by Lois Richer
Then she looked at him.
“Thank you for sharing this with me.”
Her green eyes drew him like a magnet, pulling him forward until his lips met hers.
Jared’s fingers angled her cheek so he could trail his lips over her feather-soft skin, breathe in her mint-scented breath then return for another taste of her lips.
Glory inched away, just enough to search his face for one infinitesimal moment before her hands lifted to loop around his neck and she returned his kiss, calling to the needy part of him he kept tucked away, protected.
Kissing her was like trying to hold a butterfly. Once moment she was there and he could almost put his arms around her, the next she was gone. She drew away and cupped his jaw in her palm, fingers grazing across his beard-roughened skin as she searched his face for answers.
“Why did you do that?”
Good question. He decided on honesty.
“Because you’re beautiful and I wanted to.”
After a long time had passed she nodded. Her hand dropped to her lap and she turned back to stare at the ocean. Once she shivered and he slung his arm around her shoulders, hugging her against his side, offering his warmth.
Glory remained beside him, silent until a shooting star arced across the sky and tumbled into the ocean. Then with a heavy sigh she straightened.
“Back to reality.”
Jared rose, offered his hand to help her up. She took it, held on even when she stood facing him.
“I wish you a wonderful future, Jared.” She curled her fingers around his, squeezed. “I wish you happiness and joy. But most of all I wish you peace.”
Then she gathered up her things and started walking up the hill toward her cottage. After a moment Jared caught up, matching her stride until they reached her front door.
“Good night,” she whispered. She tottered on tiptoe, brushed her lips against his then turned and walked inside. The door swished closed behind her.
And he was alone in the night.
Jared walked to his own place deep in thought. He sat out in his garden for ages, struggling to fathom what she’d meant by those words.
They’d sounded like farewell.
But Glory had almost four more months before she left Agapé.
So why did it seem as if she’d just left him?
Chapter Eleven
“She doesn’t have long, does she?”
Elizabeth Wisdom stood outside Sister Phil’s cottage, her face streaked with tears.
“No.”
“Will she last until Easter?”
This was only the middle of March. Easter was weeks away.
Glory chose not to answer. Instead she folded one of the blue-veined hands into her own.
“You have to enjoy the time you have now,” she murmured. “She’s very weak but she insists on talking, so if you can just listen.”
“She’ll know I’m pandering to her.” Elizabeth’s weary smile flashed, followed by a sniff. “We always used to argue. Phil usually won. She looks so much worse than she did the last time I was here. I never expected it to happen so fast.”
“You’ve been here all night, you’re tired.” She waved to Kahlia, knowing the older woman had already made arrangements for Elizabeth to stay with them. “Go and rest now. I’ll stay with Sister Phil for a while.”
“You’ll call if—”
“Yes. Go on now.” She smiled as Kahlia enfolded Elizabeth in her loving arms and guided her to the waiting car. Inhaling a deep breath, she entered the small cottage, went directly to Sister’s bedside. “Hello.”
“Ah, Glory. I’m so glad to see you.” She reached up, touched Glory’s cheek. “You’re getting so thin, child. Whatever is wrong? Are you not well?”
“I’m fine.” She tried to make a joke of it. “I sunbathe and swim and eat fantastic food. Why wouldn’t I be well?’
“I can think of one reason. It’s Jared, isn’t it? He’s gone to Honolulu again, hasn’t he?”
Glory didn’t answer.
“I’d hoped he’d given up on his push for revenge.” She drooped back against her pillows, her face drawn, sad. “Ah, well, what’s the use of asking why.”
“I think it’s my fault,” Glory admitted.
“Yours?” Sister Phil’s frown deepened. “Tell me why you think this, my dear.”
“It’s Bennie.” Glory gulped. “He’s contracted an infection in the muscle. I—I blamed Jared for causing it.”
“Oh, dear.”
