Page 43 of Glimmer in the Darkness

Not that she’d thought much about it, but all day she’d assumed he’d sleep by her side. It wasn’t as if they were together. They’d hardly touched since she’d first seen him Monday. She was pretty sure they could sleep in the same tent and keep their hands to themselves.

“It’s nothing against you.” He’d been watching her reaction. “The opposite, really.”

She wouldn’t think too much on that. “Hungry?”

“Starved.” He settled beside her and took the bowl she offered. “Climbing takes a lot out of you.”

She took a bite of the instant noodles. They were surprisingly good. “When was the last time you went backpacking?”

“I go all the time. How about you? You ever go hiking or camping?”

“The closest I’ve gotten to nature in a decade is the park near my apartment.”

His eyebrows hiked. “Don’t you miss it?”

How could she miss a place that visited her so often in nightmares?

When she didn’t answer, he asked, “Where do you live now?”

“Do you believe me, that I would never have kidnapped or harmed your sister? Do you really believe me?”

He opened his mouth, then snapped it shut.

She waited, let the silence press the question.

When he said nothing, she shrugged. “I live far away.”

“You’re afraid to tell me?”

“I hope to return to that life when this is over. When I do, I’d like to not be looking over my shoulder all the time.”

“I don’t plan to turn you in.”

“You considered precisely that about forty-eight hours ago.”

“But I didn’t.” He ripped off a bit of pita bread and popped it in his mouth. When he’d swallowed, he said, “Can you tell me what you do, or is that top secret as well?”

“I work with at-risk youth, mostly runaway girls who’ve gotten caught up in drugs and prostitution.”

“Tough job.”

“I’m uniquely qualified.”

His eyebrows lifted, the question obvious.

“Just the runaway part,” she clarified. “Not drugs or prostitution. But I understand the temptation. I understand how easily somebody can be enticed into bad decisions. I understand why toss-away children are willing to risk everything and do anything to find a sense of belonging.”

“Toss-aways. Is that how you felt?”

“Most of my life. Even with foster families, it’s hard to feel like you belong. Until I met your family…”

Something flashed in his eyes, something dark. Goosebumps rose on her bare arms, and she dug in her backpack, happy to have something to focus on besides James.

Hands elbow-deep, she continued. “It was wonderful to know your family, a good family. I mean, I know I wasn’t a member, but I got to witness it, I got to enjoy it for a time. I’ve only ever known snatches of that feeling, but I’ve always longed for it. What I’ve learned, what I try to teach the kids I work with, is that we’re all welcome into the family of God. With God, there are no toss-aways.” She found the fleece sweatshirt James had packed for her and slipped it on, careful of her bruised shoulder. “When people are firm in their relationship with the Father, they’re not only secure in their place in the best family in the universe, but they’re in a position to find stragglers and pull them in.” She settled back on the ground.

“Do the kids listen to you?”

She started to lift her shoulders in a shrug, but a sharp pain had her holding the left one.