Drama in the Church Saga (38 page)

Her father looked at her suspiciously before answering. “She's three.” Then he pointed to the driver's seat. “Honey, sit right here so I can feed you.” He started talking to Val again. “You're lucky they didn't pull out a gun and kill you,” the man said. “What were you thinking when you yelled out for them to stop?”

Val hadn't thought about how dangerous it was for her to interfere. “I wasn't thinking,” she replied softly.

“What's your name?” he asked as he gave Hope her first spoonful of soup and a few slices of bread.

“Valencia, but they call me Val,” she replied.

“Well, it's nice to meet you, Val. My name is Jonah, and as you already know, the sleeping beauty that has just woke from her slumber is my daughter Hope.”

“You two live out here?” Val glanced around.

“Temporarily. We're out here until I come up with a new plan.”

A light rain started to fall down around them. Val remembered the weatherman forecasted heavy torrential rains overnight. She couldn't dare go home to a warm bed and leave them to weather the storm all night in that old clunker. “Why don't you come home with me tonight?” Val realized she was being a bit impulsive by inviting a stranger into her home, but she couldn't leave him outside, injured and with a child to care for.

“Thanks for the offer, but we'll be fine. I've been taking care of us since she was eighteen months. We'll be fine.”

“You've been on the streets that long?” Val screamed. “You don't have any family I can call to help you out?”

He gave a negative response.

She looked over at Hope. The bottom of her pigtails swept the top of her shoulders. Hope scarfed down her meal as if she hadn't eaten a decent meal in days.

“Do you want to come home with me?” Val asked Hope.

His daughter adamantly shook her head no. Then she didn't think twice before jumping into the safety of her father's lap.

He winced in pain. Hope cried, and so did her dad.

“I don't think your ribs are broken, probably just bruised, but if you come home with me, then I can wrap them up for you,” Val suggested again. “If you still want to leave once I'm finished I'll bring you right back,” she promised.

He was hesitant to accept help from a stranger, but he agreed, and she helped him out to her car.

Jonah securely buckled Hope into the back seat before fastening his own seat belt. “How long have you been working at the mission?”

“Today was my first day. I'll be working there as a volunteer for the next few weeks.”

“Why would a pretty girl like yourself work at a mission in her spare time?” Jonah had a lot of questions for her.

“It's a long story. One I would prefer to forget.”

“Are you a lawyer?” Jonah continued to dig for information.

“What would make you think I was a lawyer?”

“I don't know.” He glanced out his window. “I guess I don't know too many jobs that pay enough to drive a car like this.”

Val wasn't ready to share her past, so she cleverly danced around his question. “Let's just say that right now I'm trying to find myself.”

“The only people I know who use those words are the unemployed kind.”

They laughed.

“You drive this expensive car, and I noticed the shoes on your feet probably cost more than it did to feed everyone who came to the mission today. Are you one of those spoiled kids whose parents buy them everything?”

“Are you trying to ask, am I privileged?” Val was more amused than insulted by Jonah's comments.

She made a turn toward Penn's Landing waterfront. This part of the city housed many wealthy celebrities, athletes, prominent city officials, doctors and lawyers. The neighborhood consisted of mostly townhouses and condominiums. It wasn't the ideal place to raise a family, but it was the perfect residence for a young couple just starting out like Val and Julian. That's why they purchased a lovely townhouse built on a small cobblestone lane protected by a huge wrought iron gate.

Val pulled her car up to a small stand that housed the keyboard she needed to unlock the gates. She wound down her window and tapped in the six-digit combination code. Then the mechanical gates opened wide. She drove around to the back of the house.

“It looks dark in there. You should always leave at least one light on in the house to ward off intruders,” Jonah warned.

“Thanks for the tip.” Val parked and turned off the engine. “I'll keep that in mind.”

When they got out of the car, they realized Hope had fallen fast asleep in the backseat, her head dropped down in front of her. When she started snoring, Val and Jonah laughed at her.

“Let me get her,” Val offered. “You won't be able to carry her.” When she scooped Hope into her arms, her eyes opened momentarily. Val was sure Hope would cry. Instead, she laid her head on Val's shoulder and went back to sleep.

When they approached the back door, Val juggled her house keys in one hand and Hope in the other. She tried to insert a key into the lock then realized it wasn't the right one. It had been months since she'd been at the house, and it was hard for her to remember which was the right key.

