It Must Be Your Faith

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

"Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends." - 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

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The past hour has been full of a lot of pent up anxiety as Zach paced the floor back and forth. Noah was tasked with distracting Madi while Natalie was sitting by the window lost in thought. Lorraine and Robert were on the couch watching television and occasionally talking. Cammie watched Zach as he paced around the room. She was worried about him and she knew he was worrying Madi as she kept glancing at him her expression crestfallen.

Cammie had enough once she saw Madi's expression fall with every glance. She stood up and grabbed his arm mid-step. "Zach, stop it. Pacing back and forth isn't going to help anything. All, you're doing is scaring Madi and she doesn't need to be scared or worried anymore than she already is. The hour's almost up and he will be found guilty. With God all things are possible." Zach smiled. "Matthew 19:26." Cammie's responding smile dazzled Zach. "I'm impressed." Zach shrugged. "I've been reading the Bible in my spare time. It calms me down, helps me focus." Cammie opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by the door opening. It was their lawyer. "It's time." Everyone stood up and walked up to stand behind Zach and Cammie. Natalie laid a hand on her children's shoulders, Richard and Lorraine shared a look, and Zach gripped Cammie's hand in his own. Together, they walked out to face their past.

"Jury, how do you find the defendant?" asked the judge. A woman stood up. "Your honor, based on all the evidence presented and all the counts of charges against Trevor Goode we have reached a unanimous vote. We declare the defendant guilty on all counts."

Cheers were heard throughout the room. Lorraine and Richard hugged, Natalie hugged her children close to her as Madi cried. Noah had a relieved smile on his face and Zach crushed Cammie into his chest as he tried to control the overwhelming sense of relief he felt. He did it. He got justice for his mother and his emotions couldn't be explained in words.

"Silence! Order in the court! I know this verdict calls for celebration, but the jury was not finished," the judge calls out as he hit his gavel. Everyone quietened down and took a seat. "Thank you, your honor." the woman who spoke for the jury said. "Based on all the evidence presented we deemed that life in prison was not a sentence deemed worthy. Your honor, the jury suggests the defendant should be given capital punishment in the form of lethal injection." Everybody held their breath and complete and utter silence was heard.

All at once everyone spoke up.

"Did she just say what I think she just said?"

"Is that even legal in the state of Oregon?"

"The last lethal injection was in 1962!"

"Pretty sure no one should be opposing this!"

"Yes! That man deserves to burn in Hell!"

Zach's voice empowered everyone else's, "NO!"

The room quieted down once again. Zach walked forward with Cammie. "No. I want him to suffer for what he did to my family. I want him to be locked up in total isolation. I want him to have no human contact with anybody. His food will be dropped off when he's sleeping. He will sit in the dark with only his memories to haunt him. I want- no- need him to feel the same kind of Hell he put my family through. I need him to be his own monster that he fears from the dark."

"Considering the special circumstances of this case, I will allow the young man's request be considered. Jury, we're going to take another ten minute recess as you debate the issue. We are dismissed." Cammie turned Zach so he faced her. "Are you sure this is what you want?" "Without a shadow of doubt. I know you're worried about me and my thirst for vengeance, but that's just it, Cammie. He's not human. He has no soul. I want him dead. Make no doubt about that, but I don't want to be a monster too." "Zach, you're not a monster. You're human and revenge is a part of the package. I just don't want this to cloud your judgement in the heat of the moment and for you to have any regrets later." Zach grabbed Cammie's face in between his hands and looked into her eyes. "Thank you for loving me the way you do. I couldn't do this without you." Cammie smiled. "Have you ever heard of the myth called The Red String of Fate?"

Zach shook his head. "It's a Greek mythology story of pain, loss, love, and second chances. This mythology is about Piper, Grayson, and Brittney. Piper's mother is Aphrodite, Brittany is the daughter of Hera, and both girls were in love with a mortal named Grayson. Piper and Grayson have been best friends since birth and as they grew older, their love blossomed. Brittany, influenced by her mother's hatred for Piper, grew to resent and envy Piper for having Grayson's love. You see, Piper caught Zeus's interest and watched her for years ignoring his wife. Which is where Hera's hatred for Piper came from. She knew shouldn't do anything to Piper herself, so she used her daughter." "That's sick of Zeus to like Piper. He basically stalked Piper all of her life. That's creepy." Zach said as he made a face full of disgust. Cammie simply nodded as she continued to tell the story, "One day, Hera gave Brittney two different potions. One to take a person's memory, and another to make someone fall in love. Brittney used them to separate Piper and Grayson, but what Brittney didn't consider is how powerful their love was. Just because Piper couldn't physically remember Grayson doesn't mean her heart didn't remember. Aphrodite found out about Hera's scheme and gave Piper her memories back just in time to save Grayson from Brittany. Aphrodite was so moved by their love and devotion to one another that she blessed their love and in doing so created the red string of fate."

Cammie reaches into the pocket of her dress and slowly pulls out her fist before lifting it up. Confused, Zach slowly unfolds her fingers and there, lying on her palm is a simple, red string. Cammie smiled as she finished the story, "Basically, an invisible red cord is tied around the ankles of those that are destined to meet one another in a certain situation or help each other in a certain way. The two people connected by the red thread are destined lovers regardless of time, place, or circumstances. This magical cord may stretch or tangle, but will never break. Grayson and Piper's love was so powerful it created its own form of magic." Cammie slowly unfolds the string and lightly ties it around Zach's finger before tying the other end to her finger, "Piper's love saved Grayson, so I'm hoping that my love will save you from your pain as well. Zach, you are the other half of my red string."

Zach chuckled as tears formed in his eyes. He placed his forehead on Cammie's and took a moment to compose himself. "Camille Morgan, you are my saving grace. All of my life, I never thought I'd be worthy to have someone love me for I was a broken man who had nothing going for him. It must be your faith that has saved me."

The tears flowed from Cammie in a steady stream and she leaned up to give him a tender kiss full of promise, love, and hope for a better tomorrow. An officer opened the door to the courtroom. "The jury has reached a final verdict." Zach took a deep breath before squaring his shoulders. Together, surrounded by the people they love, Zach and Cammie walked into that courtroom for one last time. 

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Whew! I rewrote the scene where Cammie gave Zach the red string multiple times trying to get it just right, but even now I'm still not happy with it. Although, it was about time I updated! 

Fun Fact: The gif is from Teen Wolf. Stydia is one of my all time favorite ships and this specific scene is where I first heard of the red string of fate. I tried do research on it, but there isn't much to tell. I was fascinated with this myth and was disappointed when I learned how little there is written about it. Which is where I came up with the idea of writing my own take on the myth. 

The good news is that I have an idea on how this story is going to end! I believe the end is only 2-3 chapters away. This story is already becoming longer than the first book. The even better news is that I already have a third book in this series in the works as well. The details are kinda iffy, but I'm excited to see where the third installment of the "Faithfully Yours" series leads!