A MINI FAMILY reunion was taking place on the back row of Kingdom Builders Christian Center. For the longest time, Joanne and Josiah sat in a solid embrace. Joanne’s tears soaked the shoulder of Josiah’s expensive suit jacket, and although he didn’t weep as heavily as his foster mother, a thin trail of moisture streaked Josiah’s cheeks too. No doubt, the lingering members wondered what was going on with the two of them, but no one interrupted the scene.

When Joanne finally released him, she placed a hand on each of Josiah’s cheeks and stared at him as though there might be a chance that she was seeing things. She was at a loss for words. Josiah would have broken the silence, but words escaped him too.

“What are you doing here?” Joanne mouthed the words more than spoke them. Her faint whisper could barely be heard.

Josiah removed her hands from his face and brought them to his lips, placing a gentle kiss to each of them. He’d found the only real mother he’d ever had. “I came hoping to find you and Dad,” he answered.

In one swift move, Joanne jerked her hands away from him. At first Josiah thought that he had offended her by the parental title he’d used, but then she grabbed at the purse that hung from the strap on her shoulder and said, “Your daddy is gonna have a fit.” She was laughing and crying at the same time. “He’s gonna think I’ve finally lost my mind.”

Josiah watched as she pulled a cell phone from her pocketbook, and he could only guess that she was getting ready to call his foster father. She dialed a few numbers and then held the phone to her ear.

“Tom, get out here.” New tears were coming as she spoke. With her free hand, she held one of Josiah’s as though she thought he’d leave if she didn’t. “Get out here as fast as you can. I got a surprise for you,” she said. There was a brief pause, and then she spoke again. “No no no … I’m all right. It’s a good cry. Come on now. Let the other deacons take care of the money today. You got something better to do. I’m sitting in the back row.”

The latter part of the conversation told Josiah that his foster father was in the building. His heart was already pounding, and now it was drumming harder. This was almost too much to take in at once. He hadn’t expected it to happen like this.

“When you walked around to the offering basket, I knew it was you,” Joanne said. “To this day, I’ve never seen a man with eyes quite the color of yours. Not a black man. Those eyes will give you away every time.” She exhaled and placed her hand over her chest like her heart was about to explode. “Look at my baby,” she exclaimed, leaning away from him as though making an attempt to get a panoramic view. “I can’t believe it.”

The sanctuary was empty now, and the sound that the side door made when it was forcefully pushed open, echoed throughout the church.

“Joanne?”

Thomas had brought backup. A much younger, slightly taller man walked behind him as he headed toward where they sat.

“Is everything okay?” Thomas’s eyes darted from Joanne to Josiah, and then back to his wife again. “What’s going on, baby?” It was clear that the tears in Joanne’s eyes concerned him.

“Look.” Joanne’s bottom lips trembled as she spoke the word. When Thomas appeared confused, she used her hand to lift Josiah’s chin and turn his face toward the men who stood beside the pew. “Look, Tom,” she stressed. “Look at those eyes.”

Reality didn’t come as quickly for Thomas as it had for his wife. He took a pair of glasses out of one of the inside pockets of his suit coat and placed them on his face. His eyes said it couldn’t be who he thought it was, and Thomas leaned in closer for verification. Then without a word, he removed the frames from his face and handed them to his quiet, but observant bodyguard.

“Hey, Dad.” Josiah didn’t know how long he’d be able to imprison the rush of tears that begged for parole.

“Don’t you ‘Hey, Dad’ me, boy. Get up from there and give your old man a hug!”

Josiah had barely made it to his feet before Thomas pinned him in a bear hug. For a man who had to be in his midsixties, Thomas was strong. He lifted Josiah from the floor and turned him in a full circle before setting him back down and releasing him. Josiah was impressed by his physical power.

“JT … Josiah Tucker!” Thomas looked at him from head to toe. “Look at you. A grown man. And a good-looking one too. What you been up to, son? What are you doing here? How long are you gonna be here? Look at you!” He hugged him again, and the exuberant pats he delivered to Josiah’s back were almost painful.

