“That would be nice. Martin went fishing with Abe and Gideon, and I doubt he’ll be home until late this afternoon.”
“See you later, then. And be sure to say hello to Abe’s kinner for me.”
“I will.” Ruth headed out the door.
A short time later, Martha heard a vehicle rumble up the driveway, followed by the tooting of a horn. She put Flo inside one of the empty horse stalls and went outside to see who it was. When she stepped out of the barn, she saw John Peterson getting out of his SUV.
“I was driving by and saw the sign out front advertising a female beagle. Is it one of your dogs?” he asked.
She nodded. “I bought a pair of beagles for breeding purposes several months ago, but Flo can’t have any pups, so I’ve decided to sell her as a hunting dog.”
He grinned. “Which is exactly what I’m needing. How much do you want for her?”
“I paid a thousand dollars for the pair, so if I could get—”
“I’ll give you six hundred. How’s that sound?”
Martha’s mouth fell open. “Don’t you want to look at her first?”
“Guess I probably should.” John reached up to rub the bridge of his slightly crooked nose and squinted. “Unless she’s sick, crippled, or just plain dumb, I’m sure she’ll work out fine for me.”
“She’s none of those things.” Martha motioned to the barn. “Follow me, and you can see for yourself.”
Inside the barn, Martha took Flo out of the horse stall and led her over to John. He knelt on the concrete floor beside the dog and gave her the once-over. “She looks good to me. I’ll take her.”
Martha could hardly believe she had found a home for Flo so quickly. She was pleased to know the dog would be put to good use.
“Help! Help!”
Martin came up out of the water, gulped in some air, and spotted Gideon, kicking and splashing for all he was worth. “Can you swim?” he called to the boy.
“He can’t, and neither can I!” Abe, who was several feet away, also struggled.
The frigid water stung Martin’s skin and took his breath away. Even though he considered himself to be a good swimmer, he knew he needed to get out of the icy water as quickly as possible. Needed to get Abe and his son out, too.
Since Gideon was the closest and seemed to be having the most trouble staying afloat, Martin swam over to the boy, grabbed hold of his shirt, and pulled him toward shore. He kept pulling until they were in shallow water and he knew Gideon could stand. “Climb out and wait on the shore,” he instructed.
Coughing and gasping for air, Gideon did as he was told.
Martin dove back into the water and swam toward where he’d last seen Abe. Only Abe wasn’t there!
Treading water, Martin looked around frantically. “Abe!” he hollered. “Where are you?”
“Don’t let Papa die!” Gideon shouted from the shore.
Martin whirled around. “Don’t come back in the water! Stay right there while I look for your daed.”
He dove down and spotted Abe under the water near where the boat had capsized. His hand snaked out and grabbed Abe’s arm, then he kicked hard, pulling them both to the surface. Abe wasn’t moving, and Martin feared the man might have drowned. Dear God, he prayed, don’t let him be dead.
Several grueling moments later, Martin pulled Abe onto the shore.
Gideon rushed over and dropped down beside his father. “Don’t die, Papa,” he sobbed. “Don’t leave me like Mama did!”
Martin had learned CPR when he’d done volunteer work with the local fire department, so he quickly set to work on Abe. The cold air stung his eyes, and he struggled with each breath. His lungs burned, and he feared his strength would give out, but he wouldn’t give up. Abe was his friend, and if their roles were reversed, he knew Abe would do the same for him.
Finally, Abe coughed and spit water out of his mouth.
Martin breathed a prayer of thanks. “He’s going to be all right,” he said to Gideon, whose eyes were wide with fear. “We need to get back to your house so we can get out of these wet clothes.”
“I’m glad you came over to see me today,” Esta said as she and Anna took a seat on the porch with Winkie perched between them.
Ruth smiled as she seated herself in one of the wicker chairs beside Abe’s sister. “Nothing makes a little girl happier than to be with her best friend.”
Sue nodded. Her blue eyes seemed to have lost the sparkle they’d had when she’d first come to help her brother and his family.
“Is everything all right?” Ruth asked, concerned. “Are you working too hard?”
