“I’m surprised Cheryl let me borrow her car,” announced Olivia as she piloted the vehicle onto the long driveway to the Warren Farmhouse.
“This jalopy?” said Anne. “We’ll be lucky if it gets us back to the diner.”
“No thanks to this driveway,” Olivia said as she clutched the steering wheel with both hands. “I’ve never been on a dirt road. Can you believe that?”
As she was speaking, a throng of thundering hooves shook the driver’s side of the vehicle. Matching the speed of the car, the animals playfully romped alongside the driver, snorting and jumping.
“Dear God!” Olivia shouted over the noise, trying to stay on the road. “Are they trying to kill us?”
Anne laughed. “Now, there’s something you don’t see every day.”
“What is this place?” exclaimed Olivia.
“It’s called a farm,” replied Rebecca, “and those large animals that really like you are called horses.”
“I know what a horse is. I’m just relieved they’re not trying to kill me.”
Rebecca and Anne looked at each other. “Drama,” they said together.
The horses followed the car to the house; then all but one wandered toward the barn.
“I’ll stay out here with Horace. Have fun, Olivia!” Anne yelled as she ran off.
Olivia turned to Rebecca. “Your horses are beautiful. Wait, your horse’s name is Horace?”
“When I was little, that’s how I would say horse, so we just went with that,” Rebecca replied.
Olivia turned to see Mrs. Warren standing on the porch with an ax in her hand.
“Should we be concerned?” she asked.
“Only if you’re afraid of chopping firewood.”
“Can we try that, for real?” asked Olivia. “What about riding a horse? Can we do that, too?”
“It is a horse farm…,” Rebecca said, taking Olivia by the hand to lead her up the porch steps. “Olivia, this is my Momma.”
“I heard we had a visitor in town,” Mrs. Warren said as she set the ax down. “Cheryl’s cousin, right?”
Olivia smiled. “Something like that.”
“Welcome to our home,” said Mrs. Warren. “Are we giving tours today, Rebecca?”
“We got ourselves a regular city slicker with us today, Momma. Should be a fun one.”
“I think I’ll join you in that case.”
Rebecca led Olivia through the house and into the mud room off the kitchen. Olivia stopped at the doorway to take in the scene.
“I’ve never seen a tree inside a house before,” she said, then proceeded to walk around the enclosure in the center of the room. Daylight was still coming through the windows surrounding the tree, and the room was warm and golden.
“Grandpa Wilkes tried to describe this to me,” Olivia said, looking through each of the windows. “It’s like a tree aquarium!”
Mrs. Warren and Rebecca laughed as they watched Olivia take another trip around the perimeter of the small room.
“You can open a window if you want,” said Rebecca, now sitting on a bench.
Eventually, Olivia picked a sash and lifted it. Taking a deep breath, she paused, reached through the window, and touched the trunk of the tree. Closing her eyes, she pressed her palm into the rough bark.
Rebecca had coached many people through this experience. “Lisa was silent for a while,” she said. “But if you’re real quiet, and the wind blows just right, you’ll hear something your heart has always longed to hear.”
Mrs. Warren sat with Rebecca, and they watched as the teenager leaned against the tree.
As a gentle breeze passed through the window, Olivia's hair was tossed, and her eyes swelled. Although she tried, she couldn’t blink fast enough to chase away the tears. Olivia was overwhelmed as a chorus of ancient melodies flooded her senses. With her free hand, she wiped away the large drops that streamed down her face.
After a long minute of allowing the wind and waves of sound to roll over her, Olivia stepped back and put both hands over her face.
“Does this make me a tree hugger?” she asked.
“This is not about you or the tree,” replied Mrs. Warren.
“Yes, I can see that,” Olivia said, taking a seat. “You were right, Rebecca. My heart needed that.”
Mrs. Warren turned to her daughter. “Rebecca, how about going outside and getting the horses ready?” she asked.
Rebecca knew what that meant and headed out the door. Mrs. Warren offered Olivia a seat on one of the benches.
“How are you doing with your mother being away?” she asked.
Olivia wiped her face once again. “It’s been tough, but this place has been amazing.”
“Your father was able to visit the farm when he came to Edenbury. Stood and cried at that very window, just like you.”
“I’m so glad. I guess he gets to hear that all the time now.”
“Olivia, what those horses did when you drove in—we’ve only seen happen one other time.”
“Really?” asked Olivia. “What does that mean?”
Mrs. Warren thought for a moment. “I can’t say for sure, but it was also a special time and a special visitor.”
“I pray my mother can see this place,” said Olivia as she looked back at the tree.
Mrs. Warren was quiet.
“Mrs. Warren, where is Mr. Warren?”
“He passed through a while back.”
“Do you mean he passed away?”
“Olivia, there’s just a veil between Heaven and us.”
