Linda nodded. She couldn’t have said a word if her life depended on it.
Cathy waved the policeman closer. “Officer, I’m glad you’re here. I was just about to call the police. There’s some sort of loud party going on in there, and my friend and I came over to complain about it.”
The police officer tipped his hat. “You live around here, ma’am?”
Cathy paused as if she didn’t understand the question. “Not exactly. Linda and I were in the neighborhood. That’s my K-car parked out front.”
The officer scratched his head. “Yeah. We noticed it. I can’t believe any of those are still on the road.”
“They don’t make ’em like they used to,” Cathy said.
The police officer nodded. “Thank goodness.” He glanced at his partner. “Well. Okay then. Thank you, ma’am. Now I need to ask you to go back to your K-car and go home. We’ll take care of it from here.”
“Okay,” Cathy said, “but the party’s over.”
“Don’t you worry about that, ma’am. We’ll check it out.”
“But the party really is over. They’re all gone, except for maybe the cat. I think I saw a cat curled up on the couch. That would explain why my eyes are itchy and my nose is running. I’m allergic to cats. And pollen. I wish I would have known that before I knocked. I never would have gone in.”
The officer’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head. “You went in the house?”
“Yes. I told you, I came over to complain about the noisy party. I told them the police were coming, and they all cleared out the back.”
“What? Jack, check in back.”
The other policeman ran around the side of the house. Linda held her breath when he ran past the place where Ben had jumped the hedge, but Lord willing, Ben and his friends were long gone, probably in Zoe’s big red truck.
Looking slightly irritated, the officer clenched his teeth. “Ma’am, thank you for all your help. You can go home now.”
Cathy frowned, and a deep, wrinkly line appeared between her eyebrows. “Don’t you want to take my statement?”
“If we need to talk to you again, we’ll just look for the K-car. I think you own the only one left in Colorado.”
Cathy shrugged. “Okay. I’ll do anything I can to be helpful.”
The policeman gave Cathy a politely annoyed smile. “Next time you encounter a noisy party, just call the police. We don’t like it when our senior citizens put themselves in danger.”
Cathy’s nostrils flared, but she seemed perfectly calm when she replied. “I’ll remember that, Officer. Thank you for your help.” She linked her elbow around Linda’s arm and pulled her over the sidewalk and down the driveway. She leaned her mouth closer to Linda’s ear. “See what I told you? Ageism is alive and well. I would have given that boy a piece of my mind, but he let us go and didn’t catch Ben, so I have to be satisfied.”
Linda couldn’t relax. She glanced back at the policeman. “Did you really tell them the police were coming?” she whispered.
Cathy shrugged. “I did. I hate the thought of drug dealers not getting their just desserts, but the one guy had a gun. He could have shot us or the police. He could have shot Ben, but he didn’t. I guess you could consider it a thank-you gift. Besides, if they’d gotten arrested, they might have taken it out on Wally or Zoe later, and neither of them deserve that, even though they’ve been pretty stupid.”
“Why did you ask Zoe to come with us? She’s the one who brought Ben here.”
Cathy put her arm around Linda. “We girls have to stick together. Girl power, and all that.”
Linda didn’t know what girl power was, but she liked the idea of women watching out for each other. And she liked the idea of Cathy being leader of the Girl Power Club.
At the end of the driveway, Cathy eyed the orange mailbox. “Broncos fans,” she said. “They should know better.”
Back in the car, Linda suddenly felt extraordinarily weary, as if she’d climbed Mount Elbert three times in one day. She leaned her head back against the seat and tried to figure out exactly where things had gone horribly wrong. She kept coming back to the day Ben Kiem had hitched a ride on the buggy for a skiing trip. Did she regret that memory or cherish it? Did it matter? Ben had taken enough of her peace, her happiness, and her life. She wasn’t going to let him take any more of it. She was done with him.
Being the practical and sensible girl she was, she pulled Ben Kiem from her heart and left her feelings on the side of the road next to the Denver Broncos mailbox.
Goodbye, Ben, and good riddance.
Cathy started the car and pulled onto the road. A movement across the street caught Linda’s eye. Ben stood in the shadows of a juniper bush, arms folded, gaze riveted to Cathy’s car as they drove away.
