The Unlikely Allies Read online

  “It’s time for the service,” he said with a broad smile.

  “I’m ready.” Mallory hastily rose, stuffed her writing material into the canvas bag she kept some of her possessions in, and tossed it into the tent. As they advanced toward the group that had gathered, she asked, “Are you nervous about keeping the flock together while I’m gone?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  She put her hand on the young man’s shoulder. “You are a man now, Lorge. A man of God. I have never been so proud of anyone in my whole life! God speaks to you, and all you have to do is listen and then share what you hear with the little flock.”

  “I will do my best, sister, but come back as soon as you can.”

  “I will return next fall. And I’ll have a special surprise for you then.”

  “What is that?”

  “I’m going to bring a shortwave radio, and during the winter months, when we’re cut off from towns, we’ll be able to pick up stations from all over the world. We should even be able to get sermons, I hope, from everywhere.”

  “Oh, I can’t wait for that!” Lorge beamed. “What else will you bring?”

  “Some books for you to study, and perhaps some goodies for you to eat. You and the others.” As the two reached the group, Mallory received a chorus of greetings. “Good morning. Let’s all sing, shall we? Mayda, I’ll let you choose the first song.”

  “ ‘Jesus Loves Me,’ ” Lorge’s sister replied shyly.

  “Good. You all know that one. Now let’s sing to the Lord.”

  Mallory lifted her voice in song and encouraged everyone to join in. She saw that Orva had joined the group, but she was not singing. She was staring at Mallory defiantly, yet Mallory knew it was a victory for her even to be there. She had often begged Orva to come, but this was the first service she had ever attended.

  The strains of the old song that had been a favorite in China for many years broke the silence, and it was a miracle to Mallory to hear the same song that had been sung around the world now being lifted to God here in the Arctic.

  Everyone had a favorite song, and as always, Mallory let them choose them. Finally, when the singing was over, she opened her Bible. “This morning I’m going to ask you a question,” she started. “And the question is, ‘How much are you worth?’ ”

  She saw a look of surprise wash across everyone’s faces, including Orva’s. “By the time I finish my sermon, I hope you’ll be able to answer that.” She opened her Bible and said, “This is in John 3:16. It says, ‘For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ ” She looked up and felt the spirit of the Lord rising within her, as she often did. There were times when preaching was hard, but sometimes God simply gave her words, and all she had to do was speak them. It was like that now as she said, “You all know how much some things are worth. You know how much a reindeer is worth. You know how much your tent is worth or your boots. But what are you worth? How many reindeer are you worth?” She turned to a young woman and smiled. “Ormu, what would you take for your baby?”

  “Nothing! She’s mine.”

  “Yes, that baby is the most precious thing you have. What’s the most valued thing you have, Gar?”

  A young man whipped out a gleaming steel knife and waved it in the air. The sunlight caught the blade and caused it to flash brightly. “My knife!”

  “Right. And what about you, Damar?”

  An old woman whose face was seamed with many creases from long years thought for a moment and then said, “My black fur coat.”

  “You know how much that is worth, don’t you?”

  As Mallory continued to talk about the value of their most precious belongings, she noticed that Orva was listening carefully.

  “What would you think, then, is the most precious thing that God has?”

  A silence fell across the congregation, but finally Lorge spoke up. “Why, He owns everything.”

  “That’s right, Lorge. He owns all the reindeer in the world. All of the animals. All of the trees. The gold and the silver—everything. But He values one thing more than anything else. I read it to you a moment ago. ‘God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son.’ God’s Son was the most precious thing to Him, and He gave that Son so that we might live.”

  Mallory helped the people to compare their own love for their children to God’s love for His Son and tried to help them understand the magnitude of His sacrifice. She had their full attention. “Now I want to read you a story that I’ve read to you before. It’s the story of the death of the Lord Jesus.” She began to read the story of the Crucifixion, and when she had finished, she looked up and said, “That’s how much you’re worth. God says you’re worth so much that He gave His Son that you might live.

  “When I was thirteen years old, I was all alone out in the bush in Africa. It’s so very hot there—hotter than you can imagine—and the sun was blazing down, and I was drenched with sweat. I had been listening to my father preach for weeks about Jesus, and that day as I walked along, I suddenly knew that I had to have Him in my heart. There was nobody else there—no singing, no sermon—but I just knelt down on the path and said something like, ‘Jesus, I’ve been bad, but I want you to come into my heart. God, forgive me for my sins.’ ”

  Tears came to Mallory’s eyes as she said huskily, “Something happened when I prayed that prayer. I was just a young girl, but I knew something was different. The difference was that I wasn’t alone anymore. I had Jesus living within me. Most of us live alone. We have people outside of us, but oh, how different it is to have Jesus on the inside!”

  She told them with great fervor and warmth how wonderful it was not to be alone and to know that God was not separated from her anymore. She paused and looked over the gathering of eager faces waiting for her to continue. She thought of Jesus’ words to His disciples, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” She sensed it was time to draw in the net.

