They Almost Always Come Home

They Almost Always

Come Home

“They Almost Always Come Home
is a stunning debut

novel by Cynthia Ruchti. Exquisitely written, the novel

delves into a woman’s innermost feelings as she comes

to grips with her own failings in her search for her

missing husband. Highly recommended!”

—COLLEEN COBLE, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF

T
HE
L
IGHTKEEPER
’
S
D
AUGHTER
AND THE ROCK HARBOR SERIES

“They Almost Always Come Home
is part wilderness

adventure, internal exploration, and relational journey.

Ruchti’s ability to mingle anguish with humor and

authenticity keeps the reader not only turning the pages,

but enjoying them as they read.
”

—MARY DEMUTH, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF

THE DEFIANCE TEXAS TRILOGY

“
Cynthia Ruchti has written one of those rare novels

that will live in your heart forever. So achingly beautiful

and stunningly written, it’s hard to believe this is her

debut effort.
”

—DEBORAH RANEY, AUTHOR OF

A
LMOST
F
OREVER
AND
B
ENEATH
A
S
OUTHERN
S
KY

T
HEY
A
LMOST

A
LWAYS
C
OME
H
OME

Cynthia Ruchti

Nashville, Tennessee

They Almost Always Come Home

Copyright © 2010 by Cynthia Ruchti

ISBN-13: 978-1-4267-0238-9

Published by Abingdon Press, P.O. Box 801, Nashville, TN 37202

www.abingdonpress.com

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form,

stored in any retrieval system, posted on any website, or

transmitted in any form or by any means—digital, electronic,

scanning, photocopy, recording, or otherwise—without written

permission from the publisher, except for brief quotations in

printed reviews and articles.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the
Holy Bible
,

New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission

of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189.

All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NCV are taken from the New Century

Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from the Amplified® Bible,

Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by Lockman Foundation.

Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

Scripture quotations marked “NKJV™” are taken from the New King James

Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.

All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the King James

or Authorized Version of the Bible.

Verses marked (TLB) are taken from
The Living Bible
© 1971. Used by permission

of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189. All rights reserved.

The persons and events portrayed in this work of fiction are the

creations of the author, and any resemblance to persons living or

dead is purely coincidental.

Published in association with the Books & Such Literary Agency,

Wendy Lawton, 52 Mission Circle, Suite 122, PMB 170, Santa Rosa, CA 95409-5370

www.booksandsuch.biz

Cover design by Anderson Design Group, Nashville, TN

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Ruchti, Cynthia.

They almost always come home / Cynthia Ruchti.

p. cm.

ISBN 978-1-4267-0238-9 (pbk.)

1. Married people—Fiction. 2. Missing persons—Investigation—Fiction. 3. Wilderness areas—Fiction. 4. Canada—Fiction. I. Title.

PS3618.U3255T48 2010

813’.6—dc22

2009047324

Printed in the United States of America

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 / 15 14 13 12 11 10

who risked everything to lead me

out of the wilderness. I am His forever.

My life and this story also belong

to my husband, Bill,

whose Quetico wilderness trips

sparked the idea. Bill blessed me

with key plot points and then complained

that his name isn’t on the cover.

I told him his last name would be on the cover

of every book I write.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I
f my mother holds this book in her hands, it will be because she prayed it into existence and because the Lord stayed
His
hand from calling her home, though she’s tiptoed on the edge of eternity far too long in her estimation. In many ways, she served as my novel-birthing coach, cheering me on and remind- ing me how to breathe. Thank you, Mom.
(Author’s note: That’s
how this paragraph was written during the novel’s creation. The day
came when, with inexpressible gratitude, I laid an advanced copy in
Mom’s hands. Two weeks later, she took her final breath.)

I choose to believe it was not merely the air conditioning in the room that made my editor, Barbara Scott, rub her arms and say, “Ooh! I have goosebumps!” while listening to the pitch for this story. The moment is a sweet, sustaining memory. I didn’t

5

6

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

know at the time that I was gaining not only an editor but also a sister and friend. What a grace-gift!

Abingdon Press—its authors and publishing team—have

made this experience a journey of unending joy.

Thank you, Wendy Lawton and the Books & Such Literary

Agency family, for embracing me, nudging me, and feeding my hope. I’m honored to know you and be counted among you.

The role American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW)

has played in my writing life and my faith is immeasurable. Amazing friends and mentors, storytellers and publishing col- leagues, fellow board members—thank you for your impact. This story—and I—grew in your light.

