Double Identity (24 page)
“Now that what?”
Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of a second car rolling up the drive.
“Is that Mom?” Cain looked at his sister. “What’s going on? What are the two of you up to?”
“You’ll see.” Holly grinned and rocked back and forth on her heels waiting for her mother’s car to stop before jumping down the porch steps and racing around to the driver’s side of the car. His mother opened the door and got out.
“Hello, Cain.”
“Mom.” Cain crossed the porch and stood on the top step. “What brings you out this way?”
Someone opened the passenger door of his mother’s car and he had to shield his eyes against the sun’s glare in order to get a look at the person getting out.
“I thought you might like to meet the new art teacher I just hired,” his mother said. “Her name’s Emma Holliday and she starts first thing Monday morning.”
What’s going on? They better not be trying to play match-maker like they did a couple weeks ago, and a few weeks before that. Neither one of them seems to understand the word no.
Cain threw a puzzled look his mother’s way and then watched as the woman, wearing a red pullover sweater, jeans, leather boots and a pair of large black sunglasses, approached the porch steps. The sun glistened against her short auburn curls.
“Miss Holliday, welcome to Promise.” Cain gestured to the porch behind him. “May I offer you a seat and a cool cup of apple cider before my mother takes you on the long drive
back
to town.”
When the woman started up the steps, Cain stormed into the house to get a pitcher of cider and some cups and give himself the precious moments he needed to control his temper. This was the last straw! He wasn’t interested in meeting any new art teacher. He wasn’t interested in meeting any new anyone. He was going to ream into both of them as soon as this woman was safely out of earshot.
When he carried the tray back out to the porch, he saw the woman standing on the top step, her back to him and continuing a conversation she was having with his mom and sister below. He placed the tray on the table and cleared his throat. “The cider’s nice and cold.”
She turned to face him, the sun at her back causing him to squint against the glare.
“I hope you’ll like living in Promise. Mom’s needed help with her art program for quite a while now. Although I must admit, I’m surprised she hired anyone. I thought she was waiting for someone else to fill the spot.” He scowled in his mother’s direction but offered his hand to the new hire.
The woman ignored his hand, took a couple of steps toward him and removed her glasses. Sea-foam green eyes stared back at him and Cain’s heart stopped beating.
“Hello, Cain.”
His eyes studied every inch of her face—noting the subtle differences, a thinner, more delicate nose—a squarer chin—and, of course, auburn curls, not silky ebony strands. But the eyes…and the voice…
He held his breath, not daring to hope.
“Soph…”
“Emma,” she instantly corrected. “Emma Holliday. I’m the new art teacher. It’s good to meet you.”
He raised his arm to shake her hand. It moved with such a heaviness he felt like he was swimming through quicksand but he managed to reach out and clasp the hand she offered.
“Emma’s not the only new resident in town,” Holly said, sheer glee overflowing in her voice. “Mr. Antonio Petrocco moved to town this morning, too. Set up shop right down the street from Dad’s pharmacy. Seems he’s a carpenter. Dad’s already hired him to put in some new countertops and cabinets in the store.”
Cain looked into those beautiful green eyes staring back at him and he knew. Every nerve ending in his body leaped with joy. He couldn’t resist and reached out to trace a finger lightly down her cheek. “You remind me of somebody,” he whispered.
“I do?”
“Yes. Someone very special to me.”
“Is that so?” She stepped closer. “Has she been gone?”
“Yes. She’s been gone for a very long time.”
“And you’ve been waiting for her? All this time?”
“I’ve been waiting every second of every day of my life.” He ran his hand down her arm trying to convince himself that she was really here…flesh and blood standing in front of him and not some cruel hallucination.
She reached out and clasped his hand. Her eyes glittered with moisture and her voice was husky.
“Did you miss her?”
His emotions were so raw he thought his throat would seize up on him and not allow a word to escape. “The word
missing
doesn’t begin to describe how I’ve felt. I’ve spent the last nineteen months of my life going through the motions, keeping myself busy, trying to stay positive until she returned.”
Cain dropped her hand and pulled her into his arms. “I existed. I didn’t live. I got through it only because I’d fool myself into believing in tomorrow. Tomorrow she’d come through that door. Tomorrow I’d hold her in my arms again. Tomorrow…”
“I understand how you felt.” She slowly inched her arms around his waist and stepped closer inside his embrace. “I’ve loved a man like that. I’ve spent every minute of every day wishing and praying and hoping I would find myself in his arms again.”
“You did?”
She smiled up at him and nodded as a lone tear slid down her cheek.
“How did you get through it?” He shifted his stance, wrapped his left arm around her shoulders, cradling her against him. He waved his other arm in an arc at their surroundings. “I buried myself in work. I built this cottage just as I remembered it. I even added two extra rooms, one as a guest room…or maybe nursery. And one as a workroom. She’s an artist. She needs a place to work.”
“An artist, huh?”
“I polished the wood floors until they gleamed. I added yellow curtains to the windows because I remembered that she liked the color yellow. And I’ve spent season after season in the garden tending the flowers. She loved her garden. And I wanted it to be perfect…vibrant and beautiful and blooming when she returned.” Cain smiled down at her. “Do you think she’ll like it?”
