Page 56 of Shattered Sanctuary

“I know that’s not true, Erin,” Kaely said immediately, with tears in her eyes. “But can’t you see that even though terrible things happen sometimes—things we can’t control—it doesn’t change who we are? You were a decorated, brave, and incredible officer. Yet something terrible happened anyway. It wasn’t your will, and it wasn’t God’s will. But it did happen. Like I said, God didn’t want your parents to die. Nor did He want your sister to use drugs. The important thing to remember is that what happened to them—and to Sarah—didn’t change who you are. Circumstances can’t do that. This is true for you—and it’s true for God. Sometimes things just happen. I know that someday God will be able to explain it to you in a way I can’t. But no matter what, God is still God. He still loves us no matter what we do. And He still gave up His only Son for us.” She shook her head. “But let’s not get into that yet. I’ll talk more about it later, but only if you ask me to. For now, I just want you to understand that no matter what, God doesn’t change. He will never stop loving you. And you are still the person you used to be. The great police officer you were before that terrible night. You didn’t kill that little girl, Erin. A stray bullet killed her. You weren’t wrong to take that shot. The truth is, you were trained todefend yourself if your life was in danger. I know, and you should know, that you would have laid your life down for Scott, even though he’d hurt you. And you would have done the same for Sarah. That’s who you really are.”

Erin wanted to fire back. Wanted to shoot down Kaely’s argument, but down deep inside, she knew it was true. It was as if Kaely’s words had finally turned on the light inside her heart so she could see past the guilt, the pain, and the anger. It wasn’t her fault. She’d only done what she was trained to do. There was no way for her to know that the bullet would penetrate the wall of that poorly constructed building and hit Sarah. She hung her head and began to sob. It was like a dam had broken inside, and she could no longer hold back the flood that poured through the cracks.

Kaely got up and came over to the couch. She opened her arms, and Erin fell into them. They stayed that way until Erin’s tears finally stopped.

“Where have you been?” Adrian asked Timothy when he walked into the station.

“Checking things out at the shelters,” Timothy said. “I thought that’s what you wanted me to do.”

“The chief didn’t send that text to you, Timothy,” Lisa said. “I did. I’m sorry,” she said to Adrian, “but you weren’t here, and I thought we should make certain they’re prepared.”

Adrian sighed. “Yeah, you’re right. And what did you find, Tim?”

He accidentally let the nickname slip. Timothy didn’t like using the less formal name, but at the moment, Adrian didn’tcare. They had a lot of things to do that were more important than worrying about someone’s quirks.

“They need more cots,” Timothy said. “I called The Salvation Army in Knoxville, and they’re sending a truck with a little over a hundred more.”

“Thank you,” Adrian said. “I appreciate your initiative. And what about everything else?”

“We were short on blankets until Lisa called some of our churches. People began to bring in all kinds of blankets, bedspreads, and quilts. Anything they had to help.”

Adrian breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, let’s pray we don’t need to use any of them. But at least we’ve done what we could.”

His phone rang again. “Sorry. Just keep doing what you’re doing. Excellent job. Both of you.”

“Thanks, boss,” Lisa said.

“And, boss,” Timothy added, “in situations like this, you can call me Tim.”

Adrian laughed lightly. “Thanks. A high honor indeed.” The phone rang, and he picked it up. It was Merle, asking for help in case those who were trapped in his resort needed more food than he could provide. While Adrian told him about the facilities that would have food and shelter should his guests need it, he kept thinking about Erin Delaney and Kaely Hunter. For some reason, he felt unsettled about them. When he hung up with Merle, he planned to call them. Was he worrying for no reason? Kaely was ex-FBI, and Erin was an ex-cop. The skills they’d learned would be part of them the rest of their lives. Besides that, they were both smart. Savvy. They should be fine. Why couldn’t he get their faces out of his mind?

THIRTY-EIGHT

Kaely was moved with compassion for her friend. What had just happened was a great step toward healing. But now Kaely would have to tread carefully.

She’d gone to the kitchen to make them both a cup of tea. While she rinsed the hot chocolate cups and put them in the dishwasher, she prayed.Lead me, Holy Spirit. Don’t let me blow this. Help me to get myself out of the way so that I can hear You.

She’d made the mistake of getting ahead of God before, and she didn’t want to do it again. Erin was fragile. More fragile than she’d realized. As a cop, Erin had been trained to protect others but not herself.

Kaely put two cups of water in the microwave and waited for it to heat up. She pulled out the Earl Grey tea, and there was milk in the fridge. Earl Grey had to be served with milk. It was the only proper way. A British friend of hers had taught her that.

As she waited for the water to heat up, a shriek from outside made her jump. Her first thought was the Woman in Watcher Woods. She stood still for a minute, and withinseconds, there was another high-pitched sound. The wind. The storm was coming closer. Kaely took a deep breath to calm herself. She didn’t believe in ghosts, but seeing someone out there, dressed in a dark cloak and glowing, would unnerve anyone.

As far as the storm, she was grateful that they had ample supplies and a backup generator. The only thing that bothered her was the realization that they could soon be cut off from the outside world. Still, serial killings rarely happened during bad weather. Criminals were usually concerned about having a way to escape. Being trapped in a blizzard wasn’t a favorable situation to find themselves in.

Her mind drifted back to the supposed ghost wandering the woods. Who wanted them to believe there was a ghost in Watcher Woods? What was the purpose? Could the killer be dressing up as William Watcher’s dead wife? But that didn’t really go along with his MO or his signature. And there wasn’t anything at the crime scene that connected him to the Emma Watcher ghost story. Kaely’s gut told her that this killer would never do that. He lived to kill. He was driven to kill. He wasn’t focused on some silly ghost story.

Although the FBI’s training pointed only toward a killer’s mental and emotional state, Kaely knew there was more to it. Jesus cast out demons frequently, yet today, modern thinking looked upon that explanation as ridiculous. Even some Christians laughed at the idea. However, if part of the Bible was true, then all of the Bible was true. Demons were real. Kaely had seen them in the acts of some of the criminals she’d profiled for the FBI. Unfortunately, casting out demons was frowned upon by most law enforcement agencies. She suspected the killer they were dealing with nowhad a spiritual problem. Using angels as his signature made this clear. She supposed that demons didn’t care much for angels either—except maybe the fallen kind.

Kaely jumped when the microwave dinged. Thinking about serial killers and demons was going to make her loopy if she didn’t refocus her mind on the main reason she was here. To help Erin. She was convinced that she needed to keep her talking about the night that changed her life. That had sent her spiraling. She had to find a way to move past it and live her life without that night holding her hostage. She’d taken a big step, but there was more that needed to be done in her heart and mind.

She put the tea bags in the cups, added a little milk, and carried the cups into the living room. She’d just set them down when her cell phone rang. She picked it up. Adrian again.

“Hello?”

“Things are crazy here,” he said, “but I wanted to check on you and Erin. Make sure you’re safely inside. The snow has started and will get heavier as the night goes on.”

“We’re fine. Thank you for checking. We’re nice and warm and have plenty of supplies.”

---