Sinners redemption, p.1
Sinners' Redemption, page 1
Sinners’ Redemption
A FLAWS & ALL LOVE STORY
SAM E. KRAEMER
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Epilogue
Also by Sam E. Kraemer
About the Author
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2017 by Sam E. Kraemer
Rerelease ©2022 by Sam E. Kraemer
All rights reserved.
Cover Design and Formatting: Arden O’Keefe, KSL Designs
Editing: Beau LeFebvre, Alphabitz Editing
Proofing: Mildred Jordan, I Love Books Proofreading
Published by Kaye Klub Publishing 2022
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any form, printed or electronic, without the express permission of the author. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
All products/brand names mentioned in this work of fiction are registered trademarks owned by their respective holders/corporations/owners. No trademark infringement intended.
This original fictional story was released as a novel in 2017 after being shared on a free fiction site, then rereleased as an episodic serial in the author’s newsletter. These characters are the author’s original creations, and the events herein are the author’s sole intellectual property. No rights to the content of this story are forfeited due to the previous versions of the manuscript.
This book is for anyone who sought redemption and found it.
Their Story
Seamus McCord is a man of the cloth who has convinced himself he can ignore the pestering qualms he’s had for years regarding his choice to become a priest and take his final vows, solidifying his devotion to his vocation. He’s justified in his mind that he can wall off his doubts and ignore the dark secret he’s keeping buried deep in his heart.
Meeting a handsome man at a laundromat one night further complicates his situation, bringing more problems he doesn’t need. All the old concerns push their way to the surface with only one look into the man’s blue-green eyes. As Seamus falls into a spiral of lust and desire, he realizes the time for prayers of guidance has long passed.
Carter Lee Riggs has made mistakes—one of which changed the course of his life forever. After he’s paid his debt, he faces the challenge of controlling the rage inside him when faced with life’s injustices. He saved a life once, but in the process, he nearly took another.
One night, a man comes into his workplace, and it almost feels as if Carter’s being given another chance at happiness. It’s only a brief encounter, but if Carter has the opportunity to find the man again, might they have a chance at something neither ever expected to find?
For Seamus and Carter, if there’s a way to atone for being less than perfect while seeking their hearts desires, will they take it?
Can two sinners be redeemed by love?
Chapter One
Seamus McCord—or Mack, as he’d been known since he was a small boy living in St. Louis—adjusted his collar for the third time. He was uncomfortable and extremely nervous. He was thirty-two years old but felt like he was a ten-year-old kid again, sitting outside the principal’s office at Immaculate Conception Elementary alongside his best friend, Tommy Dalton, for getting into a fight on the playground. The anxiety was making his heartbeat quicken, just as it had all those years ago.
Seamus knew that regardless of what words he used and how he said them, it would sound as if he were channeling that whiny ten-year-old brat, but he didn’t understand the purpose behind his reassignment. Seamus enjoyed being the Parochial Vicar and teaching religion at St. Thomas Aquinas Elementary School.
Seamus enjoyed helping Clay Forrester coach the basketball and soccer teams for the boys, and he was happy to assist Libby Forrester with the girls’ soccer practices when her assistant coach, Melinda Duncan, had to take time off to have the family’s fifth baby.
Seamus performed the morning Mass during the week and assisted with the Masses on Sunday. He loved his job, and he believed things were going quite well. He just couldn’t fathom the reasoning behind why he was being sent elsewhere.
When Father Wolfe had informed him that he was to see the Monsignor at the Diocese on Monday morning to receive his next assignment, Seamus was shocked. He believed he was doing God’s work at St. Thom’s, as the parish was called by its members, and he had hoped he would be in line to take Father Wolfe’s place when the older priest retired the following year.
Seamus had lived in-residence at the rectory for two years, and he’d cultivated friendships with many of the parishioners. He’d even played on the Knights of Columbus softball team and had helped to organize the parish picnic earlier in the summer. A change of assignment made him feel as if he had failed the parish or Father Wolfe in some way, even with the pastor assuring him that wasn’t the case.
“Don’t consider a change in the location where you minister as a punishment, Mack. See it as the opportunity to grow and reach out to those who may be more in need of spiritual guidance than those you currently serve. God has a plan for all of us,” Father Wolf had ensured.
When Seamus didn’t respond, the priest continued. “I understand sometimes it’s hard for us to see His plan is more significant than anything we’d ever imagine for ourselves, which is what we agree to do when we take the perpetual vows to serve Him and agree to go where we’re needed. The Bishop and the Monsignor believe your love for Our Father and your many gifts for counseling those in need and bringing people together are required elsewhere,” Father Wolfe encouraged.
“Where will I be going?” Seamus asked.
