Amen!

"You know, up until just recently, I'd ask you if you'd let me pray for you. But now? I...I've begun wondering for the first time in my life if prayer even matters or...."

"Or what?" he asked kindly.

"Or if there's even Someone 'up there' listening."

He put his hand on top of hers then said, "Okay. Your turn," before taking another sip.

"Oh, my," Kinley said. "Where to even begin? I guess I'll give you the abbreviated version so I don't bore you to death."

"You won't bore me. I promise," he said smiling at her in such a pleasant way it warmed her heart.

Unlike his story, which he finished in under two minutes, Kinley was still going strong twenty minutes later when she heard her husband's voice.

"Kin? You home?" they heard.

She pulled her hand away so quickly it startled Brian.

"In the kitchen, honey!" she called out.

"Good. I'm starving!" he said. He walked in still talking not knowing anyone else was there. "What'd you make me for...."

Brian stood up and offered his hand. "Hello, sir. I'm Brian Jacobs. The new piano student."

"Oh, right!" he said pumping his hand. "I'm Pastor Tolson. You're the young Marine my wife told me about. Semper Fi, right?" he said with a smile. "We sure appreciate your service."

Brian went to thank him but he'd already moved on. "Kinley? I've got a meeting in half an hour. Did you not make my lunch?"

"I'm sorry, honey," she said. "I'll get it for you right now. I'll have it on your plate in two minutes, okay?"

"I was just getting ready to leave anyway," Brian offered. "Um...Mrs. Tolson? It was a pleasure meeting you. Pastor Tolson? You too, sir."

"Oh, sure," the pastor said. "Hey! Before you get away, please give some thought to joining us this Sunday. Kinley can give you directions. We'd love to have a better outreach to our veterans, and you could play a key role in that if you were interested."

"Sure. I'll talk to her about that during my next lesson," he said as Kinley was furiously working on getting a sandwich together for her husband.

He saw the distressed look on her face but didn't say anything other than, "I'll show myself out. Again, nice to meet you both." He smiled and waved as he turned around to leave.

Before he'd gone five steps he heard Pastor Tolson say, "Nice kid. Come on, Kin. Let's get a move on. I'm gonna be late!"

Brian shook his head in disgust then realized he was being way too harsh. He didn't know both sides of the story, and one thing he'd learned was there were always two sides to every story.

He stepped outside and noticed a very nice car in the driveway—a black Cadillac CTS. He also noticed the license plate had a Bible verse on it that read: II Chron 7:14.

Having no idea what it might mean, he pulled out his cell phone and checked it out. The King James Version translation was: "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

"Turn from their wicked ways. Like Jim Bakker or Ted Haggard?" he thought to himself cynically as he got into his car. Well, it was still his dad's car, but he thought of it as being his most of the time.

When he returned two days later, Kinley not only looked spectacular, she seemed to be in much better spirits.

She smiled brightly when she welcomed him in and suggested they get straight to work as she led him directly to the piano and onto the bench.

"Okay, if you'll scoot over just a tad...." she said. She sat next to him then said, "All right, since you're posture is perfect, the first thing we need talk about is hand placement."

An hour later and a hundred little things to remember, she told him their time was up. "Very nice!" she said. "You're a very fast learner."

"Not really. I just have an excellent teacher."

"Well, thank you for yet another compliment, but you really paid attention and just 'got it' whenever I explained something."

"Thank you," he said, "but it wasn't all that easy."

"Oh? Did I say something confusing?"

Brian smiled again then said, "No, not at all. It's just a little challenging to stay focused when your teacher is so...distracting. I may have to put a divider or something between us so I can't see you."

"Okay, there you go again! You just made my day. God bless you for saying that!" she said. She'd made up her mind she wasn't going to let him get as close to 'getting inside' as he'd gotten during that first visit. She'd been unable to get it—or rather, him—off her mind since that initial meeting, and although it had been a welcome relief from her endlessly looping 'tape' it was just wrong on so many levels. "Speaking of God, I was wondering if you gave my husband's offer to come visit with us any thought yet."

"That's very kind of you...and him," Brian said. "I don't really think I'm cut out for church or religion."

