A Leap of Faith
Warning, descriptions of the molestation of a minor are in this chapter for the purpose of pointing out that it occurs far too often in reality. This is a crime and if anyone suspects it is occurring, report it. For those who don’t wish to read that part, an alert appears prior to the paragraph(s), and also when it ends.
Tim awoke to Chris calling his name, “Tim. Time to get up! Mom has breakfast ready.” Tim opened his bloodshot eyes. He hadn’t slept well last night, as he worried he may be making a terrible mistake. Then, there were the nightmares that had awakened him several times. He hoped none of them would become a reality. Chris snapped him back to cold reality, “Tim, you can still change your mind. You don’t have to do this!” Tim sat up and got out of bed. He looked at Chris and smiled, “You’re the best friend I’ve ever had, Chris. Thank you, but I have to do this. I know you’ll be there for me when I need you.” Chris said, “I hope so, but you know I can’t promise that. I may not be able to be there in that moment when you need me the most. I’m worried about you, Tim. I wish you’d change your mind.” Tim smiled weakly, “I have to do this, Chris. I’m hoping things will go ok with Reverend Smith.” Chris said, “And if they don’t?” Tim shrugged, “Then at least I tried. Pray that I’m right.” Chris nodded soberly.
As they were finishing breakfast, Mrs. Summers said, “You two are unusually quiet this morning. Is something wrong?” Chris said, “We were discussing a decision Tim has made and that I don’t completely agree with, but respect. We’d rather not discuss it now, mom, if you don’t mind. It’s personal.” Mrs. Summers said, “Well, ok, but you know either of you can talk to us about anything, so if you change your mind, we’re here for you.”
On the way to school, Tim was unusually silent. Mrs. Summers said, “Tim, whatever is bothering you must be weighing heavily on your mind. I know Chris said it’s personal, but if I can lighten the burden in any way, please let me know.” Tim nodded, “I know, Mrs. Summers. You, Mr. Summers and Chris have been so kind to me these past weeks. I really appreciate it.” Mrs. Summers said, “We’re glad to be here for you, Tim.” As she dropped him off, Tim gave her a longer and tighter hug than usual. As he headed down the street, she watched him, looking very concerned.
During lunch, Chris said to Jeremy, “I tried one last time to convince Tim not to do this when I woke him up this morning.” Jeremy said, “He told you he has to do it.” Chris nodded. Jeremy said, “He’s pretty stubborn when he sets his mind to something. You’ve been a really good friend to him, Chris. I’m proud of you and I’m glad you chose to help him. Whatever happens, I know you did your best for him.” Chris said, “I’m really worried he’s going to get hurt, much worse than he did before, and he’ll never be the same person again.” Jeremy wiped the tear from Chris’ eye and said, “We can only try to be there for him when he needs us, but there’s never a guarantee. He made his choice, and we have to respect it.”
After school, Tim climbed into Mrs. Summers car and gave her a half smile. She asked, “How was school?” Tim replied, “It was ok.” She said, “Tim, I’m worried about you. Something is going on and neither you nor Chris will tell me. I’m sure it’s something very important though. I wish you would tell me. You can trust me and Cam, Tim.” Tim said, “I know I can trust you, but it’s something that I have to do, and if I tell you, you’re just going to try and talk me out of it. It’s better if you don’t know.” Mrs. Summers heart sank. It was something big and he wouldn’t tell her. She asked, “You’re not planning on doing something illegal, are you?” Tim smiled slightly and said, “No. It’s nothing illegal.” Mrs. Summers decided to let it go for now. Tim assured her it wasn’t illegal, so that was a little comfort, for now.
