Canyon Walls (15 page)

Eighteen

The next few days were a whirlwind for Cassie. Not only did she have a canyon full of campers, but she felt like she had left her heart with Will. With each day that passed without hearing from him, the more difficult it was to stay hopeful.

No matter what happened with Will, she would do everything she could to make a case for the camp to the board.

On Saturday morning the camp was eerily quiet, and today the silence haunted her. Beth had offered to help her set up for the board meeting, but Cassie had given her the day off. Mr. Hartley's town car pulled into the canyon exactly an hour before the meeting was scheduled to begin. Cassie's palms were damp and her eye twitched—not the first impression she wanted to make on the board.

As the car approached, she saw Mr. Hartley was alone. His tie was tied tightly under a shirt collar that was turned up at the ends and badly in need of a pressing.

After he parked he opened the trunk and pulled out a large box.

“Can I help you with anything?” she asked as he approached.

He hoisted it up in his arms. “No, I'm fine. Which room have you set up for our meeting?”

She led him to the largest small-group area. Three long tables were set up in a U shape. In front of each chair, Cassie had placed a booklet of papers complete with financial information, bios on the staff at the camp, a list of campers, and even copies of touching letters she had received from campers.

He handed her a stack of papers to be laid out at each chair. “We'll need three more chairs. The Overmans will be in attendance.”

She nodded, but inside she felt nauseous. Will not telling her he would be there and having his family with him were both signs of bad news. Her legs wobbled as she carried three more chairs into the room and made copies of her presentation.

Once everything was ready, she sat in one of the seats and waited, but eventually her nerves kicked into high gear. She needed to escape the walls that seemed to be closing in on her. She headed across the camp to the chapel. The air inside was warm and still, and light poured in through the stained-glass windows.

She rubbed her hands together trying to work out the nerves. She broke a spiderweb from the wall with the tip of her finger and walked to the small wooden railing. She placed her knees on the red velvet cushion on the bottom and leaned her body weight onto her elbows on the wooden rail.

Everything she carried with her was too heavy to bear. She had prayed so hard for God to save the camp. She had even listened to Him when He led her to accept Will's help. Had God abandoned her, too? She had been let down so many times—by her father, by Will. Her soul felt clenched like white knuckles on the steering wheel, driving through the pouring rain. She had been holding on so tightly for so long, she wasn't sure she knew how to let go.

“Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the L
ord
your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

She remembered the verse from the day she asked Mr. Hartley to give her a chance to fight for the camp. A tear fell on her folded hands, and she realized they were streaming down her cheeks. She couldn't do it anymore, not alone. She needed God's help. It wasn't in her hands, and she accepted that.

The heaviness lifted off her chest and head. God didn't tell her He would save the camp or if she would still have her job, but He was going to take care of her. Her heart overflowed with faith that He was in control.

When she returned to the meeting room, the board members were filing through the door. Will Overman stood in the room with his back to Cassie. He wore a gray suit and worked setting up an easel and a presentation board covered in charts and figures. His brother sat at the table and flipped through the reports in front of him, and Will's father stood in the corner of the room, talking to one of the board members.

When Will turned and looked at her, Cassie felt hollow.

Mr. Hartley stood in front of the group before Will had an opportunity to speak to her. He appeared even more nervous and flustered than usual. “Because we have guests in our meeting today who would like to be a part of the discussion about the issues we are facing with this particular camp, I would like to begin with that item on the agenda.”

Cassie couldn't bear to look at Will.

Mr. Hartley held up one of the stapled stacks of paper he had brought with him. “You should all be familiar with the financial outlook of the camp because we've gone over it during the last two meetings. You should all have a copy in front of you for your review.”

The room filled with the sound of pages flipping. Mr. Hartley led them through all the details of the camp, realities Cassie lived with every day. According to the numbers they looked at, it would be a better financial decision to close Sunset Camp and integrate all the camps held there into the nearest camp in another part of the state.

