Shelter from the Storm (Chapter 1)

Mac Davenport, church greeter and minister of the Welcome and

Outreach Ministry of Newberry Community Church and his close

friend Gary Canfield, minister of the Bus Ministry and trustee,

work at getting the pinewood derby track set up and to make

adjustments on it for the pinewood derby week after next.

 Tonight was the long-awaited pinecar build night in which the 

children, along with their parents, work together in building and

preparing their cars for the race. It was also going to be a pizza

night as well, the idea brought about jointly by Mac and Gary.

 Gary's wife Vera, along with their two children Brian and Dawn,

were also helping in setting up the fellowship hall for the night's

event.

 As Mac was tightening the bolts which held the left rear support

of the track, he began thinking about the two recent newcomers

that Gary had picked up on his bus route.  They were two young

children, a girl, age nine, and a boy, age five. Gary had been

picking them up from Sunrise Trailer Park, which was five miles

east of town. The girl's name was Julie Benson and the boy was her

younger half-brother, Alexander Hobbs.

 "Gary," Mac then addressed his friend,  "Are those two children

you've been picking up able to come?"

 Gary replied with, "Vera and I are going to get them shortly. Their

mother works nights as a housekeeper for County General Hospital

so she was more than happy to have us bring them here."

 "Good deal," Mac said, "I happen to have some extra car kits on

hand for something like this."

 "Yes,"  Gary said, "And they'll need someone to help them as well,

 it'll be their first time."

 Brian and Dawn were in the same room putting paper plates on one

of the tables when Brian spoke up.
 "Dawn and I can help them, Dad," Brian offered.

"That's very thoughtful of you, my son," Gary replied to Brian, "But just

be sure you let me or Uncle Mac know when you need to use the scroll

saw, okay?"

 "Yes, sir," Brian acknowledged.

 "Good man."

  Just then the main entrance door to the fellowship hall opened and in came

 Wilfred Templar, fellow greeter of Mac's welcome ministry as well as

trustee and behind him entered Jenny Garrett, another greeter who also

handled the tract rack.

 "Wilfred! Jenny!" Mac called out to them, "Good to see you. Glad you could

 come!"

 "A pleasure, young Mac," Wilfred answered cordially with the usual manners

of an English gentleman.

 "I couldn't miss this,"  Jenny put in.

 The door opened yet again and in came Karen Williams, a recently added
member of Newberry Community Church who became a member along
with her parents soon after her father got saved. Karen brought in with her
a couple of 2 liter bottles of soda pop along with two bags of chips.  Mac
called out to her, "Do you need help with those, Karen?"

 "I'm good," Karen replied, smiling, "Thank you."

 Gary looked at his watch and said to Mac, "Mac?  Vera and I are going
to pick up Julie and Alex. You want to finish up on the track?"

"Be delighted, brother," answered Mac. Mac noticed Gary looked a little
disturbed.

"Everything alright?"  Mac added, "You seem a little tense."

"Just something about the kids I'm picking up." Gary replied.

 "What's the trouble, Gary?"  

  "I don't know exactly, I just have a bad feeling that something isn't right

in the home of the two kids.  Well, better head on out and pick 'em up."

 Gary turned and he and Vera went out the door and headed out to

pick up the two kids of the bus ministry.

 Karen walked over to Mac as he picked up his tools off the floor and

asked him,  "Can I get you anything to drink while you're doing the track?"

"Oh, no thank you, Karen,"  Mac acknowledged, "I'm almost through."

"I noticed you seemed a bit concerned when talking to Gary,"  Karen

said, "Is everything all right?"

 "I don't know, Karen," Mac answered,  "I thought he seemed a little 

tense." 

 "Oh?"

  "Says he has this bad feeling about the home of two kids he picks up

on the church bus route."

"Oh, really?"  Karen said, her eyebrows slightly raised.

 "He says their mother works part-time at County General as a

housekeeper working the night shift." Mac stated, then went on,

"While I was in the hospital after rescuing your father, I noticed

this one cleaning lady who did work the night shift. She looked

kind of spaced-out."

 "Hmmmm?"  Karen hummed, then said, "My dad told me a similar

story about a housekeeper who cleaned his room."  Karen continued,

"While the memory wasn't clear, he could have sworn he'd seen her

take a drink of something from a flask she kept on her."

 Mac scratched his chin and said, "I see. The home of these kids is

starting to interest me."

This concludes Chapter One.