Page 37 of Gideon

“Yeah, probably. I was at the park. I saw it.”

She nodded. “So that’s it. You’re here to tell me ‘I told you so’? I don’t know why you couldn’t come out with it in the first place.”

“That’s not it.”

“The poor guy. Probably forgot to take his medication. Which is really sad because we had such a wonderful time at the diner. The worst part is my mom heard about it. She acts like it’s no big deal, but I can see it hurts. I hope he didn’t get treated too badly by anyone.”

“Not in the park. No.”

“There was a moment when I thought maybe he could help this town.”

“That’s probably your best guess yet.”

“His rant in the park?”

“No. That he could help the town.”

“You think street preaching is the answer?”

“I need you to be honest with me. Straightforward.Feel free to tell me I’m crazy because maybe I am. Probably I am.”

“You want to be an evangelist?”

“This has nothing to do with Eric’s sermon in the park.”

“Then you’d better tell me what it is because I obviously can’t guess.”

“It’s hard to know which thing to say first.”

“Why don’t you give me a brief outline, then we can work it out from there.”

“I think Eric…he…I don’t know how to say it.”

She pulled him to a stop. “What are you afraid to tell me?”

Gideon held his breath, then blurted, “He was sent by God.”

“Eric?”

“Yeah. At least, I think he was.”

She grinned. “So, this is the part whereIsay ‘I told you so’.”

“You already knew?”

“That’s what I was saying at the diner. He was a breath of fresh air. He came through town to encourage us, not to spy for Fairfax. That’s not crazy, it’s obvious.”

“Okay then, how about the fact that he healed my leg?”

“He what?” She glanced down, then back up again.

“He also healed himself—or God did—after Cole and his friends beat him up bad.”

“What? When was this?”

“I found them in the alley. They must have dragged him there or ambushed him after his chat in the park.”

She pressed her hands to her face. “Oh my goodness, is he okay?”

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