Tears welled in Sue’s eyes, and she blinked a couple of times. “I’m feeling kind of homesick.”
“That’s understandable. You’ve been away from your folks for several months now. I’m sure you miss them.”
“I also miss Melvin.”
“He’s your boyfriend, right?”
“Jah. Melvin and I started courting six months before I left home. We’ve been writing letters, but it’s not the same as seeing each other and being able to go places together.”
“No, of course not.” Ruth couldn’t imagine being separated from Martin even for a few weeks, much less several months. “Maybe Melvin can come for a visit.”
“I’d like that, but he’s been busy helping his daed in their masonry business and hasn’t been able to get away.” Sue released a sigh. “I’d like to go home for Christmas, but I wouldn’t feel right about leaving Abe in the lurch.”
“Maybe some of the women in our community could take turns coming in to clean house, cook, and watch the kinner.”
Sue shook her head. “I think it would be hard on everyone, especially Abe, if I went home for the holidays. It’s going to be difficult for him to get through Christmas without Alma. I think he needs my support.”
“I understand. I would make that sacrifice for either of my sisters.”
The puppy growled as it leaped off the porch and romped in the yard with Josh, Willis, and Owen. “It was nice of you to give Winkie to Esta,” Sue said. “The dog’s filled a big hole in that little girl’s life, and having a pet to care for is teaching her responsibility.”
“I was glad to do it.” Ruth turned to the girls, who sat on the steps watching the boys and Winkie play a game of tug-of-war with an old sock. “It won’t be long until Christmas. Have either of you thought about what you’d like to receive for a present?”
Esta nodded eagerly. “I’m hopin’ for some ice skates. Of course, we’ve gotta have cold, icy weather first.”
“It was awfully cold last night,” Ruth said. “I imagine it won’t be long before your daed’s pond will be frozen over.”
Esta nodded. “Me and Josh found a ladybug nest on the trunk of a pine tree the other day. Mama used to say that was a sure sign of winter comin’.”
Ruth smiled. She remembered how excited she used to get when she was a girl looking forward to winter games, hot chocolate with marshmallows, and gifts at Christmas.
Esta nudged Anna. “How ’bout you? What are you hopin’ to get for Christmas?”
Anna shrugged. “If we get snow, a new sled would be nice.”
Esta looked up at Ruth. “What are you hoping for?”
Ruth touched her stomach. The best gift she could receive would be to find out she was going to have a baby. “I’ll be happy with whatever I get,” she murmured.
A buggy rolled into the yard, and Sue stood, lifting Molly into her arms. “Looks like the men are back. They must have either caught lots of fish or got tired of trying, because they’re here sooner than I thought they would be.”
Ruth’s heart gave a lurch when she noticed how wet the men’s clothes were when they climbed out of the buggy. When she saw Martin put his arm around Abe’s shoulders and walk him to the house, her heart nearly stopped beating.
“What happened?” she and Sue cried at the same time.
“Had a little accident with the boat,” Marti
n replied.
“Did you fall into the water, Papa?” Esta grabbed Abe’s hand as he stepped onto the porch.
“Sure did.”
“But you can’t swim,” Sue said in a quavering voice.
“No, but Martin can. He saved us both from drowning,” Gideon spoke up.
“You’re all shaking.” Ruth jerked open the front door. “You need to come inside and get warm.”
Martin slipped his arm around Ruth’s waist. “That’s the last time I go fishing against my wife’s better judgment. Wasser schwimme macht mich gensheidich.”
“Swimming in cold water gave me goose pimples, too,” Abe agreed.
Ruth swallowed against the lump in her throat. Thank You, God. Thank You for saving each of these men.
I can’t believe it’s Christmas Eve and that we’re having a white Christmas,” Ruth said as she and Martin traveled down the road in his buggy toward her parents’ house. She wished they were riding in an open sleigh so she could lift her face toward the sky and catch snowflakes on her tongue, the way she’d done as a child.
Martin reached for her hand. “Life’s pretty good, jah?”
