“If you are going, I’m coming with you. That’s what Onkel Ethan would want me to do.”
Pulling on her boots, Clara slipped into the dark green rubber coat and pulled the hood over her head. Lizzie brought her a pair of flashlights. “What should I do if Ethan comes while you’re out in this?”
Clara rose to her feet. “I hope he does. Tell him to stay here. We’ll check where he was cutting. If he’s not there, we’ll come back.”
“Something tells me he won’t listen to reason, either. You two will be traipsing through the hills passing each other in the dark until daybreak.”
“And you can tell me ‘I told you so’ tomorrow morning.”
Dressed in boots and waterproof coats, Clara and Micah left the house. Guided by flashes of lightning and the flashlights, they made their way toward the lake. By the time they reached the shore, the wind had died down and the rumble of thunder had moved on, but the rain continued unabated. The ground, saturated by rains earlier in the week, didn’t hold the water. Every gully and ditch was running full, forcing Clara and Micah to find safe crossings as they made their way up into the foothills.
At one point, Micah stopped. He moved his torch one way and then swept it in the other direction. “What’s wrong?” Clara asked.
“I’m not sure which way to go. It looks so different at night.”
She had put a huge burden on a very young boy. “Take your time, Micah. You said Ethan was working above the lake.”
“There was a ravine that led back into the hills. It made a little waterfall where it went into the lake.”
Clara shielded her eyes against the rain to study their surroundings. Over the sound of the rain came the sound of gushing water. “I think I hear the waterfall.” It didn’t sound like a little waterfall. It sounded like a rushing torrent.
She made her way toward the sound and her fears were realized. The stream was overflowing its banks. She wasn’t sure they could make their way alongside it.
“It’s this way,” Micah said. “See the X on the tree? That means that Onkel Ethan plans to cut this one down.”
Clara could just make out a path between the trees. “All right. I’ll go first. You stay close behind me, and we will both stay away from the water.”
The path was steep and slippery. Clara struggled to hold her light and keep her balance. She looked up ahead just as lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating a huge horse towering over her. The animal snorted and rolled its eyes in fear. Clara stumbled backward and pressed a hand to her mouth.
Micah worked his way around her. “It’s okay. It’s just Dutch. Fred is here, too.”
With her heart hammering in her chest, Clara approached the animals. “But where’s Ethan?”
She didn’t see his light or any sign of him. She began shouting his name. The third time she yelled, she heard a faint reply. “Micah, stay with the horses.”
Clara moved higher into the woods and called again. This time, she was sure she heard him, but the sound was coming from downhill. Making her way toward the creek, she still didn’t see him. “Ethan, where are you?”
“I’m here.”
The sound came from below her. She swung her light in that direction and saw his boot protruding from beneath a fallen tree. Dear God, please don’t let him be hurt.
She made her way around the log and found herself standing in water. Ethan was lying on his back at the edge of the creek. His leg was pinned under the log. The rising water was swirling a few inches away from him. She sloshed to his side. “Ethan, how badly are you hurt?”
“I’m pinned, and my ankle is badly twisted, but I don’t think it’s broken. You shouldn’t be here, Clara. It’s too dangerous to be out in the storm.”
“A lecture on safety from a man pinned under a tree. You can scold me after I get you out of here.” She put her shoulder against the log and tried to move it. It didn’t budge. She looked around for something to leverage the weight off him but there was nothing. She made a circuit around the log searching for a way to move it. Finding nothing, she went back to Ethan. She was horrified to see the rising water was just touching his hair.
“I have to get you out. What do I do, Ethan?”
He raised up on his elbows. “Stay calm. You can’t move this log by yourself. The chain snapped and my team ran off. I couldn’t get out of the way fast enough. You’ll have to go get help.”
She looked at the water. “You don’t have that much time, Ethan. Look how fast it’s rising!”
“Believe me, I’ve been noticing. Don’t worry about me, just go get help.”
She fell to her knees beside him in the mud. “I can’t leave you like this.”
He took hold of her hand. “Yes, you can. You have two options, Clara. You can go get help or watch me drown.”
He was so calm. How could he be so calm?
“Don’t say that.” Her breath came in ragged gulps. This couldn’t be happening. Please, God, save him. I love him so much.
“You’re going to run home and get your grandfather. He’ll know what to do.”
She shook her head. There wasn’t time.
He fell back in resignation. His head splashed water on her skirt. She looked up and shouted, “Make it stop raining, God. Make it stop.” She jumped up and began trying to push the log aside. “Maybe it will float off you when it gets deep enough.”
“It will.”
She heard the resignation in his voice. He would already be dead by the time that happened. She kept pushing, but the log wouldn’t budge. She beat on it with her hands. Then she fell to her knees and began scooping mud away from the side of his body. “Maybe I can dig you out.”
