Sierra Jensen Collection, Vol 4 Sierra Jensen Collection, Vol 4

by Robin Jones Gunn

  Sierra held her breath and bit her lower lip.

  “Yes, I understand. Could you check your roster, though, and see if his name appears? Oh, I see. Yes.”

  “What?” Sierra begged to know, tugging on Wesley’s arm.

  “So he left this morning, and you don’t expect him to return,” Wesley repeated. “Do you know if he was planning to go to the airport? Did he say anything about flying back home today?”

  It was silent far too long.

  “Yes. I understand. Thank you. Good-bye.”

  “What?” Sierra asked before Wes had even hung up the phone.

  “The Danbury House is some sort of homeless shelter in London. Paul checked in last night and left this morning. She said he had to go to the free clinic to get some stitches.”

  “Stitches?” they all repeated.

  Before they could get any more information from Wes, Tawni and Jeremy arrived, looking exhausted.

  “Paul’s in London,” Sierra announced. “He tried to call here. Is Uncle Mac in the car?”

  “He dropped us off. What did you find out?”

  Wes relayed the story and added the details the others were waiting for. “Apparently, Paul arrived last night with some cuts on his face. They cleaned him up, gave him some food and a bed, and sent him to a clinic this morning. The woman I talked to remembered Paul. She talked about him as if he were a common street bum.”

  Sierra began to put together the pieces. “He must have been mugged,” she surmised. “The robber beat him up and took everything, which is why Paul couldn’t take the plane home yesterday. And they took his money, so that’s why he’s calling collect.”

  The others looked at her as if she had an overly active imagination.

  “It fits,” Jeremy was the first to say. “If his passport was taken, that would explain why he didn’t leave England yet.”

  “Where would he go to get a new passport?” Tawni asked.

  “The American Embassy,” Sierra said. She had traveled to Europe twice and had learned enough to know what to do in an emergency. “Let’s call there and leave a message for him.”

  Jeremy called this time. Mr. Jensen retreated to the kitchen to start a pot of coffee, nice and dark, the way he liked it. Sierra and the others waited. Tawni flopped onto the living room couch and told them to wake her as soon as there was some news.

  Twenty minutes later, Jeremy met with success. He reached the embassy and found out that Paul had been there earlier and had registered all the necessary forms. The agent at the embassy wouldn’t give out any further information, such as whether or not the passport had been stolen. They still didn’t know where he was, but at least he was okay.

  Sierra felt as if she could begin to breathe again, and she drew in generous lungsful of air. The smell of her dad’s strong coffee filled her nostrils, and she decided to try half a cup, mixed with lots of cream and sugar. Paul had dreamed of drinking good coffee again, and now that they knew he was okay, Sierra felt she could start the celebration before he arrived.

  At five o’clock the phone rang. Sierra answered, and it was Uncle Mac saying he had just received a collect call from Paul, and he was all right. Sierra quickly told him everything they had figured out, and Mac said, “Good detective work, Sherlock! You pretty much figured it out. He got off a bus in London in the wrong district. He had stayed the night at a youth hostel and was trying to take the bus to the airport to catch his flight. When he realized he was on the wrong bus, he got off, hoping to catch the next one. It was a bad area, and no cabs were around for him to hail. He said he waited at the bus stop for more than an hour, but no bus came. He asked someone for directions and took off walking, which was probably his second mistake. The directions led him down an alley, and that’s where the hoodlums got him. It was as if they were lying in wait for him, he said.”

  “Did they hurt him?” Sierra asked.

  “Yes. They knocked him down and took everything: his backpack, wallet, money, passport. I think he said he had four stitches put in his chin this morning at a clinic.”

  “This is so awful!” Sierra said.

  The others were gathering around Sierra, waiting for an update. She motioned that she would tell them everything in just a minute.

  “I was able to wire him some money,” Uncle Mac said. “At least he can find something to eat and buy some shoes. They took his shoes, and he’s been walking around London barefoot.”

  Sierra couldn’t imagine what Paul had been through. But at least he was safe. And he would be home soon.

  “How long will it take him to get his passport?” Sierra asked.

