by Leslie Gould
Shani stepped forward to get a closer look as she answered, “The coop.”
“One push would knock it over.”
Joel was exaggerating. Eve didn’t think it was that bad.
“How about if we bid on these too?” Shani asked, ignoring him.
“As long as we don’t get a rooster,” Joel replied.
“But then you’ll never have chicks,” Eve said.
“Exactly.”
Zane didn’t seem to hear his father, saying, “I can’t wait to take care of all of them.”
“Let’s get whoopie pies here while we wait to see if we win the bid,” Shani said. “Instead of going into town for ice cream.”
Lila turned toward Eve with a questioning look on her face, but Eve shook her head. She didn’t have the money to buy treats for everyone.
“I’m buying,” Shani said, taking Rose’s hand. “Whoopie pies for all.”
The thought that Shani may have seen her exchange with Lila mortified Eve, but there was nothing to do about it. “Denki,” she said. “That’s very kind.”
Shani did win the bid on both the chickens and the sheep, but she hadn’t thought about how she’d get them home. “Oh,” she said with a laugh. “I thought maybe someone would deliver them. But they can ride in the van with us.”
Joel groaned.
“We get the crate with the chickens, right?”
Gideon assured her that she did and transporting the chickens wouldn’t be too hard but hauling the sheep in the van could be a problem. Then he came to the rescue. He’d brought his wagon—Eve and the children had all ridden with him. “Charlie and Zane can ride with us,” he said. “And hold onto the sheep.” He grinned.
Eve’s mouth grew dry. The last thing she wanted was to spend more time with both Gideon and Charlie.
“Great,” Shani said, pulling out her checkbook. “But can you take the chickens too? That way Joel and I can go on home.”
Gideon assured her that would work fine. She wrote a check for the amount of their bids, folded it, and handed it to Eve. “Thank you,” she said.
“You’re welcome,” Eve answered.
Joel told everyone good-bye as Charlie continued to push him toward the parking area. Gideon hurried alongside the two, talking away, probably about caring for the sheep and chickens. Would Charlie tell him that he grew up on a farm?
Shani gave Eve a quick hug and then followed the men. Zane and Lila spotted Daniel and Simon at the back of the barn and took off after them, with Rose lagging behind. Monika’s daughter Jenny saw Lila—or maybe Daniel—and followed the group. Eve lost sight of them as Monika approached. This time Trudy was willing to go to her. Eve covered her up with her blanket, tucking it between Monika and the baby. “She’ll probably fall asleep,” Eve said.
“I need a rocking chair,” Monika answered.
“How about a lawn chair?” Eve pointed to several that were available for the elderly on the other side of the food booths.
“Oh, goodness, I’m too young.” Monika laughed but then made her way toward the chairs. Eve followed her and then stood, as if waiting for something, but she wasn’t sure what.
She’d almost decided to go check on the children, when Charlie started toward her, without Gideon.
“There’s that Englisch man,” Monica said. “It looks like he’s headed this way.”
Eve didn’t reply.
“What’s he doing?” Monika’s eyes crinkled in a squint.
“Gideon’s giving him a ride home,” Eve explained.
Monika clucked her tongue. “That Gideon has such a good heart—don’t you think?”
Eve nodded.
Charlie must have seen the children because he veered off toward the barn. Eve exhaled, relieved that Monika wouldn’t have the chance to see the two of them together.
A few minutes later, Gideon pulled up with the wagon. “I guess we’re leaving,” Eve said. “I’d better go turn in Shani’s check. I’ll be right back.”
As she headed to pay, Charlie led the children toward the barn as if he were the Pied Piper. Rose held his hand. Lila skipped alongside. Simon poked at Daniel with a stick. Zane increased his stride, most likely to catch up with Lila. The outing with Gideon certainly hadn’t gone as planned.
“Meet you at the wagon,” she called out to Charlie, pointing back at Gideon.
He nodded, called out to the boys to head to the barn with him to get the sheep and chickens, and then started toward it himself.