More tears appeared on Olivia’s cheeks. “And one day, it will be lifted for good?”
“And one day, it will be lifted for good,” she replied, giving her a hug.
Mrs. Warren led Olivia out the door toward the barn. Rebecca was already sitting on Horace.
“You’ll need to ride with me,” she said.
“You have a horse named Horace and a tree named Lisa. Anyone else I should meet?”
“I have a brother,” Rebecca replied.
Olivia lifted an eyebrow. “Another time, perhaps.”
“Right. Not sure how long you’ll be here.”
The girls spent the rest of the afternoon riding horses, touring the farm, and Olivia even tried chopping some wood.
—
Back at the hotel near Imago Dei Seminary, the group spent Wednesday morning going through their materials and working on finding Loretta. While Father Vance made phone calls to clergy in Ames Hill, Zeke and Lucy took an uneventful trip to Loretta’s apartment.
“There was nothing to see, and we weren’t followed,” said Lucy as she came in the door. “We found the hidden apartment key Mrs. French told us about, but nothing seemed out of place inside.”
Zeke took a chair next to Father Vance. “How did your calls go?”
“The faith community in Ames Hill is afraid of something,” he replied, flipping through some notes scribbled on hotel stationery. “I only have one lead—a local pastor who agreed to talk, but only if he came in person.”
“To Edenbury?” Zeke asked. “That’s quite a commitment.”
“Yes, a good contact for sure. We’ll see what he has to say when we meet there tomorrow.”
Lucy plopped down on the bed. “I feel like we have an identity crisis,” she said. “Are we still the Famous Four or the Miracle Council? I’m torn.
Zeke joined her and looked at the small birdcage in the corner. “I'm more concerned about what we are going to name this pigeon,” he countered. “My vote is Homer.”
Stephanie rolled her eyes. “I think we should be more concerned about getting back home,” she suggested. “When I talked to Cheryl this morning, she told me Olivia had borrowed her car yesterday to go to the Warren farm with the girls. What could today bring?”
Lucy rose from the bed. “I’ll start packing.”
—
That night, the group headed to dinner, eager to be reunited with Olivia. They were greeted by a young voice as they walked into the diner.
“Uncle Shredder!” Olivia yelled and extended a big hug to Father Vance, then the others.
Lucy turned to Stephanie. “Does that make you Aunt Stephanie?” she joked.
Stephanie responded with only a grin, glad to see that Olivia had her mind off of other things.
Father Vance handed a book bag to Olivia. “Good news! Uncle Shredder brought you some schoolwork.”
Olivia reluctantly took the bag. “You shouldn’t have,” she said as she took a seat with the others. “So what happened back home?”
“The bad news is we haven’t located your mother yet,” replied Lucy. “But we didn’t find anything out of order at your apartment.”
“I see. And Mrs. French, how is she?”
“She gave us a pigeon,” replied Zeke. “And she made us the new Miracle Council.”
Olivia didn’t seem shocked. “That actually makes a lot of sense. I don’t think the old council was ready for this.”
The rest of dinner was filled with conversations about Olivia’s eventful two days in Edenbury. Stephanie watched as she lit up about all she had experienced.
“And Meatloaf Monday was amazing, and Grandpa Wilkes was so amazing, and Cheryl and Jake are amazing.”
“Sounds amazing,” said Zeke.
Just as Cheryl was clearing a few plates, a visitor entered the restaurant's front door. From the grill area, Jake carefully watched the guest with great concern.
It soon became clear the person was a stranger to everyone but one other in the dining room—Olivia.
“Momma!” Olivia cried as her body launched from the table, tossing the remaining silverware about.
The others spun in the direction of the door as mother and daughter embraced each other with loud sobs. Gasps from everywhere sucked the air out of the room. Widened eyes watched as mother and daughter were reunited.
“I’m so sorry, baby,” Loretta cried. “I’m glad you are safe.”
After a long moment, the others at the table slowly rose to greet Loretta.
Still attached to her mother, Olivia introduced her to everyone, including Cheryl and Jake, who was grateful the stranger was a friend.
“Please, sit,” said Stephanie, pulling around a nearby chair to their now overcrowded table.
Cheryl and Jake left them alone.
After more hugs and tears, Sheriff Stephanie took the lead on the questioning. “Loretta, we are so relieved to see you. Can you tell us what happened?”
“I was being followed,” she replied. “All the time, everywhere I went. I had to lead them away so Mrs. French could get Olivia to safety. I knew she would send her here. I stayed away to give you time to get them off my tail.”
Stephanie seemed confused. “How did you know that would happen?” she asked. “Who was following you?”
“My husband told me all about your group,” she replied. “Things started happening after we went to Ames Hill. I knew you’d eventually go there and stir things up.”
