i know what prayer can do (serial novel)

8/9/2019 I Know What Prayer Can Do (Serial Novel)

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Copyright 2015. Torch Legacy Publications. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or

transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,

recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner,

except for brief quotations included in a review of the book. This is a work of

fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the

author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or

locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.


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Chapter 1

Aubrey Cressida Rodney. It certainly has a ring to it,Aubrey

thought upon awaking on the last day of her two week honeymoon.

She looked across at her husband, Quintin Rodney. She listened to

his gentle breathing as she observed the slight rising and falling of his

chest. Climbing quietly out of bed so as not to disturb him, she pulledthe curtains slightly apart to take in a final view of the dawn skyline in

the city of ammam, Saudi Arabia, from the ammam !alace "otel.

#he sun was not fully up, but the city was well lit$enough to paint an

unforgettable picture.

God, Youve been real good to me,Aubrey thought as she

rested her forehead against the cool window pane. %#hank &ou, 'od,

for being so good to me,( she whispered. Aubrey thought of how 'od

delivered her from an abusive marriage that could have ended in her

death. She thought of how 'od delivered her from a bad relationship

with Roger as she was on the verge of possibly making another tragic

mistake. Thank You, God, for true friends for !imone and "elvin#

$lease bless them today% for "elli and Trevor#$lease bless them

today and heal their son, &ustin, of 'hatever may be ailing him% for

&ennifer#have things to 'ork out bet'een her and (rad. )ord,

$lease $rotect *other 'hile 'e are a'ay. And thank You for blessing

me 'ith a great husband. Amen.

&ou are a million miles away,( her husband said slipping his

arms around her waist from behind.

)hen did you get up*( Aubrey said snuggling up to him.

)hen + did not feel your warm body up against mine,( he said


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tightening his arms around her. %"ow has it felt to be rs. Aubrey

Rodney these past two weeks*(

+ can-t even put it into words( Aubrey replied. %All + can say is,

'od has been good to me$better than good.(

"e has/ "e-s blessed you with a great husband,( Quintin

chuckled. "e kissed her on the cheek. %Seriously though, "e-s been

good to me, too. + love you so much.(

+ love you, too,( Aubrey said.

&ou led a very interesting and active life before we got

married. #here was never a dull moment around you. + can-t wait to

see what married life is going to bring us,( he said.

Aubrey chuckled. %+ can-t wait to see either.(

After watching the city come to life, Quintin said, %)ell, we have

about seven hours before our return flight home. Anywhere special

you want to go*(

Surprise me,( Aubrey said pulling the curtain shut.

&ou betcha,( Quintin said.

Aubrey placed a call to her mother while her husband took ashower.

other, it-s so good to hear your voice,( Aubrey said. %+f

nothing happens we should be home as scheduled. Anything

interesting happened while we-ve been away*(

+ know everyone is eager for you to return,( other 0amisonsaid. %A number of the ladies who attend the Restoration Reset

inistry are wondering whether or not you will be leaving t. Salem

1nited ethodist to worship at your husband-s church.(

&ou can tell them not to worry anymore. Quintin-s already


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decided to switch his membership to t. Salem. !lus, + could still

head that ministry even if + was to worship at Quintin-s church,(

Aubrey said. %"ave you heard anything from 2iera* She-s been on

my mind.(

3rom its beginning, 2iera 'ilard was one of the first ladies to

attend the Restoration Reset inistry. #he Restoration Reset inistry,

birthed out of Aubrey-s abusive marriage, which ended in the death of

her first husband, was meant to be a source of encouragement to

other ladies who felt trapped in similar relationships. +t had grown to

become a local household name and its doors were now opened to

all women. %4ne thing + have learned from that marriage is this5 a

husband and wife both have to do marriage 'od-s way, or it is not

going to be a smooth ride for either,( she often reminded the ladies.

#he Restoration Reset inistry-s first aim was to encourage

wives to remain in their marriages and to try to make it work

ultimately for the glory of 'od, and then for the sake of the children in

that marriage. !hilippians 6578 was one of its main verses5 %+ can do

all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.(

2iera and her husband, 9ric, were separated when Aubrey first

met her. Aubrey and others through prayer and the )ord of 'odencouraged her to try to work their relationship out, but things did not

turn out the way they hoped they would. :ow they were involved in a

bitter divorce and custody battle for their two children5 &omen, five

years old/ 2aiser, three years old.

#hings are not going too well for her, but don-t worry about

that now,( other 0amison said. %&ou en;oy your honeymoon. &ou-ll

have plenty of time to help her once you return.(

"ow are Simone, 2elli, and 0ennifer doing*( Aubrey asked.

Simone and 2elvin are doing great. 2elli and 0ustin can-t wait


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to ;oin #revor in 'ermany. 0ustin-s condition flared up again. #revor-s

found a doctor who could possibly diagnose his condition. + believe

she said they will be flying out about a month or so after you return.(

+-m going to miss them,( Aubrey said. %)e-ve had so many

good times together.(

'ood times don-t have to end because the sea separates us,(

her mother said.

&ou-re right. "ow is 0ennifer doing*( Aubrey asked.

other 0amison hesitated. Aubrey could hear deep hurried

breathing.

+s something the matter* other, what-s wrong*(

4h, nothing. 0ust a little discomfort in my chest$probably

gas.(

Are you sure*(

on-t worry about it.


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Chapter 2

After an uplifting time of prayer and asking 'od-s blessings

upon the day, Quintin and Aubrey set out for some sightseeing of

downtown ammam. ?reakfast at Abu :awas Restaurant ended their

twoweek honeymoon on a nevertobeforgotten note marking their

new life together.

+t was a grand reunion with family and friends as they were metwith good news and notsogood news upon their return home.

+-m sorry things have not worked out between you and your

husband,( Aubrey said to 2iera who was one of the first persons she

called. %+ felt a little guilty leaving you like that, but don-t worry. )e-ll

see you through this to the end. Quintin has contacted another lawyer

friend of his and they are securing a private investigator through the

permission of the ;udge to help you get your children back.(

+ appreciate it, Aubrey. "e was supposed to let me have the

children that weekend of your wedding and when + went to get them

neither he nor the children could be found. + received a threatening

phone call from him stating that if + go through with the divorce +

would never see the children again. + am worried sick,( 2iera shared

with Aubrey.

on-t worry. y husband will take care of it,( Aubrey assured

her. %0ust trust 'od and leave it in "is hands.(

4n her first 3riday back, Aubrey met up with Simone and 2elli

at the Cherry ?lossom Cafe for a time of catching up.

)hat do you mean you all have not heard from 0ennifer*(

Aubrey eBclaimed after they settled down in their booth and placed


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their order.

#he last we heard from or about her was the evening of the

reception. + called her numerous times, but + kept getting her voice

mail. )e stopped by her place, but we received no answer,( Simone

said. %+ spoke with her once, but she kind of rushed off the phone. +

am worried about her.(

)hat about ?rad* "ave you been able to get in touch with

him*(

+ had #revor to call him/ you know they-re military buddies,(

2elli said, %and he said ?rad spoke with her up to a week after your

wedding, but he has not heard from her and he has been unable to

get in touch with her by phone or otherwise.(

+ know all of us being married now could not be affecting her

that much, if at all,( 2elli said.

)hy would it* She and ?rad are engaged to get married

soon,( Aubrey said thoughtfully. %All + know is, it is not like her to ;ust

take off without letting us know something.(

espite the disturbing news about 0ennifer, Aubrey re;oiced

with Simone over the good news about her husband.

2elvin is still en;oying his honeymoon period as a new

Christian. :ot only has he been praying up a storm,( Simone said,

%but he-s eBpressed an interest in doing missionary work overseas

with people who have not heard the 'ospel. "e picked up a

Samaritan-s !urse maga>ine at one of the Christian book stores.

#hey do a lot of work with quite a number of countries, bringing them

the 'ospel as well as providing relief materials during catastrophes,

disease epidemics, and a host of other things. 3or some reason he

seems interested in working with the :omatsiguenga people group of


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!eru.(

Simone stumbled over the pronunciation of the name of the

people group. Chuckling, she said, %+ don-t see how we can even

work with them, we can hardly pronounce the name. Anyway, he

called a mission-s office and got a lot of information about this group.

And guess what*(

Aubrey and 2elli waited eagerly for her to continue.

"e-s interested in doing translation work for them. So the neBt

time you hear from us, not only will we be speaking the Arawakan

language, but we will be tucked away somewhere in !eru doing

missionary work.(

oes this mean you-ll be leaving us for good*( Aubrey asked.

