Chloe's People

Chloe stepped from the school bus into the snowy slush of the sidewalk, flipped her backpack around her shoulders and let loose a string of curse words as her strap broke and books and papers spilled onto the wet ground. "Well now, little child, that's some vocabulary you've got there. But tell me, do you need some help?"

The voice boomed in Chloe's ear, and she gazed in wonder into eyes that oddly danced and flashed sparks of white and gold. For a moment, she forgot about rushing home to her angry, alcoholic mother and instead stood still, breathing in deep the sudden scent of vanilla enveloping her. A smile broke from her lips and she very nearly giggled.

"I'm Mr. Xander," he said, reaching for her hand with long, large fingers. So began a strange chain of events following Chloe into adulthood as she traveled down dark roads and strayed into shadowy spots, searching for what she knew not in her childhood and so had no idea how to identify and obtain in her maturing years—the grace, love and acceptance of God. But can she leave the darkness for the light? It's a question all sinners must wrestle with and in the end, the only real answer is this: God does indeed work in mysterious ways.