The Path of the Crooked (Hope Street Church Mysteries Book 1) (35 page)

“Well, Joseph was the son of Jacob and Rachel. Jacob loved Rachel more than any other woman on earth, so it’s no surprise that Joseph was his favorite son,” Trish said. “I’m an only child and my parents were older, just like Jacob was when Joseph was born. My parents made me feel special every day, and I imagine that’s how Joseph must have felt.” Tears appeared in her eyes. “This lesson made me realize just how good they were to me and how much I miss them.” She blotted at her eyes with a leopard-print handkerchief as Bryant squeezed her shoulder in compassion.

“I bet Joseph had very high self-esteem,” Quinton said.

“I wouldn’t call it
self-esteem,
” Jake barked. “That Joseph kid was a brat—straight and simple. Shoot, if my pop had given me a fancy robe like Joseph’s and I went around flaunting it in front of my older brothers while they were working hard in the hot sun all day, they’d have given me a serious beating!” Jake’s face looked stormy. “Sorry, but that’s just how I see it.”

“And we welcome your opinion,” Savannah said. “I have a sister. We’re very close, but she was often jealous of the attention I received because of my blindness. One night, she told me that she had prayed to lose her sight so that our parents would notice her more.”

“Whoa.” Nathan looked at their leader with sympathy. “What happened?”

“Well, she didn’t go blind,” Savannah laughed. “But a few weeks after she told me about her prayer, she fell off a horse and broke her leg in three places. She got plenty of attention, all right.” Savannah paused. “Any other comments on favoritism?” When no one spoke, she said, “Then let’s move on to Joseph’s dreams. There was an assignment in this week’s lesson that asked you to record your dreams to see if there might be messages in them. Mine disappear like mist by the time I wake up, so I didn’t have much to say. Anyone else?”

“I had a cool dream the other night,” Bryant began eagerly. “I was a kid, and it was a really hot day, like that string of hundred-degree days we had this past July. I could hear the music that the ice cream truck plays, but I couldn’t see the truck. I ran all around the neighborhood and couldn’t find it. Then, this lady who works at the station with me—she’s about my age, divorced, has two kids and isn’t my type at all—showed me where the truck was and I ordered an orange creamsicle.” He sat back in his chair. “Didn’t get to eat it, though. My alarm went off and that was that.”

“Perhaps someone is trying to tell you that your coworker might be worth having as a friend,” Trish suggested. “Even though she’s probably ancient—what is she, thirty?”

Bryant considered the question. “Paige is maybe thirty-five. But she’s funny and she comes up with great story ideas for the news desk. Maybe I’ll take her and the kids out for ice cream. Missy and I haven’t been getting along too well lately. It might be nice to go out with a woman and do something quiet.”

“There’s nothing quiet about two kids,” Quinton pointed out. “My nephews can make more noise than an angry football stadium crowd.”

“It would be a change from that techno music Missy likes,” Bryant said. “My head is still ringing from taking her dancing last night. If I asked out the woman from work, I could be in bed by ten!”

Nathan gazed into his coffee cup and said, “I’ve had a recurring dream that’s kind of creepy. Someone keeps knocking on the back door of my house and I can’t decide if I should let them in.”

“Can you see their face?” Savannah asked.

“No. Just a dark shape in the night,” Nathan said. “I sense the person’s a man, and though I’m not exactly scared of him I don’t think I want to invite him into my home.”

Quinton studied Nathan. “Is there anything going on at work? A project or new client that’s worrying you?”

Nathan snapped his fingers. “As a matter of fact there is! This guy wants me to design a commercial website where he can sell muscle-building vitamins. I guess he’s made a nice pile of money as a chemist because he drives a yellow H2, has a fancy gold watch, and a serious golf tan.” He flicked his eyes at Bryant. “He even out-bronzes you, my friend.”

Bryant pretended to be crestfallen. “First George Hamilton and now a chemist. Shocking.”

