Appalachian Song by Michelle Shocklee

Author:Michelle Shocklee [Shocklee, Michelle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: FICTION / Christian / Historical, FICTION / Southern
ISBN: 9781496472465
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
Published: 2023-10-03T00:00:00+00:00

It felt as though thirty years melted away, and Bertie was in this very room with Songbird, watching her nurse her newborn son.

A son who now sat across from Bertie, all grown-up and angry.

Angry at Songbird for not keeping him. Angry at Bertie for knowing his secrets. Maybe even angry at God for letting it happen.

Bertie knew who Walker was the moment he mentioned the note she’d written all those years ago, yet she couldn’t let him know she remembered. She couldn’t tell Songbird’s boy everything that took place before and after his birth. Every detail brought pain with it. Heavy, crushing pain she had no desire to revisit, nor did she wish to pass the agony onto Songbird’s child.

But didn’t he deserve to know the truth? It was his story, too, after all.

Bertie studied the young man across from her. If she found the courage to share about those long-ago events, would he be strong enough to carry the heavy burden that came with it? The deep regret and disappointment that knowledge would surely bring?

What should I do, Father? What should I do?

In quick answer, Bertie remembered something that might buy her some time to figure out what to tell Walker.

“I kept a book with names and dates and such of all the babies I helped bring into the world.” She scratched her chin and pretended as though she had to think hard on the subject. “Sometimes I made notes about the family. But it’s been years since I tended a birth. It may take a few days to recollect where I put that little book.”

Walker frowned. “A few days?”

Bertie indicated the vast array of belongings that surrounded them. “Your guess is as good as mine on its whereabouts. Could even be out in the barn or down in the cellar.” Which was true. She wasn’t certain where the record book was stored.

Locating it, however, wasn’t necessary for her to tell Walker about his birth. About his mother and why he now sat across from Bertie, asking questions. She remembered every beautiful, heartbreaking detail as though it happened yesterday.

But that story, secreted away deep in her heart, wasn’t one she was ready to part with. At least not until she learned more about the man Songbird’s boy had become.

Walker’s face took on a look of disappointment. He’d come a long way, looking for answers. Bertie felt guilty for not coming clean right away, but she needed time to think. To pray. To figure out what to tell him. The tale was messy, and her gut warned that he wasn’t ready to hear the full truth.

Not yet.

“We’ve got plenty of room,” she said. “You folks are welcome to stay the night and help look for the record book. I’m too old to go climbin’ round in the loft or cellar.”

When it appeared Walker might balk at the suggestion, she gave a great show of rubbing her arthritic knuckles. “It’s hard for Rubie and me to get much done these days. If you’ve got time, I’d be much obliged for you to stay.

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