Page 112 of Love in the Storm

“Don’t say that,” Camille whispered.

Whether Lyric said it or not, things were bound to change now, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

38

ASA

The cheery bell above the door jingled as Asa walked into Julia’s Flower Shop.

“Walked” was a loose term. It took everything he had not to storm in, demanding justice and action.

Julia Letterman looked up with a smile on her face. Her blonde hair streaked with a lighter gray was pulled up into a curly bunch, and her light-blue eyes greeted him with sweetness. “Hello there. Looking for flowers for a special someone?”

He’d known Julia most of his life. She’d been his Sunday School teacher when he was ten. There was no way Julia knew Wendy had a problem. Was it a good thing that the older woman was blinded by kindness?

“Is Wendy here?” She had to be here. She didn’t have a car, but Asa focused on keeping his breathingcalm as he waited impatiently for Julia’s unknowing response.

Julia put down the thick, red ribbon she’d been tying. “She’s in the back. Let me get her.”

Asa rapped his knuckles on the counter. He hated leaving Lyric at the department. Wendy needed to hurry up.

Was this what Lyric felt when she jumped into action without assessing the situation first? The urge to follow Julia and look for Wendy himself was almost overpowering.

Wendy stepped out of the back room with a smile on her face that morphed into a look of terror when she saw him.

“Don’t run,” Asa said, reaching over the counter with an open hand. “We need to talk.”

Wendy gripped the doorframe and stared at him. He’d seen the cornered cat look too many times. Wendy’s brown eyes didn’t veer from him in the slightest. He could almost hear the gears in her head turning, searching for a way out.

“It’s Lyric. She’s at the station. Can we go somewhere and talk?”

Wendy squeezed her eyes closed, knitting her brows together as her chin quivered.

Julia wrung her hands by the register. “What’s going on?”

Asa didn’t take his attention from Wendy. If he looked away, she might vanish, taking Lyric’s chanceof freedom right along with her. “I can get her out, but you need to claim it.”

Wendy hadn’t moved to take this conversation somewhere private, and Julia’s hand rose to cover her mouth.

It seemed they’d be having this conversation right here in the middle of the store.

Wendy’s shoulders slumped, quaking slightly in defeat. “I didn’t use.”

“That’s good,” Asa whispered. “Lyric will be happy to know it. I’m happy too.” They both wanted to see Wendy beat this life-long battle. Asa was just as invested in her sobriety journey as Lyric.

“I guess that doesn’t matter, does it?”

“It does. This isn’t a failure. You can still keep going. You’re still clean, and you’ve done it during some of the hardest times. That takes strength.”

Wendy turned to him, and her eyes glistened with the tears that waited to run down her face. “It’s so hard,” she whispered. “You don’t know what it’s like.”

“You’re right. I don’t. But I have to watch Lyric struggle with the past, and it tears me up.”

Wendy shook her head slowly.

“The past is gone, and you can let it go. It’ll be tough, but you’re not doing it alone. That’s why we want to help you. But you have to help Lyric first.”

Please let her help. Please let her help.He’d prayed the entire drive over, and now it was time to do hispart. He’d asked the Lord for guidance, and now he was asking Wendy for help while also offering help in return.

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