Chapter Eighty-four

Izabella had her arms folded as she watched out the window. She was so tired, but she was waiting for the new pastor of the church to meet with her in the common office. Iz would ask him if she could stay here with the kids for a while. She wasn’t sure how she would explain why it needed to be here, but she planned on trying regardless. It was upsetting though. After leaving, she didn’t think Bram would come looking for her. Yet, there he was. Sitting across the road, leaning against a building looking up at the window she was standing in. The yearning to run downstairs and into his arms was almost painful. He wasn’t being fair to her like this. Izabella imagined he must be angry at her for leaving. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be staring at the building the way he was.

Unable to wrap her head around why he would take the chance that he could give away their position, she was now glaring out the window. His eyes didn’t seem to be on her though, so she wasn’t sure what he was doing. She was glad that Gabe and Devon had gone to lie down, because she was pretty sure that they would have already gone to him. The girls were with the church secretary, Marilyn. They were probably in the kitchen baking something delicious.

“Hey, Izzy. Marilyn said that you were looking for me?” Pastor Thomas Caddel walked into the room. He was a tall, slim man, who kept his head shaved but wore a neat goatee. His eyes were calm brown and he’d always been really nice to Izabella. He wasn’t much older than her. He had been her father’s assistant pastor for about two years before he passed. They knew each other pretty well.

“Hi, Tom.” She said shyly. If she had ever had a crush on anyone other than Bram, it would have been Tom. “I was hoping you would let me and the kids that came in with me stay in my old room for a few days.” She asked nervously, picking at her nails. She took a seat in the brown leather chair in front of the office desk while he leaned against it, standing in front of her.

He was dressed in all black, like her father always was. His white collar around his neck. Though his eyes were warm, his lips were currently pressed together in thought. “You know I have no issue with you staying here. I’ve said that since Matt passed away. But who are those kids? And why do you need to stay?” He cocked his head at her.

The room suddenly felt too hot, and Izabella was starting to doubt her story. Chewing on her thumbnail, she looked away. “You know about, me, right Tom?” She said, not able to meet his gaze. “How dad found me?”

“Yeah.” His head cocked to the side, and his eyes suddenly became hard. His foot started to tap on the hardwood floor and he shifted against the desk.

“Well, those kids were found as part of the same type of ring I was. Right now, I think those who originally were trying to hurt them are after me, and I’m trying to make sure they stay safe until my friend can get everything together for their adoption. They’ve already gone after him and others he knows. So, I can’t stay with him right now. It’s just too scary. It shouldn’t take long, but I need to make sure that no one knows we’re here.” She bit her lip, looking up at him. He rubbed the back of his bald head, and she knew that meant he didn’t like the idea. “I can’t keep them out on the street,” She said, a bit more sternly, “and I can’t take them back to an orphanage. It’s too dangerous. Please, Tom.” She said, standing up and taking the few steps between them as she reached out for his hand. “I really need your help.”

“Izzy, I don’t think you understand the kind of situation you’re putting me in here.” His cheeks turned red as she grabbed his hand, holding it tightly. “Let’s be honest, you couldn’t possibly understand what kind of situation you’re putting me in.” He mumbled. Now he wouldn’t even look her in the eye.

“Tom…”

“I’m going to need to think about it.” He sighed. “I have a few meetings today. You can all stay and hang around until then. I’ll order a pizza for supper and we’ll talk more about it then. Give me some time to bat this around. I mean, if I were to get caught with kids that are part of the system, it could really mess things up for me.”

“I’ll take full responsibility for everything. No one needs to know that you knew.” She squeezed his hand.

He gave her a frown. “I’ll pray on it, and let you know, regardless.” He squeezed her hands back. “I can’t make any promises, but I can at least give you today and food.” He watched her a moment as she let his hands drop, nodding, as she slumped back into the chair. It was a comfortable office. One she spent plenty of time in when she was younger. It doubled as the church library with a healthy section of young adult and Christian romance books.

