A Place Called Home (12 page)

Within the next hour the four of them were sitting in church together. As Silas parked the horses and wagon, Christine had a chance to see Susanne and tell her she needed to speak with Mark. Susanne hugged Christine and promised to pass the word along. Having Mark and Susanne to talk with was a great help.

But these thoughts were far from Christine's mind as she sat in church beside Grandma Em. As usual, she listened intently to Pastor Nolan speak, wondering as before at the strange feeling of expectancy she always felt.

Christine reached for the pew Bible when Pastor Nolan told them today's text was in Luke 19. Her eyebrows rose in surprise, for she hadn't remembered that Luke was a Bible name.

In Luke 19 Pastor Nolan told about Zacchaeus, a tax collector who cheated people. This made him very rich but not very well liked. He was also short. On this particular day in Scripture, Jesus was coming to the town where Zacchaeus lived. Zacchaeus wanted to see Him, but the crowd and Zacchaeus' short height made this impossible.

So the little man ran further down the road where Jesus would be walking. The Bible said that Zacchaeus climbed into a tree and waited for Jesus to pass.

When Jesus was below the tree, He looked up and saw Zacchaeus. “Come down quickly,” Jesus bade the man; “today I'm going to eat at your house.”

Christine's mind wandered a bit as she wondered how Jesus knew that Zacchaeus was in the tree. She continued to wonder about this even as the pastor spoke on Zacchaeus giving back four times the amount of money he had overcharged people, and giving half his goods to the poor. The final verse was Luke 19:10: “For the Son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

As everyone reached for their hymnbooks and stood for the closing song, Christine kept the pew Bible in her hand. She read the passage once again as everyone sang, thinking as she read that she had missed the part where Zacchaeus called down to Jesus or made himself known in some other way.

The service ended and everyone moved toward the door—everyone except Christine and Luke. Christine was still reading, and Luke, who had sat on the inside of the pew against the wall, couldn't exit without climbing over her. He stood patiently, waiting for her to finish.

When Christine read the passage through for the second time, she turned abruptly to Luke. “How did Jesus know Zacchaeus was in the tree?”

Luke, who was half expecting something like this, answered quietly, “Because God knows everything.”

He could see this made no sense whatever to Christine because her brow was knit with confusion. He continued, “And Jesus is God's Son. Jesus is God.” Luke watched her face, unsure of what was so confusing.

Christine opened her Bible again and said, “But where does it say that?”

Luke finally understood. “It doesn't say that in the passage we were in today. Here, let me show you where it does say that.” Luke opened his own Bible and began to thumb through it.

As he did so, Christine realized that the church had emptied. How embarrassing! She had stood there reading even though
the service was over, and Luke couldn't even get out of the pew until she moved!

“No, Luke, it's all right. I best get to the wagon.”

Luke looked up to see Christine's face flushed in a way that was becoming familiar to him. Her movements as she headed toward the aisle were stiff, and she was looking anywhere but at him.

“Christine.” His deep voice stopped her just as she reached the aisle. Luke waited until she faced him before speaking. “After lunch today, if you'd like, I'll write some verses down and you can look them up yourself.”

She nearly sagged with relief. With a nod and a small smile she headed for the door.

Luke replaced the pew Bible that Christine had dropped in her hurry to escape. He followed, his pace more sedate as he exited, belying the way his mind raced for verses she would understand and, more importantly, would whet her appetite for more.

The scene on the front porch was a peaceful one. Story time was over and Emily's small head rested on her mother's round stomach. Susanne's foot kept the porch swing at a steady rock.

Emily's eyes slid shut for the last time and Susanne's hand moved to stroke her shiny curls. She smiled as she realized it wouldn't bother her in the least to have another little blonde girl. Her other hand moved absently over her stomach.

The front door opened and shut quietly. Luke took a seat near the swing and sat in silence, watching his niece sleep. A frown crossed his face as he saw Sue's hand on her abdomen. Luke opened his mouth to speak, but Sue was observant and ready for him.

“I'm fine.”

Luke relaxed and smiled. “Can Mark hide anything from you?”

“Nope, not a thing.”

“How long now?”

“Mark says two weeks. I say sooner.”

“He's the doctor.”

“So he keeps reminding me.” Sue answered with a smile and a raise of her eyebrows.

Luke laughed softly before asking. “Where is Mark?”

