The Secret Manuscript by Edward Mullen Read Free Book Online Page B

about
fourteen-years old. They had both been fostered by the same family
— a farmer and his wife. The couple was getting old so they thought
it was a good idea to adopt two young strong boys to do manual
labour around the farm.
    It was more
like a slave camp. Every day, Ben and Kyle would have to wake up at
the crack of dawn to feed the chickens, herd the cows, and bale
hay, among other tasks. They would work all day and come home
around 6:00 p.m. for dinner, then were home schooled until their
bedtime. This had gone on for years. The couple become greedy and
asked for more boys from the child welfare agency. This raised
suspicions, which prompted an investigation. After that, the boys
were removed from the home and had not seen each other since. They
had bounced around various foster homes for the next two years
until they turned eighteen. The only saving grace in the whole
situation was that for a two-year period, they had spent every
waking minute with each other and had formed a bond that was as
strong as brothers — perhaps even stronger.
    Bumping into
each other was like a sign from God — as if the actual brush
strokes of destiny were visible.
    “So where is
this house anyway?” Kyle asked.
    Ben handed him
a sheet of paper with the address on it. Kyle studied it for a
minute, then said, “I know where this is. It’s actually quite far
from here, but I know a bus that will take us there.”
    Ben and Kyle
walked to the next block where there was a bus stop. They chatted
the whole time until the bus came. Ben briefly described how his
life had turned out since they last saw each other, and then
explained some of the more recent events that led him to being in
Calgary. The bus finally arrived and they both hauled their
suitcases aboard and found a seat together.
    “So the last
couple days have been a rollercoaster ride for you, huh?” Kyle
asked.
    “Yeah, there
have definitely been some highs and lows and everything in between.
It all seems surreal to me. Even bumping into you is tripping me
out. It makes me think this is all happening for a reason.”
    “Like your
life has a purpose?”
    “It’s funny
you use those words because that’s the third time I’ve heard them
in the past few days. The morning I woke up in the hospital, as I
was about to leave, one of the nurses handed me a note.”
    “A note?” Kyle
repeated, “what did it say?”
    “Hold on, I’m
getting to that. After I left the hospital, I walked back to my
apartment and then from there I boarded a bus. It was less than an
hour later, but when I sat down, some random woman on the bus
handed me a note.”
    “What’s with
all the notes?” Kyle asked.
    “That’s not
even the weird part, check this out.”
    Ben reached
into his back pocket, pulled out both notes, and handed them to
Kyle. The look on Kyle’s face said it all. Much like Ben, he could
not believe his eyes.
    “What are the
odds you get identical notes saying your life has a purpose?”
    “I don’t know,
but it’s pretty strange, right?”
    “Strange
indeed,” Kyle replied, “and then you receive notification that
someone wants to give you a house?”
    “Yep.”
    “Huh,” Kyle
grunted, almost in disbelief.
    “Crazy,
right?”
    “Yeah, I’d say
that’s a little crazy. You’re not pulling my leg, are you?”
    “No, this is
the God’s honest truth.”
    “As opposed to
a dishonest truth? And isn’t God considered the most trustworthy of
sources, so this is like a triple whammy of redundancy.”
    “Hey, it’s a
figure of speech, leave me alone.”
    “Wait,
something still doesn’t add up,” Kyle pondered.
    “What?”
    “You said you
lost everything in the fire, right?”
    “Yeah.”
    “So where did
you get the luggage from?”
    “Well, that’s
another story.”

Chapter
Thirteen
    Buried deep in
the suburbs of Calgary was a row of houses on a quiet street.
Midsize sedans and SUVs were parked along both sides, leaving the
driving lane barely wide enough