Love Unconditional

By David A. Liapis

Painful experiences, both physical and emotional, are one of the few things everyone in this hurting world has in common. Life simply cannot be lived without suffering, so what are we to do? To whom do we turn in hard times? Whether we realize it or not, all of our hearts cry out to love and be loved with one kind of lovelove unconditional.

Join Chloe and her newborn son as they learn what it means to be loved by strangers in a way she has never known. Through this tale of pain, joy, and surprises, there is one common themethe unconditional love we receive from Jesus Christ and how that love flows through us to others, and through others to us.

We love because He first loved us.
(1 John 4:19)

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Jan 18, 2013
• ISBN: 9781449779771

David A. Liapis

David Liapis currently serves in the US Air Force as a public affairs officer. David met and married Kristina in 2003 while working at Hume Lake Christian Camps in California.. As of 2011, they have four children and are expecting another one around Thanksgiving David’s influences include John Bunyan, John Piper, Mark Driscoll, and Derek Webb.

Book preview

Chapter 1

IT WAS MID-SEPTEMBER, AND THE nights had grown unseasonably cold. Chloe knew she had not ended up in the most ideal location for the birth of her child, but she didn’t know what else to do. The sixteen-year-old runaway lay shivering on the floor of a Jersey City parking garage as the final labor pains gripped her. The lonely sound of her cries echoing aimlessly off the concrete walls and asphalt floor were to her but a small representation of how she felt. She had spent months avoiding people, but now she desperately hoped someone, anyone, would come to her aid.

Even before Chloe discovered she was pregnant, she would wake up in cold sweats after dreaming about giving birth. The location of the event was the same every time. Before this night, she did not know why there were always vehicles in her dreams. As she lay holding her son, she felt compelled to name him Joshua since that was always the name of the baby in the night visions. But why? was all she could wonder as she began to feel faint, her mind racing as if it were trying to keep pace with her heartbeat. Thoughts of the past few years overwhelmed her as she faded in and out of consciousness.

Chloe was the wayward daughter of an elder in one of the largest evangelical churches in New York City. She was beautiful and witty but was also imprudent and rebellious, a combination that proved to have lasting consequences. Once Chloe realized she was pregnant, nearly all her thoughts were consumed with an intense mental struggle over whether to carry the baby to term or abort it. She had grown up being taught—and she strongly believed—that abortion was murder, but that was before her life was being affected. But as tempting as the thought was at times, Chloe just could not fathom taking the life of her child. Instead, she concealed her pregnancy as long as she could; but once she began to show, she decided the only option at that moment was to run away from home.

She was an only child, mainly because her father, Shawn, did not want any more children. The truth was, he hadn’t wanted her from the moment he found out his wife was pregnant. He had his plans for the blissful future he and his wife would have when they married, and Chloe’s introduction into the world drastically changed all that for him.

Shawn was a respected leader in his church and played his part there well, yet he was a hard and apathetic man at home. When he did show emotions, they were usually anger or hatred. Chloe knew that her father would not tolerate what her pregnancy proved regarding her promiscuity. She was certain his desire to appear to have his family in check so he could remain an elder was more important to him than her or her child. She felt she was going to have to leave one way or another, so why not do it on her terms?

It was not very challenging for a young, pretty woman to find eager arms in a place like New York, in spite of her age and pregnant state—at least for a while. Once she really began to show, Eddie, the man who had picked her up off the street, forced her out of his house and into the late-spring night.

The last thing I want is some homeless jailbait popping out a kid in my house, he said. Why don’t you just go get rid of it? There are places that will do it this far into the game. You’re of no use to me anymore the way you are. If you get rid of it, come on back.

Seriously?! I’m not going to kill it, no matter how much I don’t want it. Someone out there will take it home, replied Chloe contemptuously.

Why I let you stay here in the first place is beyond me, retorted Eddie, his thin face showing his disdain even more. I must have been desperate. Oh, well. At least I knew I wouldn’t get you any more pregnant than you already are! Now get out! he ordered as he pushed her out the door.

