“I don’t know. I think he sounds kind of mysterious. Who knows what he’s really up to?”
“Well, if you want to know about mystery, there’s one other thing I should probably tell you about Henry.” Flip had an air of mischief about him, a playfulness that led Eliza to believe he wasn’t being completely serious. “Though don’t tell him you heard it from me.”
Eliza matched his conspiratorial tone. “What’s that?”
“Henry . . . is a Mormon.”
“Really?” Eliza filled her voice with feigned disbelief. “Well, in that case, you’ll have to introduce me.”
“Why is that? You got a thing for Mormons?”
Eliza smiled. “I do—especially ones that will give me a ride to church.”
Chapter 3
Late the following Friday afternoon, Dr. Elena Adler sat across her desk from Henry, her expression full of concern.
“Mr. Jacobson, I want this job to work for you. I know it’s been a little difficult for you to find your footing here at Rockbridge. I share the staff’s concerns with you because I want you to stay. I want you to work through these challenges, not be beaten by them.”
Henry finally released his breath and relaxed. When he’d responded to Dr. Adler’s request for a meeting, he’d been certain he was losing his job. She was right. He was having a hard time finding his footing. In truth, Henry wondered if he wasn’t in over his head. And yet, he wasn’t ready to give up. He liked living at Rockbridge. He loved the area and atmosphere of the school, and most importantly, he needed to stay in Rose Creek to be close to AJ. He was grateful Dr. Adler wanted to keep him on board, though what he could do to improve, he didn’t yet know.
Dr. Adler was often admired for her unassuming gentleness—her ability to breathe peace into those around her. Sitting across from her, seeing the compassion in her kind, gray eyes and experiencing the grace of a second chance, gave Henry a perfect understanding as to why.
Elena and her husband, Frank, had opened Rockbridge twenty years ago on a piece of inherited family land. They’d built the retreat from the ground up, turning it into a reputable institution, respected for both its rehabilitative programs and its quality of education. But at the root of it all, Rockbridge succeeded not because of prestigious recognition but because of the Adlers’ kindness and sincerity—because they believed, just as Henry did, that people deserved a second chance.
“I appreciate your faith in my ability to improve,” Henry finally said. He leaned back in his chair, his shoulders slack with defeat. “This is just so different from any teaching I’ve ever done before. Some of these kids—they just don’t respond. I don’t know how to get through to them.”
“These kids are here because they don’t know how to respond. When you teach at Rockbridge, you are more than a teacher. You are part of a team that is dedicated to healing and rehabilitating. We don’t give up on kids here.” Dr. Adler leaned forward, fixing Henry with her gaze. “We dig, and we push, and we find ways to reach every single student. You have to think outside the box—tear down every expectation of what you think a regular classroom in a regular high school should feel like.”
Henry shook his head. “I don’t know how.” He hesitated. “I’ve just never been very good with people—I don’t know that I can relate.”
Dr. Adler folded her arms. “Mr. Jacobson, I mean this as gently as possible. If you want to keep working at Rockbridge, you’d best find a way to relate.”
When she stood, Henry followed her example.
“Thank you, Dr. Adler,” he said. “I’ll try not to let you down again.” He shook her hand, then turned to leave but looked back when Dr. Adler spoke again.
“Henry? Can I call you Henry?” Her tone was different, gentler, as if she regretted the sternness of her last comment.
Henry nodded. “Of course.”
“What made you apply for this position?”
Henry looked down and pushed his hands into his pockets. After a moment, he decided the situation warranted a truthful answer. “My wife and I divorced two years ago. She moved back to Rose Creek—we grew up here—and I followed to be close to our son, AJ. He’s only seven.”
“I see.” She paused as if to consider her words. “Henry, I wouldn’t have hired you if I didn’t think you were capable of handling the job. The kids here are too important for me to jeopardize their learning by hiring the first teacher who walked through the door. I know it can be difficult, but trust me—teaching here can be more rewarding and more fulfilling than anything you’ve ever imagined. I promise as long as you don’t give up on these kids, I won’t give up on you. Do we have a deal?”
Henry forced a smile. He knew Dr. Adler was trying to be kind, but she’d wounded his pride. He’d much prefer retreating in silence, perhaps giving himself a few minutes to sulk before putting on his game face and jumping into a deal. But she was right. If he wanted to stick around, something was going to have to change.
“Deal.”
“Good.” She returned his smile. “Then I’ll see you back at five for staff meeting. Have you had the chance to meet our new counselor, Ms. Redding?”
Henry shook his head. He’d seen her around campus, but their schedules hadn’t provided an opportunity for them to meet directly. “No, not yet.”
“She’d be a valuable friend for you to make. She’s a remarkable counselor and recognizes things in these kids that, even with all my experience, I don’t often see. She might be able to help if you have specific students you’re struggling with.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Henry glanced at his watch as he left Dr. Adler’s office. It was four thirty. Rather than leave the administration building, he decided to wait on the front porch until the staff meeting started. The wide porch wrapped around the front of the building and continued around the western side to the back, where it joined a large sun deck. The deck was full of picnic tables and was a frequent gathering place for students and staff alike. But Henry preferred the split-log benches that sat just east of the main entrance. The porch didn’t wrap around on this side, eliminating any through traffic and creating a quiet corner, where Henry was often alone.
