Read Online Roanoke (The Keepers of the Ring) by Angela Hunt, Angela Elwell Hunt - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Angela Hunt, Angela Elwell Hunt
Ads: Link
ambition. They believe that one god created the world, and another restored it after the great flood. They have part of the truth and part of the nature of Christ, but they worship idols, fallen spirits, and can be most cruel to their enemies. We have a most urgent responsibility to bring them to the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
Yes, had he not fallen ill, Robert White would have welcomed the chance to explore the New World. Like many others of his station, he believed that human beings had once known and understood all knowledge about the natural world through God’s revelation to Adam. But as sin dulled the conscience and corrupted the intellect of mankind, this knowledge had been lost. ‘Twas up to godly men to recover the divine gift of knowledge, and all the world waited to be explored as God progressively revealed new fields to be researched. Cures for illness, precious goods for prosperity, freedom and hope for a fallen world—all these things awaited godly men who sought the truth.
Which of these motivations drove Thomas Colman? Jocelyn turned onto her side to hide from Audrey the emotions that surely flickered across her face. There was something admirable about a man who would leave his home and journey to America to convert the Indians. And his approach and words to her had not been unseemly. He had neither leered at her like most of the seamen, nor patronized her like the older gentlemen.
“Audrey,” Jocelyn called over her shoulder. The maid grunted sleepily in reply.
“I pray you, find out more about this Thomas Colman,” Jocelyn whispered. “Is he married? From what part of England did he come?”
“I’ll do what I can,” Audrey mumbled, and Jocelyn buried her face in the sour-smelling mattress and wondered why she cared at all about the purpose and background of such a strange man.
Jocelyn ’s interest in Thomas Colman heightened when Audrey reported that Reverend Colman was a widower who had a young son who remained behind in England to be reared by his sister-in-law. “How do you know this?” she asked, grasping Audrey’s hand.
“William Clement told me,” the girl answered proudly, lifting her delicate chin. “He ’s the servant to old Roger Bailie, your uncle’s chief assistant. Got it straight from the records, we did.”
“ We did?”
“Well,” Audrey blushed. “William can ’t read, so he got me the records and I read them meself. But ‘tis the truth, and I’d as lief jump overboard as tell ye a lie, Miss Jocelyn.”
“All right.” Jocelyn dropped Audrey ’s hand and sat back to think. How difficult it must have been for Thomas Colman to leave his son behind! How could he do such a thing? Like me, he boarded this ship knowing he was needed elsewhere , she thought. Like me, he carries the weight of sorrow in his heart.
After that afternoon she watched him carefully, selecting places to sit and read or eat so she could watch him without being seen, but on more than one occasion he looked up and caught her eye. Embarrassed, she lowered her head, blushing furiously, determined that she would never, ever look his way again. But in the next hour she would invariably walk on one of the decks and spy him looking out to sea or talking to a group of men, and he would hold her rapt attention once again.
She couldn’t help herself, watching him was sheer pleasure. His dark hair grew upward and outward in great waves that begged detangling; his broad hands were most often clasped behind his back but often stooped to help one of the young boys untangle a fishing line or tie a stubborn shoelace. Even seated, he seemed taller than anyone else aboard ship, and his deep eyes revealed the sensitivity of a scholar. Jocelyn’s father had eyes like Thomas Colman’s, and she found herself yearning to surrender to the magnetic pull of those dark eyes.
He rarely laughed, though he usually wore a pleasant smile, and he seemed to generate awe among the others as he
Yes, had he not fallen ill, Robert White would have welcomed the chance to explore the New World. Like many others of his station, he believed that human beings had once known and understood all knowledge about the natural world through God’s revelation to Adam. But as sin dulled the conscience and corrupted the intellect of mankind, this knowledge had been lost. ‘Twas up to godly men to recover the divine gift of knowledge, and all the world waited to be explored as God progressively revealed new fields to be researched. Cures for illness, precious goods for prosperity, freedom and hope for a fallen world—all these things awaited godly men who sought the truth.
Which of these motivations drove Thomas Colman? Jocelyn turned onto her side to hide from Audrey the emotions that surely flickered across her face. There was something admirable about a man who would leave his home and journey to America to convert the Indians. And his approach and words to her had not been unseemly. He had neither leered at her like most of the seamen, nor patronized her like the older gentlemen.
“Audrey,” Jocelyn called over her shoulder. The maid grunted sleepily in reply.
“I pray you, find out more about this Thomas Colman,” Jocelyn whispered. “Is he married? From what part of England did he come?”
“I’ll do what I can,” Audrey mumbled, and Jocelyn buried her face in the sour-smelling mattress and wondered why she cared at all about the purpose and background of such a strange man.
Jocelyn ’s interest in Thomas Colman heightened when Audrey reported that Reverend Colman was a widower who had a young son who remained behind in England to be reared by his sister-in-law. “How do you know this?” she asked, grasping Audrey’s hand.
“William Clement told me,” the girl answered proudly, lifting her delicate chin. “He ’s the servant to old Roger Bailie, your uncle’s chief assistant. Got it straight from the records, we did.”
“ We did?”
“Well,” Audrey blushed. “William can ’t read, so he got me the records and I read them meself. But ‘tis the truth, and I’d as lief jump overboard as tell ye a lie, Miss Jocelyn.”
“All right.” Jocelyn dropped Audrey ’s hand and sat back to think. How difficult it must have been for Thomas Colman to leave his son behind! How could he do such a thing? Like me, he boarded this ship knowing he was needed elsewhere , she thought. Like me, he carries the weight of sorrow in his heart.
After that afternoon she watched him carefully, selecting places to sit and read or eat so she could watch him without being seen, but on more than one occasion he looked up and caught her eye. Embarrassed, she lowered her head, blushing furiously, determined that she would never, ever look his way again. But in the next hour she would invariably walk on one of the decks and spy him looking out to sea or talking to a group of men, and he would hold her rapt attention once again.
She couldn’t help herself, watching him was sheer pleasure. His dark hair grew upward and outward in great waves that begged detangling; his broad hands were most often clasped behind his back but often stooped to help one of the young boys untangle a fishing line or tie a stubborn shoelace. Even seated, he seemed taller than anyone else aboard ship, and his deep eyes revealed the sensitivity of a scholar. Jocelyn’s father had eyes like Thomas Colman’s, and she found herself yearning to surrender to the magnetic pull of those dark eyes.
He rarely laughed, though he usually wore a pleasant smile, and he seemed to generate awe among the others as he
Similar Books
