by Tracy Krauss
“Now just calm down, and tell me what’s going on here,” Con demanded, his voice calm as he advanced slowly into the room.
Ralph squinted at the newcomer, his brain obviously deciding on his next course of action.
“Don’t even think about it, Ralph,” Con continued. “The RCMP are right outside.”
Rachel wasn’t sure if he was bluffing or not, but was grateful that Ralph seemed convinced. He plopped down on a kitchen chair with a grunt. Rachel scooped up the baby and shuffled Janet and the other children out of harm’s way.
“Take my cell phone and call the police,” Con instructed, tossing the device over to Rachel. She obeyed mutely while Con approached the other man. He righted the toppled kitchen chair and straddled it across from Ralph. “So what’s goin’ on, here, buddy?” he asked, his voice louder than normal, as if talking to a deaf person. “Something we should talk about?”
Two officers arrived shortly afterward. After some brief questions, they hauled Ralph off in their police cruiser. He would probably spend the night in the drunk tank. There was no use talking to him in his present condition.
“How did they get here so fast?” Rachel asked.
“We’d just finished up with Friest,” Con replied.
“As in Steve Friest? The Phys. Ed teacher?” Rachel asked.
Con nodded.
“That’s a relief,” Rachel breathed. “I was afraid Bonita wouldn’t tell anyone.”
“You knew?” Con asked, frowning.
“She made me promise not to tell,” Rachel said, avoiding his penetrating gaze.
He continued to scrutinize her for what seemed like minutes until he finally turned to Janet. “Are you going to be alright, Janet? Is there anything I can do for you?”
“I’ll be fine,” Janet replied. “I may pack up and head for Calgary after all, though. My sister will know what to do.” Rachel felt sorry for the other woman. It must be a terrible life. But there wasn’t much more they could do right now.
Con and Rachel took their leave and walked silently to where their parked vehicles stood waiting. “How did you know to come to the Lane’s?” Rachel asked once she’d reached her car.
“I’m not sure,” Con admitted. “I saw your car parked in front of the house and I remembered the concerns you’d had last time you’d been to visit. So I stopped to see if everything was okay. That’s when I saw Ralph manhandling you. It was all I could do to keep from knocking his head off.”
“I prayed,” she informed Con quietly. “And then you showed up.”
“Rachel,” Con said, his tone tentative. “I was wondering if we could, you know, still be friends.”
“I think I’d like that,” Rachel replied with a shy smile. “Oh. And thank you for the gift. I never had a chance to say it before.”
“Gift?”
“The kitten.”
“Oh, right,” Con nodded. “So how is Sarge doing?”
“Sarge?” Rachel asked.
“That’s just what I called him. You can name him whatever you want.”
“Oh. So it’s a boy kitten. I guess Sarge is better than Fluffy,” Rachel laughed.
Con smiled, capturing her eyes for a moment. It took her breath away. He cleared his throat. “Tell me more about Friest. How much did you know?”
“I ran into Bonita one day shortly before Christmas break. She was upset and told me that Mr. Friest made her feel uncomfortable. That he’d made what she thought were sexual advances. I told her to tell someone and she said she would.”
“She did. You,” Con stated.
Rachel’s eyes widened. “Don’t tell me she never said anything and he did it again? Oh no! I knew I should have disclosed immediately, but she made me promise and I was sure she’d tell Betty or someone else close. If he molested her I’ll never forgive myself!”
“Now before you get all flustered, let me explain what happened,” Con interrupted Rachel’s tirade. “Bonita didn’t tell anyone. At least not until after her friend Shaylee came forward. Unfortunately, Shaylee’s description included a lot more than just sexual advances. She was actually trading sex for good grades. When she finally came out with it, a whole lot of other girls did too, including Bonita.”
“That’s terrible! The snake!” Rachel spat.
“I brought Bonita into town to meet with the police. I think there’s enough evidence to formally charge him. But I’m no lawyer. Anyway, I’m sure glad we caught the S.O.B.”
“How’s she doing?” Rachel asked.
