A Cousin's Challenge

by Wanda E. Brunstetter

  She pushed away from the table. “I think I ought to get the dishes done. We can talk about our financial situation some other time.”

  “I believe you’re right. If we all think about this for a while, maybe one of us will come up with a plan.” Mama stood. “It’s a chilly evening. I think I’ll take my tea and go to the living room so I can sit by the fire.” She walked out, leaving Ella and Charlene alone.

  Ella moved over to the sink and pulled a dirty kettle into the water where she’d placed some other dishes to soak. As she scrubbed the pot vigorously, soapy water cascaded over her hands and dripped back into the sink. It felt good to keep busy. It was the only thing that kept her from breaking down in a puddle of tears.

  “You want me to dry, or are you gonna let the dishes drain?” Charlene asked.

  Ella shrugged. “It doesn’t really matter. If you’d like to join Mama in the living room, That’s fine with me. Just be sure you don’t say anything that might upset her.”

  Charlene thrust out her lower lip as she frowned. “I’m not gonna do or say anything to upset Mama, and you need to quit bein’ so bossy.”

  “Someone has to be in charge now that Papa’s gone. As the oldest, it’s my job to look out for Mama and see that our family is taken care of.”

  Charlene opened her mouth like she might say more, but then she closed it and left the room.

  Ella grabbed another kettle and sloshed the sponge around as she blinked back tears of anger and frustration. Oh, Papa, she silently cried. I miss you so much.

  The back door banged, causing Ella to jump. Either Charlene had gone outside, or someone had come into the house.

  ***

  When Jolene entered her aunt’s kitchen with Loraine and Katie, she wasn’t surprised to find Ella in front of the sink with a sponge in her hand. Ever since Jolene could remember, Ella had always kept busy. Even when they were young girls, Ella thought she needed to be working when she should have been playing. She was the kind of person who always seemed to put other people’s needs ahead of her own.

  “We came to see how you’re doing,” Jolene said, stepping up to Ella so she could see her face. Loraine and Katie moved close to the sink, too.

  “I’m doing as well as can be expected.” Ella’s smile appeared to be forced; there was no laughter behind her eyes. “If you’d like to have a seat at the table, I’ll pour us some tea.”

  Everyone took seats, and Ella served the tea, along with a loaf of freshly baked friendship bread.

  Jolene’s fingers curled around the handle of the warm cup. It felt like old times, the four cousins sitting together. Only they weren’t innocent young girls anymore. One of them was married and expecting a baby; one was on the brink of marriage; and the other two had a lot of responsibility on their shoulders.

  Loraine transferred her cup from one hand to the other, while Katie blotted her lips with a napkin. “This bread is really good, Ella. You’re better at baking than anyone I know.”

  “Danki.” Ella smiled, although again, it appeared to be forced. She was obviously putting up a brave front, but Jolene knew her cousin was hurting.

  “Is there anything we can do to help you?” Loraine asked. Jolene was glad everyone faced her, even when they spoke to Ella.

  Ella’s eyes filled with tears. She blinked rapidly, as though trying to keep herself from crying. “Guess the thing we need most is a lot of prayer, because short of a miracle, we’ll soon be out of money.”

  “What do you mean?” Katie asked.

  Ella told them about her dad’s business and how there was no way she and Charlene could keep it going. “So I need to find a job,” she said. “Unfortunately, none of the places I’ve been to so far are hiring right now.”

  Everyone agreed that they would pray for Ella’s family, and then they sat quietly together, drinking their tea and eating the friendship bread.

  Soon after Jolene had taken a second piece of bread and covered it with butter, an idea popped into her head. “I think I know a way you can make some money,” she said, smiling at Ella.

  “What’s that?” Ella asked, slouching in her chair.

  “Why don’t open a home-based bakery? You could sell fresh baked goods to others in our community and to the tourists.”

  Ella blinked a couple of times and sat up straight. “You really think I could do that?”

  “I don’t see why not.”

  “I agree with Jolene,” Loraine said. “With your baking skills, I’ll bet in no time you’d have all kinds of business.”