Fifteen minutes later they were all situated, mostly. Eve held Trudy and rode up front with Gideon, with Rose and Lila between them. Charlie held on to one of the sheep, while Zane and Daniel held on to the other two. Simon sat with his arms wrapped around the chicken crate.
Lila spent most of her time looking at the crew behind them and laughing.
The sheep made a racket with their bleating and the chickens sounded as if a fox had slipped into their crate.
“Thank you,” Eve said to Gideon.
He nodded and then turned his head toward her. “I look forward to us seeing more of each other.” He smiled. “With or without the interruptions.” His expression spread into a wide grin.
Lila squirmed, bumping against Rose, who elbowed her sister. Eve put her hand on the younger girl’s leg and pressed down as she tried to smile back at Gideon, but she was afraid her expression appeared more as a grimace. They rode on in silence.
After supper, as Tim dozed in his chair and Eve and Lila finished up the dishes, a knock sounded at the back door. As Eve hurried to answer it, she expected it to be Gideon. It wasn’t.
It was Charlie.
“One of the ewes is sick,” he said.
Eve clenched the dish towel in her hand. “I thought you grew up on a farm.”
“I did, but we only had cattle.” He held a flashlight in his hands. “Does Tim know anything about sheep?”
“I’ll go see if he’ll help.” Eve headed into the living room.
She said his name, but he didn’t budge.
Lila said, “Dat, Aenti’s talking to you.”
He still didn’t respond.
“Tim,” Eve said again, putting her hand on his shoulder. He brushed it away. “The neighbors have a sick ewe. Would you go take a look?”
He shook his head, his eyes still closed. “The neighbors don’t have sheep.”
“They do now.”
He groaned. “You know as much as I do about them,” Tim said, turning his head away. “You go.”
Their Dat had raised sheep. Tim swore he never would, but Eve liked the animals. “All right,” she said.
Eve stepped back into the kitchen and told Charlie she’d go with him.
He gave her a puzzled look.
She shrugged. “I grew up helping my Dat care for our ewes.”
“How’s your ankle?” Charlie asked. “I could go get my truck.”
She shook her head. “I’m fine.” She’d already put the baby to bed. Hopefully she’d stay settled. If not, Lila could take care of her.
She grabbed her cape and then followed Charlie out the door into another clear, crisp night. A crescent moon hung in the sky like a cradle, and the stars shimmered around it. She pulled her cape tight.
“I know this doesn’t look good,” Charlie said. “I promise I’m not stalking you. I thought Tim would be the one to come help.”
She didn’t answer.
“It’s just that Zane’s beside himself and Shani doesn’t want to call a vet unless she has to,” Charlie said. “Because Joel’s worried about money . . .”
“I’m happy to help,” Eve said. “If she needs a vet, I’ll give Shani the number of ours. He’s reasonable.”
They walked in silence until Charlie led the way into the barn, which was well lit with overhead lights. “They’re in the back.”
She followed him to the last pen. Zane sat with the ewe’s head in his lap and Shani knelt on the floor next to both of them. “She seems depressed,” Sha
ni said.
Eve knelt too and patted the sheep’s belly. It was hard. The ewe stirred, lifting her head to look at Eve, but then she dropped it again in Zane’s lap.
“Did you give her grain?” Eve asked.
Zane nodded. “I found it in the barn.”
“A lot?”
“Not too much . . .” Zane glanced down at the ewe.
“I’m guessing she has acidosis,” Eve said. “She’s probably only been grazing to this point. The grain has to be introduced gradually.”
Zane hung his head.
“You couldn’t know. She’ll be all right.” At least Eve hoped she would be. “Get a pop bottle, fill it with water, and add two tablespoons of baking soda. Then feed it to her. She’ll take it straight from the bottle.”
“Denki,” Zane said, standing.
She patted his shoulder. “This can be serious, but I expect she’ll be okay. After you give her the soda water, check on her before bed and first thing in the morning.”
Zane nodded and hurried out of the barn.