“They chose not to share with me where you will be assigned, but I’m sure wherever it is, you will meet the challenges with as much enthusiasm as you’ve brought to St. Thomas. We will definitely miss you. Do let me know when you’re to leave so we can have a little social hour for you at the school gym,” Father Wolfe had informed him. Seamus wasn’t sure if Father was happy or sad to see him leave, but he wasn’t anxious to go. He wasn’t looking forward to having the discussion with Monsignor Galati because Seamus had a sneaking suspicion he would walk away disappointed, but it was necessary to put the needs of the Church ahead of his own wishes.
“Father McCord, Monsignor Galati will see you now,” the Monsignor’s secretary instructed after she hung up the phone. Seamus had been so lost in thought he hadn’t even noticed when it rang.
“Thank you,” he said as he rose and adjusted his jacket. He didn’t know the Monsignor well. The man had only been assigned to the Diocese of Arlington six-months prior. He’d been the pastor at a large church in Chicago for years and was elevated to Monsignor two years before he transferred to the mid-Atlantic. Seamus had attended the welcome Mass and reception, but they’d only greeted each other, not engaging in any sort of conversation. The nerves coursing through his body were enough to make him want to lose his breakfast.
After nervously adjusting his jacket again, Seamus knocked on the door, and once he was beckoned inside, he walked forward toward the large mahogany desk, seeing two men in the room. Once Seamus greeted them both, he was invited to sit down. “Father McCord, I’ve been discussing you with Monsignor O’Keefe. He’s here with Bishop Lane for the Conference of American Catholic Bishops. You’re from Missouri, right?” the Monsignor asked.
Seamus nodded, not having a good feeling about the direction the conversation was headed. “Which part of Missouri?” Monsignor O’Keefe asked with a cheerful smile that was more welcoming than the look on Monsignor Galati’s face.
“I grew up in South St. Louis City. My family still lives there on Jameson Avenue, as a matter of fact. My father’s an electrician, currently working on the remodel of a high school in LeMay that was swamped during the last flood. They’re trying to get it ready to open in August for school to start on time,” Seamus volunteered, hoping they could cut to the chase instead of dragging out the torture.
Monsignor O’Keefe chuckled. “Well, Beckett Creek isn’t nearly as glamorous as living in the city, but it’s a nice little community. The town itself has about twenty-five hundred full-time residents. A lot of tourists come to town during the summer to hike and ride horses on the nearby state conservation lands. There are lakes and rivers for swimming or floating and lots of campgrounds nearby. It’s an incredibly beautiful part of Missouri.”
The subtle sales pitch did nothing to put Seamus’ nerves at bay. He’d been down to the bootheel of the state when he was in junior high and high school for various camping and school trips to Lake Wappapello, the large lake in that part of Missouri. He definitely remembered the whole area as being very rural. As his mother used to say, “Nice place to visit but I wouldn’t want to live there.”< br />
Both men were looking at him expectantly, so he cleared his throat. “Yes, um, I agree. It’s a very nice area. I’m anxious to know where I’m being reassigned, Monsignor,” he stated as he looked at Monsignor Galati. The man was studying a file on his desk, not seeming to pay attention to what Monsignor O’Keefe and Seamus were discussing.
“Father McCord, I’ve requested for you to be assigned to a little parish, Sacred Heart, in Beckett Creek. You see, the parish pastor, Father Kozlow, is going to retire in a year or so, and the church needs some new blood and youthful vigor,” Monsignor O’Keefe offered in explanation.
Seamus nodded. “What would be expected of me?”
“Father Kozlow has been the pastor at Sacred Heart for ten years, and he has a very strict way of conducting business, which has come to be a bit off-putting to some of the younger members of the parish. He’s more disciplined and old-fashioned regarding the expectations he has from the members, and now it seems the only people attending Mass are older parishioners who are of a similar mindset.
“Unfortunately, the older parishioners are on fixed incomes and the younger families in the parish, who used to compose the majority of the revenue, have started attending church in one of the neighboring towns because of Father’s lack of tolerance for children being children during worship. He’s very strict regarding comportment during Mass, and he’s gone so far as to stop the service and chastise parents whose children aren’t sitting perfectly still and listening to his homilies,” the monsignor stated honestly.
Seamus nodded and asked, “Is he really that bad?”
Monsignor O’Keefe sighed. “I’m ashamed to admit I’ve sat through a few of them myself, and I’ve had to fight hard to remain attentive. Young singles don’t attend Sacred Heart because Father Kozlow won’t allow church-sanctioned gatherings for them to meet other Catholic singles. I’m not sure why, but I know it’s become an issue, based on my discussions with the Parish Council,” he explained.
“Has anyone spoken to Father Kozlow about it? Is he willing to actually listen to constructive criticism? Maybe with some pointers, he could come around?” Seamus asked.
