Chapter Eighteen

After sitting in the cool late-afternoon sunshine, Kate began to feel better. The last thing she wanted to do was give up the search just before finding Paul and Marcus. And Paul felt so close. They could be waiting just up the road for all she knew. So while Kate rested, her companions searched the general area, and after a good forty minutes, they returned.

As she stood, the radio in Sheriff Roberts’ belt buzzed.

“Sheriff Roberts, come in. Over.” It was Ranger Morton.

“I’m here. What do you have?”

“We found two sets of prints, and they look to be walking side by side.”

The sheriff confirmed their location and told them they’d meet them at the junction of the Spruce-Fir Nature Trail and Clingmans Dome Road, then he signed off.

Kate smiled into his weary eyes. “Let’s go,” she said.

The remainder of the climb was challenging, but Kate managed to make it to the trailhead. It was a beautiful area of the park that had an almost medieval feel to it. Tall, straight conifers speared the sky, their dark green foliage drooping luxuriously. Mist laced in and out of the mountains at this altitude.

They waited at the meeting spot for what felt like a long time, but there was no sign of the other searchers headed their way. The sun balanced on the tightrope of horizon beyond the western mountains. The group watched it without speaking.

Kate tried to keep her anxiety from returning with the approaching dusk and reflected if only for a moment on God’s beautiful creation. But still, she felt so frustrated. Sure, these forests were huge, but with the clues Paul had left and the number of searchers scouring the terrain, she felt sure they should have found the men by now. But with the sun setting so soon, they’d have to call it a night again.

Her stomach knotted at the thought of Paul and Marcus out in the woods for a third cold night.

Just then, the radio crackled, and the ranger came on, “Sheriff, are you there? Come in. Over.”

Sheriff Roberts shot a glance at Kate before pushing the TALK button. “Yes, sir. What’s going on? I thought we were meeting you where the Spruce-Fir Nature Trail meets Clingmans Dome Road.”

“It’s taking longer than we expected,” Kate heard the ranger say. “It’s rough going. Lots of steep terrain.”

“But no sign of Paul or Marcus?” the sheriff asked.

“No. Nothing new to report on that front. We’re going to set up camp pretty quick. Hopefully it’s not too muddy. A van’s going to pick you up on the Spruce-Fir Nature Trail and take you back to Sugarlands.”

“All right,” Sheriff Roberts said. “Over and out.”

Kate sighed, discouraged that they were quitting for the night. “It feels like we’re so close,” she said, then lifted her gaze to Eli.

The young man reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’m sorry, Kate,” he said.

Sheriff Roberts looked at Kate soberly. “It’s getting dark,” he said. “I think they’re close; I really do. But we’re just going to have to hold tight, do some of that praying you’re always talking about.”

The comment struck Kate like a slap in the face. He was telling her to pray? But she knew he was right. She’d let others pray, and she’d thought of God and sent up arrow-prayers to him, but she hadn’t poured out her heart to him, hadn’t asked him for the wisdom she so desperately needed. She’d been relying on her own strength, her own intuition to will Paul and Marcus home.

WHEN THEY ARRIVED BACK at the motel, Kate called Andrew and Melissa to update them, then called the hospital to check on Sam, since visiting hours were long past. Joe told her that Sam was doing well. He’d had a “cardiac event,” as the doctors had called it, though Joe didn’t know exactly what that meant.

“They said it wasn’t an all-out heart attack, but they’re going to keep him here for observation. In any case, he can’t be out searching anymore. It’s too hard on him.”

“Are you coming back to the motel so you can rest?” Kate asked the seventy-year-old.

“I’m gonna wait it out here until I know Sam’s out of the woods. Shouldn’t be more than a few days,” he said. “They have La-Z-Boy chairs in the rooms, so I’m all set. The nurse even sneaked me some pudding...I think she’s sweet on me!”

Kate laughed, then thanked Joe for taking good care of Sam before she hung up the phone. Rebecca was in the bathroom brushing her teeth.