“I think she’ll be fine. He didn’t do more than scare her. I can’t speak for the rest of the girls, though. Anyway, she caught a ride back to the farm with Billy Chang. Seems they had some kind of youth activity planned or something.”
That made Rachel smile.
“What you smiling at?” Con asked, the corners of his own mouth slipping upward.
“Nothing much. I was just thinking that Bonita and Billy Chang might make a nice couple,” Rachel replied, looking down at the snow covered sidewalk as a wave of shyness overtook her.
“Say. Would you still like to come out to the farm on New Year’s Eve?” Con asked. “I was thinking that if Sherri and Dan still wanted to come, you could show them the way.”
“That sounds like a plan,” Rachel agreed, smiling fully now. The warmth she felt inside was calming her jarred nerves. A peace had come over her that she had never felt before.
“And at the risk of sounding a little too bold, I still feel the same, you know. About you, I mean.” Con surveyed her closely, but his gentle smile had not changed. “But this time there is no pressure. I’m just letting go and letting God take care of it, one way or the other.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
“Come on in,” Mayor Frank Gesler bustled, waving Thomas into his front room. “I know it’s the holidays and all that, but I thought this news just couldn’t wait. Can I take your coat? Get you a drink?”
“No thanks, I’m fine,” Thomas said, handing his jacket over. “I came over as quickly as I could.”
“Well now, I don’t want to alarm you or anything, but this is not something I really wanted to talk about over the phone. And of course, my office is closed for the holidays.”
“Yes…?” Thomas prodded.
The mayor cleared his throat. “Well, it seems the Heritage Committee had an emergency meeting just last night. I just got wind of it this afternoon.”
When that familiar sense of foreboding began to creep in around the edge of his collar, Thomas said a silent prayer and released it to God. Instantly he felt freedom. God was in control of the project now. “Oh?”
“Seems the Heritage Committee voted unanimously in your favor.” Frank stopped and waited for the news to settle in. The look of shock on Thomas’s face brought a grin to the Mayor’s lips. “A bit of a belated Christmas present, wouldn’t you say?”
“I can’t believe it. I don’t even know what to say.” Thomas shook his head. “How? I mean, there was no way Marni Hyde was going to give an inch. How did they get it past her?”
“Apparently, they held the meeting without her. She’s been asked to step down as chair.”
“I still don’t know what to say. How can I ever thank you enough for your efforts? Without your support, I don’t think anyone would have listened.”
To think he had ever doubted; had almost turned from his faith over it. But the Lord was faithful. The Sovereign One had known the outcome all along.
****
A smaller-than-normal crowd mingled in the foyer of the Community Church on Sunday. The McKinley clan was there, as were the Changs and the Lone Wolf family.
“Not too many people in church today,” Thomas noted as he stood chatting with Con.
Con laughed. “Maybe people got wind of the fact that I was preaching.”
Thomas chuckled. “Yeah, what’s up with that? Where’s the pastor?”
“You know how it is,” Con hedged. “He and his family needed a break. Eve
ryone else gets to travel at Christmas, why not pastors? I’m surprised you didn’t go anywhere.”
“We try to avoid family at Christmas,” Thomas replied, somewhat embarrassed, “It’s pretty much a drunken party, unfortunately.”
“Oh. Sorry to hear that,” Con responded. “Anyway, he might be taking an extended leave. He has some personal things to work out, so you might be treated to more of my sermons in the near future till we find an interim pastor.”
“Hey! I’m not complaining.” Thomas laughed. “Just don’t ask me to fill in.”
“Your turn’ll be coming, buddy,” Con teased. He sobered slightly. “I hope you’re coming to our place for New Year’s Eve.”
“Absolutely. I was thinking I’d like to have that prayer out at Old Man’s Lake before then. I’ve been putting it off long enough and I want to end this year right.”
“Good idea. Start the new year with a clean slate.”
“Exactly.”
“Well, why not this afternoon?” Con suggested. “I can take the snowmobile out and pack a trail if you like, or we could snowshoe in.”
“The snowmobile sounds like the best way. I haven’t been on snowshoes for years.”
