Raising Attabury: A Contemporary Christian Epic-Novel (The Grace Series Book 5)

by Stallings, Staci

  Letting himself dive back into the feelings, he came to one picture that took his breath away. Taken just before the ceremony, it brought tears to his eyes just remembering it. Caleb, on one side of a door, holding Rachel’s hand as she stood on the other side, head bowed. Around them stood their friends, but there wasn’t a cheesy smile or pose to any of them. Instead, they each had a hand on their friend, heads bowed as well. Eric remembered the pastor’s prayer over all of them, the bride and groom in particular—something about amazing friends and families.

  As he tipped his head, taking in the picture, Eric wondered about them. He puzzled for a moment, anchoring his elbows on the armrests and v-ing his hands upward. Greg and Emily, he knew were Sage and Jaycee’s parents. That made Luke and Derek their sons-in-law, but where did Caleb and Rachel fit into that? His gaze drilled down into the lives represented there. Maybe Luke and Caleb were brothers? He tried to think that through, he couldn’t be sure. Maybe…

  A door closed upstairs, jolting him from the questions. He shook his head as he let his gaze slide back across the pictures. What did they have, all of them, that he didn’t? What was it that he saw but couldn’t define in that picture? It was like there was a connection, almost visible between them, like they were not separate beings at all but held together by something that intertwined them. He thought about it. It was what he felt when he was with them as well. It was why he had asked Greg about it that morning at breakfast.

  Still, even now, he couldn’t quite get a handle on what it was. With a short breath, he shook his head, and without taking his eyes from the picture, he halfway bowed his head. “God, I don’t know what this is or if it even is something, but I want what they have. I want whatever that is, that I don’t even know how to say. Please…” He sniffed when he realized he was about to start crying. Why did this feel like the most desperate plea of his entire life? Why did it feel like if God turned this request down, his life would be one slow slide into oblivion? “God, please, please, I need You to show me…”

  Chapter 6

  Every night for nearly three weeks Eric had worked on the pictures. At first his plan was to simply compile them all, take out the bad ones, put them on a disk, and give them to the happy couple when they went for the final walk through on the 27th of January before work began on February 3rd. It had been decided that the first three days of clean up would be just them since the structure itself was so unstable. Then the structural crew would come in, brace everything up and get the living room ceiling stabilized. Greg had ordered the package, and it would be delivered the last week of January.

  With the on-going work of the bridges in Greensboro, Eric’s brain was about to burst with time schedules and progress assumptions. Maybe that’s why he had come to look forward to the quiet hours at night when he could work with the pictures, away from the stress of all of the projects. Plus, there had always been something that drew him to the creative arts. He’d never been much of a drawer. That was Yvonne’s strong suit. And he couldn’t carry a note in a bucket like his brothers. Fortunately one Christmas his mother had given him a small point-and-shoot camera she’d probably gotten at some second-hand store. But that camera had become his best friend.

  He took it everywhere, snapping pictures of life. When he got ready to go to college, he’d told his guidance counselor at school that he wanted to be a photographer. Ansel Adams or Timothy Hogan. Landscapes, still lifes. Life captured in ways most people never realized existed. Truthfully, he’d never thought he was much good at photographing people until Dani had talked him into taking the ones of her pregnant with Ja. To this day, those took his breath away.

  So although he had at first thought he would simply put these pictures on a disk and hand them over, he found that his spirit just wouldn’t let him do that. Instead, he took the raw images and painstakingly brought out the vision of each that he saw without knowing how or why. One by one, he edited the pictures that spoke the loudest to him.

  There was one of Rachel, sitting in her wedding gown, on the floor laughing with her children. One of Caleb with Derek and Luke where they were simply laughing at something one of them had said. The pastor looking over the marriage certificate before it was signed. And of course the one of the wedding party, heads bowed in prayer before the ceremony.

  As he worked, Eric began the prayer he had said every night when he removed himself from the real world of life and dove into this one. “God, show me how to get what they have.”