:o. :ot for good,( Simone said. %2elvin has signed up with the

mission agency to take a siB month-s trip with them to !eru to visit the

:omatsiguenga people. #hen we-re supposed to go to translation

school. ?ut it will be a few months before we leave.(

+ am so happy for you,( Aubrey said. %!eople are so hungry for

the )ord. )hile we were away in Saudi Arabia, we visited two house

churches that Quintin-s grandfather and father support. :ot only dothey help those churches financially, but they also help to print and

distribute ?ibles and other literature in their language. #he people

shared with us stories after stories of fellow Christians being

persecuted or mistreated for their faith in Christ/ individuals have

been ostraci>ed/ parents have been taken away from their children

never to be seen again. 4ne interesting incident happened on our

last Sunday there.(

Aubrey went on to tell her friends. %)e went through this single

wooden door of a church named Resurrected ?eliever-s Church on


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the outskirts of the city of ammam. #he shopkeeper, who was also

the pastor, holds services in the back of his shop. )e had to use a

secret password before we could enter.(

&es, your grandfather told us to eBpect you,( "assau, the

doorkeeper, said as he led them through a long dark hallway into a

back room where others were seated around tables with tea, fig

cakes, fruit, and nuts. #here was a oneness in spirit in the

atmosphere. #he people greeted them with genuine love as they

entered the room.

#ea and cakes are ;ust for show,( "assau said with a grin as

he directed them to their seats. Aubrey wondered what he meant by

that as she noticed no one was munching on the food. As soon as

they were seated, the pastor started the services. "e was about ten

minutes into the services when there was a pounding on the door.

"assau hurried into the room and whispered to the pastor who

ordered everyone to pass their ?ibles to the front. "e quickly lifted his

stool out the way and lifted a latch from the floor to reveal an

opening.

#he pounding on the door continued. All ?ibles were quickly

placed in the underground hole and the door was latched in place/the pastor slid his stool back in place and sat down. 9veryone started

to talk and laugh as they sipped their tea and nibbled on their fig

cakes and fruit and nuts. Aubrey smiled as she thought of Alice at the

ad "atter-s #ea !arty. Aubrey watched furtively as "assau led two

stoic looking men in uniforms into the room. #he one with the deep

set eyebrows peered under a few tables, patted down a couple of the

male occupants, shuffled things around in a couple of the cupboards

while the other eBchanged words with "assau and the pastor. #hey

glanced at Quintin and Aubrey every now and then as they spoke.

#heir curiosity satisfied, the men left. After "assau gave the signal,


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the worship services continued with even more vigor.

)hat was that all about*( Aubrey whispered to Quintin after

the services.

#hose two men were looking for ?ibles,( Quintin said. %#hey

confiscate them.(

#his was confirmed by "assau. "e smiled. %+ told them you are

here to celebrate your honeymoon and we-re having an early morning

brunch for you.(

)eren-t you scared*( Simone asked.

ore curious than scared,( Aubrey replied. %#he pastor told us

that so far they have been protected, but sometimes, uslims would

randomly choose a village, raid it and kill the Christians.(

#hat-s sad,( 2elli said.

+t sure is,( Aubrey said. %)e had the privilege of worshiping

with the Resurrected Church family during one of their Sunday

services and two of their )ednesday night prayer services. #alk

about powerful prayer services. +t brought tears to my eyes to see

and eBperience the love for 'od that permeated that place.(

:othing will test our love for 'od like persecution and

hardships and doing without the comforts of life,( Simone said. %+

don-t know what-s ahead for 2elvin and myself, so please pray for

us.(

)e-ll certainly be praying for you and 2elvin,( Aubrey said.

%4ne bit of good news + want you to add to your prayer list,( Aubrey

said, %and that is, we-re looking into adopting a little Saudi girl. "er

name is "abiba alAhmet. She-s almost two years old. ?oth her

parents were killed because of their faith. y heart was touched

when we heard their story. Some +slamists raided their village. #hey


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begged for their lives for the sake of their little girl. A neighbor heard

"abiba crying for a long time and went to check things out. #hat-s

when she found the bodies. #hey had been killed during the night. +

begged Quintin to let us adopt her and he agreed. !ray that theadoption process will go quickly and smoothly.(

!raise the


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Chapter 3

Around eleven o-clock that evening, Aubrey received a phone

call from 0ennifer.

0ennifer, where are you* + came back from my honeymoon to

find you missing. :o one has heard from you$not even ?rad.(

"i, Aubrey. "ow was your honeymoon*( 0ennifer asked.

'reat ?ut we-re more concerned about you. )hat-s going on

and where in the world are you*( Aubrey asked.

)ell, something very important came up,( 0ennifer said

quietly.

)hat*( Aubrey asked.

+ = + = can-t say eBactly what it is,( 0ennifer said.

0ennifer, we-re friends. )ait until Simone and 2elli hear about

this. &our problem is our problem,( Aubrey reminded her. %+ mean

what-s a friend if you can-t share your problems with her* So what-s

going on*(

0ennifer hesitated.

0ennifer, +-m still the same Aubrey + was before + got married.(

&our being married has nothing to do with it,( 0ennifer said.

%+t-s something neBt to nothing. 3orget + said anything.(

Something neBt to nothing does not lead a friend to disappear

for two weeks.(

After some silence, 0ennifer said all in one breath, %+-m glad

everything went well for your honeymoon. "owever, it-s getting late,


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so +-ll let you go. + know you have the ladies- meeting tomorrow, ?ye,

Aub (

)ait Are you coming out tomorrow*(

Click.

She-s acting weird,( Aubrey said to Quintin who was almost

asleep. %Something-s not right. Something is ;ust not right.(

+-m sure she-ll let you know when the time is right. 0ust be

happy she did call you.


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"elloo,( ?rad said touching her on the arm. %Are you here or

over there somewhere*(

&es,( 0ennifer said nodding her head with a faint smile.

+ figured siB months from today should give you and your

friends time to get rested up,( ?rad said.

&es,( 0ennifer said nodding again.

+ can-t wait to see you coming down the aisle in your bridal

dress.(0ennifer gave a faint smile. She took a long sip from her soda.

?rad drew his eyebrows together. %+s something bothering

you*( he asked.

4h, no, no,( 0ennifer said forcing a smile. %+ guess +-m ;ust

tired. !utting together a wedding does tire you out.(

+ can imagine. &ou-ve broken ;ust about every dinner date +

planned while you all were preparing for it. + wish you had told me

you were tired. )e could have gone out another night,( ?rad said.

%Come on.


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she thought she would never have to relive took a hold of her

again. )ord, 'hat am I going to do/ 0hy did they have to come

back/ It seemed like 1ust yesterday 'hen this nightmare all began.

+ont tell me I have to live 'ith it for the rest of my life.


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Chapter 4

0ennifer tossed and turned in her bed all night. 1nable to go

to sleep, she sat up and prayed. %ear 'od, + don-t know what to do. +

need &our help. + have no more money to give to r. 3rancia. + can-t

believe they are back. +t seemed like only yesterday when it all

happened$the worst tragedy of my life and a nightmare + have had

to live with for the past nine months, and will probably have to livewith for the rest of my life.( She reached into her bedside table

drawer and pulled out the contract she had signed with iego

3rancia. +t read5

Diego D. Francia

Business Management Contractor

iego . 3rancia and 0ennifer


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the date.Almost nine months ago.%#his contract is binding for the

duration of the victim-s E


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#he 3rancias- home was very beautiful and had been built in

the Spanish colonial revival style. #he furniture was colorful, and the

walls were decorated with Spanish artwork.Aubrey 'ould love this

d2cor,0ennifer thought with a smile as she surveyed the living room.

)ell, your mother is right,( 0ennifer said to


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After she was sure


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Chapter 5

Aubrey continued operating her home interior design

business from her mother-s home. She called it )a *isti3ue.

?usiness increased as word got around about the quality of her work.

4ne late lunch hour after a busy morning of visiting two clients-

places of business to get a better picture of how to go about

redecorating their offices, she returned home to have lunch with hermother who had a busy morning herself visiting some of the

members of the church. )hile sitting around the kitchen table

laughing and eBchanging the morning-s events, other 0amison

started to heave intermittently.

Are you alright, other* y goodness, your lips are getting

pale.( Aubrey ;umped out of her chair and hurried to her mother-s

side. %other(

+-m = alright. 0ust having difficulty breathing,( she said as

her chest heaved up and down.

Aubrey placed her arms under her mother-s armpits to help

her up from the chair. %Come on. &ou need to lie down.( She helped

her mother to the couch and made her as comfortable as possible.