She smiled. “It is now. Last month when our wood was taken, and you, Abe, and Gideon got dumped into the pond, I wasn’t so sure about things being good.”
“But we’re all okay, and your daed gave us another load of wood.”
“That’s true, but we never did find out who stole it.”
He shrugged. “It makes no never mind to me. I’m keeping my focus on the future with you, my schee fraa.”
She squeezed his warm fingers. “Will you still think I’m your pretty wife when I’m pregnant and gross around the middle?”
“I’ll always think you’re pretty, even when you become big around the middle.”
Ruth sighed. “I hate to admit it, but I’m having a little trouble not feeling jealous whenever I see Grace with her baby. I want so much to be pregnant.”
“I know, and I’m looking forward to being a daed,” Martin said. “We just need to be patient. After all, we haven’t been married quite two months yet. There’s still plenty of time for you to conceive.”
“But what if I’m barren like Martha’s female beagle? You can’t just sell me off, the way Martha did with Flo.” She groaned. “If I’m unable to conceive, then you’ll be stuck with a wife who can’t give you any kinner.”
He leaned over and nuzzled her neck with his cold nose. “The only reason I’ll be stuck with you is because I love you. If we can’t have any kinner, then we’ll either live without ’em or take in foster children, the way some in our community have done.”
Ruth nodded, but internally she struggled with the idea of never being a mother. Ever since she’d been a young girl playing with her dolls, she had wanted to hold a baby of her own. Surely God would answer that prayer and let her conceive.
“Are you looking forward to spending the evening with your family?” Martin asked, taking their conversation in another direction.
“Jah, of course. And tomorrow, it will be nice to spend Christmas Day with your family.”
“Mom and Pop really like you, Ruth. They think you’re just what I need.”
“And you’re what I need,” she replied, snuggling closer to him.
Blinding headlights from behind flashed against the buggy’s front window, and Ruth whirled around. A truck bore down on them, going much too fast. But the shadowy night sky and blowing snow kept her from seeing the color of the vehicle.
“Looks like someone’s in a hurry to get wherever they’re going on Christmas Eve,” she said. “No doubt they’ll whip around us and be gone into the night.”
Martin opened his mouth as if to comment, but before he could get a word out, they were bumped from behind.
Ruth grabbed the edge of her seat and hung on, while Martin gripped the reins. “What’s going on? Do you suppose that vehicle hit a patch of ice?”
“I—I don’t know. We haven’t hit any in our buggy.”
Ruth’s heart hammered. “Maybe you should pull over and let him pass.”
Martin pulled on the reins, and the horse slowed, but before he could guide it to the shoulder of the road, they were bumped again, harder this time. “There’s no ice here. I’m guessing whoever is driving that truck must have been drinking,” he mumbled. “What does that ab im kopp driver think he’s doing? He’s either got to be crazy or a real siffer to keep ramming our buggy like that.”
“You think he could be a drunkard?” Ruth started to turn around, but the vehicle rammed them once more. Her head jerked forward, sending a spasm of pain up the back of her neck.
Twice more the truck hit the back of their buggy. The horse whinnied and reared up as Martin struggled to keep hold of the reins. The vehicle pulled out as though it was going to pass, but then it slammed into the side of the buggy, flipping it over and sending it rolling into the ditch.
“Ach!” Ruth screamed; then everything went black.
“Danki for the new ice skates,” Esta said as she took a seat on the sofa beside Abe.
He smiled and patted her knee. “You’ll be careful to skate only when others are around, won’t you?”
She nodded. “I promise, ’cause I wouldn’t want to end up in the pond like you and Gideon did when you went fishing.”
“I should say not,” Sue put in from the recliner, where she sat with Molly in her lap. “Besides the fact that you can’t swim, that water under the ice would be freezing cold.”
“The first day Martin and I were back to work after that dunking we took, he said he’d be happy to teach my kinner to swim as soon as the spring thaw comes and it’s warm enough to go in the water,” Abe said.
“It might be a good idea if he teaches you how to swim first, brother.” Sue leveled Abe with one of her more serious looks. “Either that, or you’d better give up fishing, because we all need you around.”