  ~ * ~

  On Friday the 27th of January, Eric headed to Ridgemount for the final walk-through with Greg and Caleb. They had said Derek might fly in on Saturday, but they were finishing up a house in Mississippi so it depended on when they got that one finished as to when he would get to Ridgemount. In the flurry of emails between Raleigh and Ridgemount, Eric had learned that Caleb and Rachel had signed the contract for the new show with H&H, and Attabury would be the first house they remodeled for the pilot episode. It was hard to believe sometimes how life took turns you never would have imagined.

  When he pulled up to Attabury, there was only one truck. Caleb’s. And he was nowhere to be seen. Grabbing his jacket, Eric slid it on and surveyed the outside of the place. It was as messed up as the inside. This was going to be no small project. With that thought pushing him forward, he went through the tangles and brambles both overhead and underfoot to the back door. That was the only door they had ever used, and Eric suddenly wondered if the front one even opened.

  “Anybody home?” he called into the dingy, dark kitchen space.

  “I’m in here,” Caleb called from the direction of the living room.

  Eric turned his steps that way and met Caleb standing up from his seat on the second-from-the-bottom stair step in the hallway. In his hand was a book that didn’t much look like something about architecture, but Eric didn’t question it as the two men shook hands.

  “Ready to get started?” Caleb asked, closing the book.

  “Ready or not,” Eric replied with a smile.

  Another night, another pizza order. Dani placed the order on her phone app as she sat in traffic, willing life to just shoot her and be done with it. The Scotland project was two steps forward and three steps back, and with Eric gone for the weekend, the rest of life didn’t look much better. After placing the order, she dialed Mrs. McGuire. They were going to have to find someone to replace Carly. Her school schedule had gotten just plain ridiculous. Dani needed someone she could count on, not someone cancelling every other time she needed them.

  “Hi, Mrs. McGuire. Sorry I’m late. I’ll be there in under fifteen. I promise.” She glanced at the glowing clock on the dashboard, praying she wasn’t lying to the woman. “Tell Ja to go ahead and get some of her homework done if she can. Yeah. Yes. Okay. Thank you.”

  When she hung up, Dani put her head down for a second. The knots on her shoulders had knots. How would they ever live through this remodel? She had no idea.

  “It’s not going to be a big powder room,” Caleb said, remeasuring the small space and then going out into the entry way. “When we were up there before, I really think we can reframe this area here.” He ran the tape measure across the outside wall. “That would pick up another couple of feet if we’re lucky. It won’t be a grand spa, but it would work.”

  “Sounds good,” Eric said with a nod. “That’ll make Dani a lot happier. Also, we were kind of talking about the bathroom situation upstairs. I mean, I haven’t seen it or anything, but with the way you described it, could we maybe make this office thing up here into a bathroom for Jaden?” He pointed out the space on the plans Greg had drawn up. “That way she wouldn’t have to be traipsing all the way across to use ours all the time.”

  “You’ll lose the office that way.”

  “I know, but from the looks of it, that won’t be any big loss anyway. What we were actually thinking was turning the parlor into the dining room and the dining room into an office. We really don’t need this big of an offic
e, and I think I’d rather have a grand dining and a hole-in-the-wall office than the other way around.”

  Caleb nodded. “But then this powder room opens into the dining room. Isn’t that what we were trying to get away from doing with the kitchen?”

  “Well, if there’s enough headroom on the other side, we could put the door in the hallway here…” Eric pointed to it.

  “It sounds like someone is changing my plans… again,” Greg said, ambling in to the little meeting over the folding table Caleb had set up in the parlor.

  “Hey,” Caleb said to the older man as he put out his hand, “I was about to get worried about you.”

  “Yeah, meeting ran long. Sorry about that.”

  “On a Friday?” Eric asked as they shook hands.

  “We’re out in Greely on a hotel that’s about to split my last nerve in half.”

  Eric looked at Caleb. “That does not bode well.”