As they were finishing dinner, Mr. Summers asked, “Do you boys want to watch the game later?” Chris said, “We can’t, dad. We have something planned.” Mr. Summers said, “Oh, ok.” Mrs. Summers asked, “Does this something have anything to do with your big secret, Chris?” Mr. Summers asked, “What’s the big secret?” Chris said, “Mom! I told you this morning, it’s personal!” Mrs. Summers said, “Look, I know it’s nothing illegal but from the way you and Tim have been acting, I know it’s big, and it’s important. You have me worried about you, and by worried, I mean terrified.” Tim said, “Mr. and Mrs. Summers, what I have to do is important to me. I appreciate all that you’ve done for me and some day I’ll try to pay it back in some way. Please let me do this. You’ll find out what it is very soon, I’m sure.” Mr. Summers said, “Tim, it almost sounds like you’re leaving us.” Mr. and Mrs. Summers both took notice that Chris closed his eyes and lowered his head. They looked at each other in alarm. Mrs. Summers asked, “Tim, are you leaving? Where would you go?” Tim got up. Tears were running down his cheeks, “Please! Don’t stop me!” Mr. and Mrs. Summers rushed to embrace Tim. Mr. Summers said, “Tim, this must be something very important to you. We won’t stop you. Just know that you’re always welcome here. We wish you the best in whatever it is that you are planning on doing.” Chris was soon joining them with tears of his own flowing down his cheeks.
As they prepared to leave, Tim said, “I didn’t take my stuff out of the closet or dresser. Would you do that for me if it becomes necessary, Chris?” Chris grabbed Tim in a hug and said, “Don’t say that Tim. The only reason I’m coming with to drop you off is that I trust in your belief that you’ll be ok.” Tim squeezed Chris tightly and said, “I’m hoping I’m right. I guess I’ll find out pretty soon, hah.” It was a nervous laugh, one that sent a chill up Chris’ spine, knowing that Tim was as unsure of this as he was.
Travis sat at the dinner table barely tasting his food. His mom asked, “Travis, are you feeling alright? You’ve barely eaten a thing.” Travis said, “I’m not very hungry. Would you be able to take me over to the church a little later. I forgot to bring my choir robe home to wash it.” Mrs. Sterling said, “Why don’t I just pick it up for you tomorrow when I go grocery shopping.” Travis said, “Mom, it’s really important that I get it tonight. I’d ride my bike over but I’d rather if you came with me.” Mrs. Sterling thought Travis was acting a little strange and was curious as to why he wanted her to come along, “Now why would you need me to come with?” Travis said the only thing that would get her to do it, “Mom, Reverend Smith acted really strange the last time I was in his office alone. I was a little freaked out. Please.” Mrs. Sterling said, “I’m sure Reverend Smith wouldn’t do anything to harm you, Travis, but I guess I could.” Travis got up and surprised Mrs. Sterling by hugging her, an affection he rarely exhibited now that he was a teenager. After helping with the dishes, Travis went to his room and made another phone call.
A very worried Amanda and Cameron Summers watched as Chris and Tim climbed into Jeremy’s car. Cameron squeezed his wife’s shoulder for comfort as both were too choked up to say anything. They knew something was going on and all they could do was pray that everything would turn out fine.
Jeremy stopped a block away from the church and as Tim started getting out, Jeremy said, “I hope you know what you’re getting yourself into. We’re here for you when you need us.” Tim nodded, then hugged Chris before getting out of the car. He walked around to the driver’s side and leaned in the window to give Jeremy a hug, then said, “Well, here goes. Wish me luck.” Chris quickly said, “Tim, you can still change your mind.” Tim looked to Chris and then turned and began walking toward the church.
ALERT!
