Naomi's Hope

by Jan Drexler

  “It isn’t funny.” Naomi’s hands shook as she tried to tie the apron strings. “He will be here sometime this morning, and he’ll see me wearing my old apron.”

  Mattie stood behind her, untangling the ties from her clumsy fingers. “He won’t even notice the patched place. Your stitches are so fine that no one will see them.” Mattie tied the bow with a tug and turned her around. “Is he that important, this Cap?”

  Naomi felt her face redden. Since Mattie married Jacob three years ago, it was as if she was the big sister and Naomi the younger one. She would feel the sting of being left out, except for the sadness that dominated Mattie’s expression when she thought no one was looking. The sadness brought on by month after month with no sign of a baby joining their little family.

  “Ja, I think he is that important.” Naomi grasped Mattie’s shoulders. “But don’t tell anyone.”

  Mattie grinned and sat on the bed again, patting the spot next to her. “I will keep your secret, but you have to tell me all about him.”

  Naomi sat next to her sister. “We really should join the rest of the family.”

  “They can wait for a little bit. You tell me about Cap, and then I have something to tell you.” Mattie’s smile held a secret, and her eyes glowed.

  Naomi grasped her hand. “You’re expecting a little one.”

  “How did you know? I haven’t told anyone except for Jacob.”

  Naomi wrapped her arms around Mattie. “I could see it in your face.”

  “I can’t tell you how excited we are, after waiting for so long.”

  “You’re sure?”

  Mattie nodded. “Mamm will figure it out soon, but we still don’t want to tell anyone else. We’ll wait until the little stranger makes his appearance.”

  “As it should be.” She hugged Mattie again.

  Her sister returned the hug, and then pulled herself out of Naomi’s arms. “Now tell me about Cap.”

  “What is there to tell?”

  Mattie grinned. “What do you like the best about him?”

  Naomi’s face heated again. “I guess . . .” She closed her eyes and thought. “His eyes are very kind.”

  “Ja, but what else?”

  “He has a nice smile.”

  Mattie groaned and Naomi squeezed her eyes tighter. In her thoughts, Cap straddled the peak of his cabin, hammering the ridge pole in place, and glanced at her. The look in his eyes . . .

  “He is happy when he sees me, and he likes Davey.”

  She opened her eyes to see Mattie staring at her. “How can you tell he’s happy to see you?”

  “The look on his face. He . . .” Naomi searched for words to describe what she had seen at the house raising on Thursday. “His face relaxes. As if when I’m there, he’s happier.”

  Mattie nodded. “I think I know what you mean. When Jacob has been working out in the fields and comes home for dinner, he looks like he’s been missing something all morning, and when he sees me, he knows that he’s found it.”

  It was Naomi’s turn to stare at her sister. She had watched Jacob’s love for Mattie grow from the time they met again as adults after being childhood friends. Could Cap be the one whose love for her would grow like that?

  They sat in silence for a few minutes, both staring at their hands that were intertwined between them. Naomi’s thoughts went to the coming babe. Childbirth could be a dangerous thing, even though the joy at the end was great. She had watched her sisters-in-law bear several children between them, and there was always that danger, that traveling through the “valley of the shadow of death,” as Mamm said. But they had traveled that dangerous road, and her nieces and nephews were joys for the family. Mattie would be all right. Mattie would have to be all right.

  Suddenly Mattie squeezed her hand. “It’s the beginning of a new adventure for both of us, isn’t it?”

  Naomi grinned back at her. “A wonderful adventure.”

  4

  Cap, your plate is empty.” Eli Schrock rose from his seat on the porch and reached for the plate. “Let me get you some more.”

  “Ne, denki.” Cap held one hand up to ward off any more food. “I am set.”

  Eli took his plate. “You’re ready for cake, then. I’ll get a piece for you.”

  The older man had gone into the house before Cap could object.

  “You’ll never get him to stop offering you food until it’s gone.” Jacob Yoder laughed as he nudged Cap with his knee. “And since you’re the guest today, you get the best of everything.”

