Unforeseeable (Road to Kingdom Book #3) , livre ebook

Baker Publishing Group - Nancy Mehl

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138 pages

English

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Callie Hoffman has a good life in Kingdom, Kansas. She's engaged to Levi Housler, the new pastor of Kingdom Mennonite Church, and she spends her days working with Lizzie Housler, her friend and soon-to-be sister-in-law, at the town cafe. When a body is discovered on the road outside Kingdom and the deceased turns out to be the victim of a serial killer, the new county sheriff begins questioning Kingdom residents. Unsettled at the prospect of a killer in Kingdom, Callie is desperate to find answers for herself, especially when her own fiance seems to know more about the murder than he's telling. As the town battles an entirely unforeseen danger and Callie's very life is threatened, the stakes are as high as they've ever been and the people of Kingdom must learn anew to put their trust in God alone."Small-town life meets a dangerous outside world in this taut, suspenseful story, the third (after Inescapable and Unbreakable) in Mehl's Mennonite-flavored romantic suspense series. A good choice for readers who liked Amy Wallace's "Place of Refuge" series." --Library Journal

Informations

Publié par	Baker Publishing Group
Date de parution	01 septembre 2013
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781441262714
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	2 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0259€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

© 2013 by Nancy Mehl
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Ebook edition created 2013
Ebook corrections 11.26.2019
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—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4412-6271-4
Scripture references are from the King James Bible unless otherwise indicated.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Cover design by Paul Higdon
Cover photography by Mike Habermann Photography, LLC
Author represented by Benrey Literary, LLC
To my beloved daughter-in-law, Shaen
A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.
Proverbs 31:10–12 NIV
This was my prayer. You were my answer.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Books by Nancy Mehl
Back Ad
Back Cover
Chapter / 1
“Murder and meat loaf just don’t go together,” Lizzie grumbled. “Why did the elders agree to let the new sheriff come here? To my restaurant? No one asked my permission.”
“It’s absurd to think a serial killer could possibly be hiding out in Kingdom,” I replied. “I don’t see why the sheriff needs to bother us with this.”
Lizzie chopped a large onion with a little too much gusto. “Well, your fiancé is the one who suggested it, Callie. Maybe you need to ask him what’s behind it.”
I set a tray of dirty dishes on the counter and sighed. “Levi says they’re bringing Sheriff Timmons here after his meeting with the elders so they can properly introduce him. After that, he plans to speak to us.” After washing my hands, I leaned against the sink and frowned at Lizzie. “Levi says the sheriff feels it’s important to warn us about these . . . murders.”
“‘Levi says. Levi says.’” Lizzie shook her head. “You’re so funny. I can’t remember the last time I saw anyone so much in love.”
I pointed my finger at her. “Besides you and Noah, you mean?”
A quick smile flitted across her face and then disappeared. “After everything this town has been through, to be honest, the idea of more bad news . . .”
“I know. I feel the same way. Why can’t the sheriff meet with just the elders and let them decide what to tell us?”
Lizzie sighed. “Women have been killed, Callie. I guess the sheriff is trying to warn us. To keep us safe.” She plopped the onions into a big pot of chili sitting on the stove and pushed a lock of curly black hair out of her eyes. “I still wish they’d picked someplace besides my restaurant. Murder doesn’t really stimulate the appetite, does it?”
Lizzie had worked hard to make Cora’s Corner Café a spot where families felt comfortable. It had taken Cora Menlo, the original owner, a long time to get Kingdom’s Mennonite citizens to accept the restaurant. When she’d opened it, over fifteen years ago, most families were convinced meals should be served at home. But over time, Cora’s Café had been received by a majority of our citizens. In fact, it had become a popular meeting place for friends to gather and socialize. I was grateful to work there and even more thankful that Lizzie and I had become good friends. During the past several years, I hadn’t had much time for socializing. Papa’s illness took up almost all of my time. Since he passed four months ago, I really leaned on my relationship with Lizzie.
“I think Levi chose the restaurant because the topic is . . . well, not one easily discussed in church,” I said. “This is the only other place in town big enough to accommodate a crowd.”
Lizzie grunted. “He’s right, I guess. But I still don’t have to like it.”
“Levi would never do anything to hurt you, Lizzie.”
“I know that. I’m not upset with him. Frankly, I’m still trying to get used to Levi’s being our pastor. It feels so strange, Pastor Mendenhall’s leaving and Levi being elected to take his place. I used to love to tease him, but now it feels . . . I don’t know, sacrilegious or something.”
