. He rapped again, longer and louder this time. To his relief, he heard a loud crash and the unmistakable thud of footsteps plodding toward the door.
Asher recognized Reverend Wilkes at once. He looked the same as he did on tv, only instead of wearing a tasteful suit, he wore a cardigan and khakis. The look he gave Asher was polite but puzzled. “Can I help you?”
Asher cleared his throat. “Y—yes, sir. I hope so. My name is Asher Van Der Bos. I’m—a—a friend of your daughter’s. From school. From Colebrook, I mean.”
The reverend’s face cleared instantly. He smiled and held the door open. “Of course. Come in. Are you visiting family or friends in Atlanta for the long weekend?”
“Not exactly,” Asher said as he stepped through the door. The reverend made small talk as he led Asher down a brightly lit hallway to a study.
The room seemed to consist entirely of books. There were books crammed haphazardly into shelves, books stacked into piles on the floor, books covering the desk and two armchairs in the corner of the study. Most of the books were religious, including several versions of the Bible. But there were fiction books as well—mysteries, literary masterpieces, even some children’s books.
The reverend caught Asher’s eyes. “I know…my wife always tells me what a disgrace it is to leave all my books lying around like this. Maybe I should take better care of them but it’s hard to do when I’m constantly switching from book to book. I never know what I want to read or what I feel like until I rummage through them. Do you like to read, Asher?”
And just like that, Asher’s nervous energy calmed. He smiled a little. “I like to read books about rowing. I just finished a book on rowing in the Atlantic.”
Reverend Wilkes picked up a stack of books lying on the two armchairs. He placed them gently on the floor and gestured to Asher to take a seat. Then he fixed Asher with a thoughtful stare, taking in Asher’s tall frame and lean physique. “You row crew?”
Asher nodded. “I do. I have—had—an excellent chance of getting to the Olympics.”
“Why do you say had ? You’re young…I can’t believe your chances are over.”
“I’m older than I think,” Asher said, wincing since even he realized that sounded stupid