A Secret of the Soul (Amish Secrets--Book 6) by Jennifer (J.E.B.) Spredemann

Author:Jennifer (J.E.B.) Spredemann
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: depression, true love, inspirational romance, christian romance, christian fiction, amish romance, amish fiction, mental ilness, amish book, psychotropic medication
Publisher: Jennifer (J.E.B.) Spredemann

CHAPTER TWENTY

Elam pushed the bar from his chest for the fiftieth time, if he’d counted right, knowing he could easily add more weight to it if Zach were here to spot for him. But he didn’t feel like having company right now. He needed this peaceful and quiet activity to try to sort out his thoughts.

His mind kept going back to Julianna, just sitting there in the wheelchair. Did she ever get any exercise? Surely the workers at the psychiatric hospital knew how important it was for their patients to get proper exercise and fresh air and sunshine.

He still couldn’t get over how different she looked. If he hadn’t been told and hadn’t gotten close enough, he wouldn’t even have recognized her. She’d changed so much—seemingly in every way. She appeared to be melancholy, or almost in a daze even. He’d been startled to see her in such a state.

Although she looked different on the outside, he knew that she had to be the same person on the inside. Perhaps she was buried in loneliness from being in that place. Perhaps it was the medications they had her on that hid her inner person.

He wished he knew how she felt. He wished that she could express it so he could know how to help her. He’d asked her if she wanted him to try to get her released and she’d responded positively. Did she fully understand what he was asking? Now, he wondered if it had been wise to utter those words. What if he failed? What if he wasn’t able to rescue her? What if he’d given her false hope and only caused her condition to worsen?

He slid his ankles under the leg bar and completed his usual exercise routine. After he finished, he planned to take Scramble over to the school and run a few miles on the track, before returning for a shower.

His phone buzzed and he answered right away. “Hello?”

“Hi, Elam.”

He blew out a breath and smiled. “Megan. It’s good to hear your voice.”

“Yours too.” There was a short period of silence. “Uh, are you still planning on picking me up?”

“Picking you…” Oh, shoot. Do I have a date scheduled with Megan? He stared at his phone, but the time didn’t show. “What time is it?”

“A quarter till. We’re supposed to go bowling with the singles class tonight, remember?”

He frowned. No, he didn’t remember. “A quarter till what?”

“Six.”

“Six?” How on earth had the last two hours just slipped away? He’d been so preoccupied with thoughts of Julie, the outing with his singles class totally slipped his mind. He sighed. “Megan, I’m not even close to being ready. I just finished my workout and planned to take Scramble out for a run. Would you be terribly disappointed if I bailed on you?”

Silence reigned for a few seconds. “No, I guess not.” He heard the disappointment in her voice.

“Sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. Elam, is everything all right?”

“Yep. Everything’s fine. I’ll see you tomorrow morning at church, okay?”

“Okay. Goodbye.”

Elam blew out an extended breath and tucked his phone into the pocket of his shorts.

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