28. Gage

28

GAGE

G age crossed his arms on the wheel of his pickup and stared at the house right in front of him. The two-story log house with a wraparound porch didn't have the feel of a mansion or outrageous wealth, but it still had a sense of awe about it.

The ranch was quiet, and peace surrounded Mr. Chambers's house. It was different from the quiet of the woods Gage was used to living in. Birds chirped here, and footprints were scattered all through the thin layer of snow around the place.

Gage looked down at his phone. No messages. Hadley was in Cody at a doctor's appointment with her mom, and she wouldn't be back for a couple of hours.

He looked back at the house and tapped the heel of his boot against the floorboard. He should have told Hadley what he was doing today, but he didn't want to get her hopes up in case Mr. Chambers hated him and decided he wasn't worth the time.

Stretching his neck from side to side, he sat up and grabbed the door handle. Now or never.

It had to be now.

Gage walked up the porch steps and stopped at the front door. The wood was old and weathered, but it wasn't falling apart. Instead, it bore the marks of good use and memories.

He raised his fist to knock, and the door opened immediately. An old man with white hair and a barrel belly stood in the doorway wearing a red-and-tan pearl snap and jeans.

"‘Bout time you got here. I'm Ronald Chambers."

Gage took the hand the man offered and gave it a good grip. "Gage Howard."

"Good to meet you." Mr. Chambers lifted his other hand and shoved a book flat against Gage's chest. "Hold this, and follow me."

Gage glanced at the leather-bound book. The words Holy Bible flashed in gold lettering against the black cover. It was heavier than he'd expected.

Mr. Chambers was halfway to Gage's truck before he shouted over his shoulder, "You're drivin'!"

Gage jogged down the steps and got back in the truck. Mr. Chambers turned to point down the path leading in and out of the ranch. "We're goin' that way."

There wasn't any need to ask questions. This guy was handing out answers before Gage even needed them.

Mr. Chambers made himself comfortable in the passenger seat, rolling down the window and propping his arm on it. "Hadley tells me you want to know about God."

"Yes, sir."

"How much do you know?"

Wow. Way to break the ice. "Nothing."

"Then we'll start at the beginning. Just so you know, there isn't a linear way to learn about God or study the Bible."

"Good to know."

"So you'll have to be smart enough to decide what works best for you."

No pressure.

"Hadley told me a little bit about you, but I want to hear it from you."

Gage glanced over at the man running the show in the seat beside him. "What do you want to know?"

"Anything you think is important about yourself."

Gage scoffed. "I've done a lot of bad things."

"Haven't we all? Let me make one thing clear. You don't get in the Lord's good graces by being a good person. "

Mr. Chambers pointed to a side road, and Gage took the direction. "What?"

"It takes believing. And not just saying you believe, but truly believing, no matter the situation. That takes a long time to master. Some of us never do."

"What exactly am I supposed to believe?" Gage asked.

Mr. Chambers waved a hand in the air. "We'll get to that. We're still talking about you."

Gage flipped through his life and memories. What would this man want to know about him? "I was born here, and I've always lived in Blackwater. My family is pretty–"

Good grief. Don't cuss in front of him.

"They're not good people."

"I know of them, but I'd much rather hear the truth from you. Words get twisted as they wind around the grape vine."

"They're probably as bad as you've heard." Gage had told the prosecutor last week that Bruce was the one who killed Brett and Jess's dad, and since there wasn't a statute of limitations on murder, those charges were being brought up in Bruce's trial.

"You know Thea is my sister. My mom's a good woman, but my dad was about as bad as they come. My uncles are cut from the same cloth. I've been running moonshine since I was about seven, and I started dealing stolen car parts at twelve. My uncles have used me for tax fraud since I was born, and I've been arrested somewhere north of half a dozen times since I was eighteen. Those charges range from petty theft to minor in possession. Nothing terrible, but worth spending a night in the brig over."

"Anything good you could throw in there?" Mr. Chambers asked.