%


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other 0amison smiled faintly. %+t will go away as at other

times.(

&ou mean to tell me there have been other times* +-m calling

r. Kalentino.(

Aubrey, don-t bother her. +-m fine. + probably eBerted myself

too much this morning.(

)ell, +-ll tell you what you-re going to do. &ou-re going to stay

on this couch the rest of this evening until it-s time for you to go to

bed. And +-m spending the night here,( Aubrey said firmly.

4kay, baby. +f you insist.(

Quintin, + don-t feel comfortable leaving other here by

herself anymore,( Aubrey said to her husband over the phone later

that night. %Can you try talking to her again about coming to stay with

us*(

+-ll try, but + can-t make her. She-s a little stubborn like you,(

he said with a chuckle.

Aubrey smiled. %+ won-t refute that. 4n a serious note though,

the way she was heaving and turning pale, that-s more than a little

problem.(

)hy don-t you go ahead and make an appointment with her

doctor and take her in yourself,( her husband suggested.

#hat-s eBactly what +-m going to do first thing in the morning.(

)hen Aubrey called r. Kalentino-s office the following

morning, she was told that r. Kalentino would be in surgery most of

the day. "owever, after Aubrey described her mother-s symptoms, r.

Kalentino made time to eBamine her at the hospital that evening.

#hank you so much, r. Kalentino,( Aubrey said. %+ believe


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other-s taking it too lightly. + ;ust believe it-s more serious than what

she-s telling me.(

r. Kalentino did a series of tests and chest Brays, but could

find nothing specific regarding other 0amison-s condition.

y best suggestion is to take it easy. 'et more rest and it

would be nice if you had someone to come by and help you with your

housework,( r. Kalentino said. %+f the symptoms happen again, try to

remember what activities you were involved in before the symptoms

showed up, what position you were in$lying down or standing up,also what you were eating. +t might be a reaction to something you

ate. +n the meantime cut back on your salt intake.(


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Chapter

Roger "awthorne never forgot the kindness Aubrey, her

friends, and her mother showed to him. "e, 2elvin, and Alphonse

developed a new bond of friendship and they often stopped by to

fellowship with him or ;ust to take him out of the house.

4ne day as he was reading a book on auto mechanics, a

sharp knock followed by the ringing of the doorbell echoed from thefront door. "e rolled his wheelchair over to the window thinking it was

one of his new friends. "e looked through the curtain but could not

make out who was at the door/ neither did he recogni>e the car

parked in the driveway.

)ho is it*( he asked.

#ariq )ilson. +-m here to see Roger "awthorne.(

Tari3 0ilson 4 the name sounds familiar,Roger thought as

he removed the chain before unlocking the door.

"ow may + help you*( Roger asked.

+-m Kicki )ilson-s brother.(

A cold shiver ran through Roger-s body as he remembered

his wild, collegepartying days in 3lorida. "e unlocked the screen

door. %Come on in and have a seat,( he said to his visitor. %ay + get

you something to drink*(

:o, thank you. +-m not here to sociali>e. +-m here on

business about Kicki, my sister. &ou did her wrong, man, and +-m here

to set things right,( #ariq said.

Roger remained silent.


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&ou never saw this day coming, did you* And in case you-re

wondering how + got your address$+ work for the 3lorida police and

we do not play. )e know how to get the information we need.(

"ow-s Kicki*( Roger asked.

She-s hurting, man$really hurting. &ou skipped out on her.

&ou used her to have a daughter for you, then you skipped out on

her. &ou left her to take care of your daughter by herself. +-ve had to

foot the eBpenses, and +-m not complaining because + love my sister

and my little niece.(

Roger swallowed hard not knowing what to say. "e ran both

his hands through his hair resting them at the nape of his neck. )ith

a grim look he said, %+-m sorry.(

Sorry cannot right what you-ve done. &ou have to put action

behind your words. &ou could call and apologi>e to her for a start.&ou could pay up on all your child support for another thing.


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+-m gonna get me a nap. + call it my afterwork nap, so if

you-ll eBcuse me, #ariq. +t was nice meeting you,( r. "awthorne

said.

And if you-ll eBcuse me,( rs. "awthorne said, %+ need to

start cooking in the kitchen. &ou-re welcome to ;oin us for supper.(

#hank you, but since + came uneBpectedly, + don-t want to

impose upon you,( #ariq said.

Roger was grateful #ariq turned down the invitation because

he had not told his parents yet about his relationship with Kicki nor

about his daughter. "e did not want them to have to hear from #ariq.

"e finished telling #ariq his story.

After some silence, #ariq said, %&ou know + came here with

the intent to have you put in ;ail and to get every penny out of you,

but + guess you-ve suffered enough. 9ither way, you still have to paychild support. )hat if you and Kicki had gotten married* &ou would

still have to take care of your daughter. &ou have to man up and get

the ;ob done.(

Roger nodded. %?elieve me, + have been thinking about her

and our daughter, Robertia. )hat + did was heartless and it has been

eating away at me.(

Kicki told me you had some kind of ;ob with a car company

$at least that-s what you told her,( #ariq said.

+ did, but they had to let me go since my in;ury was not ;ob

related,( Roger said. %+ used up ;ust about all of my funds from the ;ob

paying my medical bill. + did not want my parents to foot any of the

bill. ?ut even with that, + still owe them more money. Anyway, + got

something new going on.(

)hat-s that*(


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+-ve kind of worked out something with my old ;ob and a

couple of auto places in town and they give me first choice in used or

old parts. + use the parts to rebuild cars. + have one car that-s almost

done. +t-s in the back under the shed. )ould you like to see it*(

Sure,( #ariq said.

After Roger showed #ariq the car in the garage, they came

back into the house through the side door. %+-m hoping this business

will take off and do well,( Roger said.

+ hope so too, for your own good and my sister-s,( #ariq said.

%Anyway, +-m going to take my leave. +-ll be sure to let Kicki know why

she hasn-t heard from you. "ere, let me give you her number. !lease

call her.(

+ sure will and please apologi>e to her for me,( Roger said.

#hat-s why + gave you her number. #hat-s something you will

have to do yourself.(

0ust then, rs. "awthorne walked into the living room. %'ood,

you-re still here,( she said. %#he invitation-s still open for supper.(

+t smells good. + think +-ll take you up on your offer.(

After an en;oyable meal, #ariq said goodbye. Roger felt

compelled to tell his parents about Kicki.

)hat else are you hiding*( his father asked with a

disappointed look on his face.

:othing else,( Roger said, %and +-m sorry for not letting you

both know sooner. + ;ust felt badly that you trusted me and let me go

off to college/ + failed you both.(

)e are disappointed, but there are ;ust some failures in life

we have to live with,( his mother said. %So what are you going to do


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about Kicki and Robertia*

+-ll be calling her a little later and +-ll begin taking care of my

responsibility,( Roger said.

&ou make sure you do that because there-s nothing more

disgusting than a man who shuns his responsibilities, and you do not

want to continue being that kind of man,( r. "awthorne said.

#he telephone conversation between Roger and Kicki wasnot the most amicable one.

+ know who you are. +-ve been waiting for you to call for

almost a year now,( Kicki said when Roger identified himself. %)hat

has been the holdup*(

Kicki, + have no eBcuse whatsoever, and + am sorry for not

keeping in touch.(

+s that all you can say5 @+-m sorry-* + had a daughter for you

and you kept telling me how much you loved me and how much you

were going to take care of us/ but you lied to me. #hat-s what hurts5

you lied to me.(

Kicki, + meant it when + told you (

#hen when you moved back home$for a short visit, you told

me$you never came back and you never even called,( Kicki

continued.

+ was trying to get settled in my ;ob and(

y brother already told me about what happened to you so

you don-t have to rehearse it,( Kicki said curtly. %+ guess you got

caught up with some girl, too, huh*(

&es and no,( Roger said. %+ did show interest in one girl +


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knew before + came down to 3lorida, but she shunned me and

married someone else. +n fact, her husband is the one who helped

me get a light sentence. "e-s a lawyer. ?ut as + shared with your

brother, +-ll pay what + owe. + ;ust don-t have it right now as +-ve putmost of it toward my medical bill, plus +-m still going to physical

therapy.(

+f you eBpect me to feel sorry for you, you can forget that. +t-s

not even the money that +-m upset about/ it-s ;ust how you threw me

to the curb. ?ut + will use the money issue to pay you back.(

Kicki, +-m sorry. + really am and +-m asking you to forgive me.

!lease, +-ll make it up to you. + ;ust need more time.(

#ime for what* #ime to plan another escape* ?ye, Roger.

