Target on the Mountain by Elizabeth Goddard (the chimp paradox .txt) 📕

He was so excited about becoming a father. He went to the kitchen and drew her back against him, his hands splaying across her midsection. Their child. He was so happy. There was a time when he couldn’t imagine ever being this happy.

“How’s the little one today?” he asked and kissed her neck.

She covered his hands with hers. “Active. I think she’s ready to come out.” He and Rachel teased each other about whether they were having a girl or a boy. She insisted a girl, while he felt obligated to say a boy. Truthfully, he didn’t care. He was just so happy to be having a child with her.

That time over a year ago had faded into a memory now. The pain and fear they’d both experienced were all but gone. Liam was safe. Deacon had recovered from his injuries, and thanks to Michelle, they had the buyer for the sarin gas in custody and Temple and his men had gone away for a very long time.

Thanks to God, he and Rachel had made good on the second chance God gave them.

“How’s the ranch coming along?” she asked as she put the eggs on to cook.

He loved watching her. She was so beautiful. At times, he still couldn’t believe she was his bride.

Since Liam’s last mission, he, too, had left the CIA. He and Alex had decided to use the property Brian left Rachel to buy some cattle to run there, as well as keep up the horse ranch.

So far, it had been a learning experience for both him and Liam, but Alex loved it and he found himself looking forward to each new day...with her.

Rachel caught him watching her and immediately ran a hand through her hair. “I must look like a mess.”

He shook his head and planted a kiss on her lips. She had no idea how lovely she was to him. “You’ve never looked prettier.” He gathered her close. “I love you, Rachel. I love you so much. I still can’t believe I’m blessed enough to have this life with you.”

Tears filled her eyes. She cried a lot lately. Hormones. “I’m the blessed one. I thought I’d lost you for good. I’m so glad God brought us together again.”

“Me, too,” he whispered, and then kissed her gently and held her close. He’d forever be grateful to God for bringing them back into each other’s lives. He thought he’d lost this part of his life for good. But God with His infinite perfect timing had chosen the right moment for them, and he’d spend the rest of his life trying to be worthy of this wonderful life he had.

Keep reading for an excerpt from Hidden Amish Secrets by Debby Giusti.

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Hidden Amish Secrets

by Debby Giusti

ONE

Thunder rumbling overhead was as troubling as the guilt that still weighed heavily on Julianne Graber’s heart even after five years. Losing her father and brother in one horrific night had been hard to accept. Having it ruled a murder-suicide made their passing even more tragic. The bishop’s callous comment about Gott’s will had been the final blow. She had vowed never to return to her Amish home, yet here she was driving back to Mountain Loft, Georgia, on a stormy night that matched her mood.

The rain intensified, and wisps of fog impeded visibility. She lowered the headlights on her small Honda, activated the windshield wipers and checked the GPS on her smartphone. Her estimated time of arrival was close to midnight. She groaned and chastised herself, yet again, for leaving Dahlonega so late in the day.

Her upset increased as she glanced at the notice from the county authorities that was lying on the passenger seat. After reading the letter too many times, she could recite the words by heart.

Due to a rise in vagrancy and vandalism, buildings left unoccupied for more than five years will be considered abandoned unless efforts are made to either occupy or sell the property.

She wouldn’t let conniving county bureaucrats lay claim to the farm, two-story house and outbuildings she had inherited from her father. Even if she didn’t want to live there herself.

Over the last five years, she had learned to manage her grief and was better able to handle the memories of the hateful crime that had claimed her father’s and brother’s lives. Aunt Mary, her father’s sister, had been her lifeline back to reality for the first two years. Eventually, needing to test her wings like a small bird leaving the nest, Julie had abandoned her Amish faith, moved to a quaint college town in the North Georgia mountains and worked in a gift shop on the square in Dahlonega for the past three years. If not for the letter, she would be in her apartment getting ready for bed instead of navigating the twisting mountain road.

A curve appeared ahead. Easing down on the brake pedal, she hugged the shoulder as an approaching delivery truck in the opposite lane swerved around the bend. Frustrated by the aggressive driver, she laid on the horn, hoping to remind the trucker that speeding on the treacherous mountain road was anything but wise.

A rockslide had stopped traffic earlier and delayed her for more than two hours. She didn’t want her arrival to be pushed back even later. Not that anyone expected her. The only welcome would come from an empty farmhouse and a row of graves on the hillside. Her father and brother were buried there, along with her mother, who had died a year earlier.

The road wound higher up the mountain and eventually leveled into a plateau. A sign appeared on the left-hand side of the road:

Welcome to Mountain Loft, Established in 1840 by miners seeking their fortune in the Georgia Gold Rush.

She checked her speed and drove through