Monsignor O’Keefe shook his head. “I’m afraid not. You see, Father Kozlow has lost touch with the younger parishioners and lost patience with the rest of them. The average Saturday night Mass has fallen from approximately one-hundred in attendance to twelve, and those are generally some of the older parishioners who get a ride from family members who don’t want to get up early on Sunday to bring them to church,” Monsignor O’Keefe further explained.
Seamus listened to the Monsignor, quickly coming to the realization he really had no choice but to accept the transfer to the new parish. He would miss his friends in Chantilly very much, but it sounded to him as if God had decided it was time for him to go in another direction. It wouldn’t be the first time his life had taken a turn he hadn’t anticipated, but he had learned to roll with the changes. The current situation wouldn’t be the exception.
Seamus hoped his new assignment would dissuade the doubts that continued to rear their ugly heads from time to time regarding his future as a priest. Things had been easy for him in Chantilly, and his close friendships with the families and single young people in the parish nearly felt as if he were living the life of a bachelor who worked at a church. He knew that wasn’t a calling—it was a convenience.
Maybe the shake-up to Seamus’ routine would take him back to why he chose to become a priest in the first place… or at least one of the reasons. He wanted to provide spiritual support and counseling to those in need and offer himself in service to benefit his fellow humankind in whatever way possible.
He’d attended a Jesuit seminary after he finished college, but he was yet to take his perpetual vows. He supposed if there was ever a time for self-examination and prayer about the path he was to travel, he was standing at that crossroads.
“I’m only simply professed. Will that have a bearing on my transfer?” Seamus asked.
He heard a sound of disapproval from his left and turned to see Monsignor Galati wasn’t happy with that news. “I see. Father Wolfe neglected to mention it when he contacted me regarding the suggestion you should have a more challenging placement,” Galati snapped, surprising Seamus with his tone. He couldn’t, for the life of him, imagine why Father Wolfe wanted him gone, and it made him sad to contemplate the reasons.
“I’ve been struggling with some things over the last year, Monsignor. I believe I need to work through my doubts before I take my perpetual vows. I suppose that’s behind Father Wolfe’s motivation with regard to his request. He’s been trying to counsel me, and I suppose he believes if I were in a more challenging parish, it would help me to see my worth as a priest,” Seamus surmised.
Seamus turned back to Monsignor O’Keefe, who was smiling. “I believe your contemplation of the meaning of the vows is admirable. Many take the vows only to later determine they made the wrong decision. At your stage of life, it’s a good thing to question if you have a genuine calling to do Our Father’s work or is it your desire to be of service to your fellow Catholics as a layman. Lay service is also essential in doing God’s work as well. I remember experiencing the same feelings when I was younger and preparing for the final vows. As a fellow Jesuit, we were both taught to question everything, Father McCord,” the monsignor reminded.
“Yes, Monsignor, I remember the lessons I learned during my studies very well,” Seamus agreed with a small smile of his own.
“Your assignment to Sacred Heart won’t require you to immediately take your perpetual vows, but at the time of Father Kozlow’s retirement, I believe the Diocese would prefer you to have made your commitment permanent. It still gives you a year to help Father Kozlow and the parishioners at Sacred Heart with the needs of the community.”
Seamus nodded. “What would my position be at Sacred Heart?”
“You’d be assigned as a Parochial Vicar for now. I feel I should warn you that Father Kozlow is a member of the Order of St. Dominic, the preachers, and I’m sure he’d still say the Mass in Latin if he could. I believe you might be able to see the potential for disagreements between the two of you based solely on both of your religious training,” Monsignor speculated, which Seams knew was the truth.
O’Keefe sat forward, imploring Seamus to meet his eyes. “I’ll be happy to walk-the-way with you and provide you with guidance when things come up and a resolution is needed between the two of you. However, let’s not mention things of this nature to Father Kozlow up front,” the man suggested.
Once again, Seamus sighed, feeling the weight of the world on his shoulders. “I suppose that would be a help,” he responded, feeling no enthusiasm toward the assignment at all.
Monsignor sat back in his chair. “Father McCord, I realize I’m putting you in an awkward position, but I believe it’s better for all involved if he’s unaware of a few facts—just for the time being. He’s not exactly happy he’s retiring, but the Parish Council has informed the Bishop’s offices that if he doesn’t go, the church will close because so many members refuse to attend Mass and provide support for the Parish.
“As a result, the lack of funding from the community has caused the church building to fall into disrepair. That’s one of the things I’m hoping you’ll be able to focus on in the beginning. The rectory was actually condemned by the building inspector this winter when part of the roof caved in after a massive snowstorm. Father is living in a small house adjacent to the church property, rent-free, through the generosity of one of the older parishioners,” the monsignor admitted, his face flushing a bit.
The living arrangements caught Seamus’ attention. “Am I to live with him, then? I suspect that might bring more tension between us?”