  “Oh, I don’t know. There are so many things I’d have to do first, and there’s really no place for a bakeshop in the house.”

  “Maybe you could use your daed’s shop,” Katie suggested. “It’ll be empty after you sell off your daed’s things.”

  Ella tapped her fingers along the edge of the table. “The building would need a lot of work to turn it into a bakeshop. We’d have to buy an oven, a refrigerator, a bakery cabinet, and so many other things.”

  “You’d also need to have the place inspected by the health department and get the proper license,” Loraine put in. “It would take some doing, but if it’s God will, then I’m sure it’ll all work out.”

  Ella tugged her earlobe. “I’m not sure it would work, but I’ll give it some thought.”

  “And don’t forget to pray,” Jolene said with a smile. “Remember now, we’ll all be praying with you.”

  CHAPTER 26

  Ella filled the sink with hot water and added some detergent. A glint of light shone through the kitchen window from the full moon outside. She was relieved that the day was almost over. She was eager to get the dishes done and head upstairs to her room. She would need to rise with the call of the rooster tomorrow morning, for there’d be plenty of chores waiting for her to do before breakfast. She and Charlene would keep busy the rest of the day, painting the barn.

  “I don’t know about you, but I’m all done in,” Charlene said as she pulled a clean dish towel from the drawer.

  Ella nodded. “I’ve always enjoyed baking before, but since I opened the bakeshop two weeks ago, it seems like all I do is bake and wait on customers.”

  “But your business is doing well, and it’s already making us some money. Isn’t that so?”

  “Jah, and I’m grateful for the money that some in our community donated so I could buy everything I needed to get the business going. The only problem is, I’m kept so busy with the bakeshop that I can’t keep up with all the chores that need to be done around here, which is why I’ll be closing the shop tomorrow in order to paint the barn.” Ella smiled at Charlene. “I appreciate the way you’ve taken over so many of the household chores, waited on customers, and have even helped with some of the baking. If Mama felt better, I’m sure she’d do more, too.”

  Charlene’s nose crinkled. “Do you think there’s something seriously wrong with Mama? Should we insist that she see the doctor?”

  Ella dipped her hands into the soapy water and picked up another dish. “I don’t think we can insist that Mama do anything. But we do need to keep praying about the matter, and I may ask Aunt Priscilla to speak with Mama again, too.”

  “Good idea. Let’s hope she’ll listen this time.”

  ***

  Several buckets of white paint sat in the driveway along with a bucket of water for cleaning brushes and rollers. Ella had put Larry and Amelia in charge of the younger siblings so Mama could rest. Charlene would paint the lower half of the barn, while Ella climbed the ladder and did the upper half, since Charlene was afraid of heights.

  “It’s too cold to be doing this,” Charlene complained. “I’d rather be inside where it’s warm and toasty.”

  “You’ll warm up once you start working.” Ella motioned to the bucket of paint near Charlene. “Now get busy and stop complaining.”

  Charlene frowned. “You’re bossing me around again, and I don’t like it!”

  “I wouldn’t boss you at all if you did
what you’re supposed to do.” Ella grabbed her paint bucket and a brush and then scurried up the ladder. Truthfully, she didn’t like the idea of painting the barn any more than Charlene, but it needed to be done. Complaining wouldn’t help. If Papa hadn’t died, he’d have had the barn painted already. Just a few days before his death, he’d told Ella that he wanted to get the painting done before winter set in.

  Ella swallowed around the lump that seemed to be clogging her throat a good deal of the time these days and forced herself to concentrate on what she was doing. With each stroke of the brush, she reminded herself that she was doing this for Papa.

  Ella had just started painting around the opening of the loft when she heard the familiar rumble of buggy wheels. She looked down and saw Jake climb out of his buggy. He tied his horse to the hitching rail, walked toward the barn, and looked up at her. “What are you doing up there?” he hollered.

  “What’s it look like?” she called in return.

  “Looks like you’re tryin’ to paint the barn.”

  “I’m not trying; I am painting the barn.”

  “You should have asked for help.”

