Love's Voice

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Love’s Voice - book excerpt

Chapter 1

Danger. Hide. Mariam Janice Semp was on the run. Someone wanted her dead. The voice of her guardian angel in her head kept her alive, warning her of dangers. Others weren’t so fortunate.

First came the fire that burned down her home, destroyed all she owned, and claimed the lives of her mother, father, and younger brother. Darrin, her older brother, was off serving in the army. She tried to reach him, but he was off base, so all she could do was leave a message. Then came the second attack.

“Danger!” the voice of her guardian angel said, just before a car tried to run her down in the street. She dove and fell out of the way. Any notion it was an accident was dispelled as the driver turned the car to try and hit her a second time, but her roll had landed her safely hidden between two parked cars. Another vehicle drove by, and her attacker sped away.

The next time she heard the voice of her guardian angel, Mariam had seen lights headed toward her and looked back to see the same car. “Hide,” the voice instructed. She slid down into a ditch and hid under some branches. The car slowed as it drove past her position. The next time she saw the mysterious car, bidden by the voice, she hid in a tree until it drove away. That time she caught a glimpse of light shining off the metal of a gun barrel. The driver had a gun.

Mariam was afraid to go to the police. She had started to, but the voice of her guardian angel had objected loudly. She didn’t know why, but she had learned to listen.

Mariam lived in the town of Madison, Oklahoma, where she was a kindergarten teacher. She decided to try to get as far away from her hometown as she could. She had limited funds. Unless she was able to somehow go by an ATM without being seen, all she had was about three hundred dollars hidden in a false pocket in her jacket. The voice of her guardian angel had advised her to hide the money about a month ago and, even though Mariam had not understood why at the time, she had obeyed.

Mariam went into a grocery store on the other side of town from where she had lived. She saw a sign advertising an ATM. She looked around. When she did not see anyone suspicious, she put her card in the machine and asked for $950.00. The limit for one transaction was $1000.00. She did not want to draw attention to herself by getting the limit. When the money was approved, she turned so people could not see how much money she was getting, Mariam put the money in an inside pocket in her coat. On her way out of the store, she moved forward with a group of shoppers, so she would not stand out. When they were outside, she slipped away from the group and made her way through the shadows to the outskirts of town.

There was a truck stop there, and Mariam hid and watched the trucks come and go. She watched an older man get out of his truck and go inside. He did not lock his door. She eased over to his truck. Her guardian angel was silent. Miriam eased open the door. She looked around, but she didn’t see anyone. The truck was parked where people inside could not see the door.

Mariam crawled inside and eased the door shut. She crawled on into the back and, getting down behind the seat, she pulled a blanket up from the floor and covered herself with it. She had taken the money out of her pocket and stuffed most of it down in her boots. She only kept a couple of twenties in her pocket.

Mariam made herself into as small a ball as she could and lay very still as she heard the driver return. He climbed into his truck. Since he had left it running, all he had to do was start driving. They were on their way. Her guardian angel was being very quiet. Mariam took it to mean there was no danger. Her guardian angel was always loud when she was in danger. Mariam lay under the blanket and fell asleep. They were a long way down the road before she awoke. The man in the truck had stopped and was putting gas in the truck.

Mariam saw him when she eased up and peeped out the window. The man had finished pumping gas and was on his way inside the store. Mariam had no idea where she was. She looked at the clock in the dashboard. It said 11:30.

She had been asleep for 7 hours. She looked at the sign on the store. It said, “Mercy Truck Stop.” Mariam climbed up and eased out of the truck. She saw the truck driver come out of the store and ran around the back of the truck to hide behind the building. She heard the driver get in his truck and drive away.

Mariam looked around the side of the building. She had never heard of the town of Mercy. She had left the truck here because the voice of her guardian angel had been so silent. She had been so vocal for so long; the silence was a relief. With a name like Mercy, maybe she would be safe. She needed to find a place to stay until morning. She could look around then and see what she could do. She looked around and spotted a storage shed just inside the trees. She didn’t see anyone around, so she hurried over to the building. It wasn’t locked. Mariam opened the door and looked inside. It had furniture stored in it. It was very dark inside, so Mariam left the door open a little so she could look around. There was a chair and a couple of sofas. She could curl up on one of the sofas to wait for morning. Only, Mariam wasn’t sleepy; she was hungry and needed a bathroom.

“Maybe if I act natural, I can go in the store and buy something to eat and get the key to the bathroom. If I go in from this side, the clerk will think I am parked around this side of the building,” said Mariam.

She straightened her clothes and smoothed her hair and headed for the store. When she went in, the clerk barely glanced at her. She picked out some snacks and paid for them.

