The Chosen One

Eugene confirms that Kelly has erased every retrievable trace of Connie’s book. Connie is furious over losing nine months of work, but the larger truth soon emerges. Police find Kelly, and investigators discover enough evidence of abuse to remove her from Laura’s home temporarily while the case awaits a court hearing. Both Kelly and her mother will receive counseling, and Laura may eventually regain custody.

Whit learns that rejection has shaped Kelly’s life. Her father left when she was seven, and several of her mother’s later boyfriends gained Kelly’s affection before leaving as well. Schools have expelled her, counselors have given up on her, and even a church has told her not to return. The adults at Whit’s End realize that their own angry accusations have added to her belief that no one will stay.

Kelly is placed with a foster family, but when a social worker asks whether any relatives or friends might take her, she names the Washingtons. Ed and Elaine are stunned. They are not certified foster parents, their spare room has become an office, and Kelly’s smoking, theft, threats, and other problems could disrupt the entire household. Their first reaction is that the match is impossible.

Ed visits Kelly’s foster home and finds the talking doll on her bed. Although she pretended not to want it, her foster mother says Kelly listens to its messages every night until she falls asleep. Ed brings Tamika’s old electronic keyboard so Kelly can continue playing. He tells her that his kindness is not pity: she is intelligent, gifted, and sweeter than her tough behavior suggests.

Kelly admits that she asked for the Washingtons because Ed gave her the doll. She knows a gift does not mean he wants her to move in, and she believes Tamika hates her. Ed says hearts can change and invites her to dinner. Kelly declines, but his visit leaves him wondering whether a home filled with children, games, music, and ordinary family life might meet needs that her pleasant but quiet foster placement cannot.

Whit encourages Ed to speak with Eugene, who grew up with foster parents. Eugene describes Frank and Margaret Burnette as the ideal family and credits their care with shaping the man he has become. He never felt less like a family member. Instead, he treasured knowing that the Burnettes had deliberately chosen him. Eugene suggests that simply being chosen may transform Kelly’s life as well.

The Washingtons discuss the decision honestly. Marvin supports bringing Kelly home and misses the liveliness the household had when Antwan and Xavier lived there. Elaine worries about finances, sleeping arrangements, and the effect on the family but continues praying. Tamika strongly objects. She would never choose Kelly as a friend and believes daily life with her could become dangerous and miserable.

Ed does not dismiss Tamika’s fear because he shares much of it. He and Elaine had expected their next years to bring fewer child-rearing demands, more time together, and relaxing vacations. Fostering Kelly may be the hardest undertaking they have faced. Yet Elaine asks whether their plans for comfort should decide the question if God is leading them toward a more difficult road.

An anonymous envelope brings Connie the missing sixty-five dollars. Whit concludes that Kelly probably stole it from the register to buy food while surviving alone and has now returned it out of guilt. The repayment does not erase the theft or restore Connie’s manuscript, but it shows that Kelly recognizes right and wrong beneath the hardened behavior.

Tamika visits Kelly and asks why she returned the money. Kelly refuses to admit anything good about herself, but she slowly drops her hostility when Tamika demonstrates the keyboard’s recording feature. The girls discover that both write songs. Kelly shares the title of her composition, “Desert Garden,” and listens to one of Tamika’s pieces. Their first ordinary conversation allows Tamika to see the child beneath the threats.

Tamika tells Ed that he must not reject Kelly because of her objections. She now believes Kelly has a good heart that the Washingtons could help bring forward. Ed reminds Tamika that her own change of heart reveals goodness too.

After continued prayer, Ed and Elaine separately reach the same conviction: God wants them to take Kelly in. They know the placement may be temporary and that becoming certified will require further steps, but they decide to begin. Ed calls to cancel their romantic beach trip, and Elaine gladly lets it go. They have not yet brought Kelly home, but they have chosen to open their family to a child who desperately needs to know that she has been chosen.