  “Charlene’s helping me.”

  Jake looked around. “She’s not here now.”

  “She probably went to the house for a few minutes.”

  “If you’ll come down off that ladder, I’ll take your place.”

  Ella stiffened. Jake had no right to tell her what to do. She clamped her teeth tightly together and kept painting.

  “If you won’t come down, then I guess I’ll do some painting down here, ’cause it looks to me like Charlene didn’t finish what she started.”

  Ella clenched the paintbrush so tightly that her fingers turned numb. Did Jake really want to help, or was he just trying to irritate her? She slapped another blob of paint on the barn and didn’t look down.

  “You’ve got a lot on your shoulders these days,” Jake called. “I know it can’t be easy, and you shouldn’t be expected to do everything alone.”

  Ella ignored him and kept painting until Charlene showed up and hollered, “Mama’s up from her nap, and she set some doughnuts and hot coffee on the table. Why don’t you take a break and come inside for a while?”

  “In a minute. I want to finish what I started up here before I take a break.”

  “Does that invitation for doughnuts and coffee include me?” Jake asked.

  “Jah, sure,” Charlene said sweetly. “You’re more than welcome to join us, and I appreciate you taking over my job of painting.”

  Ella almost gagged. Why was Charlene being so nice to Jake? Didn’t she realize he couldn’t be trusted? More than likely, he’d come over here to make himself look good in his folks’ eyes. He probably thought his dad would be nicer to him if he knew Jake had come here to help. Well, if Jake was going in the house, then Ella was going there, too. She couldn’t take the chance that he’d say or do something to upset Mama—or that he’d flirt with Charlene. It seemed as if Jake liked to flirt with every young woman he knew—everyone but Ella. Well, that was fine with her! If Jake ever tried to flirt with her, she’d be quick to put him in his place.

  When Ella finished painting around the opening of the loft, she shifted her paintbrush to the other hand and slowly descended the ladder. She’d only gone down a few rungs when her foot slipped. She lost her grip on the bucket, and it fell. When she tried to catch hold of it, the ladder wobbled. Ella shouted for Charlene to hold it steady, but it was too late—Ella and the ladder tumbled to the ground.

  CHAPTER 27

  Sprawled on the ground, with one foot wedged against the ladder and wet paint running down one arm, Ella stared up at Jake with a bewildered expression. “Wh-what happened?”

  “The ladder toppled, and you fell. I tried to catch you, but your foot hit me in the head, and I lost my balance.” Jake dropped to his knees beside her. “Are you hurt? Do you think anything’s broken?”

  She gave a noncommittal grunt and winced as she tried to sit up. “My ... my head’s throbbing, and so’s my arm.”

  Jake held his hand gently against her shoulder. “Don’t move. You might have a broken bone.”

  “Jake’s right; your arm—especially your wrist—is beginning to swell, and I’ll bet it’s broken.” Charlene bent close to Ella, her eyes huge.

  “It can’t be broken.” Tears glistened in Ella’s eyes. “How am I supposed to bake if my arm is broken?”

  “Let’s not put the buggy before the horse,” Jake said. “We need to get you to the doctor so we know if it’s broken. Then you can worry about how you’re going to do any baking.” He reached up to rub his forehead.

  “Are you okay?” Charlene asked, bending close to Jake.

  “It’s nothing; just a little bump is all.” He looked at Ella and said, “I’m starting to get used to bumps on the head.”

  Just then, Verna, Ella’s mother, came running out of the house. “Ach! What happened to you, Ella? I looked out the kitchen window and saw you lying on the ground.”

  “She fell off the ladder,” Jake explained. “Her wrist is really swollen, and I think her arm might be broken.”

  The look Ella shot Jake was as chilling as the crisp fall air. “I can speak for myself, Jake Beechy.”

  Verna looked up at the barn then back at Ella. “I knew this painting job was too much for my girls. I should have insisted that we ask some of the men we know to paint the barn for us.”

  “I’ll take Ella into the house, and we’ll get some ice to put on her arm,” Jake said, looking at Verna. “If you or Charlene will go out to your phone shed and call one of your drivers to take us to the hospital, Ella can have her arm looked at.”

