A Treasure Worth Keeping by Kathryn Springer Page B

a paper pusher or something.” Faith rubbed the rock against the hem of her T-shirt and left a trail of grime on the fabric.
    Evie wasn’t surprised at Faith’s affirmation that Sam worked in some kind of corporate setting. And she couldn’t help feeling a little relieved, although she didn’t want to examine that too closely.
    When he’d left the night before, he hadn’t been happy with her decision to stay in Cooper’s Landing, and he’d made it clear he thought she was making a huge mistake.
    It isn’t as if you’ve shown a lot of backbone up to this point, Evie admitted to herself. She’d shaken like an aspen leaf when she’d seen that diving equipment in the back of Seth’s van. No wonder Sam worried about her being alone. Some witness for God she was turning out to be. If Sam looked at her as an example of a believer, he’d think they were a bunch of wimps!
    A raindrop splashed on the back of Evie’s wrist. When she looked up, the blue sky had all but disappeared, filled with a slow-moving armada of dark cumulus clouds.
    “Faith, let’s get going. It looks like the storm that kept you off the lake is finally moving in.”
    A shard of lightning and a low growl of thunder in the distance underscored the point. Evie silently chided herself for being so focused on the ground that she hadn’t paid attention to what was over their heads!
    “We’re going to get wet,” Faith predicted.
    Probably an understatement, Evie thought. Soaked was more like it. They had at least a two-mile hike back to the house. The beauty of the woods had enchanted them, luring them farther down the trail than Evie had originally planned.
    She dug in her purse and pulled out her compact umbrella, popping it open and holding it over Faith’s head. “Let’s try this.”
    Faith grinned up at her. “You remind me of Mary Poppins. Remember, she had that great big carpetbag with a mirror in it? And a lamp?”
    “I remember,” Evie muttered as a gust of wind caught the umbrella and turned it inside out. “If I were Mary Poppins, my umbrella would behave.”
    They dashed down the trail as the light sprinkles, which must have been the opening preshow, became a pelting rain.
    At one point, Faith slipped and fell. Rocks tumbled out of her pockets and she scrambled to gather them up again.
    Evie quickly doubled back. “Don’t worry, Faith. We can find more.”
    “I can’t find the one I was going to give Sam.” Faith had to raise her voice above the sudden screech of the wind.
    Evie scooped a handful of soggy hair out of her eyes so she could aid in the search. “Look. Here it is.” Rivulets of muddy water coasted down her arm when she picked it up. Soaked and dirty. With a new story to tell her students in the fall.
    Faith cocked her head, reminding Evie of Sophie’s puppies. “I hear a car. Maybe Sam is looking for us.”
    Evie heard it, too. For a brief moment, hope burst inside her. Until she remembered. “The gate was locked. It has to be a government vehicle of some kind.”
    “Maybe they can give us a ride!” Faith whooped and sprinted into the woods separating the service road from the trail.
    Through the trees, Evie caught a glimpse of a white van creeping along the road.
    It couldn’t be.
    “Faith! Wait.” Evie was no track star but the rush of adrenaline rocketing through her blood pushed her into high gear. She caught up to Faith just before the girl stepped into the road.
    “Hey!” Faith squawked in protest as Evie pulled her down behind a clump of foliage.
    “It’s not a government vehicle.” Evie tucked Faith tightly against her as the van rolled past them, so close she could have reached out and touched the tire. A shiver ripped through her as she read the license plate, which bore the same number she’d seen on the one parked in her driveway.
    Seth Lansky.
    Was he looking for her?
    Evie bit her lip, thinking quickly. If Seth really was following them, he probably thought they’d gone to the scenic