Epilogue
CALLIE COCKED HER HEAD and studied her fiancé as he walked out on to the back porch to join her.
“Get plenty to eat?” Shane asked.
“Of your mother’s cooking? I might have to lie down in the Buick when we drive home.”
He sat on the swing next to her and set it to rocking. They gazed out over the valley as the sun painted the sky golden on a perfect Thanksgiving afternoon.
“Warm enough?” Shane asked, pulling a throw blanket around her shoulders.
“I am, but you can still kiss me if you want.”
So he did, and it made her toes tingle as always. Callie thought Max gave her a reproachful look, but he was as full as she was and couldn’t do more than moan softly.
“Gavin told me to say yes,” she admitted, when Shane stopped kissing her and returned to staring at the sunset.
“Gavin told you to marry me?”
She slapped his arm, but he grabbed her hand and wouldn’t let go. “He said, ‘Say yes when Shane asks you to go …’ but he never finished the sentence, and I didn’t know where you were going to ask me to go.”
“This was when we found the money?”
“And two weeks later you offered me this ring.” Callie looked down at the sparkling diamond. Not too big. Not too small. Just right. Shane Black knew how to do things just right.
“I’m glad you said yes.” He nuzzled her neck and she let out a yelp.
“Everything all right out there?” Shane’s father asked from the kitchen.
“Yes,” Callie and Shane answered in unison.
Callie thought about Shane’s remark. “To marrying you or to meeting your parents?”
“Both.”
“I am too.” She snuggled into his arms while the stars began to make an appearance. All she could think of as her eyes grew heavy was that Deborah was right. God did have a plan. “I am too.”
Discussion Questions
1. In chapter 5, Callie attempts to explain to Deborah the heart of her relationship with Mrs. Knepp. She compares it to not being accepted into a group in high school, then admits that “in my mind there was always going to be a day — sometime in the future — when we could call a truce.” Can you relate to Callie’s awkwardness at not being accepted by someone or a group of people? How did you react? Has there been a time when you held on to a grudge and wished you hadn’t?
2. In chapter 10, Melinda realizes, maybe for the first time, that the killer could be after her son Aaron. She has a moment of panic, and then remembers the words found in Jeremiah 29:11. Only part of the scripture is included in the chapter. The entire verse is one of my favorites.
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you,” declares the LORD, “thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
Has there been a time in your life when this scripture has brought you comfort?
3. Joshua’s meltdown in chapter 11 was so much fun for me to write, because I’ve been there with my own child! So often when I see young mothers with young children, I’m reminded of a professor’s wise words: “You’re seeing three minutes of a three-hour movie.” Isn’t that the truth? We don’t really know what’s going on in someone else’s life. Can you relate to Deborah’s problems with Joshua, and if so, would you have handled it the same way or differently?
4. After Shane and Callie kiss, she realizes she must make a leap of faith — she can no longer straddle the fence of their relationship (chapter 13): “There was no middle ground. It was either trust and take the leap, or back up and somehow endure this thing alone.”
Callie’s relationship with Shane very much parallels her spiritual journey at this point. In other words, sometimes God uses people to help us make those leaps of faith. Have you experienced a similar moment?
5. At the beginning of chapter 17, Melinda recalls her mother’s advice, the biblical advice to “lean not unto your own understanding.” She knows this is good advice, but knowing it and being able to do it are two very different things. What are some practical things we can do to depend on God’s understanding during times of crisis?
6. In chapter 20, you read from Esther’s point of view that “God had worked in her heart. He had given her back her faith in the goodness of life.” This is no small thing! Esther had previously lost more than her husband, Seth, to a terrible accident. She had lost her faith in the goodness of God. Do you think it’s possible to ever completely heal from such a tragedy?
7. We have a nice image of Deborah ministering to Melinda in chapter 23. “When she applied pressure to the small cut, fresh blood poured out, staining the cotton.” Sometimes it’s the small daily things that remind us of Christ’s sacrifice. What has occurred in your daily life recently to remind you of the gift of grace?
8. The Swap! Oh my. In chapter 25, we see that Aaron and Matt have once again pulled The Swap! Why are they doing this to their parents? Are they bad children? Do they understand it’s wrong? And in this case, does the end justify the means? (P.S. did you ever do anything similar when you were a child, or since?)
9. We learn about Shane’s background in chapter 26, about the tragic death of his sister, how the person who killed her was captured and imprisoned, and how that affected his family. This scene helps us to understand how Shane has become the man, and the officer, that he is. In reality, can God use something terrible in our lives for good?
10. In chapter 30, Levi reveals his attitude toward his brother. He knows he will never be able to win Thomas’ freedom, but he still has hope for his salvation when he says to Shane, “Because you didn’t kill him … I will have time to try and win my bruder’s heart. Time to pray for him and time to minister.” How is this an expression of God’s grace?