"Okay, I understand. Just know the invitation is always open. And who knows? It might be just the thing to help you along your path. You know, with forgetting some of those things you mentioned." She sat quietly for a second then told him, "I still can't get over what you experienced over there, Brian. I want you to know I've been praying for you."

She wasn't sure why she said that because the truth was, she hadn't prayed for him. In fact, for the first time in her life she hadn't prayed at all since he left. She'd wanted to; she just couldn't.

"Please don't take offense, Kinley, but I don't see any evidence God answers our prayers or even exists for that matter. I'm not trying to be obstinate or argumentative, it's just that some of the things that happened in spite of the prayers of the guys I served with make that a sore spot with me. In fact, on of our Marines who was praying while my friend's Humvee burned tole me, 'You're just angry at God.' I realized that's not true because you can't be angry at something that doesn't exist. I hope that doesn't offend you."

"Oh, no. Not at all. I...I understand," she said trying to keep up the smile that had come so naturally again over the last hour. But his words cut her to her core. He'd just voiced the very thought she'd been unable to shake for the last two days and really for several months. There was no way she was going to share her own doubts with an unbeliever, but the doubts were very real and they were persistent and seemed to be growing. They nagged at her constantly and this reminder had just erased whatever small amount of happiness she'd been feeling since being able to share some of what she'd been dealing with, with this exceptional young man.

Almost reflexively she said, "Just keep in mind God doesn't always answer our prayers in the way we expect." That was the same thing the pastor had told her and that she'd heard a thousand times over the years. When a child with cancer got better, it was God's will. But when a child died, that too, was God's will. He just answered the prayers of the child's family in a way they couldn't understand. At least not in this world. As that ran through her mind it sounded utterly absurd, but again, she wasn't about to say so out loud.

Brian didn't reply because doing so would have involved a hurtful comment about how watching someone you loved like a brother-in-arms burn to death while screaming for your help while other Marines fruitlessly prayed wasn't exactly what he'd expect from a loving God who answered prayers. A chaplain had even tried telling Sgt Jacobs, "I promise you Jesus was right there in that vehicle with your friend." A lot of fucking good that did. Gee, thanks for nothing. Instead he just smiled and thanked her for her time and patience with him.

"You really do have a beautiful home, Kinley," he said on the way out.

"Thank you, Brian. It was all my husband's idea. He drew up the plans himself and decided when and where to build. I just followed his lead. It's probably more than the two of us need, but I am thankful for it."

"So I'll see you on Friday then?" he said as they stood by the door.

"Yes. Friday and then again on Monday unless of course, you decide to come visit with us at church."

"I don't know, Kinley. Everything else aside, I wouldn't know anyone there and I think I'd feel pretty out of place sitting by myself."

"You know me, Brian, and I'd be happy to sit with you so that excuse is gone now. So...think about it, okay?"

"Okay. I'll give it some thought," he told her truthfully. What he wasn't going to tell her was that the only reason he'd consider going was to have the opportunity to be near her, something he knew was wrong, and something he would never allow to go any further. Yet he also realized he was feeling this way more and more each time he saw her.

Unwilling to even consider mentioning whatever it was he was feeling, Friday's lesson went very smoothly, all of it being devoted to practicing fundamentals. Playing was indeed a complex activity, and it did require Brian to focus his attention. And while it seemed to be helping a bit more than the standard three pillars of HEM, what was breaking the cycle of negative thinking was being near someone who made him feel alive again. Someone who gave him hope a woman like her, but one who was free and available, was 'out there' waiting for him to find her. Were it possible for him to believe in prayer, he'd have asked God to help him do just that. For now, he was content to let this new relationship nurture him to whatever degree it could, and so far it was working rather well.

Brian again thanked Kinley for her time and wrote her a check for the first three lessons. She told him she felt terrible accepting his money not only because he'd done so much for his country, but because he'd done so much to help her put things in perspective.

"I don't want to drag you into a lengthy discussion, Brian. I just wanted to let you know I've had some relief from my own relentless tape playing in my mind. I have you to thank for that, and I'm very grateful."