Jonah watched Val try several different keys before one finally turned the lock.

She pushed the door wide open.

“It looks like you had a hard time finding the right key,” Jonah commented.

Val ignored his observation. “It's cold in here. If you don't mind, I can go lay her down in one of the guest bedrooms upstairs and then I'll turn on the heat.”

Jonah stared at her holding his baby in her arms. He really didn't want Hope out of his sight, but he allowed it. As Val disappeared up the back stairs Jonah switched on a few lights.

By the time she returned, she found him admiring the place.

“This house is an architect's dream. I was going to college for engineering before I had to drop out.” He knocked on one of the wooden beams that supported the ceiling. “There's a lot you could do to this place. But by the look of things, you're just getting started.” He pointed to the various boxes that were scattered around the room. “I guess you haven't had a chance to go furniture shopping yet.”

Val looked around. The house was full of boxes, but there wasn't any furniture. She had forgotten about the boxes that were brought there weeks before her wedding. She and Julian decided not to unpack anything until after the honeymoon. Her mind was suddenly flooded with thoughts of the last time she was in the house.

“Val. Val.”

She looked up and realized she had been caught daydreaming.

“It looks like you left me for a second.”

“No, I'm fine.” She noticed Jonah sitting on the steps holding his side. “I'm sorry. I brought you here to get bandages and I'm in my own world. Let me go check the upstairs and see if there's anything here I can use. If not, I'll run to the corner store.”

“You don't have to go out your way,” Jonah yelled after her.

“It's no problem,” Val screamed back. She searched the entire master bathroom but couldn't find one Band-Aid. When she returned to the first floor she began searching for her purse. “I'm gonna have to run out. I won't be long. It should take me no more than ten minutes.” She spotted her purse lying on the kitchen counter, picked it up and raced toward the front door.

“I'll be right here.” Jonah pointed to where he was sitting. “Val.” He stopped her right before she closed the front door behind her. “Can you pick me up some over-the-counter pain killers? My side is throbbing.”

Val hurried to the store and within minutes was back home again. “Jonah!” she cried. The last thing she expected to see was him laid out on the floor with his eyes closed. She panicked and dropped everything in her hand. “Oh God, please let him be all right. I knew we should have gone to the hospital.” She checked his pulse.

“Hey, you back already?” Jonah opened one eye.

“You had me worried.” She breathed a sigh of relief. “I thought you were unconscious.”

He laughed. “No. Just tired. This floor is so comfortable. It beats sleeping in an old car any day.” He wearily pushed himself up against the nearest wall.

“My offer still stands. You're more than welcome to stay the night. There are four bedrooms upstairs. I don't have much food, but what I have we can share.”

“The Bible says, ‘Share your food with the hungry and give shelter to the homeless,'” Jonah recited.

“Isaiah 58:7.”

Val was shocked that he was familiar with scripture.

“My grandmother was a Sunday School teacher for forty-three years, and as her only grandson, she said it was important for me to memorize verses of wisdom. She said if we carried God's word in our hearts then we would never get lost.”

“She sounds like a very wise woman.” Val picked up everything she had dropped on the floor and placed them back in the bag.

“I can't get over how beautiful your home is,” Jonah commented.

“Yes, it is a nice house.”

Jonah heard the sadness in her voice when she referred to the structure as a house and not a home.

She carried all the first-aid items over to him. “Can you take your coat off?”

Jonah slowly slipped out of his coat and pulled his shirt up as far as it would go without causing too much pain.

Val knelt down beside him on her knees and wrapped around his ribs with medical tape.

“I would never mistake you as a nurse.” He sighed.

“Did I do a bad job?” She tore off the tape and sat back on her knees to admire her work.

“No, but I can hardly breathe.” Jonah gasped for air. “Did you tape me up this tight on purpose so that me and my daughter couldn't leave?”

“I'm sorry. Let me try again.” She carefully tore the tape away from his body. The second time she was mindful to allow enough room for him to breathe comfortably.

“Hope must really be tired; she doesn't normally sleep this long,” Jonah said.

“When's the last time she's slept in a bed?” Val dropped a couple pain pills in her hand and handed them to Jonah.

“It's been a while.” He swallowed the pills simultaneously without any water.

“I would have gotten you a bottle of water,” Val said.

“Sorry, I guess I'm used to living off the most basic needs. A house, food, water and heat; those are things that most people take for granted.”