Linda blinked back the tears. Ben was still watching out for her.
But she wasn’t going to let herself care.
Chapter Fourteen
Walking was no way to go places, even if you were Amish. But when your friends ditched you and you refused to be in the same car with Linda Eicher, you didn’t have much choice but to walk, even if putting weight on your ankle took your breath away and your lip was swollen to the size of a cherry.
The sun was just rising over the horizon when Ben finally turned down the road to Esther and Levi’s house. Were they going to be happy to see him or mad he’d stayed out all night? Would they be glad he hadn’t died in some ditch or mad that he’d left without telling them where he was going? He didn’t know, and while he cared deeply about Levi and Esther, he was almost numb to their reaction. He was tired and in pain, and as long as they let him sleep there, even for one more night, he’d be grateful. It was definitely more than he deserved.
How had he sunk this low?
He hissed when he stepped on a pebble and his ankle buckled. Right now, he’d be grateful if he made it to Esther and Levi’s at all.
He shuffled to the side of the road when he heard a car behind him, but instead of driving by, the car stopped right next to him. He groaned inwardly. It was Cathy Larsen, no doubt come to scold him about his life.
She rolled down her window. “You look like something the cat dragged in.”
“Thank you,” he said, because he didn’t have the energy to be rude, especially not to Cathy, who had really come through for him last night.
“Get in, and I’ll take you the rest of the way.”
Ben never wanted to do anything more in his entire life. His whole body ached, and his ankle was on fire. But he’d been humiliated enough for a lifetime. He didn’t need Cathy to make him feel worse. “I’ll walk.”
Cathy rolled her eyes. “If you’re trying to prove your manhood, don’t bother. I’ve seen you at your worst, or at least, I hope last night was the worst I’m ever going to see from you. You went pretty low, and I should know. I watch Law and Order.”
“I don’t need you to preach to me.”
“I’m not preaching. And you could do permanent damage to that ankle if you keep walking on it. I should know. My husband has two pins in his elbow.”
Ben took a step forward, and the pain shot up his leg. He gasped. For some reason, the possibility of a ride made it impossible for him to go farther on his own. Whatever pride he had left died on the side of the road. He raised his injured leg and hopped to Cathy’s car.
He got in the back seat because it was too hard to hop all the way around the car to the passenger side. As soon as he got in and shut the door, Cathy drove forward. It was only another quarter of a mile, but the ride was a tremendous blessing all the same. He should probably thank her, but all he could do was close his eyes and try to push the pain from his mind. There was so much pain, and his ankle was the least of it.
Cathy pulled up to Esther and Levi’s house, turned off the engine, and got out. Was she coming for breakfast? Ach, if she got in the house, he’d be forced to sit through one of her lectures. Ben slid out of his seat and limped around the side of the car, br
acing himself against it so he wouldn’t fall over. “Cathy, you don’t need to see me to the door. I’m fine.”
“I’m not here to see you to the door. I’m here to make sure Esther and Levi know what you’ve done. I’ve got a feeling you won’t tell them on your own.”
Ben sighed and shook his head. “Please don’t. I’ve hurt them enough already.”
Cathy squared her shoulders and made the most of her five-foot height. “You sure have. I was beginning to wonder if you can’t think of anyone but yourself, but then last night, you proved me wrong. You’re not completely hopeless, and I’m willing to give you another chance.”
“What do you mean?”
Cathy pulled her purse from the passenger seat of her car. “It would take all morning to write you out a list of all the stupid things you’ve done.” She pinned Ben with a pointed look. “Breaking Linda’s heart would be on the top of that list.”
Ben’s gut clenched. He’d broken Linda’s heart? Nae, that couldn’t be true. Linda hated him, at least she did now.
“But Esther and Levi will want to know that you stood by your friends last night. You saved Wally and Zoe from possibly going to jail, even though they didn’t appreciate it at the time.”
Ben lowered his head. “Thank you for talking Wally into leaving. He’s the only friend I have left.”
“That’s not true, even though you think it is. Wally is the only friend you haven’t pushed away with your stubborn pride. I swear, Ben, you can be so thick.”