Chloe fell hard to the ground as she slipped off the porch. Slowly, she stood up, rubbing her left wrist that had twisted slightly as she hit the concrete. She was so conflicted. She hated the man for many reasons, especially for what had just taken place; but now, she had nowhere to go and no one to turn to. Roaming the streets again was an unbearable thought, especially now as everything was becoming more difficult because of how far along she was. Suddenly, she rushed back up to the door and started pounding on it.

You promised to take care of me! You told me you would. You … You lied to me! cried Chloe, her pleas drowned out by the noise of the busy evening traffic as she beat on the wooden door.

Chloe’s blue eyes brightened for a moment when she heard a noise and then saw the latch turning. She didn’t quite know if she was shaking with anger or relief as she watched the door reopen.

"Who do you think you are? Go back home and cry to your daddy. I don’t want you here if you even think about having that baby!" declared Eddie loudly before he once again slammed the door in her face.

So emotionally distraught she was unable even to cry, Chloe slowly turned and picked up her red-and-black backpack that had held her schoolbooks only months earlier. Now, the pack held what few items Chloe could call her own.

Chloe realized her family was looking for her, and that they thought she had been kidnapped. Her story had been in the paper and on the TV for weeks after she left. She intentionally put very few items in the backpack, which she had rarely brought home from school, hoping her parents would not notice anything missing when she left.

Chloe looked down at her dirty jeans and tattered hooded sweatshirt. There’s no way I can show up now. Not looking like this! What a media sensation that would be. ‘Prodigal daughter shows up at door step … pregnant.’ Yeah, nice headline. I don’t think so. Chloe mumbled to herself as she turned down what she hoped was a deserted alley.

For the next few months, Chloe managed to remain undetected. The police were not looking for a young woman in her third trimester, so they did not look twice at her when they happened to see her wandering the streets. When she left home, there was no reason for her parents to think she was pregnant. Chloe knew that her parents, or at least her mom, trusted her. She never intended to become so sexually active; but once she started down that road, she could not seem to stop.

Trevor had seemed like a nice guy, and Chloe had a crush on him even though he had a reputation for targeting virgins at their high school. Chloe even had a friend who had lost her virginity to him. But in spite of his reputation, Chloe thought she could resist his sexual advances, so she did not hesitate to say, Yes when he eventually asked her out.

Chloe liked the attention she received both from Trevor and from other students. She viewed dating Trevor as a challenge—almost like a game. She understood what he wanted and would try to get, and she was determined to be known as the one who withstood the most notorious person in her school.

Despite Chloe’s intentions, Trevor proved to be more than she could handle. After a few weeks, she recognized what was going to happen and felt powerless to stop it. Afterwards, she wrestled with the thought that she had actually wanted it all along; at least that’s what Trevor told her. He was afraid she would accuse him of rape, so he said all he could to convince her—and everyone else—that she was easy and had made it clear to him what she wanted. Her reputation didn’t lead anyone to believe otherwise.

Trevor’s words had the desired effect on the young woman. Chloe felt dirty, ruined, and used. She realized she was wrong for ever allowing herself to be in that situation. Having played with fire, as the proverb says, she got burned. Instead of turning away from the actions that brought about the accusations and stigma however, she embraced them.

Since I’m dirty, I might as well continue to be what I know I am, she told herself while looking at her young, yet hardened face in the mirror as she prepared to head over to another young man’s house.

Chloe quickly became known as an easy lay with the guys at school and became very popular very fast. She had no way of determining who the father of her child was since she had been with multiple partners. Once she learned she was pregnant, she withdrew from everyone at school and told no one. Her friends wondered at her change in behavior after her fling with Trevor, and they were even more perplexed when she seemed to shut down. But no one felt like they could approach her.

Now, months later, as Chloe felt the cold concrete press against her head, thoughts of the past year overwhelmed her. Everything was growing cold except the tears that slowly flowed down her face and the constant trickle of blood that had not ceased since Joshua came into the world. Even Joshua was growing cold, but Chloe did not have the strength to do anything but lie where she was.

••

That movie was hilarious! exclaimed a young man named Mark as he and his wife Shannon walked to their vehicle in the parking garage.