  “Most of you have already asked Jesus into your heart, and I am so thankful to God for that. But there are some here who are lonely and some who are afraid. I’m going to pray in a moment, and when I do, will you pray with me? Just imagine you are in a tent and you hear a voice saying, ‘May I come in?’ All you would have to do is say, ‘Yes, come in,’ and that friend would come into the tent. It’s that way with our hearts. The Bible says that Jesus stands outside and says to us, ‘May I come in?’ And He’s waiting for you to say yes. You don’t have to be wise or clever or super intelligent. Even a child can do it, as I did. So as I pray, I wish you would call upon Jesus and ask Him into the tent of your heart. Let’s pray now.”

  Mallory prayed fervently and much longer than usual, but when she finally looked up, she saw that Lorge had gone to his sister Orva, who was weeping. At once Mallory went to them. She saw that Orva was standing stiffly, a tortured expression on her face.

  “Orva, will you open your heart to God and ask Jesus to come in?”

  “I’m . . . I’m too bad,” she choked.

  “We’re all bad, Orva. But Jesus can make us so pure it’s as if we had never done anything wrong.”

  As Mallory pleaded with Orva, she saw a desperate longing in the woman’s dark eyes. But then suddenly Orva pulled away from Lorge and gasped, “I can’t do it! I’m too bad!” She whirled and hurried away, her head down.

  Tears were running down Lorge’s cheeks as his sister left. Mallory put her arms around him and whispered, “Don’t worry, Lorge. God is after her. Jesus will find her, and she will find Him. In the meantime, you will have to be faithful to keep the flock together.”

  Lorge nodded. “Pray for me, sister,” he whispered.

  “I will, and you pray for me. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  ****

  Orva said almost nothing on their return trek to Narvik. The sled was much lighter now, so the reindeer was able to pull it easily over the patchy snow that was left on the tun
dra. When they arrived at the Bjellands’ house, it didn’t take long to unload Mallory’s things.

  As they finished unloading, Mallory said cheerfully, “Thank you so much for bringing me, Orva.”

  “You will come back, as you have said?”

  “Oh yes, I’ll be back next fall. Before you go, I have a gift for you.”

  “For me? What gift?”

  Mallory straightened her fingers and removed the opal ring that her parents had given her when she was fifteen. “I want you to have this. When you look at it, think of me.” She had seen Orva looking longingly at the ring many times, and when she handed it to the woman, Orva made no move to take it.

  “I can’t take your ring.”

  “Of course you can. Here. Let’s see if it will go on your finger.” She took Orva’s hand and found that the ring fit on her little finger. Orva’s hands were thicker than her own, but the little finger was just right. “There. That ring will remind you of me until I get back.”

  Orva dropped her head and could not speak. She looked at the ring and said huskily, “I thank you. I must go now.”

  Mallory reached out and hugged the woman, but it was like hugging a post. Mallory kissed her on the cheek and said, “Good-bye, my sister. I’ll see you soon.”

  Orva turned away without a word, but not before Mallory saw tears in her eyes. She watched the young Lapp woman walk away, leading the reindeer as she had done throughout their travels together.

  With a prayer to God to watch over her and bring Orva safely to Him, Mallory noticed Rolf coming out of the house, followed by his parents.

  ****

  “I’m worried about the Germans,” Rolf said as he and Mallory were taking a walk along the water’s edge at Narvik, watching the fishing boats coming and going. “You’ve been away from civilization and probably don’t have any idea of what’s been going on, do you?”

  “No, I don’t. Tell me, Rolf.”

  “Hitler’s a crazy man, and nobody seems to be able to stop him. He’s taken Czechoslovakia now, and who knows what’s next.”

  Rolf filled her in on the details of all that had happened over the winter, both politically and back at the university. They stood and watched two men unload supplies from their boat.

  “Before we go back, I’ve got to talk to you, Mallory.”

  “About what?”

  “About us.” Reaching out, Rolf took her hand and held it so firmly she could not pull it away. “I know you think I’m just a foolish fellow, but I haven’t been able to think about anything but you.”

  “You’re just infatuated, Rolf,” she said quickly. She had a great affection for Rolf, but that was all it was. Now she saw that he was deadly serious about her and wondered almost frantically how she could tell him exactly how she felt without hurting his feelings.

  “I want you to marry me,” he said quietly. “I mean it, Mallory. I love you more than I ever thought I’d love a woman.”

  Mallory was aware that this was a critical moment, that if she wasn’t careful she could destroy this good friend. She prayed quickly for guidance and then said softly, “Rolf, I’ve never met anyone I’ve felt more comfortable with, but I’m not thinking of marriage. God’s called me to do a work. I’ll be going back to the Lapps next fall, and you wouldn’t be able to go there. You have your work at the university.”

  Rolf suddenly pulled her forward and kissed her on the lips. He did it so quickly she could not resist. “I know all about that, but we can make it work.”

  Mallory tried to gently extricate herself from his embrace. “But, Rolf, we’ve been talking about how uncertain the world is. With Hitler on the march, who knows what will happen? Why, he could even invade this country.”

  “He’d never do that.” Rolf shook his head. “Norway’s neutral like Sweden.”

  “I hope you’re right. But the biggest priority in my life is serving Jesus. Is that the biggest thing in your life?”

