Saving Grace

Chapter 51

Joe's eyes widened as he saw the ring he had made tied to the ribbon. His heart lurched. He flipped through the book, Grace's familiar script almost jumping off the pages. He threw back the last of his drink before starting to read. He could hear her lilting voice as he read the words.

My darling Joe:

It seems as if an eternity has passed since I've seen your face, laughed with you, talked with you. Oh how I miss you. After your disappearance, we searched for months, years. We have been unable to find you. I pray that you have merely been taken from our time and returned to your own. The alternative would be too horrible to bear.

I do not remember if I ever thanked you adequately for what you did for my family and most especially, me. You were stalwart and kind. Hardworking and brave. You saved us too many times to count.

Sarah talks about you daily and about how you taught her to read and cypher. You believed in her. I am ever so thankful for the confidence you helped her find.

The same could be said about Levi. He was a changed man from who he was before the bear attack and after you left. He grew from a boy into a man in those few short months. He shouldered more as a child than most adults do.

In case you're wondering, I never found anyone who could measure up to the impressions you made on my heart. As such, I grew old alone, but not alone for I held your image in my heart every day, every moment hoping and praying that we could once again be together. Alas, it was not to be. Not in this lifetime.

Do not fret, my love. I have lived a full life that abounded in happiness in this home you built for us. I have loved the strength of it, the character, the beauty. This land ties us together.

Your friend, the indian brave, came to visit the summer after you disappeared. He was much saddened to hear of your departure. He was able to convey that the links between our time and yours had been severed. The magic had been unraveled as the final traveler returned home. I'm sure he meant you. He vowed to care for your 'widow' as he would one from his own tribe. I often found game hanging in the trees, a gift from one brother to another.

I pray you can find happiness in your own time. I pray you will be able to overcome the demons you face. You are an exceptional man. I will be forever blessed to have been able to know you. To be able to love you.

Always yours and with all the love that I possess,

Grace

Joe bit back a sob as the words etched themselves in his heart. She'd found happiness without me. How can I find it without her? She's everything. The sun rises and sets with her smile.

He turned the pages in her journal, tracing the words with his fingers as if trying to find a connection to Grace. He laughed as she told stories about Sarah and Levi. His heart ached as she described how each suitor would reject her when the learned of her scars. He soared with her as she once again reminded him of the purpose of scars.

Scars tell stories. Scars mean survival. Scars mean you showed up for the fight instead of running from it. Wear your scars proudly. Let them tell the story of where you've been, but don't let them dictate where you are going.

Joe chuckled as he remembered Grace saying those same words while she was cutting his hair. He grabbed the bottle and rolled it between his hands watching the liquid slosh around. He shook his head and walked outside, dumping the contents onto the rock path. "I'll figure something out, Grace."