Donovan's Daughter (The Californians, Book 4) (31 page)

It was on the tip of Alex's tongue to ask if she needed
help, but he knew what her answer would be. He left and
shut the door once again.

Marcail had prayed for most of the two hours that had
passed, but the strain of her conversation with Alex was
still present. She did not know what to do.

Maybe I do act like I'm single, she thought to herself
defensively. But it's hard to get close to someone you hardly
know. The moment the thought formed, Marcail saw it
for the flimsy excuse that it was. Alex had showed her in
countless ways that he wanted a real marriage, but Marcail had been hesitant. What she was waiting for, she
didn't even know herself.

What a mess. Marcail muttered as she painstakingly
climbed out of bed. Once on her feet, she realized she
would have to go to the living room to get her robe. A
glance at the kitchen table and the aromas filling the air
told her Alex had been busy.

Marcail came back to the table feeling modestly covered
and actually experiencing hunger pains. Alex prayed
before they ate, and the meal progressed in near silence.
As Alex cleared the table, Marcail spoke up.

"Did you want to hear about Sydney now?" Her voice
was tentative, and Alex turned from his task at the basin.

"I would like to hear, but only if you're up to it."

"What exactly did you want to know?"

Alex rejoined her at the table. "I want to know if this is
typical of Sydney. I mean, his behavior in your classhas he tried things before?"

Marcail nodded. "Sydney is unpredictable at best. He
has trouble with his temper, not an unusual occurrence
in any child, but he turns violent with little or no warning."

"Is this the first time the violence has been directed at
you?"

"No. One day, very early in the year, he threw a rock
and hit me in the face. I think he scared himself, because
for a long time after that things were calm. Beyond that,
he's pulled away from me when I have his arm, and
shoved past me so strongly that I've had to take a step
backward."

"What does he do to the other children?"

"Kicks their desks, pulls hair, that type of thing. I
don't consider any of it harmless, and I always punish
him. But since I can't go to Mrs. Duckworth, my hands
are tied. I have used his love for me to get through to him
at times. My telling him that I'm disappointed seems to
carry more weight than anything else I say or do. By the
way, how did he seem at your office?"

"I didn't recognize it at the time, but he looked guilty.
At first I thought he was afraid of something, and then
he seemed so relieved when I told him he'd see you at
church."

They fell silent for a time, and then Marcail spoke. "At
first I was too shocked to feel anything, and then I felt
betrayed. Now I'm afraid. I'm afraid of Sydney, and I
won't be able to let him out of my sight for the remainder
of the year."

'Are you sure you should wait until summer to confront Mrs. Duckworth?" Fearing for her safety and halfway hoping she would lose her job, Alex wished he
could order her to quit.

"Yes, of that I'm sure. I don't know why, except that I
feel a definite peace about finishing the year. If I go to
Mrs. Duckworth now, I'll lose my job as well as all touch
with the children.

"Who knows," Marcail went on, her voice expressing
a glimmer of hope. "Maybe God will use this accident in
a mighty way-a way that would bring Him glory."

Alex didn't reply to this, and Marcail left the table
moments later. She made up her bed in the living room,
and Alex took that as a sign that she wanted to be left
alone.

Alex's prediction about Marcail not wanting to work
right away proved to be true. It was Tuesday afternoon
before she put a dress on and began to even start feeling
like her old self.

Things had continued on a strained note between
husband and wife through this time, but Alex's care of
Marcail could not be faulted. He was at home as much as
his work allowed, leaving notes at his office to ring the
bell for emergencies only. He had Marcail soaking in a
warm bath both morning and evening, and even though
Marcail hated it, Alex checked her bruises after each
evening bath.

After supper Tuesday night, Marcail said she was desperate for some fresh air. Alex, knowing it could only do
her good, helped her into her sweater. She planned to
walk around the perimeter of the yard until he finished
the dishes.

As it was, Alex had barely started the dishes when
Marcail came back through the door. She tried to hide it,
but Alex saw fear in her eyes.

"What's happened?"

"The Duckworth coach; it's coming up the road."

Alex's brows rose in surprise, but he spoke calmly. "It
would seem, Marcail, that this incident is going to come
to a head long before summer."

The young schoolteacher could only nod. Alex told
her if she wanted to wait in the bedroom he would
answer the door and then come for her. Marcail was
tempted, but felt the problem was really hers and she
should be present.

She took a place at the kitchen table, her hands clenching in her lap when the knock sounded. Alex answered
the summons, and both were surprised to see Sydney
standing alone on the step.

Marcail's heart broke at the sight of him, and she
watched as he looked up at Alex and then peered tentatively past him to get a better view of her. His eyes
were huge and questioning in his pale face, and Marcail
wasn't sure what he expected to see. A moment later, he
covered his face with his hands and burst into tears.

Marcail said nothing as Alex put a hand to Sydney's
back and guided him to a kitchen chair. He pressed a
clean handkerchief into the boy's hands and then sat
down in the chair beside him.

Marcail, watching from her place across the table, was
not sure what to say. She knew only that her heart was
breaking with love for this little boy. She understood that
to reject him right now would be devastating, but neither was she going to accept his standard line about it not
happening again.