Josiah hadn’t felt this much love since … well, since the last time he saw his foster parents. Josiah wiped away a tear. “I’m on vacation, and I thought I’d come and try to look you all up. I wanted … I needed to see you again. I hope I’m not imposing at all. I just—”

“Imposing?” Joanne’s voice shrieked. She was standing at his side in no time flat, and her eyes punished him. “You can never be an imposition, and don’t you ever let me hear you say that again.” She reached up and used her thumb to erase the remaining moisture that the tear had left on his right cheek.

“Yes ma’am.” Rising emotions made Josiah’s smile unsteady. Somehow it felt good to be reprimanded. Maybe because he hadn’t been chastised by a parent in years. Maybe because he hadn’t had a parent in years. “I’ll be here for at least a week. I have some days to play with.”

“Well, we’re glad to have you.” Thomas looked over his shoulder, and then looked back at Josiah. “You know who this is, right?” he asked, pointing at his bodyguard.

Josiah looked at the man and slowly shook his head. “I don’t remember. I guess it’s been too long.”

Joanne’s giggle made Josiah feel silly. It was apparent that he should have known the man. Instead of either of them revealing the mystery, Joanne walked toward the young man and pointed at Josiah.

“Do you remember him?” she asked.

Like Josiah, the young man shook his head. His eyes darted to the floor, and he suddenly appeared a lot less threatening than when he first approached.

The proverbial timer went off, and since neither man was able to answer the question, Thomas let them off the hook.

“JT, this is Sam. You remember Sam … Sammy, don’t you?”

Stunned, Josiah stared. The last time he saw the man, he must have been four or five years old. Now the two of them were virtually the same height. “Sammy? My brother Sammy?”

“One and the same,” Joanne sang. “Sam, this is JT.” She spoke slowly like he was hard of hearing. “You haven’t seen him since you were little, but this is your big brother.”

Grinning, Sammy said, “Hey, my big brudda,” and then flung himself at Josiah without further warning. Josiah laughed as he embraced him.

“We found out he’s autistic.” Thomas whispered the words in Josiah’s ear as he helped peel Sammy away.

The inside lights flickered, and they all knew that it was a sign that the security was ready to lock up the church. Together, they walked out. Joanne had her arm secure around Josiah’s back, and Thomas held on to Sammy’s arm.

“You’re coming to the house for dinner, right?” Thomas’s voice asked a question, but his eyes made a statement.

“Oh definitely,” Joanne said.

“I’d love to,” Josiah replied. “I haven’t had cooking like Ma’s since I left.”

When they made it to Josiah’s car, Thomas let out a long whistle. “Either you robbed a bank or God’s been good to you.”

“He’s been very good,” Josiah confirmed with a laugh.

“You certainly have to catch us up on what you’ve been up to,” Joanne said as she walked around the car. “I’m scared to even touch this thing. Step back, Sam.” She added the warning when he got too close for comfort.

“He’s okay, Mama,” Josiah said.

“We’re in the Cadillac over there.” Thomas pointed at one of the few cars still parked in the distance. “Follow us to the house. I’m sure you won’t have any problems keeping up. Not in that rocket.”

Josiah laughed out loud as he climbed into his Audi and secured himself in the seatbelt. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this happy. This trip to Atlanta was just what the doctor ordered, and everything was turning out even better than he expected. He’d found both his foster parents—alive and well, and he had reconnected with one of the foster brothers who’d also shared their home. Now he was on his way to have Sunday dinner with his family.

His family.

Josiah felt like a new man as he merged his car onto Candler Road behind the grey Cadillac that his father drove. He turned on his radio, found 102.5 on the dial, and cranked up the music as loud as he could stand it. For the first time in fifteen years, all was right with the world. There was nothing that could happen from this point on that he couldn’t handle.

Or so it seemed.