“I’m not worth your time, Cathy.”
Cathy snorted. “Well, mostly that’s true. But Linda told me how you refused to leave her after you all got out of the house.”
A lump lodged in Ben’s throat. “She didn’t deserve to be caught up in all that.”
Cathy raised an eyebrow. “At least we can agree on something.” She turned and walked up Esther’s sidewalk. “Linda says she has some essential oils for your face, though I don’t know that anything will help. You’ll never be quite as handsome again. Smoking does that to you.”
Ben had nothing to say to that. What did it matter how he looked when his soul was so ugly? “Don’t bother Linda. I don’t like essential oils anyway, and she shouldn’t waste her time.”
“Don’t I know it,” Cathy said.
Ben followed Cathy to the porch, hopping all the way. “I think they’re asleep. Why don’t you come back another time?”
“Another time?” Cathy said. “It’s almost seven o’clock. They’re up.”
Ben opened the door and met a very angry Esther standing in the hall. She propped her hands on her hips and glared at Ben as if she was trying to catch his shirt on fire. A small wire whisk was tucked behind her ear, like she’d been whipping up some cream and had to find a place to put the whisk to answer the door. When she caught sight of his face, a look of sympathy traveled briefly across her features before disappearing altogether. She scowled harder. “Where have you been? We’ve been worried sick.”
“You should have been,” Cathy said. “Ben got himself into a lot of trouble.”
Levi came into the front hall, took one look at Ben’s face, and pulled him in for a bracing hug. Esther had a temper. Levi was usually more sympathetic. “Mein bruder,” Levi said, squeezing Ben so tightly, he nearly crushed the wind out of him. “Ach, mein bruder. What happened?”
Esther seemed to grow impatient with Levi’s show of affection. She raised an eyebrow. “And where have you been?”
Cathy bustled into the house, nudging Levi, Ben, and Esther aside on her way to the kitchen. “Make some room, make some room. You don’t want to smother him before he’s had a chance to explain.” Was she taking his side now? Ben would never be able to understand Cathy Larsen.
“Jah,” Levi said, patting Ben on the shoulder. “Cum reu. You need some strong kaffee and a gute breakfast.”
“I think what he needs is a kick in the hinnerdale,” Esther said.
Cathy grunted in amusement. “Believe me, he’s been kicked just about everywhere else.”
Ben hissed as Esther laid her hand on his bruised cheek. “Ach, bruder. When are you ever going to learn?” Ben didn’t think he could feel any lower than he already did. He didn’t deserve Esther’s tenderness. She didn’t need to treat him kindly. It only made him feel worse.
Esther took his hand and led him down the hall to the kitchen. He held his breath and tried to walk normally, but his ankle ached so badly, he couldn’t help but limp. “Ach, what have you done to yourself?” Esther said. “I refuse to give you more stitches.”
Winnie sat in her highchair eating scrambled eggs, spoon in one hand and a fistful of eggs in the other. “Beh!” she cried when she saw him. Ben did his best to smile, but his heart wasn’t in it. He wasn’t good enough for Winnie. He wasn’t good enough for any of them.
“A very big Englischer stepped on my ankle,” Ben said, easing into a chair at the table. “No stitches needed.”
Esther scooted another chair next to him and sat down. She pulled his leg onto her lap and pushed up his pant leg. “Ach, du lieva, Ben. It’s swollen like an overgrown zucchini.”
“He stepped pretty hard.”
“Levi, can you hand me a bag of frozen corn from the freezer?” Levi did as he was told then pulled up a chair on the other side of Ben. “Would you like to sit down, Cathy?”
“Of course.” Cathy sat next to Ben, and Levi sat next to Winnie. Ach. That was all he needed, all these eyes staring at him, wanting an explanation, when he was eager to crawl into a hole and never come out.
Esther set the bag of corn on Ben’s ankle. He grimaced. Cradling his foot in her hands, Esther stood slowly. Then she set his foot gently on the chair. She turned and grabbed some supplies from that one well-stocked drawer she’d used a dozen times when she needed to tend to Ben’s injuries. She came at him with a wet rag and some soap, and he pulled his face away before she did something he’d regret.
