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"Will you guys come in and have something to eat? Is your mother still coming?"
Arlana avoided Lachlan's eyes once her parent's car had disappeared from view, directing her questions at Josiah. The tension in the air was palpable.
"Yes she is and we will be in within a few minutes," Josiah skipped the two stairs, holding the old wooden door open for her.
Shutting the door behind her, Josiah turned to Lachlan, "What are you doing here?"
Josiah instinctively turned his back to the house as though daring Lachlan to try anything. Once best friends, their friendship seemed as though to lay in ruins.
"You can't make this decision for her," Lachlan stood his ground, "You can't force her to love you."
"I'm not forcing her at all. She belongs to me - my wife."
Josiah clenched his fist inside his pocket.
In a perfect world, he wouldn't have to stand up for his marriage, never imagining the day would come when Lachlan would defy him, fighting for Arlana. What had happened? Why hadn't he seen the signs?
Lachlan shook his head, leaning on the veranda's pillar.
"Nothing happened between us, Josiah. I simply was taking care of her for you - isn't that what you asked?"
"I was home..."
"She needed a change of scenery and wanted to give taking pictures for The Resistance a try..."
"You should have brought her back. Anything could have happened - it is too dangerous on the frontlines," a muscle clenched in Josiah's jaw, his face drawn.
Dark circles under his eyes had painted a telltale mark of sleepless nights.
"I know she is your wife and I was just trying to help her. It is not my place to interfere or betray her secrets. She will tell you when she is ready...all I can say is going to Renfrew isn't a good idea."
Josiah raised an eyebrow but said nothing. When would Arlana trust him enough to share her heart? What did Lachlan know? And how was it that his friend knew more about Arlana than he did?
Lachlan seemed to read Josiah's mind. That happens sometimes when you've been friends since childhood.
"I can't betray Arlana's confidence, but she needed you to be there for her after the funeral. The fact is, you really needed to have taken her, regardless of your beliefs. You haven't been there either emotionally or physically from what I have observed. She needed you."
Josiah had to admit that Lachlan spoke the truth.
Lachlan's words stung, but he had no way of knowing why Josiah was absent. "I would have brought her back after the two days I swear, but she was blossoming working with me. I never would have let any harm come to her..." his voice caught, "Arlana must give up her identity to marry you. Can you not see how she just might struggle with such a thing? You are asking her to give up everything she knows along with who she is. I believe she has the right to take her time deciding if this is something she really wants."
Josiah nodded. He should have trusted Lachlan. Ideally, he needed to give her time, but because she had conceived, time had run out.
****
"THANK YOU FOR WATCHING out for my family," Josiah placed his hand on Lachlan's shoulder for a moment.
Lachlan didn't tell Josiah he had fallen in love with Arlana or the real reason she had left. Some things were better left unsaid.
Rivkah smiled as she approached, delighted to see the men speaking amiably once again.
The scent of bread baking was tantalizing. The men rose, joining Rivkah as she entered the house.
****
JOSIAH HAD TO ADMIT Lachlan was right. Arlana could terminate their marriage, but would she? Especially when she carried their baby? It would be much different if she hadn't gotten pregnant, nothing to physically tie her to Josiah other than her honour and loyalty. Josiah hated to admit it to himself, but the nagging doubt since she ran still plagued him. Would she ever have come back?
Rivkah felt Josiah's desperation keenly.
"You can't give up on your family," she stated the obvious once they were back home.
"Of course I wouldn't," he sat across from his mother, "But I'm not going to force her to be loyal to me either. She has my baby and I won't turn my back on either of the children, but her decision will affect far more than just she and I."
"If she has the baby before she converts, the little one will be a Gentile. Time is running out son," Rivkha rubbed her forehead, "She isn't ready. I had hoped by now you'd have had your wedding, but since she ran, everything changed. Has she talked with you about it?"
Josiah shook his head, "Her family have invited her to join them in Renfrew for the next two days. They've paid for the hotel. She leaves tomorrow, but before they left, her parents invited Lachlan and I to join them. I'm sure they were just being polite..." he looked away, "I'll be sure to drive her up first thing tomorrow morning."
"I'll never leave her again," his jaw set in firm resolution.
"I'm not sure about this," Rivkah stood as the timer on the stove rang, "My spirit is troubled over the whole situation. You need to help her of course, but she needs to be ready before the baby comes. What if you take her to Israel sooner? Away from here..."
****
WILLIAM HUFFED, CLIMBING into bed beside Jaira. Wrapping her arms around her chest, Jaira turned her back on her husband. How could she love a man with such a hard heart? Had God himself hardened his heart like Pharoah? It was more than possible. They didn't have a future. Unequally yoked and barren, Jaira was at a loss of what to do. Arlana was silent, not bothering to reply to the letter she'd sent over a month before. She'd talk with Adelaide in the morning. Life had taken a turn, the sisters being closer than ever.
****
"WOULD WILLIAM ALLOW you to come down for a week? I've run it by Gavin and he is fine with it. The children would love to see you - it's been so long! I think you might need a change of scenery and going to church would be really good for you."
Adelaide was the only family member who had somehow managed to stay out of William's black book which was really quite the feat.
William just shrugged when she brought up the topic during his lunch break. He wolfed down each bite, staring at his cell phone screen. Jaira's presence was all but forgotten.
"It'd only be for a week and I would use my birthday money."
Had his bony shoulders shrugged? Nearly twenty years older than his wife, he wasn't much to look at. A chain smoker, his face was sunken in and his heart was as hard as lead. There had never been sparks between them and after all these years of marriage, Jaira had lost hope of there ever being any romance between her and her husband.
"Fine," William finally looked up, glancing at the clock on the wall just over her shoulder, "Order the tickets online this afternoon. I'll drive you in the morning."
William picked at meat stuck between his teeth, using his fingers, then wiped his fingers on his pants before heading back out the door without so much as a goodbye.
Jaira didn't care. She couldn't wait to let Adelaide know the good news. She was coming.
****
SHEILA THRIVED ON DRAMA, her fingers flying across the phone keyboard bringing her sister and daughter up to date.
Jaira had met Josiah months before but hadn't known the truth. There was much more to the friendly neighbours than she had been led to believe. She would have been upset before at being kept in the dark, but none of that mattered now. She was a transformed soul, although she couldn't deny a twinge of familiar jealousy when Adelaide relayed the message that Arlana was pregnant. Why should her womb be empty? She whispered for the spirit of jealousy to go in Jesus' Name, but still wasn't looking forward to seeing the new baby. Demonic spirit? Maybe. But she couldn't shake it. She had another hour left before her scheduled prayer time, deciding to deal with that matter then.
"What are we going to do?' Adelaide sent the message to her mother.
"We have to find out more about this marriage. Josiah said they hadn't had the wedding yet. Maybe there is still a chance to get her away from this guy. I don't want a Christ-Killer in our family," she paused a moment to look out the window as a transport truck drove much too close to their small, rental car. "I noticed a connection between Arlana and Lachlan..."
"That's the guy who drove us to the funeral," Jaira informed her sister, not realizing they'd already met at the mission, "Ya, I can see it. There was definitely something between them. Maybe the baby is actually his," she did some mental math, "There was more chemistry between them than this Josiah guy. I wouldn't doubt they had an affair, so ya, I'd go with Lachlan."
It was settled. This was a serious matter. They'd do everything they could to get Josiah out of the family if he wouldn't convert. Even if he did convert, he was still a blot upon the family. A Jew was a Jew regardless of their religion, under the curse for killing Jesus.
Josiah ran his fingers through his hair but listened.