“You need to recover first!” Madelaine scolded, and when she heard his soft chuckle, she turned her head to look at him. “What’s so funny?”
“Gangsters won’t wait for me to get better just so I can take my time before I come and arrest them,” he said with a smile. Madelaine felt his hand on her arm as he drew gentle circles on it. She wondered if he was aware he was doing it. “I’ll have to go after them, regardless of how I feel. After today, we might even have lost our opportunity to catch them for good.They might disappear again for a while. They’ve done it many times before.”
Madelaine intertwined her fingers with his. “Do you mind if I pray for us?” she asked, hesitantly looking up at him.
“Do you think He’s listening to me?” he asked ruefully. “I have turned my back on Him for many years. I have denied Him, scolded Him, completely forsaken Him…”
“He has not forsaken you!” Madelaine said firmly. “He is good, Luke. God is good, and He knows of your pain, of your grief, and your anger. Pour it into Him, so He can carry your burden for you. He is just waiting for you to come back to Him, so He can fill you with His light and with His love again. Please give him a chance.”
The warmth in his eyes took her breath away. “Will you allow me to pray with you?”
“Please do,” he whispered. Their faces were so close their noses were almost touching, and for a split second, Madelaine forgot what she was about to do.
Holding his hand with both of hers beneath the blankets, she smiled at him.
“Thank you,” she said, then she closed her eyes and lowered her head.
“Heavenly Father,” she began. “Thank You for keeping us safe in this perilous time. Thank You for filling my heart with gratitude for my amazing husband, who protects us, looks after us, and even fights for us, keeping us safe, cherished, and blessed in Your grace. Please continue to shine Your light on him, protect him, give him wisdom and strength, so he might learn to love You again, as we love him. I thank You for bringing him into my life. Amen.”
When Madelaine opened her eyes to look at Luke, she didn’t expect to see what she saw.
Luke’s eyes were a little moist, and the expression on his face was one of great hope. Searching her face, he swallowed hard. “Love?” he asked in a hoarse whisper.
Madelaine blushed. She thought about what she’d just said, but then she smiled at him. What was the point in denying it?
“Love,” she confirmed.
His gaze fell to her lips, and he slowly tilted his head to one side.
“You loveme?” he asked, breathless. His voice sounded slightly different than before, and it made her heart race wildly. She couldn’t think straight, but goosebumps spread on her skin,and tingles crawled down her spine when she felt his breath on her lips. She could only nod.
“I love you, too,” he said breathlessly. “Very much.”
Luke closed the distance between them, pulling her closer to him. He gently pressed his lips against hers. He didn’t force or push her, just stayed there, slowly deepening the pressure, until Madelaine leaned fully into him and her mind went blank.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Early next morning
Luke woke up in an uncomfortable position, sitting upright on a cold floor in a freezing dingy room, although he didn’t feel all that chilly. Every bone in his body ached, and he seemed to have numerous parts on his body that felt bruised and battered. As he tried to blink the last remnants of sleep away, his memory came to the forefront, and he recalled the utter mayhem from the day before and where he was.
Madelaine was still snuggled up very close to him, providing a lot of warmth underneath the blankets. She stirred when he moved, and when she lifted her head to look at him, she smiled the sweetest smile. His heart felt full.
“Good morning,” she said sleepily, barely moving just yet. “How are you feeling?”
“Good morning, sweetheart,” he replied, kissing her forehead. “I’m okay, but I think we need to get up to see what the situation is out there.”
She nodded, stretching her arms out into the cold outside of their cocoon, and gasped at the chill. “Whoa! That’ll wake you up!” She peered into the bucket, where Luke could see only a single candle was still burning, and that flame was about todie, too. Madelaine got to her feet, rubbing her hands and arms, hopping on the spot to get her blood going.
Luke did the same, albeit a little slower, because he wanted to see if he was seriously hurt anywhere beyond the aches.
“We need to find Caleb and Timothy,” he said as they both busied themselves with shaking out and folding up the blankets to put them back where they’d found them.
“I want to find Mary and the children,” Madelaine added. “Please, God! Please protect them, keep them safe and warm until I can get there.”
“Timothy told me that they have a safe hiding spot away from their house, just in case something like this happened,” Luke told her, and Madelaine nodded.
“Yes, but I still worry,” she said, a little sheepishly.