Emma’s smile widened. “She’ll love it. It’s everything she could ever imagine…everything she could ever want.”
Cain’s expression sobered. “Was it difficult for you? Being away from someone you loved?”
“It was more than difficult. But I prayed a lot. I trusted God to help me find a way back to him. I trusted the man I left behind to care about me enough to wait. And I daydreamed.”
“Daydreamed?” Cain hooted with laughter. “Ohh, you’ve got to tell me about those daydreams.”
Emma laughed and then her voice grew soft, her tone tender. “I dreamt that I’d sit on the porch swing with him at my side. I dreamt that I’d take a walk in the evenings and count the stars…with him at my side. I dreamt I’d wade in the cool waters of the lake or sculpt figures out of clay or bake homemade bread in the kitchen….” Her eyes locked with his. “And I dreamt about our life together…the children we’d have…the swing he’d hang from the tree at the end of the porch. I dreamt it all…and he was always by my side.”
A choking sound distracted them and a quick glance revealed both Cain’s mom and sister standing at the bottom of the porch steps with tears running down their cheeks. “Don’t mind us,” Holly called out as she wrapped an arm around her mother’s shoulders and steered her toward the lake. “We’re just going to take a walk down by the water. Catch a breeze. Maybe a fish. We’ll take our time.”
Holly was yards away when Cain’s mother looked back and yelled, “I’ll keep Holly out of your hair. Don’t worry. You two finish your conversation.”
The women disappeared over the rise. Cain pulled her close and lifted her chin so he could look into her eyes. “Tell me more about your dreams.”
“I’d rather show you. Day in and day out for the rest of my life.”
“These past months I’ve missed the woman I love so much I thought my heart would break.”
“But she’s home now.” She smiled up at him. “Isn’t she?”
Tears burned the back of his eyes. “Thank God.”
And he did, for directing his path and blessing his life and keeping His promises…always.
Dear Reader,
It’s fun for me to share with my readers how I come up with my story ideas. The particular idea for this book literally began with a dream.
I hardly ever dream—or let’s say I am rarely conscious of having had a dream when I wake up. That’s why I was so surprised that this time, in that nebulous state between being asleep and being awake, I saw myself reading a letter.
I was even more surprised that the letter didn’t disappear from my mind like the wisp of a cloud on the horizon once I did awake. It stayed in my memory long enough for me to run to my computer and type it up.
Then the fun began.
Who wrote the letter? Why was their life in danger? And most of all, who was the unfortunate person receiving this letter and how would it impact her life?
I wondered what it would feel like to have someone you love suddenly disappear. What if they claimed that by the time you received the letter they’d be dead? And how would you cope if the loved one offered up their life to save yours?
When I put myself in the letter recipient’s place and tried to think what I would do, I instantly thought of going to the police. Maybe getting a private investigator. When I came up with the idea that everything that woman knew—including her own identity—was a lie, the story came alive.
I hope you enjoy
Double Identity
as much as I enjoyed writing it. I’d love to hear from you. Drop me a line anytime at [email protected] or send snail mail to Steeple Hill, 233 Broadway, Suite 1001, New York, NY 10279.
Blessings,
Diane Burke
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
- Sophia finds herself in a position of questioning her own identity. But don’t we all choose different “faces” in this world? What are some of the circumstances you’ve faced where people may see only one side of you?
- Sophia has a moment when she questions whether faith is real or just something she was raised to believe. If you were raised from childhood to believe in God, do you remember the circumstances where you chose to believe because of faith and not parental urging?
- In the beginning of our story, Cain has trust issues. Have you ever found it difficult to trust someone once they’ve hurt you?
- Mr. Garrison, Mrs. Garrison and Holly have been a very supportive family. Do you have a supportive family? How do you suggest someone find emotional support if their needs aren’t met in their own family?
- There is a point in the book where Sophia and Cain have to step out in faith and believe God will provide, even when it seems impossible. Have you or someone you know had to trust God when trusting was difficult? What were the results?
- Sophia must find a way to forgive her father. Is forgiveness easy? Does forgive mean forget?
- How did faith in God impact the lives and decisions of the characters in this story?
- As a teenager, Mrs. Garrison felt jealous when her relationship with her best friend changed because of another person. Have you been able to maintain friendships you developed in high school? If so, how did the friendship change over the years?
- Sophie’s father discovered that one lie often leads to another. Lies impacted his entire life and eventually had to be faced head-on anyway. Have you or someone you know ever lied and had it trip you up at a later date?
- Sophie comes up with a unique way to deal with rebellious teenagers and anger management. What would you do if you had the opportunity to impact a teenager who was in danger of taking a wrong path?
- What lessons, if any, are you able to take away from this story?
ISBN: 978-1-4268-8871-7
DOUBLE IDENTITY
Copyright © 2011 by Diane Burke
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the editorial office, Steeple Hill Books, 233 Broadway, New York, NY 10279 U.S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
This edition published by arrangement with Steeple Hill Books.
® and TM are trademarks of Steeple Hill Books, used under license. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.
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