Reverend Smith was sitting at his desk in his office. He was wondering if Tim had changed his mind. He hoped not since he had made some plans for them. He was growing concerned when he heard the large front doors to the church open and then close. Reverend Smith smiled to himself as he sat in his chair and waited. Moments later, there was a knock at his door. Reverend Smith said, “Come in.” The door opened and Tim was standing there. Reverend Smith said, “Please, come in.” Tim entered silently and when the door closed, he turned and reached for the door lock. Reverend Smith heard it clicking and thought Tim had locked it. He thought, no matter, he’d unlock it when their guest arrived. Reverend Smith smiled at Tim and said, “Please, have a seat. I’m glad you chose to come. We’ll help you to get back into your father’s good graces and have a bit of fun in the process. I’m sure you’ll come to like it here. Do you have any questions for me before we get started?” Tim removed his hoody and hung it over the back of the chair before sitting, and then said, “Yes. Reverend Smith, where will I be sleeping?” The Reverend smiled and said, “You’ll be sleeping with me in my quarters next door.” Tim shifted uncomfortably in his chair as he asked, “Sleeping with you? You mean in separate rooms, right?” Reverend Smith said, “There’s only one bedroom, Tim.” Reverend Smith then got up from his desk and walked around behind Tim and began rubbing his shoulders, “Relax Tim. You’ll be spending a lot of time with me. We’ll get to know each other very well. If you’re a really good boy, we’ll get you back in your father’s graces very quickly. In order to be a good boy, you’ll have to learn discipline. You’ll learn to obey me, my every order. You want to be a good boy, don’t you, Tim?” Tim answered nervously, “Yes, Reverend Smith, I want to be a good boy.” Reverend Smith then said, “Stand up, Tim, and step behind the chair.” Tim stood up and glanced into the sneering face of Reverend Smith before turning to face the back of the chair with his back to him. Reverend Smith reached around and began unbuttoning Tim’s shirt. Tim started, “Um, Reverend Smith, I…” Reverend Smith said, “You won’t be needing your shirt for a while, Tim.” The Reverend slid Tim’s shirt off his shoulders and dropped it onto the chair in front of Tim. Tim’s eyes darted to his hoody pocket and then looked back forward. Reverend Smith then reached around in front of Tim and began opening his jeans, saying, “You won’t be needing these for a while, either. The Reverend’s hand began massaging him through his briefs while slowly lowering his jeans. As his jeans dropped around his ankles, the Reverend began grinding himself against Tim, “Remember when we did this before, Tim? You told me you felt uncomfortable but then you showed me how much you really liked it.” Tim’s skin was crawling as he recalled that day. He had sworn to never again allow that to happen, and now, here he was in the same situation. Suddenly, Reverend Smith backed away and stepped over to a cabinet, as he said, “Remove your shoes and your jeans, boy.” As Tim complied, he saw the reverend had his back to him. He quickly turned the pocket of his hoody inward to make sure it couldn’t be seen, then began taking off his shoes. The Reverend said, “Quickly boy! I have something else for you to wear this evening.” As he stepped out of his jeans and put them on the chair on top of his shirt, Tim turned to see the reverend carrying his choir robe over. The Reverend draped the choir robe over the back of the chair next to Tim and then reached around in front of Tim and began rubbing his crotch again as he ground his own against Tim’s butt. After a minute, Reverend Smith pushed Tim’s briefs to the floor and said, “Now, doesn’t that feel better? I’ve always wanted all the choir boys to have nothing beneath their robes, in all their glory. The Reverend’s hand was now on his bare flesh and was grinding against him. Tim said, “Reverend Smith, this doesn’t feel comfortable for me.” Reverend Smith said, “Oh, I’m sorry. You’re right. My slacks must be chafing those beautiful, creamy white buns. Let me fix that.” Tim heard the zipper of Reverend Smith’s slacks and then the rustle of his belt opening, and the somewhat quiet flopping of clothes hitting the floor. Tim was getting very nervous now. Hands reached in front of him once more and began caressing his front from his chest down to his thighs while a briefs-clad crotch ground against his bare buns. Reverend Smith asked, “Does that feel better or are these chafing those sensitive buns too?” Tim said, “Yes. I mean no, Reverend Smith. There’s no need to remove them!” Reverend Smith grinned as he tongued Tim’s ear greedily. Tim wanted to pull away from him and run for it, but knew he couldn’t, at least not yet. There was still time.
PAUSE IN ALERT!
