And Then Came A Lion (Lions and Lambs Book 1) (17 page)

Susannah decided there was something soothing about immersing her hands in potting soil, surrounded with aromas from the various foliage, add in Ginny’s collection of easy listening and relaxation CDs, and the atmosphere was very relaxing.

Some scoffed at Ginny’s choice of music, but she shrugged them off. “The hard stuff isn’t good for humans and definitely not for the plants.”

Susannah favored the recordings with nature sounds, and played one CD in particular repeatedly. She liked the sound of the birds and the gurgling creek, with just a little flute music in the background. She imagined being out in the woods, camping, far away from the city, from the loneliness and heartache. It reminded her of camping with her folks when she was little. She felt safe then, her whole life spread out in front of her.

She paused, resting her hands against the pot. Would she ever feel that again? Of be being loved ― and safe? Shaking her head, she went back to work.

At noon, she fetched her lunch bag from the car, carried it to the back porch, and sat in the swing.

Ginny’s yard was a feast for the eyes with acres of lawns, flower gardens, and trees. Susannah guessed there had to be thousands of plants spread out front and back. Who tended it all? Ginny hadn’t said anything about yard work.

Susannah unwrapped her chicken sandwich and took a bite. Life was odd. A few months back, the thought of her going to Africa, or working in a greenhouse, was beyond her imagination. Now look at her, a veteran African missionary, of sorts, and a gardener. Yes, life was strange.

Something touched her foot, a tiny calico. The small feline contorted around Susannah’s ankles in a desperate ploy for a treat. Pinching off a small piece of the chicken, she held it out. The feline snatched the morsel from her hand with such ferocity Susannah inspected her fingers for damage. Amazingly all were intact and bloodless.

“So, you must be the infamous Tiger Lily Rachel told me about. Tiny but mighty.”

Seconds later the rest of the menagerie materialized, two other cats, both Burmese, Susannah guessed from their size and coloring, and the mutt Rachel had mentioned. What was his name? Oh yeah, Rufus. Hard to tell what mix he was, but definitely large breeds.

Susannah tried to ignore the woeful eyes following every move of her hand, gave up after only a few minutes, and handed out the last half of her sandwich.

After putting her things back into the car, she headed out to the gardens. It was then she realized her mistake. The menagerie followed on her heels, lined up in a single row. Tiger Lily was first and then the two Burmese, with Rufus bringing up the rear. Everywhere she went, they went. When Susannah turned on the hose, Tiger Lily lay down under the stream. She shook her head. A cat who loved water.

The animals fought to get close and be petted when she knelt to pull weeds.

She stood and put her hands on her hips. “Hey, you guys. At this rate it’ll take me hours to finish.”

Spying a tool shed, she quickly chose mechanical assistance. The moment the small rototiller growled to life, the menagerie disappeared. Better choice anyway, with the mechanized help, she would be done in half the time it would have taken her by hand. Correction, a quarter of the time with the menagerie factored in.

Pausing at the end of the last row, she wiped her brow and looked toward the front of the house. A car slowed, and a boy tossed out the evening paper. A misty veil dropped. The center thinned, sharpened. A boy of about twelve stood on the front porch of an older home. A middle-aged man argued with the boy. Slowly, as if the volume on a TV set gradually turned up, Susannah heard the conversation.

“Sir, I just need this month’s paper collection. I can’t help you with any chores.”

“Don’t have time to help a good customer with a little task?”

“I’m sorry, Sir. I can’t. My mom is expecting me.”

“Well, she’ll just have to wait.”

The man reached out, grabbed the boy, and dragged him inside. The scene panned back until Susannah could clearly see the house number and the street sign. The incident was to take place in a half hour.

Susannah shoved the rototiller back to the shed, latched the door, and flew through the other lock down procedures. She ran to her car and backed out of the driveway, resisting the urge to floor the gas pedal. It wouldn’t do to leave skid marks in her new boss’s driveway, or get a speeding ticket. She’d never make it on time then.