  “Tell me about it,” Caleb said, twining his arms at his chest. “You sure you want to tackle this project if a simple hotel remodel is giving you fits?”

  Greg laughed. “Trust me, there ain’t nothin’ simple about any of it. Now what mischief have you two been up to with my plans?”

  “Yeah,” Dani said to Mitchell when he called at eight. “Mom’s about to spit nails over it. Ja. Pizza.” She got a dish out of the cabinet and put a small piece on it. Grabbing a fork from the drawer, she put it on the plate as well and set both in front of her daughter who sat down at the table without saying a word. “Of course I don’t blame her. It’s not like Dad gave her much warning about all of this.”

  She glanced over and horror struck her. “Jaden, baby girl, use the fork.” Going over, she picked up Jaden’s fork and cut a piece of the pizza off. “Use your fork.” She dropped the fork back to the plate with a loud clatter. “No. I know. I know. You’re right. They haven’t been happy for years. I always kind of wondered why they married each other in the first place.” Her laugh hurt. “About the only thing I can figure is Dad was her ticket out of Ridgemount. Not that I blame her much. There’s not much about that town that’s worth sticking around for.”

  At that second she realized how that sounded. “Of course, it won’t be so bad to visit, but I can’t imagine living there. I know, right? Wow. Who would think that was a good idea?”

  “Are you sure?” Eric asked Greg for the tenth time after Greg had extended the offer of staying with them again.

  “Yes. And if you ask again, I’ll sic Emily on you.”

  Eric laughed. “Okay. Okay. I’ll be out there in a little bit.”

  “That’s better.” Greg nodded. “Oh, and come hungry. Emily is making Dee’s beef stroganoff.”

  “You don’t have to tell me twice.”

  With that, Greg left. Caleb was still looking over the plans. They had put the flood light in the parlor, and because of the boarded up windows and the sun’s final rays disappearing over the horizon, it cast harsh, black shadows in all corners of the room. The bed still stood where it had that very first day. Trying not to think of how creepy the place got when it got dark, Eric wound his arms and looked over Caleb’s shoulder. That’s when his gaze traced from the plans to the edge of the table where the book from before lay. Without trying to be obvious, he angled his head and then his gaze to be able to read the words. Spiritual Wholeness.

  Yanking his gaze up, he looked around the room. The last thing he wanted to think about in here was spirit anything. However, as Caleb continued to study the changes they had made to how the plumbing would be routed for the new bathroom upstairs, Eric’s gaze fell back to the book. Careful not to disturb the foreman of the job, he took a couple steps over to it and picked it up. He read the back, and intrigued, opened it to a page.

  In this story we learn that even in the midst of great suffering and turmoil, Job did not turn against God. He used his free will and chose to believe God no matter what the circumstances might say.

  I believe that is an exact metaphor for us. God does not test us. God is not a punitive, judgmental being. He is for us in all things. He wants us to come to Him, to love Him no matter what, but He will not force us to do so.

  In short, God will let us eat off of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil as long as it takes to prove to us, “Your way doesn’t work. God’s way does! Come back!”

  That is the message of the whole Bible, and the GOOD NEWS!

  My way stinks. God’s way works.

  The path of destruction is wide, the gateway of Heaven is Christ.

  But the choice of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil will always be a choice. It’s just that we need to learn that its fruit is poison to our souls!

  “It’s pretty good,” Caleb said without really looking up.

  Eric dropped the book closed without putting it down. “What? The plumbing?”

  “No. The book,” Caleb said, and only after a pause did he look up. His smile was at once apologetic and uncertain. “I never thought I’d be much of a reader, but the pastor…” Caleb laughed. “I don’t know if they’re all like that, but he’ll get right up in you and make you wonder how you’ve gotten life so wrong up until now.”

  Intrigued more than offended, Eric lowered the book even further. “What’ve you gotten wrong? Looks to me like you’ve got the world by the tail.”

