Truly Yours Historical Collection December 2014

by Susan Page Davis, Paige Winship Dooly, Connie Stevens

  Her breath hitched.

  Jacob wiped away a tear she hadn’t realized she’d shed. “Maybe now isn’t the best time. You need to rest, not get more upset.”

  His voice was husky, full of emotion, and she wondered at the remorse she heard in his tone.

  “No, I need to do this.” She took a deep breath. “I went out there, and the wind buffeted around me. It almost blew me over the edge. My mother didn’t even acknowledge my presence. I called to her and tried to pull her back inside, but she shoved me away. I fell against the stone wall and hit my head. When I came to, I’d lost my sight and Mama all in one fell swoop. Papa saw us up there, but before he could get to the top, Mama had jumped.”

  “No one knows why?”

  “No, we never found out. She took her secret to the grave.” Her voice had dropped to a whisper, but now she laughed, the sound harsh in the silence. “What kind of mother does that to her child—even if the child is almost grown? What type of wife abandons her husband in such a painful way? How could she have done that to herself and to us?”

  “Hollan, maybe she didn’t jump. If the wind was that strong, maybe she fell over accidently.”

  “Why was she up there?”

  “I don’t have the answers to those questions, Hollan. I wish I did.”

  Hollan understood his confusion.

  “I know. I don’t really expect you to. But therein lies the reason for my silence and distance from God. It wasn’t a conscious choice I made, but I stopped communicating with Him.” She hesitated. “I haven’t forgotten my father’s and uncle’s teachings. I’ve even talked to God a bit lately. But still I’ve drifted away.”

  “Now that you’ve realized this, are you ready to make things right with Him?”

  She nodded. “I am. I want to find my way back.”

  “He’ll calm your fears and will help you sort through all the changes you’re experiencing.” He chuckled. “Changes we’re both going through. If we work as a team, perhaps we can make sense of it all and see what God has for us. Let me pray with you.”

  Jacob clasped her hand and leaned forward to rest his forehead against it. She clung to him like the lifeline he was. The strength and confidence in his warm voice as he prayed washed over her.

  “Lord, we join together in prayer and thank You for keeping us safe through the storm. Help Hollan back into the fold, Lord, and use me to make the process easier. We ask that You bring Hollan clarity of mind and calm her fears in all situations. She wants You to take control of her life. Guide her in all things. . . . In Jesus’ name, amen.”

  Hollan listened as he finished up his prayer and felt a sense of peace flow through her. She released to Him all the fears and concerns she’d carried. For the first time in a while, she felt the burdens she’d carried alone lift. She held only one small concern back for herself. She knew she was supposed to turn everything over to God, to let Him watch over all aspects of her life, but in this one small area she still felt she needed to keep control, at least for a little bit longer. For now, for just a little bit longer, she still felt the need to keep the permanent return of her vision a secret from Jacob.

  Seven

  After two days in bed, Hollan couldn’t wait any longer to get out and explore the island. She understood Jacob’s overprotective nature after a blow to her head, but she wanted to get up. She had a lot to celebrate. Her vision had returned! It hadn’t wavered once. She sent a covert glance at Jacob. And neither had the man she still loved. He’d returned and now stayed close to her side. But that all-important detail aside, at the moment she only wanted to see the places and things she loved through new eyes. And even better would be to see everything with Jacob by her side.

  “We’re going out to explore today.” Hollan settled at the table, not leaving her comment up for debate. “I feel completely ready to go outside and breathe in some fresh air. If I have to stay inside another day, I’ll surely go insane.”

  “You will, huh?” Jacob set an aromatic plate of eggs in front of her before taking his seat. “We certainly don’t want that. A little fresh air won’t hurt, but you’ll need to take it slow.”

  “Yes, doc.” She busied herself with eating, not wanting to waste a moment of the brilliant day that waited outside their doorstep. “Jacob, these eggs are wonderful. Where’d you learn to cook like this?”

  “All over the place.” He stabbed at an egg, and she took the moment to study him. His damp hair was slicked back from his forehead. “When you travel like I did, you meet up with a lot of different people. I had to work a lot of odd jobs in order to make ends meet.”

  “How did you end up choosing to do that? What made you decide to become a traveling preacher? I don’t remember you ever talking about wanting to do such a thing.”

  What she really wanted to ask was why he’d left her behind. From the way he froze in place, fork halfway to his mouth while contemplating his answer, she knew she’d hit a sore spot.

  “That night I left, a lot of bad things happened.” He laid his fork down and reached over to toy with her hand. She had a hard time not staring into his eyes. She wanted to lose herself in them. But he couldn’t know about the return of her vision. Not yet. She didn’t want him to leave. She wasn’t ready for that possibility. She needed more time. She needed to solidify their relationship.

  “I remember.”

  “I know you do.” He pulled his hand away and ran it through his hair, the gesture reassuringly familiar. “I couldn’t face anyone after what my father and brothers did to the people of our town. So when they fled, I chased them up the trail. They scattered, and I tailed them one at a time. Each time I’d catch one, I turned him over to the law.” He picked up his fork and used it to push the eggs back and forth, but he didn’t eat any of them.

