by Aiken, Ginny
In light of her own misguided adolescence, Cate had been tempted by the opportunity to help lead the girls because she now wished someone more youth-savvy had been at the helm of the teen group when she’d needed help. But she feared taking on even more responsibility than she already bore. She’d prayed many times over her decision. If she failed in any of her roles, she’d never be able to live with herself.
Now, after the fire and the subsequent revelations, she also knew she’d never live with herself if she failed to step out in faith and answer the Lord’s call.
She believed the mess she’d made of her teen years uniquely qualified her to speak against the ills of substance abuse. Could this be God’s way of redeeming that wasted time? Was God using Cate’s rebellion for good?
Footsteps echoed nearer. Cate drew a calming breath. She’d made up her mind. A man appeared at the end of the hallway, striding toward her. She stood. “Hey.”
The blond guidance counselor stopped. “Cate! I’m surprised to see you here. Is there a problem?”
“I have a decision for you, Alec. If you still want a temporary partner for the youth group, you just got one. When do you want me to start?”
On Tuesday, Cate felt jumpy, nervous and no matter where she went or what she did, she couldn’t shake the vague feeling someone was watching. She didn’t know why she felt that way and she hadn’t noticed anything unusual around her, but the sensation remained.
Time after time the small hairs at the back of her neck rose, her awareness at its highest level.
She asked herself a million times why she was so nervous, but she came up with no concrete reason. Had Rand’s suspicion made her paranoid? She couldn’t really take it too seriously. After all, she’d had nothing to do with the lab or the fire. As he’d figure out soon enough.
Still, his doubts loomed large in her thoughts. As did the weird sensation.
Was someone really there?
The only person who came to mind was the person who had attacked her at the theater. But that would mean it hadn’t been a random act, which was something she’d tried very hard to believe.
As much as the possibility scared her, she couldn’t spend her day dwelling on it. So with extra vigilance, she went ahead with her plans and spent the day with her dad.
The fire chief remained weak from his injuries and medical personnel hovered. Cate couldn’t complain because she was doing the same. At a quarter to three, she leaned over the steel railing and pressed a kiss to his lean cheek. At the feel of his unshaven skin against her face, tears welled. As a little girl, she’d rubbed her hand against the stubble and giggled at the sensation. Dad had always loved the game.
Lindsay played it these days.
He had to recover. Lindsay needed her gramps.
“See ya later,” she whispered.
A deep sigh escaped his lips, but the pain medications had done their job. He was out for the count.
Cate headed home to meet the kids at the bus stop. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do to keep them busy. It wouldn’t do anybody any good for them to focus on the hole Dad’s absence left in their midst.
As usual, the twins were going at it when they climbed into the van.
“‘Let me help you, Mrs. Washburn,’” Robby sing-songed. “‘I so loooooove to be the suck-up of the whoooooole class.’”
“Just shut up, bird-breath. You don’t know how to be nice. You just think you know everything.”
“Suck-up!”
“Know-nothing!”
Cate stuck two fingers in the corners of her mouth and let out a shrill whistle. The boys piped down.
A tiny tug came at the sleeve of her blouse. “Hi, Aunt Catey,” Lindsay said, her voice barely over a whisper. “I had brownies, ’cause it was Bethany’s birthday.”
Cate gave her niece a quick hug. “That’s great, honey. I’m so glad.” Then, with a stern frown, she faced the twins. “Next time one of you says something impolite to the other, I’m going to charge you the victim’s allowance.”
She started the van and out the corner of her eye, saw Tommy scratch his head. “Huh?”
The rearview mirror displayed Robby’s jutted chin. “Whaddaya mean, ‘charge the victim’s allowance’?”
She checked to see that all three seat belts were fastened, then pulled away from the curb. “That, dear darlings, means that the one who does the insulting will be turning his allowance back to me. In turn, I’ll pay damages to the one who was wronged.”