Kate thought about what the sheriff had said to her about praying. She knew he hadn’t meant anything by it, but she’d been thinking about it all evening. She closed her eyes as weariness of soul mingled with weariness of body.

“Lord,” she prayed aloud. The prayer welled up inside her. She could feel it to her very core—“I can’t do this. My faith isn’t strong enough, but I know you love me even if I can’t feel it. So I’m going to trust you with an open hand. Our lives are yours to do with as you will. Help me not to hold on so tightly but to know that you love Paul and me far more than we can love each other. You have our best interests in mind. You deserve my trust. Please keep Paul and Marcus safe. Give them a sense of direction so they can just walk out of those woods. Give Sheriff Roberts and Ranger Morton and the other men in charge the wisdom they need.”

When she opened her eyes, Rebecca was gazing at her, tears streaming down her cheeks. “Thanks, Mom,” she said.

“What for?” Kate asked, puzzled.

“For being an example.”

“What do you mean?” Kate patted the spot next to her on the bed, and Rebecca plopped down beside her.

“You and Dad never just told us what to do. I mean, you told us, but you also showed us. I appreciate that. You actually live what you believe. I guess I’d forgotten that while I’d been away from you.” She shrugged, and Kate patted her hand.

“I’ve missed you,” Rebecca added, then she chuckled to herself. “It’s funny how some time in the woods can give a person perspective, but today I had a realization.”

“And what was that?” Kate asked.

“I’ve been so hurt by Marcus’ deception, and I’ve been wondering what I did that caused him not to trust me. But maybe he did try to tell me in his own way. There were things that he said, weird things that I didn’t understand at the time, but they’re beginning to make sense now.”

“What kinds of things?” Kate said.

“He’d make these comments like, ‘Some things are too big for forgiveness.’ I’d try to probe into what he meant, asking if he was talking about something in his own past, but then he’d always clam up. Maybe he was hoping I could crack that shell open, and he was giving me an opportunity.”

“But that’s not your fault,” Kate said.

“I know that. I just feel like I could have tried harder to draw him out. Sometimes things can be too hard to say out loud.”

Kate chimed in. “I think you’re right. It’s scary to let people in, especially someone you care about and don’t want to lose.”

Rebecca went on. “But still, the clues were all there—the impromptu trip to Copper Mill, the nervous way he was acting—but I didn’t start paying attention until a few days ago. He seemed eager to come here, even though we haven’t even made the trek to New Jersey to meet his family. I think he was trying to get away from those men, but I wonder if he was also trying to forget about something. Maybe he wanted to forget about losing his job, but that seems small compared to whatever it is those two men are after.” She paused and lifted her face in contemplation. “I wish I knew what those men want from Marcus.”

“I was just thinking the same thing,” Kate said. “Has Marcus said anything that might clue us in?”

“I haven’t thought of anything yet,” Rebecca admitted. “There has to be a good reason why those men would travel hundreds of miles in search of him. They claimed Marcus was missing, and now he is missing. I don’t know if that’s just a coincidence, but I hope it is, because if those men had anything to do with his disappearance, they could be doing all sorts of horrible things to Marcus and to Daddy. I couldn’t bear the thought of that.”

She lifted her eyes to Kate’s, then her expression darkened. “There’s something else,” she said. “I know I said earlier that I couldn’t think of Eli as more than a friend...”

“Your feelings have changed?”

“I don’t know. I think so. He’s such a stark contrast to Marcus. He’s an open book, warts and all, and I find that so refreshing. He told me about losing his fiancée and everything that happened after that.”

“That was a difficult time for him,” Kate said.

“And yet he isn’t ashamed of his past. He sees it for what it was, and he’s stronger because of it.”

“That’s what mature people do,” Kate said. “They learn and grow from their mistakes.”

Rebecca nodded and began to twist the corner of the quilted bedspread. “Like I said earlier, Eli’s one of the nicest men I’ve ever met. He’s strong and yet he’s humble. I really admire that about him.” She paused and added, “He reminds me of Daddy.”