The Trustworthy One

by Shelley Shepard Gray

  “That’s wunderbaar!” Katie exclaimed. “Well, tell us more.”

  “They’re a pair of siblings who lost both parents in a car accident. They’ve been shuttled around to a number of foster homes. They’re five and six. Gut ages, don’t you think?”

  “The best!” Marie said, rushing over to give them hugs. “No wonder you wanted us all over here. You’ve got to get everything ready for them.”

  Will grinned. “We sure do. We’re hoping you all might help us do some painting and shopping over the next couple of weeks.”

  Immediately, everyone started volunteering their time and offering to buy things for the kids.

  Kendra looked at Nate, wondering if he felt uncomfortable, but he was already offering to raid his store in order to help Harley make beds for the kids.

  “Hey, Kendra?” E.A. asked.

  “Yes?”

  “I was hoping you’d make me some meals when they first get here. Would you be willing to do that?”

  “Of course I would. You don’t even need to ask. But are you sure?”

  “You are the best cook we have. And all of your food is tasty and simple. I think that’s exactly what these kids are going to need.” She frowned. “You wouldn’t believe how they’ve been living.”

  A lump formed in her throat. She didn’t like to see things only in terms of herself, but she couldn’t fight her own memories. She had a pretty good idea of how those children were living because she’d lived that way. Though it felt almost hard to talk, she said, “I will be happy to make some meals for you to freeze.”

  “I can give you some money for the groceries.”

  “Of course not. It will be my gift.”

  “Danke, Kendra.” E.A. hugged her tight.

  Kendra hugged her back, then realized that Nate was standing right there, his focus completely on her.

  After E.A. was claimed by someone else, he leaned close. “Are you all right?”

  “Of course,” she said, but despite her best efforts, she was barely holding it together.

  Nate leaned closer. “We can leave or even go somewhere to talk for a few minutes.”

  “There’s no need for that. But thank you, Nate. That’s kind of you.”

  He smiled at her before moving back to the others.

  * * *

  Later, as they all walked into the dining room to eat the meal E.A. and Will had spread out for them, all Kendra could do was wonder how her life would have changed if such a thing had happened to her.

  What if someone had tried to save her, just like Will and E.A. were trying to save those kids? Just like she’d tried to save Naomi?

  What would her life have been like if she’d known she was cared for and loved?

  Things might have been very different, indeed.

  TWELVE

  “What did Andy say?” Marie whispered.

  Kendra smiled sadly. “He said that not only did it look like I was having trouble walking, but that my dress smelled. Then he asked if I’d like to skip school and go to his house.”

  SUNDAY

  The weekend had been wonderful. Kendra had gone out with Nate and her friends, leaving Naomi in charge of Blue. Kendra probably hadn’t thought too much about what she’d done, but for Naomi, it had been huge. Kendra had not only trusted her to be just fine on her own, but she’d also entrusted Naomi to look after her shelter dog.

  Since she was sixteen, that really wasn’t anything special. But for Naomi, who’d been watched over by her siblings when she’d lived at home and had never been given any responsibilities beyond school when she was living with her grandparents, it had meant a lot.

  Naomi had taken advantage of the time alone by cleaning Kendra’s house. Her sister had told her once that she always dreaded days off work because she’d have to spend it washing and dusting her home.

  When Kendra had woken up on Saturday morning, that had been the first thing she’d mentioned to Naomi—how nice it had been to wake up to a clean-smelling house on a Saturday morning.

  They’d spent the rest of the day doing things together. Kendra showed her how to make apple butter, and together they’d put up a dozen jars. Then, they’d celebrated their hard work by going out for pizza. Those were the kinds of things that Naomi had hoped would happen—spending time with her big sister without any difficult discussions or work.

  But now that it was Sunday and she was set to start school the next day, Naomi knew she had to face her grandparents, so she’d asked them over to Kendra’s house for a visit.

  Kendra, of course, knew about the invitation, but it had been obvious that she wasn’t looking forward to it. However, she put on a good face and acted like she was happy to be making snacks for what was sure to be an uncomfortable visit.