He grabbed her hands. “Clara, listen to me. I praise God for giving me the chance to say this. I love you, Clara. I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you. I’m sorry it has to be like this.”
“No, no, no. Your team is down the hill. Micah is with them. Tell me what to do.”
He wiped the rain out of his face and raised up again. She saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes. “Go get them and bring them here. No, wait. Don’t let Micah see me like this. Send him for help.”
Clara nodded and raced down the hill. Micah was still standing patiently by the horses. She started to reach for Dutch’s bridle. He snorted and tossed his head. She stumbled backward. “I can’t do this.”
Micah came to her side. “What’s wrong, Clara. Did you find Onkel Ethan? Is he okay?”
He was, but not for long. “Our Father who art in heaven, give me the courage I need.” She closed her eyes and reached up. She felt the horse’s soft nose. “Just like Buttercup’s nose. You’re just like Buttercup. I’m not scared of you.”
She was, but she opened her eyes, grasped the reins and looked at Micah. The last thing she wanted him to see was Ethan’s death. “Can one horse pull a log ten feet?” That was all she needed—ten feet.
“If it isn’t too big.”
It wasn’t. It couldn’t be. “Which horse is stronger?”
“Dutch.”
She looked at Micah. “A log has fallen on Ethan. I can’t move it, but Dutch can. I want you to take Fred and ride as fast as you can to the Weaver’s sawmill. She pointed toward a distant hill. “It’s just over that rise. There’s a gate in the fence at the top. Bring the Weaver men here as fast as you can.”
He nodded and she lifted him onto the back of the horse. Quickly, she unhooked the team from each other and the logging arch and smacked Fred’s rump. He took off with Micah clinging to his back like a flea.
She grabbed Dutch’s reins with trembling hands and led the horse toward Ethan. When she reached him she saw only swirling water where he had been. “Ethan!” she screamed.
A second later, he pushed up out of the water and coughed. “My arms got
tired. I had to rest.”
“Don’t do that again. I’ve sent Micah on Fred to go get help.”
“That’s goot.”
“How do I hook Dutch up?”
He gave her careful instructions, but without the arch and with a broken chain, she had to improvise. She had no idea if it would hold but there was no time to try anything else. She went to Dutch’s head. From the corner of her eye, she could see Ethan straining to keep his head above water. She laid her forehead against the horse’s face. “It’s all up to you now. Save him.”
Grasping the reins, she got uphill of the log and gave Dutch the command to pull. He lurched into his collar. The log barely moved. She looked for Ethan, but she couldn’t see him.
“Hup, Dutch! Hup!” she yelled.
The big horse lunged into this collar, straining so hard he was almost on his knees, but the log gave and began to swing in her direction. Was it enough? She raced around the end. She couldn’t see Ethan. She waded into the water, calling his name, feeling for him in the muck.
“Here,” came a weak call.
She spun around. He was several feet downstream, hauling himself out of the water. She ran to him and put her shoulder under his arm to give him leverage. “Thank You, God. Thank you, Dutch.”
Ethan was wet and shivering. She took her coat off. It was wet, but it still held some of her warmth for they were both soaking wet. Her kapp was long gone and her bun had come undone, spilling her hair down her back. She wrapped her coat around Ethan and sat beside him on the muddy ground. He wiped his face with the back of the sleeve. “That was exciting.”
She punched his arm.
“Ouch. That’s my sore arm.”
“Sorry. Don’t joke about this. Ever.”
He opened the coat so she could scoot in closer to him and they could share their body warmth. “I won’t joke about it, but it was almost worth it to get you in my arms.”
* * *
Clara glared at him. He managed not to smile. She was so beautiful with her hair down and smears of mud on her cheeks. “I’m going to kiss you now. Punch the other arm if it makes you mad.”
She looked away from him. “I said no jokes.”
“Honey, this is no joke. I spoke the truth earlier.”
“Did you mean it when you said that you loved me?” She sounded so insecure. He had to make her see that she was everything he’d ever wanted.
He sighed deeply. “I was mistaken when I asked you to marry me.”
He saw her flinch and hurried on. “You were right to refuse me. I thought our mutual love for the children, our friendship and our shared faith was enough for us to start a life together.”
She fixed her gaze on the water rushing below them. If only she would look at him. “I’m sorry that I hurt you, Clara. I never meant to do that.”
“And I’m sorry if my refusal hurt your feelings. I hope we can still be friends. For the sake of the children.”
“Please look at me, Clara. I know you have the courage to hear what I have to say.”
When she met his gaze, he continued, “You forced me to take a closer look at my feelings. I didn’t want to marry you because of the children or for any other reason. Clara, I wanted to marry you because you are a pearl beyond price. I didn’t see that because I was afraid.”
“Of what?”
“I was afraid of being hurt, of finding out once again that the person I loved didn’t love me back. My mother didn’t love me enough to take me with her. Jenny didn’t love me enough. I thought I was broken somehow, that no one could love me.”