“I know it isn’t his fault, but if only he’d do the surgery—I’ve been studying the videos, I know it’s feasible.” She stared at the floor. “But it won’t be for much longer. Bennie’s forming keloids that are restricting muscle movement.”
“You could remove them?”
“Yes, but they’ll simply grow back. Jared’s procedure is the only method of grafting I know of that will return the use of his arm and contain the regrowth. But Bennie can’t wait forever, Sister.”
“You love him very much, don’t you?” Sister Phil’s stern face softened.
“I love Bennie so much. If I could, I’d do the operation myself, but—”
“Dear Glory, I was referring to Jared.”
“Jared?” She pretended confusion.
“You love him. I see it in your eyes. I hear it in your voice. That’s why his quest for justice hurts you so much.”
Glory sank onto a nearby chair, too weary and heartsick to pretend anymore.
“You should see him with little Maria, Sister. He becomes a different man. He’s gentle, tender. Nobody could protect her welfare better.”
“Is that why you’ve pulled away from him?”
“I see who he could be,” Glory admitted. “But I hate who he’ll become if he continues like this.”
“He cares for you, too, my dear.”
Glory didn’t want to upset Sister, so she pretended she hadn’t heard.
“Why must he keep pushing, letting the hate take over?”
“He’s trying to shape his world.” Sister reached out for her water glass.
Glory helped her sit up to drink. Then she eased the frail woman back onto the bed.
“Jared feels responsible for their deaths. Going after Viktor is his way of making sure no one else pays for his error.”
“But he didn’t make an error. At least I didn’t see one. And apparently neither did the medical review board because they exonerated him.”
“People can tell you the truth over and over, but if you’re convinced otherwise in your heart, you’ll never accept it. That’s where Jared is now. Only God can change his heart.” She smiled. “Are you still enjoying your stay here, Glory?”
“I love it here. It’s as if I’ve come home.”
“Perhaps you have.”
“Why do you think God brought me here, Sister?”
“Tell me what you think.”
“When Elizabeth first asked me I thought it was because He was giving me the opportunity to learn Jared’s procedure. You can’t imagine what a boon it would be to the patients up north.”
“You doubt that now?”
“Jared hasn’t done the procedure even once since I’ve been here. Basically I’m a sometimes pediatrician, often acting as a kind of recreational therapist.” She shook her head. “Don’t misunderstand, I love the work. I just thought it would be—more.”
“Why do you think God led you here?”
“I don’t know. Everything seems mixed up.”
“Because you love Jared.”
“But I can’t!” Glory tugged her hair free of its band and rubbed the aching spot. “When my six months are up I will go home, Sister. Now more than ever it’s urgent that I return.”
“Why now?”
“There is no doctor servicing Tiska,” she explained. “I had a letter last week. The visiting doctor quit, the regional doctor is ill. There is no medical treatment for my friends. They’ve pinned their hopes on me and I can’t disappoint t
hem. I won’t.”
“And besides, you promised your mother.” Sister Phil sighed. “It is a difficult situation.”
Glory struggled to repress the surge of love she battled daily.
“I do care for Jared. But a relationship between us would never work.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s still in love with his wife. Because he’ll stay here and I’ll leave in three months. It’s impossible.”
“God specializes in the impossible, Glory. But something else plagues you.”
“What if I go back and I don’t enjoy it? What if I end up hating being there? Maybe I’ve been spoiled by all this sun and sea.”
Sister Phil’s croak of laughter brought the nurse running.
“I’m fine,” she reassured the stressed woman. “Focus on God, Glory.” She coughed into her lace-fringed handkerchief then fixed Glory with a stern look. “Now, what other lies has the Tempter been throwing at you?”
She was the doctor, the healer. She’d come to help Sister Phil, not to dump all her woes on a delicate sickly old woman. But Glory couldn’t stop.
“What if Bennie dies?” she whispered. “I think my heart would rip apart if that happened. How can I blame Jared for being so consumed with revenge when I don’t know that I wouldn’t be exactly the same?”