“Could I get the key to the restroom?” asked Mariam.

The clerk reached up and snagged the key off a hook and handed it to her.

“The restroom is around back,” said the clerk.

“Thanks,” said Mariam.

She went around back and used the restroom. When she had finished and washed her hands, she left the door unlocked and took the key back to the clerk. He took it silently and hung it back up. Hopefully, no one else would come along and re-lock it, thought Mariam.

She went back to the storage shed, went inside and, made herself comfortable on one of the sofas. She opened one of her snacks and enjoyed the first food she had eaten all day. It tasted very good.

When Mariam awoke the next morning, she looked out a crack in the door to be sure no one was around. When she didn’t see anyone, she hurried over to the restroom.

After using the restroom and washing her hands, she used a small comb from her pocket to smooth down her hair. Having short hair helped a lot. Mariam came out of the restroom and headed for the town. She could see the buildings a couple of blocks away.

When she entered the town, she found it was built in a circle around a small park. The park had small tables with a bench attached on each side like picnic tables. It looked like what would be put out for older men to sit at and play checkers.

Mariam looked across the park and saw a café. Her stomach picked that moment to growl very loudly. It was ready to eat.

Mariam headed for the café across the way. Mariam looked around curiously. She spotted an empty table and headed for it. As soon as she sat down, a waitress appeared with a glass of water and a menu.

“Hi, I’m Sue. What can I get for you?”

Mariam looked at the menu. “I’ll have the breakfast platter with orange juice and coffee,” said Mariam.

The waitress took the menu and went to turn in the order. There were only a few people there. They were all watching her. They were curious about the stranger in their small town.

The waitress was soon back with her food and orange juice.

“I’ll be right back with your coffee,” said Sue.

Mariam just nodded and started eating. She had to force herself to eat slowly. She was so hungry; she was afraid she would eat too fast and embarrass herself. The food was delicious. Mariam didn’t know if it was just because she was so hungry, but she couldn’t remember food ever tasting so good.

When Mariam’s hunger was under control, she looked around. There were two ladies sitting at a table across from her. They were eating and talking and sneaking glances at her. Mariam smiled at them, and they smiled back and turned their attention back to their meal.

There was a man at another table, sitting by himself. He grinned and looked down when he saw the ladies look away, embarrassed at being caught staring. The man finished his meal and left some money on the table as he went up front to pay his bill. He glanced at Mariam and grinned as he left.

Mariam watched him leave, but she didn’t smile back. She was still being cautious. She did not know who was trying to kill her. She should be safe here, but she was not taking anything for granted.

When Mariam finished and paid her bill, she went out and looked up and down the street. She decided to go to her right and make a circle around the town. As she went down the street, she passed a drug store and a furniture store. Next was the jail. Mariam saw the man from the café going in the door. After the jail was a hardware store.

Mariam paused and glanced through the window. It looked like a nice place and seemed to be doing a good business. Looking in the hardware store window made Mariam think about her family. Her dad had worked in the hardware store in Madison. She sighed, feeling depressed, then continued on her way.

Mariam came to the circle at the end of the street. The courthouse was sitting back away from the street. It had a large parking area around it. It had large columns out front. On down from the courthouse was a fire station. The doors were closed, and there did not seem to be anyone around.

Mariam continued her journey of discovery. After the fire station, Mariam gazed in delight at a bookstore. It had a help wanted sign in the window. The store wasn’t open yet, so Mariam went on to see the rest of the stores. There was another café next, and a grocery store. They were followed by an antique store. The antique store had some of its merchandise displayed on the sidewalk in front of the store. There was a resale clothing store next. Mariam took notice of it because all her clothes had been lost in the fire. All she had to wear was what she had on. She did not want to spend a lot of money on clothes. The resale store might be an answer for her.

Mariam turned and headed back to the bookstore to inquire about the job. The store was open when she arrived at the door. When she went in, an elderly lady was sitting behind the cash register working on a ledger.

The woman smiled at Mariam and looked at her closely. “Come on in,” she said cheerfully.

“Hi,” said Mariam. “I saw your sign in the window. I was wondering about the job.”

“Have you had any experience working in a bookstore?” asked the lady.

“Not in sales,” said Mariam. “but I have helped out in the school library.”

“Were you a teacher?” asked the lady.

Mariam nodded. “I taught kindergarten.”

“Why did you stop teaching?” she asked.

“My family was killed in a house fire. I lost everything, and I needed to get away,” remarked Mariam.

“I’m sorry,” said the woman studying her. “My name is Darci Holt. What’s your name, dear?”