:eBt time you hear from me, it will be through my lawyer.(


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Chapter !

other 0amison trudged up the short pathway from her car to

her front door. She paused with her hand on the knob as she tried to

steady her breathing, fighting to ease the strange tightness in her

chest. %


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Aubrey picked up her phone to call her husband. %"ello,

Quintin, honey. +-ve ;ust locked up for the day,( she said. %+ closed

another deal. +sn-t 'od good*(

!raise the


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+-m on my way,( he assured her. %0ust pray your way through.

&ou know what prayer can do.(

+ will. )e-re at the hospital now.( Aubrey clicked her phone off

and hopped out of the ambulance.#he 9#s wheeled her mother

through the double doors into the emergency room.


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37/163

Chapter "

Aubrey sat in the waiting room and tried to pray, but all she

could say was, %ear 'od, dear 'od( over and over again.

rs. Rodney*( a voice called.

Aubrey turned around to see the nurse from the front desk with

a cup of iced water in her hand. She wore a reassuring smile.

&es*( Aubrey replied.

+-m :urse 2ailee. + came by to let you know your mother-s

condition has stabili>ed. )e should be taking her to a room in about

ten minutes. "ere you go.( She handed Aubrey the cup of water.

%&ou-re welcome to wait in her room.(

Aubrey-s phone rang before she could answer the nurse. +t was

her husband.

+-m in the parking lot. )hat-s the room number*( Quintin

asked.

Room 87M,( Aubrey answered after checking with :urse

2ailee.

After hanging up the phone, Aubrey said to the nurse, %+-ll wait

until my husband gets here then we-ll wait in her room. #hat was him

on the phone.(

:urse 2ailee smiled. %


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observation. +-ll ;ust need to go over her medical history with you

starting with the name of her doctor.(

"er doctor is Catalina Kalentino,( Aubrey said. %She-s never

had any ma;or health issues as far back as + can recall.(

After gathering the information he needed, r. 2risna admitted,

%+ don-t know eBactly what brought about her illness. )e checked her

stomach and intestinal areas since she had coughed up some blood

thinking she may have a severe ulcer in her digestive system, but

that turned up negative. "er blood pressure was eBtremely high.#hank 'od we were able to bring it under control and thus bring her

breathing back to normal. )e-re still waiting for the report from the lab

for her blood work.(

She-s not one to complain, but + caught her gasping for breath

a few times. She told me her chest was hurting every now and then

but we didn-t think it was anything serious,( Aubrey said.

+ know r. Kalentino. + believe she-s on vacation and should

be back some time neBt week. +-ll speak with her then,( r. 2risna

said. %+n the mean time, we-ll send her office a copy of our

eBamination. #he nurses will be monitoring her closely throughout the

night. +f you have no further questions, +-ll take my leave. As + said, if

all goes well, she should be able to go home in three to four days.(

Quintin and Aubrey prayed for other 0amison throughout the

night. ?y morning she was fully conscious and able to speak with

them.

&ou will not be going out by yourself anymore,( Aubrey told

her. %And no ob;ections this time. Consider yourself on house arrest.(

Alright,( other 0amison said smiling weakly.


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Chapter #

0ennifer sat in front of her laptop staring at her bank account

statement, especially at the amounts transferred into r. 3rancia-s

account. #he money she was paying r. 3rancia was leaving her

almost broke.

ear 'od, + don-t know what else to do,( she prayed. %+-m

going to have to drop out of med school and get a fulltime ;ob

somewhere if + don-t get some big money soon. +t-ll probably take awhile to get on staff at a hospital. ?ut, whatever happens, + can-t

afford to get sued.(

0ennifer brainstormed about where she could get the money

from without going into further debt. I cant ask my friends because

then Id have to tell them everything and its my $roblem, not theirs.

0orking at the daycare center and doing baby7sitting on the side is

not $aying as much to kee$ my account balance in the $ositive.

0ennifer transferred another I7GGG into r. 3rancia-s account

leaving her with a balance of ILDF.68. She slammed her laptop shut,

pulled on her shoes and hurried to her car. She drove across town to

Cereta-s


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+ = + can-t say eBactly when,( 0ennifer said looking down. %+

may be late on some of my payments, but + will definitely pay you

back all of it.(

+-m sorry,( 0o


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on-t worry, 0ennifer. +-ll be sure to tell my husband. &ou can

only do so much.(

r. 3rancia was not too pleased when his wife gave him the

message. %"ow dare you tell her it-s okay* :o, no, no. Contract She

signed the contract.(

?ut, iego, she-s paid faithfully for almost a year now/ surely

you can loosen up this one time,( his wife insisted.

:o, no, no. &ou don-t understand business. +f you loosen up

once $ ;ust one time $ ( he raised an indeB finger for emphasis, % $

she-ll eBpect you to loosen up again and again. +f she misses

payment by one day, + will sue $ (

+t would be stupid of you to sue her when she does not have

any money. !utting her in ;ail still will not give you the money. !lease,

iego, give her a break this time around. She-s such a sweet girl. &ou

are blackmailing her. !oor girl.


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43/163

Chapter 10

0ennifer took her last few dollars and headed for the race

tracks. #his was her third Saturday visiting there. She had started

keeping up with the results of horse racing and seeing which horses

placed first, second, or third consistently. Ill 1ust bet a small amount

starting out,she thought. As she passed the city limits, she thought

back to the meeting she and her friends had had at the Cherry

?lossom Cafe some months ago.

Simone had prayed for a promotion at the bank where she

worked and also for her and her fiance to have a long life together.

0ell, God ans'ered her $rayers, 0ennifer thought. !imone

'as $romoted to C89 of the bank, and her and "elvin got married.

2elli had prayed to marry #revor and to be able to provide ahappy, loving, and prayerful home for their son, 0ustin.

0ell, God ans'ered her $rayers. Trevor came home on a short

leave from the military in Afghanistan and they got married. :o',

"elli is getting ready to 1oin him in Germany 'here they 'ill be

together as a family.0ennifer flipped her right blinkers on to change

lanes.

Aubrey-s request was to get over the disappointment of a failed

marriage, to get a handle on her prayer life, and to start her own

home interior design company. 0ennifer smiled as she remembered

Simone-s addition to Aubrey-s request. %+s that all* "ow about asking

'od for a praying man to replace 0amaal* )e-ll pray one in for you.(

God certainly ans'ered her $rayers,0ennifer thought as she

eBited the highway. ;e definitely gave her a $raying man in


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going 'ell.

I cannot ask for a better man than (rad. I should tell him about

this thing 'ith the rancia family, but its not his $roblem. I have to

take care of this myself. %


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to stop running away from reality. &ou are a poor business man at

best, iego. +-m tired of moving from one place to another. +-m tired of

running with you. +t-s not good for


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as he walked off.

0ust be prepared to fly out on #uesday by noon,( he said.


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Chapter 11

9ric 'ilard, 2iera-s husband, gave her a call. #heir

conversation left her disturbed. %+f you want to see the children again,

drop the divorce proceedings,( were his last words before hanging up

the phone.

+ don-t know what +-m going to do,( she eBclaimed to Aubrey.

%+-d do anything to get my children back. "e was supposed to have

brought them back home by now.(

)hy don-t we drive over there and see what-s going on,(

Aubrey suggested after speaking with her husband about it.

After picking 2iera up, she, Aubrey, and Quintin drove over to

9ric-s apartment. "is vehicle was not in its usual parking space and

no one responded when they knocked on the door.

2iera voiced her worst fear. %+ believe he left and took the kids

with them.(

r. Ramadin from upstairs was standing on his balcony. "e

shouted down to them as they walked away. %+f you-re looking for

9ric, he left last night with his little boy and little girl and a eBicanlady. #hey had suitcases with them.(

JJJJJJJJJJJJ

9ric had had a meeting with his friend, #ony, some months

back.

+ know how you can make some big money,( #ony said, %?ut

everything must be kept confidential. +t has to do with these illegal


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aliens$eBicans, e her paperwork. 2eep her as your maid. She speaks very little

9nglish so she won-t cause you any problems. +-ll pay you, say,IFDG.GG each week, then when all the paperwork is finali>ed, you-ll

get a lump sum$at least a thousand dollars.(

9ric was pleased with the plan.

+f the government gets involved, you-ll have to vouch for her.

#ell them that you are filing for her and that she-s here legally. +f youkeep quiet about it, no one will know anything. She-s already been

instructed not to discuss her status with anyone besides us.(

3rom talking with #ony, 9ric found out how big the illegal

trafficking of aliens was. %+t-s almost like the 1nderground Railroad,(

9ric said with a chuckle. %See, + learned something in school.(

ariadas Carmen came to live with 9ric and she helped him

take care of the children$&omen and 2aiser$whenever it was his

turn to have them.