“You’re afraid to love?”
“I already love both of them. I’m afraid that letting them into my heart is going to cost me too much. I want to obey God. But I also want love, a family, a husband. Is that wrong?”
“Glory, God made you with a special place in your heart for love to fit. Of course it isn’t wrong.”
“Then why am I so conflicted?”
“Perhaps because you have to wait to understand what He would have you do. Just as Jared can’t comprehend why God would take Diana and Nicholas, you can’t see into the future and figure out what He has planned.”
“What do I do?”
“Talk to Him. You are His precious daughter. He will show you the way.”
Remorse gripped her as the parchment eyelids fluttered.
“I’ve kept you too long,” she whispered. “Rest now.”
“I’ll have plenty of time to rest soon.” But Sister closed her eyes anyway.
Glory pressed her lips against the alabaster forehead, then left, going back to the mission. At least there she could keep busy.
By the time the last case was safely dealt with Glory could barely stand.
“You and Dr. Xavier go rest,” she told Dr. Potter. “I’ll cover for a while. If I need you, I’ll page.”
“I intend to speak to Elizabeth about this, Glory.” Fredrick Potter was furious. “This is the third time this week we’ve had to cover for Jared. He’s the head man, he should be here, not off in Honolulu.”
“Please,” she begged. “Let me handle it.”
“We’re all tired, overworked. We need the other two doctors here. You’re covering twice your load and then some. If you get sick—” He shrugged. “Just talk to him. Soon.”
Though she ached to lie down, close her eyes and forget everything, Glory had to see Bennie. She knelt beside his bed, brushed his cheek.
“Good night, sweet boy,” she whispered.
“I didn’t say my prayers yet, Glory Mom. I thought you weren’t coming.”
“Of course I was coming. I just had to help some other kids.” She brushed her lips against the glossy walnut-toned head. “Is that my new name?”
“Uh-huh. ’Cause my other mom’s gone.”
Glory lost her voice, struggled with tears.
“Don’t you like your name, Glory Mom?”
“I love it, darling. You say your prayers now, while I’m listening.”
He folded his hands together as she’d shown him and began talking, his English still somewhat formal, even after the weeks he’d spent here.
“And God bless my Glory Mom. Amen.” He blinked his incredibly long lashes, waiting for her approval.
“That was a lovely prayer,” she told him. “Thank you.”
“Where is Dr. Jared?”
“Um, he’s busy, honey.”
“I didn’t see him the whole day. Is he mad at me?”
“Of course not, why do you ask that?” She pushed back the hair, unable to stop the love that spilled from her heart.
“He gets a mad face when he comes and looks at my shoulder. Today he yelled at the nurse and she didn’t do anything. He called me Nicholas. My name’s not Nicholas. My name is Bennie.”
“Of course that’s your name, darling. We all know that. Dr. Jared is worried about helping all the children, that’s all. Sometimes he gets the names mixed up.”
“But, Glory Mom, there is no Nicholas here. I asked the nice lady that reads the story. She said Nicholas is gone away.”
Oh, poor Kahlia. Glory’s heart clenched. She whispered a prayer for the grandmother.
“Yes, he is. But he’s very happy. You go to sleep now, sweetie. Tomorrow we’ve got so many things to do. Puzzles and games and maybe even a walk to see Pono’s flowers. Do you know I saw a hummingbird today?”
“I want to see one so I can draw it in my book.” Excitement dimmed to pain. “My fingers hurt a lot but I try to keep using them because you asked me to.”
“That’s very good, darling.” She buried her face in his hair until she could regain control. “You must go to sleep now, Bennie.”
“Okay.” He snuggled down into his pillow, squeezed his eyes shut—for about three seconds. Then his hand touched her face. “Glory Mom?”
“What is it, sweetie?”
“Is God ever going to make me better? I pray and pray but it doesn’t work.”
