RACHEL BOTELA’S APARTMENT, BOGAMA Natalie glanced at the clock above the couch in Rachel’s living room. Three minutes had passed. It seemed like thirty. She finished packing her backpack, checked the clock again, and joined Rachel in the kitchen. Rachel looked up from the coffee mug she was washing. “Do you need anything else?” Natalie shook her head. “Thank you so much for everything. You risked your life for us when you didn’t have to.” Rachel set the mug on the rack. “I did it for Aina…For Joseph’s father…For all of them. They didn’t deserve what happened to them.” “We’re going to find them.” “I know you will.” Natalie leaned against the counter, reminding herself again that God was her protector. Words easily spoken when things were going right. Why was it a completely different matter when the whole world seemed to be falling apart? Rachel’s mom had been right: God was still bigger than all of this. Even that, though, couldn’t take away all her worry.
