Embittered Ruby by Nicole O'Dell

Author:Nicole O'Dell [O’DELL, NICOLE]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 978-1-60742-808-4
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2012-08-19T04:00:00+00:00

“Diamond Estates, Ben Bradley speaking.”

Hang up. Just hang up. Forget the whole thing. This was sheer lunacy.

“Hello? Is anyone there?” His voice grew a bit impatient.

Now or never. “Mr. Bradley?”

“This is he. How can I help you?”

It was only a conversation. It didn’t require a commitment to anything. Speak.

“Hi. I’m Carmen Castillo. You don’t know me, but I think you spoke with my mom recently.”

“Hi, Carmen. I’m glad you called. May I just say something to you before we start talking?”

“Uh. Sure.” That was odd. She’d expected to have to carry the conversation, even to have to beg to be let into the program.

“Jesus loves you.”

The words hit her body like a warm, enveloping hug. If it had been anyone else who’d spoken those words, at any other moment in her life, she’d have laughed at the cliché. But it was time for her to hear them, even if she couldn’t quite believe them.

“Why don’t you fill me in on all that’s been going on, Carmen? Let’s see if we can’t figure something out.”

Carmen poured out every detail, every kernel of dirty truth, and every bit of her shame. She laid it bare on those phone wires to Diamond Estates. She sensed they soared through Ben Bradley’s heart and landed at the feet of Jesus as though carried on a prayer. How did she know? Carmen had no idea. It made no sense, yet it felt real.

“That’s it. The end of the story.” Broken and spilled out, Carmen exhaled.

“Ah. But you’re so wrong. No, not the end of the story. The end of the nightmare. This part is when Jesus comes in and turns the weeping into laughing. The sadness into joy. And the emptiness into fullness.”

Did he always talk like a poet? It sounded great right then. But it might be weird when life was normal. Then again, would life ever be normal again? Was it ever before? Maybe it was time to create a new normal.

“All right. So let’s see what we can do about getting you here as soon as possible.”

“I’m homeless as of Thursday. I’d like to spend Thanksgiving with my mom and sisters. So I could leave Friday. If that’s too soon, I could probably stay with my dad until you are ready for me to come if I have to.”

“Nope. Friday is a good day. We’ll book you a flight and get the information to you. Will you be able to get to the airport, or do you need us to arrange for transportation?”

“I think I’ll have a ride. Can I call you back if I don’t?” Mom might have trouble borrowing a car the day after Thanksgiving. She could ask Dad…but…

“Absolutely. Can I pray for you?”

Here we go.

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