An agonizing twenty minutes later, she pulled opposite the house. The boy was just entering the yard.

Now what, cause a distraction, or tell the boy not to go up to the door? She didn’t think to bring her pepper spray and vowed to carry it with her, always.

Susannah put on her Bluetooth earpiece, opened the glove box, and pulled out a city map. She pretended to study it while she watched the boy walk up to the porch and knock. The man opened the door. The argument commenced.

Susannah voice dialed 911 and gave the dispatcher the house address and the nature of the emergency. She then drove down another block, made a U-turn, and parked about a half block down, hopefully far enough not to be noticed by the police, yet close enough she could see what happened.

An ugly feeling descended. Things were going badly inside the house and the police were taking too long to respond. She had to do something, yet she had no gun, no weapon of any sort. She noticed several good-sized chunks of concrete lying beside a loose a section of sidewalk. They would do.

She approached the house. Knock or force her way in? She eyed the large front window. It would at least get his attention and with some luck he’d let go of the boy and come out. They might arrested her for vandalism, but that was a small thing to trade for the boy’s life.

Susannah threw the stone as if pitching a baseball. The concrete arced over the fence, the front porch, and landed squarely in the center of the window. The glass shattered, scattering shards over the porch, the walk, and the lawn. Within seconds, the man was at the door, screaming expletives at her.

Susannah cut him off. “Let the boy go. I saw you pull him into the house. Let him go.”

“Are you nuts? Go away before I shoot you.”

“Shoot me then. I have the police dispatcher on the phone right now. She has your address and she is listening to everything we’re saying. So, let the boy go.”

The man came down the steps. Susannah waited until she was certain he was close enough not to miss, and chucked her last weapon dead center of his face.

The man dropped as if shot. Susannah skirted around the unconscious man and ran into the house. The boy was lying in one of the back bedrooms, blood oozing from his mouth and his nose. She felt for a pulse. Satisfied he’d live, she slipped out the back door.

The first cruiser turned the corner as she emerged from the backyard into the alleyway. None of the officers noticed when she pulled away from the curb and turned onto a side street.

***

Rachel shook her head, reached over her kitchen counter, and picked up the carafe. “Susannah, you were so lucky. If you’d missed, things could have turned out much worse.” She poured more coffee in both cups.

“I know I took a huge risk today, but I couldn’t just sit there knowing the man was hurting the boy. Who knows what he would have done before the police arrived.”

“Actually, I would have done the same thing, Susannah. I couldn’t sit there knowing the kid was hurt, either. What I don’t understand is how he expected to get away with it, or how
you
will get away with it this time. He got a good look at you.”

“True, but I fit the description of a lot of women. And I think he has more things to worry about than the identity of the woman who knocked him out.”

Rachel shook her head. “And broke his window. You don’t know which ones will look for revenge, Susannah, or who might try to sue you, or press charges for battery, or whatever they call it. It probably won’t take long for the police to find you. You’re playing with fire.”

“I know, but what else could I do? Besides, I am not doing all of this on my own. I have some advantages.”

“Well, I guess this is another instance where faith flies in the face of reason. Still, I wish there was someone with training and authority who could actually follow up on your premonitions and handle the rescues, or at least advise
you
on how to proceed.”

“I do too, Rachel. But no police officer is going to listen to me.”

“I guess I’d have to agree with you there. You’d have to prove it somehow.”

“And that is exactly where I get stuck, every time.”

“So what now?”

“The same old routine, until something better comes along.” Susannah stood, walked to the sink, and rinsed out her cup. “I’d better get home. Poor Buddy’s been there alone all day and it’s a ways past his dinner time.”

Rachel nodded. “Be careful and call me. I don’t care what time of day or night.”

Susannah smiled, waved, and stepped out the door.

Buddy was waiting beside the kitchen door. After the usual mauling, Susannah fed him, warmed up a frozen dinner, and went into the den. She flipped through TV channels until she found an old black and white comedy. The program was just enough of a distraction to keep her thoughts away from Mark and dark things that made noises in the middle of the night, and monsters that prowled the streets.