“Ben,” Esther scolded. “We have to clean this up. Your lip is bleeding, your cheek is bluish purple, and your eye is almost swollen shut. Let me help you.”
Ben surrendered and held still while Esther tortured his face with a wet rag. “Now,” Esther said softly, “you had best tell us what happened.”
Cathy huffed out a breath. “Some Denver Broncos fans were doing a drug deal. Ben wanted to leave, but Zoe wouldn’t take him home. So he called me.”
Esther looked at Cathy as if she had a carrot sticking out of her ear. “He called you?”
“I’m the only person he knows who owns a car and likes a little adventure. And I haven’t had my bunion surgery yet, so I can still drive. And I have a police scanner.”
Levi chuckled, glanced at Ben, and took a swig of the small glass of milk on the table that Ben suspected was Winnie’s. “Why don’t you tell us what happened. Is it possible the police will show up this morning?”
Ben’s embarrassment was profound, but it looked as if Cathy was going to take the long way around the story, and Esther was getting more and more agitated. “Zoe took me and Wally to a party. But it wasn’t a party. There were two men selling drugs, and I knew I shouldn’t be there.”
Cathy nodded at Levi. “He’s not as dumb as most people think.”
Ben sighed. He was dumber. “I tried to get Wally and Zoe to leave, but Zoe has a crush on one of the guys, and Wally wasn’t thinking straight. The one man, Kevin, punched me in the face a couple of times when I tried to leave, and the other one stomped on my ankle. I borrowed Zoe’s phone and called Cathy, because I couldn’t walk and I wanted to get out of there. They finally let me out of the house.”
“Ach, how terrible,” Esther said.
Cathy nodded to Esther. “But here’s where it gets really good.”
Or really bad. “When Cathy got there, she said the police were coming.” He decided not to mention Linda.
“Lon has a police scanner.”
“I couldn’t leave Wally in there. I don’t know what
he would do if he got arrested. So I went back in to get him, but he wouldn’t come out. Cathy came in and convinced Wally to come with us. She even got Zoe out of there.” Ben glanced at Cathy. “I’m wonderful grateful.”
“Sometimes a grandmother figure is what you youngsters need. But that’s not all. The police came, and Ben refused to leave Linda. He was worried about her.”
Esther’s eyes grew big. “You dragged Linda into this?”
Ben drew back when she pressed his lip too hard. “That wasn’t my fault.”
“I invited Linda,” Cathy said. “She wasn’t much help, except she ruffled Ben’s feathers a bit. I always like to see that. And she convinced Ben she’d be okay, so he finally jumped over the hedge. I talked the police out of arresting us, and then we came home. We had to leave Ben there because the police would have been suspicious if we picked up a stranger on our way out of the neighborhood.”
Esther dabbed at Ben’s lip with her rag. “Ach. When will you learn, Ben? You can’t play with fire and not get burned.”
“Do you have to pile my sins on my head? You said you wouldn’t mention the Bateman fire again.”
She sighed. “I’m not talking about the Bateman fire. I’m talking about your life.”
Levi looked at Ben, his eyes full of tender emotions. “You’re safe now, and it’s over. We will speak no more of it.”
Esther turned and looked at Levi as if she wanted to argue, but Levi just pinched his lips together and raised an eyebrow.
Esther heaved a great sigh. “Oh, alright. Fine. We won’t mention it, but please, please don’t put us through that again. Neither of us slept a wink last night for worrying about you. I was forced to take out my pickleball paddle and pound it against the house just to make myself feel better.”
Cathy nodded at Ben. “Remember that when you think what you do doesn’t hurt anybody else.”
There was a firm knock on the door, and Esther left to answer it. Esther said hello, and someone gave a soft reply. Ben’s heart galloped around his chest. Though he couldn’t tell what they were saying, it only took him half a second to know it was Linda at the door. Her voice was like a familiar song he knew by heart. He tensed. Lord willing, Esther wouldn’t invite her in. He didn’t want Linda to see him like this, and for sure and certain, after last night, Linda wouldn’t want to lay eyes on him again.
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