Travis and his mom were at the bottom of the steps to the church when they heard a voice, “Mrs. Sterling and Travis, what a pleasure. Where’s Tim?” Mrs. Sterling said, “Mrs. Houston! I’m surprised to see you here at this hour. Why would you expect Tim to be with us?” Mrs. Houston looked at Travis. Travis quickly said, “He’s inside. We should go in.” Mrs. Sterling asked, “What’s going on?”, as they began climbing the stairs. As they were halfway up, a male voice asked, “May I help you ladies? I believe the church is closed for the night.” The three turned to see a man walking toward them. Mrs. Houston asked, “And who might you be, sir?” The man smiled and said, “I’m the Reverend Caldwell from the sister church across town. I have a meeting with Reverend Smith this evening. Is there something I can help you with, ladies?” Mrs. Sterling said, “Well, my son wanted to get his choir robe so he could launder it before Sunday’s services.” Reverend Caldwell said, “I can probably bring that out to you. I’m sure Reverend Smith knows where it is.” Travis said, “No, we have to go inside. Tim’s in there!” Reverend Caldwell suddenly looked panicked, “I’m sure you must be mistaken, son. The church is closed for the night and as I’ve said, I have a meeting with Reverend Smith. I cannot let you inside.” Mrs. Houston wasn’t having it, “Reverend Caldwell! With all due respect, what say do you have about who goes in and out of THIS church?” Suddenly, Reverend Caldwell rushed past them up the steps toward the church doors. The three looked on, shocked at his move to rush ahead of them. As he reached the top of the steps and went toward the door, a figure stepped around the corner in front of him, followed by another. The two men positioned themselves between Reverend Caldwell and the doors. They were young, apparently in their late teens or early twenties. The one asked him, “Where are you going in such a hurry?” The man said, “Get out of my way, boys! I have a meeting to attend.” Then Reverend Caldwell heard Travis’ voice behind him, “Jeremy! Chris! I knew you’d be here!” Mrs. Sterling asked, “What’s going on here?” Jeremy looked at the Reverend Caldwell and asked, “Is this the meeting you are talking about?” Jeremy pulled out his phone which was on, and voices could be heard talking. Mrs. Houston said, “That’s my son’s voice. What’s going on in there. Just then, Amanda and Cameron Summers showed up. Reverend Caldwell said, “I don’t know anything about that. It was supposed to just be a meeting between Reverend Smith and myself. Chris said to his parents, “You followed us?” Mr. Summers said, “You know your mother.” Jeremy then said, “Mr. Summers, could you and Mrs. Summers wait out here with the good Reverend Caldwell as I’m sure, since he has nothing to do with what is going on inside, he’ll willingly hang out with you and cause no trouble. Hearing what was happening on the phone, Mr. Summers said, “I almost hope he tries. You boys better hurry! Tim’s in danger!” Chris said, “Thanks, dad. Maybe Mrs. Houston and Mrs. Sterling should wait out here too.” Mrs. Houston said, “Like hell! My son’s in there and he’s in trouble!” Mrs. Sterling said, “I’m coming too.” Jeremy said, “If you’re coming with, you need to stay quiet. We need to surprise him.” They entered the church, and Travis led them toward Reverend Smith’s office.
ALERT!
The Choir robe was lifted onto Tim’s shoulders as the hand was stroking him and the hardness was sliding between his bare cheeks. He wondered what was keeping them. Reverend Smith stepped back, allowing the robe to drop back over Tim’s nakedness. The airflow of the robe dropping down cooling the slick wetness of the precum between his butt cheeks. He glanced back to see as Reverend Smith finished rolling a condom on. Tim suddenly decided to make a dash for it, but Reverend Smith grabbed his arm and said, “You’re not going anywhere, boy. Remember, you locked the door, and I’d have caught you before you got it unlocked. Tim knew he was in trouble. They hadn’t come. Something must have gone wrong with the phone connection. “Please! Reverend Smith don’t do this!”, Tim pleaded as the robe was pushed back up and the hardness, now slicked up with lube, began sliding between his cheeks once more. Reverend Smith said, “Don’t worry, boy. It will hurt at first and then it will feel wonderful.” They heard the doors to the church open and close. Reverend Smith said, “That would be our guest. He’ll be here as soon as he’s done locking up the church doors. Tim was now in a panic. Even if his friends did come, they wouldn’t be able to get in the locked doors. Tim struggled to no avail. He’d have two people molesting him, taking his virginity and probably worse. He began sobbing, “Please no. Don’t do this. Please!”
