Chapter 2

Deborah sat in the car listening to her mother. She was just as upset as her mom was, but didn’t know how to calm her down. “I just don’t understand Deborah. How can you be pregnant? You’re a good girl. I thought you were going to obey God and stay pure for your marriage bed. How can you be with child?”

Deborah opened her mouth to respond, but before she could say anything, her mother went on. “What are we going to tell your father? He will not take this very well. Oh, and what about school? The Bible School won’t take you now. Maybe we can send you to Sister Wilfred’s Home for Wayward Girls and Unwed Mothers. I know she has connections to get unwanted children to adoptive parents.”

“I’m not giving my baby up.”

Her mother looked at her in shock. “Well, you can’t raise it by yourself. Think of your reputation. Think of what that would do to your father’s ministry. No, you’ll just have to put the child up for adoption. That’s the only choice.”

Now Deborah was getting upset. Once again, her mother, just like her father and grandmother, wasn’t listening to her. It wasn’t as if she had meant to get pregnant. Her mother was right in that it would be hard for her to raise a baby on her own. She probably wouldn’t get into Bible School, but she could go to the community college and get her basics out of the way. She’d have to get word to Nick, too. He probably would be willing to help. After all, it was his baby, too.

No matter what, though, she wouldn’t give her baby to some couple she didn’t even know. Other girls had babies without a husband and they made it work. Look at Violet Snow. She’d been raising Tyson on her own for three years and she did alright. Granted, she had help, but Deborah could get help too. She had her family and there were people in Gladstone that would help her. Heath’s family, well maybe not Mayor Hal, but his sister, brother and sister-in-law, they seemed to be okay with her. Mysti and Pastor Lex had told her to let them know if she ever needed anything. They’d help her, she was sure. No, she wasn’t going to let her parents take her baby away from her.

“I’m not giving my baby up for adoption, Mother. I messed up, I know, and now I’m going to have a baby. But girls have babies all the time. It doesn’t have to ruin my life.”

Her mother frowned and shook her head. “Just you wait, young lady. Your father will set you straight. He certainly was right about that Gladstone family. First that witch casts a spell on that nice Pastor Cayden, and now you end up pregnant with that Heathcliff Gladstone’s bastard child. There must be some kind of demonic force at work in that family to bring about the fall of two of God’s precious children.”

Deborah was going to open her mouth and tell her mother that the baby wasn’t Heath’s. She closed her mouth, saying nothing because she knew her mother wasn’t really listening to her. Like always, she heard what she wanted to hear and nothing else.

They pulled into the driveway. “You go to your room and rest. Your father will be home in a few hours, and then you’ll have to face the consequences of your actions. He is going to be so upset and disappointed in you, Deborah. I don’t look forward to trying to tell him what the doctor said.”

Deborah sighed and got out of the car carrying the paper bag from the Doctor. It had a couple of sample bottles of prenatal vitamins in it, and a referral to a local OB/GYN. She rushed to her room, hoping to avoid her grandma and brother. It would be bad enough having to face her father when he got home from the church office, or visiting, or whatever he was doing today. He must be visiting because he had taken Billy Sunday to work with him. She was glad, that dog was a nuisance. Just as she passed EJ’s room, he opened the door. “Well, what did the doctor say? You dying?”

“No, I’m not dying.”

“Well, is it something I can catch? If so, stop breathing on me and go away.”

“No, you can’t catch it either.”

He looked confused. “Well, something’s been making you sick. Maybe Mom should take you to another doctor.”

She sighed and pulled the bottle of vitamins out of the bag. “I’ll be better in a few months. Well, at least I’ll stop feeling sick, anyway.”

He looked at the bottle and his eyes got huge and he laughed. “Finally, Dad has someone else to fuss at for being a bigger disappointment than me.”

Deborah shook her head. “I’ve still never been put in jail, EJ. If Dad and Mayor Hal hadn’t convinced Sheriff Gibson to let you go, they would have sent you to Juvie.”

“Maybe so, but you’re not the perfect little church girl and preacher’s kid anymore, sis. You’re the little tramp that got knocked up by Dad’s enemy’s kid.”

“Heath isn’t the baby’s father.”

EJ laughed even harder. “That’s even better; who is the baby daddy, Deborah, or do you even know?”

“Yes, I know who the baby’s daddy is. You don’t know him. He was part of the paranormal team that left.”

“Dad’s gonna have a cow. I can hear it now. You’re gonna get sent to those demon possession people when he finds out.”

Then he headed down the hall. “I hope I’m home by the time he finds out. This will be better than MMA on pay-per-view.”

Deborah hung her head and hurried to her room. EJ was right, her dad would blow a gasket when he found out who the father was. She’d just not tell them. She pulled out her phone and looked for Nick’s contact info. Deborah sent him a text asking him to call her when he could. She needed to let him know he was going to be a father. Hopefully, before her mom told her dad that she was pregnant.