She smiled at him almost timidly which surprised him considerably. She was usually, if anything, stern and serious.
“I’m fine but I will tell you and my stubborn brother both right now I am not staying in this house and let that man make me a prisoner in my own home.”
Roger couldn’t say why but that made him laugh. Maybe it was the way her face went from a soft almost smile to a glare he could almost feel.
He tried to smile at her then he sneaked a peak at Nick who was grinning broadly.
“That’s my sister for you Roger. And let me tell you this which will probably save us all a lot of grief. When she says it that way, there is no way that anyone can ever change her mind. It’s made up.”
Roger turned back to Nicole. “Why?”
He knew she hadn’t expected that question. She’d probably been expecting him to argue with her the way it appeared that Nick had been doing.
It took her a moment to recover enough to give him an answer. “I think I just gave you my reason. I don’t want to be imprisoned in my own home even for one day. But you know as well as I do that if I decided to stay here, it wouldn’t be for a short time. It will not be quick or easy to find that man and catch him.”
Roger had to agree with her, but he wasn’t about to tell her so. He had to think of something that would convince her to lie low until Floyd could catch the guy. But what?
Another look into her eyes and he abandoned all thoughts of trying to change her mind.
“Will you allow Floyd to continue the deputy escort to and from school then?”
Her smile returned, and he almost got lost in it. She couldn’t know how beautiful that made her look, or she’d do it much more often.
“Yes, I will allow that. In fact, I am glad to have them near me, especially after you were shot at too.”
He knew it was time to change the subject. “Are you going to church again in the morning?”
She avoided his question. “Are you going?”
He nodded his head. “Yes. Does that mean you’ll go if I do?
She grinned back at him. “No, I was already planning to go.” She looked at her brother. “I’m going to church in the morning. Are you going with me?”
Nick looked like she’d really shocked him with that one. “You’re going to church?”
“Yes, I am. Roger’s sister, Shelly, got me going and I rather like it.”
Nick grinned back at her. “This I gotta see. So, yes, I’ll go with you.”
Shortly after that, Roger left, not knowing whether he was interfering with any plans Nicole and Nick may have had. If she would have asked him to stay, he would have.
But she seemed to be a little uncomfortable around him yet, so he didn’t push it and left.
Chapter Eleven
Sunday morning when Nicole awakened, she did so with a smile on her face. Not only had Roger said he was attracted to her, but she’d finally admitted having the same feelings for him. Well, there was a difference there. Roger had told her, but she had only told Nick so far. Maybe today she could work up enough nerve to tell Roger how she felt about him.
Hopefully, Shelly had said nothing to Roger. Nicole hadn’t told Shelly, but she knew his sister had guessed that little fact whenever they’d be talking about Roger. Oh well. Things would happen the way they were meant to.
She was going to church again today. Since last Sunday, she’d gone out and purchased a Bible for herself. Well, Shelly had helped her with that too.
Then she thought about Shelly for a moment. She had never really had the kind of friend that Shelly was turning out to be and it felt absolutely wonderful.
When she went out into the kitchen, she found Nick sitting there with a cup of coffee in front of him and Snowball on his lap. It was difficult getting used to having someone else in the house with her. Sure, Nick usually came down there almost every other weekend, but this was different. Nick was essentially living there now.
And that reminded her of some questions she’d been meaning to ask him.
She poured a cup of coffee and pulled her wheelchair into the space across from him.
“Nick? Have you thought any more about when you might go back to Kansas City to put your house on the market and have your things shipped down here?”
“Yeah, I have. I thought I’d run up there in the morning and pack up most of my clothes and things I’ll need for a long stay. I’ve already made an appointment with the realtor who sold that house to me and she’s meeting me tomorrow.”
“My, it sounds as if you have it all planned out.”
“Yeah, I do. I didn’t want to bother you with my plans with all the things that are happening here. I should be back sometime late tomorrow afternoon. You’ll be all right going back and forth to school with your escort and the deputy assigned to the school will be close by during the day.”
“Sure, that’s okay. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine until you get back even if it’s later.”
She looked closely at him and knew there was something else bothering him.
“Okay Nick, what is it?”
He didn’t even pretend not to know what she meant.
He gave her a sheepish grin. “I’ve never been to a church service before.”
She laughed softly, and he started to get angry, but she reached out and placed her hand on his arm.
“Oh Nick. I’m not laughing at you. I’m laughing at both of us. Until last week, I had never been to a church service either.”
The anger disappeared, and he gave her a questioning look. “Did Roger get you to go with him?”
She shook her head. “No. In fact, last Sunday was also his first day. His sister, Shelly, talked me into going and I loved it.”
She thought for a moment. “Roger’s cousin talked him into going. She’s the pastor’s wife.”
“Will you help me know what to do and when?”
“You know I will. Now, let’s go get dressed.”