  “He didn’t say. He’s going to try to reach his parents today and figure out his ticket home. I told him his folks were at the cabin but to keep trying them because they were heading home. If he doesn’t contact them by tonight his time, I told him to call me back and I’d work out the ticket with him.”

  “Did he sound okay?” Sierra asked. “I mean, was he feeling all right?”

  “You’ll be able to tell me in a little while,” Uncle Mac said. “I told him to call you and Jeremy at your house and to charge it to my account. I’d better get off the line because he was going to wait twenty minutes and then give you a call.”

  Sierra hung up and gave the group the update. Everyone responded at once.

  “He could have been killed.”

  “I’m so glad he’s okay.”

  “Barefoot? Through London? No thank you.”

  “When is he going to call?”

  “Any minute,” Sierra said, checking the clock on the microwave. She sipped her overly sweetened, cooled coffee and decided it wasn’t worth the effort.

  The first streaks of morning had broken into the kitchen, bringing a sense of comfort and hope to the weary bunch. Mr. Jensen decided to make a batch of scrambled eggs. Jeremy helped him with the toast, and Amy unloaded the dishwasher so Wesley would have glasses for the orange juice he was making. Sierra sat and watched, waiting for the phone to ring. She realized no one had told Tawni the good news, so Sierra slipped into the living room and woke her sister.

  “Paul’s okay. He’s in London. He was robbed.”

  Tawni raised up on her elbow and squinted. “He was robbed?”

  “Yes, but he’s all right. He’s trying to get another passport and a ticket home.”

  “That’s awful!”

  “No, it’s good,” Sierra said. “He’s alive. He’s coming home.”

  “I’m so glad,” Tawni said, lying back down. “Do you mind if I go back to sleep?”

  “Not at all. Do you want to go upstairs to bed?”

  “No. I just want to.” Tawni’s voice trailed off, and she was back asleep.

  Sierra returned to the kitchen, trying not to appear too frustrated that the phone hadn’t rung yet. Mr. Jensen was beginning to dish up the eggs, so she grabbed a paper plate and let him pile it on. The conversation swirled around the weary bunch. No one but Sierra seemed nervous that the phone hadn’t rung. She could barely stand the suspense. There was so much she wanted to ask Paul.

  At 7:10 the phone finally rang. Vicki and Amy had gone home. Wes had fallen asleep in a chair in the living room. Jeremy had crashed on the living room floor. Sierra and her dad were the only two still awake. Mr. Jensen had gone outside to work in the yard while it was cool, and Sierra was cleaning the kitchen. It was a good outlet for her nervous energy. She had even mopped the floor, since it was sticky where the buckets of lobsters had rested the night before.

  She answered the phone, breathless from the mopping.

  “Good morning,” the male voice said. “I apologize for calling so early. This is Pastor Mackenzie. Is my son Jeremy there?”

  “Yes, I’ll get him.” Sierra felt like the maid, standing there with the mop in her hand and her hair twisted up and held on top of her head with a clip. She had waited so patiently for Paul to call, but here it was his dad instead, and he had no idea who Sierra was or why she was important
to his son.

  Sierra woke Jeremy and said, “Your dad is on the phone. You’d better take it in the kitchen or the study because the cordless isn’t working right.”

  Jeremy shook himself awake and stretched his long arms over his head as he went into the kitchen. “Dad?” he said, taking the phone. “Yeah. I’m fine. What have you heard?”

  Sierra remained inconspicuous in the background while Jeremy and his dad compared notes on Paul’s situation. She gathered from a few of the comments Jeremy made that Paul had obtained a ticket and could use it as soon as his new passport was issued. Jeremy hung up and turned to see if Sierra was still in the kitchen.

  She looked up sheepishly, as if she had been caught eavesdropping. Jeremy walked over to where she stood wiping off the counter for the ninth time. He looked so compassionate and understanding that she knew something was wrong.

  “What?” she said. “What is it? Is Paul okay?”

  Jeremy nodded. “He’s okay. But his ticket is a direct flight to San Diego. He won’t be able to come through Portland.”

  “Oh,” Sierra said, trying to appear brave. “That’s understandable.”