  “That had to be hard.” Hollan ached for him, for the pain he had to have felt each time he had to turn in a brother. “You found your father, too?”

  “Someone else found him first. I found his body soon after.”

  “That’s awful.” What else could she say to that? Though she longed to know what had happened to her father, finding his body wasn’t something she could imagine. She didn’t want to contemplate it further. “And the others, what happened to them?”

  “I found all but one. They’ll spend a lot of time behind bars, if not worse. I didn’t stick around to see what happened.”

  “Which one evaded you?”

  “David.”

  He seemed to be studying her face for a reaction. She stared at his chin. His expression turned quizzical when she didn’t have one.

  “So you decided to let him go, and instead you returned home?”

  “No, I trailed him back this way. I don’t intend to stop looking until he joins our other brothers behind bars.”

  “So you’re only here for a short while?”

  “I married you, Hollan. I’m with you for life. I meant my vows when I said them.”

  Her heart leaped at his words. Maybe she wouldn’t have to keep her secret as long as she thought. She tested him.

  “But you were forced into the marriage. You might change your mind if. . .” She let her voice trail off, not sure what to say.

  “If what?” His voice held a chuckle. “I made my commitment for life, Hollan.”

  He stood to gather their plates and moved out of her line of vision. Her newly returned vision. A hint of a smile broadened her lips. She savored the thought and forced herself not to track him with her eyes.

  “Well, I don’t know. What if you get bored? What if you catch your brother and want to travel again? I understand you wanted to return home and right the wrongs of your family, but once that’s all behind you, maybe you’ll want to wander again.”

  “Not likely.” This time there was no humor after the statement. “A person can only wander for so long before life catches up with them. And in my case, it was time for me to return.”

  “So what about David?”

 
He helped her up from her chair and led the way to the door. “I’ll know what to do when the time comes. God has led me to each of them in turn. I don’t know why David came back. He already caused all the pain he possibly could. But for whatever reason, God has been urging me back this way for a while now, and I’ve ignored Him. Next thing I know, my quarry turned this way and led me home.”

  “Interesting.” Hollan wished he’d come back because he missed her. But they were married and working on their new relationship. That had to be enough. She’d try to be patient and see what happened next.

  “Enough of that. Let’s go explore and see what the hurricane did to our home.”

  Our home. The words were so simple, yet they meant so much to her. She wasn’t alone anymore.

  Jacob tugged her toward the inland channel. “How about we start at the dock? I want to check the boat.”

  Hollan nodded her agreement.

  Jacob led her down the path toward the water at a leisurely pace, walking slightly ahead. She held back just a bit, wanting to look around without him taking notice. She savored every single sight. The brilliant green of the trees stood out against the vivid blue of the sky. The seagulls circled overhead, scavenging for small crabs and fish. They neared the sandy beach, and the water lapped at the shore, tossing tiny shells and clams with the movement. The sea oats danced in the slight breeze. Hollan wanted to dance along with them. Pelicans and herons dove for their dinner in the distance. And decidedly the best view of all was that of Jacob walking just ahead of her. Her beloved Jacob. She studied his broad shoulders and the way his waist narrowed at the hips. The muscles in his arms flexed as he cleared debris from their path. The sun shone off his golden hair, which he’d again pulled back and tied at the nape of his neck. He was truly a striking man.

  Jacob’s grunt pulled her from her perusal. He’d stopped just ahead of her. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and press her cheek against his back, but instead she hurried to stand at his side. She glanced at the dock.

  Only one thing seemed to be missing—one major thing. She put her hand to her forehead and scanned the open waters.

  “The boat’s gone.” Jacob stated the obvious just before Hollan blurted it out. At the rate she was going, she’d surely clue him in about the return of her sight. Jacob didn’t notice—he was too focused on the missing boat.

  “Gone. . .where?”

  Jacob reached over to clutch her hand. “I have no idea. I didn’t think the storm would have done that much damage to this side of the island. It’s more protected.”

  “Odd.”

  “Yes, it is.” His voice held a funny tone.

  “Are you thinking someone tampered with it?”

  “I’m not sure. But it can’t have floated off on its own.”

  “The supply boat won’t be here for days. This means we’re on our own until then.”

  “It looks that way.” They’d reached the dock, and Jacob released her hand as he bent low to check out the dock and surrounding water. He stood back up, hands on hips, and glanced around again. “This is so strange. There’s no sign of it at all.”

  “The storm likely blew it away. I doubt we’ll ever find it.”

  “What now?”

  “There’s nothing we can do until Fletcher returns.”

  He clasped her hand again and led her down the shoreline path. His hand felt solid and reassuring. “Let’s walk some more. Maybe it washed ashore. If so, we’ll come across it. If not, I still want to see what other damage the storm did to our island.”

  They walked in silence, and more than once Hollan’s eyes blurred with tears of happiness. A lizard skittered across the path and disappeared in the overgrown foliage to her left. A large turtle floated in the water just offshore. The water was so clear here that she could see the turtle’s shadow on the sandy bottom as it moved along. A mockingbird sang from somewhere in the dense trees overhead. She’d missed these sights dearly. And because she never dared to walk very far, she’d missed a lot of the shoreline’s sounds. Hollan took a deep breath, breathing in the salt-laden air. The vivid blue of the sky almost hurt her eyes, but she embraced the sensation. She’d never been happier to squint.