After some minutes, Sydney began to contain himself
and look at the adults at the table.

"Sydney," Marcail spoke, sounding very much like a
teacher. "Does your grandmother know you are here?"

"Yes, Mrs. Montgomery," he sniffed.

Marcail nodded. "She's not waiting out in the carriage, is she?"

"No, ma'am."

Again Marcail nodded. "Then why don't you tell us
why you came."

This time it was Sydney's turn to nod, and suddenly
he looked terrified all over again. His words were halting, but understandable.

"I came-to tell you-I'm sorry-" he stopped as
though out of breath, and Marcail spoke.

"I forgive you, Sydney."

Sydney nodded again but didn't look at all relieved.
"Can I ask you a question?" He paused, glancing between
both adults, whose expressions were open and patient,
before settling terrified eyes on his beloved teacher.

"Will I go to hell for what I've done?" he burst out, his
face crumbling, tears barely held in check.

"Come here, Sydney," Marcail beckoned compassionately and shifted in her chair so she could take him in her
arms. It was too much for the 11-year-old, and his tears
came in a torrent. Another five minutes passed before he
was able to breathe normally. Both Alex and Marcail took
that time to pray silently.

Finally raising a tear-stained face, Sydney asked, "Will
I, Mrs. Montgomery? Will I go to hell for what I've
done?"

Marcail hugged him close once again. She stroked the
hair from his damp little forehead and began to speak
softly.

"What you did was very wrong, Sydney. I think you
understand that."

Sydney's head came away from his teacher's shoulder.
"It was a sin, a big sin?"

"Yes, you did sin. We all sin."

"Not you," Sydney spoke vehemently.

"Yes, I do, Sydney. The Bible says that all sin," she told
him gently.

"So you're afraid of going to hell too?" Sydney's voice
was full of wonder, and Marcail almost smiled.

"No, Sydney, I'm not," she continued with complete
assurance. "You see, God has made a way for us to come
to Him. Jesus Christ is the way. When we believe Jesus
died to save us from sin, He comes to live inside of us. Then when we die, because of our belief in Him we'll go
to heaven and live forever with God.

"So you see, Sydney, even though I sin, God has
provided the gift of His Son to save me, and I've accepted
that gift." Marcail hesitated, afraid that she might turn
him away forever, but her next words had to be said.

"I don't think you've ever accepted God's gift of salvation, Sydney, and I'm afraid that without Jesus Christ,
you'll never change. Each time something has happened, you've told me it will never happen again. But it
does. God can change you, Sydney. He can help you
control your temper and change the way you treat other
people."

Marcail fell silent then, allowing her young student to
absorb all she'd said. It seemed he wouldn't say anything, but he suddenly turned to Alex.

"I've hated you at times, and that's a sin, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is," Alex told him, his voice noncondemning.
"But what Mrs. Montgomery was telling you is true-we
all sin." Alex opened his Bible to the book of 1 John.

"You see right here in the first chapter, verse 8, it
reads, 'If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves,
and the truth is not in us.' But then if you turn back to the
Gospel of John, chapter 3 verse 36," Alex held the Bible
so Sydney could read along with him, "it says, 'He that
believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that
believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of
God abideth on him.'

"You can believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and let Him
make the needed changes in your life, as Mrs. Montgomery and I have. God is waiting for you to take the gift that
He offers. Believe on Christ with your whole heart, and
then learn to live God's way."

Alex's voice was kindness itself, and Sydney couldn't
help but respond to the tenderness he saw there.

"And you think God would really want to give the gift
to me, even though I've hated a lot of people?"

"Hate is a serious thing," Alex told him. "There is a
man in the Bible named Saul who hated people so much
that he had them killed. Then one day Saul learned that
what he was doing was wrong, and he let Jesus Christ
come into his heart. God changed his name to Paul and
turned his life completely around."

"Would I have to change my name?"

"No," Marcail smiled as she answered. "But if you let
Him, God can change your life."

"That's what I want," Sydney said after a moment,
"but I'm not really certain-" He hesitated, and Marcail
stepped in.

"I accepted God's gift when I was just a little girl. My
father prayed with me, and I said something like this,
'Dear Father in heaven, I believe You sent Your Son to die
for my sins, and right now I ask You to come into my
life-take away my sins and live in me.' My father went
on to explain that this didn't mean I would never sin
again, but that God would never leave me, and when I
did sin, all I needed to do was confess and turn away
from those sins to be right with Him."

"Can I pray now?"

"You certainly can. If you want to pray out loud, I can
help you, or you can pray silently in your heart."

Sydney opted for silent prayer, and both Marcail and
Alex bowed their heads as he prayed. Sydney was done
first, having told God he was sorry for his sin and that he
wanted Jesus Christ to live in him. He then sat looking at
his teacher until she raised her head.

He loved Mrs. Montgomery more than he had ever
loved anyone else on the earth. When she'd first started
talking about his need to believe in Christ, he thought he'd better do it in order to really prove to her how sorry
he was for tripping her.