***

The next morning, Susannah took her coffee to the breakfast nook and gestured for Buddy to jump up beside her. She laid her head against his.

“Oh, Buddy, I
have
been lucky so far, but what about the next time? What if I really do mess up, and someone gets killed? I don’t think I could live with that. And, what about this Daniel, this hero who’s going to save me from lions and demons? When is he going to show up? Then, the better question was
will
he show up, ever?”

She gave Buddy’s ears one last rub and picked up her devotions. The first listed reading was from Hebrews 13: 1-8. “And hospitality do not forget; for by this some, being not aware of it have entertained angels.”

Below the scripture was a poem. The third verse spoke of a surprise of love, pre-planned by God, just for her.

She wanted that with all of her heart, but at the same time was terrified of it. If she couldn’t trust her partner with everything, then was it the right relationship? She loved Mark, and yet she couldn’t share the most important aspect of her life, the one area where she needed the most help. How would another relationship be any different?

She turned to the next listed reading, Psalm 27, again. “The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The Lord is the protector of my life: of whom shall I be afraid? If armies in camp should stand together against me, my heart shall not fear. If a battle should rise up against me, in this I will be confident. For he has hidden me in his tabernacle: in the day of evils, he has protected me in the secret place of his tabernacle.”

This led right back to faith, where it all began, and where it all ended. After her vision of the inferno, one would think the fact would stay with her instead of always needing repeating.

She laid the book aside and picked up another favorite. 

The Lord is my shepherd…

Ginny met Susannah when she pulled into the driveway. “Before you start, I’d like to talk to you. Please come in for a moment.”

Had she forgotten something when she left? She had been in a hurry, but she had tried to be thorough.

Ginny motioned to the kitchen table. “Take a seat. I’ll get coffee.” She brought two mugs to the kitchen table. “Cream, no sugar, right?”

“Right.”

Susannah struggled to keep a neutral face. What could she have done ― or not done?

“Something happened Friday as you finished up.”

“Did I forget to do something?”

“No.”

“Okay.”

“Now, I don’t want you to be angry with Rachel. She didn’t break any confidences, but my neighbor called the shop concerned there was an emergency. You flew out of here much faster than you usually do, and she was worried. I tried to call your house, but got the answering machine. You didn’t answer your cell phone either, so I mentioned it to Rachel.”

Here it comes… “And?”

“And, she told me you have premonitions. She didn’t say what, or give any details, but did mention you often have an opportunity to stop bad things from happening, and one of the appealing benefits of this job was the flexibility of hours.”

“The flexible hours are a nice addition.”

“So, I am curious, Susannah, but not as a boss. I belong to Spokane’s Psychic Sciences Club.”

“Psychic Sciences?”

“Yes. We study paranormal phenomena from a scientific approach. Keeping an open mind, we validate or debunk claims. I am curious about your experiences, and the club may be able to assist somehow.”

“So, you’re saying you believe in psychic phenomena?”

“I’ve seen enough to validate some claims. Some things are too uncanny to discount, while others…” She shrugged. “That’s where the science comes in. I have unfortunately never had an experience, but have spoken to many who have, and I know it can be frightening. It helps to talk, to share, and, if possible, be supported.”

“Only my folks and Rachel know, but after observing the negative reactions of most people, I’ve learned not to share.”

Except for some wonderful people I met in Africa.

“It is true, Susannah, many are skeptical of things they do not understand, and of course, the famous charlatans haven’t helped. Even those who have shown psychic ability and have gained some notoriety, have their detractors.”

Susannah shook her head. “Making a profit from it is not what I think is the right use of the gift, or whatever you want to call it. Besides, I have no control over it. It just happens. I can’t force it, or manipulate it, like those famous psychics claim they can.”

