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The Light Holding Her

By Chandra Lynn Smith

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~ Chapter One ~

Julia Adkins stepped out of her car, placed her hands on her hips and arched her back. Then, after stretching them above her head she reached down and touched her toes. Eleven hours driving from Myrtle Beach to Lakeville, West Virginia, made a person car tight. And, while spending two weeks in a lavish beach house placing a service dog with a precious young woman had been both refreshing and rewarding, nothing beat coming home to her lakeside, mountain tree house.

The afternoon sun sparkled like glitter across Simms Lake. Most of the trees were bare but those newly-fallen, multicolored leaves lay on the ground like a brilliant earthen carpet. The waning weeks of October always brought some of the most changeable weather of the year. The air was warm and breezy for now, but tonight promised frost. It would not be surprising to have the first snow within a few weeks. The season of in-between as Mom called it.

Julia opened the back door and unfastened her Catahoula Hound from his doggy harness.

“Fred, it looks like we’ve missed the peak of the colors. Maybe we’ll get an early snow. Either way, you won’t care. Your nose always finds its joy—rabbit trails.”

The energetic two-year-old dog barked as he leaped from the car and ran in ever-widening circles around the yard. Between laps he’d stop, bay into the air at nothing—or what she figured was nothing—and quickly resume the run. His final lap ended at the base of the front steps where he sniffed something on the ground and then backed away from it and sat.

Julia frowned. Fred only did that when he found something he didn’t recognize. The last time it happened, he’d narrowly escaped tangling with a rattlesnake. She grabbed the walking stick she kept in the backseat and crept towards him. Every muscle in his back and legs tensed. He was ready to pounce on her command. She stopped beside him.

“What’cha got there, buddy?”

Nothing really looked out of place. No animals or bugs or anything. She touched his shoulder and bent for a closer look where his eyes were fixed. A yellow marble lay on the ground just under the first step.

“Really, Fred? You go into guard mode for a marble? It’s good you found it before it attacked me.” She picked it up and showed it to him. “Release.”
He broke his guard posture and raced one more time around the yard, then stopped at the ground-level door of the sunroom.

Julia rolled the marble around in her hand. Like the others she’d found around the area, it was unique. Glass. Old. From a distance it looked solid yellow, but upon closer examination she found it was clear and filled with yellow glitter. She pocketed it and walked to the sunroom where Fred patiently waited for her.
At the door, Julia inhaled deeply and blew the breath out. Home. It was good to be back. After unlocking the door and stepping inside, she flipped a switch and all of her privacy shades opened. In moments, afternoon sunlight filtered into the room.

“I love this room, Fred. Just think, Mr. Cobb thought I was crazy wanting this patio space glassed in.”

He’d actually chuckled when she first described what she wanted. But once he’d installed the floor, window treatments, and a gas fireplace, he’d conceded her plan was good. In fact, he liked it so much that he was using her ideas to build similar homes around the lake.

Julia rubbed her arms against the chill. After a quick adjustment to the thermostat, she opened the door to upstairs. “Won’t take long for this place to warm up.”
With Fred on her heels, she headed out to unpack the car. She grabbed her backpack, Fred’s duffle, and the grocery tote, then climbed the steps to the wrap-around deck, stopping to watch some geese land on the water. To coin the phrase her sister, Steph, used, coming home to Lakeville felt like her whole body sighed. Some girls dream of having tree houses when they’re young. She got hers as an adult. The tiny house with cedar siding on stilts in the oak tree was as much a dream come true as her job training service dogs.

Fred whimpered. Poor guy; he’d been waiting patiently at the bottom of the steps for her to allow him to follow while she daydreamed on the deck.

“Fred. Hup.”

The dog raced up to meet her. Though he weighed sixty-five pounds, he had the agility of a little dog, the tenacity of a bully breed, and the protective instinct of a guard dog. His ears perked as he focused his attention toward the property beside hers and barked. Letting the backpack slide from her shoulder and setting the groceries on the deck, she peeked around the corner of her house through the woods.

The neighboring A-frame had been for sale and unoccupied for months. The “sold” sign went up before she left for South Carolina. A tall man stood on their shared pier—the new owner she presumed. Hopefully, a nice new neighbor.

Fred barked.

The tall, dark-haired man—who she had to admit filled out jeans and a T-shirt quite nicely—waved. “Howdy neighbor.”

Julia waved before picking up her gear and opening the door into her tiny sanctuary. She glanced toward the pier once more before going inside. The way he stood, the sound of his voice, and the smile, oh the smile, everything about him was familiar.

#

Ryan Bowers waved at the brunette on the deck of the tree house. He should be neighborly and introduce himself, but before he stepped off the pier, his phone rang. The temptation to ignore the ring and go meet his neighbor ended when he saw who was calling.

He hadn’t spoken to his dear friend Sergei since their move from Moscow. He held the phone to his ear and waved at the “girl next next door” who obviously was much more than a girl.

“Priviut, Sergei. Do you have a malyshka yet?”

“Nyet. We are ready for this little one, but it is good she does not come yet.”
Ryan looked up the hill in time to see his neighbor pick up a backpack and go inside her house. Guess he’d have to meet her some other time. “Why is that?”
“We have much unpacking to do and arrangements to make to be settled here in Pennsylvania. It is very different from Russia. We are okay if our daughter comes late.”

“I can’t imagine how you just picked up and left.”

“Da. Was hard to leave our home, but my brother promises we will be happy in Pennsylvania. His farm is nice. We can start over here.”

“I had hoped to help you move in, but your plans got pushed up and I am just settled in myself. I start the new job on Monday.”

“Mr. Ryan, God has good plans for you.”

Ryan watched the colors of sunset spread crimson across the water. “I have two weeks of vacation by March. Maybe I can come for a visit.”

“We will plan for that. You are home now?”

He nodded. “Moved in last week.”

“Is the house good?”

“Needs paint. But yes, it is good.”

“And the prison ministry is what you wanted?”

“I think it will be.” He heard someone calling Sergei. “Is that Nastasha?”
“Da. That ledi will be my end.”

“Soon enough you will hold your little girl and it will all be worth it.” He glanced at his watch. “Guess I need to figure out what I’m having for supper. Thanks for checking in. Take care of yourselves and call me when your little Anya arrives.”

“You can be sure I will. Have good worship tomorrow.”

“You know it will be great to be at my home church, but I’ll miss your lovely little chapel along the trail.”

“Da. We too shall miss it.”


“Dosvedania, Sergei.”
“Goodbye, Mr. Ryan.”

He stared across the lake. A part of his heart was still in Russia with his “family” there. Three years living with them, ministering on the streets together, building houses for the needy and helping those suffering from Covid had permanently affected him. Now was the time to settle back down in the States, but missionary work was his heart. Hopefully, the prison ministry would fill the void, make him feel less divided.

Hiking up the hill to his house, he noted some missing shingles. He’d add that to the list of projects; chimney swept, woodstove serviced, and the cedar siding re-stained. As beautiful as winter on the lake would be, his house needed some TLC before it was ready for the mountain cold. A gust of wind rushed through the trees, making him shiver. Hopefully, there would not be an early snow.

A bark from the tiny house in the trees distracted him. Maybe she had the right idea building such a tiny place. Smaller repairs

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