The Prodigal Comes Home (14 page)

Good. She had no intention of leaving until she was sure that he was okay.

While the omelet cooked, Zoey collected the dirty dishes that Matt hadn’t had time to deal with on Thursday, put them in the dishwasher and straightened up the kitchen.

When the meal was ready, she arranged everything on a tray and delivered it to the coffee table.

Neither of them said a word.

But Zoey talked to God while Matt devoured the omelet and toast as if he hadn’t eaten for days. Maybe he hadn’t.

What should I say, Lord? I can tell that he’s hurting. I don’t know what to do…

She had memorized so many scripture passages but none came to mind. Her heart ached with his.

Zoey kicked off her shoes and sat down beside him, tucking her feet underneath her. Matt still didn’t speak. He didn’t tell her what the past two days had been like. He didn’t pretend that seeing an eleven-year-old boy so close to death hadn’t changed him.

They sat like that for another hour until shadows stretched along the walls and both of Zoey’s feet began to tingle.

When she thought Matt was asleep, she got up gingerly and flexed her muscles. Grabbing an afghan off the back of the sofa, she covered Matt up, whispered to George to be good and padded toward the front door.

“Zoey?”

She turned around. Matt was smiling at her. A tired, rusty kind of smile that went straight to her heart.

“Thanks for listening.”

“But…you didn’t say anything.”

“That’s what I mean. You heard everything I didn’t say.”

Zoey returned his smile with a tentative one of her own. “You’re welcome.”

T
he teenagers had cleared out after practice, but Matt heard music coming from the sanctuary. He leaned against the wall and listened for a few minutes before making his presence known.

Although Zoey planned to accompany some of the choir members on the piano, he hadn’t heard her sing again until now.

He knew the exact moment that Zoey realized he was there. Her shoulders stiffened and she stopped playing.

“You are really gifted.”

“I’m really out of practice,” Zoey contradicted with a wry smile. “I haven’t played this particular song for almost a month.”

“It sounded great to me.”

“Do you sing?”

“I’ve been likened to a truck idling,” Matt admitted cheerfully.

That drew a smile. “I can leave if you’re ready to lock up for the day.”

“No rush.” He wandered over and saw the script resting in the music stand by the piano. Matt picked it up and examined the cover. On top of a satin pillow sat a pink tennis shoe instead of a glass slipper. “
‘Once Upon a Castle,’
right?”

“It opened last weekend. I thought I better run through the script a few times, or my understudy will take over my job completely.”

Matt’s heart felt as if it had hit a speed bump. He was all too aware of the fact that Zoey would be leaving the week after Easter.

Her unexpected visit to his house the day he’d come back from the hospital had been a gift. An indication that maybe, just maybe, she had some feelings for him, too.

The memory still blew him away. He was used to being the one people turned to in a crisis. The strong one. But somehow, Zoey had known exactly what to say to put things in perspective.

Nothing.

She had simply been there for him. She’d shared George with him. Fed him. Sat with him.

And all the while, Matt sensed she had been praying for him, too.

He wanted to ask Zoey out on a real date. Let her know how he felt about her. But Matt was also sensitive to the timing. He didn’t want to rush Zoey. And he didn’t want to rush ahead of God either.

“I won’t bother you, then.” He turned to go, but Zoey put her hand on his arm.

“Matt, wait a second. I have to talk to you about something.”

The serious look on her face told Matt that he should sit down before he heard what it was. He lowered himself to the carpeted step and looked up at her expectantly.

“I talked to Haylie while you were gone,” Zoey said. “She was planning to play the violin for the cantata, but then she skipped a few practices.”

“Is everything okay?”

“It depends on what you mean by ‘okay.’” Zoey sat down next to him. “She and Rob have been…spending a lot of time together over the past few months. I think they’re both dealing with some heavy-duty guilt over their relationship.”

Matt felt a sharp pain slide between his ribs. He knew all about that kind of guilt.

“I want to do the right thing, Kristen. We can get married. I’ll take care of you and the baby.”

Kristen had laughed at him.

“You don’t have to take care of anyone, Matt. I didn’t think you were so old fashioned. I’m not about to throw away my future because of one mistake. I just thought you’d want to know so you’d be more careful next time.”

Up until that point, Matt hadn’t thought about the consequences of his behavior. All he’d thought about was having a good time.

After informing him that she was pregnant, Kristen refused to talk to him again. When Matt no longer saw her on campus, he tracked down her former roommate and discovered that Kristen had dropped out of school at the end of the semester. When he pushed for more information, the girl had reluctantly told him that Kristen claimed to have suffered a miscarriage early in her first trimester.