Henry stretched, enjoying the growing coolness that accompanied the approaching evening, and set his black leather bag on the bench beside him. He would never grow tired of North Carolina mountain summers. He’d missed them while living in Winston-Salem.
He’d liked the town he and Allison had shared just after he’d graduated from college. He’d had a good job teaching high school English, and they’d had a house with a nice backyard for AJ to play in. They’d also been close to his parents, who had moved back after his father’s retirement. Winston-Salem was where his mother had grown up. But it was hot—just beyond the reach of the mountains and more susceptible to the scorching summer temperatures that typically graced the Southern states. If Henry had to find a silver lining to his divorce and subsequent move to the mountains, cooler temperatures might be it.
Checking his watch again, he thought about pulling out his laptop to see if he could get a few pages of writing in before the start of the meeting, but his mind wasn’t clear enough to write—not after his conversation with Dr. Adler. He agreed he was struggling with his students. Some were doing fine, but others? Sometimes he couldn’t sleep for the worry they caused.
Because Rockbridge was so small, never more than sixty students at a time, the circumstances of Henry’s teaching were a little different. He taught English to all sixty, from grade seven all the way to twelve. Henry had five groups with seven to fifteen kids in each, divided by age and curriculum. The rest of his students he met with on an individual basis.
His mind turned to Daniel—a fifteen-year-old student who was having a particularly difficult time. Daniel had been at Rockbridge six full weeks and had yet to make any real progress in Henry’s class. It wasn’t that he wasn’t smart. The conversations Henry had had with the other teachers and with Daniel’s
counselor had assured him the boy was bright, even exceptionally so. But for Henry, Daniel would not work, preferring instead to sit for hours in sullen silence if it meant not having to pick up a pencil. In a way, Henry felt as if Daniel were his challenge—the determining factor as to whether or not he was really cut out for working at Rockbridge. He sensed his fellow faculty might feel the same way.
It was Lila who had called to tell him about the teaching position at Rockbridge nine months before. She’d read it in Rose Creek’s local newspaper and thought he might be interested. Henry had readily applied for the job, thinking less about the unique challenges Rockbridge might bring and more about his desire to be close to AJ. Within a week, he’d made the drive over to meet the Adlers and had accepted the position. It wasn’t like him to be so impulsive. In retrospect, he questioned his decision, his willingness to make such a drastic move without more careful thought and consideration. Despite his doubts, Henry knew he would have made the same choice over and over again. He’d moved for AJ. And for AJ, he would have to find a way to get through to his students.
Henry glanced behind him when he heard the sound of voices drifting toward the porch. His vantage point allowed a full view of the parking lot and staff apartments so he was able to quickly see Flip and the new counselor walking toward the building. Henry watched the woman, her face animated as she talked with Flip. She must have related something funny because Flip leaned his head back in robust laughter. The woman’s laugh joined his, and Henry noted how comfortable the two looked, how at ease they seemed, even having met just short of a week prior. But that was Flip. Flip got along with everyone, made everyone feel at ease. It was why he was so good at what he did. People like Flip were made for places like Rockbridge.
Henry remembered the woman’s name—Eliza Redding—from the last staff meeting, when Dr. Adler had spoken of her forthcoming arrival. She was younger than he had expected, though he thought perhaps her braided pigtails made her look younger than she actually was. To be a licensed counselor, he knew she had to have at least a master’s degree, and those didn’t happen overnight. He continued to watch her as she and Flip climbed the stairs to the administration building and looked his way.
She was attractive, yes, but there was something more than that. Everything about her seemed to sparkle with energy. From her red hair to her fair, freckled skin and the vibrant colors of her clothing, she seemed more alive than anyone Henry had ever seen.
“Henry! How are you, man? Have you had the chance to meet—”
Before Flip could finish his sentence, Natalie Porter, one of Rockbridge’s counselors, stuck her head out the front door and called to Eliza. “Eliza, I’m glad you’re here early. Can you come inside? We’re trying to work out our schedule for next week and need your input.”
“Of course.” She glanced at Henry. “If you’ll excuse me.”
“Oh, and Flip,” Natalie said. “Frank was asking about you. Something about missing tent stakes?”
Flip nodded his head. “Ah, the tent stakes. I’ll go explain.” He looked back at Henry. “See you inside.”
As quickly as everyone had appeared, they were gone again, leaving Henry alone once more. With nothing else to do, he picked up his bag from the bench beside him and followed the others inside.
Chapter 4
Eliza realized she was gambling. All she knew for certain was that Flip said Henry was a Mormon. She had no idea if he was planning to attend church that morning or if he even attended regularly at all. Still, she decided to wait a few more minutes.
She sat on the stairs just in front of her apartment and glanced at her watch one more time. If Henry didn’t appear in the next five minutes, she’d have to go ahead and leave if she wanted to find the chapel in Rose Creek before the meeting started. She looked at the directions she’d printed out the night before. It wasn’t complicated—she was sure she could find the building without any trouble—but it felt silly to drive all that way if Henry was going to make the same drive.