“Sounds like a plan. After I grab a bite, I’ll sled right over to the site. Meet you there in… an hour and a half?”
“Sounds good to me,” Thomas agreed. “Thanks again. You’ve been one of my only friends here and I’m honored that you would help me do this.”
“The honor is mine.” Con reached over for a “bro-hug” and they slapped one another’s backs.
“Well, I’d better get a move on,” Thomas said, straightening. “The kids are already out in the vehicle.” He waved and then strode out of the church into the crisp winter air.
“So. You think you’re pretty smart, don’t you?”
Thomas turned in surprise to face the owner of the voice. Marni Hyde was waiting just outside the big double doors. “Miss Hyde. I’m sorry that things didn’t turn out the way you’d hoped, but in the end, you’ll see what a benefit this will be for the town.”
“Your smugness makes me sick,” she sneered. “A wolf in sheep’s clothing. An abomination in the sight of the Lord, that’s what you are.”
“Miss Hyde—”
“Vengeance is mine, sayeth the Lord. I will repay!” she cried.
“I really think you’re taking this too personally,” Thomas said, trying to sound reasonable. “If you would—”
“The Lord has called me to rid the land of its filth and all that would make a mockery of our God.” Her eyes were narrow slits.
“Miss Hyde,” Thomas placated. His senses were on high alert now. She was acting like a crazed woman. Something had changed about her voice, her mannerisms. He took one step back, but it was not soon enough.
“Purge the land of the abomination!” Marni cried.
The blade plunged into his chest.
****
Tubes seemed to be coming out of every part of Thomas’s body. He was resting peacefully, though. That was something.
“Mind if I join you?” It was Rachel. Con nodded and she entered the room, closing the door on the drone of the routine hospital noise. “So? How is he holding out?”
“Fine,” Con said. “Ivor and Betty took the kids. I just wish he’d wake up so we could let him know they’re okay.”
“But he’s going to be okay, isn’t he?” Rachel asked. She took a seat on the opposite side of Thomas’s bed.
Con nodded. “It came very close to severing a main artery. As it is he lost a lot of blood and they had to do surgery to repair all the damage.”
“He was pretty lucky,” Rachel offered.
“I doubt luck had much to do with it,” Con responded. “You know that Thomas is also a man of faith?”
“I… I didn’t know,” Rachel replied, looking down at her hands. “The topic never came up, although we did run into him at the church.”
“I just can’t believe such a thing could happen.” Con shook his head. “And right outside the church.”
“I thought it’d be safer here in a small town,” Rachel mused. “But I guess it only takes one person to spoil that image.”
“And to think such a lunatic was living among us for so long.” Con frowned. “At least she’s in custody, undergoing psychiatric assessment. She shouldn’t be a threat to anyone else.”
“I’m confused.” Rachel’s brows knit together. “It was Marni Hyde and not her sister Mirna, who stabbed Thomas?”
Con nodded. “I don’t think anyone is sure just yet of all the details, but apparently, Marni and Mirna are one and the same. There used to be two sisters, years ago, but they both moved away. Then when they moved back, nobody actually saw them together, but assumed there were two since she acted the part quite well.”
“Like a split personality,” Rachel stated. “So which sister was it? Marni or Mirna?”
“From what I’ve been hearing, it’s Marni alright—the ultra busybody and self-appointed community watchdog.”
“That hardly makes sense,” Rachel mused. “I mean, Mirna seemed like the evil one of the two.”
“Just goes to show how easily we make assumptions without knowing the facts.”
“True.” Rachel nodded.
“Speaking of…” Con began, catching Rachel’s eye and holding it with his own intense gaze. “Thomas and I have gotten to be pretty good friends. I’d like to know once and for all if you still have feelings for him. If you do, that’s fine. It’s just something that’s been on my mind.”
Rachel blinked, shifting her eyes away from Con’s penetrating stare. “I’m not sure what I felt for Thomas at the time. I’m not sure it was anything more than my own weird reaction to all the pain I’d been holding from past relationships. I was desperate for someone to love me, to make me feel worth something, and I guess he was one available target.” She looked up and met Con’s eyes.