But Matt had always wondered if it were true or if Kristen had terminated her pregnancy.

It was his roommate, the guy Matt had frequently scoffed at for his values, who had seen the guilt eating him alive and told him how to find peace.

“I’m glad Haylie talked to you.”

“It wasn’t easy for either of us,” Zoey admitted. “But people need to know they’re not alone in their pain. I think that’s one of the ways God uses the mistakes we’ve made for good. To comfort others in the way we’ve been comforted, like it says in the Bible.”

“Second Corinthians.” Matt knew the verse Zoey was referring to but he—someone who studied the scriptures on a daily basis—hadn’t thought about it in terms of his own life before now.

“Matt?” Zoey’s voice barely registered through the rushing sound in his ears. “Will you talk to Rob?”

“Maybe he would probably be more comfortable talking with Cal,” Matt heard himself say. “He’s been leading a weekly Bible study for the high school boys.”

Zoey couldn’t quite hide her disappointment. In him. She rose to her feet. “I should practice a little more. Delia invited Gran over for supper tonight, so I have a little extra time.”

“Zoey…” Matt stopped. How could he explain that his reluctance to talk to Rob about relationships stemmed from the mistakes he had made in that area? Mistakes that had not only affected him, but the young woman he’d been dating and the life of an unborn child he hadn’t even bothered to consider at the time?

Matt normally didn’t shy away from difficult situations. It wasn’t easy to admit he’d been ready to avoid helping someone because it hit too close to a wound on his own soul.

“’Scuse me, Pastor.” Daniel Redstone paused in the doorway, a smile lifting the corner of his lips when he spotted Zoey sitting at the piano. It was encouraging to know that not everyone questioned Matt’s friendship with Zoey. “There’s someone out here who wants to talk to you.”

“I’ll be right there.” Matt stood up, hiding his frustration at the interruption. “If you stick around awhile, I’ll help you practice your lines.” And try to gather the courage to explain why he’d resisted her suggestion that he talk to Rob.

For a moment, he thought Zoey would reject his offer. Until she smiled. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Matt wished he could hold her to that.

As he walked down the hall, he expected to see one of the members of his congregation waiting for him. The woman examining the bulletin board on the wall outside his office only looked vaguely familiar.

Daniel veered off toward the Sunday school rooms, leaving Matt alone to work out the introductions. He found that a little strange, considering how friendly the carpenter was to everyone.

“Hello.”

She jerked her head in lieu of a greeting. “Pastor Wilde Thank you for meeting with me on such short notice.”

There had been
no
notice, but Matt didn’t point that out.

“We can talk in my office, if you’d like.”

Another short nod and she swept into the room ahead of him.

Matt gestured toward one of the comfortable chairs opposite his desk. “Please, have a seat, Mrs…“

“Galway. Gina Galway.”

He knew he had seen the woman somewhere before, but everyone in a town the size of Mirror Lake was at least a familiar face, if not a name.

“I’m sorry to drop in like this.” Gina Galway gathered her oversize purse in front of her like a shield. “I did try to call but no one answered the phone.”

“I’m sorry. The secretary took the afternoon off. What can I do for you?”

“Normally, I wouldn’t interfere, but Liz Decker is practically my neighbor and I wanted to be sure that someone is looking out for her best interests.”

Galway.

Now he knew why she looked familiar. She lived down the block from Liz.

“Liz is doing great.” Matt assumed she had heard about Liz’s slight relapse the week before through the neighborhood grapevine.

“I don’t know how she could be, with the added stress in her life,” Gina murmured.

“I’m afraid I don’t follow you.” Matt frowned. “Added stress?”

“Her granddaughter. Zoey Decker.”

The air emptied out of Matt’s lungs. “Mrs. Galway…”

He didn’t get an opportunity to finish.

“I would think that you of all people—the pastor Liz claims to respect so much—would have sent that young woman packing the day she arrived. But instead, I heard a rumor that you actually put her in charge of this year’s Easter cantata.” Gina paused to take a breath. “Please tell me that isn’t true.”

“She’s more than qualified for the position. I’ve gotten to know Zoey over the past few weeks and I’m confident she will do a wonderful job.”

“She’s an
actress.
” Gina said it with a sneer that made Matt’s blood boil. “That means she gets paid to pretend to be someone she isn’t. It’s obvious she pulled the wool over your eyes, too.”

“Mrs. Galway—”

“Zoey Decker was nothing but trouble when she lived with Liz and Jonathan,” Gina interrupted.