The previous Sunday, weary from her long trip, Eliza had inadvertently overslept. It wasn’t in her nature to skip church, but she must have needed the extra sleep. She had no recollection of even hearing the buzz of her alarm. By the time she’d awakened, the late morning sun had been streaming in through her bedroom window and sacrament meeting had been completely over. She wondered whether Henry would have made more of an effort to meet her and say hello if she’d been able to attend church.
He was the only one on campus she hadn’t officially met. She’d even gotten to know Gerald, the maintenance man. He wasn’t nearly as bad as Flip had described. But, then, she’d taken him cookies when she’d gone to say hello. Cookies made everything easier.
It seemed only natural that she and Henry should be friends. She couldn’t be certain they were the only members on campus, but she felt it a pretty safe assumption.
Yet she was nervous. By all descriptions, Henry was never anything but kind—polite, even to a fault. But everyone at Rockbridge agreed that socially, he was a lost cause. He continually turned down invitations to join staff members for dinner or trips into Rose Creek. Instead, he was known to retreat quickly, appearing to prefer the solitude and simplicity of his own space. With so little to say to others, he might think a car ride all the way to church in Eliza’s company would be pure torture.
Three, then four minutes passed, and Henry had yet to appear. Eliza stood and gathered her things. She would have to find the church on her own. When she reached the foot of her porch steps, she saw Henry locking the door to his apartment. He turned and moved quickly toward his car. Eliza hurried to catch him before he left.
“Henry,” she called.
He looked up. “Good morning.” He was obviously dressed for church. He wore a navy suit and a light blue tie that complemented the blue of his eyes, and he held his scriptures and a Gospel Doctrine manual under his arm.
“If you don’t mind,” Eliza began, “I thought we could ride together.”
Henry looked at her quizzically. “I don’t understand.”
“You’re going to church, aren’t you?”
“Well, yes, but . . . it’s a Mormon Church.”
His hesitance made Eliza smile. She held up her bag. Her leather-bound scriptures were just barely visible at the top, and her old missionary name tag was clipped to the side. It was hard for any set of scriptures to look more Mormon than hers.
“Um, I’m pretty much okay with that.”
“Oh,” Henry said. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize . . . didn’t expect . . .”
“To ever see another Mormon around this place?” Eliza finished his sentence. “I know. Neither did I.”
Henry still looked confused, and Eliza started to feel awkward. “I’m sorry,” she said quickly. “I’m being presumptuous. Flip mentioned that you were a member, and since I’ve never been to the meetinghouse, I just hoped . . . Well, I thought since we were leaving from the same place, it only made sense . . .”
“No, of course,” Henry said. “Please.” He crossed to the passenger side of the car and opened the door for Eliza.
She climbed into the front seat of Henry’s sedan, placing her purse and scriptures on the floor in front of her. After Henry settled into the driver’s seat, he buckled up, gave Eliza a nod of acknowledgment, then eased the car out of the parking lot and onto the windy, narrow road that led into Rose Creek.
Eliza had seen Henry at staff meeting and around campus a handful of times. But here in his car, close enough to smell his aftershave and notice the detail of the print on his tie, she felt like she was getting her first good look.
Flip had implied that Henry was a bookish type who kept to himself. Eliza had to admit he looked the part. But Eliza had a feeling there was more to Henry than just a pair of glasses and a conservative suit. There was a depth to his blue-gray eyes that drew her in, and she found herself staring, studying his jawline, the thick lashes that framed his eyes. When he glanced awa
y from the road and they made brief eye contact, she felt utterly exposed. Henry might look the part of a studious professor, but Eliza had never had an English teacher who looked as good as he did.
Eliza cleared her throat and willed her thoughts to behave. “I appreciate the ride,” she said. “I’m sure you weren’t expecting someone to bulldoze into your morning.”
“It’s no trouble. Now you’ll know how to get to the building next week.”
Eliza quickly turned her head so Henry wouldn’t see the blush that flooded her cheeks. Not five minutes in the car together and he’d already made it clear how he really felt about her tagging along. He was too much of a gentleman to refuse her, but clearly, this was not something he desired as a regular arrangement. Momentarily puzzled by his dismissal, Eliza swallowed hard, took a deep breath, and decided to give it another go.
“I made you some cookies.” She tripped over her words as they tumbled out. “I wanted to introduce myself and thought cookies would be a nice way to do that. But then, when I took a plate over to Gerald, he talked for quite a while, and I ran out of time. I tried to find you the following day, but I got distracted with work, and before I knew it, I’d eaten all your cookies myself.” Eliza couldn’t decide if her nerves were making her yammer on or if she was simply trying to make up for Henry’s reticence with an excess of her own words.
“You made me cookies?” Henry asked. Before Eliza could respond, Henry added, “You took cookies to Gerald?”
Eliza realized she’d been holding her breath and finally exhaled with relief. Henry’s tone was just light enough to ease her discomfort. “He’s not that bad a guy. He was very polite to me.”
“After you gave him the cookies, I’m sure. Maybe your efforts will soften him for all of us.”
Mountains Between Us Page 3