You are so weird. That was about the dumbest thing I’ve ever seen, replied Shannon, not prepared for what she was about to see.

As the bantering couple approached their vehicle, Shannon let out a terrified shriek upon seeing blood flowing from under their SUV. Unsure of the nature of the situation, Mark, a former Marine, held his wife back as he carefully approached the driver’s side of their automobile. Mark expected to see someone who had been shot or stabbed, and he was ready to defend his wife and himself should the perpetrator still be present.

Mark had seen a lot of combat and was not shocked by much, but what he saw was more than he expected. There was Chloe, holding Joshua and laying in a pool of blood and afterbirth. Neither the mother nor child appeared alive.

Shannon, come quick! Call 911! shouted Mark as he knelt down to see if either one was breathing.

Shannon was horrified by what she saw as she hastily rounded the corner of the vehicle. Quickly, she pulled her cell phone out of her purse and tried to call 9-1-1 repeatedly, but there was no reception in the middle of the large parking garage.

Mark, I can’t make the call!

Run back into the theater and use their phone if you have to! Just make it happen!

Mark motioned with his hands for his wife to start moving as she stood for a moment with a blank stare on her face. Refocused by his gesture, Shannon spun around and ran back toward the theater. As she came around the corner of a dark blue sedan, she slipped in a small oil slick, slightly twisting her right ankle. As she fought to regain her balance, the adrenaline surging through Shannon’s petite frame helped her to forget the pain and keep moving. About a minute after leaving the bloody scene, she once again found herself in the crowded atrium outside the theater.

Shannon frantically searched the area for someone who could help as she kept trying to dial out on her phone. She felt helpless and alone even though there were people talking and laughing all around her.

I hate this carrier! I can’t ever get service in a building! she lamented ruefully, glaring at her phone.

Just then, she spotted a police officer talking with a mall guard near the fountain in the middle of the atrium.

Sir, I need help right away! There is a girl out in the parking garage who just had a baby and is bleeding all over the place! blurted Shannon.

Let’s go! said the police officer to Shannon and the mall guard.

••

As soon as Shannon had started toward the theater to find help, Mark turned his full attention to the mother and her son. They were both still barely breathing, though Mark did not hold out much hope for Chloe since she had lost so much blood.

Mark picked up the baby to see if there was anything he could do for him. Mark knew CPR and some basic first aid because of the training he received in the Corps, but he didn’t know what to do in a situation like this. He had never been around a birth before, but he could see the baby was cold and turning blue and knew he needed to be warmed right away. Mark also thought the umbilical cord should be cut, though he did not know if it was an urgent matter.

After pausing briefly to pray, Mark decided to take a chance. Quickly pulling out his pocket knife, he whipped it open with a snap of his wrist and cut the umbilical cord. He then tied it off since he had no way to clamp it. After he wrapped the baby in his coat, Mark placed him back in his mother’s arms.

Chloe began to mumble very quietly. If Mark had not been bent over the mother at that moment, he would not have been able to hear her.

Ma’am, can you hear me?

Chloe nodded ever so slightly.

We’re getting help for you. Is there anything I can do for you right now?

Chloe struggled to open her eyes, but eventually made eye contact with Mark. Mark’s heart broke within him and he began to tear up as he looked with pity on this young woman whom he thought had to be no more than sixteen or seventeen years old.

My name is Mark, what is your name?

C-c-chlo-e.

And your baby?

J-osh-u-a replied Chloe quietly, seemingly out of breath.

Just then, Shannon came running back with the police officer and a mall guard.

Shannon knelt down next to Chloe and gently picked up her pale hand. Joshua seemed to be improving slightly and was getting more color in his skin. He even began to open his eyes a little. As much as Shannon wanted to hold the baby to warm him, she did not want to take him from his mother’s arms.

Mark told Shannon and the two men the name of the girl and her son. The police officer, whose name was Todd Richie, a fairly tall and thin man of thirty-six, looked up suddenly and then stared at the girl as if he knew her from somewhere. Without saying a word, he grabbed his hand-held radio from his belt and began to transmit a message.

