Angel in the Shadows, Book 1 by Lisa Grace (Angel Series) (24 page)

I just sit in shock. I can’t believe this is
happening. I can’t believe how easy it is to get an abortion. I can
see Mandy changing already in front of my eyes.

I look at the name and address of the
clinic.
Crisis Pregnancy Center, 5300 Hwy.
19 N.

I don’t know what to do. I can’t go to
school. I’m too upset. I don’t know who I can talk to that could
change Mandy’s mind.
Please God give me a
way, show me a way to save her baby.
I know if Mandy
goes through with this, she’ll be changed forever. She can’t even
watch nature shows without crying everytime some animal
dies.

I hear Mandy in the shower. I can’t move for
fear that I’m going to throw up. I’m afraid to wake Farrah because
I think she’ll be all for Mandy getting an abortion. I get on the
phone and call information for my pastor’s number. It’s early and
he doesn’t pick up. Maybe he’s in the shower. I leave a quick
message asking him to pray for Mandy and what she plans to do.

When Mandy comes out, I tell her, “I’m coming
with you.”

“No, you’re not. This is between Alex and me,”
she looks at me blankly, all emotion gone. “Nothing you can say
will change my mind. Please don’t judge me until you’ve walked in
my shoes.”

I feel this is my last chance to get through to
her, the horror of what she’s about to do. “Mandy, I’m not judging.
It’s just my heart is so sad for you and the baby.” Tears start
running down my face.

“You, Mom, Alex, and I are the only ones who
know. Let’s keep it that way? Okay?” Mandy picks up her car keys
and heads out the door. I hear her drive away. I’ve never seen her
so empty, so hopeless.

I sit there in shocked silence and begin to
pray. About an hour later, I hear Farrah getting up and getting
ready. I hear the shower running, then the blow dryer, followed by
her humming while she puts on her makeup and curls her hair. It
takes her forever. She comes into the kitchen looking beautiful as
always.

“Hi Megan, where’s Mandy? Is she still
sleeping?” Farrah pours herself a cup of coffee. “Can you go wake
her? I really need to talk to her.”

I look at her and say, “She’s left.”

“Left? She went to school without you? That
doesn’t make any sense.”

“No.” I say sounding defeated almost in tears.
“She went to Alex’s house to pick up his credit card and then he’s
driving her to the clinic to get an abortion.” I start to cry.

Farrah drops her mug and hot coffee explodes
everywhere in the tiny kitchen. Some of it lands on my jeans, but I
don’t care.

“No! This can’t be happening. Do you know where
she went? Tell me where she went!” Farrah steps on pieces of the
broken mug with her bare feet to get to me. She’s in a panic and
she doesn’t notice she’s getting cut up.

“It’s a clinic off of highway nineteen. She has
an appointment at ten o’clock.” We look at the clock it’s ten
minutes after ten.

“Get in the car,” Farrah says as she puts
flip-flops on her bleeding feet.
“Oh please
God. I hope we’re not too late,”
The way she says it,
it almost sounds like a prayer.

We get in the car and start to drive. We are
only about ten minutes away.

Farrah keeps saying over and over, “Please God
don’t let us be too late.”

I pray the same thing with her, silently.

***

We arrive at the clinic. Above the door it says,
“Crisis Pregnancy Center.” I’m afraid to go in; I’m afraid of what
it will smell like. I remember the sickly sweet scent of the dead
frogs soaked in formaldehyde in science class. That’s what my brain
tells me I’m going to smell. The coffee I drank on an empty stomach
fights to come back up. Farrah opens the door and pushes me inside.
I’m afraid to breathe. I almost pass out as I walk in.

The lady at the reception desk gives us a warm
smile and hands us an intake form. “Here fill this out. Are you
here for a pregnancy test?” She smiles at me. I take a breath. It
smells nice, like lavender.

“We’re here for Mandy, my daughter. She had a
ten o’clock appointment. Is she back there somewhere? I have to see
her,” Farrah tries to smile. It looks more like a grimace.

The counselor smiles at her and motions her to
sit down, “Our clients have a right to privacy. We can’t give that
information out.”