Pastor Tom sighed, taking the seat next to her. “Other than, I guess, all that. How are you doing Izzy? I think about you all the time and pray for you every day. It really bothered me when you left. Even more so when you stopped coming to church.”

Izabella shrugged. “I guess, it was just hard being here.” She couldn’t look at him. Tears were welling in her eyes even now. “I mean, dad and I spent my whole life here. After he passed, it just got really hard to be here all the time. I miss him so much.” Tom grabbed tissues from the desk and held them out to her. “I’ve tried a couple other churches, but it just didn’t feel right.” Wiping her tears, she also blew her nose.

He gave her a sad smile, putting his hand on top of hers in a comforting motion. “Maybe you should just try showing up on Sundays instead? It will keep him close for you but won’t be too overwhelming. I understand you wanting to distance yourself, but this might be more than you were ready for?”

“It was actually really nice walking in here today. Even considering the circumstances.” Izabella gave him a small smile. “I’ve just been trying to make it on my own. I really wanted to be able to prove to myself that I could figure out my life without him. And I think I’m finally doing that.” She tugged at the necklace she was wearing. It was the ruby and diamond one that Bram had bought her.

“Oh?” He smiled, sitting forward. “Did you get a job?”

“I did. I met someone too.” She couldn’t help but smile to herself. “I’m his nanny, and when we realized we had feeling for each other, it got a little awkward, but we’re working through it.”

“Wow.” Tom nodded, “Good for you, Izzy. So, you are a nanny? Are you making enough to rent your own apartment and everything?”

“Well, he provides an apartment for me. But I’ve just been staying in his spare room.” She was going to omit the fact that she had actually spent the night in the same room with him more often. “He’s really kinda, and sweet, and very handsome.”

Tom’s frown was back. “Just, make sure he doesn’t take advantage of you. Some guys act that way for a while, but once they get tired of hanging out with the girl, things start to change. How long have you been working for him? You’ve been out of here, what is it, maybe nine months?” He was tapping his chin.

“Long enough.” That was another answer she was going to omit. Two weeks wasn’t long enough for him to believe she had real feelings for someone. Bram was just, different. In so many ways.

“How’d you meet this guy?” His frown deepened, and now his eyes were narrowing at her. He was becoming suspicious.

Izabella stood up, walking to the window. She was starting to miss him, and wanted to see him so badly. He was no longer standing across the road though. He must have finally decided to leave. She pouted for a moment before turning around with a smile. “Do you remember that guy that started the Devon Stoker foundation? Bram Stoker? Who rescued the little boy who was like me?”

Tom shot out of his chair, taking a few quick steps toward her. It shocked her enough that she nearly stumbled backward. “You’re dating *that* guy? You’re joking, right, Izzy? Is his son down there? With the kids?”

“Y-yeah.” She was confused by his behavior. “Why? What’s wrong?”

Tom paced the room for a moment. “Which one is he?”

“He’s the younger boy, just turned seven. With black hair. Bram wants to adopt all of them though, so they’ll all be his children soon.” Tom stopped, looking down at his watch. Izabella looked over at the grandfather clock. It was almost noon. “Are you okay? You’re acting awfully strange.” She didn’t like this at all. It was starting to make her nervous. Why did his demeanor change as soon she brought up Bram?

“Oh, no. I’m sorry, Izzy.” He laughed nervously, running his hand over the back of his head. “I, uh, just realized I’m late for my meeting. I have to run now. I’ll catch up with you a little later. The choir should be meeting for lunch and practice soon. The ladies would love to see you. You should make an appearance. I bet they’d love to feed you. The kids too. I’ll catch up with you a little later and let you know if you can all stay here for a few days.”

“Okay.” Izabella watching him turn on his heals and head for the door. “Hey, Tom?” She said quietly. He stopped in his tracks, looking at her over his shoulder. “Thank you. For everything.”

He smiled, chuckling. But as he slipped out the door, she could have sworn she heard him mutter, “Don’t thank me just yet, Izzy.”

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