“Sounds like a lucrative project,” Trish said.

“It would be,” Nathan agreed. “He wants top-notch graphics, a flash video on the home page, shopping-cart features, you name it. And since my older-than-dirt A/C and heater units are on the fritz, I could use the cash.”

Jake perked up at the mention of the units. “You’re gonna call Mr. Faucet to replace them, right? You know we’re doing that stuff now besides the regular plumbing jobs.”

Nathan smiled. “I wouldn’t think of calling anyone else, Jake, but unless I accept this project, I won’t be able to afford a new fan.” He shrugged. “It sounds like a treasure chest has fallen in my lap, but I have a funny feeling about this guy.”

“Why don’t you get to know him?” Quinton said. “Take him out for coffee and see what your gut tells you. Listen to the man talk. He might surprise you.”

Nathan nodded. “That’s good counsel.”

The rest of the Sunrise group members murmured in agreement and then closed their workbooks as the chimes announcing the start of the worship service echoed in the hallway.

“We’re going to be on time for once!” Trish exclaimed.

“I’ll take everyone’s cups to the kitchen,” Cooper offered. “Would someone save me a seat in a dark corner?”

“Nah. We’re going to put you front and center,” Nathan said with a wink and a smile.

“You’d better not!” Cooper smiled back.

Cooper gathered napkins for the garbage, then piled the empty mugs and coffee carafe on a tray and carried them into a small kitchen area used by the academy teachers. She washed the cups thoroughly, enjoying the feel of the warm water and the scent of the lemon dish soap. As she rinsed the last cup, her dream from the night before came back to her with vivid clarity.

In the dream, Cooper had been heading for the banks of Gum Creek, the stream that wound lazily through the woods behind her house before meandering westward into Louisa County. She’d been barefoot and had continuously stepped on the prickly gumballs that fell like small bombs from the leafy canopy above. Finally, after picking her way over twigs, sharp pebbles, and spiky plants, Cooper reached the narrow creek.

A rowboat sat expectantly in the placid water, but when she reached down to grab it, the boat shifted sideways and was pulled away by the current. Within seconds, it was out of reach. Hoping to reclaim the little vessel, Cooper ran along the bank, but the current kept moving faster and faster, bearing the boat farther and farther away. Cooper couldn’t keep up.

Suddenly, the space of sky ahead of her turned dark and a fork of lightning fractured the clouds and punctured the stream. Cooper’s dream-self halted, afraid. And then, in a blink, she was in the boat, barreling straight for the storm. There was no rain—just black clouds, jagged lightning, and an eerie silence. Again and again, Cooper reached out and tried to grab hold of one of the plants growing at the edge of the bank, but they slipped from her grasp as though made of fog.

Cooper had woken abruptly, her body trembling with dread. Even in the comfort of the morning light, she could still see the black horizon and the tongues of lightning, waiting for her imminent arrival.

“Lord, are you trying to warn me?” she whispered in the silent kitchen. “Is a storm coming?”

She stared at the last drips of water as they slipped into the drain and then shut her eyes. Alone, in the stillness of the small room, Cooper strained to listen. The answer she heard in her heart was,
Yes
.

And here’s an excerpt from the third book

in the Hope Street Church Mystery series

by Ellery Adams,

The Graves of the Guilty
,

available now!

Cooper Lee is on top of the world, thanks to her great friends at Hope Street Church and the satisfaction of having solved two perplexing mysteries. And with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, she’s hoping that love is in the air for her and her new boyfriend, Nathan. But Cooper’s faith is about to be tested when her sister, Ashley, discovers a corpse and is implicated in the gruesome murder. And just as troubling, a darkly handsome and exciting man has come into Cooper’s life and just might tempt her to stray.

As Cooper and her friends from the Bible study group once again spring into action to root out a killer—and Cooper digs deep to solve a more personal mystery—she discovers that following the clues is raising more questions than answers. But one thing’s for certain: when cold-blooded criminals mess with Cooper’s family and friends, the killers haven’t got a prayer.