Station 2, this is Mall Boss. What was the name of that teenage girl who went missing in the Bronx about five months ago?

Standby, Mall Boss. Calling NYPD, replied the dispatcher, who was silent for about twenty seconds. The name is Chloe Reiner. How copy?

Lima Charlie. I think we’ve found her. We are located in the D section of the parking garage northwest of the theater. Medical transport is en route. Will provide more information as the situation changes. Mall Boss out.

What do we do? asked Shannon.

The only thing we are certain we can do—pray, replied Mark as he knelt down next to his wife and the dying mother and child.

Jesus, we know the lives of Chloe and Joshua are in your hands. We know you are in control of all things, both good and bad. We plead for your mercy to be upon this mother and child. We plead for their lives to be spared and that you would be glorified through this. Jesus, you are our only hope. Save Lord, save. Amen.

As Mark concluded, the distant sound of sirens began echoing throughout the parking garage. The eerie sound grew louder every second and the lights eventually became visible, flashing on the walls and increasing in intensity as the ambulance neared.

The EMT’s jumped out of the ambulance before it even came to a complete stop and quickly attended to Chloe and Joshua. One of the EMT’s grimaced when he saw the amount of blood pooled on the ground and oozing slowly down the gently-sloped asphalt floor. They carefully, but swiftly, loaded the mother and child into the ambulance and sped off to the hospital with Detective Richie, leaving the mall guard standing in shock next to Mark and Shannon.

The man had not moved since he came upon the scene, paralyzed by what he saw. Now that the mother and child were gone, the only remaining evidence of their existence was a dark red puddle of blood on the ground.

Mark turned to the guard and looked at him compassionately. The young man, whose name was Drew, slowly turned his head and stared at Mark. After a moment of awkward silence, Drew spoke in a wavering voice.

What … how could … what would cause her to be so desperate that she would rather have a kid in a parking lot than to go to a hospital?

It’s impossible to know at this point, Mark replied. Although, that police officer inquired about a missing teenager named Chloe. I seem to recall something about a sixteen-year-old girl who was thought to have been kidnapped about five months ago. As far as I know, they haven’t found her … at least not until tonight.

Shannon was still on her knees next to where Chloe had been curled up minutes earlier. The two men looked at her, and both could see tears dripping from her face as she quietly continued to pray. Mark walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder. She softly laid her frigid hand on his warm, bloodied hand and looked up at him.

"What should we do now? We can’t just go home and pretend like this didn’t happen. I can’t wash the memories of tonight out of my mind as easily as they will come and wash her blood off this floor. We have to do something. She wouldn’t have resorted to this for no reason. She must have been scared of something or someone," said Shannon, grimacing briefly as a shot of pain reminded her of her twisted ankle as she stood up.

••

Drew did not know what to make of what he had seen and heard in the past twenty minutes. He had never witnessed anyone pray in public like Mark had just done, especially for someone he did not even know. At the very least, he was curious what kind of people Mark and Shannon were.

Hey, can I ask you something? Drew looked at Mark nervously.

Sure, anything you want.

I was just curious to know, well … you know … Oh, never mind, Drew’s voice trailed off, then he abruptly turned and quickly walked away. I have to get back to work, he said half to himself as he headed back for the theater.

Drew did not consider himself to be a religious person. He had grown up with his parents in a traditional Baptist church. His dad was an elder in the church — and a closet alcoholic who would often beat his wife when he was drunk. Drew’s mom would stay home from church until her bruises went away. When his mom was absent from church, his dad would ask for prayer for her saying she was sick yet again, poor woman. The whole church was deceived into thinking Drew’s mom was just a frail lady.

As well as knowing the truth about his mom’s frequent sicknesses, he had also discovered his dad’s pornographic magazines stashed in a box labeled car parts out in the garage. He found them when he was nine, and had been addicted to porn ever since. As a young man, he justified looking at it by telling himself that if his dad, who was a church elder, could look at it, so could he. Sickened by the hypocrisy of his father as he grew older, he stopped attending church and had not been in one since he was a teenager.

