 |
 |
 |
. . . continued from previous page |
| . |
Charlie was greatly disheartened to hear those words. She had been
praying and hoping that Thomas had learned his lesson, and that his family would
have the great joy of knowing that he had repented. She watched Adam's grief, as
he hugged his nephews and spoke a few hushed words that only they could hear. Then
it was Charlie's turn to hug Mike, and to tell the boys that both she and Adam were
praying for their father. As their new aunt and wife of a most beloved uncle, Charlie
didn't want to let her nephews down, even though she was feeling unequal to the task.
Whenever she saw Chad or Mike's sad faces, she felt like running to Adam for help.
But responsible adults didn't act like that, and Charlie was determined to behave
in a way that would not discredit Adam's judgment in taking her as his wife. She
wasn't sure what she could do to help Mike and Chad, but she would do her best.
As the evening faded into night, Mike drove everyone to his parents' house on the
edge of Twin Yucca, for Adam had accepted Shirley's invitation to stay in the guest
rooms at her and Thomas' stylish adobe home. Even though Adam hadn't consulted Charlie
in accepting the invitation, his young wife understood that he had a lot on his mind
and didn't hold it against him for making the decision without her.
While Adam was preoccupied with thoughts of his family, Charlie was trying not to
be selfish by wanting to see hers. She hadn't seen her grandmother or father since
the wedding, for she and Adam had only been a day or two at Villa Rosa before they
were off on their trip to Alaska. Charlie had been living in cottages, cabins, hotel
rooms, and now was about to find herself in Shirley and Thomas' guest room. To be
honest, it was the last place on earth that she wanted to be. As much as Charlie
wished to be useful to Adam's family, she had to fight back the longing to settle
down and truly unpack at home-- her and Adam's home-- not someone else's, and especially
not Shirley's. Charlie tried to remind herself of her sister-in-law's good qualities
and of her helpfulness at the wedding, and it helped to soften some of the dread
that she could feel building inside.
When they reached the large adobe house, Charlie braced herself to meet Shirley and
to say something comforting, though Charlie wasn't sure what that should be.
"No one's home right now," explained Mike, getting out his copy of the
house key and preparing to unlock the front door. "Everyone's at the hospital."
Before he could place the key into the lock, however, Mike was surprised when the
door suddenly opened. "Mom!" he exclaimed.
Charlie was prepared to see Shirley, but instead saw Millie Weston, Mike's mother-in-law,
greeting them and inviting the weary travelers inside.
"What are you doing here?" Mike asked with a grateful smile. Millie reminded
Mike of Sandra, and a reminder like that was always welcome.
"Shirley is busy at the hospital," explained Mille, "so I told her
that we would get the guest rooms ready and have a hot meal waiting when you arrived."
"We?" grinned Mike. "Is Sandra here?"
"She's putting fresh sheets on the beds," informed Mille. "Adam, everyone
is praying for your sister and her family."
"Thank you," accepted Adam, "we appreciate it."
While the grownups exchanged a few solemn words abut the situation with Thomas, Chad
disappeared upstairs to his room.
"Why don't you go wash up?" suggested Millie. "The girls and I will
get dinner on the table?"
At first, Charlie thought that was meant as a polite request that she should help
out in the kitchen, but when Millie shooed them towards the stairs, Charlie realized
that Millie had been referring to her two daughters-- Sandra and Becky.
"I guess help has arrived," smiled Mike, leading Adam, Charlie, and Kevin
upstairs. |
 |
continued on next page . . .
|
|
 |
 |
|