She heard twin gulps. Peace reigned during the ride home.
“Chores first,” she called as they all bounded out of the vehicle before she even withdrew the key from the ignition. “Then homework. If you guys get everything done—and done well—I could be persuaded to order pizza.”
“Woo-hoo!”
“All right!”
Lindsay paused, turned and smiled at Cate. “My favorite, please? Pepperoni, right?”
“I’ll order three—one plain, one pepperoni and one meatball. That way, the boys can have—” she shuddered “—breakfast pizza.”
“Yuck!” The little girl headed toward the house.
Before following the kids, Cate scooped the mail from the box and to her surprise, found a package addressed to her.
As always, she went into the living room and collapsed into her dad’s armchair. She sorted out the junk mail and her stack shrank down to only the package, two utilities and the phone bill. She set the boring stuff aside and tore into the brown envelope.
When it gave way, Cate was left holding a fistful of photos and a folded sheet of notebook paper. She also had a throbbing head, a pounding chest and a roiling stomach.
While she wanted to look away, she found she couldn’t. She stared with fascinated horror. The last time she’d seen those pictures was the day before the accident that took her sister’s life. A handful of newspaper clippings—her college graduation announcement, the Goings and Comings column note of her return to town, the announcement of the opening of her day care—slipped out from the folded page.
She’d never given these old photos of her and Sam a thought over the years—just like the charred album.
With trembling fingers, she unfolded the page torn from a spiral-bound notebook and began to read. As she did, the words swam before her, their meaning full of danger and threat. Fear gripped her and she gasped for breath.
While she knew it was crazy, she again felt as though someone was watching her. She stood, hurried to the front door, threw the deadbolt and then ran to the kitchen to do the same to the back door.
With considerable strength of will, she made herself read the message again.
I’m so sorry I couldn’t return these to you sooner or in person even now. But you know they were all I had of you. They kept me company in my cell and helped my love stay strong. I’ve always known we belong together, that we’ll be together again soon. Now that I’m out, you know it won’t be long. You’ll see. I’m putting together a deal that’ll set us up for life. When it’s all set, I’ll come for you and we can go away together. I’ve always been yours, just as you’ve always been mine. I’m so glad you waited for me, but now you won’t have to wait much longer. Knowing you were there is what kept me going all these years. We belong together. Forever. Soon, Cate, very soon, I’ll never let you go again.
Yours,
Sam
Was Sam the one she’d felt watching her? If so, she had reason to worry. The letter revealed something very wrong with Sam’s mental state. How he could think she’d ever want to see him again was beyond her.
“Aunt Catey!” Tommy wailed. “Hurry up here. Lindsay just barfed birthday brownies all over my school shoes.”
“You dweeb!” Robby bellowed. “You never finished cleaning the bathtub and the water’s overflowed all over the bathroom floor.”
“Aunt Cate,” Lindsay cried, “I’m sick!”
Cate told herself to shut her mind to any further thought of Sam Burns and
his horrifying letter. She’d deal with it once her niece felt well again.
Easier said than done. Would she ever get beyond Sam and her past?
Wednesday night, instead of heading for the single women’s Bible study after she’d settled the twins and Lindsay in their classrooms, Cate followed Alec to the new youth building at the rear of the church property. The congregation had recently dedicated the structure, which still smelled of fresh paint.
Alec slapped his hand flat against the huge steel door. “Ready?”
“I better be, right?”
“Teens eat wimps for breakfast, you know.”
“Better than most. I was one of those wimp-eating teens.” She closed her eyes and said a quick prayer. “Let’s go.”
Music, giggles and rumbly guffaws hit Cate’s ears as she and Alec stepped inside the gym. The thump-thump-thump of basketballs provided a rhythmic downbeat to the overall cacophony.
“Yo!” the tallest basketball player called out. “Mr. Alec’s here.”