My critique partners—Julie, Terri, Rachel, Melody, Laura,

Margaret, Sally, and newcomer Karin—deserve recognition for their patience with me, their insights, and their “the sting won’t last long” critiques.

Becky, the Lord knew exactly what I needed when He sent

you.

This book was nurtured by the faithfulness of Fiction

Friends, my writing prayer partners—Michelle, Dorothy, Diane, Shannon, Robin, and Jackie. Thank you for waiting with me.

Adventurer Mike Knuth offered his valuable
voyageur
per-

spective on the wilderness details, for which I am grateful. His experience added to the story. His enthusiasm for the story created a smile that has yet to fade.

In their individual ways and corporately, Kathy Carlton

Willis, Twila Belk, and Cec Murphey blessed me and this book with a depth of encouragement every novelist craves.

Thank you, Western Wisconsin Christian Writers Guild,

for teaching, inspiring, and holding writers accountable to write.

Bless you, Yay Rah Rah writers, for yay rah rah-ing.

7

Acknowledgments

Thank you, Jackie, for wearing out your knees for me and for cheering loudly no matter what the project, as long as it brings the Lord glory.

Amy, I wept for Libby in this story because she didn’t have a daughter like you.

Matt, you taught me that “middle” child means “middle of my heart.” (I might have read that somewhere, but it fits you.) Luke, a third child with a creative mind! How was I so blessed? May the lyrics of your life be a praise song.

Grace, Ben, Hannah, Andy, and Josh, the art of telling sto- ries took on new meaning with you on Grammie’s lap.

Special thanks to Kelly and Mark at the Second Wind Country Inn in Ashland, Wisconsin, for creating a scene and a place in which to write it.

Bill, with whom I have shared many moons in the same canoe, thank you for signing up for the journey of loving me for life.

9

D
o dead people wear shoes? In the casket, I mean. Seems a waste. Then again, no outfit is complete without the shoes. My thoughts pound up the stairs, down the hall, and into the master bedroom closet. Greg’s gray suit is clean, I think. White shirt, although that won’t allow much color contrast and won’t do a thing for Greg’s skin tones. His red tie with the silver threads? Good choice.

Shoes or no shoes? I should know this. I’ve stroked the porcelain-cold cheeks of several embalmed loved ones. My father and grandfather. Two grandmothers—one too young to die. One too old not to.

And Lacey.

The Baxter Street Mortuary will not touch my husband’s body should the need arise. They got Lacey’s hair and facial expression all wrong.

I rise from the couch and part the sheers on the front win- dow one more time. Still quiet. No lights on the street. No Jeep pulling into our driveway. I’ll give him one more hour, then I’m heading for bed. With or without him.

1

From the window [she] looked out.

Through the window she watched for his return, saying,

“Why is his chariot so long in coming?

Why don’t we hear the sound of chariot wheels?”

—Judges 5:28 NLT

10

CYNTHIA RUCHTI

Shoes? Yes or no? I’m familiar with the casket protocol for

children. But for adults?

Grandma Clarendon hadn’t worn shoes for twelve years or

more when she died. She preferred open-toed terrycloth slip- pers. Day and night. Home. Uptown. Church. Seems to me she took comfort to the extreme. Or maybe she figured God ought to be grateful she showed up in His house at all, given her distaste for His indiscriminate dispersal of the Death Angel among her friends and siblings.

“Ain’t a lick of pride in outliving your brothers and sisters,

Libby.” She said it often enough that I can pull off a believable impression. Nobody at the local comedy club need fear me as competition, but the cousins get a kick out of it at family reunions.

Leaning on the tile and cast-iron coffee table, I crane every-

thing in me to look at the wall clock in the entry. Almost four in the morning? I haven’t even decided who will sing special music at Greg’s memorial service. Don’t most women plan their husband’s funeral if he’s more than a few minutes late?

In the past, before this hour, I’m mentally two weeks beyond

the service, trying to decide whether to keep the house or move to a condo downtown.

He’s never been this late before. And he’s never been alone

in the wilderness. A lightning bolt of something—
fear? antici-
pation? pain?—
ripples my skin and exits through the soles of my feet.

The funeral plans no longer seem a semimorbid way to

occupy my mind while I wait for the lights of his Jeep. Not pointless imaginings but preparation.

That sounds like a thought I should command to flee in the

name of Jesus or some other holy incantation. But it stares at me with narrowed eyes as if to say, “I dare you.”