When he gave her another look, she knew what his problem was.
She laughed again. “That’s okay Nick, I had the same problem the first time too. If you wear a nice pair of slacks and a dress shirt, you’ll be fine. The shirt doesn’t even need to be white.”
“Thanks.”
Nick rode with her in her van, of course. She loved the freedom she had with it. She never had to climb into or out of anything. She just wheeled her chair up the ramp and into the cockpit. Then, as soon as she was locked down, she was ready to drive. Great!
When she turned the van into the church parking lot, she could tell Nick was getting nervous. She was about to try to put him at ease when he looked around the parking lot and then turned to her.
“You didn’t tell me there would be this many people here.”
She laughed. “Don’t worry. It’s easier to blend in with a larger crowd.”
He didn’t look like he believed her, but he was quiet while she parked.
As soon as they were inside, Nicole saw Shelly standing behind the pastor and his wife. She waved and waited until Nicole introduced her brother to them. Then Shelly grabbed her and started talking before Nicole even had a chance to introduce Nick.
“Did you think about what we were talking about Friday, Nicole?”
She grinned up at her new friend. “Yes, I did. But first, this is my twin brother Nick. Nick, this is Shelly. I told you about her.”
As usual, Nick embarrassed her. He looked at Shelly with a smile Nicole knew all too well.
“So, you’re the one responsible for getting my heathen sister into church.”
Shelly looked as if she didn’t know what to say so Nicole spoke up first. “Look who’s calling whom a heathen. Come on, let’s go in and get our places.”
Shelly found her voice then. “Yes, we’ve got everybody down there in our usual spot.”
As they approached the area where the McCracken family sat, she saw Roger sitting in the same aisle seat directly behind his father.
She had to smile at that little maneuver which showed that Nick did actually approve of Roger. Okay.
She turned back to find Shelly leaning over her from the other side. “Are you?”
She smiled. “I guess.”
“I can go with you if you want. People do that all the time.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
Then Nicole sat back and tried to enjoy the service, but it was difficult knowing what she planned to do at the end.
* * *
Roger had almost talked himself out of going to church that morning especially since Nicole’s brother Nick would be there. But when he saw her coming toward him, he was more than glad he’d come.
Then when Nick went around him so Roger would be sitting beside Nicole, he was surprised and pleased as well. Did that mean that Nick approved of him being with his sister?
He barely had time to say more than a few words to Nicole before the praise team started the service. They both sat back and watched then. He thought about how Nicole couldn’t enjoy the music the way the rest of them were.
But then he looked closely at her and her eyes were on the big screen where the words to the song were, and she was singing along with everyone else. Amazing. Yes, she was an amazing woman all right.
When the praise team came back to do the last song, Roger began preparing himself to talk Nicole into going out to the farm for dinner again.
He almost missed it when Shelly suddenly appeared at Nicole’s side and they went up to the front where Pastor Gil was standing. What’s going on here?
Roger’s mom turned around and saw his puzzled face. “It’s okay Dear. Nicole has accepted the Lord and now she’s going forward for baptism.”
She turned back around to watch, and Roger looked next to him at Nick and he could tell that her brother knew less about what was going on than he did.
“Did you hear what my mom just said?”
Nick nodded. “But what does that mean?”
Roger shook his head. “I don’t know but I’m going to get someone to explain it to me later.”
Then when the music stopped, the pastor introduced Nicole to everyone and said basically the same thing Roger’s mom had said but he also said something about Nicole wanting to join the church.
Now Roger didn’t know a lot about the church, but he did know Baptists baptized in that big tank up there. How would they do that with Nicole? She couldn’t stand up in there the way others he’d seen last week did.
Well, that was just another question he would get answered as soon as they all got out to the farm.
After the service, Roger was trying to get to Nicole so he could talk to her, but he heard his mom invite her and her brother to dinner at the farm and she accepted. Good. He’d pull her off to the side out there and question her.
Twenty minutes later, Roger was standing on his parents’ front porch when Nicole’s van pulled into the driveway. He rushed out there and was in time to help Nick carry Nicole in her wheelchair up the porch steps.
Then he didn’t see her again until dinner was on the table. She insisted on helping Shelly and his mom with getting dinner ready. He noticed that she had her tray that attaches to her wheelchair so she could carry things to the table.
All through dinner, he had to keep telling himself that he couldn’t talk to Nicole the way he wanted to in front of his family or her brother, so he waited until the table was clear.
But he didn’t have to do anything. Apparently, his mom had been watching him as he watched Nicole. She smiled at Nicole. “Shelly and I can finish. Why don’t you go get some fresh air? You look a little peeked. It’s one of those unusually warm Fall days out there. I’m sure Roger will go out with you.”
Nicole looked up at him with a smile and he smiled back at her. “Sure. Let’s go.”