Farrah looks shocked, “But I’m her mother—and
she’s underage!”

“She still has the right to privacy. I’m sorry,
but it’s the law,” the counselor says.

Farrah gets up and pushes her way past the
counselor, heading to the door that leads toward the back. She
yells at the top of her lungs, “Mandy! Mandy, it’s your Mom. You
answer me now! Mandy where are you? Mandy please don’t get an
abortion. Sweetheart, please answer me! I’m here, Mandy please,
Mommy’s here!”

Farrah sounds frantic as she continues down the
hall. A door, three doors down from where we are standing, opens
and there is Mandy, standing in the doorway. Farrah runs to her,
encircles her in a big hug, crying, “Oh baby, it’s okay. Please, oh
please, don’t do it. Don’t make the same mistake I did. Don’t kill
your baby. I don‘t want you to suffer the way I have all these
years. Don’t kill your baby like I did.” Farrah sobs.

The counselor comes out and puts her hand on
Farrah’s shoulder, “It’s okay, God forgives you. You don’t have to
live with the guilt anymore.”

The counselor takes them both into the room and
shuts the door. I hear both Farrah and Mandy crying their hearts
out.

The counselor we pushed past gently taps me on
the shoulder and gestures for me to go out to the main waiting
room. It’s then that I notice for the first time, the pictures of
the baby fetuses on the wall. They’re framed showing the different
stages of development. I also notice the scriptures from the Bible.
“I knit you together in your mother’s womb.” “I knew you before you
were born.” “You are fearfully and wonderfully made.”

I turn to the counselor, “You’re not an abortion
clinic are you?”

She smiles, “No. We’re not.”

“But I don’t get it, my friend called for an
abortion clinic and they gave your number.”

She smiles again, “It’s not the first time this
has happened. God does work in mysterious ways.”

I sit out front and notice all the literature on
the table; it’s in English and Spanish. The pamphlets are all about
STDs, pregnancies, marriage, abstinence, parenting skills, life
skills, how to get your GED, how to finish high school, internet
college classes, job training, and adoption.

“My name is Amy. I’m a volunteer counselor
here.”

“I’m Megan.”

The counselor looks at me and asks, “Is that
your mom and sister back there?”

“No. That’s my best friend and her mom. I hope
you can talk her out of getting an abortion.”

Amy smiles, “We do more than just that. We don’t
want Mandy to have the baby and then abandon her to have even more
problems than she has now. We’ll see Mandy through her whole
pregnancy, get her into a good Bible-based church which will
‘adopt’ her and show Mandy unconditional love. This way, even if
she doesn’t have a supportive family she can have a church family.
We’ll help Mandy finish her education, get a career, or apply to
colleges, get grants, and qualify her for government programs that
help young women just like her. If she chooses to put the baby up
for adoption, we will help Mandy find a loving family to take the
baby. If she chooses to keep her baby, we offer parenting classes
and life skill classes. We can get her job training or
apprenticeships, and direct her to good daycare programs. The
choices are endless. Our door is always open.”

Amy points to a wall. It’s covered with pictures
of babies and toddlers. “These are the babies we’ve helped. Each
one represents a mother we’ve helped too.”

“If your friend decides to go through with her
abortion, we offer after-care counseling. Many women who make that
decision find they can’t live with it and turn later in life to
alcohol or drugs. We offer counseling to help them get over the
guilt.”

“I had no idea you guys we’re even here.”

Amy nods her head, “We don’t get any government
funding, unlike Planned Parenthood or other programs that offer
abortion or birth control. Mostly we’re run by volunteers and
supported by groups of churches.”

“Would you like to pray for your friend?”

“Yes, I would,” we clasp hands and Amy guides us
in a prayer asking God to touch Mandy’s heart and give her
peace.

I feel at peace. I’ve done everything that I
can. The rest is up to God. If Mandy decides to carry her baby to
term, I’ll be here for her. I hope that’s the choice she makes. I
know the next nine months will be hard for her and she’ll need me
as a friend.

My phone rings. The screen says private. I don’t
want to answer fearful of hearing Jude’s taunting again, but I do,
just in case it’s Johnny.

