Sophie's Heart (8 page)
Touch Mr. Riley’s heart as he longs for his wife. Help him to trust You. I pray for Craig, Lord, and the rage I saw there. Touch his heart. Maybe he doesn’t know You. If this is so, show him the way. The girls, too, Father—may they know You and walk with their hands in Yours.
Sophie prayed on in this fashion for most of the journey. It was familiar this time, and each landmark she recognized caused her heart to skip a little. She did not know what lay ahead, but she did know that whatever it was, her future was in God’s sovereign hands.
A
lec Riley stood next to the phone that he had set back down five minutes ago and asked himself how the time had flown so swiftly. Janet had just called to tell him to watch for Sophie’s boxes in the next few days, since she was this minute on her way to Wisconsin. It wasn’t even 9:00 in the morning, and it was amazing that Janet had even caught him at home. And Sophie was on her way! Where had the last two weeks gone?
He had told Sophie that the two weeks she needed to finish in Chicago would give them time to prepare, but he’d done nothing. Well, almost nothing. He’d actually dug out the key to the apartment with the intent of checking things out, but the phone had rung before he could go up there. The key was still sitting on the counter.
Well, she’s here to keep house,
Alec thought.
I guess she’ll have to start with her own place.
Alec regretted the way things had turned out, but the fact that he had to be at the site in ten minutes and then meet with a customer tonight made working on Sophie’s arrival impossible. He wrote out a quick note, taped it to the front door, and then ran Sophie’s apartment key and a key to the house over to his elderly neighbor. With a fervent hope that Sophie could read English, he jumped into his truck and sped down the street.
Two hours later, a rather weary Czech woman, after paying the cabdriver what seemed like a small fortune, stood on the Rileys’ front porch. She saw her name on the note and carefully lifted it free from the wood.
Sophie,
I’m sorry we are not here to welcome you. I have not had time to prepare your place, but I hope you’ll be able to get settled in on your own. Our neighbor, Mr. Jenkins, has a key to your apartment and one to the house. If the kids have not arrived, please see him for the keys. Actually, don’t worry about the kids today at all. Get into your apartment, get settled, and come to the kitchen tomorrow morning at 7:00. We’ll get everything organized then.
Thank you,
Alec Riley
Sophie read the note twice and then looked at the house next door. The Rileys lived on a court, but a small arrow had been drawn over Mr. Jenkins’s name, so this narrowed the choices. Still, Sophie’s disappointment was keen. To come all this way and not be greeted by anyone was something of a letdown.
However, she knew that standing there thinking about it would accomplish nothing. Leaving her suitcases on the porch, she crossed to the blue house next door and rang the bell. It was answered a minute later by an elderly gentleman who said, “So what are we selling today?”
Sophie only stared at him.
“Or maybe you want me to sign something, is that it?”
Sophie licked her lips nervously and nearly stuttered. “I need to see Jenkins, Mr. Jenkins. I am Sophie. I need keys.”
“Oh, you’re the one who’s going to work for Alec.” Without a word of apology or excuse, he shuffled back to his kitchen and brought forth the keys.
“Here they are. Are you settled in yet?”
“No,” Sophie told him and wondered if their lack of understanding was his fault or her own.
“Well, you best get to it.”
“Thank you,” Sophie managed, and the door was closed in her face.
She looked down at the keys in her hand and shook her head slightly. It was a most curious welcome.
Sophie walked back to the house and picked up one of her bags. She moved toward the garage and finally understood about the detached garage. There was an eight-foot walkway between the garage and the house; the two buildings did not even share a roof. She didn’t take long to inspect things but hurried on. However, Sophie was not prepared for the apartment that awaited her at the top of the wooden stairs.
Pushing the door open, she stepped inside, and stopped. She stood at the threshold of what might be called a great room. It was a kitchen/living room/dining area, all in one. There was a large window in the living room part of the long room that overlooked the street. Also at the end of the long room was another door. Sophie set her case down and moved toward it. It took her to a bedroom, and through the bedroom was a bathroom. Things were a little stale smelling, but not musty or dirty.
Sophie walked all the way into the bathroom, circled the bedroom again, and went back out to the kitchen. Mr. Riley had told her to get settled, but how was she supposed to do this? Except for a small kitchen table and two chairs, there was not a stick of furniture in the whole place.
She went for her other suitcase and, after climbing the stairs for the second time, she shut the door, rummaged through her purse, and found paper and a pen. She then began in the kitchen and made note of everything she would need. To her surprise, she found a good array of cleaning supplies, including a small vacuum cleaner, in the broom closet.
There was no wash pail or mop, so she wrote these on the list. Next she went to the closet in the bedroom. Other than several dozen hangers, it was empty. Sophie wrote out the things she would need for that night: at least two blankets, maybe three, and a pillow. The bathroom was next. There was no soap, but she remembered she had brought her own. There was toilet paper and a few more cleaning supplies. Still writing, Sophie went back to the kitchen and picked up the house key.
The hand that held the key this time shook with emotion. Sophie had rung the front doorbell three times to make sure no one was home before opening the door with her key. In her free hand was a list of everything she would need in order to get settled. She had already wasted 20 minutes just sitting at her kitchen table wondering what to do before it occurred to her that she was going to have to take care of herself.
Now she walked softly through the large, empty house and hated how much she felt like an intruder. She made herself stay logical about it and began to gather items to take back to her place. It was while she was looking for a mop that she discovered the door out of the kitchen which took her to within feet of the bottom of the stairs to her apartment. Sophie moved everything she had piled at the front door and began carrying her things out through the kitchen. On her last trip out she left a note for Alec on the kitchen table.
Mr. Riley,
I’m borrowing some things I need until my boxes come in the mail. I will bring everything back.
Sophie
Three hours later the Riley children were home, but Sophie, who was cleaning her small shower, was not aware of their arrival even though they parked in the garage directly below her. Since the kids put their school things on top of the note she had left, they had no knowledge of her presence. Neither did they see her leave her apartment in the late afternoon to go in search of a grocery store.
“I complained to You about that cot, Lord, and I even hated it. Now here I am missing it with all my heart.” There was laughter in Sophie’s voice as she prayed this prayer from the “bed” she had constructed out of two blankets and a quilt placed in one corner of the bedroom.
“I’m tired, but also well pleased with myself. I worked hard and did not cause the Rileys more trouble.”
It took Sophie some time to fall asleep, but when she did, she slept through the night—totally unaware of the fact that at 1:00 a.m. Alec remembered she was coming. He padded in bare feet down the stairs to the front door. The note was missing, but that didn’t mean anything; it could have blown away. Alec moved down the front porch steps and to the walk. From that position he could see the apartment above the garage, but it was as dark as it had been any other night.
“What did you expect?” he grumbled to himself. “She’s probably asleep.”
However, he could not make himself go back upstairs. He moved to the kitchen and flicked on the light. He then went to the door that was actually a half window, and moved the curtain aside to look up at Sophie’s place again. He didn’t know what he expected to see. It was still dark. Feeling restless, he moved from the door and stood staring at the floor. That’s when he spotted it: a small piece of paper lying upside down under the leg of a kitchen chair.
Alec picked it up and saw the signature. Relief flooded through him before he had even read it. When he did read it, he felt more at peace than ever before that they had hired Sophie. She’d needed some things and simply taken care of it herself. That type of competence was very impressive to him. He already had three children; he did not need a fourth. With that positive thought, Alec hit the kitchen light and headed for the stairs. Sleep did not come quickly, but then it never did. It hadn’t since the absence of another warm person in bed with him.