Sabrina (Big Sky Dreams 2) (2 page)

"But I might," Sabrina argued, a bit defiantly. "You don't even know me."

"That's true," Danny agreed. "You might choose to take advantage, but we're still not worried about it. We hope you'll accept this

11 chance to change your life. We also hope you'll want the life we have in Jesus Christ."

Sabrina shivered again. Her heart yearned to reach for what he was offering, but the fear that they did not know enough about her life still loomed large in her mind.

"Why don't we do this," Danny suggested. "Why don't you spend the weekend with us? Give us a try. If you want to leave, I'll walk you back on Monday."

"Or at anytime you feel it's not what you want," Callie added. Sabrina would wonder for hours what came over her, but she heard herself agreeing.

"You can sleep in here," Callie said later, taking Sabrina to a bedroom at the end of the upstairs hallway and lighting a lantern for her. Sabrina saw that it was neat and small with two narrow beds.

"But before you settle in," Callie continued, "I want to show you something."

Sabrina followed the other woman back down the hall to another bedroom.

"This is Danny's and my bedroom." Callie lit a lantern in here as well. "Danny will be back after he checks in at the sheriff's office, and he'll come here to this room. He won't try to get into your room. You might hear him in the hall, but he won't bother you."

"Has he ever cheated on you?" Sabrina asked quietly, taking in the neat room with one wide bed.

"No, never."

"How can you be certain?"

"In order to cheat on your mate, you have to be a liar. Danny can't even lie if he's teasing me about something. It's not who he is."

Her words gave Sabrina pause. She stared at Callie, who looked right back.

"It is just who some men are," Sabrina finally concluded.

12 "You make it sound as if they have no choice."

"I don't know if they do."

"All men who cheat have choices," Callie said firmly but without force. "Never forget that. And I didn't mean to make it sound as if Danny doesn't have temptations and never has to work on those. But he chooses to come home to me."

"You're a lucky woman," Sabrina said, and was surprised when Callie laughed.

"At the risk of making you think I'm going to disagree with everything you say, luck has nothing to do with it."

It struck Sabrina suddenly that this woman was remarkably comfortable with her, even knowing what she was. She was not used to that. Prostitutes were comfortable with other prostitutes, but this-Callie Barshaw, a police officer's wife-was not what she was accustomed to.

"You look tired, Bri," Callie said next, not sure if she was seeing strain or fatigue in Sabrina's young eyes. "Feel free to turn in anytime. I'm going to."

Sabrina nodded and turned to head down the hall. Callie didn't watch her, not feeling it was her job to see that she stayed. If she was there in the morning, so be it.

"How did you sleep?" Danny asked when Sabrina entered the kitchen on Saturday morning. He and Callie had eaten two hours earlier, but he didn't mention this.

"Fine," Sabrina said, still surprised to be there.

"Did it take a while to get to sleep?" Callie asked as she put a cup of coffee in front of the other woman.

"Yes. How did you know that?"

"Your hours are different than ours," Callie said, her voice matter of fact. Sabrina stared at her.

"What's the matter?" Danny asked, although he thought he knew.

13 "Where did you people come from?" Sabrina asked, her mouth hanging open a bit.

Both Danny and Callie laughed, but then Danny surprised Sabrina and turned to his wife. "Do you want to tell her?"

"Or you can," she said, and Danny knew she wanted him to do the honors this time.

"What am I missing?" Sabrina asked.

"We're just deciding who's going to tell you our story."

Sabrina didn't realize it, but she leaned a little closer to Danny. Seeing it, he began.

"My father was a police officer, and I grew up with strangers in the kitchen. Some were men in hard times and drinking too much. Some were printitutes. At other times entire families would come and live with us until they got on their feet.

"One day my father brought home a young prostitute, only 16 years old. She was both frightened and defiant, but the one thing about her that stuck out was her fascination with what my parents told her about Jesus Christ. She hadn't heard any of what they were saying before, and in time all defiance melted away and she turned her life over to God.

"She was a different person after that. She lived with us for a while but eventually found work in a mill and lived with friends of ours." Danny couldn't stop the smile that stretched his mouth before adding, "When she turned 18, I married her."

Sabrina's eyes swung to Callie, who smiled gently at her. The younger woman could only stare. Nothing about Callie Barshaw spoke of her former life. To Sabrina's eyes, she didn't look capable of such sins, but there was no reason for Danny to lie about this.

"Why were you?" Sabrina eventually found her voice and asked.

"I was born in a brothel. I'd never known any other life. My own mother died when I was only 10, but by then I had about 15 mothers. When my figure developed, I joined that life. I had been at it for more than two years when Danny's father found me."

14 "I tried to stop for a while:' Sabrina admitted after a few moments of silence, wanting to talk about it with this woman. "I got work at a hotel in the kitchen and serving tables. But the owner kept at me. I told him no, but he wouldn't leave me alone. He touched me or backed me into a corner every day we worked together, and when his wife found out, she fired me. I gave up then and went back. I just assumed it was my destiny."

"That's not true. You have a choice, Bri. We're giving you a choice."

This had come from Danny, and Sabrina now stared at him. For some reason, his marrying a former prostitute gave her more hope than she had ever dreamed of. Not that she was looking to marry, but what she was seeing in Danny and Callie had never occurred to her. Before today she would not have believed that a woman could walk so completely away from prostitution that a stranger meeting her would never know.