JJJJJJJJJJJJ

After Quintin, Aubrey, and 2iera got back in the car at 9ric-sapartment, 2iera said, %+ remember &omen telling me about a lady

cooking for them and helping them take their baths and playing with

them. "e told me he could not understand anything she said to

them.(


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apartment.

y little boy, Shane, used to play with them whenever they

came to visit with their father. #he past couple months he-s seemed

aloof and always in a hurry.(

)hat about this lady who-s been helping to take care of the

children*( 'ravlin asked.

She-s doing more than ;ust taking care of the children/ she

lives with 9ric. She-s eBican. "e left suddenly. :o goodbye.

:othing.(

'ravlin left his cell phone number with r. Ramadin.

)hat do you think is going on*( rs. Ramadin asked her

husband.

?eats me. +t-s hard to believe he ran off with his own children.

:o telling where they are,( her husband said.

+ know where they are,( Shane, their siByearold son, said.

"e had been playing with his trucks on the floor while his parents

talked with 'ravlin. %#hey-re with their grandmother. &omen told me

his father said he was taking them to visit with their grandmother. "e

said they may stay there for a long time.(

)hy didn-t you tell us when r. 'ravlin was here*( his father

said reaching for his cell phone from off the side table.

:o one asked me. !lus, you said when grown folks are talking

to be quiet,( Shane said matteroffactly.

"is parents rolled their eyes and smiled.

'ravlin made phone calls to


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%:otification of the kidnapping has already been sent out statewide.

)e-ll eBtend that nationwide to cover all our bases. +n the meantime,

you, 'ravlin, will be taking a trip to visit @'randma-.(

After getting the grandmother-s address and phone number

from 2iera, 'ravlin advised her not to get in touch with the

grandmother lest she was in on the kidnapping. %)e do not want to

arouse any suspicion.(


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53/163

Chapter 12

9ric took a leisurely drive to Richmond, Kirginia, to his mother,

Clara-s, house. %#his is a surprise. &ou normally call before you

come,( she said embracing her grandchildren.


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"ello, 2iera. "ow are you* 9ric and the children made it in

safely. + am so glad to be of help. #he children can stay here for as

long as you need for me to keep them while you two iron things out. +

sure would have loved to see you as it-s been so long since + last sawyou,( Clara said. %?y the way, 9ric told me not to call you as he would

call and let you know they arrived safely, so if you don-t mind, do not

tell him that + called. + ;ust wanted to hear your voice and make sure

everything was alright.(

4kay,( 2iera said wondering how strange her motherinlaw-s

words were. -nless 8ric did not tell her he ran off 'ith the children.

?y the way, what-s been going on between you two*( her

motherinlaw asked.

2iera hesitated to say anything unsure of eBactly what 9ric had

told her, but then decided to tell her. %'randma C, things have gotten

worse. + know + have told you the last few times we spoke that

everything was going well. + ;ust did not want you to worry. Anyway, +

filed for divorce because there-s been problems going on since the

beginning of this marriage. +-ve tried to work it out, but even with the

divorce pending, he-s still not budging in his behavior. + do thank you

for keeping the children for us,( 2iera said deciding to play along withthe apparent lie 9ric told his mother.

"ow come you didn-t ride with him*(

+ did not want any arguing in front of the children and the

lady,( 2iera said.

&ou don-t know her name*(

9ric hired her without me knowing. + keep forgetting her

name.(

+t-s ariana Carmen, or Carmen arianas, or something like


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that. +-ll ask 9ric again when he calls me neBt,( Clara said with a

chuckle. %#he children seem to have taken a liking to her. 9Bcept for

the language barrier, she-s good with them.(

)ill she be staying there with you and the children*(

&es.(

)hat about 9ric* )here is he*(

4h, he left not too long ago saying he had business to take

care of back home and he doesn-t know how long it would take him.?ut like + said, do not tell him you and + talked. + thought it strange he

did not want me to talk with you at all so + had to find out for myself

what-s going on, especially when he turned up with another lady.(

+-m glad you called and you have my word5 + won-t say

anything to him about you calling me.( 2iera-s mind went on fast

forward. !eems he has not mentioned to her that he ran off 'ith the

children. I 'onder 'hat business he has to tend to and 'here e6actly

he is headed/ )ying to his o'n mother to carry out his evil deed.

;o' lo' can a $erson get/

Are you still there*( her motherinlaw asked breaking into her

thoughts.

&es, +-m still here.(

)ell, +-m going to let you go in case 9ric tries to call you. And

please keep in touch.(

+ will.(

As soon as they got off the phone, 2iera called Aubrey and


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57/163

Chapter 13

'randma Clara called her son immediately after saying

goodbye to her daughterinlaw.

9ric, you messed up big time. + ;ust spoke with 2iera and she

told me that you ran off with the children.(

ama, + told you not to talk with her because all she-s going to

do is lie to you and put stuff in your head. )hy would + run off with my

own children* + have equal time with them as she does.(

)ell, you did run off with them. 2iera told me you both have

been separated for some months now and that you were supposed to

have brought them back to her Sunday evening after having them for

the weekend and you never showed up, and neither did you call her,(

Clara said. %She also told me she stopped by your place and you did

not answer the door because you were not there. 4f course you

couldn-t be there because you were on your way up here with the

children. 9Bactly, what-s going on*(


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id she mention anything about calling them*( 9ric asked.

:o, she didn-t.(

9ric sighed a sigh of relief. %ama, + really need for you to keepthem for me.(

)here are you anyway*( his mother asked.

+-m headed back home to take care of a few things.(

3or how long* And then what*(

+-m not sure how long.(

4kay,( his mother said. %4ne other thing5 2iera told me she-s

going through with the divorce but you are using the children to force

her to stay in the marriage. +-m disappointed in you, son.(

+-m not using the children to keep her. Any good father would

want to spend time with his children no matter how rough things may

be between him and his wife.(

+ rest my case,( his mother said. %?ut + will tell you this5 &ou try

to control a person in a forceful way, you-ll never get their heart nor

their affection.(

_____________


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and see how successful that turns out,( !atterson said. %o you still

have the house address*(

+t-s right here in my briefcase.(

+-ll go ahead and call the police chief to let him know you-ll be

there soon and give him an update. 2eep me posted.(

&ou betcha,( 'ravlin said.

After about three hours, 'ravlin and 4fficer 'oodlee from the

Richmond, Kirginia, south police precinct were knocking on Clara-sfront door. She was surprised to see them there so soon, even

though she eBpected them to show up any day. ariadas and the

children were playing in the backyard.

&es, come on inside, officers,( she said after they stated their

purpose for stopping by. %+ was kind of eBpecting you. #he children

are here, as well as the lady who-s been helping to take care of them.

+ had no idea what was going on. y son stopped by without letting

me know he was coming with the children, which he normally does

not do/ they-ve always called ahead whenever they visit to make sure

+ am home. + knew they were having marital problems, but + did not

know it had escalated this much. #hings did not seem right when he

spoke with me and when + asked him about his wife he seemed kind

of evasive so + called 2iera and she told me everything. + told my son

the police are going to come searching for him because he actually

kidnapped his children.(

)here-s your son now*( 'ravlin asked.

"e told me he was headed back home to take care of a few

things,( Clara said. %)hat will happen to my grandbabies now*(

)e-ll have to take them into our care and return them to their

mother,( 4fficer 'oodlee said.


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Can they please stay here with me until you get in touch with

their mother* + haven-t seen them in a while, and this is their first day

here. &ou have my word5 + won-t hide them. + learned early in life to

respect the law. +n fact, +-ll go call their mother right now.(

#hat-s fine with us, but let me make some phone calls first.

And +-ll speak with their mother first,( 'ravlin said.

'ravlin placed a call to


61/163

9ric swung around and pushed the police officer aside.

1naware that there was a second officer, he attempted to make a

dash to his car. #he second officer stuck out one of his legs causing

9ric to trip and pitch forward. #hey quickly pinned him to the groundand snapped a pair of handcuffs around his wrists.

&ou-re under arrest for the kidnapping of two children.(

+ don-t have them,( 9ric said as the officers dragged him to his

feet amidst his squirming.

&ou have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and

will be used against you in a court of law,( one of the officers said as

they led him to the police car.

r. Ramadin observed from his upstairs balcony.


62/163


63/163

Chapter 14

'reat news( 2iera said to Aubrey after she answered the

phone. %y children are safe. #hey are in Kirginia with my motherin

law.(

!raise the


64/163

eagerly read it. %#hings are looking up for the adoption of "abiba al

Ahmet. Soon +-ll have us a little girl until you begin to really perform,(

she said.