When the cavernous room fell silent, Alec waved toward Cate. “I’ve got news—especially for the girls. Beth and the triplets are still hanging in there at the hospital, but she misses you and says hi.” When greetings for his bedridden wife died down, he went on. “This is Cate Caldwell and she’s going to help me with the girls for a while.”
Polite clapping greeted his announcement.
Alec went on. “Before we break out into groups, let’s pray. Any special requests?”
A list of teen concerns dribbled out. The kids’ openness impressed Cate. At their age, she never would have revealed her inner self like that.
But she had learned. “If you guys don’t mind, I’d appreciate prayer for my dad and Miss Wilma Tucker. Y’all know about the fire at the theater. They were hurt and are in stable but critical condition at the hospital.”
The teens’ compassion encouraged Cate to go on. “Miss Wilma’s also going to have some pretty serious bills once she recovers. She’ll have medical bills on top of all that money she borrowed to restore the theater. Let’s pray about that, too, okay?”
A sassy blonde with glamour-gal eye makeup rose to her knees and waved a hand.
Alec acknowledged her. “What’s up, Hillary?”
“You know how scripture says faith without works is not so good? How about we do something to help? That’d be putting our faith to work, right?”
Cate recognized leadership when it jumped up in front of her. “What would you suggest?”
Bake sales, coupon books and car washes were dismissed right away. Nick, the basketball giant, pinned Cate with a perceptive stare. “Everyone goes to the movies, right? I think whatever we do has to come from the whole town.”
Cate drew her brows together. “Isn’t that a tall order?”
He shrugged. “Look at the Fall Fest. Everyone does something and it works. We should do something like that.”
Hillary high-fived him. Chatter broke out again.
Cate looked at her watch and turned to Alec. “What about tonight’s Bible study?”
“You kidding? I want to see where this leads.”
It led to the creation of the town’s first, and hopefully only, Tuckerpalooza. Since Christmas was fast approaching, the teens wanted to capitalize on the season’s feelings of generosity. They planned the event for the lull between Christmas and New Year’s.
Hillary waved. “Let’s keep things at five bucks or less.”
Marly Wooten, a quiet teen in Hillary’s shadow, stood. “How about if we have people sign up for blessings?”
Alec leaned his elbows on his knees. “Blessings? What do you mean?”
The redhead blushed. “Stuff like taking Mr. and Mrs. Tucker to the doctor, cleaning Miss Wilma’s apartment, rebuilding the theater. All that has to happen, even while Miss Wilma is in the hospital. If people do it, they’ll bless the Tuckers and the money we raise doesn’t have to pay for it.”
“Faith in action,” Cate murmured and Alec grinned.
The group broke off into its two sections and Cate worked to get to know her girls. Too soon, it was time to go.
And then Cate’s niece and nephews ran into the gym. She’d hoped to go over details for the benefit with Alec, but had to postpone. She apologized.
“No problem,” he said. “Go on home. I miss Beth’s cooking, so some of your cinnamon rolls on Saturday morning would work for me. We can brainstorm then.”
“You’re on,” she laughed. “See ya Saturday.”
Still laughing, she herded Lindsay and the twins toward the door. That’s when she noticed Marly at the front window, her gaze fixed on the darkness outside, anxiety on her face.
The girl started when Cate placed a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry, Marly. I didn’t mean to startle you. Are you all right?”
Lightly freckled cheeks colored with a faint blush. Marly shrugged. “I suppose.”
“Are you waiting for someone?”
Another shrug. “My mom had to show a house tonight. She thought she’d make it back here in time. Those nights when she doesn’t, I catch a ride with one of the other kids.”
Cate peered outside. “But they’re mostly gone.”
Marly bit her bottom lip. “I’ll call my mom.”
Cate’s heart nearly broke for the girl who was clearly nervous about being left behind. “Tell you what. How about we give you a ride home? We have plenty of room in the van.”