Sue nodded her head toward a huge old willow tree that stood some distance off the corner of the porch. Amid bare
switches hanging nearly to the ground, Mark and Christine could be seen and were obviously in deep conversation.

“Your grandmother assured me last night when we talked that I have a job and a place to live for an indefinite period of time. It's good to have that worry off my mind. I plan to write Mrs. Hall so her mind is at ease.”

Mark nodded. “Our sheriff spoke to me about contacting the law in Spooner, just so the lines of communication are open. Both towns need to work together on this.”

Christine shook her head sadly. “I just don't understand. Grandpa was not a wealthy man. I mean, we lived comfortably and I had all I needed, but it just doesn't make sense.”

“I must admit, it's all rather strange. What we know isn't much. First a note to you from Carl Maxwell, and then the man disappears.”

“And don't forget my grandfather's will leaving everything to Vince Jeffers in the event of my death. I'm only 19 years old! He would never have written that. Another thing puzzles me—my grandfather's charity. It was never even mentioned. He gave often and quite generously to a small orphanage in Spooner. It doesn't make sense that he wouldn't even remember them.”

The two stood together for a moment in thoughtful silence. Mark studied once again the letter in his hand. “Christine,” he began gently, “when a person passes away, it's normal for the surviving family members to go through the loved one's possessions. If you were home, I'm sure you would have already started this, painful though it may be.” Mark hesitated, wanting to be tactful. “When you write to Mrs. Hall, why not ask her to look through your grandfather's things? I realize this is
highly personal, but maybe she can turn up something that will give us some answers.”

As Mark suspected, Christine did not jump at the idea. It still upset her to think about the finality of her grandfather's death. So Mark hastened to add, “What you write is up to you. You don't have to tell me your decision—it was only a suggestion. If it's all right, though, I'd like to show this letter to the sheriff when I see him.”

“That's fine, Mark.” Christine's voice was preoccupied. “Will you please tell Grandma Em I've gone for a walk and I'll be gone awhile?”

“Sure, I'll tell her.”

The words were barely out of his mouth before Christine walked away. The need inside her to escape was so desperate that she nearly ran. Cutting across Mr. Turley's field, her long legs carried her swiftly to a quiet spot along the creek which she had discovered during her first week at Grandma Em's.

An enormous boulder at the edge of the water was Christine's destination. Sinking down to it with a weary plop, Christine let the afternoon sun beat upon her. She welcomed its warmth, though it crossed her mind that she should have worn a hat. She studied the backs of her hands: brown. It was what she got for working in the garden without gloves.

A sudden movement interrupted her reverie. Christine's eyes were drawn to the creek's edge. A fish had swum between the rocks and was trapped in a pool barely large enough to hold him.

Christine contemplated the situation a moment before reaching out to shift one of the large rocks. The hoped-for result was immediate: With a flip of its tail the fish headed downstream. With envy Christine's eyes followed as it moved swiftly out of sight in its newfound freedom.

Freedom. It seemed like forever since Christine had experienced that feeling. Freedom to go home if she wanted. Freedom from worries and fears. A freedom that, up until the time of her grandfather's death, she had taken for granted.

Christine felt a lonely ache within her. Luke said that God knows everything. Did He know why she sometimes felt empty inside? Did He care? So many questions but no answers. Christine ached for her grandfather's presence, yet she knew her pride was keeping her from asking for help. So the afternoon shadows lengthened and Christine sat with only her tears for company.

Back at the house, Luke and Silas had their suit coats on and were headed for the door. After kissing Grandma Em, Luke handed her a piece of paper. He explained about the verses, and Grandma Em assured him that Christine would get them.

For Mrs. Hall, Sunday afternoon was usually spent visiting her sister and family. Mrs. Hall's spirits had been up ever since she had heard from Christine. So, after a good meal and a visit with her sister, Mrs. Hall started walking out to the Bennett residence with a light step.

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Hall.”

“Oh! Mr. Jeffers, good afternoon to you! It's lovely, is it not?” Mrs. Hall smiled at him.

“Yes, indeed it is. May I wish you also a splendid week.”

“Why, thank you, Mr. Jeffers.” Mrs. Hall continued on her way.

Vince sat astride his bay stallion and watched the woman's light step, wondering at her exuberance. She certainly didn't look like the grieving woman he had seen before. Maybe she had had news of Christine.