“Okay.”
“Has Naomi said anything to you about her sister or moving?”
The boy paused. “She said something about that the other day. Just a little bit.” When Nate stayed quiet, giving Kane time to weigh his words, he added, “Naomi said she might be moving because she did something to upset her sister.”
“That’s what she said?”
Kane nodded. “She didn’t tell me much, but I didn’t ask a lot of questions, either. I got the feeling that her family is pretty complicated.”
Nate almost felt like smiling. Saying they were complicated was a pretty kind way of describing the Troyers. “I think you’re right,” he said slowly. “They, well, they certainly are complicated. Thanks for speaking with me. You better get outside and help Ben now. Tell him that I’ll be out to finish up the day in a minute.”
“All right.” Just before Kane walked back into the shop, he looked in Nate’s direction. “Um, for what it’s worth, I got the feeling that Naomi is pretty upset because she feels like Kendra will never forgive her. But I told her she needs to put her doubts to the side and start trusting more, you know? We are all imperfect, but God still loves us. I could be wrong, but I don’t think we’re supposed to forget that.”
“I don’t think you’re wrong at all. In fact, I think you’re very right.”
“I could talk to her, if you’d like. Try to convince her to talk to her sister and put everything out in the open.”
“I think that would help Kendra, but I don’t want you to feel obligated.”
“I don’t, Mr. Miller. I offered, jah?” Looking determined, he said, “I’ll go this evening after work.”
“If you’re willing to talk to her, then you can leave whenever you’re ready. I’m sorry to put you in a tight spot, Kane, but I appreciate you helping me out. Danke.”
Kane smiled at him before walking out the door and closing it behind him.
When he was alone again, Nate realized he had an answer for Kendra at last. God already forgave a pure heart. And since that was the case, he felt sure Naomi would come to her senses soon and Kendra would forgive her.
They’d forgive each other.
TWENTY–EIGHT
“That’s when Andy looked a little sad and said he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. He shared that he didn’t have any big dreams. When I asked him how that could be, he said it was because he already had everything he ever wanted.”
FRIDAY
Kane knew he was going to have to find Naomi and talk to her. The minute Mr. Miller told him that he could leave as soon as he was ready, he pulled out his cell phone and texted his mother, saying he was going to be an hour late.
Since his mother knew he was at work, she texted him right back and said she’d keep supper warm, obviously thinking he was working late.
Kane decided it was a good idea to let her believe that. It was a whole lot easier than trying to explain why he suddenly felt the need to try to fix things between Naomi and her sister.
Now all he had to do was find Naomi. First, he went to Tried and True and peeked in. The sign on the door said CLOSED, and it was completely dark inside. So, Naomi hadn’t come back to the shop.
Kane didn’t think she would have gone home so early. It was only seven, so she had to have gone someplace where she could wait for the time to pass.
After giving it some thought, he walked over to the bleachers at the high school. Naomi didn’t know a lot of people and she probably didn’t want to wander around Walnut Creek by herself.
He soon found out that his hunch was right. She was sitting on one of the metal benches, three rows from the bottom. She was hunched over with her elbows resting on her knees. When she saw him, instead of sitting up straighter or greeting him, she just looked away. With most people, he would have taken that for what it was—a sure sign to leave her alone.
He approached her anyway. His tennis shoes crunched on the gravel. During the day or during a game, it made only the faintest of noises, but on a clear night like tonight, when they were the only two people around? His footsteps seemed to echo around them.
“Hey,” he said when he got close enough that he wouldn’t have to yell.
“Hi, Kane.”
He paused, half waiting for her to gesture for him to sit down and join her.
She didn’t.
He sat anyway, taking a spot two rows below her. “You know, I’m kind of congratulating myself right now. I thought there was a pretty good chance you’d be here, and I was right.”
“Good for you.”
He turned, bracing his arms on either side of him so he wouldn’t fall backward. “So, aren’t you gonna ask why I was looking for you?”
“All right.” Looking even grumpier, she said, “Why are you here, Kane?”
“Because I just talked to my boss about you.”
“Why?” For the first time since he arrived, she looked alert.
“Because he likes your sister Kendra. And Kendra’s upset because she thinks you’re mad at her.”
Her whole expression fell. “Kendra talked to Nate about our conversation?”
“Well, yeah,” he said. “And don’t act so offended. I told you they were close. But you had to know that anyway, right?”
“I knew they were friends… but I didn’t know they were that close.”
“Come on. I’m a guy, and I’ve noticed there’s something going on between them.” Grinning at her shocked expression, he added, “Naomi, you had to have seen the way that Nate’s eyes follow Kendra whenever they’re in the same room?”
“Well, yes. I know that they’ve gotten closer.” Looking uncomfortable, she added, “I’ve also learned not to think too hard about men looking at my big sister. Sometimes guys stare at her. I don’t know why.”
Oh, he knew. Kane almost shared that he reckoned every man thought Kendra was pretty. Even Kane thought Kendra Troyer was gorgeous, and she was far older than he was. But he also knew it wasn’t just her looks. It was the sad light in her eyes that made everyone take a second look at her. He’d even seen Ben do it.