)ait a minute now. )e ;ust got married. on-t + get time to

have you to myself for a while before we are blessed with a little

one*(

Aubrey giggled. %)e-re not getting any younger, so time is of

the essence. Anyway, you wait right here cause +-ll definitely be back.


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all need. Quintin* Quintin*(

Aubrey smiled as she kissed her husband good night.

2iera and her children were happily reunited. 9ric was chargedwith kidnapping/ this only eBpedited and finali>ed their divorce.

ariadas Carmen was found innocent. #here was a debate as to

whether or not to turn her over to immigration for possible

deportation.

!lease vouch for her,( Aubrey pleaded with her husband.

%&ou-re a lawyer/ you know the right words to use. She came into the

country legally/ she ;ust eBtended her visit. ?y her own testimony she

;ust wanted to settle down in America, get a ;ob, work, earn enough

money and send for her three siblings. She only wants to help her

family out of poverty. !lease, Quintin.(

)here would she stay* She hardly knows any 9nglish. "owwould she get around*( her husband asked.

)e can talk with !astor Ashton about letting her stay in the

church-s home for women.(

Alright, we can do that.(

#hank you so much,( Aubrey said hugging his neck.


66/163


67/163

Chapter 15

9ven though Roger was glad everything about him and Kicki

was now out in the open, he was disturbed by Kicki-s last words5 The

ne6t time you hear from me it 'ill be through my la'yer.

I kno' I should be $raying about this, but I feel funny $raying

to God 'hom Ive $layed around 'ith and ignored for so long,5 he

thought. (ut ;es the only 9ne I see 'ho can hel$ me through this .

#aking his father-s advice, he gave Quintin a call and eBplained to

him his dilemma.


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in the neBt three to four months.(

+ believe +-m ready to settle down in marriage, so please pray

that + choose the right young lady,(Alphonse said.

!ray that the adoption of "abiba will go smoothly and quickly.

)e don-t foresee any obstacles in the way,( Quintin said. %y wife

has her heart set on bringing her into the family by Christmas.(

All four piled into Quintin-s car and despite Roger-s protests to

take him home, they headed for the basketball court.

4nce they got to the basketball court, his friends set him in his

wheelchair on the ground. %an, how am + supposed to do this* +

can-t do this,( Roger said.

+ forgot to tell you, but all who come to our ?ible study must

also play basketball,( 2elvin said tossing the basketball in Roger-s

lap. %&ou-re on my team so don-t fail me now.(

?y the end of their two hour game, Roger had mastered the art

of moving around in his wheelchair using one arm to maneuver

himself while dribbling the ball with the other.

A day well spent,( he said when they took him home.

+-ve been thinking,( 2elvin said before saying goodbye, %since

you-re into rebuilding cars, why don-t you work on a car where the

person confined to the wheelchair can roll up a builtin ramp or some

kind of electrical lift that will place the wheelchair behind the steering

wheel and lock it in place. #he wheelchair would replace the driver-s

seat.(

Roger immediately envisioned the car. %?ut how will + press the

pedals* y legs are numb,( Roger said.

9asy,( 2elvin said. %!lace the pedals up on the front


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dashboard/ you can even make them into power buttons for a more

fancy look. A green button to replace the gas pedal and a red button

to replace the brake pedal. #hey lock in place until pressed again. +

don-t know/ you figure it out. &ou-re the engineer. +-m sure there-s amarket out there.(

)hile the men were having their time of prayer, Aubrey and the

ladies of the Restoration Reset inistry were having their prayer time

as well. )ord had gotten around about their powerful ministry that

helped in restoring and strengthening marriages and families. @I kno'

'hat $rayer can do- became their motto.

on-t forget, ladies,( Aubrey reminded them, %we-ll be meeting

with the ladies at 'race and #ruth 3ellowship. !astor Ashton says we

can use a couple of the church vans to take us there if we needed to.

+ wish for all of you to go. y mother will be our guest speaker so

come on out and support her.(

ariadas Carmen, who was a guest that evening at Aubrey-s

house, prepared a delicious eBican meal consisting of spicy

eBican corn chowder, broiled salmon tacos, with chocoflan for

dessert.

+ may not know how to speak Spanish, but + know a good

meal when + taste it. 'racias, ariadas. uchas gracias,( Quintin

said helping himself to a second serving of the chocoflan.

Si,( other 0amison said. %ariadas, el chocoflan es

delicioso.(

Si,( Aubrey said. %eliciosa.(

+ thank 'od for ariadas,( Aubrey told her husband as they

settled in their bed for the night. %+-m going to ask her about enrolling


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in an 9S< class at the college. And +-m enrolling myself in a Spanish

class.(

2issing her husband good night, Aubrey cut the bedside lamp

off. She was ;ust falling off to sleep when the phone rang. %"ello,

2elli. +s everything alright*( she said after checking the caller +.

&es and no,( 2elli replied. %Sorry to call so late, but + ;ust

returned from my father-s about an hour ago and checked my mail

and there was a letter from family and children-s services saying they

will be stopping by on onday at nine o-clock. + don-t know what-sgoing on, but they-d called me on #hursday stating something about

child neglect. + told them they had the wrong number and did not

think any more about the call. ?ut when + received this notice in the

mail, my antenna went up. !ray with me that nothing will come out of

this.(

+ will,( Aubrey said. %+n fact, let-s pray right now.(


71/163

Chapter 1

Roger took Quintin-s suggestion to heart. "e shared the idea with

his former boss, r. rew, at the Chrysler plant.

#hat-s a workable idea. + know there-s a market for it,( r. rew

said. %#ell you what. )rite me a proposal detailing your plan for this

new vehicle, include any drawings as best you can/ once + receive

that package +-ll have a meeting with our manager and owner, then +-llget back with you.(

Roger felt a new surge of energy flowing through his body/ he

now had something to live for/ he had something worthwhile to do.

"e was working in the shed behind his house when he heard a car

horn blowing. )heeling himself around the side of the house towards

the front he noticed a familiar car parked in the driveway. "e heard

rapid knocking on the door.

+s that you, #ariq* +-m in the back,( he said as he rounded the

corner to see #ariq stepping off the front porch.

"ey, Roger. + was getting ready to drive off. "ow are you doing*(

he said shaking Roger-s hand. %+ have two people + brought with me

to visit you.(

Roger looked toward the car as #ariq signaled for its occupants to

;oin him. A young lady with a baby in her arms emerged from the car.

Roger threw a quick glance at #ariq as a smile spread across his

face.

"ello, Kicki. +t-s good to see you again,( Roger said. %+ take it this

is Robertia.(

)ho else would it be*( Kicki said curtly.


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apologi>ed enough. Second, you can keep in touch/ my number is

still the same. + started to contact my lawyer to tell him where you

were, but #ariq insisted that + visit you first. + now see why. &ou can-t

do too much financially/ but you sure can handle yourself in thekitchen.( #hey both laughed. %Anyway, as soon as this new car idea

of yours takes off, +-ll be on you for the child support money.(

&ou make sure you do that,( Roger said as they both laughed

again.

Conversation flowed freer between them.

#ariq returned around seven. ?y then Kicki had met Roger-s

parents and had had supper with them. r. "awthorne was bouncing

Robertia on his knees when #ariq walked into the living room. #hey

chatted for a while before parting ways.

Roger eagerly called Quintin, 2elvin, and Alphonse to share withthem the good news. %:o'+ know what prayer can do,( Roger said.


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Chapter 1!

+ stopped by r. and rs. "awthorne to check on Roger, and(

Aubrey said.

&ou what*( Quintin said.

+ stopped by r. and rs. "awthorne to check on Roger.(

:ow what made you do that*( Quintin said.

+ ;ust felt a strong urge to go and see how he-s doing. "e-s still

confined to that wheelchair and the doctors do not know how long

he-ll be in the wheelchair.(

+ don-t care if he-s confined to a wheelchair or not. &ou both had

a relationship and=(

)asn-t much of a relationship, if you ask me,( Aubrey said.

#here may not have been anything on your part, but + don-t

doubt that he had some feelings for you, plus from what you-ve

shared with me he added some >est to your boring life. +s your life

getting boring again*(

Aubrey smiled. %:ope. And who told you my life was boring

before.(

&ou told me so much. And that would not have been hard to

figure out. See, after + delivered you from the clasp of your former

husband, you led what you believed to be a boring life and were outthere trying to find yourself. &ou weren-t sure which way to go. #hen

in rides Roger, your fake knight in shining armour, or was it on a

shining motorcycle=*(

Aubrey chuckled.