Shani reached for Eve’s hand, took it, and squeezed. “What would we do without you?”
Eve smiled. “You’d get by.”
“I’ll walk you home,” Charlie said.
As they headed back up the lane, Eve asked Charlie if he was planning to go back to the Mennonite church the next day.
He shook his head. “I’m going back to Philly, to my church, in the morning.”
Eve wasn’t sure what to say.
They shuffled along. Eve pulled her cape tighter. She stopped herself from asking when Charlie would come down to Lancaster County next. He’d helped the Becks with moving, the ramp, chopping wood. He probably needed to start focusing on his own life again.
Eve’s heart contracted at the thought of not seeing him again.
“I’ll be thinking about you and the kids visiting Abra’s parents tomorrow,” Charlie said.
“Thank you,” Eve said.
They continued on in silence. When they reached the driveway, Eve said she could go the rest of the way by herself. “I have every pothole memorized. I promise.”
Charlie smiled. “I’ll pray that the visit with the grandparents will be a good one,” he added. “Some day I hope you’ll tell me how it goes.”
Eve’s eyes began to burn. “I’d like that.”
Charlie extended his hand and she took it. They shook. She didn’t want to let go but quickly did.
“Take care,” Charlie said.
Eve managed to whisper, “You too.”
He took a step away and then turned back. “Shani gave you my number, right?”
She swallowed hard.
“You could call,” he said. “Sometime. And tell me how things go tomorrow. I promise not to be anything more than friendly if you do.” He smiled, a little wryly.
She nodded, knowing she wouldn’t call. He turned and strolled back down the lane. She waited until he disappeared in the dark and then, finally, continued up the drive. “So this is how it ends,” she whispered. “Before it ever started.”
It was for the best. Monika was right. Eve’s behavior had brought her mother great pain. It probably had contributed to her illness. Eve could never make up for what she’d done, but she’d do the right thing now. Her mother had adored Gideon Byler. And Eve did too. In time, she was sure she’d come to love him.
Vowing to never marry an Amish man had been a foolish promise.
The next afternoon, Eve poured herself and Abra’s mother cups of hot tea as she listened to Rose chatting away with her grandmother. Leona, who held Trudy on her lap, didn’t wear a Kapp anymore, but her salt-and-pepper hair was still pulled back in bun. She wore a print dress and a white apron.
The older children had gone outside to do the chores with their grandfather. When they returned it would be nearly time to head for home.
“I like school, most of the time,” Rose said. “Aenti helps me with my letters and numbers. She said I’m getting really good.”
The visit had gone well, and Eve knew it would be hard for the children to leave. She guessed they felt the safest at Leona and Eli’s house. It was the last place they’d been with their mother when she’d been strong enough to help care for them.
When Abra was eight months along with Trudy, she’d had a C-section and surgery to remove the tumor at the same time. Afterward she insisted on staying with her parents to recover, with all the children. A month later she started chemotherapy. Every morning Eli would drive the children to school and then come back and take Abra, along with the baby, to her treatments. Eve would go along too, to care for Trudy.
Tim stayed away during that time. He’d been angry with Abra for delaying the treatments until after Trudy was born. Then he’d been angry with her for going to her parents’ home. And he’d been angry with Eve for going with her.
Looking back, they all should have stayed at Leona and Eli’s longer, but after it was evident the treatments weren’t working, Abra felt her place was with Tim. Abra hadn’t loved Tim when she first married him—but she said she grew to love him. Eve still couldn’t fathom how or why. Abra could stand up to him like no one else, but she honored him and respected him.
He was ill equipped to handle her quick decline though, and he wouldn’t let Leona stay with them. Abra’s parents had left the church—he wasn’t going to allow them in his home.
Instead Eve struggled to care for Abra, newborn Trudy, the other children, and Tim.
Her hand shook as she put Leona’s cup down, just thinking about how trying that time had been.
“Aenti’s going to be leaving us soon,” Rose said to her Mammi.
“Oh?” Leona asked.