But no way was he going to share any of that. He didn’t want Naomi to take it the wrong way—or think Kane didn’t think she was just as pretty in her own way.
Instead, he focused on what was important, the fact that both of the women needed to have a good talk as soon as possible.
“Naomi,” he said softly. “It’s a good thing she shared with him.”
“I suppose.” She wrinkled her nose. “But I don’t get why Nate talked to you.”
“Because he wanted to know how he could help. I think he’s afraid something bad happened between the two of you.”
“It did. She told me something in confidence, and I practically turned away from her.” She shook her head. “I focused on me instead of her feelings. Just like I always have.”
“I told him you knew you’d made a mistake with her.”
“And then what did he say?”
“Nothing. He had to go back to work, and so did I. But then, when he said I could leave early, I decided to find you.” He looked around. “I’m sorry you’re sitting here by yourself.”
“Me, too. I thought I needed time to think. But all I’ve been doing is thinking, and it’s not helping much.”
“I’m glad I found you, then.”
“Any idea what I should do now?”
“You need to go home.” He stood up and held out his hand. “Let’s go. I’ll walk you.”
His statement startled a laugh from her. “Seriously?”
“It’s getting dark. No way am I going to let you walk home in the dark by yourself.”
“What about your Jeep?”
“I didn’t bring it to work today.” He reached out for her. “Come on. Take my hand. I’ve got to get home, too.”
She rested her hand in his and let him pull her up. “All right.”
Kane helped her walk down the bleachers, though she didn’t need any help, then
he dropped her hand as soon as they got on the solid ground.
“What’s the best way to walk to your house?”
She pointed toward the ball field. “That way. Kendra’s place is just on the other side.”
“That close? It’s almost faster to walk to school than drive, isn’t it?”
“It is if you’re not carrying around a bunch of books or a cooler.”
He smiled at the reminder… before realizing how much he’d miss her if she was gone. “Hey, Naomi? Are you still going to leave?”
“I don’t know.” She walked carefully along the gravel until they came to the manicured path that ran around the perimeter of the field. “When I told Kendra that, I was mad at her. I was sure anything would be better than living with her.”
“And now?”
“Now? I realize that was a stupid thing to think.”
“Is she really that hard to live with?” Kendra had seemed nice.
Naomi stopped and looked at him in shock. “No. Nee! I was just mad at her. She’s great.”
“Not to be rude, but if she was that great, you wouldn’t be thinking of leaving, would you?”
“Not if I wasn’t in a snit.” Her voice still sounded mystified. “But really, you have no idea…”
“About what?”
“About what we have to compare things to. I promise you, even if you tried to imagine a really bad home situation, you wouldn’t even come close.”
“Oh. So…”
They were at the edge of the ball field. On the other side of the chain-link fence was a residential street, illuminated by a streetlamp. Kane could see Naomi’s expression, and it was wrecked. She was so upset that she looked beyond tears.
“So, I made a big mistake, Kane. I wasn’t sitting on those bleachers wondering where to go next. I was sitting there, wondering how I was ever going to make Kendra understand that my home is with her. I want her to trust me with her heart again.”
“All you have to do is tell her that.”
She shook her head. “That’s not enough.”
Kane realized then that Naomi still had a lot to learn about love and trust. “Look, I’m no expert, but I can promise you that love, especially between siblings and family members, isn’t about being ‘good enough’ or never making mistakes. It’s just there.”
“You really believe that, don’t you?”
“Yep.” He smiled to himself as they slipped through the narrow opening in the fence and got to her street.
“Here it is,” she said.
Looking again at the variety of plants and flowers surrounding the little walkway leading up to the front door, he said, “It’s a small haus, but really pretty, Naomi.”
“I’ve always thought that, too,” she murmured as they approached. “Kendra is a really good housekeeper and gardener.”
Stopping on the street, he noticed a faint light shining through the white curtains in the front of the house. “It looks like she’s home.”
“I’m sure she is. Kendra likes to use a battery-operated light and either work on a sewing project or read in the evenings.”
“Maybe she’s also waiting for you.”
“I guess I need to go in now.”
She looked so nervous. If they were closer, he’d give her a reassuring hug. Instead he did the next best thing. “I’ll stand here until you get safely inside.”
She took a step, then looked back at him. “Would you do me one last favor? After the door closes, would you count to a hundred before you walk away?”
“A hundred?”
“Jah. Just in case things don’t go well. That gives Kendra a minute or two to tell me off.”
He almost laughed, until he realized Naomi was completely serious. “Sure, I can count to a hundred before I leave.” Then, he decided to do something even better. “Hey, give me your hand real quick.”
As she held out her left hand, he pulled a pen out of his pocket and wrote down his landline number. “This is our kitchen phone. If something goes wrong later or even tomorrow before school, give me a call, and I’ll help you decide what to do.”
She looked down at her palm. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“Yep.” He reached out and folded her hand into a fist. “Now, go on, Naomi.” When she still hesitated, he said, “Sorry, but I really do have to go home.”