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"and he brought some thrill, some eBcitement to your unstable

life/ he led you into doing some off the wall things/ he made you

laugh/ but when it was all over, you kept asking yourself5 +s this it* +s

this all life has to offer me* &ou had nothing of substance to hang onto after being with him. &ou weren-t attracted to Roger in a romantic

sense, but you were attracted to him because he brought temporary

eBcitement to your life. #hen in comes your real knight in shining

armour who 'od used to stabili>e and give meaning to your life and

give you some security about yourself.(

&ou-re right,( she said. %+-ve been praying for Roger so + ;ust

thought +-d stop by and see how he-s doing.(

#hat-s alright, +-m glad to see you-re still concerned about Roger

because he does need prayer. + trust you Aubrey, but ;ust to be on the

safe side, +-d feel better if you told me before you went over there.(

"e loves and cares for you,( Simone said after Aubrey shared

with her friends the conversation she and her husband had. %#hat-s

what you need5 a husband who loves you enough to get ;ealous.(

9ven other 0amison was in full agreement with her soninlaw-s

response. %+t-s good that he-s concerned about where you are and

who you-re with. And your response prevented it from being a

negative situation.(

)hat do you mean*(

+f you had responded negatively, by defending what you did, by

insisting on visiting Roger whenever you pleased saying that you

have nothing evil in your heart, and with a bad attitude, and even

accusing Quintin of not trusting you, then that conversation would not

have ended as sweetly as it did. &ou respond to him positively and

with a humble teachable attitude and you-ll win over him all the time.

+-ll say to any wife, if you-re not wise, at least be smart5 ;ust do what


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your husband wants you to do with a good attitude and spirit and

you-ll come out on the winning side.(

#hanks for reminding me, other,( Aubrey said. %+ needed it.

)hy don-t you remind our ladies of that during our meeting at 'race

and #ruth 3ellowship Church*(


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Chapter 1"

#he special ladies meeting at 'race and #ruth 3ellowship Church

became the talk of both churches the Sunday after the meeting. 'od

did a work in the ladies- hearts and it marked the beginning of a

restoration work in the marriages and families of those who attended

the meeting.

other 0amison, the main speaker, started out her speech strong/however, she began to feel weak towards the end of her speech. She

spoke until her breath left her. #he last she recalled was giving the

invitation for salvation to the ladies before she passed out. Aubrey

and another lady caught her ;ust before she hit the floor.

!lease continue on,( Aubrey instructed rs. illins, the first lady

of 'race and #ruth 3ellowship. %#ake care of the new converts. )e

can-t leave them now.(

4kay. +-ll meet you at the hospital once we are done here,( rs.

illins said. She then turned her attention to the attendees. %&ou-ve

heard the dynamic message other 0amison delivered. +s there

anyone who wants to accept 'od-s gift of salvation* Anyone willing to

turn your marriage over to 0esus* &es, 'od sees those hands. Come

to the altar and pour out your heart to 'od.(

Aubrey, with the help of Simone and a few other ladies, got

other 0amison to the room behind the auditorium where they

awaited the arrival of the ambulance. +ear God, $lease kee$ *othersafe,Aubrey prayed silently.


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0amison this evening to bring deliverance to us,( rs. illins said.

#he ambulance arrived and sped off to the hospital with other

0amison and Aubrey. Simone and two other ladies from 'race and

#ruth 3ellowship followed behind.

Aubrey placed a call to her husband as the ambulance careened

down the main road. %Quintin, the ambulance is taking other to the

hospital. !lease pray for her.(

+-m working right now, but +-ll be praying and +-ll ;oin you as soon

as + can,( Quintin said.

+-m in the ambulance with her. +-ll call you again once we get to

the hospital. + love you. !lease pray. +-ll fill you in on the details.(

+ will,( Quintin said. %


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told them the best thing they can do is to head on home to their

families and to pray for you and other 0amison as they drive home

and to continue praying once they get home.(

+ contacted !astor Ashton and informed him as to what took

place,( rs. Ashton said. %"e said he-ll make sure all the ladies arrive

home safely and to let you know that he will be starting the prayer

chain for other 0amison-s healing because we-re not ready for her

to leave us yet$even though she will be in a far better place. +f +

know him, he-ll be ;oining us here.(

#he ladies spent their waiting time alternating in prayer for other

0amison.

4ne of the nurses, :urse 2ingley, gave them an update. %#he

doctors noticed a lot of fluid in her lungs. Apparently, the fluid had

been filling her lungs over a period of time.(

id the doctors say what may be causing it*( Aubrey asked.

:ot yet,( :urse 2ingley said with an understanding smile. %r.

?rowning will be able to say for sure once they drain all the fluid out

and run more tests. "e-ll be talking with you after the operation. All

we can do is hope for the best.(

rs. Ashton gave Aubrey a hug and then she called her husband.

Aubrey gave her husband a call also. ?oth related to their husbands

what the nurse told them. #he waiting party received many phone

calls from the conference attendees inquiring about other 0amison-s

condition.

Aubrey held a steady stare onto the floor as they waited, and

even though her eyes were open and no audible sounds could be

heard, the moving of her lips indicated that she was in prayer.

Simone nudged her once, then nudged her again/ she pointed in the


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direction of the elevators. Quintin had ;ust stepped out of one of

them. Aubrey rushed into his arms. "e held her shaking body close to

his as tears tumbled down her cheeks.


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Chapter 1#

After about an hour spent waiting and praying, :urse 2ingley

stopped by the waiting area. %'reat news, Aubrey. #he doctors have

found the problem and your mother is on the road to recovery.(

#hank you so much,( Aubrey said. %#his is my husband,

Quintin. )hat eBactly is the problem*(

After acknowledging Quintin, :urse 2ingley continued

speaking. %+t-s what we call pulmonary edema. #here are various

kinds. &our mother has noncardiogenic pulmonary edema, meaning it

did not come about because of a heart condition, although it did

begin to affect her heart by causing pressure to increase within the

heart. r. ?rowning will be speaking with you more about it once he

comes out of the operating room.(

)hile they were talking, !astor Ashton ;oined them. "e

re;oiced with them at the great news. :urse 2ingley eBcused herself

as r. ?rowning ;oined them. )ith introductions behind them, r.

?rowning gave them a more detailed eBplanation of other

0amison-s condition.

&es, r. ?rowning, + did notice shortness of breath/ she

seemed to have difficulty lying on her back and her legs started

swelling. At first + thought she was ;ust eBerting herself too much and

she did slow down, but the symptoms returned. She said she was

feeling some discomfort in her chest area every now and then.(

r. ?rowning, she-s one of those people who will be in a

whole lot of pain and not say anything/ if she did say something, she

would make it seem less than what it is. She hates to bother people,(

Quintin added.


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3luid had accumulated in the air sacs in her lungs because

the capillaries, the very small blood vessels, became leaky. "er

kidneys both seem strong. )e did see a tiny clot in her lungs so

we-re attributing her symptoms to that,( r. ?rowning said. %Sheshould be all cleaned up and in her room by now.(

+ guess we all cannot march in there,( Quintin said waving

one hand in the direction of the ladies waiting for news about other

0amison.

Sorry,( r. ?rowning said. %+-ll allow you and your wife andthe pastor and his wife to go in her room/ but do not try to get her to

talk. She needs rest now more than anything. +f there are no more

questions, +-ll let you folks visit for a short while. :urse 2ingley will

take you to her room. All the best.(

!astor Ashton led in prayer once they entered the room. "e

and his wife then led the other ladies on their trip back home.

Arrangement was made for ariadas to travel back with Simone and

2elli who rode with !astor Ashton and his wife. ariadas would

spend the rest of the weekend with Simone.

?eing that there was not much they could do, Aubrey and

Quintin, after picking up a few necessary toiletries checked into a

hotel close to the hospital.

)e-ll ;ust worship at 'race and #ruth 3ellowship tomorrow,(

Quintin said.

Simone gave Aubrey a call after services on Sunday.

other should be home on )ednesday,( Aubrey informed

her. %+ tell you, it was a close call.(

)e-ve been praying for eBtra strength for you and your

husband as well. "ow have you both been holding out*( Simone


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asked.

