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Ten Years Later
Lazarus Harper shook off the last of the drips of water in his hair, leaving behind the nasty feeling of being in a mess of horrific people seeing grim actions, and jogged down the stairs of the farmhouse.
Giggles from the living room had him grinning for the first time in a while after the two months undercover.
Jonas sat on the piano bench, pen on his knee while he faced Selah.
Jonas’ hands were swiping through the air as he told her the story he had finished the night before. Lazarus leaned against the doorway, content to watch them with their happy and innocent actions. Selah’s laughter was a balm to his heart. Thanking God for their sweet girl, he allowed his eyes to close and soaked in the happiness.
He stepped into the room and scooped Selah up, spinning her around, and sighed in relief as he gathered with his family.
Isaiah Harper’s hand shook as he read the letter that had fallen in with the rest of his mail.
The letter was a request to give complete custody of Selah to the Harper brothers. He sank back into his desk chair, legs limp, and shoulders folded into himself.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want them to finally have full custody of their girl, but to find out that Jamie-Ann was running away again hurt more than he could say. For so long, they had prayed that their cousin would return home and now she was leaving behind all ties to her past.
A sudden shriek of laughter drew his head up from where he had slumped till his head rested in his hands while holding the lawyer’s letter.
A dim smile grew as he set the letter aside to be read and discussed later after Selah was in bed, and Asa’s girlfriend, Sadie, had gotten off work and could go over it with them, lending her experience as a lawyer.
He joined the rest of his family in the living room. The only brothers who still lived at home were Asa, Lazarus when he wasn’t undercover, and the boys who were now in their mid-twenties. He shook his head at just how short of a time seemed to have passed and watched as Selah jumped up from where she’d fallen laughingly after Lazarus spun her around and around.
Taking a seat at the armchair by the side of the fireplace, he was content to watch the silent conversation take place.
He watched the way Selah’s hands swiftly signed the words that neither he nor his brothers had known until the day they were determined to learn for their sudden charge. She wouldn’t know how she was nearly lost to them before birth, she would only know that they loved her and God had created her with a plan in mind and that He would hold and protect her no matter the hardships she would face in life.
Seated in the middle of the table, Selah happily took a bit of her favorite berry crumble with cool fresh ice cream. Savoring the heat and cold with the cream and spice flavor, she smiled happily.
Tension had built in the room since her uncles all got home along with her surrogate aunt, but she didn’t let it bother her as she knew that she was safe.
God was in Heaven and all would be well.
Her uncles were all at the table safe and sound.
Aunt Sadie’s laughter shook her from the seat beside Selah.
Her mom was okay-ish, not well, but she knew that God had her in His hand too.
There was no reason to worry as the day God created the world He knew what would happen and even beyond to those days of love and pain when she came to her guardian uncles and found a home safe and loved with the men who strove to give her a good life.