“That was a long time ago,” Matt said slowly. “I understand that Zoey was a teenager when she lived in Mirror Lake.”

“Old enough to know right from wrong,” Gina snapped. “Sneaking out of the house at all hours. Breaking the rules and lying about it. Liz and Jonathan tried to do the right thing. Took the girl in when her own parents couldn’t handle her anymore, but everyone could see the toll it took on that poor couple. It was plain to see that Zoey never cared about anyone but herself.”

Images of Zoey flashed through his mind. The look on her face the night Liz had fallen. The way she’d cuddled George in her lap. The compassion in her eyes when she’d told him about Haylie.

“It isn’t uncommon for teenagers to rebel in some way.” Matt struggled to keep his voice even. “Most of it is harmless.”

Gina looked shocked that Matt would take up Zoey’s defense.

“I don’t consider causing someone’s death a harmless act of rebellion, do you, Pastor Wilde?”

Matt felt the room tilt.

“What are you talking about?”

“Liz didn’t tell you about Tyler Curtis?” Gina saw his confusion and shook her head. “I shouldn’t be surprised. She insists on seeing the best in everyone, whether they deserve it or not. And after what she did, Zoey Decker definitely does
not
deserve it.”

Matt couldn’t listen to any more. He stood up and walked to the door. “Thank you for stopping by, Mrs. Galway. Like I said, I’ve gotten to know Zoey and I promise that you have nothing to worry about.”

The woman followed his lead and rose to her feet. “Maybe
you
should be worried, Pastor Wilde. Up until now, you’ve been a respected leader in the community. People trusted your judgment. From what I’ve heard, that isn’t the case anymore.” Gina’s eyes narrowed. “People in the community usually attend the cantata, but if you insist on allowing Zoey Decker to be involved in it this year, things may not turn out quite the way you planned.”

“I appreciate your concern,” Matt said through gritted teeth.

“There might a lot of empty spaces in the pews on Easter morning.” Gina spoke slowly, as if she were afraid Matt wasn’t catching on.

“I’m sorry there are people in Mirror Lake who feel that way.”

“That just proves how she’s blinded you,” Gina snapped. “It’s not just people in the community who don’t want to be reminded of what Zoey did. Some of those empty pews are going to be there because people in your own congregation feel the same way.”

Matt opened the door and Gina brushed past him, the heels of her shoes clicking as she headed toward the door.

The hostility emanating from Gina Galway disturbed Matt more than the veiled threat. She really believed the things she had said about Zoey.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a movement further down the hall. Zoey stood in the shadows, her face drained of color.

In that instant, Matt realized she’d heard everything Gina Galway had said.

Zoey’s feet refused to move.

She had received a call from Haylie on her cell phone, asking if Zoey could stop by the Grapevine Cafe for a few minutes to talk.

Haylie hadn’t told her what it was about so Zoey hadn’t wanted to refuse. She’d ventured down the hall, hoping to track down Daniel and ask him to pass a message on to Matt.

There’d been no sign of Daniel, but the door to Matt’s office was ajar. Zoey slowed down when she heard a woman’s voice.

“…I don’t consider causing someone’s death a harmless act of teenage rebellion, do you, Pastor Wilde?”

Dead silence had followed the question.

No, no, no.

The air emptied out of Zoey’s lungs, making it difficult to take a breath.

She should have told Matt when she had the opportunity, but when he’d asked her to direct the cantata, she assumed it meant that he knew about her past. And he wanted her to be involved anyway.

She should have known better.

Matt’s response, when it came, had been too low for her to hear.

But it didn’t matter. The last thing the woman said was still ringing in Zoey’s ears.

You might have a lot of empty spaces in the pews on Easter morning.

She’d been afraid that working with Matt would somehow stain his reputation in the community.

Zoey took a stumbling step backward as the door opened. The woman marched off in the opposite direction without noticing her. Matt had stepped into the hallway a second later. And almost as if he sensed her presence, he turned in her direction.

The expression on Matt’s face forced Zoey back another step.

Anger. Disappointment. Disbelief.

Emotions Zoey was all too familiar with, but, somehow, seeing them on Matt’s face made it more difficult to bear.

She spun around, but Matt caught up to her before she could take another step.

“Come with me.”

Zoey didn’t resist as his hand closed gently around her arm and he tugged her the rest of the way down the hall into the sanctuary.

Matt released her and without the bracing warmth of his touch, Zoey’s knees almost gave way. She latched onto the decorative wooden rail at the altar.

Matt pushed his hands into the pockets of his jeans.