Letting loose a low whistle, he hoped the foxes would scamper off or retreat underground.
Then he’d seen her.
A woman by the bank, her dark hair flowing in the wind, looking like some unearthly being. The crying came from the base of the tree, and it had quieted the moment he entered the vicinity.
The sight of the woman had arrested him, unable to breathe for the strange way his heart hammered in his chest.
Then she’d taken a step.
And somehow, he knew. He knew…!
His hand instinctively wrapped around her to make sure she didn’t step off the bank. He could finally convince her to check on the baby underneath the tree.
Esther.
A beautiful name. A biblical name.
He watched her kiss and coo the child in her arms. Finally, she carefully put the baby back in the basket and then lifted dull brown eyes to him.
His heart lurched in his chest. She lookedempty.
“Miss, are you going to be all right?”
She nodded and lifted the small woven basket Esther was in. “I’ll be fine.” She tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear. “I think I’ll walk over to see Heather.”
“The midwife?” She nodded. “That is probably wise. I’ll escort you there.”
The woman hugged the basket closer to her. “At the risk of sounding rude, I’d like to walk alone.”
Christopher shook his head slowly. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Her eyes lifted to him. “I will not hurt myself or my child. I admit that…” She stopped talking and what she didn’t say howled around them on the winds. “Please, just give me a few moments to compose myself, sir, then you may escort me.”
Christopher wasn’t sure if he believed her, but he had no choice. “I’ll be close by then, miss.”
She gave him a nod. “Thank you.”
Christopher walked away, going far enough to give her some privacy but still close enough to be of help. He leaned and settled against a tree, snatching up a blade of grass and chewing it.
He spied a couple walking towards the churchyard. They appeared to be arguing, and the woman lifted her hands in frustration and stormed out of sight. Christopher just shook his head. He turned around and noticed he couldn’t see the pretty lady with the baby.
He chastised himself for letting her out of his sight. He had seen others with her malady before. It would manifest itself after a traumatic event, and childbirth created trauma to the body.
He pushed away from the tree and started down the path where he first walked. It was only a few seconds when his heart leapt in his throat as he heard a piercing cry fill the air.
Chapter Two
The man had saved her life, but Lauren still wasn’t grateful.
Why wasn’t she?
Her moods traveled up and down, seesawing back and forth like a child’s ride. One moment, she felt an almost euphoric high, the next she was standing on the bank of a river.
The man didn’t know this wasn’t the first time she’d done this. It was simply the first time she’d almost succeeded.
Shame crawled along her insides. Had God used the man to save her because He had some purpose for her? Or was he punishing her for Jonah’s death?
Esther kept crying, and Lauren listlessly rocked her in the basket, feeling that strange mix of helplessness and anger that accompanied her every single time the babe cried. Lauren tried to focus on other things, but that only made her think about Jonah…again.