  “I’m sorry,” Jeremy said, putting a brotherly hand on her shoulder. “I know how much you were looking forward to seeing him.”

  fifteen

  JEREMY’S COMMENT stayed with Sierra for the next three days as she floated in a deep blue funk, waiting for the phone to ring and for the voice on the other end to be Paul’s. But he didn’t call.

  Sierra had time on her hands, since school was out and she had taken off these days from work. She had intended to fill the time with an unending list of adventures with Paul. Instead, she spent most of the days in her room alone, thinking of how Jeremy had tried to comfort her when he said, “I know how much you were looking forward to seeing him.”

  Did he mean that I was looking forward to being with Paul more than Paul was looking forward to being with me? she thought. Jeremy read the letter. He saw how much Paul cares.

  Every now and then, Sierra could cheer herself up with the thought that Paul had several complications in his life at the moment and that he would call her when he arrived home. She was being unfair to expect a phone call when the poor guy was traipsing barefoot through London with four stitches in his chin. He had places to go, things to buy, tickets to book.

  Still, she wondered how hard it would be to find a phone, use his uncle’s charge number, and call her. Two minutes—that’s all she needed. A two-minute call that said, “I’m fine. I’m sorry I didn’t get to see you. I’ll come up to Portland as soon as I can.” Two minutes—that’s all it would take. And then her life could go on again.

  Tawni and Jeremy had left Sunday morning. Tawni’s roommate had called and said a photo shoot was scheduled for Tawni on Tuesday morning that her agent had forgotten to tell her about. They left in a hurry, both tired and not looking forward to the two-day drive home. Sierra felt sorry for her sister, since she knew she had a hard time sleeping in the car. Tawni would probably end up splitting the driving with Jeremy when she had planned on the brothers’ doing all the driving.

  Wesley had gone back to Corvallis, where he was taking a summer-school course and working at a grocery store. Sierra missed her brother and sister more than she thought she would. In that one emotion-packed weekend, Sierra, Tawni, and Wesley had become closer than ever. Part of it might have been due to Sierra’s graduating. Now she officially was a member of the older Jensen children group instead of the oldest member of the younger Jensen children group. In addition, the three of them had stood beside Jeremy as he had faced the possibility of losing his brother, and that had made them process all their feelings for each other.

  Randy came by twice to try to convince Sierra that she should do something with the rest of the gang. She just didn’t feel like it, and Randy seemed to understand.

  Vicki and Amy seemed to understand her depression, too. Vicki had called at four on Monday afternoon to suggest that Sierra meet with Vicki and Amy at Mama Bear’s. Sierra told Vicki she just didn’t feel like it yet.

  “Are you still waiting for him to call?” Vicki asked.

  Sierra didn’t answer. She felt childish waiting around for the phone to ring when she should be out having a great time now that she had graduated.

  “Have you heard if he’s arrived in San Diego yet? I mean, did he get home safely?”

  “I haven’t heard. I don’t think Tawni is home yet. I’ll call her tomorrow.”

  “Well, do you want to do something on Wednesday?” Vicki asked. “I don’t have to work until noon that day. We could meet for breakfast or something.”

  “Sure,” Sierra agreed.

  Now it was Wednesday, and she was on her way to meet Vicki and Amy for breakfast. She still had received no news of Paul. Tawni hadn’t returned her calls; Sierra guessed Tawni was out on a shoot. For all Sierra knew, Paul could still be in London, waiting for a new passport.

  In some ways, she had moved past the emotional churning of the weekend and had grown in the process. She had slept long hours and had thought deep and hard about life and death, love and pain. She had written a lot in her diary, read a lot in her Bible, and talked a lot with her dad.

  When she arrived at Mama Bear’s Bakery, Vicki and Amy were waiting for her at their favorite window table. Just seeing her friends’ smiling faces as she walked up to the bakery made Sierra’s spirits feel lighter. She realized nothing was better in this life than friends who were there for her when she needed them.

  Mrs. Kraus called to Sierra from behind the counter before she had a chance to join Vicki and Amy. “Could you come here a minute?”

