing a couple loads of laundry, Aleeda eagerly took over the Faith Freezer Program again. She planned to check her inventory to see what was missing and then asking the volunteers to restock the items.
Kate loved her friend’s infectious enthusiasm. After the devastating losses of the previous day, both of them had stepped back into action, determined to continue the mission.
Kate finished her coffee and headed into her studio. She planned to finish repairing the stained-glass window that morning. By one o’clock, she and Paul delivered the window to St. Lucy’s.
Lucas watched with fascination as she and Paul held it up for him to see.
“It’s fantastic. It looks even better than the original.”
Kate blushed. “Thanks for entrusting me with it, Lucas. It was an honor to restore something so precious.”
They carefully returned the window to the padded crate. Then Lucas reached in his desk drawer and handed Kate a check.
“Jake said to give this to you.”
Jake again. Kate opened the envelope and found a check for fifty thousand dollars. “He can’t...,” she sputtered. “This is too much.”
Lucas held up his hands. “Not for him, Kate. He’s a philanthropist. I told him you’d probably want to give it back, but he said you’d make good use of it.”
“I don’t know what to say. I’ll call him.” She needed to talk with Jake anyway. With his apparent wealth, Kate doubted he had anything to do with the stolen money at Valley Trust, but he knew something, and she planned to find out what it was.
Remembering the note she’d found in her purse, Kate checked the handwriting on the check. It was written in a bold hand with blue ink. Now she felt certain Jake had written the note, but why?
KATE DROPPED PAUL OFF at Faith Briar and went right to the bank to deposit Jake’s check and the check Ava had given her into the special account she opened for the various homeless programs. Eventually they would need to set up the ministry with a real name that incorporated all of the facets involved. And perhaps some of the money Jake had given her could help start the community garden.
Kate was about to turn into her driveway when she spotted someone heading into the woods on the other side of Smoky Mountain Road.
“Oh no. Not again.” Kate muttered as the brown fur cape and the red and purple hat disappeared into the trees.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Kate pulled into her driveway, wondering what Ellen’s exc
use would be this time. In a way, Kate felt sorry for the woman. It couldn’t be easy to be a caregiver for someone like the countess, who was spry and at the same time confused and obviously memory impaired. On the other hand, there had to be a way to make sure someone like Claire couldn’t escape and put herself in harm’s way.
Running across the street and toward the path where she’d seen Claire, Kate weighed her options. There were laws protecting the elderly. Neglect was a form of abuse.
But Kate hesitated to go that far. Maybe Ellen was doing the best she could with the resources she had. Unfortunately, Kate couldn’t rule out abuse. She’d seen firsthand how frustrated Ellen had been with her mother at the house the other day.
By the time Kate reached the path, there was no sign of the elderly woman. After a moment’s panic, Kate willed herself to settle down and think clearly.
“She can’t have gotten too far,” she murmured. “Just stay on the path. You’ll find her.”
After walking for ten minutes and finding no trace of Claire, Kate turned back. She’d noticed a number of narrower trails branching off the main one. Claire must have taken one of those.
She took several of the smaller trails but found nothing. Claire could be anywhere in those acres and acres of woods. She could have fallen and been injured.
Kate couldn’t give up, but she needed to let Paul and Aleeda know where she was. Unfortunately, her cell phone was still in the car. Kate hurried back to the car and retrieved her phone. She called Paul. When he didn’t answer, she called the church. Millie told her he was visiting housebound parishioners. Kate left a message with Millie to have Paul call her. She then ran into the house to deposit her handbag and scribble off a hurried note for Paul and Aleeda, in case Paul came home instead of going back to the office.
Kate quickly switched her dress flats for tennis shoes. She planned to walk the path all the way over to Smith Street, and if she hadn’t found Claire by then, she would call for backup and instigate a search.
The doorbell rang, and Kate hurried to open it. There stood Renee in a puffy pink jacket and designer jeans. Kisses, looking regal on his jeweled leash, barked a greeting.
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