Even though our conversation was a serious one, I couldn’t hold back a giggle. “Try being engaged to marry your pastor. That’s really confusing.”
Lizzie frowned at me. “Does it bother him that a few folks in the church think he’s too young for the position?”
I shrugged. “He acts like it doesn’t, but you know Levi. It’s hard to know what he’s really thinking.”
Lizzie nodded. “I don’t like the way he’s changed in the last few months. I mean, he’s always had a serious side, but we were always able to tease him out of it. Lately he’s been different. Almost glum. I’m worried about him.”
“I don’t think he’s unhappy. He just wants to do a good job.”
“Well, he’s a little too somber for me. Since accepting the pastorate, he doesn’t laugh much. Or joke with Noah the way he used to.”
I knew exactly what Lizzie was talking about, but for some reason her words made me feel defensive. Levi should be happy because of our engagement, but what Lizzie said was true. Day by day he seemed to grow more solemn.
“I wish people would leave him alone and let him do his job,” I said tersely. “Why does everyone have to have an opinion about everything? No wonder he’s changed.”
Lizzie grunted. “This is Kingdom, Callie. Folks think poking their nose into other people’s business is their right. Their responsibility. It’s always been that way. Hopefully, the uneasiness about Levi will fade away after a while.”
“I guess there were already some concerns because we had three younger elders on the board.”
“The blame for that should be directed toward the older elders who quit. My father, John Lapp, and Elmer Wittenbauer.” She shook her head. “Seems ridiculous to worry about good men like Levi, Noah, and Ebbie Miller when the church voted for someone like Elmer Wittenbauer. He’s old, but that sure didn’t make him the right choice.”
I nodded my agreement. Elmer Wittenbauer, who’d stepped down over a dispute with Pastor Mendenhall, didn’t have a good reputation in Kingdom. When he was first elected, no one knew about all the problems in his home. But after he began serving as an elder, his laziness toward his family and the mistreatment of his wife and daughter slowly became common knowledge. Before Pastor Mendenhall and the other elders were faced with having him removed, he’d quit, citing health reasons. At least the church had learned an important lesson about being more careful in selecting men for positions of authority.
Lizzie grabbed a large spoon and began stirring the chili. “Levi’s one of the wisest men I’ve ever known. Even if he is only thirty.” She stopped and turned toward me. “What about you? Do you ever worry about your age? Twenty-two is pretty young for a pastor’s wife.”
“I try not to think about it too much, but I do pray I won’t let him down.”
Even though I tried to sound undaunted, I was very concerned about my age and lack of experience. How could I possibly live up to the job? Besides taking care of a husband, a home, and any future children, I was expected to visit those in our church who were sick, as well as coordinate assistance to families who needed help with food, clothing, and other needs. Along with those duties, several of the women had asked that the ladies’ Bible study begin again. It had disbanded after Bethany, Pastor Mendenhall’s wife, left town. The idea terrified me. I’d spent a lot of time reading the Bible, but as a new bride, how in the world was I supposed to teach married women in the church about being godly wives? It was ridiculous.
I wanted to confess my fears to Lizzie, but I was afraid. Afraid that she’d see me for the fraud I really was. For the failure I felt like. I’d been in love with Levi for a long time, but I’d never considered that one day he might become the pastor of Kingdom Mennonite Church. Now I had no choice but to try to find a way to live up to the role of a pastor’s wife. If I couldn’t, I risked losing the only man I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.
“Oh, Callie,” Lizzie said. “You’ll be wonderful. We all loved Bethany, but this last year she was so restless and unhappy that she didn’t do much for the church. You don’t have a tough act to follow. Everything will work out.”
“I hope you’re right. I think everyone’s in shock because of Pastor and his family moving away.”
“Bethany was convinced that living here was keeping them from fulfilling the Lord’s admonition to ‘Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.’ Then when Pastor was almost killed in the church fire last summer, she put her foot down and insisted they leave. It was hard to argue with her when she truly believed it was wrong for them to stay.”
“Do you think she was right?”
Lizzie shrugged. “I have no idea. All I know is that I miss them. Of course, I’m thrilled to have Levi as our pastor,” she added quickly, “but Pastor Mendenhall was such a blessing to this town. He tried so hard to move us toward grace and away from judgment.”
I knew exactly what she meant, but some church members, including Lizzie’s father and John Lapp, seemed to believe that Pastor Mendenhall’s stand for grace had led to his downfall. No amount of reasoning would sway them or their c