  As each minute passed, bringing them toward the big discussion about her future, Naomi found herself wishing time would slow down. Unfortunately, it did not.

  Therefore, all Naomi could do was pray that everything was going to be okay—or at least not too terrible.

  * * *

  Looking at the clock, Kendra reckoned Mommi and Dawdi would be there in ten minutes.

  From the moment she’d learned of Naomi’s plans, she’d been cooking up a storm. Ham and cream cheese roll ups, pretzel sticks, buffalo chicken dip, and lots and lots of molasses cookies. Of course it was too much, especially since she hoped they wouldn’t stay longer than an hour. But she not only had a lot of nervous energy, she was also acting shamefully prideful. There was a part of her that wanted to prove that she could provide well for her little sister.

  “Are you sure you’re not expecting half of Walnut Creek?” Nanny asked as Kendra loaded up another tray, Blue gazing up at it hopefully.

  Looking at the three filled trays, Kendra winced. “I guess it is too much. Do you think I should put part of it back?”

  “No way. You know that you cook better than Mommi. At the very least, they’ll get to have a good meal before they leave.”

  At the very least. That said it all. “We can give the extras to some of our friends. Or I’ll bring it to the shop when I go in on Monday.”

  Naomi nodded. “Once word gets out that you’ve been cooking, I bet everyone will step inside Tried and True.”

  Wiping down the counter, Kendra sighed. “So, are you ready for this?”

  “Jah. What about you?”

  “I am, but they aren’t going to be disappointed with me, Nanny.”

  “Oh, sure they will. They love to be disappointed about everything. Except our mother, of course.”

  Kendra hated that Naomi felt that way, but she couldn’t really disagree. Their grandparents were kind enough, but they weren’t encouraging in the least.

  “Let’s go put out these trays and get this visit over with. Maybe it will go better than we think.”

  Naomi picked up a tray but didn’t say anything, which said everything.

  * * *

  Ten minutes later, Kendra reckoned that no visit could ever be so long.

  Mommi and Dawdi had entered her home with wide eyes, looking around at Kendra’s small living room and kitchen with interest. After walking down the narrow hallway and peeking into both Kendra’s room and the bathroom, her grandmother nodded. “This is a nice home for you, Kendra.”

  When Nanny looked prepared to protest the rather cool compliment, Kendra shook her head slightly. “Danke, Mommi.”

  “How long have you lived here again?”

  “A little over a year now.” Blue walked to her side, suddenly seemed to notice the guests, and barked.

  “What is that?” Dawdi asked.

  “This is my hund, Blue.” Kendra knelt down by her dog’s side and petted her.

  “I didn’t know you got a dog,” Mommi murmured.

  “I’ve had her for several months now. Don’t worry, she usually walks out to meet newcomers, then goes back to my bedroom,” she said as she got to her feet. “She’s rather shy.”

  And sure enough, after g
iving Kendra a look that seemed to say she was satisfied with how things were going, Blue turned around and walked back down the hall.

  “Hmm,” Mommi said.

  Her grandparents remained standing in the living room, surveying the space. Almost as if they couldn’t wait to leave.

  Naomi jumped in. “Um, Kendra has been cooking.”

  Kendra chuckled. “Indeed I have.”

  Dawdi gaped at the arrangement of platters. “Why did you make so much?”

  “I don’t know. Naomi and I had fun cooking together.”

  “So much food for two guests seems wasteful to me,” Mommi said.

  On another day, Kendra might have reminded her grandmother that they weren’t guests, they were family. Not that they would have appreciated being corrected. Instead, she waved a hand. “Please, sit down and have something. I’ll bring you drinks. Would you prefer coffee or tea?”

  “Kaffi,” Mommi said. “For both of us.”

  “Jah, Mommi. I’ll bring you and Dawdi a cup right now.” Turning to go back into the kitchen, Kendra gentled her voice. “Nanny, perhaps you’d like to sit down, too?”