Just as Reverend Smith was pressing himself to Tim’s anus, the door to the office suddenly sprung open, surprising Reverend Smith, “I thought you locked it! Who are you?”, the reverend asked in confusion as it wasn’t who he had expected. Mrs. Sterling screamed in shock, “Reverend Smith!” Mrs. Houston and Travis rushed to Tim’s side while Jeremy and Chris grabbed Reverend Smith. Reverend Smith said, “Let go of me you scoundrels!” Mrs. Sterling approached them, looked down at Reverend Smith’s wilting, condom-sheathed cock and then slapped him hard across the face, “You are disgusting. How could you call yourself reverend?” She then turned away from him, not wanting to look at his nakedness. Mrs. Houston was consoling her son. Fortunately. When Reverend Smith turned toward the door, the Choir robe dropped back down, concealing Tim’s nakedness. Mrs. Houston asked, “Did he hurt you, Tim? I’m so sorry.” Tim said, “No, thanks to you. A minute later and it might have been different.” Jeremy said, “Well, someone else held us up a couple of minutes. Said he had a meeting with the good Reverend Smith here.” Chris added, “My dad’s holding him outside.” Tim said, “Your dad’s here?” Chris smiled, “And mom. They must have followed us.” Tim grinned and then turned to Travis, “You called my mom? Thanks.” Mrs. Houston said, “Yes, he did, but he didn’t tell me about this. It was supposed to be you and him practicing a duet. He lied.” She smiled and said, “You have a very good friend in Travis, Tim. Who are these other gentlemen?” She looked toward Jeremy and Chris who were holding Reverend Smith. Tim said, “They’re friends of mine too. They helped me out when father kicked me out. I owe them a lot.” Mrs. Houston said, “So do I. I hope to get to know them all better after this mess is over with.
END OF ALERT!
Two police officers entered the office. The one with the name Daniels on his uniform said, “We’ll take it from here, guys. Thanks. We’ll need statements, so don’t go anywhere. We got an idea of what was going on from the people outside. We’ll be taking the other guy in for questioning, but he states he was just here for a meeting.” Chris laughed and said, “When you hear the recording, I think you’ll have more questions for him.” Tim laughed for the first time that day. As the officers were cuffing Reverend Smith, a detective entered with a few others who began putting up police tape. Tim reached for his clothes, but the detective said, “Sorry sir, but you’re going to have to leave those. They’re evidence as is that robe you have on. I’ll have a jump suit brought down you can change into. Tim asked, “What about my phone?” The detective said, “Sorry.” Jeremy then asked, "Does that mean you’re taking my phone as well?” The detective said, "I’m afraid so. You’ll get a receipt for it so you can get it back.” Jeremy said, “Great.” Then he turned to Chris and said, “We should have used your phone.” They laughed.
They were eventually led out of the office and up to the main entrance where the others were assembled, with the exception of Reverend Caldwell. Tim joined them a few minutes later wearing a jumpsuit that could have fit three more of him inside. Chris said, “I really like your new wardrobe, Tim.” Even Mrs. Houston laughed. Chris and Jeremy approached Tim, smiled, and said, “You did it, Tim. We were so worried about you, but you were right, he was going to take advantage of you right away.” Mrs. Houston said, “Excuse me? You went there knowing he was going to do this to you?” Tim turned to his mom, and said, “Yes, mom. That’s why I quit the choir. He did things to me before this.” Mrs. Houston grabbed him in a hug as she began crying, “Oh my God, Tim! We didn’t know! Why didn’t you tell us?” Tim pulled back from his mom and looked her in the eye, “Would you have believed me? Even if you would have, would father have believed me over his friend, Reverend Smith?” Mrs. Houston recoiled at her son’s sudden anger. She thought about what he was saying and dropped her head down, “I don’t know. You’re right. He wouldn’t have believed you. I’m so sorry. I’ve been a bad mother.” Tim put his hand on his mom’s shoulder, “No, he’s just a bad father and you’re afraid of him, mom.” She grabbed him in a hug again and said, “I’m just glad you’re safe now. I’m so sorry you had to go through this.” Tim said, “It’s ok, mom. I already forgave you for the past and you’ve been trying. I’d still like to have a relationship with you.” She held on to him tightly and said, “I very much would like that, and I don’t care what your father thinks.”