“Why don't you take my offer to stay the night? If not for yourself, then for your daughter. She looks so peaceful sleeping in that king-size bed.”

“I guess it wouldn't hurt for Hope to sleep in a real bed instead of the back seat of that old sixty-nine Chevy.”

“Great! I'll go make up the guest bedroom for you and you'll be right across the hall from Hope so if she wakes up you won't be far,” Val rattled off.

“That's okay. You don't have to go to any trouble for me. I'll squeeze in the bed right next to Hope.”

“Are you sure? Like I said, I have four bedrooms upstairs. I'm sure you would be more comfortable sleeping in your own bed.”

Jonah shook his head. “Hope and I are used to roughing it out together; sleeping in a soft comfortable bed for one night will make me soft.” Jonah followed her to the room where Hope was sleeping. He took off his shoes and made a comfortable spot for himself in the corner. When he pulled the cap off his head, his hair revealed itself. A mass of unkempt soft brown curls filled his head.

Val pretended not to notice how ruggedly sexy he looked. “If you need anything just yell.” She closed the door behind her and retired to the master bedroom.

“Good-night,” Jonah yelled before switching off the lights. In the dark he thought about Val. She was beautiful, intelligent and kind, but it was hard for him to trust anybody. He feared that any strangers trying to get close to him and his daughter would do them harm. He wanted to believe that wasn't the case with Val, but he wasn't sure. That's why he chose to sleep in the same room as Hope. He would have peace of mind that Hope was safe if he slept close to her.

Val locked her bedroom door and collapsed on her king-size bed. The ceiling lights blinded her. She never expected to be back in this house again. Not without Julian. The realtor called her several times to put the house back on the market per Val's request, but she never returned the call. The house and everything in it was the proof she needed to prove that Julian wasn't just a figment of her imagination. It verified that her dreams were at one time true. She was happy, in love and about to become somebody's wife. Until one day it all vanished. The box with Julian's name scribbled in marker taunted her. She ripped it open and the aroma from his cologne drifted past her nose. A box full of his toiletries. Tears gathered in her eyes, but she refused to cry any more. “No more tears.” She quickly closed the box, grabbed a blanket and slept in one of the guest bedrooms.

 

 

The following morning Jonah lurched forward out of his sleep. He looked around confused at his surroundings. The luxurious silk sheets and brilliant white walls were foreign to him, until he saw Hope sitting in the middle of the floor playing with a stuffed talking dolphin.

“Hey, Daddy.” She held up the doll. “See. His name is Ed.”

He quickly recollected his thoughts and remembered where he was. “Where's Val at?”

Hope shrugged her shoulders.

As Jonah got up out of bed, he felt a little better. He slightly bent to the side. “My ribs must be healing.” He held out his hand. “Come on, honey. Let's go see if we can find Val, so we can tell her good-bye.” They wandered around upstairs still unable to find her.

Twenty minutes later Val rushed in the back door. She dropped several shopping bags down on the table and yelled, “Is anyone here?” She listened for sounds of movement in the house, but it was quiet.

“We're up here,” she heard Jonah yell from upstairs.

Val followed the sound of his voice to the master bathroom. When she walked in she found Hope up to her neck in bubbles taking a bath.

“I hope you don't mind,” Jonah explained. “When we saw how big your bathtub was we couldn't resist. This is like a swimming pool to Hope. She was so excited, I allowed her to take a bath.”

Val giggled to herself. “No, that's fine. I'm glad to see you're still here.” She turned toward Hope. “Did you get a good night's sleep?”

Hope looked at her with empty eyes and reached out for her father.

“She doesn't like me?” Val said.

“No, don't think that. It takes her a while to warm up to people. It even took her a while to trust me.”

Val gave him a strange look. She wondered what he meant by that. W
hy would it take his own daughter a while to trust him?
Val's interest in her houseguests just rose through the roof. Val assumed Jonah was just another overprotective father, but there could be other reasons why.

She tried to play it off as if she wasn't suspicious. “I picked us up some breakfast and bought Hope some new clothes. That's what took me so long. I'll go get her things.” Val bolted down the stairs. Her cell phone lay on the kitchen table. She thought about calling the police, but she wasn't sure what to tell them. She tapped her foot against the floor. She was running out of time. “Jonah could be a kidnapper. There could be people out there searching for Hope.” She stepped toward her phone, but stopped herself. “I need proof. The police won't do anything without evidence. I know what I'll do.”