Tensions ran high in town now that Pastor Brown had been found. Who would be arrested? Rumors were flying from person to person, speculating on who had done it and why.
Braxton quit going to work for many reasons. The scrutiny from his peers was unbearable. From those who knew he was guilty, to those who were snickering behind his back about his new found religion, thinking he was putting on an act when he wasn’t.
But, the real reason was that for the last ten years he had taken sick pleasure in butchering whatever came his way, mixing his job with his emotions of anger and resentment. He couldn’t face any more of it.
Pastor Tom was looking into getting him a job at the Salvation Army, down in Idaho Falls. When this all died down, he hope to find a place where he could learn to help others less fortunate then himself and to learn to give rather than to take, learning about God’s true love.
Bess called Sheila, telling her about the finding of the man in the well, the prime suspects, and the rumors running rampant about town.
Then she mentioned Braxton.
“By the way, I’ve heard that Braxton got saved and turned his life over to God on that hunting trip he just took.”
“What? Are you serious! Is he trying a different tactic?”
“I don’t know. Stanton and Jean believe him. And he does seem different to me, more vulnerable and scared. He seems to be really trying to be kind and helpful. If he was faking it, he wouldn’t do it that way, would he?”
“Not him. He’d die before shown any kind of weakness. Has he really changed, do you think?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. They buried Pastor Andrew last week in a small, private ceremony. I couldn’t help but put flowers on his grave yesterday. He seems so lonely there somehow and I miss him. It’s so sad.”
The women talked on, speculating on the situation in town and the impact it was going to have on those who lived there. They knew changes were coming. Everyone in town could feel it. The atmosphere was ripe with it.
Exposure And Loss