Abe thought about Alma. There was nothing she could have done to prevent the lightning strike that took her life, but there was something he could do to protect himself from drowning. “Jah,” he said with a nod. “I’ll see if Martin will teach me how to swim, too.”
“Can I go gschwumme?” Owen questioned. He’d been sitting on the floor near Willis, playing with the little wooden horses Abe had asked Roman to make.
“When you’re old enough to learn how to swim, then you can go swimming,” Abe said with a nod.
Owen’s lower lip jutted out. “I ain’t no boppli.” He pointed to his rosy-cheeked little sister, who was almost asleep in Sue’s lap. “Molly’s the boppli.”
“You act like a boppli whenever you’re asked to do some chore,” Josh countered. He and Gideon sat at a table across the room playing a game of checkers.
“Do not!” Owen shook his head forcefully. “Just ’cause you’re bigger ’n me don’t mean you’re my boss. Only Papa can tell me what to do.” He looked over at Sue. “Aunt Sue, too, now that Mama’s gone to heaven.”
The room turned deathly silent. The children had been hiding it well as of late, but Abe knew they still missed their mother.
Sue rose from her chair. “Molly’s fallen asleep, so I’m going to put her to bed. When I come downstairs, I’ll make a batch of popcorn and some hot apple cider. Would anyone like to help?”
The children nodded with eager expressions, and Abe offered Sue an appreciative smile. He knew she’d wanted to go home for Christmas, but she had stayed to care for them and was doing all she could to make the holiday pleasant.
Abe leaned back in his chair as a sense of appreciation washed over him. He suddenly realized he wasn’t sleeping so much during the day and was sleeping better at night. God was good, and he prayed things would go better for them in the coming year.
“Why don’t you let me hold that little fellow awhile?” Mom said when Grace sank to the sofa with a weary sigh. She and Cleon had walked over to her folks’ house with Anna and Daniel.
Grace held out her a
rms gratefully. “He’s been fussy all day, and nothing I’ve done has helped.”
“Maybe he’s got a touch of the colic,” Mom said as she took the squalling baby and seated herself in the rocking chair across from Grace. “Have you tried giving him a bit of catnip tea?”
Anna, who had taken a seat on the floor by the fireplace next to Martha, looked up and frowned. “Catnip’s for katze, not bopplin.”
“That’s true, cats do like catnip, but one of my herb books says it can also be used by itself or in combination with fennel and peppermint to help ease a baby’s colic,” Mom said.
“You’ve got to be careful when you’re fooling around with herbs.” Dad left his recliner and shuffled across the room to stand beside Mom. “Maybe we should try the ‘colic carry.’ That always worked when our girls were bopplin.”
Cleon took a seat beside Grace on the sofa. “What’s the ‘colic carry’ ”
“First, you extend your arm with your palm up.” Dad bent down and took Daniel from Mom. “Then you position the boppli like this.” He placed the baby chest-down and forehead resting in the palm of his big hand. “You’ve got to make sure the little fellow’s legs are on either side of your elbow.” Dad positioned the baby’s legs in the manner he’d described. “Now you support the boppli with your other hand and walk around the room, keeping him in this position.” He looked over at Mom and gave her a nod. “I’m sure this will help.”
Cleon jumped up and rushed over to Dad. “I think I’d better take Daniel.”
Dad’s eyebrows pulled inward. “What’s the matter, son? Are you afraid I might drop him?”
“Roman’s had plenty of experience with bopplin,” Mom said before Cleon could respond. “He used to carry our three around like that when they were fussy babies.”
Deep grooves appeared on Cleon’s forehead. “Even so—”
“Dad, maybe you should give the baby to Mom,” Grace said, hoping to smooth things over between her father and Cleon. “I think if she rocks him awhile, he’ll settle down.”
Dad grunted and handed the baby back to Mom; then he moved over to stand in front of the fireplace. “I wonder where Ruth and Martin could be,” he said, glancing at the clock on the wall above the mantel. “They should have been here by now.”
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