  Henry leaned toward the bench at the edge of the porch where Jacob and Cap were sitting. “You’re just glad you aren’t a guest anymore, Jacob. I remember when you and Mattie were first married. Mamm and Daed wouldn’t let you go home after a visit without loading you up with food.”

  “And we appreciated every bit of it.” Jacob pointed his fork at Henry. “You will, too, when you set up housekeeping on your own.”

  Henry laughed, reaching for the piece of cake his daed had brought him. “I know I’ll miss Mamm’s cooking.”

  Cap took a bite of the cake Eli handed him as the older man returned to his chair. He didn’t join in the conversation between Henry and Jacob, but he could agree with both of them. Lydia’s cooking satisfied an empty place deep inside. Taking another bite, he had the fleeting thought that Naomi’s cooking was probably just as tasty.

  Jacob gestured toward the road. “Is that Shem Fischer?”

  A figure walked toward them on the road from the west. It was. What was he up to?

  Eli turned toward the road. “Ja, for sure. The minister coming to visit us.” He stepped off the porch and met Shem halfway across the road.

  “Hmm.”

  Cap glanced at Jacob. A frown covered his normally smiling face. “What’s wrong?”

  “There’s something about that man that rubs me the wrong way.” He scratched at his beard and looked at Cap. “Sorry. I tend to say what I think a little too often.”

  “That’s all right. I’ve always felt that way about him.”

  Jacob’s eyebrows raised. “You knew him before he moved here?”

  Cap nodded. “We were boys together in Ohio before his family moved to Ontario. I was surprised to hear he was a minister, but people can change as they get older.”

  Eli and Shem reached the porch. “Henry, go get a piece of cake for Preacher Shem.” He turned to the newcomer. “I hope you’ll join us for the afternoon.”

  Shem took the cake as Henry handed it to him. “I had planned to see as many of the church members today as possible.”

  “The Christian Yoders will be coming later, after the children’s naps.” Eli gestured toward the chair he had vacated and Shem sat down. “On a beautiful day like this, there isn’t any reason not to enjoy pleasant conversation together.”

  “As long as it is God-honoring.” Shem’s voice echoed, as if he was repeating words he had often heard and often said.

  Cap’s stomach recoiled. The words were hollow, void of meaning coming from Shem’s mouth. He mentally shook himself. He must give Shem a chance to show what kind of man he was now, in spite of the memories of the bully he had been as a boy.

  The conversation drifted from the families in LaGrange County, to spring planting, to the weather, but each time someone brought up any part of their daily lives, Shem was quick to bring the subject back to the church.

  “Where is the meeting next Sunday?” Shem finished his third piece of cake and brushed the crumbs off his knees.

  “At the Gingerich farm, in Clinton Township.”

  Eli laced his fingers around one knee and leaned against the wall of the house, grimacing a bit on the hard bench. Cap glanced at Shem, comfortably lounging in the older man’s chair.

  “A long distance to walk, isn’t it?”

  “It is nearly six miles from here to the Gingerich place.”

  “Has anyone been tempted to drive on the Sabbath when the distance is so great?”

  Th
e tone in Shem’s voice set Cap on edge. That was the old Shem, goading with his words. Searching for a weak point.

  “Of course not,” Eli said. “We don’t take the Ordnung so lightly here in LaGrange County.”

  Shem leaned forward. “You mean they do elsewhere? In Clinton Township, perhaps?”

  Eli let the question hang in the air as a group of the older children walked by, led by two boys. Davey was among them, and waved at Cap before trotting after the others.

  Shem frowned as he watched them, then turned to Cap. “Your house is just a short walk through the woods, isn’t it?”

  “My property joins Eli’s in the middle of the section.”

  “That’s very convenient.” Shem gave him a quick grin. “I’d like to see the progress you’ve made since Thursday. Can we walk over there?”

  Walking anywhere with Shem didn’t sound like something he’d like to do, but he couldn’t refuse the request. Not when he could make sure Eli regained his comfortable chair at the same time.