She cupped his face with her hands. “You aren’t broken.”
“I was, and you fixed me.”
“Oh, Ethan, I didn’t do anything.”
“You did. You showed me what true love was like. Even if you don’t love me, I will always treasure the things you have taught me.”
“I love you, too, Ethan. I can’t imagine loving someone more.”
Relief swept away what little strength he had left. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. “Thank you, darling. Thank you.”
* * *
Clara raised her face for his kiss. His lips closed tenderly over hers and her heart sang with such joy that it stole her breath away. When he drew back, he tucked her head against his throat and cradled her. She sighed with happiness. “Ask the question.”
“What question?” She heard the hint of humor in his tone.
“Don’t make me punch your arm again. Ask the question.”
“Clara Barkman, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife? For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and with a passel of naughty kinder to boot?”
She pulled away to face him. She wanted to see the look in his eyes when she gave her answer. “I will marry you on one condition.”
“I won’t get smaller horses, and that’s final.”
“Dutch is okay. My condition is that we never, ever, tell the children how close they came to losing you tonight.”
“I agree. Now, will you marry me?”
She leaned in for his kiss. “Yes. I did not do all this work tonight for nothing.”
When his tender kiss ended, Clara snuggled against him with a sigh of contentment. God had opened her eyes to what love should be between a man and a woman and she gave thanks for His blessing. Nothing had ever felt so right.
She remained in Ethan’s arms, content to stay there forever, but eventually she saw lights approaching through the trees and heard the shouts of Mr. Weaver and his sons. She pressed a hand to her heart and gave thanks again. Micah had reached them safely.
Ethan shouted to let the searchers know where they were.
“What a good, brave boy Micah is,” she said.
“Brave like his new mother,” Ethan said quietly.
“I’m not brave. God gave me the strength when I needed it.”
“I guess this means the school board will have to find another teacher.”
“Yes,” she replied without hesitation. “I think Melinda Miller will be perfect for the job.”
“I know you would have made a wonderful teacher, but I can’t imagine my life without you. God has given me the greatest gift.”
She would love and cherish Ethan and his children forever, and she would never stop thanking God for bringing them into her life. This was the path He had chosen for her.
This was where she was meant to be.
* * * * *
Keep reading for an excerpt from A HEART TO HEAL by Allie Pleiter.
Dear Reader,
Once again, I’ve had the chance to return to the Amish community in Hope Springs, Ohio. Every time I travel there, I learn something new about the Amish and about myself.
I have always had a great love of horses. I think that may have been one thing that drew me to the Amish genre in the first place. I’m not a big fan of no electricity, however. In researching this book, I learned so much about the draft horses that are used by many Amish in farmwork. They are truly awesome animals. Here in Kansas, the Amish use tractors. It simply isn’t feasible to farm the large tracts of land necessary to produce the same amount of crops that can be grown in places like Ohio, where the rainfall is higher.
If you are wondering where I came up with the idea of Ethan being trapped and threatened by rising water, I must tell you the idea occurred to me before the devastating flooding that struck my state and the neighboring state of Colorado in 2013. Disasters will always happen. Wonderful people will always respond with incredible bravery. We never know what we can do until we are tested and that is what I wanted Clara to learn.
I hope you enjoyed the story, and be sure to look for my next Brides of
Amish Country novel at Christmas. At the time I wrote this letter, I didn’t have a title, but you can check for more information on my website at www.patriciadavids.com.
Blessings,
Questions for Discussion
Ethan had been abandoned by his mother when he was young and he carried that fear with him throughout his life. How can we overcome such deep-rooted fears in ourselves?
Because of Ethan’s upbringing, he was ill prepared to raise his brother’s children. What are some of the mistakes he made? How could he have changed this?
What character did you identify with most closely in the story?
Ethan quickly came to rely on Clara’s instincts with the children. Is there someone who was a mentor to you when you were bringing up your own children?
How did that person change you as a parent?
Clara is surrounded by loving sisters. It would be nice if all siblings were like this, but they aren’t. How would you change your relationship with your siblings if you could?
The role of the teacher in Amish society is different from what we expect in our public education. Do you agree or disagree with the decision that Amish teachers have no formal education beyond the eighth grade?
If you are familiar with the Brides of Amish Country series, which book have you found most interesting and why?
What themes were emphasized in this novel?
If you took away one message from this novel, what was it and why?
The use of horses for logging purposes is a practice that is hundreds of years old. A few dedicated men and women still work this way. Do you know anyone who has a team of draft horses?
What was the funniest scene in this book? Why do you feel that way?
What was the most poignant scene in this book? What touched you the most and why?
The Amish do not allow married women to be teachers. This was a common practice in the United States until the turn of the century. What benefits or detriments do you see from only having single women teach children?
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