“Oh, sure. Sorry. But thanks for tonight.”
Instead of answering, he made a shooing motion with his hands. Then he stood there as she took a deep breath and finally walked to the house. When she knocked on the door, he stepped a little further into the shadows and held his breath as a couple of seconds passed.
Finally, the door opened. “Naomi!” Kendra said as she pulled her into a hug. “Oh, praise God.”
He started counting after the door shut again, but as he saw the faint shadows through the curtains, he knew he was only counting because he had made a promise to Naomi, not because he was worried about her.
By the time he reached ninety, he was whistling softly, feeling pretty good about the whole situation.
Then he hurried home.
When he opened the kitchen door, his mother sighed in relief.
“Kane, we were starting to worry about you,” his dad chided.
“I know. I’m sorry I’m home so late. I, well, I had to help out a friend.”
His mother, who was pulling his plate out from the refrigerator, glanced his way. “Oh? Is everything okay?”
“I think so. I’ll tell you all about it while I eat.”
Ten minutes later, after he’d washed up, he was sitting at the table with his parents and a full plate of spaghetti and meatballs in front of him.
“So, I met this girl. Her name’s Naomi, and I like her a lot,” he began. He told her story as he ate, realizing as he did that he’d never again take all his blessings for granted.
TWENTY–NINE
“We must have sat there for hours, me and Andy. Talking about nothing. Eventually, I went back inside and put on my now-clean dress, which smelled like his mother’s dryer sheets. Then, I helped Andy clean up the kitchen so good, no one would have ever guessed we’d been there.”
FRIDAY
She couldn’t stop crying. “I’m so sorry,” Naomi said into Kendra’s neck for about the fifth time. “Will you ever forgive me?”
“There’s nothing to forgive.”
Naomi knew Kendra would say that no matter what and that she might actually believe it, but she didn’t feel like that simple acceptance was enough. “I shouldn’t have acted like I deserved to know all of your secrets. I don’t know why I listened to Chris.”
With a sigh, Kendra pulled away. “Chris was only trying to help you.”
“Sometimes he acts like our parents weren’t any different from all his friends’ parents,” Naomi said. “Like, they just sometimes forgot to buy us milk or something. I don’t understand it. Do you?”
“Nee. I can’t speak for him. I can only guess that he finds that an easier way to cope with the memories,” Kendra said slowly.
“So he copes by lying?” she cried. “By lying to us? We know what it was like, Kendra.”
“Come on, let’s go sit down.”
Naomi followed her into the kitchen, sitting down on one of the chairs as Kendra put the kettle back on the stove. Blue trotted over to her, circling her feet. Kendra bent down and patted her dog before walking to the covered cake holder. “I made some blondies. Would you like one, Naomi?”
She got to her feet. “Would you mind if I made a sandwich first? I didn’t eat supper.” She actually hadn’t eaten for hours.
“Help yourself. You know you don’t have to ask. Anything that’s here is for you.”
She grabbed the peanut butter, some freshly made bread, and strawberry jam that Kendra had put up in the spring. The peanut butter and jelly sandwich was anything but simple, thanks to the freshly made ingredients. By the time Naomi sat down again, she felt better. Maybe not completely ca
lmed down but ready to listen and speak without getting overwrought.
Holding a mug of tea between her hands, Kendra sat down across from her. For a few minutes, neither said a word. Kendra sipped her tea and Naomi ate her sandwich. When she was done, Kendra took her plate and put it in the sink. Then she sat back down and finally spoke.
“Naomi, all five of us kids are survivors. But that doesn’t mean we are completely healed or don’t ever make mistakes. Even survivors can be flawed, don’t you think?”
“I never thought of all of us as being survivors.”
“Well, I think if we got out the dictionary, we might see that the definition of a survivor fits us like a glove.” She leaned back. “I’ve never actually talked about this with the others, but I think we all coped with our father’s abuse and our mother’s denial in different ways. The way we grew up wasn’t normal. It’s not normal to be denied food, shelter, or decent clothing. It’s not okay to expect to be hit or yelled at for no reason other than it was easy to abuse us because we had nowhere else to go.” Her voice cracking, Kendra said, “It wasn’t okay for our parents to expect their oldest child to raise four younger siblings.”
“But Chris pretends that it wasn’t so bad.”
“Jah. I think he does that real well.”
“But why?”
“I think it’s easier for Chris to forget the bad things and concentrate on the man he is now,” she said after a pause. “And that man wants to do everything right. He wants to care for his little sister, honor his mother, and forgive his father.”
“But what about you? He isn’t treating you all that good.”
“Well, now, I don’t know why,” she said, “but he’d rather focus on the things I shouldn’t have done in Columbus instead of what I did for him when we were little.”
“That’s not fair, though.”
Kendra waved a hand. “Everyone can agree it wasn’t good that I started drinking so much that I blacked out all the time. It wasn’t good that I started taking pills and did all sorts of things to support my habit. Having to go to an institution to get clean when I was only eighteen years old isn’t something to be proud of.”
The Trustworthy One Page 18