Mr. Hartley pointed at Cassie. “Miss Langley, who is serving as the interim director, would like to say a few words and present some information about the camp to us before we vote. If you have any questions, I'm sure she would also be happy to entertain those as well.”

He nodded to Cassie who stood and walked on shaky legs to the front of the long table.

Will's eyes were on her, but Cassie avoided his gaze. Instead she made eye contact with the board members waiting for her to speak.

“Honestly,” she said, trying to hide the tremble in her voice, “I may not be the most objective person to look at whether or not the camp should stay open. This isn't because I would lose my job, but because God used this camp to change my life when I was a camper, and I have seen Him change countless other lives here.”

Will leaned forward in his chair.

“So I believe I have a lot of vital information for you on where the money is and where the camp is going that could help you see why this camp should survive. But in all actuality, I believe this camp should be here because God does some great work down here in this canyon. I understand that this is a business decision, and I respect that. Please also consider the impact this camp has on the hearts of everyone who comes here.”

The board members stared at her without expression on their faces. Cassie led the group through the factors and numbers that Mr. Hartley didn't present, including the reasons the outgo appeared larger this year because of all the old debts and bills the former director had failed to pay. “Finally, I'd like to say thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak here today. If you take one thing away from what I've said, please know that if you give this camp more time, we can turn it around. Think of the history and the effect it has had on the lives of so many. It deserves another chance.”

When she sat, no one said a word; they only stared at her.

“Are there any questions or comments?” Mr. Hartley asked from his seat.

“I was a camper here,” a woman in a suit jacket said. She looked out the window wistfully. She pointed toward the canyon wall. “I was right over there when I became a Christian during a small-group meeting.”

Another board member leaned over and patted her arm.

After the room was silent for a moment, Mr. Hartley said, “I think we should move on. We still need to give Mr. Overman the chance to speak.”

Cassie's face and neck burned as she watched Will take the floor. She focused on breathing, hoping she could sit through what he had to say. Will straightened his tie as he walked by Cassie.

“I would like to begin by thanking Mr. Hartley for allowing me, my father, Leonard, and my brother Connor to be here today. I think we've come up with some great plans for the camp if you decide to go in this direction, and after looking at the numbers, I think you'll agree.”

Cassie held her breath and braced herself for everything to fall apart. He stared straight at Cassie as he spoke, but she broke his gaze.

“I'm pleased to say we're here to offer our time and our combined years of experience to make sure this camp survives. We've decided that it's important for the area to have a place like Sunset Camp, and I think we can help.”

Cassie looked up at Will, her mouth open in disbelief. He nodded at her.

“I think there are some opportunities for additional income for the camp if we just take advantage of them. I've done some research on camps with similar facilities bringing in about half of their income by making the facilities available for renting and even catering from the cafeteria. With the facilities and talented staff already here, I think it could be a smooth transition, and we wouldn't have to sacrifice the original vision for the camp.”

The board members nodded as he spoke. Will continued to explain all the ways he had mapped out for the camp to get back on its financial footing. Cassie struggled to hold back the tears.

When Will finished his presentation, Mr. Hartley asked them to leave the room so they could discuss the item and vote. Cassie, Will, Connor, and Leonard filed out of the room. Connor and Leonard flipped open their mobile phones and headed out in different directions.

When she and Will walked toward the grass, Cassie reached out and wrapped her arms around him, almost knocking him backward. “I don't know how I could ever thank you for what you've done.”

He hugged her back. “This is enough.”

She pulled back to see his face. “I mean it. I turned you away so many times. I couldn't have blamed you if you hadn't bothered to help me.”

His eyes were warm, and his face relaxed. “I'm really sorry I didn't tell you I would be here.”

She smiled at him. It was impossible for her to be irritated after what he had done for her. “Why didn't you?”

Will shook his head. “There was no time. I didn't want to say anything until I was absolutely sure, and it took every minute I had to convince Mr. Hartley and my father that it was the right thing to do.”

Cassie looked to the window of the meeting room. The faces at the table all turned up to Mr. Hartley. “What made Mr. Hartley change his mind?”