  Shem walked beside him as they passed between the chicken coop and the barn.

  “How long have the Schrocks lived here?” Shem gazed at the white-washed barn with the high hay loft.

  “They came three years ago, with the Yoders and a few other families. At least, that’s what I heard.”

  “Eli is doing pretty well for himself, ja?”

  Cap shot a glance at him. Shem was leading this conversation somewhere.

  “God has blessed him. And he has worked hard.” Cap hadn’t spoken with Eli concerning what kind of labor it had taken to build such a barn and house when they had so recently come to this settlement, but the fruits of his labor were obvious.

  “Such a large barn is bordering on pride, don’t you think?”

  Pride? Cap shook his head. “It shows his good stewardship in taking care of his animals and crops.”

  Shem gave him that half smile that was so familiar. Cap’s stomach clenched.

  He stopped and confronted the other man. “What do you want, Shem?”

  Shem’s smile didn’t change. “Want? I want for nothing, Cap, except to preserve the purity of the church.”

  Cap couldn’t hold back a short laugh. “You? I can’t think of anyone less likely to take on that task.”

  The other man’s eyes narrowed. “You will work against me, then.”

  “To preserve the church, never. But to help you with whatever scheme you’re thinking of, I will work against you if I need to.”

  “Be careful, Cap.” Shem’s voice was flat, the edge of his words sharp. “You don’t know who you are dealing with.”

  “Don’t I?”

  Shem’s eyes shifted and Cap turned to see what had caught his attention. Naomi came out of the house with the other women. She and Mattie Yoder spread a blanket under a small tree, and the women settled themselves on it.

  When Shem spoke again, his voice was soft, with almost a dream-like quality to it. “Don’t you wonder how Naomi is the mother of a seven-year-old boy? She would have been quite young when he was born.” He turned hooded eyes toward Cap. “Is the boy a result of sin on Naomi’s part or someone else’s?”

  “Eli said Naomi adopted Davey.”

  “Ja.” Shem stroked his beard, his gaze on Naomi. “Eli says that.”

  Cap’s clenched stomach soured, but he didn’t have an answer.

  “Have you asked her to tell you of the boy’s origin?” Shem smiled again. “You haven’t, have you?” He leaned closer to Cap, smelling of some scent that Cap couldn’t place. Spicy and smoky at the same time. “Are you afraid of what her answer may be?”

  Shem turned and walked toward the road, stopping to greet the group of women as he walked by. Cap took a deep breath and let it out, willing the cramped muscles in his hands to relax. Shem had always known where to aim to hit his weakest spots. He turned his back on the Schrock farm and made his way down the deer trail toward home.

  Shem Fischer had interrupted the conversation Naomi and Mattie had been enjoying with Mamm, Miriam, and Emma. Their brothers’ wives had joined them with the babies while their other little ones played nearby. Mamm had been telling about the time when she was newly married and lived in the same house as her parents back in Chester County when Shem walked up to them.

  As he leaned down and helped himself to one of the cookies Mamm had brought for her grandchildren, he smiled at Naomi.

  “I thank you for your hospitality, but I must be going on. There are a couple more families I want to visit before the afternoon is over.”

  “Where are you staying, Preacher Shem?” Miriam asked. “Have you purchased land for yourself?”

  “For now, I’m camped near the lake at the edge of the Planks’ land. During my visits, I’m looking for a parcel of land to buy.”

  “And will your wife be joining you then?”

  Naomi was startled to see a frown flash across Shem’s face before he resumed his usual pleasant smile.

  “I hope she will be able to soon.” Shem flicked some dust from his black Sunday coat. “She has been ill and needed to stay with her parents while I traveled out here to find a place for us.”

  “I’m glad you were able to join us,” Mamm said. “Come back anytime.”

  “I will.” Shem laid a hand on Naomi’s shoulder. “I hope you all have a good Sabbath rest this afternoon, keeping your words and thoughts pure and centered on our Lord, as the Good Book says.”

  “Ja, for sure, Preacher Shem.” Mamm smiled at the young man as he left.