“Well, that was mostly Zeke here,” said Father Vance. “It’s an honor to meet you. By the way, Father Gregory was my favorite professor.”
“I heard so much about all of you,” Loretta said as she turned to her daughter. “Thank you all so much for taking care of my Olivia. Honey, I’m so sorry to scare you like that, but I knew Mrs. French would know what to do.”
“Momma, does this mean we can stay for a while? If it’s not safe back home, this place is great. I got to visit a real farm and drove on a dirt road, and some horses chased us. I chopped some firewood. But I have to tell you about my elk.”
“Oh, my,” Loretta groaned while the rest of the group laughed.
Zeke looked at the others at the table. “I think it would be a good idea to move this party to my library.”
“Our library,” corrected Lucy. “Loretta, please come and stay with us. Our home is plenty big for you and Olivia until we’re sure you’re safe.”
“Right,” said Zeke, “of course.”
Sheriff Stephanie rose from the table first. “I need to call law enforcement back at Imago Dei,” she said. “They’re going to have questions and may want you to come in. I’ll see if I can convince them to let me take a statement from you to avoid that.”
Loretta reached up and took Stephanie’s hand. “Thank you all. I don’t trust anyone at this point,” she said. “Being here is the safest I’ve felt in weeks. Whatever comes next, I’m here with my girl and with you all, and that’s all that matters. I can see why my husband loved this place.”
“Momma, before we go, there is one more thing you need,” said Olivia, calling Cheryl over to the table. “Cheryl, can we get a peach pie to go, please?”
—
Later, the group reconvened at Zeke and Lucy’s house. With the additional materials from Ames Hill and the old Miracle Council, the library was fully transformed into a war room, complete with a homing pigeon. Zeke and Father Vance sat down with Loretta while the girls were getting Olivia settled in.
“Loretta, I have to ask, why the cryptic note?” asked Zeke.
“In case anything happened to me,” she replied. “The first part, I guess you figured out. The other two items are things my husband would say a lot. Especially toward the end. Have they been helpful?”
“Not yet,” Zeke replied. “I guess we’ll know to dig deeper or draw a bigger circle when the time comes.”
Father Vance pulled up a chair next to Loretta. “Was your husband being threatened?”
“Yes, horrible threats,” she replied. “Calls would come all times of the day and night. The stress they caused contributed to his heart failure for sure. When they continued after my husband died, I knew I had to do something.”
Father Vance sat back. “Mrs. French was right when she said you were smart. Anything else you can tell us?”
“In our travels, my husband and I got the sense that Edenbury has a reputation. When your group took down Heathrow, many other industries were threatened. This is bigger than a nursing home in Ames Hill.” Loretta said as she looked back and forth at the two men. “You may not realize it, but last fall, you hit a beehive with a baseball bat. It’s just a matter of time before they descend on this place. Edenbury is a threat, and all of you with it.”
While Zeke and Father Vance sat thinking about what was just said, Lucy, Stephanie, and Olivia joined them in the library.
“Should we send Homer with a message to let Mrs. French know we have Loretta back?” asked Sheriff Stephanie.
“Let’s do it,” Zeke answered. “Okay, who has tiny handwriting?”
Lucy took the slip of paper out of the small cylinder attached to the bird’s leg and wrote carefully.
Mother found safe.
Lucy paused. “I feel like we should add something else,” she said.
Olivia stepped up next to Lucy. “Tell her about the horse I rode, and my elk, and Lisa, and Grandpa Wilkes. And peach pie.”
“I don’t think that’ll fit,” replied Lucy as she added another line.
Child flourishing.
Lucy secured the note and handed the bird to Olivia. “Would you like to do the honors?”
Olivia took the pigeon, and they all walked out to the balcony off the library. The group watched as Homer flew off in the general direction of Mrs. French’s pub.
As they walked back into the library, Stephanie took an inventory of all the items on the table. “None of these things can fall into the wrong hands,” she said.
Olivia was concerned. “But we don’t even know who the wrong hands are.”
“But we know who the right hands are,” Loretta proposed. “And I’m so thankful to you all.”
Zeke invited Loretta to join him at one set of bookcases while the others watched and grinned.
“I never had the opportunity to show this to your husband,” he said, reaching down to find the latch that opened the bookcase. As Zeke pulled the secret door open, Loretta’s eyes grew wide. Olivia ran across the room to join them.
“We keep the really special things in here,” he said, holding the door open. “Have a look around.”
Mother and daughter took a few minutes in the secret room and returned to the library.
“This place is amazing,” said Olivia.
“I thought you might say that,” replied Zeke.
“What do we do now?” asked Loretta. “Wait for the bad guys to come to us?”
“If they’re coming here,” Father Vance replied, “they need to know this turf has a mind of its own.”
—
Read Chapter 12 now! A visitor comes from Ames Hill, and Eric receives a special gift!
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