1

If Cooper Lee had known she would spend Friday night drinking champagne at an unfamiliar woman’s mansion while a trio of busty coeds modeled lingerie, she would have come up with any number of excuses to avoid the entire scene. Unfortunately, Cooper had completely misunderstood her sister’s invitation to accompany her to “a pajama party” being hosted by one of her high-society friends.

“Georgia Ferguson has such a gorgeous house. Wait until you see it!” Cooper’s sister Ashley had shouted over the roar of Cooper’s power sander the weekend before the infamous fete. “Can you turn that thing off for a second?”

After putting down the tool, Cooper slid her safety goggles onto the crown of her head, picked up a piece of sandpaper, and began working on the rough areas on a chapel-shaped birdhouse. “Why should I be interested in Georgia Ferguson’s house?”

Stopping Cooper’s hand with her own, Ashley announced, “Because I’m going to a party there next weekend and you’re coming with me.”

Imagining a room filled with Ashley’s sophisticated acquaintances, Cooper grimaced. “Why would I want to go to your friend’s party? No offense, but I have my own friends.”

Ashley drummed her fingers against the workbench and Cooper couldn’t help but admire her sister’s pristine French manicure. “Because I need you to help me select an array of fabulous new nighties and
other
items.”

Removing her safety glasses from the top of her wheat-blonde hair, she stared at Ashley with her intriguing mismatched eyes. “I’m not interested. Now, if that’s all, I’d like to get back to this.”

Ashley pushed sawdust scraps around with her finger, forming the outline of a wobbly heart on the surface of the table. “The truth is that I need to go to this party, Coop. I’m looking for a way to knock Lincoln’s socks off. To make him sit up and notice me like he used to.”

“Are you two having difficulties again?” Cooper looked at her sister with concern “Over the baby issue?”

A flash of misery crossed Ashley’s face and she marred the sawdust heart with a sweep of her hand. “I think Lincoln’s avoiding me. For the last few months he’s been attending lots of late meetings. Then there’s the golf outings with his daddy and brother every weekend—not to mention the poker nights.” Tears pooled in her lovely blue eyes. “I feel like I’m losing him.”

Pulling off her gloves, Cooper put her arm around her sister’s slim waist and squeezed. “He loves you, Ashley. He’d be crazy not to.”

Ashley sighed. “Love is hard work, isn’t it? Harder than I ever thought it would be. I had my dream wedding, Lincoln carried me over the threshold of our perfect house, and for a while, everything was wonderful. A true fairy tale. But then I was supposed to get pregnant and grow all round and cute and have that glow
.
I’d deliver the most precious beautiful little baby this world has ever seen and dress its sweet, precious body in hand-embroidered smocks and Robeez booties.” She sniffed. “Instead I find out I have a bicornuate uterus, and even after having surgery I’ll have a tough time getting pregnant.” She thumped the workbench and then eyed the sawdust on her palm in distaste. “I’ve never wanted
anything
so badly as I want this baby!”

Cooper cleaned up the sawdust using a small broom and dustpan. “Ashley, maybe you need to take a break from thinking about babies all the time. It obviously upsets you, and if you’re worried about your marriage, perhaps you and Lincoln should spend some quality time alone together.”

“That’s
exactly
what I’m planning.” Ashley’s good humor immediately returned. “I’ve booked us a romantic cruise to the Bahamas, but I need something incredible to wear when I surprise him with the trip. Something that will ensure he won’t say no to taking a week off work. That’s why we’re going to Georgia’s party.”

“So it’s like a trunk show?” Cooper asked.

“Exactly. All the women attending are married, so I doubt there’ll be anything scandalous for sale.” Ashley added, “I know it’s not your scene, Cooper, but it would really mean a lot to me if you came along. And you might even find yourself picking out something to wear for that magical moment when you and Nathan are ready
.
”