He didn’t touch her chair even though he wanted to. He knew she always liked to wheel herself. So, he went ahead of her and opened the front door.
Once on the porch, she wheeled her chair over next to one of the old wooden rockers and stopped. He quickly sat in the rocker and looked over at her expectantly.
She took one look at his face that had to show his concern and lack of understanding for what had gone on in church.
She laughed softly, and he suddenly discovered he liked that sound.
“I think you are just bursting to know what happened in church today.”
He nodded, and she went on. “Tuesday night, while Nick was in the hospital, I was sitting at home thinking. Pastor Gil had said a lot about accepting the Lord, so I called Shelly and she helped me do just that.”
Roger had to think about that for a moment. Then he gave her a puzzled look. “But you’re so independent. How can you give all that up the way Gil said?”
She laughed softly. “That’s exactly why I did it.”
He still didn’t understand. “But you’re always doing everything for yourself.”
“Yes, I am. But if you will think about it. Look at all the things that help me to be independent.”
“What do you mean?”
“Okay, you’ve seen my van and you’ve been in my house. Both of those have all kinds of things that help me to be independent. Without them I would be dependent on others.”
Suddenly he felt like one of her students and she was trying to teach him something he was having a hard time understanding.
“I’m not one of your students.”
She shook her head. “No, you’re not. But think about it this way. Would you rather walk from your house to your office or drive your car? It’s only about two miles.”
He was understanding now.
“If you drive your car, you’re taking advantage of something that helps you to be independent.”
When he sat there quietly, she went on. “So, the way I look at it, accepting help from Jesus is just another way I can be able to do the things I need to do.”
The farmhouse was situated on the edge of a woods with cleared land behind the house. He looked out across the front yard to the woods.
“Okay, I think I understand the why now. But I still don’t understand the how.”
Her face suddenly grew very serious. “I’m sorry Roger, but I don’t understand it well enough yet to explain it to you. Why don’t you ask your dad or one of your brothers?”
She seemed to think for a moment. “I’m sure Pastor Gil would be glad to talk to you.”
He just nodded his head which felt like it was overflowing. “I need to think about it.”
She shivered, and he realized it had turned much colder since they’d been on the porch.
“Why don’t we go in? It’s getting too cold out here.”
They went inside and Roger was surprised to see that only his parents and the kids were in the living room. They went into the dining room where they found Floyd, Sue Ann, Shelly and David at the table playing Scrabble® with Nick looking on. He’d never seen them do that before.
Shelly looked up and saw them and she pointed to the other end of the table where another board was set up. “Why don’t you two and Nick play on that board?”
The three of them were soon playing Scrabble® and Roger discovered that he liked it, especially playing it with Nicole who was very good at it.
He looked at her. “You’re really very good at this.”
Nick laughed. “Hey Roger. Remember, she’s an English teacher. She’d better be good at this. She’s a walking dictionary.”
When they left, Shelly insisted that Nicole take one of the games with her until she could get one of her own. Nick hoped to go to a store and get one on the way home and give it to her.
* * *
Monday morning, Nicole and Nick were still talking about how much fun they’d had yesterday play
ing Scrabble® at the McCracken farm.
Nick gave her a serious look. “You know why we had so much fun? We never played games of any kind when we were growing up. Dad wouldn’t let us. He always said we had to spend our time on constructive things.”
Nicole felt a pang of sorrow for their childhood. “You’re right. We could read or watch something educational on TV.”
Nick stood from the table and placed his plate and cup in the sink. “Well, I’m going to take off now. I hope to be back by six tonight, seven at the latest.”
“I’ll be okay until then. Don’t worry about me.”
Nicole went to the front door to see her brother off then went into her office to get her things for school. As she was going out the kitchen door into the garage, she realized she’d forgot to call dispatch to tell them when she was leaving for school.
Oh well, she’d be okay that far. After all, she had her M9 with her.
She made it to school and on to her classroom without incident and she was pleased that she hadn’t had to bother the Sheriff’s Department this morning.
She stopped in the office to check her mailbox and talked with Shelly for a few minutes then headed for her classroom.
When she started to put her key in the lock, the door must have been ajar for it opened a little. She pushed it the rest of the way, rolled her chair inside and closed the door before turning around toward her desk.
She let out a little cry of alarm when she saw Darla on the floor on her stomach. She did let out a scream when she got close enough to see what looked like a knife lodged in Darla’s back.
Nicole rolled up to Darla and started to try to reach down to check her pulse, but she saw her breathing. She then wheeled herself out of the room and stopped to lock her door.
As she went down the hall to the office, she kept thinking about who might have stabbed Darla and why. Then she realized that whoever did it in her room probably wanted her to get the blame for it. Oh no!
As she entered the office, she saw that Shelly was talking to two students, but she waved at Shelly. “Shelly. I need you right now.”
Shelly sent the students away and went around the counter to Nicole.
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