They hadn’t realized Travis, and his mom were missing, but they suddenly returned, and Travis said, “I told them what Reverend Smith did to me and that I’m willing to testify in court if it becomes necessary.” Tim said, “Travis! I did this so that you wouldn’t have to testify.” Mrs. Sterling smiled with tears in her eyes. Travis said, “I know you did, Tim. That’s why I needed to grow some balls and come forward too.” Tim and Travis embraced, Mrs. Houston and Mrs. Sterling looked to each other smiling. One by one, the police took statements and when they finally got to Jeremy, he told them of the video call with Tim and Chris.
Jeremy’s perspective
I gave my statement, telling the officers that Tim wanted to talk with Chris and me. I set us up on a Zoom conference call while I was on a break at work. Tim began, “I already told you about my dad catching me experimenting with a kid from school and hinted at what Reverend Smith did that day. I’ve been too worried about everyone finding out about that and no one believing what I said about what Reverend Smith had done, including my father. I found out about Travis having a similar experience. Please don’t let him know I told you that. I always wondered if I was the only one. Now I knew I wasn’t. If Travis had also gone through that, how many other kids have or will? I can’t let this continue.” I had known if Reverend had done this to Tim, there had to be other victims. I asked him, “So, are you telling us you’re going to go to the police?” Tim said, “No, I already told you he’d lie and my father would back him up. Even if Travis came forward as well, they’d say we conspired against him.” Chris asked, “So, what are you saying, Tim? If you aren’t planning on going to the police, what are you going to do?” I was wondering the same thing when Tim described this plan of his. I thought it was insane when he first described it, “You already know last week after school I ran into Travis. While we were talking, Reverend Smith pulled up and told Travis he wanted to talk to me alone. That’s when Reverend Smith told me that if I came to stay with him, he’d put me back in God’s graces and my father would let me come back home. He told me he had already cleared it with my father.” I was floored, “Are you telling us you want to go stay with that so-called reverend, Tim?” Chris also said, “That’s the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard. Why would you want to endure weeks of being molested by that monster just so you can go home to that house again?” Then Tim told us what he wanted to do, “I don’t want to go back to living in that house with my father, and I don’t really want to go to live with that creep, Smith. That’s why I’m asking for your help. My plan is to tell Reverend Smith that I changed my mind and want to take him up on his offer. I’ll tell him I want to say goodbye to everyone first and that I can’t do it until after school on Friday. That way, you two can stand by for when he tries to molest me again. I’ll leave my phone open on a call with one of you so you can listen to what’s going on and record it. When he begins molesting me, you two come in and bust him.” I saw so many holes in his plan. I told him, “First off, what if he doesn’t try anything on that first night? We can’t be around twenty-four seven. Secondly, if we were to go in and bust him, he could claim it was a setup and that we lied about the whole thing. His lawyers would connect us to you, and it would give reasonable doubt to our story.” Chris told Tim, “He’s right, Tim. They’d turn the whole thing on us, and we’d be the ones in trouble.” Tim admitted he didn’t think of that, “Yeah, you’re probably right. We’ll need more witnesses, but I’m sure if I meet him Friday night, he won’t want to pass up the opportunity to try something with me.” I asked, “You’re sure about that?” Tim said, “I’m ninety percent sure.” Chris said, “Yeah, it’s that other ten percent I’m worried about. I don’t think this is a good idea.” Tim said, “I have to try. I can’t have future victims on my conscience. Maybe Travis could help and be another witness.” I laughed and told him, “That would be the same problem because they could connect Travis to you because Smith saw you with him and they could probably get some other witnesses that saw you together at the school.” Then Tim came up with the idea of bringing someone else, “What if Travis convinced my mom to come, saying we were going to do something with the choir? She always liked hearing me sing.” I had to admit, “At least that would eliminate