“Well, Hartley had a hard time with the concept of a developer working with one of his camp directors.”

“Why?” Cassie asked.

“According to him, Henry Mason was letting the camp crash because another developer agreed to cut him in on the deal.”

Cassie shook her head in disbelief, but it explained all the incorrect books and the unpaid debts. “I can't believe he would do that.”

“It made Mr. Hartley extra cautious about us working together, and from what I hear around town, everyone thinks we have a relationship outside of camp business anyway.”

They would have plenty to talk about now. Cassie laughed. “What about your dad?”

Will stared out toward the nurse's cabin where Will's father stood on the porch on the phone. “It took him a few days, but he came around. It's not hard to see how many lives this place has changed.”

Cassie thought about how much his family must have given up for Will to do what he did.

“Plus, I told him how I feel about you. You wouldn't ever guess it, but he's a romantic at heart. Just ask my mom.”

A charge of electricity raced through Cassie. “So what did you tell him about us?”

Will stepped closer to her. “That if you ever gave me another chance, I would be a fool to mess it up. That you were the kind of girl I've been searching for.”

She reached for his hand and intertwined his fingers with hers.

Will motioned at the meeting room with his head. “Are you nervous about what's going on in there?”

Cassie shook her head. “It's in God's hands now.”

Epilogue

Cassie sat straight up in bed and looked around, disoriented. Her eyes fought to adjust to the dark room. Then someone pounded on her front door.

She groaned as she climbed out from under the covers. She pulled her bathrobe off the hook on the door and slipped it around her. “Just a minute,” she called.

She shuffled through the house, turning on lights on her way to the front door. Through the peephole, Beth stared back at her. She opened the door. “Come in. What's going on?”

Beth looked wide awake. “We have campers out of their cabins again. Up for a hike?”

Cassie groaned. “I guess there's not much choice.”

“I've already told the counselors where they need to look,” Beth said.

Cassie yawned. “Let me change.”

Cassie and Beth walked silently toward the canyon wall. As they trudged through the darkness, she thought about Will. She couldn't wait to call him in the morning and tell him that she had hiked through the darkness looking for teenagers again.

Will and Cassie had been together for just over a year now, and it had been an amazing journey.

Mr. Hartley had offered Cassie the permanent director position after the meeting, and with Will's help, almost twice as many people had visited Sunset Camp this year than the last.

Weddings, family reunions, and corporate retreats had taken place in the canyon. The weddings had been held in the tabernacle, in the chapel, and outside under the trees. Beth had catered most of them and was beginning to be well known for her food. She had even made a few of the wedding cakes.

Most importantly, Cassie had fallen more in love with Will than she could have ever imagined.

Cassie and Beth turned on the trail leading up the canyon. When Beth nudged her and motioned toward the steep incline, Cassie nodded.

She followed behind Beth in the dark slowly, making sure her footing was solid as she pulled herself up with the rope.

When she reached the top, she took the hand that reached for hers. She flinched when the hand she held wasn't Beth's.

“It's okay. It's me.”

Cassie's stomach fluttered. “Will? What are you doing out here in the middle of the night?”

The darkness gave way to a soft glow of light. Cassie looked over to a beaming Beth lighting votive candles lined up on a log.

Cassie's heart pounded so hard she was sure Will and Beth could hear it. “What's going on?” But when Cassie looked into Will's eyes, she knew. Cassie pressed her hand against her chest and took a deep breath. They weren't there to find campers. Will had planned out every detail of this for her.

Will dropped to one knee on the orange dirt. “Cassie Langley, I love you. I thank God every day for bringing you into my life. Your spirit and your strength are beautiful. I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you.”

Cassie clasped her hands over her mouth. Tears ran down her face.

Will pulled a little square box out of his pocket and opened it to reveal a ring that sparkled in the moonlight. “Will you marry me?”

Cassie nodded her head, no words coming out. She pulled him to his feet, and he wrapped his arms around her.

“Yes,” she whispered in his ear. “A million times, yes.”