  Verna bobbed her head. “That’s a good idea. I’m glad you’re here, Jake. You’re thinking more clearly than the rest of us right now.” She patted Ella’s shoulder. “I’ll call Marge Nelson and see if she’s free to take us to the hospital.”

  Without hesitation, Jake bent down, scooped Ella into his arms, and started across the yard.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” she screeched.

  “I’m taking you to the house.”

  “Put me down! It’s not my leg That’s broken. I’m perfectly capable of walking to the house by myself.”

  “You’re full of hochmut, you know that?”

  “I am not full of pride. Now put me down!”

  “No, I’m going to carry you.”

  “No, you’re not!”

  Ella’s lips may have told Jake no, but he could tell she was in no shape to walk on her own, so he kept hold of her as he continued walking toward the house.

  “Did you hear what I said?”

  “I heard you, but I’m not putting you down.” Jake quickened his steps. “You had a nasty bump on the head, and you might get dizzy and pass out if you try to walk.”

  “Jake’s right,” Charlene agreed as she hurried along beside them. “You hit your head pretty hard, and you could have a concussion like the one you had when you were in that horrible van accident.”

  Ella opened her mouth like she might say something more, but then she quickly clamped it shut. When Jake felt her body begin to relax, he smiled and stepped onto the porch.

  ***

  Jolene hauled several braided throw rugs out to the porch and draped them over the railing. She’d just picked up the broom to beat the dust from the rugs when a pickup truck barreled up the driveway. It stopped near the house, and Jake got out. Why was he driving his truck instead of his horse and buggy?

  “Hello, Jake,” Jolene said when he stepped onto the porch. “I’m surprised to see you this afternoon.”

  “I came by to tell you about Ella.”

  “What about her?”

  He leaned against the porch railing, but when his hip touched one of the rugs, he pulled quickly away. “Ella fell off the ladder when she was trying to paint her daed’s barn.”

  Jolene gasped. “That’s baremlich! Is she hurt badly?”


  “Not as bad as she could have been, but the terrible thing is she did break her arm.” Jake’s eyebrows pulled together. “When Verna couldn’t get ahold of their driver, I went home and got my truck so I could drive Ella to the hospital. Then I waited there with Verna until Ella had her arm set in a cast.” He thumped his chin a couple of times. “Ella’s really worried about how she’ll keep up with that bakeshop of hers now that she only has the use of one hand.”

  “Maybe I can help out after I’m done teaching in the afternoons,” Jolene said.

  Jolene’s mother came out the door just then and stepped up to Jolene. “I heard what you said, and I think helping Ella would be too much for you.”

  “How come?”

  “Because you’re already overextending yourself with the signing lessons you’re teaching after school.” Mom touched Jolene’s arm. “I’ve got more time on my hands than you do, so I’ll go over to Ella’s and help out with the baking a few times a week. I’m sure that once the word gets out, others will help, too.”

  “I hope Ella’s more receptive to their help than she was with mine today. If she’d gotten off that ladder when I asked her to and let me paint the upper part of the barn, she wouldn’t have fallen.” Jake grimaced. “She’s the most stubborn, determined woman I know.” He motioned to Jolene. “Nothing at all like you.”

  “I don’t know about that,” Jolene replied. “I can be pretty determined and stubborn, too—just in a different way than my cousin.”

  ***

  Ella struggled to keep her eyes open as she reclined on the sofa. The prescription pain medication made her drowsy. It was hard to focus on Mama, Charlene, and the younger children who were gathered around her, wearing anxious expressions.

  “Does your arm hurt a lot?” Sue Ann asked.

  Ella forced a smile, not wishing to frighten her six-year-old sister. “Not so much.” But her whole arm had throbbed until the medication had taken effect.

  Mama took a seat on the sofa beside Ella and motioned to her cast. “I’m awfully sorry that you fell and broke your arm, but I’m grateful you weren’t seriously hurt. Don’t think I could deal with another tragedy in this family.”