"You said being a good person doesn't win me points with God."

"It doesn't, but I'm trying to get to know you. The only good thing I heard was that you're related to Thea and your mom. By the way, I met your mom a few days ago, and she seemed as kind as you said."

"She is. You heard she has cancer?"

"I did. Thea's been keeping me in the loop about that. We'll be working things out so that your mom always has someone available to take her to appointments."

"Thanks for that," Gage said.

Mr. Chambers had the same inherent kindness as Hadley. No wonder she talked about the man like he was her hero.

"No problem. I'll help however I can. So, I've heard about your sordid past. What are you doing to change this trajectory?" Mr. Chambers asked as he pointed to a barn-like structure with a few trucks parked on the side.

"Well, Hadley's doing a good job leading me in the right direction. People like me don't get a safety net to help them bounce back."

"Keep thinkin' like that, and you'll never change."

Gage parked beside one of the trucks and shut off the engine. "I wasn't–"

"You were. Now grab that and let's go." Mr. Chambers pointed to the Bible on the console between them as he got out.

Guess we're moving.

Gage met Mr. Chambers in front of the truck and fell into step beside him as they walked into the barn.

"You don't get out of hot water because you think you should. It takes determination and action. We all come to the Lord broken and messed up. Not a single one of us is good. The hardest thing to do is get on your knees and lay it all out there, but the healing and trust can't happen until you toss out your pride."

Gage opened his mouth to defend himself, but the words clogged in his throat. Maybe he was carrying around some pride, but he didn't mean to. He'd always been satisfied with his own abilities until recently. Apparently, he knew how to be a Howard, but being a respectable member of society was a new ballgame.

Inside the barn, the middle was open from one end to the other with stalls and rooms on both sides. Hay bales were stacked by one side and two open areas had faucets and hoses and sloping floors leading to drains.

"Welcome to the stables. Well, this is one of the stables on the ranch. We keep most of our working horses here, and Brett and Jess manage things. Thea just started working here too, and Hadley fills in sometimes during the off-season if they need extra hands."

The mention of Hadley had Gage looking around for her before remembering she wasn't here. In his sweep of the place, his attention focused on a blonde woman grooming a horse at the other side of the barn.

Jess Patton. It had been years since he'd seen her, but she looked the same as she had in school. Her hair was a shade lighter than Brett's, but there was a resemblance in their stance.

Gage kept walking beside Mr. Chambers as their path continued toward Jess.

The old fire stoked in Gage's middle, but the anger burnt fast and died quickly. Why should Gage have anything against Jess Patton? He'd never even spoken to her, and she hadn't done anything bad to him or his kin.

That he knew of.

Mr. Chambers stopped beside Jess, and she looked up at him with a faint smile before her attention shifted to Gage. With that movement, her expression morphed into something wary and alert.

"Jess. This is Gage Howard. He's gonna be helping with the horses for a little bit. Which one needs grooming next?"

Well, that was news to Gage. He'd never touched a horse in his life.

Jess nodded. "Yes, sir."

As soon as she walked off, Mr. Chambers slapped a hand on Gage's back. "One thing you should learn is how to be the same person with everyone. It's easy to be nice to the people you like, but what about the people you don't like?"

"You mean the Pattons."

"And everyone else. You're not going to get along with everyone, but you'll never find out if you could if you don't give it a fighting chance."

Gage nodded. "Noted."

Jess returned leading a brown horse with a light mane and tail over to them.

Mr. Chambers greeted the horse and brushed his weathered hand over its neck. "You ready for the lesson?"

"This is the lesson?" Gage asked.

"Yep."

Holding up the Bible, he asked, "What about this?"

Mr. Chambers furrowed his brow at Gage. "What about it? "

"Why'd you give it to me if we're not going to use it?"

"You will, and I want you to get used to carrying it around."

Gage shook his head, but a grin spread on his lips. At least Mr. Miyagi was full of surprises.