Her green eyes opened wide. “Oh, no! I don’t want to bother you. I can wait for my mother to finish showing the property—”
“You won’t be a bother and I’m sure you’d rather be home than standing here waiting. Come on. Let’s get going.”
Marly looked from the dark window to Cate, then back toward the gym. Finally, she gave a tiny jerky nod. “Okay. If you’re sure.”
“I’m sure. Let’s go.”
The parking lot was vacant by the time Cate made her way to the van. There was no way she’d leave Marly behind. True, Alec could have driven the girl home, but because she was ready to go, why leave her behind?
In the van, Cate waited for the seat belt clicks and then pulled out of the now-vacant parking lot. The twins and Lindsay told jokes all the way to Marly’s house and Cate encouraged their fun, more so once the teen offered a silly story herself. Laughter felt great. Especially because it was the first time since the fire she’d been able to relax enough to really laugh.
And then she noticed them. The headlights in her rearview mirror. Too close to their rear bumper.
She sped up.
So did the other car.
She turned.
The vehicle behind her did the same.
Cate’s heart thudded in her chest and the laughter in the rear of the van shrilled in her head. She had to bite her tongue to keep from asking the kids to quiet down. It would serve no purpose to scare them. It could just be a coincidence.
She found herself thinking of Rand, wishing he were here to see this, so that maybe he’d finally believe that she had nothing to do with the lab, and that someone seemed to be after her. Or maybe she just wished he were with her because he made her feel…safe. The thought caught her off guard for a moment.
She pulled into the gas station. When she gathered her frayed nerves enough to get out, she topped off the tank, scanning the street for anything suspicious. But what wasn’t suspicious in the dark?
“Lord, help me.”
Cate climbed back into the van and pulled out of the station. She prayed all the way to Marly’s house. When she drove into the driveway, the black compact in the open garage and the light in the front window were the most welcome sights she’d seen in ages.
“Thanks, Miss Cate,” Marly said as she jumped out.
“You’re welcome. And how about if we make it our routine from now on? I’ll bring you home, so you and your mom don’t have to worry about it.”
Again, Marly’s awkwardness struck Cate. “I don’t want to bother you,” the g
irl stammered. “I’ll be fine.”
“But I won’t. I’ll worry. So do me a favor and let me bring you. For my peace of mind.”
The twins and Lindsay piped up.
“Yeah, Marly.”
“Come with us.”
“You can tell us more stories.”
A car sped down the street, but was gone before Cate had a chance to catch a glimpse, much less spot its driver. Icy fingers of fear crawled up her spine. She glanced at the lit house, at the dark street, at the girl just outside the van.
“Okay,” Cate said, fighting to keep her voice normal. “Time to go.”
She watched Marly go inside and then, with every ounce of strength she could muster, pulled out into the street and drove home.
During the drive, she debated whether or not to call Rand. On the one hand, he did make her feel safe. On the other, his suspicion infuriated her. By the time she got home, silence had won the battle. She couldn’t stomach the thought of having to defend herself. Not that night.
She didn’t relax until she’d thrown both dead-bolts at home.
FIVE
The next day, as Cate walked into the house after picking up her crew from Lindsay’s flute lesson and the boys’ drum lessons, the twins nearly tripped her on their rush inside. “Hey! Watch where you’re going, and let me check all that homework you say you did while you waited for each other’s lesson to finish.”
They apologized, then went for their book bags and hurried to change into play clothes. Lindsay went upstairs, her nose in the book du jour. Cate took out an iced tea glass, hit the fridge for the fresh pitcher she’d brewed before heading to school and settled down at the kitchen table to enjoy her favorite drink.
The phone rang.
She groaned, but picked up. “Hello?”
“Miss Caldwell?”
“Uh-huh.”
The woman on the other end identified herself as the charge nurse at the ICU. “Just wanted to tell you your dad’s been upgraded and we’ll be moving him to the regular surgical floor first thing in the morning.”