“There are as many variances as there are people. Some are legit and others are fleecing the public. We believe we can make a difference by weeding out the crooks, and substantiating those who do see into the spiritual world.

“Rachel said you take great risks, and she worries something horrible might happen. She believes you need a partner, someone with expertise who could help. I’d like to help, if I can.”

“How can you help?"

“I know someone with the right training, and he’d be the perfect partner, if you could find some way to convince him of the validity of your premonitions. He is what I call a paranormal skeptic. Then, we are all in some ways.”

“I’m right back in the same spot, trying to convince someone with nothing more than my word. Just out of curiosity, who is he?”

“He’s a Secret Service Agent assigned here to the Spokane office.”

“He would definitely have the experience and expertise I need, but ―”

“And there’s more. Val and I met while attending Gonzaga. He was in Criminal Justice with my brother, Dave. We all hung out with a group of mutual friends. After college, Val went into the Secret Service and Dave joined the Bellevue police force, but they’ve stayed best friends.

“Any way, long story short, Val is a kind man, loving and generous to those who can get inside his personal circle. Many do not make it. He is careful about who he allows to get close, probably the result of being in law enforcement. Most officers only trust a tight circle of associates, and are skeptical of anything not proven with absolute, irrefutable facts.”

“The supernatural is hard to prove, except in rare cases.”

Ginny nodded. “That is true, but I think before that happens, the exchange of expertise, I think you both need a relationship. Both, talented, sweet, lonely people who should have someone special in their lives. So, I thought I’d arrange a meeting. You never know until you give it a try.”

“I don’t know.” Part of her was screaming, yes! The other part was horrified at the thought of getting into another relationship. Was she ready? “He’s probably involved with someone.”

“No. He hasn’t dated much in a long time. Dave tells me Val hasn’t met anyone he would want to see on a regular basis. You could be the very one he’s been holding out for. Once you two become involved, he would not only be a good romantic partner, but excellent with your other problem too.”

“Oh, Ginny. I don’t know. That sounds like a set up. Poor guy.”

“No, honestly it wouldn’t. Dave’s coming down for the weekend and I’ve invited Val for dinner on Saturday night. You come too, and we’ll see what happens.”

“With just the four of us, it will look like a set up.”

“Well, just think about. I’ll be having Val over while Dave is down anyway.” She gathered her purse and keys from the counter. “I’ve got to run. But, at least think about it.” She stepped over to the door.

Susannah followed her out, waved as Ginny pulled out onto the road, and walked over to the greenhouses. She pushed the invitation to the back of her mind and concentrated on her tasks.

At noon, she cleaned up and carried her lunch to the back porch. The menagerie gathered in their usual places, eagerly waiting for their portion.

Her cell phone rang.

“I thought you’d be sitting on the porch about now.”

“Yep, all eight pairs of eyes pleading for the last half of my sandwich. I started packing an extra half – without condiments.”

Ginny laughed. “No wonder they ogle me at dinner.”

“What’s up?”

“Two things. First, after lunch, come down to the shop. I’d like to get you started on the displays, and second, about Saturday, I’ve changed my mind.”

“Really? That’s okay by me. I’ve been half sick thinking about it.”

“Pretty much what Rachel said you’d be feeling, and being too polite to protest, you’d back out at the last minute. So, instead, I’m inviting Rachel and Frank, and a couple of other friends over for a barbeque on Sunday. That way it won’t be a setup. It will just be a group of my friends. I normally do this when both Val and Dave are down anyway, and I would invite you regardless of my ulterior motives.”

Susannah laughed, and then said, “So you admit to being a matchmaker.”

“Only in this case. Oh, and Rachel says just plan on riding with them. Yes, Billy and Molly are coming too.”

“I don’t know.”

“Forget the introduction. Just come and visit with everyone. I promise I won’t do anything to embarrass you – or Val for that matter. I would never hear the end of it from him or Dave. It will just be a group of friends having a barbeque. I will probably invite the neighbors too.”