"You don't have to decide right now," Callie said, thinking she was about to get up and leave, but Callie had read Sabrina's look wrong. The younger woman's look was not a stubborn one but one of concentration. She didn't love her life, but it did make her independent, something she enjoyed.

"What happens now?" Sabrina asked, realizing she had no idea.

"If you want to continue to discuss Scripture, we can," Callie informed her. "If not, Danny has to work for a little while this morning, and I have baking to do."

Sabrina blinked. Once again, this couple had managed to surprise her. Prior to meeting them she would have said she was past surprising, but it just continued to happen.

"Do you have more questions?" Danny asked with no sign of impatience.

It was on the tip of Sabrina's tongue to ask if these people really believed God cared about what she did, but instead she asked Callie, "What will you be baking today?"

"I'll probably start with bread and then move on from there,"

15 Callie answered, as though they'd known each other for years. "Do you want to help?"

Sabrina managed a nod. Danny pushed to his feet, told them to enjoy themselves, kissed Callie goodbye, and went on his way. Sabrina wasn't given time to comment or ask questions about what would happen next. Callie asked her to start working on a muffin recipe, and because it had been years since she'd made muffins, she kept her mouth shut and forced herself to concentrate.

Sabrina was strongly tempted to pinch herself. She had no idea where Saturday had gone. The hours had flown by. Baking, seeing visitors, washing dishes, and preparing meals had left little time for talking about God. And now it was Sunday morning and Sabrina found herself in a church, a man speaking up front, Callie to her right, and Danny on Callie's other side.

Sabrina tried to listen to what the man was saying, but it wasn't working. Her eyes kept sweeping the room, afraid she would see someone who recognized her. A word floated to her here and there, but she wasn't even watching the man up front. Things all over the room distracted her, and when she wasn't watching the other people in the room, she kept glancing down at Callie's open Bible.

She was a little slow to stand up when it was time to sing a closing hymn, but this time she heard some of the words that spoke of God's holiness and gracious love. Sabrina didn't try to sing but noticed that Callie's voice was not perfect. It dipped in places and wobbled a bit, but no one seemed to mind.

Not until she was back at the Barshaws' buggy did she realize the mistake she'd made. By not listening to the sermon, she didn't even have questions to ask Danny and Callie. Not that her hosts seemed to notice. They talked about general topics on the way home and never once asked her what she thought of the sermon.

16

"I have to head home," Sabrina said on Sunday afternoon. Dinner was over, and she stood in the living room to tell her host and hostess.

"Will you be returning?" Danny wanted to know.

"Do you want me to?"

"Yes, we do," Danny answered.

"Why do you want to go back?" Callie asked.

"I need some things from my place."

"Why don't we take you?" the older woman suggested. "We can help you carry whatever you need."

Sabrina hesitated but managed to ask, "Have you forgotten where I live?"

"Not at all," Callie said. "We're not worried about it, so you shouldn't be either."

"And if you get there and decide you don't wish to return with us," Danny put in, "no one will force you."

Sabrina agreed, although if pressed she could not have said why. The three left a short time later.

17

"MOVING OUT, RAVEN?" a woman asked when she found Sabrina's door open and that young woman packing a bag.

Sabrina looked up to find her landlady, a woman she knew only as Lil. She was not a madam, but neither was she above directing men to the women who lived in the building. She expected the rather high rent payment on time, but if a woman wanted to move, Sabrina had never seen Lil interfere.

"For a few days," Sabrina answered.

Lil's brows rose with admiration. "Good for you. I hope it pays well."

Sabrina said nothing-unsure how to answer-and was glad when Lil walked away. She hoped what she was doing would pay well too but knew her hopes had nothing to do with money.

"Hello." Callie's voice could be heard in the hallway, passing the woman who owned the building.

"I might have a room opening," Lil began, but stopped. Sabrina was staring at the door when Callie entered.

"I thought you might want help," Callie offered.

"Did she say something to you?"

18 "She started to, but I didn't encourage it."

Sabrina never thought about Callie being able to hold her own in such a place, but she looked calm and confident.

"Let me tell you something," Callie began, keeping her voice low for privacy. "I was going to wait in the buggy with Danny, and then I realized there's something you don't know. You can pack it all today, Bri. You can make a complete move right now."

Sabrina shook her head ever so slightly, and Callie stopped. "Okay," Callie agreed. "What can I help you carry?"

"Just that bag," Sabrina said as she pointed, realizing how little of her clothing would fit into the Barshaws' world.

"All set?" Callie asked, and Sabrina nodded. The two made their way quietly to the buggy. The ride back was quiet as well. However, it didn't last. Sabrina waited only until they were back at the house to open her mouth.

"What if you're wrong?" the young prostitute asked. "What if God doesn't want me? You can't really speak for Him. No one can."

"We aren't speaking for Him," Danny explained, "He speaks for Himself in His Word, and that's why we believe He Wants you."

"Where does it say in your Bible that God wants Sabrina Matthews?"

Danny went to the kitchen and brought the Bible out. He sat down and turned to the New Testament and began to read. "This is what Romans 5:8 says: 'But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Danny stopped and looked at her. "Did you hear yourself in there?"

Sabrina stared at him, not wanting to answer.

"Us, we, and us," Danny answered for her. "God's love toward
us,
while
we
were sinners, Christ died for
us.
I can take you to other verses that talk about the fact that He died for all of us in the world. That's why I know that you and I both fit into the
we
and
us."

19 "You saw where I live," Sabrina said quietly. "I know you mean well, but I don't know how it can be for everyone."