“God hears you, Bennie. But we have to be patient until He answers us.” Which was exactly what Sister Phil had told her.
“’Cause He’s got lots of other people to listen to, right?”
“That’s right. Go to sleep now. I love you, Bennie.”
“I love you, too.” He gave her one last tight hug then settled down. A few moments later his soft snores signaled he was asleep.
Glory moved through each ward, checking every bed to ensure not one of the precious children felt alone or abandoned. She ended, as she always did, in the infants ward. Maria was fussing as usual so she picked her up, moved to the rocking chair on the balcony and began to hum, something they’d learned settled the little girl immediately.
Glory wasn’t sure how long she’d been out there dreaming of one day rocking her own child, when strong arms lifted the precious girl from her arms.
“It’s time for you to go to bed, Glory.” Jared’s low voice murmured in her ear. “Come on, I’ll walk you there.”
“You’re back.” She yawned, rose. When his arm circled her waist, she didn’t try to regain her independence but leaned on him. “What time is it?”
“Late. Are you all right?” His hand rested against her cheek, cool and comforting.
“I’m fine.” She walked beside him down the stairs and out the door, shivering as the sea breeze grazed across her skin. “It’s cool tonight.”
“Not really.” He slung his jacket around her shoulders. “Glory, you feel awfully warm. Are you certain you’re all right?”
“Tired,” she mumbled, huddling into the warmth his body had left behind. She licked her dry lips. “And thirsty.”
“Get ready for bed. I’ll make you a hot drink.”
Surprised they’d reached her cottage so quickly, she didn’t bother to argue but went into her bedroom and changed into a nightgown. A ratty old bathrobe she’d brought from home and never used since arriving in Hawaii offered the perfect insulation. She wrapped it around herself and climbed into bed as Jared knocked on the door.
“Come in.” Her voice sounded like a frog’s. “Your jacket’s on the chair. Thanks.” She leaned back on the pillows with a sigh.
Jared carried a thermometer and made her take her temperature.
“I thought so
. You’ve got a fever. Here, take these.” He held out two tablets.
Glory washed them down with the water he’d brought. In fact, she drank the whole glass. But now she felt colder.
“Thank you,” she whispered, trying to hide her rasping voice. “I’m going to sleep now. If you need me, call me.”
“We won’t need you, Glory. You rest now.”
“Okay.” She peeked at him when he tucked the covers around her chin. “Did you get what you wanted today?”
He shook his head.
“Sorry.” She yawned, turned her cheek against the pillow and let tiredness swamp her.
Jared didn’t say anything. Maybe he was mad at her.
Oh, well, she’d have to deal with it tomorrow.
Jared couldn’t stop staring at her.
Glory’s face bore a fine sheen of sweat, her cheeks two round dots of color. One hand was tucked beneath her ear and he wondered if it ached.
She’d picked up shift after shift, covered for him with any number of excuses. And she’d done it without complaint.
Eight cases, two critical. He should have been here.
Instead, he’d cooled his heels trying to meet with someone from the parole board, hoping to forestall their plan. They’d finally promised to hear him, but when?
As he sat in the small chair and waited for the tablets to take effect, Jared wished he could do as Glory begged and stop this insanity. But he felt as if he were on some kind of crazy roller coaster, attending meeting after fruitless meeting. On nights like tonight, while driving home in the dark, he’d almost convince himself to give up, to forget.
And then he’d remember something, the funeral, that moment when their bodies sank into the ground—anything could trigger the intense rage that fueled his desire for revenge.
He hated it in himself. It was like a disease, a cancer that refused to be cut out. In fact, it grew more intense every time the man’s name was mentioned. Even now acid poured into his stomach, feeding the fury.
Jared rose, walked to the bed and laid the back of his hand against Glory’s smooth cheek. Hot.
“I got your call.” Elizabeth stood in the doorway. “Is she all right?”