  He blinked with surprise. “Well . . . no. You’re the biggest thing in my life.”

  “But God should be. Not any individual.”

  “I know I’m not a saint like you—”

  “I’m not all that saintly,” she interrupted. “I have problems just like you do, and I do care for you. But it’s like a sister feels for her brother.”

  “I’m not your brother!” he exclaimed loudly.

  They continued to argue the point, and finally Rolf said, “I’ll accept what you are telling me for now, but I’m not giving up.”

  They walked back to the Bjellands’ in silence, and Mallory went right to her room and flopped on the bed. Their conversation had exhausted her emotionally. She thought back to the time she had said good-bye to Paul Joubert at the mission compound in Africa. That had been difficult, but not like this.

  I’ve got to find some way to make him see that we’re not meant for each other, she thought. He needs to find someone his own age and with similar goals in life.

  ****

  Rolf and Mallory made the long drive back to Oslo together, where Eva welcomed her joyously as her roommate for the summer. Rolf was busy with some summer classes at the university but came to see Mallory nearly every day. Once when Mallory and Eva were alone, Mallory had told Eva about her problem with Rolf, and Eva had said, “He’s never been serious about any girl before. Do you think you could ever care for him in that way?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Well, people can change. No one ever really knows about things like that.” Changing the subject, Eva asked, “What will you do now?”

  “I’ll get ready to go back to be with the Lapps in the fall. I’ve got big plans. I’m taking some of my shortwave radio equipment back and lots of books for Lorge. I can see God is going to make him a missionary to his own people. He’ll be their first pastor. Then I’ll come back next April in time for your wedding.”

  “That seems like such a long time away,” Eva said, giving Mallory a warm embrace. “I can hardly wait for that day.”

  ****

  Mallory discovered that she had lost weight and had worn herself out during her months with the Lapps. As the more temperate summer weeks passed, she spent a lot of time with her radio. She had brought all of her radio equipment with her from Africa, and she enjoyed tinkering with it and seeing what she could find on the airwaves. She talked with her parents and brothers in Kenya, and she began to collect news from all over the world. The more she listened, the more she learned it was, indeed, a dark hour for most of the world. Hitler’s men were swarming over Europe, and nobody knew where he would stop.

  She also spent much time with Sigrid, who was fearful of an invasion. “I’ve got to get away, Mallory. They will execute me for my writings if they invade.”

  “If it comes to that, I’ll help you,” Mallory promised. But in her heart she was convinced that Hitler would not invade a neutral country.

  Each night she knelt down beside her bed and prayed for the Lapps. She knew that God had sent her there, and she ended every prayer by saying, “God, be with Lorge and with the little church there. They are your people, Lord. Don’t let the wolves come in and destroy them!”

  CHAPTER SIX

  Invasion

  The radio in front of Mallory crackled with a fierce intensity before a voice with a British accent cut through clearly. “The skies over Finland cleared in the past week, and Russian bombers punished civilian populations in Helsinki and elsewhere. Hundreds of Russians were killed in fierce fighting, and Soviet tanks were trapped in the snow and captured. Large numbers of prisoners were taken, and it is reported that Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish volunteers have been fighting with the Finns. The Russians, it is reported, are angry and frustrated, but there is no sign of a letup on the war of Russia against tiny Finland.”

  Mallory slowly turned the dial in front of her until she found a dance band playing in Cincinnati, Ohio. She stopped to listen to “You Are My Sunshine,” which, the announcer informed the audience, was sun
g by Jimmie Davis. Mallory turned the dial again but could get nothing but war news, and all of it was bad. Since the German invasion of Poland in September 1939, which had plunged Europe into war, Russia had thrown its might against Finland, and now the whole world was anxious over the newest atrocities of both Russia and Germany.

  Snapping the radio off, Mallory sat back in her chair and absentmindedly took hold of her right hand to turn her ring, a nervous habit she had. She realized the finger was bare and suddenly remembered that the ring was now on Orva’s finger. The thought of the hard young woman grieved her. As she had promised, Mallory had returned for another winter with the Lapps, where Lorge was doing a fine job as pastor of the fledgling congregation. With Orva’s help, Mallory had taken all of the books she could gather, plus gifts for all of the members of the new congregation. She had tried to convince Orva that Jesus could help her, but Orva had brusquely rejected her, saying, “I don’t need Jesus. I can’t live like your Bible says.”

  Mallory had returned to Oslo in time to help Eva with her April ninth wedding. Now the day had come, and as Mallory clipped on her earrings, she could hear the church bells ringing in the distance. She was putting on her lipstick when Eva rushed in, crying frantically, “I can’t find my shoes! Where are they? What could have happened to them?”

  “I polished them,” Mallory said quietly. She took Eva by the arm. “You’ve got to calm down. You’ll never make it through your own wedding if you’re this nervous now.”

  Eva Jorgensen laughed nervously. “You’re right. I didn’t think it would be like this. I’m scared to death!”

  “Now, put all that out of your mind,” Mallory said soothingly. “You’re getting a great husband, and you’re going to have a wonderful honeymoon and raise a sweet family.”