“I’m Mariam Janice,” said Mariam. She left her last name off. Maybe it would throw off anyone looking for her.

Darci nodded and looked around thoughtfully. “Where are you staying, Mariam?”

“I haven’t found a place yet. I thought I would try to find work first and then look for a place to stay,” said Mariam.

“I have a room in the back of the store. It is just one large room and a bath. It has a microwave and a small refrigerator. You can stay there while you look around,” said Darci.

“You mean I have the job?” asked Mariam smiling.

“Yes,” said Darci. “I should tell you before you take the job, some people around here seem to think I am a witch.”

“Why would they think that?” asked Mariam startled.

“They found out about my hearing the voice of my guardian angel. If it wasn’t for my grandson, they would probably have run me out of town. He is a deputy sheriff. They don’t want to get on his bad side. You don’t seem surprised about me hearing my guardian angel,” observed Darci.

Mariam shook her head. “I hear the voice of my guardian angel, too,” she said.

Darci nodded. “I know you do. My guardian angel told me to help you. She said you are in danger because of your guardian angel’s voice,” she said.

“I didn’t know it was because of the voice,” said Mariam. “My family was killed because of me,” said Mariam, looking away to hide her tears.

Darci came around the counter and put her arm around Mariam’s shoulder. “It was not because of you. It was the witch hunters. They think they have the right to take life when they want to. They need to be stopped. My grandson is working on it. It takes time to build a case against them. If it is not done legally, it makes us as bad as them. Now, do you want the job?”

“Yes, I do,” said Mariam.

“Come on back, and I will show you your room. You can go down to the resale store and pick up a couple of outfits. You can start to work after lunch. I’ll help you get acquainted with how I do things around here,” said Darci as she guided Mariam to the back of the store and showed her the room. She gave her the key to her room and went back to the front because the bell rang when a customer entered the store.

Mariam looked around the room. It had everything she needed. She was inside, warm, had a cozy place to sleep and a place to eat and shower.

Mariam took some of the money from her boots and added it to the money in her hidden pocket. She put some in her pocket and some in her wallet. Mariam decided to go and find some clothes before she showered. She could also pick up a few groceries. The refrigerator was running but empty. Mariam went out and locked her door. She smiled at Darci as she went through the bookstore on her way to the stores. Darci smiled at her and nodded.

The customer turned and looked at Mariam. “Who is she?” the customer leaned in to ask.

“Her name is Mariam, and she is my new helper,” Darci answered casually. The woman nodded, accepting the information, and Mariam breathed a sigh of relief. The door closed behind her, blocking out the rest of their exchange.

Mariam continued to the resale store. After finding a couple of pairs of jeans and three shirts, she found some underwear and socks. The underwear was still in its original unopened packages. Mariam paid for her clothes and headed for the grocery store. She put her clothes in the buggy and started around the store. She couldn’t buy much. She was walking and didn’t want to be overloaded.

Mariam picked up a box of cereal and a half-gallon of milk. She could go to the café after work, but she needed something for breakfast before work. Mariam picked up a couple of bags of microwave popcorn. It would make a tasty snack.

Mariam paid for her purchases and left the grocery store. She carried her purchases in her arms and headed for the bookstore. Darci was busy when Mariam entered the bookstore. She smiled as she took in Mariam’s load. Mariam smiled and headed for her room. She wanted to take a shower and change clothes before she started working.

Word had reached Charles Holt about Darci having a new helper. He decided to drop by and check on his grandmother. He wanted to be sure no one was taking advantage of her. Although she was a very smart lady and her guardian angel warned her about danger, he still felt he should take care of her.

Charles entered the bookstore and saw his grandmother finishing with a customer. She handed the lady her package and receipt. The customer took her package, smiled, and nodded at Charles as she left.

Darci smiled and came over and let Charles kiss her cheek. “Hello, Charles, I see the grapevine is working well.”.

Charles laughed. “I hear you have a new helper,” he said.

“Yes, her name is Mariam Janice. She is starting this afternoon, and I am letting her use the room in the back of the store,” said Darci.

Charles looked at her sharply. “Why did you let her stay in the store?” he asked.

“She was new in town and needed a place to stay.” She looked at him sternly. “My guardian angel told me to help her,” said Darci.

Charles shook his head. There was no arguing with her guardian angel. If her angel told her it was what she should do, no one was going to change Darci’s mind. He would just have to keep an eye on the situation and make sure she was not taken advantage of.

“Alright, Grandma, I will see you later. If you need me, call,” said Charles. He gave her a hug as he turned and left the store to return to the station.