“Well, in that case―”

“Great! See you here in the store in a bit.”

Susannah pushed the off button on the phone and put it back in her pocket. Did she really want to do this? One part of her did. Val could be her Daniel, her Tobias, the man she would share the rest of her life with as the old Indian promised, or was this only another case of false hope? 

The menagerie was still staring at her lunch sack with hopeful expressions.

“Okay, okay.”

She reached into the sack and pulled out the sandwich she’d made for them, tore the bread into four equal bites. She gave one to Rufus, then one each to the Burmese, and held out the last bit for Tiger Lily. She sniffed at her morsel and turned her nose away.

“Wow, aren’t we a picky one today. Jealous because I gave bites to the others first? You know, Mark was right. Cats and women are a lot alike. Both are hard to read books with fine print for the fine print.”

She scratched Rufus’s ears. “Men on the other hand are like dogs. Not only do their books have large print, they have pictures and diagrams as well.”

Well, it may not be true of all men. This Val sounded about as complicated as they come. But, more than that, she still missed Mark. Did she have room in her heart for another?

She had read a passage in one of her devotions on grief. There wasn’t any sin in grieving, but staying locked in that deep emotion wasn’t healthy for mind, body, or soul. However, as with other painful things, part of the loss would always be there, but she would have to live with it. All great lives were deeply etched with sorrow and suffering.

That may be true of the spiritual giants, but she wasn’t a giant in anything. She was weak, scared, and unsure.

She stood abruptly, scattering the menagerie to the four corners of the porch. This kind of thinking would only lead to sadness and it was too pretty of a day to feel sad. She needed to think about her blessings: good job, friends, and a nice home.

“Well, Tiger Lily, do you want this bit of sandwich or not? I’ll give it to the squirrels if you don’t take it.”

Before Susannah could drop the piece, a paw snaked out, snagged the bread along with part of her finger. “Ow! I forgot you take blood with your food.”

After a close inspection of her finger, she decided the damage was only superficial and packed up the remains of her lunch. She walked to the car, stowed her lunch sack in the backseat, and drove down to the shop.

She worked on the display window the rest of the afternoon. Ginny didn’t press her about Val and didn’t mention the barbeque. With so many people coming, it really wasn’t a setup. So, it might not hurt to at least meet the man, and who knows, she might get a chance to ask him some professional questions, in some discrete way. Surely a woman living alone would could use some security advice.

Then, was that ethical in a social setting? Was it like asking a doctor or a lawyer for a free consultation? If that was the case, then what about Ginny’s brother, Dave? He was a police officer. He would have similar expertise, but then that would be the same as asking Val, wouldn’t it?

Who was she fooling, certainly not herself, or anyone else. She was pushing the man away before she even met him. So, just go to the barbeque. Enjoy the food, the conversation, and all the company. Let everything else go.

She stood, stretched, and looked at her watch. Ginny would be closing the shop in a few minutes.

After putting away the extra stock, she poked her head into Ginny’s office. “The display is finished. Is there anything else you’d like done before I head home?”

Ginny looked up from a huge book of herbs she had lying open on her desk. “That time already? No, go on home. I’m going to stay a while. Tell Rachel she can lock up and finish the order lists tomorrow.”

“Will do. Night.”

Ginny nodded, her attention diverted back to the book.

Susannah waited for Rachel to lock up and followed her out to the parking lot. She paused beside the car.

“What do you think of Ginny’s little barbeque?”

Rachel shrugged. “I think it will be fun. No need to get anxious over meeting a few new people.”

“Right. You don’t think it’s too soon? Shouldn’t I grieve a whole year before even entertaining the idea of meeting someone?”

“I think it’s the right time when you feel it is. Just wait and see what happens. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.”

“Well, true.”

“Address the issue if it becomes an issue.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. After all, the man might not even show up.”

Rachel shook her head. “I’m not even going to acknowledge that. Now go home, feed Buddy, and think about something else.” She climbed into her car, waved, and pulled out into the street.