"I wasn't going to say anything, but I've had similar results since we started seeing each other." He smiled a bashful smile then said, "I hope you know I didn't mean it like...that. I was referring to you teaching me piano."

She smiled a warm, genuine smile at him and told him, "I knew exactly what you meant. This has been good for me, too. Maybe you're the answer to prayer I've been asking for."

Brian smiled back but didn't comment. "Oh, I've given some thought to visiting this Sunday, and if you'll promise not to make me sit alone, I may just stop by."

Kinley's face lit up like he'd never seen before. "That's wonderful! No, I won't let you sit by yourself. I'll be more than happy to sit with you. Oh, Brian. I am so happy to hear you say that. Hmmm. Maybe you are the answer to my prayers. After all, He does move in mysterious ways, right?"

"I'll take your word for that," he replied in the nicest way possible. "So I guess maybe I'll see you Sunday morning at 10am?"

"I'm looking forward it!" she said with another cheerful smile.

Saturday morning was colder than normal, and Brian not only wore sweats on his run, he wore a stocking cap and a pair of gloves. It was very cold, but he wasn't going to miss the opportunity to go for a run on such an otherwise perfectly clear morning.

He started out at an 8-minute-per-mile pace and was feeling good so he picked it up a little and ran the second one at around 7:30. He loved this next part of the run down a long bike path that got very little use this time of year and ticked off a third mile in just over 7 minutes. He held that 7-minute pace as he sped along the long, straight, nicely-paved path surrounded by rows of beautiful pine trees.

He saw a car off to the side of the road about a quarter mile up ahead which didn't make any sense to him. It was off the path and into the woods maybe 50 feet. As he got closer he could tell it hadn't been left overnight as the windows were clear of frost. When the vehicle came into view he chuckled as he saw the rocking motion as the car gently moved with the motions of its occupants.

He was envious and wouldn't have given it a second thought had the license plate not caught his attention. II Chron 7:14. He immediately recognized the Cadillac CTS by its unique plate.

"What the fuck?" he said out loud, his breath visible in long streams in the cold morning air. He grabbed his cell phone and moved closer then clicked on 'video' and started recording. He only got one quick look at the person on top when her head and naked upper torso appeared. Through the rearview window she appeared to be an attractive-looking woman about Kinley's age. This woman was bouncing up and down in the back seat and as she bounced, Brian saw that she had long, dark hair and that she wore black-framed glasses, but that was all he saw. No, he also saw the top half of two very nice-looking boobs, but other than that....

He stopped the recording, shook his head in disgust again, then continued his run. "Hypocrite," he spat. "No...fucking hypocrite."

Brian finally had a new tape for his brain to play; a tape that replaced the previous loop of his best friend's screams of agony. The near certainty of who was underneath the woman he saw played over and over in an endless loop the entire day as he tried to decide what might be his best course of action. Unable to come to a decision, he made one anyway. He'd do nothing at all for now. When taking action became necessary or at least more clear, he'd act. Until then, he'd wait.

Brian slept very little that night as he thought about what was happening in the back seat of the Caddy. Even more troubling was what this would do to Kinley, a woman, at least as far as he knew, had done nothing to deserve any of this. He knew she was hurting and generally that it was her husband's lack of attention that was causing the hurt, and something like this would be devastating.

He knew he didn't have conclusive proof. It was unlikely but possible Pastor Tolson had leant his car to someone else. Perhaps he had a son from a previous marriage Brian didn't know about and he'd taken his girlfriend there for an early-morning tryst. Right. A son who'd be maybe 18 with a woman who looked to be around 35. Uh-huh. Sure. And maybe pigs really had wings and could fly when no one was looking.

He dressed for church for the first time since he was maybe 12 and then debated even going. Brian knew he had information Kinley should have, and although he'd played his share of poker on those nights in Iraq when no one could sleep, he also knew he didn't have the best poker face. He could hide this from her, but he didn't think he could lie to her if she asked point blank what was wrong. And being a very insightful woman she'd almost certainly sense something was wrong.