Quite well,( Aubrey said. %"ow are things coming along with

the online ?ible studies*(

0ust great 2elvin and myself are almost done with a year-s

studies. "e-s so eBcited, he-s pushing forward at a speed + can hardly

keep up with,( Simone said with a laugh. %9ach year the college

offers students a chance to do missionary work overseas. #his year

they-re going to visit the :omatsiguenga people group in !eru. 2elvin

has already signed up to go with them. + tell you, he-s like acompletely different person since he got saved.(

#hat ;ust goes to show you what prayer can do. 'od is able

to do ama>ing things if we would only pray,( Aubrey said. %)ho would

have thought 'od would use a tragic situation to get 2elvin-s

attention*(

&ou said it right. +-m even more ama>ed at how fast he-s

learning the Arawakan language. And,( Simone added, %he-s learning

Spanish on the side, so he and ariadas are having a time

conversing with each other.(

Aubrey laughed. %+ can ;ust imagine. #hings are looking great

as far as getting her paperwork squared away. )e went down to the

immigration office and filled out all the paperwork, so if all goes well,

she should have her legal papers soon. + signed as her legal

guardian. 4nce her paperwork is finali>ed, we-ll help her file for her

family. So 'od-s answering our prayers about that.(

)ell, praise the


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sign up for a year-s stay . )e-ll be working through the #ranslation

4utreach :etwork. "e-s looking for fulltime work with them,( Simone

said. %And, yes, +-ll be traveling with him.(

+-m certainly going to miss you both,( Aubrey said. %And to

think 2elli will be leaving us too$at least for four years.(

&ou all have been great friends,( Simone said.

+ guess our little group is disbanding little by little,( Aubrey

told her husband later that night.

'od-s ;ust doing a greater work through each of you for "is

glory and for the saving of souls,( her husband assured her.

&eah, you-re right. +-m going to give 0ennifer a call. + still

don-t know what-s going on with her,( Aubrey told her husband.

)ell, hold up a minute. Can you give me a call first*( Quintin

said with a laugh. %Come on, spend some time with me first.(


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Chapter 20

#he onday after the tremendous meeting at 'race and

#ruth, 2elli was placing the last of the breakfast dishes in the dish

drainer when she heard the doorbell ring followed by firm knocking on

the door. After picking 0ustin up out of his high chair, she hurried to

the door wondering who it could be as she peered through the

peephole.

&es*( 2elli said after not recogni>ing the people standing

outside her front door.

+t-s rs. 2imberley from 3amily and Children Services. )e

sent you a letter and also left a message on your answering machine.

Could we please come in*(

2elli-s heart fell. I forgot they 'ere su$$osed to be coming

this morning, she thought to herself as she unlocked the door to see

rs. 2imberley and two other men standing on her front porch.

ay we please come in*( rs. 2imberley asked. %+-ll get

straight to the business at hand,( she said once they were seated.%&ou should have received a letter stating that we would be coming

over this morning.(

&es, + did receive your letter, but + thought it was mistaken

identity. + forgot all about your coming over,( 2elli said.

4kay. )ell, anyway, someone from the hospital emergencyroom had reported they suspect child abuse coming from this

residence and (

Child abuse* :ow who told you that*( 2elli asked. %As you

can see, my son is quite well and he-s not showing any signs of


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abuse.(

#he person told us he was brought in two, no three times,

with his lower legs fractured and or swollen. )e have the doctor-s

report right here of all his visits.( rs. 2imberley handed 2elli copies

of all three visits. %+-m afraid that until you can prove these fractures to

be of another cause other than abuse, we-ll have to take your son

into the care of the state.(

&ou can-t ;ust come in here and take my son away from me

like that,( 2elli said holding 0ustin in a tight embrace. %+ have neverabused my son. + would never even think of doing a thing like that.

&ou can speak to his doctor. "e does not know eBactly what is

causing his legs to fracture like that. "e-s looking into the possible

cause. !lease, you can-t take my child away from me. :o, + won-t let

you(

oes anyone else live here with you*( r. ickinson asked.

:o. +t-s ;ust me and my son. y husband-s away in 'ermany

on military duty. )e will be ;oining him within a month-s time,( 2elli

replied placing a kiss on 0ustin-s head.

rs. 2imberley and r. ickinson eBchanged a quick glance.

+-m sorry, rs. organ, but we have signed paperwork from

the court giving us permission to take 0ustin with us until this is

cleared up.(

:o, no, no( 2elli said hugging 0ustin tighter while shaking

her head vigorously. %:o, no, you can-t ;ust take my child. )hoever

told you that is lying.(

Can you eBplain his fractured legs, ma-am*(

:o, + can-t. +t first happened while my mother was watching

him. #he other two times, he was under my care. "e ;ust started


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walking and his legs gave way, and he hollered out in pain/ his legs

would swell up from time to time. &ou have to believe me( 2elli

looked frantically from one set of eyes to the other.

r. ickinson pursed his lips. rs. 2imberley blinked a few

times and looked away. 4fficer arks took a deep breath but kept

looking at the floor.

rs. organ, you seem to be a loving mother/ but we are

looking out for your son-s welfare. )e have to go by the evidence

presented to us, and = well, it-s not a pleasant ;ob, but + promise youwe will try to get you an early court date, especially since you

mention leaving to be with your husband within the month (

Court date


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)e-ll make arrangements for that,( rs. 2imberley said

handing her a card. %"ere-s my number and my place of employment

if you have any questions.(

r. ickinson reached down to pick 0ustin up. %ommy

ommy( 0ustin said squirming to get out of r. ickinson-s arms

while reaching for his mother.

r. ickinson, 4fficer arks, and rs. 2imberley hurried out

the door to their cars. 2elli sank to the ground and cried.


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Chapter 21

)hen she stopped crying, 2elli called Aubrey.

Aubrey, they came and took 0ustin. 3amily Services came

and took him. #hey said someone from the hospital reported child

abuse from when + took him in for his fractured legs. "ow can people

be so cruel( 2elli broke out crying again.

Aubrey said a quick prayer, closed up her office for the day,

and gave her husband a call. %Quintin, we need your help again,( she

said then proceeded to inform him of the phone conversation she ;ust

had with 2elli.

+-ll get on it right away,( Quintin said.

#hanks. other and myself are headed over to her place. +-ll

see if ariadas wants to drive with us over there as well. +-ll call up

the ladies and get them praying for this situation.


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+ sure wish 0ennifer was here. + hate to think +-ll be gone

without saying goodbye,( 2elli said.

+ spoke with her father on yesterday. "e-s already filed a

missing person-s report with the police,( Aubrey said.


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Chapter 22

2elli, #revor, and 0ustin made it safely to 'ermany. As soon

as they settled in, 2elli took 0ustin for his first visit with r. Kilseck

who had a knack for making people feel comfortable around him$

especially children. 0ustin sat on the bench neBt to him in the

eBamination room as r. Kilseck eBamined his legs.

+ feel a few knots. #hey-re too small to protrude above the

skin. And they are so small if you-re not trained to spot them, you-llmiss them. )e-ll get some Brays taken, check the blood pressure

down in his legs, among other things.( "e applied increasing

pressure on 0ustin-s leg. 0ustin would pull away depending on the

degree of the pressure. %#hat hurts a little, doesn-t it*( he said to

0ustin.

r. Kilseck placed 0ustin on the floor. %Come on and walk

over to me. &ou can have this stuffed bear and this lollipop,( he said

to 0ustin. 0ustin, with a slight limp, hurried over to r. Kilseck as fast

as he could.

After making a few notations on his chart, r. Kilseck said,

%)hat we-ll do is we-ll replace the rod that-s in his leg. +n the

meantime, +-ll get in touch with r. Anandra !etras. "e is from +ndia

and he works in the orthopedic department of a ma;or hospital there.

Right now, he-s in America doing work at 9mory 1niversity in Atlanta

for a year. +f my guess is correct, little 0ustin has what is called C!#$

congenital pseudarthrosis of the tibia. +t affects one in every 7GG,GGG

infants. + know of only one other case and r. !etras performed the

operation over in +ndia. +t-s a simple operation and + had the honor of

sitting in on the surgery.


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#revor and 2elli breathed a sigh of relief. %+t doesn-t sound

very serious,( #revor said to 2elli as they left the doctor-s office. %+ told

you to pray about it and not to worry.(

+ couldn-t help it,( 2elli said. %+-m a mother/ +-m supposed to

worry.(

2elli ;oyfully typed up a cover letter to send with the signed

letter from r. Kilseck along with other pertinent information to rs.

2imberley as well as to 0udge "unnicutt.

)hen they came to take 0ustin away, + was very angry,( 2elli

shared with her husband. %?ut the more + think about it, the more +

appreciate them doing their ;ob, even if they make a mistake every

now and then.(

2elli also sent letters to Aubrey and Simone both of which she

followed up with a phone call. Aubrey was happy as she listened to2elli eBplain the diagnosis.

C!# causes the bones in an infant-s leg to bow and

uneBpec

i know what prayer can do (serial novel)

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