••

What was that all about, Mark? asked Shannon, confused by the demeanor of the distraught mall guard as she watched him slowly walk away.

I really don’t know. But, what I do know is that we need to head to the hospital. We’ve got to learn more about Chloe, and find out if she and Joshua are going to be all right.

Chapter 2

MARK KEPLER HAD JOINED THE Marine Corps at age seventeen and served three tours in Iraq, two of them before he met Shannon Harding, the daughter of a pastor in Southern California. Mark began attending her dad’s church at the prompting of one of his fellow Marines when he first arrived at Camp Pendleton. It was at that church he committed his life to Christ, then was sent on his first deployment to Iraq shortly thereafter. It was during the winter between his second and third deployments he met Shannon.

Mark had not been looking for a relationship since he was busy with his duties and was deploying frequently. However, after attending the church with regularity and noticing Shannon singing on the praise team each week, he decided he might be able to handle being a Marine and maintaining a relationship with her. However, Mark chose to get out of the military as soon as his four-year enlistment was up since he did not want to be separated from the love of his life by continued military service.

It was difficult for both of them when he received orders to deploy a third time for a year. He told Shannon not to wait for him. However, if she was still there and interested when he returned, he would marry her. Shannon did wait for him, writing him every day and praying for him as frequently.

One night, Shannon woke up feeling very distressed. She did not know why, as she was fine when she went to bed and hadn’t been dreaming. However, she did the only thing she could think to do—pray. She felt as if God was urging her to pray for Mark’s safety.

The next evening, Shannon received a call from Mark. He told her that while he was on patrol the previous day, he suddenly felt ill and doubled over in pain. The moment he bent over, he heard a bullet whiz over his head. The pain suddenly went away as quickly as it came. He and his partner reacted swiftly and were able to neutralize the threat by locating and eliminating an insurgent in the building adjacent to the vehicle they were walking beside.

Mark told Shannon he believed God had spared his life. They were able to determine, because of the time difference, that Mark had been on patrol at the same time Shannon had awakened and prayed for him. There was no doubt in their minds the Lord had protected Mark, and that Shannon’s prayers were instrumental in the event.

Right after he returned from Iraq and his enlistment was up, Mark and Shannon became husband and wife. At the time they found Chloe and Joshua in the garage, they had been married over a year. Mark was now twenty-two, almost twenty-three, and Shannon was nineteen.

••

The young couple drove in silence to the hospital, no doubt thinking about Chloe and Joshua. They arrived at the E.R. reception desk and inquired about the new mother. The receptionist informed them she could not disclose any information or even confirm that a person named Chloe had been admitted.

Mark and Shannon were not certain they were even at the right hospital, having only assumed the ambulance brought Chloe and Joshua there because it was the closest medical facility to the mall. Just as Mark was about to tell Shannon it was time to leave, he was distracted by a man and woman who hurried through the waiting area toward the counter.

The couple spoke with the receptionist for a minute or two in excited tones, but not quite loud enough for Mark or Shannon to make out what was being said from where they were now sitting. The woman suddenly backed up from the window and spoke in a louder, clearer voice.

"The police told us to come here. They said they might have found our Chloe, and you say you can’t even tell me if she is here?! They told us to come here to see if the girl you have is our daughter!" exclaimed the agitated woman.

Just then, a police officer entered the waiting room. The woman ran to him and begged him to let her see her child. It was Detective Richie from the mall.

Ma’am, let me talk with the doctors and let them know you are here. I will get you in to see Chloe as fast as I can.

About three minutes later, he came back out into the waiting area. Mark and Shannon sat and watched everything that was taking place, feeling it was not appropriate for them to do more than silently observe for the time being.

The woman, whom the Keplers suspected to be Mrs. Reiner, ran to Detective Richie and grabbed his arm, impatient to be escorted to her daughter.

Chloe and the baby are going to make it, Detective Richie assured her. Chloe lost a lot of blood, but they were able to save her.

A startled look came over the woman’s face as she jerked her arm away from the Detective’s and looked up at him and asked, "Baby!?