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"I'm willing to trust them-- to a point," said Adam, for he couldn't forget that one of them had thrown Lyle the pipe wrench.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" hesitated Charlie. "We have stale bread in the cupboard, and we could wait for Grandma to get back with more groceries."

"I want to see the inside of that dingy little restaurant!" insisted Adam, playfully tugging Charlie forward by her hand. "We keep passing it on the road, and I keep promising to satisfy my curiosity!"


Beppe was more than happy to give them a ride to the restaurant in Drywell. As the general contractor's truck pulled up to the establishment, several workers from the Villa Rosa crew looked surprised to see who would be joining them for lunch. After the fight this morning, they didn't think Adam would be willing to tolerate their presence. And, truth be told, some of them didn't know if they could tolerate HIS presence, after what he had done to their buddy.

But Adam was his usual, affable self, as he helped his wife out of the truck. As a man with slightly ripped jeans, a cut lip, and a black eye beginning to show, he didn't look like someone who should be in a good mood. But to the surprise of the work crew, he was.

Inside the diner, all the tables were already taken, so that the remainder of the crew had to go outside, and eat their lunch in the shade of the building. It was hot outside, and Adam didn't relish the thought of eating in the heat. Even so, when a few of the workers offered to give up their table for him, the musician politely turned it down.

"We can eat outside," he smiled good-naturedly. "I guess we have to get here pretty early, if we want to eat indoors!"

At this, the men laughed, and the tension in the restaurant improved.

After Adam and Charlie had their order, they went outside and found a shady spot near some of the other workers.

"Hot day, isn't it?" Adam observed to one of the men.

"Yeah," nodded the man, taking another bite of his hamburger and watching the couple closely. He smiled with amusement when Adam and Charlie quietly said a prayer over their lunch before eating. "Someone said you were a Christian," he remarked.

"Excuse me?" wondered Adam.

"You're a Christian," repeated the man with a mouthful of food.

"Yes, I am," affirmed Adam, taking a bite of his own hamburger, while some of the cook's secret sauce squirted onto his chin.

"Thought you guys didn't believe in fighting," he continued curiously.

"That depends on the fight," smiled Adam, while Charlie tried hard not to watch as they talked with so much food in their mouths.

"What about all that 'blessed are the peacemakers' jazz?" The man tossed his head from side to side with a mocking laugh.

"Sometimes, you've got to fight, or else that peace won't be maintained," responded Adam.

The man blinked at him for a few moments, and then returned his attention to his half-eaten hamburger.

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