  Naomi refused to watch him walk toward the road like the others did, and when she turned her back, she saw Cap slip into the woods, heading toward his house. Why would he leave so early in the afternoon? She hadn’t had an opportunity to speak with him at all. She rubbed at the mended spot on her apron. Something was wrong.

  While Mamm, Mattie, and the others were still watching Shem, she rose from the blanket and followed Cap. Before she started down the deer trail, she turned back to see Mattie watching her and waved. She wouldn’t be gone long.

  She found Cap stirring the ashes of his fire. He looked up as she approached.

  “I didn’t get to say hello when you were at the house . . .” Her words faded at the sight of his stormy face.

  “I didn’t stay very long.”

  “Why not? Did Daed say something to scare you off?” She kept her words light, making a bit of a joke to draw him out, but his frown told her that it wouldn’t work.

  “Not your daed.”

  Someone else, then. She watched him push a few red coals together and lay some wood shavings on top of them. Once they caught, he added some larger pieces of wood, then sat on a nearby stump.

  He gestured toward a nearby log. “You might as well sit down.” He added another bit of wood to the growing fire. “Davey didn’t come with you?”

  “Ne. I wanted to . . . well, talk to you.”

  “About what?”

  “Just get to know you a little better.”

  She glanced at his face, still set in a frown. He didn’t look very happy to see her this afternoon. She must have imagined that he held some affection for her. Her face heated as she remembered Andrew Bontrager and how she had wanted him to love her. Had believed that he could love her, and all the time he was falling in love with Johanna. She had been so foolish, but she would not repeat the mistake.

  “Ja. Sure. We can get to know each other.” He threw another stick on the fire. The smoke curled into the still air.

  She stood. “I shouldn’t have come here. You want to be alone.”

  She started toward the deer trail, but Cap rose and grasped her arm.

  “Don’t go. I do want to get to know you.” He led her back to her seat. “Shem Fischer always puts me in this kind of mood.” He smiled, but his face showed no humor.

  “You knew him before he came here, didn’t you?”

  Cap sat back down on his stump, more relaxed. “Ja, I did.” He looked at her with his dark ey
es. “I’ve never known him to be a kind person.”

  She shuddered a little and his eyebrows raised. “I haven’t found anything about him to like, either.”

  Cap gave a short laugh as he leaned forward to lay a small log on the fire. The log was pine, and the pungent aroma filled the air.

  Naomi scooted a little closer to him on her log. “Where did you meet Preacher Shem?”

  His eyebrows went down again. “Long before he was called a preacher. We were boys together in Ohio. His family moved to Canada before I was fourteen. I thought I’d never see him again.” He picked up a wood chip from the ground and threw it on the fire. “I hoped I’d never see him again.” He ran his hand over his beard and sighed. “You must think I’m an unforgiving man, to hold a grudge against him for twenty years.”

  Naomi’s fingers grew cold at this confession. “Twenty years is a long time.”

  “He said something about you, something I don’t want to believe.”

  Naomi’s back stiffened. “How could he know anything about me? We’ve never met before he came here.”

  Cap leveled his gaze at her. “He was wondering who Davey’s father is.”

  The overheard conversation between Shem and Susan came back to her. “He has been listening to rumors.”

  “What rumors?”

  She bit her lip. How could she answer him?

  Cap leaned closer to her. “What rumors, Naomi?”

  “That Davey is illegitimate. That I sinned and he is the result.”

  Cap sat in silence.

  “The rumors aren’t true.” Her voice sounded weak to her own ears. He would never believe her.

  “Tell me the truth, then. Where did Davey come from?”

  “His parents were killed in a storm, and he was the only survivor. I adopted him—”

  His grunt interrupted her story. “Your daed told me the story, but how could a single woman like you adopt a young child? Where were your parents? How would they let you do this?”

  Her thoughts skittered back to that faraway day when she had taken Davey into her arms and her heart had claimed him. “He needed so much care. He had been injured in the storm and had seen his family killed. He needed me.”