“But we don’t know who she’ll decide to marry—Gideon or Charlie,” the little girl said. “I’m hoping for Charlie.”
Eve shook her head at the child, and Rose averted her eyes, a smile spreading across her face.
“Who’s Charlie?” Leona asked as she shifted Trudy away from the table and her hot cup of tea.
Eve shook her head. “No one.”
“He’s Englisch,” Rose said.
“Eve.” Leona’s eyes were filled with kindness instead of disdain. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing. He’s a friend of our neighbors—that’s all.” The children had told their grandparents all about Zane and Shani and Joel and his wheelchair.
“And Gideon is Bishop Byler, right?”
Eve nodded.
“Lila said the bishop would take Aenti away from us,” Rose said.
“Oh?” Leona leaned toward Eve, her eyes bright. “Unless Charlie takes you first?”
Eve shook her head, her face growing warm. “It isn’t like that—really.”
“But the bishop is serious?” Leona asked.
Eve inhaled. Leona would be a safe person to talk with, safer than Monika or Shani.
“Rose,” Leona said, “would you go out and check on the others? Tell them to come into the house so we can have a snack together before it’s time for all of you to leave.”
Rose frowned.
Leona spoke softly, saying, “I made peanut butter and chocolate bars.”
Rose clapped her hands together and scooted off her chair, heading to the back door for her cape.
“Be quick,” Leona called out.
“I will!” Rose waved as she hurried out the door.
Leona turned back to Eve. “I ran into Monika at the store the other day.” Leona wasn’t a gossip by any means, but she did seem to be accomplished at gathering information. “She said things were pretty serious between you and the bishop.”
“You know how it is,” Eve said. “We’ve hardly talked but already there seems to be the expectation . . .”
“Tim must be happy about it.”
Eve nodded. It was the first time Tim had been mentioned all afternoon. “He’s working for Gideon again.”
“Good,” Leona said. “Tell me, though, how do you feel about the bisho
p?”
Eve sat up straight. “He’s very kind. And gentle.” Her face grew warm. “Very different from my Dat.”
Leona nodded.
“I respect him.” Eve paused and then blinked. She tried to swallow back the tears, but they flooded her eyes.
Leona spoke softly. “Do you love him?”
Eve shrugged but then shook her head.
“Oh, sweetie,” Leona said, tilting her head, saying the words in the exact same tone she’d used with Abra over the years. “How about this Charlie? Do you love him?” She scooted her chair closer, still holding Trudy, and wrapped her arm around Eve.
Eve dabbed at her eyes and whispered, “I don’t know.”
“Is he a believer?”
Believer wasn’t a term most Plain people used, but it was one Leona did. “Jah,” Eve said. “And he’s a gut person. Much better than I am.”
“That isn’t true,” Leona said. “We’re all in need of salvation, every one of us.”
Eve nodded. She knew that.
Leona continued, “Remember what Paul wrote in Romans: ‘There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.’ And in Ephesians, he wrote, ‘For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.’”
Eve knew that Leona could quote Scripture all day long, all out of love, never out of judgment.
The older woman leaned closer. “You have cared for others for so long, Eve. God has good things for you too.”
“Jah, caring for the children is very gut. I’m blessed.”
Leona sighed. “You are, but this should be temporary. Not for the rest of your life. Tim is more capable than you think.”
Eve wasn’t sure why Leona would think that but she stayed quiet.
“I need to say this to you, even if it’s unsettling,” Leona said, her voice a little ragged. “And it’s nothing against Tim. Although as you know, we did have our concerns.”
“I know,” Eve said. “I did to.” She’d begged Abra not to marry her brother.
“It’s more against the bishop at the time. He put so much pressure on her to marry—anyone, really. We didn’t think it was right, not at all. And it was one of the reasons we ended up leaving the church.”
Eve nodded.
“Don’t give in to manipulations,” Leona said. “You are a grown woman. No one else should make a life-changing decision for you.” She met Eve’s gaze. “You must make your own choices—out of love, not fear.”