“Hi Megan,” I breathe a sigh of relief. It’s
Johnny.

“I think everything’s going to be okay with
Mandy and her mom,” I say. I feel hopeful.

“Say a prayer though for your little
brother.”

“My brother, what do you mean?” I
ask.
Oh, no, what has Judas done?
My heart so at peace just a minute ago, starts to
sink.

“Stay there; I’m coming to pick you up,” Johnny
says.

Suddenly my mom is on the phone, I can hear the
panic in her voice. “Honey, Max didn’t make it to school this
morning. He’s missing,” my heart drops.

I remember Judas’ threatening call last night,
the one about hide and seek. There’s no doubt in my mind Judas has
taken my little brother. Johnny knows it too. I hope he has some
ideas of where Judas has taken him, places where we can look.

“Mom, Johnny’s on his way to pick me up. Don’t
worry, we’ll find him.” I try to sound confident.

I hear something in her voice I’ve never heard
before—panic, “The police won’t put out an Amber Alert for him for
a couple of hours because they think maybe he’s just skipping
school. They think he’ll come home on his own.” I can tell she is
terrified by the waver in her voice.

“Don’t worry Mom, we’ll find him. He’s a smart
kid. I’m sure he’ll show up soon.” I don’t believe it for one
minute. Judas’ deadly game is on, this time with my own brother.
It’s my turn to seek. I have to find my little brother, before it’s
too late.

THE END

To continue the story order you can
purchase
Angel in the Storm, Book 2
and
Angel in the Ice, Book 3
at all major retailers.
The Angel
Series
has been optioned for a movie. Join
http://www.lisagracebooks.com
to become an
“angel friend” (by supplying your email address for updates and new
book releases) and get news on the release of books
Angel in the Fire, Book 4
and
Angel in the Light, Book 5
in
the
Angel Series
.

You can email me at
[email protected]
you can also find a
Lisa Grace Books page on Facebook, Pintrest, Goodreads,
etc…

My twitter address is:
http://www.twitter.com/lisagracebooks

I would appreciate if you can take the
time to leave a review at any major retailer if you enjoyed
reading
Angel in the Shadows
.
Sales are totally driven by reader word-of-mouth. You, the reader,
are my advertising campaign.

***

For a wonderful Bible study guide I
recommend Rabbi Jeff Zaremsky’s
Jewish
Heritage Scripture Studies.
Visit
http://www.jewishheritage.net
for more
information.

For a change of pace, if you enjoy
historical mystery thrillers, look for
The
15
^th
Star.
First readers describe it as
National Treasure
meets
1776
.

In the cookbook
Novel Morsels
by Nicole O’Dell, You will find two
original recipes inspired by the angel series,
Tempting Tacos
and
Heavenly Pizzas
.

For Sci-Fi lovers, I just released
30 Minutes of Flash Fiction
by Lisa
Grace & Jarrod Nelson.

After the
Angel
series, I will start working on the
exciting supernatural series:

Society of the D. E. A.
D.
and
Feudal Land.

Thank you reader for choosing to spend
your time with the
Angel Series.

May the LORD bless you and keep
you, and cause His face to shine down upon you and be gracious unto
you. May the LORD lift up His countenance upon you and give you His
peace
.
Numbers 6:24

Lisa Grace

***

Acknowledgements

Thank you to Mark Coker and Smashwords for
the distribution services they provide. Thank you to Nathan Nazario
the movie producer who read my eBooks and believed in them so much,
his company, Motion Picture Pro Studios, optioned the first two
books for film. Look for their acclaimed indie film,
Old Fashioned
coming to a theater
near you soon. Also, thank you to Pastor Larry and Joanne Vasseur,
Pastor Tim and Wendy Boone, Brother Billy Cashwell, and Rabbi Jeff
and Barbara Zaremsky. They were all early supporters of the
Angel Series
and I appreciate all
their help with theological issues. Thank you to my brothers Todd
and Ryan Nelson, nephew Jarrod, and Diana and Michelle, for opening
their homes while we were on our book tour.