  Sierra joined Mrs. Kraus at the register. No customers were waiting for cinnamon rolls at the moment. “I was going to call you, so I’m glad you stopped by. Jody gave her notice yesterday.”

  “Oh, that’s too bad. I’m going to miss her.”

  “Yes,” Mrs. Kraus said, “we’ll all miss Jody. But lots of hours are now up for grabs, and I wanted to tell you, since you had been asking about more hours this summer.”

  “That’s perfect. Yes, I’ll take whatever you can give me. But you remember, don’t you, that I’ll be here only until the second week of August?”

  “Yes. And I’ll miss you, too. But until then I’ll give you most of Jody’s hours, and you can earn some spending money for your college days.”

  “Thank you so much.”

  “My pleasure.” Mrs. Kraus smiled. “Peppermint tea this morning?”

  Sierra nodded and went over to join her friends. “Did you guys already order?”

  “We’re each having our own cinnamon roll today,” Amy said. “Mrs. Kraus said a fresh batch would be out in five minutes, so we’re waiting.”

  “Guess what?” Vicki’s smile was wide.

  “I don’t know,” Sierra said. “But I have a ‘guess what’ for you, too. Mrs. Kraus is giving me more hours. Now that is a huge God-thing.”

  “And this is a huge God-thing, too,” Vicki said, still smiling. She pulled a legal-sized envelope from her purse.

  Before Sierra saw the return address, she knew. “You were accepted at Rancho!” She threw her arms around Vicki in a hug. “I knew it! I knew it!”

  Vicki laughed. “How did you know?”

  “Because they can’t break us up. We need each other too much.” As soon as Sierra said it, she realized she had excluded Amy from the “we.”

  “I mean …”

  “It’s okay,” Amy said. “I guess I have a God-thing for both of you.”

  Vicki and Sierra waited. Amy had never referred to anything in her life as a God-thing before.

  “Yesterday I sent in my application for Rancho. I guess I felt the same way you do, Sierra. They can’t break us up. Besides, I’ve forgotten all the reasons I didn’t want to go to a Christian college.”

  Sierra and Vicki were out of their chairs, hugging Amy and both talking at once. Mrs. Kraus showed up with the cinna
mon rolls and tea, and they settled back in the chairs.

  “You know what?” Amy spoke softly. “I feel as if I’ve changed so much in the past … what, how many days has it been since I prayed with you guys? Five days? Six now? I feel … I don’t know—put back together or something.”

  “That is so great, Amy,” Sierra said. “I feel as if I’ve been on a soul search, too, these past few days. I don’t know if I feel put back together yet, but I’m getting there.”

  “You’ll probably feel better once you hear from Paul and know that he’s safe,” Vicki said.

  Sierra agreed and put the first bite of warm cinnamon roll into her mouth. The gooey frosting clung to her lower lip, and she wiped it with her napkin. Then Sierra looked out the window and noticed her mom coming toward Mama Bear’s with something in her hand.

  As her mom entered the bakery, Sierra immediately said, “Is everything okay?”

  Mrs. Jensen smiled. “A courier just delivered this. It’s from Paul, and I’ll be honest, I couldn’t wait for you to get home to open it.”

  They all laughed. Sierra took the second-day international mail envelope from her mom and coyly said, “What makes you think I’m going to open it in front of you guys?”

  They all protested at once. Sierra said, “Okay, okay. Just let me read it first in private, okay?” She pulled out a single sheet of stationery from a hotel called The Edwina Courtyard and skimmed it quickly. The letter directed her to something else in the envelope, which she pulled out. It was small, thin, and wrapped in a single piece of tissue.

  “What is it?” Amy asked.

  “What did the letter say?” Vicki asked.

  Sierra ignored them just long enough to pull back the tissue. She extracted a long chain with a silver emblem hanging from it.

  “A daffodil,” Mrs. Jensen said, reaching over to finger the dainty necklace. “It’s beautiful, Sierra.”

  “Put it on,” Amy urged.

  Sierra slipped it over her head and adjusted the daffodil so that the finely detailed lines were showing. She grinned at her mom and then at Amy and Vicki. “Do you want to hear the letter?”