Page 44 of Gideon

“Ty’s excited, not let down. He’s excited to help. He’s felt hopeless over the years, like I have and, I’mdiscovering, a lot more. It’s good to finally be doing something.”

He wanted to accept her comfort. It was nice having her beside him, encouraging him. But he couldn’t rely on her to prop him up. “There’s one glaring problem.”

“Which is?”

“I don’t know what to do next. Or if there is a next.”

“Don’t worry about Ty. He can be patient. Why don’t we go back to the fire. We can worry about the rest once we’ve had a good sleep. For now, let’s enjoy the fruits of our labor.”

“What? Destroying town property?”

She shoved him. “Stop being so melancholy. I wouldn’t normally promote vandalism, but this is different. And I think we made a big impact tonight. Things have changed already.”

“What do I tell Ty?”

“Tell him he’s done a great job, and you appreciate his help.”

“What if he’s not happy with that?”

“He’ll be fine. He’s a good guy.”

Gideon sighed, then went back to the fire, which had nearly burned out.

“Everything okay?” Ty said when they returned.

“Yup,” Nikki said.

“Listen, Gideon, I’m sorry if I sounded harsh. I know God sometimes gives us one step at a time. Nikki trusts you, so I trust you. If God wants us to wait on Him, then we’ll wait on Him. I was anxious, not wanting to lose momentum, that’s all. Who knows howthe town will react in the morning. Maybe God wants it to sink in before we do more.”

“Yeah,” Nikki said. “I think we need to wait and see what happens.”

“That sounds ominous,” Gunther said.

“It is for those who are against God,” Ty said. “Just promise me, Gideon, that you’ll keep me in the loop. I want to help however I can.”

“Thanks, Ty,” Gideon said. “I appreciate your help. All of you.”

“Whatever you need,” Gunther said. “I’m in. But no pressure.”

“I think we’re done here,” Gideon said. “Let’s cover the embers with dirt before we go.”

With the last of their energy, they cleaned up the fire and left.

“Thanks for your help tonight,” Gideon said when he pulled up to Nikki’s house. He’d dropped the other two off already.

The light from the porch made the edge of her face glow, and he almost let something in that he wasn’t prepared for.

“I was glad to be a part of it.”

“I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.” He kept his fingers wrapped around the steering wheel so he didn’t reach for her.

“You gonna be okay?”

“Yeah. I’m tired. That’s all. It’s been a big night.”

“Yeah. I hope you can sleep.”

“I doubt I’ll have any trouble.”

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