Midnight Sons Volume 2 by Debbie Macomber

turn and she’d be there. His arms ached to hold her. His hand tightened on the doorknob as though it were a lifeline.
    “I won’t see Bill again,” she said in a voice so soft he had to strain to hear, “because I’d much rather be seeing you.”

Chapter
5
    A week after Catherine Fletcher’s death, the town held a memorial service. Although she’d never met Catherine, Bethany felt obliged to attend. She slipped into the crowded church and took a place in the last row, one of the only seats left. It seemed everyone in Hard Luck wanted to say a formal goodbye to the woman who’d had such a strong impact on their community.
    When news of Catherine’s death had hit town, it was all anyone could talk about. Apparently the woman’s parents had been the second family to settle in Hard Luck. Bethany knew that Catherine had grown up with David O’Halloran, although a lot of the history between the two families remained unclear to her. But it was obvious that Catherine had played a major role in shaping the town. Folks either loved her or hated her, but either way, they respected her feisty opinions and gutsy spirit.
    The mood was somber, the sense of loss keen. Hard Luck was laying to rest a piece of its heart.
    A number of people attending the service were strangers to Bethany. The members of Catherine’s family had flown in forthe memorial, including an older couple she assumed was Catherine’s daughter and son-in-law. Matt Caldwell, Catherine’s grandson, lived in Hard Luck. Bethany had met him one Saturday afternoon at Ben’s café. She remembered that Matt had bought the partially burned lodge from the O’Hallorans and was currently working on the repairs.
    When they’d met, Matt had told her he planned to open the lodge in time for the tourist traffic next June. Bethany was tempted to ask what tourist traffic, but she hadn’t.
    Matt’s younger sister, Lanni, sat in the front pew, as well, Charles O’Halloran close by. Bethany had heard that they were engaged, with their wedding planned for sometime in April. Even from this distance, she could see how much in love they were. It was evident from the tender looks they shared and the protective stance Charles took at his fiancée’s side.
    Abbey had told her about Charles and Lanni, and a little of the story about the O’Halloran brothers’ father and Catherine Fletcher. Bethany gathered that for many years there’d been no love lost between Catherine and the O’Hallorans. Then again, she thought, perhaps that was the problem between the two families. Love lost. Maybe, just maybe, it had been found again through Charles and Lanni.
    Silently Bethany applauded them for having the courage to seek out their happiness, despite the past.
    Reverend Wilson, the circuit minister, had flown in for the service. He stepped forward, holding his Bible, and began the service with a short prayer. Bethany solemnly bowed her head. No sooner had the prayer ended than Mitch Harris slipped into the pew beside her.
    He didn’t acknowledge her in any way. She could have been a stranger for all the attention he gave her. His attitude stung. It hurt to realize that if there’d been anyplace else to sit, he would have taken it.
    As the service progressed, Bethany noticed how restless Mitch became. He shifted position a number of times, almost as though he was in some discomfort. When she dared to look in his direction, she saw that his eyes were closed and his hands tightly clenched.
    Then it hit her.
    She knew little of his life, but she did know he was a widower.
    Reverend Wilson opened his Bible and read from the Twenty-Third Psalm. “‘Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.’”
    Mitch had traversed that dark valley himself, and Bethany guessed that he hadn’t found the comfort the pastor spoke of. But it wasn’t Catherine Fletcher Mitch mourned. It was his dead wife.