He wrestled with his thoughts all the way to the very large church that was called Christian Assembly Church and Academy (K-12), a beautiful building with a massive parking lot and busses with the church name on them streaming in and letting off kids and young moms one after the other.

Brian's first thought was this was a business where the commodity was people, although a less cynical person would say 'souls' and the medium of exchange was money in return for feeling good about 'knowing the truth' or 'going to heaven'.

He parked his car, got out, took a deep breath, then headed inside. He walked into a huge foyer where many people were either standing and chatting or walking through it to the chapel. There was also a gymnasium connected to the building which was connected a long wing of classrooms for the school or academy or whatever it was called.

After popping his head into the gym, he turned around and saw her standing right in front of him.

"Brian! You came!" Kinley said smiling brightly. "I am so happy to see you! Welcome!"

"I did and thank you," he said smiling back. "Don't you look nice."

And she did. She was wearing a very beautiful, very expensive-looking dress with a pair of equally-expensive looking heels. She was not only wearing makeup but quite a bit of gold jewelry which also seemed to very real and well...very expensive.

"Thank you!" she said sincerely. "Have you had a chance to look around?"

"I just peeked into the gym and could see it connected to the school."

"Come on, I'll give you a quick tour," she said.

Brian had never seen her so happy, and it appeared genuine, making the news he had all the more distasteful.

"As you saw, this is our gym and multi-purpose area for assemblies and dances and what not."

"Dances? I didn't think Christians danced," he said not really knowing.

"I believe you're thinking about Baptists, Brian. They don't permit dancing. We believe the Bible is silent in that area, and we encourage our youth to get together here where loving adults can chaperone them."

She took back to the Academy where it said, "Doctor Andrew M. Tolson, Superintendent."

"Your husband wears more than one hat, I see," Brian observed.

"He's a very busy man that's for sure," Kinley said, her smile fading at the mention of her husband.

She showed him the classrooms and pointed out one with a piano it. "I teach piano here three days a week, as well. It's a real blessing."

Brian smiled and told her he was sure it was.

"Well, that's the end of the tour. We should probably get headed inside. The service is about to start."

As they walked, Brian decided to float a kind of trial balloon.

"I think I may have seen your husband's car yesterday morning."

"Oh?" she replied.

"Yeah, I was out for a morning run and when I saw it I thought it might be his. But when I got a look at the license plate, I was sure of it. There can't be too many with that verse on the plates, right?" He smiled trying his best to seem nonchalant.

"Oh, right. Um...what time was that?" she asked. "Early morning did you say?"

He told her the exact time then waited for a reaction.

"Interesting," she replied. "Do you recall where by any chance?"

"Um, yeah, it was out near the bicycle trail a couple miles from my parents' house and about five miles south of the church."

"I see," she said the happiness drained from her face. "So he was on the road that runs parallel to the trail?"

"Well, he wasn't on the trail," he said knowing that part was true.

Kinley stopped and looked at Brian. Her countenance was completely different that it had been at the beginning of the 'tour'. "Did you notice if he was alone?"

"Well, I only saw one person inside so...."

She asked him about the time again which he repeated.

The look of sadness in her eyes changed as they narrowed and her lips grew taut.

"Thank you for letting me know that," she said tersely. Her face softened slightly before she said, "I'm sorry. You're here as my guest. Um...come on, I'll take you inside the chapel. I hope you don't mind sitting upfront, but that's where Andrew prefers I sit."

Nearly every person they passed smiled and spoke to Kinley on the way in. "Good morning, Sister Tolson! Hi, Kinley! I love your dress!" and other comments came from both men and women as she introduced Brian as a friend rather than as one of her students.

When he mentioned that she said, "Well, we did decide we're friends, right?" and that was indeed what they'd agreed on.

Brian saw no less than a half dozen attractive women of varying ages with long, dark hair and two of them wore glasses, but neither of them resembled the women he'd seen in the back of the pastor's car. Then again, there was no reason to assume she'd be a member of this church.

His thoughts were interrupted by Andrew's voice booming out over the PA system. "Good morning and God bless you all!" he said smiling widely. "I hope you had a wonderful week and that this one will be even better! Let us begin with a word of prayer, shall we?"