“And I was another,” he supplied.
“I suppose,” she whispered. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. It’s just good to know where I stand.”
“I’m over it now, though. My trip home helped me see it was time I got out from under the oppression of my past.”
“That’s good.”
“And I don’t feel anything special for Thomas anymore either,” Rachel continued. “Other than sorry that he got hurt.”
Con nodded. “I see.”
They were both quiet for a space of time. Rachel was the first to break the silence. “I said I was over my past. And over Thomas. But that’s about it.”
Con’s breath caught in his throat. He looked up to find Rachel’s gaze beckoning to him across the space of the hospital bed.
Chapter Thirty-Four
The McKinley homestead looked more like a parking lot than a farm. Vehicles were lined up along the lane that led from the municipal road to the yard, and were also parked in rows by Ivor and Betty’s house. Dan and Sherri had to park their car quite a distance from the house.
“Come on in,” someone called from within as the threesome stomped the snow off their boots on the porch. Soon Rachel was introducing Sherri and Dan to a houseful of Marshdale residents.
The evening progressed as more people arrived, each laden with a tray of food to share. Some folk chose to stay in the house and play various card games, table tennis or air hockey, while others went outdoors. Snowmobiles roared in the nearby field, sometimes coming into the yard to deliver a youngster who needed to warm up by the bonfire with a cup of hot chocolate. Others chose to skate on the dugout, which Ivor and Bill Shelley had laboriously cleaned and flooded, and which was illuminated by the halogen yard light. Con had built the bonfire nearby, which helped to warm the toes of those skating and also cast a warm glow into the crisp night air. Someone brought out some wieners and marshmallows and many of the adults and children alike indulged themselves between rounds.
Rachel was just preparing to go outside herself
when she was joined by Bonita McKinley.
“Hi, Miss Bosworth,” Bonita said sitting down beside Rachel on a bench in the entrance.
“Hello. How are you feeling these days?” Rachel asked, still pulling on the heavy winter boots Betty had lent her.
“Pretty okay, I guess. Can I ask you something? Since you’re, you know, like a female and you’re older and more experienced.”
“Um, okay.”
“What if you’ve been, like, going with a guy and you like, you know, got pretty close and everything and then you don’t want to do that anymore?”
“You mean having sex?” Rachel asked.
“Yeah.” Bonita looked down at her toes and flushed. “I mean it was fun for a while ‘cause it seemed dangerous or something, but now… I don’t know. I’ve been thinking a lot about what my parents brought me up to believe and I feel sorry and ashamed that I ever got myself into that. That, and I kind of like this other guy right now, you know?”
“Don’t let either boy manipulate you,” Rachel advised.
Bonita nodded. “Okay. Thanks.”
“Have you talked to your parents about it?” Rachel asked. “They seem like pretty understanding people.”
“They’re pretty strict,” Bonita replied. “I’d hate to disappoint them.”
“You might be surprised,” Rachel said. “But do what your heart tells you.”
Rachel gave Bonita a parting smile of encouragement and stood up, ready to don the next layer of clothing before braving the elements. Con poked his head around the corner. “There are a couple of people in the den that I want you to meet,” he half-whispered.
“Now? I just got my boots on.”
“It won’t take long. I promise. Please?” he added for good measure.
Rachel threw Bonita a questioning look but the girl just shrugged. She took off the heavy boots and followed Con down the hall and into the den.
“Aunt Stephanie, Aunt May, I’d like you to meet a friend of mine. Miss Rachel Bosworth,” Con stated. “Rachel, these are my aunts from Ontario.” Two elderly, but nonetheless robust figures, sat comfortably together on a chesterfield, eating cold cuts, crackers, and cheese. They were both plump, one larger than the other, and wore matching floral dresses with large rhinestone brooches at the neck. The larger one had her white hair pulled up into a very tight bun on the top of her head, while the smaller sister was wearing an outdated brown wig, which was at present sitting slightly askew.