The Small Town Preacher's Fake - Lucy McConnell Page 0,23

asked the Lord if he could join Him on the water.”

Evie’s eyes dropped shut as the words and his rich voice flowed through her. He continued to open up the story of Peter, who leapt over the side of the boat in eagerness, but then saw the waves and the storm and the threats and the fears and began to sink. It was as if Seth had been created for the purpose of weaving together this truth to speak peace to her soul. Her desire to be better, to be the disciple who would leap from the boat to join Jesus, swelled within her.

Suddenly, someone cried out. Her eyes flew open to find the source of the interruption.

Jerom jumped up on the pew and pointed to the visitor. “I think he’s dead.” He poked him in the shoulder before Sam could grab him. “Wake up, dude!” he yelled.

The whole room gasped as one. Seth’s words cut off. Sam grabbed for Jerom.

Evie shot to her feet and ran over, not sure what she was going to do but willing to help. She leaned down in front of the stranger. “Sir?” She gently shook his shoulder.

Seth was suddenly behind her, his hand on her back.

“Where’s his nurse?” she asked. A strange sense of calm came over her, and a part of her knew that this man’s spirit had passed through the veil and he was already with his maker.

“I’m right here.” Led by Mrs. Green, who must have run out first thing, the woman walked in as if she had until Resurrection Morning to figure this out. She bent down and thumped him in the shoulder. “Yep. He’s dead.”

“Told you,” Jerom said to his dad. Sam shushed him.

“Shouldn’t we do CPR?” Evie asked in astonishment at the nurse’s blasé attitude. She’d never seen anyone die before. The little boy stared at the body. She got the feeling that if there was a stick around, he would have poked the man with that too.

She stepped in front of him. His mom grabbed him and scooted to the other end of the pew.

“But I wanna touch him. If he’s dead, he won’t care!”

Evie coughed to cover her laugh. Thank goodness he wasn’t traumatized. Little boys!

The nurse took out her phone and checked the time. The smell of cigarette smoke lingered around her. “We were expecting it to be any day now. He told me last night that his dying wish was to go to church once more. Looks like it all worked out.” She grabbed the wheelchair handles and addressed Seth. “Mind if I keep him in your office, Preacher? I have to make some phone calls.”

Seth opened his mouth and shut it again. He was clearly at a loss. The Christian thing to do was to offer the space, but she could tell a part of him didn’t like the idea of trying to keep a corpse on ice in the room where he sought heavenly guidance. There wasn’t really another option, though. The kitchen was too warm this time of day due to the south-facing windows, and the gathering hall was too big and not at all private enough. The gentleman deserved a bit of privacy and respect. Well, his remains did, anyway.

Evie stepped in front of Seth. “I’ll show you the way.” She waved her arm like a gracious hostess, but this was the oddest get-together she’d ever seen.

Seth stepped beside her, his hand on her lower back. “You okay?” he whispered in her ear.

Evie nodded, grateful that he cared enough to think of her in this crazy moment when his carefully prepared sermon had been derailed. “You know I was kidding when I told you to knock ’em dead, right?” she said out of the corner of her mouth.

He pinched her side, and she clamped her lips on her squeal. “Tease,” he called her.

She was too busy trying not to laugh to respond.

“You gonna finish your preachin’?” Mr. Green called out. He was a no-nonsense kind of man who wore an Army ball hat right to the doors of the building and took it off the moment he stepped inside. It was sitting on the bench next to him.

Evie shooed Seth toward the front of the room. “Go. You haven’t even gotten to the best part yet.”

He shook his head. “This is crazy.”

She lifted a shoulder. “Life is crazy—why should death be any different?”

He gave her an appraising look. “That’s profound and funny.”

“If you use it in a sermon, you