  Her eyes widened. “You don’t need to wait on me, Kendra.”

  “I know, dear.” Lowering her voice, she said, “But it’s time to have our talk, I think.”

  Going back into the kitchen, she prayed for patience. Her grandparents could try the patience of a saint, for sure and for certain. She hadn’t exactly expected them to apologize for never visiting until now, but it would have been lovely to hear.

  Now it was obvious that she was never going to hear such a thing. So far, her grandfather had hardly said a word and her grandmother was perched on her sofa like she was a visiting queen. It was a mystery as to how they could expect so little of their daughter but so much of her.

  After taking a deep breath and saying a prayer, Kendra fixed four cups of coffee and set them and a cream and sugar set on the bright blue tray she’d recently found at the thrift store. There was only one thing she needed to do, and that was make Naomi happy. She needed to remember that.

  Walking back into the living room, she noticed that both of her grandparents had their plates piled high with her food. Dawdi, especially, looked taken with it.

  “Here’s the kaffi,” she said. “Cream and sugar, Dawdi?”

  “Black,” he said.

  “I take mine black as well,” Mommi said as Kendra handed her a cup.

  “Would you like to fix your own, Nanny? Or would you rather I fixed your cup?”

  “Could you do it, Kendra?”

  Kendra added a spoonful of sugar to both Kendra’s cup and her own and then added a healthy amount of milk to each cup. Mommi looked on with dismay.

  “It’s unhealthy for a girl to have kaffi.”

  “Perhaps, but I’ve been drinking it for a mighty long time,” Kendra replied. “I started drinking coffee when I was thirteen or fourteen. It hasn’t done me much harm so far.”

  “Nanny is a different sort of person.”

  As in, her little sister had a lot more promise than Kendra ever had.

  Maybe that was true, but it still stung. One day she’d have the nerve to remind her grandparents that part of the reason she’d been up early drinking coffee was because there usually wasn’t juice or milk in the refrigerator. And when there was, she’d known that her younger siblings needed the nutrients more than she did.

  Of course, she’d also needed the caffeine. She’d been responsible for getting her siblings up, dressed, and fed. Their father, when he was working, was gone, and their mother was usually too depressed to get out of bed.

  But today was not the day to go back in time.

  Dawdi had been steadily cleaning his plate. As soon as it was empty, he put it on the trunk that served as Kendra’s coffee table. “Naomi, we need to head back home. Where is your suitcase?”

  “Well, about that…” Pausing, she darted a hopeful look at Kendra.

  It was time. “I’d like Naomi to live with me,” Kendra said.

  Their grandfather frowned. “When?”

  “Now.” When they simply stared, she added, “I mean from now on.”

  “That seems rather sudden, Kendra.” Their grandmother’s expression had tightened.

  “It’s not that sudden. After all, Nanny is already here,” Kendra explained. “There’s no time like the present. I’ll get some of my friends to help us gather her things at your house over the coming weekend or sometime next week.”

  Both of their grandparents turned to Naomi.

  “Naomi, what do you have to say about this?” Dawdi asked.

  Nanny flushed. “I want to stay here with Kendra. And… and Kendra just lied. This wasn’t her idea; it was mine. This is what I want to do.”

  “You may not stay here. Go get your suitcase now,” Mommi said.

  “I’m not going to do that,” Nanny said.

  Before the argument could continue, Kendra spoke again. “This isn’t your decision, Mommi.”

  “It is. She is just a child. Only sixteen. She needs an adult to supervise her.”

  “I agree,” Kendra said. “But you are forgetting that I’m an adult, too.”

  “What is this about?” Dawdi interrupted. “Are you feeling guilty for leaving your siblings all those years ago?”

  Kendra felt as if she’d just been struck. Was that really how her grandparents had twisted the past? Beyond agitated, she got to her feet. “Don’t try to change the past to make yourself feel better. You know how my parents treated me. You know how they treated all of us.”

  “Your mother did the best she could,” their grandmother retorted. “Your departure hurt her deeply. She hasn’t been the same since.”

