It had been a week since the raid on the small town of Cold Plains, and in that week much had happened to forever change Darcy Craven’s life.
Deputy Ford McCall had finally identified Jane Doe as not only being Catherine George, but also the woman who had given birth to Darcy.
Darcy now walked with Rafe through the cemetery where her mother had been buried the day before. Rafe pushed the stroller with Devin gurgling the nonsensical, but pleasant sounds of babyhood.
Darcy carried in her arms a bouquet of daisies. Daisies were Darcy’s favorite flowers and somehow she believed her mother had loved them, too.
Although she was heartbroken that she’d never have the reunion she’d dreamed about with her mother, she was comforted by the fact that her mother had taken her to Louise to protect her, to save her from the evil man who was her father.
It had taken tremendous love and sacrifice for Catherine to leave Darcy behind and in many ways Darcy would be forever grateful to the mother she’d never had the opportunity to get to know.
As they drew closer to the grave site, Rafe stopped at a stone bench nearby. “Go ahead,” he said to her. “Take a little time by yourself.”
She nodded, grateful that he understood her need to just stand, to just be in the spiritual presence of her mother. She walked a few more steps and stopped in front of the headstone that read Catherine George with the years of her birth and death. Below that were the words Beloved Mother.
“Beloved mother,” Darcy whispered softly as she leaned down and gently placed the flowers on the grave. “Thank you for being strong enough, for being brave enough, to save me.” She straightened up, a piercing sadness in her heart, but also a sense of pride. There was no doubt in her mind that, along with her blue eyes, she’d gotten her inner strength from her mother.
She stood there for several minutes, allowing the pain of loss to peak and then slowly recede away. It was time to put the past behind her. She and Rafe had made the decision to stay on in Cold Plains. Rafe wanted to continue his medical practice and she would continue as his receptionist and watch Devin, who had gained her heart the moment he was placed in her arms. Rafe was a good man and Cold Plains was a town that desperately needed good men.
She turned now and gazed at the two men who held not only her heart, but also her future. Rafe smiled and suddenly she wanted away from this place. Yes, it was time to put the past behind her and focus on the future, her wonderful future with Rafe and Devin.
* * *
“All done,” the man said as he took the cape off Micah’s shoulders and brushed him down with a soft-bristled brush. When he was finished, Micah stood and straightened the collar of the white dress shirt he wore. The shirt cost more than any item of clothing Micah had ever owned, as did the suit coat he shrugged on. It was like donning another man’s skin.
As the barber left him alone in the room, Micah closed his eyes and thought of Olivia and her boys. They had settled back in the house where she’d lived before her world had exploded apart and Micah couldn’t wait for the time they could be together again and that was going to be soon…very soon.
He’d been told that while things were relatively calm in Cold Plains, everyone appeared to be uneasy, waiting to see what happened next. They were a flock without a shepherd, a group of bewildered people seeking leadership.
Micah knew what happened next.
He slowly turned around and gazed at his reflection in the dresser mirror. The barber had done a perfect job styling his new short haircut. The suit fit him as if tailored specifically for him.
The resemblance was now uncanny. The flock needed a shepherd and he was about to return.
Micah smiled at his reflection, aware that his new mission was about to begin. “Hello, Samuel,” he said softly.
* * * * *