  Jacob slowed. “Where does that path lead? I’ve never noticed it before.”

  “What path?”

  Jacob tugged her inland, a small path barely visible through the dense jungle of palmettos and scrub that made most of the island impenetrable. “It leads through the undergrowth. It looks like at one time it would have been used quite often, but now it’s almost completely overgrown.”

  “Sounds like the path to Amos’s old place.” Hollan was beginning to hate the farce she’d put into motion. If only she had complete surety that the return of her vision wouldn’t cause a negative change in their budding friendship.

  “Amos?” Jacob took the lead through the tunnel of vegetation. Hollan’s skirts were snagged and tugged by the ends of the palmettos’ sharp fronds. She didn’t care. She’d happily sacrifice the old dress she wore for the experience and adventure of refamiliarizing herself with the interior of the island. Especially when it meant Jacob would hold her close against his side as he did now.

  “He helped my grandfather when he first took over the lighthouse, before my father had the contract. He had a small shack somewhere around here.”

  “Let’s find it.”

  “If it’s even standing.” She laughed. “It’s been around for a long time, and you know how harsh the weather can be.”

  “It’s still here.”

  Sure enough, it was. And it looked surprisingly solid. Of course she couldn’t admit that to him.

  The door screeched as he pulled it open. Hollan screamed as a bat flew out, barely skimming her head.

  “Sorry about that.” Jacob pulled her into a quick embrace. “It’s gone now.”

  Hollan shuddered. She’d never liked the creatures of the night. Suddenly the area felt dark and oppressive. She couldn’t imagine how much worse it would be if she couldn’t see. Snakes loved to lurk on this section of the island, along with alligators and all sorts of other creatures.

  “If you’ve seen enough, I’m ready to go back to the shore.”

  “No, actually, I want to look a little closer. Other than the bats—”

  “Plural? I thought there was only one!” Hollan reached up and scrubbed at her hair with both hands. “They’re gone, aren’t they?” She spun in a circle.

  “They all flew away. You’re fine.” She didn’t comment on the chuckle she heard in his tone. He stood in the open doorway. “But it looks like someone has been here recently. The interior isn’t as rough as I’d expect after all these years.”

  Hollan stepped closer and grabbed hold of Jacob’s arm. “Someone or—something?”

  “Someone. The floor is cleared, and there’s a sign of fire. Let me duck inside.”

  “All the more reason to leave.”

  “I’ll only be a moment.”

  “You do know there are snakes and gators around here? Don’t leave me for long.”

  Hollan hugged her arms around her waist and scoured the area for signs of predators. A bubbling stream ran along the opposite side of the small clearing. Though she much preferred being outside in the open rather than being inside the tiny bat-infested cabin, her mind was quickly conjuring up quite a few alarming scenarios of possible creatures lurking at her feet.

  “Um, Jacob? I’m hearing scurrying sounds in the brush. Not something I like to stand here and listen to. My imagination’s racing out here.”

  “I’m ready.” His sudden appearance at her side made her jump. “Let’s get you out of here. But I’ll be watching the place, and if someone is using this cabin, I’ll find out.”

  “Sounds good to me. Meanwhile, I’ll stick to waiting on one of the nice, clean, wide-open paths on the beach when you check.”

  Jacob laughed.

  They cut across the island toward the ocean and reached the main path.
Hollan breathed a sigh of relief. The sigh ended in a cough as she inhaled the sharp odor of rotting fish. Quite a few of them lay scattered at their feet. “Whoa. Lots of fish washed ashore in this area after the storm.”

  Jacob turned her way, eyes squinting, his forehead creased. Hollan covered quickly, waving her hand in front of her wrinkled nose.

  He laughed. “It is a bit potent.”

  “It’s the aroma of home. I like it.”

  “You are an island girl through and through, aren’t you?”

  “Always and forever.” Hollan couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. She didn’t want to think about living anywhere else.

  “Hollan, there’s something we need to talk about.”

  Her heart plummeted. Here it came. She didn’t want to hear what he had to say. “Oh listen! The waves are louder and the birds more vocal. We’re nearing the ocean side, aren’t we?”

  “Yes.” He squeezed her hand. “Hollan, don’t change the subject.”

  Intent on savoring the newest view, she didn’t answer. The Atlantic Ocean seemed to stretch out forever before her. Shells scattered at her feet, begging for her attention. She loved walking with Jacob, but she couldn’t wait to make her escape in the near future and spend a morning enjoying her favorite pastime, looking for seashells and pirate treasure.

  “Hollan?”

  “I’m sorry.” She kept her gaze down and moved forward.

  “Anyway, as I was saying, we have to discuss what will happen if the lighthouse inspector arrives and decides that we can’t stay.”

  She froze. “Decides we can’t stay? Why would he decide that?” The panic made her voice rise. She hadn’t even thought about that possibility.