  Caleb laughed. “Yeah. I wish.” He shook his head and narrowed his eyes. “I’ll tell you this much, there’s more to love and life than I ever knew before I set foot in this town.”

  Even more intrigued because this was a puzzle he’d never quite realized was there waiting for him, Eric lifted his chin. “So you haven’t been here your whole life then?”

  “Nope. Not even close.” Caleb seemed to consider for a moment before continuing. “You remember when Hurricane Gabriel went through here a few months back?”

  Eric nodded. “It drenched us pretty good in Raleigh too.”

  “Yeah, well, Jaycee, you know, Derek’s wife.”

  It was funny how Eric didn’t even really need the help. He’d grown very fond of Greg’s family and their family tree. “Yeah?”

  “Well, she came back to help her folks and her sister.”

  “Sage.”

  “Right. Sage and Luke.” Caleb nodded, the plans forgotten. “Well, Derek was freaking out about Jayc. I don’t think they were exactly going together or anything at the time.” Reaching up, Caleb scratched his ear. “But it was pretty clear to all of us that they kind of had a thing for each other even if they didn’t really see it. Anyway, Derek decided to move the whole production here for several weeks to help out with getting the people back on their feet.”

  Although Eric was following, he wasn’t sure where this was going.

  “I got tapped to be the lead on Rachel’s house.”

  That lifted Eric’s chin without him even realizing it. “And you guys…”

  “We did, but while that sounds real easy and romantic and everything, we kind of made it about as hard as two people possibly could.”

  Seriously intrigued now, Eric leaned on the little table. “Really? Why?”

  “Oh. Lot of reasons. She was scared, I was an idiot.”

  Eric laughed. “I find that hard to believe.”

  Caleb squinted into the words. “I’d just… I’d never really been in a relationship like that one before, you know? It was always a girl here or over there, not a real connection. And then Rachel showed up, and I was way out of my depth with her. I fell for her pretty quick, but then things got complicated because she’s got the kids, and I had work, and how could we be together? She didn’t want the thing with us to go anywhere ‘cause she’d been hurt pretty bad in the past. I didn’t know how to help her, or how to love her. It was pretty much a mess.”

  Not even trying to, Eric crumpled his face in confusion. A picture of them all around a door flashed through his mind. “But you were like… I don’t know… religious and all of that before?”

 
Caleb’s eyes came open wide. “Religious? Me? I’m about the least religious person on the planet. I mean, I grew up going to church, sure, but I’m not sure that wasn’t just about not getting Mom mad at me.”

  Eric knew that feeling.

  “No. I wasn’t what anyone would call religious when I first got here. But then…”

  After waiting a few seconds, Eric had to know the rest. “Then?”

  “Then… I don’t know.” Caleb squinted again. “Rachel and I connected, in a way I wasn’t really prepared for. Not like, you know, a jump into bed kind of a thing. That, unfortunately, I knew how to do, but I think it had something to do with the kids and her not wanting to be in a relationship at all. I don’t know, it sure wasn’t what I’d always expected falling in love to be like.”

  Eric’s version of falling in love with Danisha wasn’t too far off the ‘what it’s supposed to be like’ track. It was only afterward that the tracks started coming apart.

  “So what’d you do?” Eric asked, now even more intrigued. “Somehow you got it to work. After all, you married her.”

  “That I did. But it wasn’t easy. Not for a second, I’ll tell you that. I had a lot of talks with Pastor Steve about what real love is and what it isn’t. I found out that what society says is love, isn’t even close. All that romantic, wine and roses and jumping into bed every six seconds because you can’t keep your hands off each other. That stuff sounds real good in the movies, but in real life, you’ve got to be building on something a lot more solid than that or you’re in trouble.”

  How he could just keep going deeper into the curiosity, Eric didn’t know. “And by more solid, you mean…?”

  “God. Wholeness, like that book talks about.” Caleb nodded to it. “Before I came here, I’d never even known there was such a thing. Being whole, what did that even mean, you know?”