  “If she isn’t the same, then one could only hope she has gotten better. But we all know that is likely not the case,” Kendra said. Yes, there was venom in her voice, and she hated it, hated that she had so much hurt and anger buried deep inside her that it could spew forth just like a geyser, pouring out a lifetime of pain.

  Their grandfather crossed his arms over his chest. “I know you haven’t gone to see your parents in years, and you’ve encouraged Jeremiah, Mary, and Chris to also stay away.”

  “We all stayed in that house as long as we could bear it.” Except for Nanny. They’d gotten her out.

  “Rehashing the past doesn’t do any of us good. Naomi, you belong with us.” Their grandmother lumbered to her feet. “Go get your things, child. We are leaving now.”

  “Nee. I am staying here,” Nanny said. “Mommi, Dawdi, the truth is that I asked you to take me to Walnut Creek so I could talk to Kendra about moving in. I love you both, but I want to live with my sister.”

  Mommi swung her head back to Kendra. “Is this true?”

  “Mommi, look at Naomi. She’s all grown up now. She knows her own mind and doesn’t lie.”

  “She canna be so close to her parents and not live with them. People will notice. What will everyone say?”

  Kendra could hardly speak, she was so angry. That was what they were concerned about?

  But before Kendra could say a word, Naomi jumped to her feet. “Listen! Your daughter, Rosanna, and her husband, Hank, had five children. They abused Kendra.” She sucked in a breath. “Nee, they hurt all of us. We didn’t have food. We didn’t have heat. They didn’t do much for us at all.”

  Their grandmother shook her head. “It wasn’t like that. Your mother—”

  “My mother takes all sorts of pills so she doesn’t have to deal with her husband or the memories of how she neglected us,” Nanny said.

  “She has prescriptions,” Dawdi said. “Doctors gave them to her.”

  “Well, she has a lot of them,” Nanny said. “And the sad part is that you are both sticking your heads in the sand as much as she is. It’s as if you pretend that Kendra didn’t get beaten as much as she did or that Chris hadn’t half starved or that Jeremiah didn’t almost die. Then… then you don’t have to feel any guilt.
”

  Their grandmother turned deathly pale. “We did the best we could for her and for you. We took you in, child.”

  “But what about everyone else?” Naomi said. “I’m grateful for you taking me in for the last four years, but it doesn’t change the fact that you never stepped up for Kendra or Mary or the boys.”

  “We didn’t know how bad things were, Naomi,” Dawdi said stiffly. “Besides, it wasn’t as if we could have done anything. You were with your parents.”

  It was such an obvious lie that Nanny paled.

  Kendra jumped to her defense again. “If saying such things helps you sleep at night, then I hope you sleep well,” Kendra said as she walked to the door and opened it. “But unless you are willing to accept Nanny’s decision, I think it’s time you left.”

  Her grandfather walked to the door, his whole body stiff. “You are going to regret this, Kendra. You are going to regret turning her against us.”

  “I regret a lot of things, but I’m fairly sure I’ll never have as many regrets as you. I did my best for my brothers and sisters. And I’ll never, ever regret being here for Naomi.”

  Dawdi turned, and Mommi walked out without a backward glance.

  Seconds later, the door closed. Kendra walked to the window and watched their grandparents march to their car, slowly get inside, then drive away. She sighed.

  “Well, that went well,” Naomi mumbled. “Good thing you made all that food.”

  Surprised by the sarcasm, Kendra turned to her little sister, who had her arms folded over her chest. “Are you okay?”

  She shrugged. “I have a feeling in a little while I’m going to feel worse. I love Mommi and Dawdi, and I’m sad they’re acting like I don’t. But… well, right now, all I feel is free.” She exhaled. “Kendra, have you ever felt like that?”

  The day she walked out of her parents’ house for the last time, she’d been hurting, almost penniless, and burdened by guilt. But above all that, she’d known that no matter what happened in her future, she’d never have to worry about being yelled at or beaten again.