your father from the equation, and she’d be a solid witness, but do you think Travis could convince her?” There was some hesitation there and Tim said, “I think he could, as long as she meant it when she said she wanted to stay in contact with me. She did buy me this phone.” Chris said, “I still don’t like your plan, Tim. There are too many things that could go wrong.” I had to agree with Chris, but Tim said, “I’m going to do it. If you won’t help me, I’ll have to rely on Travis and my mom.” At that point, I said, “Tim, I don’t think you should do this, but if your mind is made up and you go through with this, I’ll do everything I can to help you succeed. I’m just worried about you.” Chris said, “I don’t want you to do this, Tim, and I’m going to keep trying to convince you not to go through with it, but if you do, you can count on my help.” “So, that’s when the plan was hatched to catch a child molester, detective.” Detective Harris then said, “You guys took a big chance. All kinds of things could have gone wrong.” I said, “We couldn’t talk Tim out of it. Things almost did go wrong. We didn’t count on that other priest showing up. If he’d have gotten inside and locked the doors, who knows what would have happened to Tim.” Detective Harris laughed, “He’s sticking to his story about only having a meeting, but your recording blows that alibi apart. I think he’ll change his tune when he hears that. It’s a good thing you recorded it, and since the recording was agreed upon by both you and Tim Houston, it’s admissible in court. Thank you for your time, Mr. Davis.” I Smiled and said, “It was my pleasure, Detective Harris. I just hope I get my phone back soon.”
The police needed to secure the church, so we moved outside and sat on the steps and talked. They had called Tim back to be questioned some more and I was sitting with Chris and Travis. Travis’ mom was sitting beside him and Tim’s mom was beside Chris. Mr. and Mrs. Summers had already said goodbye and had gone back to their house. Mrs. Houston asked Chris, “Were those your parents who just left?” Chris said, “Yes ma’am. I was surprised to find out they had followed us.” She said, “Well, I wish I was half the parent either one of them is. They must be very proud of you, too.” Chris smiled and said, “Thank you Mrs. Houston. I’m sure I’ve been a handful for them growing up. I guess parenting isn’t easy.” She said, “No, it’s not, and there is a lot I wish I could have done better. This night has opened my eyes to all my failures in parenting.” I said, “You don’t learn as much from your successes as you do from your mistakes, Mrs. Houston.” She looked at me and smiled, “You’re Tim’s other hero tonight. Thank you so much.” I said, “This was your son’s idea. Chris and I tried to talk him out of it, but he didn’t want any future victims on his conscience. He’s the hero of the night, Mrs. Houston, we were just his sidekicks.”
Meanwhile, Mrs. Sterling asked Travis, “So, you lied to me about needing to wash your choir robe, and you lied to Mrs. Houston about a choir duet practice. Why did you need us here?” Travis said, “Tim was concerned that we could be accused of plotting a false accusation. At least he said that Jeremy had brought up that possibility, so we wanted to have other witnesses whose testimony wouldn’t be questioned. I had to find a way to convince you both to be here. Sorry I lied to you.” Mrs. Sterling gave her son a stern look and said, “Travis Sterling, wait until we get home, and your father learns that you lied to us! He’s going to be so proud of you.” She leaned over and gave him a kiss on his cheek.
Suddenly someone said, “You guys are really tough to track down you know! You could have said something!” Everyone looked to the person approaching them. Jeremy and Chris both stood up and Jeremy said, “Sorry, Elijah. We had a lot on our minds tonight.” Chris said, “You missed all the fun!” Mrs. Sterling asked Travis, “Who’s this guy?” Travis said, “He’s Elijah, Jeremy and Chris’ uh, friend.” The three hugged and Elijah asked, “What happened?” Jeremy gave him the short version of it as Mrs. Houston and Mrs. Sterling listened and learned more of what had been happening. Tim finally returned and they decided to call it a night. Tim asked Mrs. Sterling if Travis could stay the night with him and at first, she was hesitant, but after a nod from Mrs. Houston, she gave her ok. Mrs. Houston and Mrs. Sterling returned home alone, but proud of their sons. Jeremy, Chris, Tim, and Travis drove back home with Elijah following.
End of Chapter 58
