Love Inspired June 2015 - Box Set 1 of 2: The Cowboy's HomecomingThe Amish Widow's SecretSafe in the Fireman's Arms

by Carolyne Aarsen

  Glancing about, he was surprised to see several plain people clustered together in the corner of the room, just on the edge of Englisch mothers, their children in tow or playing nearby with simple toys.

  He motioned for Sarah to sit in one of the chairs nearest the door and watched as she made herself comfortable.

  He walked to the opened window at the left of the room and waited for the young woman typing on a computer to look up.

  “May I help you?” She spoke loudly when she finally acknowledged him. No doubt trying to be heard over the crying babies and chattering mothers.

  “My name is Mose Fischer, and this is Mercy Fischer. We have an appointment with Doctor Hillsborough at ten o’clock.” He kissed his daughter on the top of her kapp and returned the woman’s half smile.

  All business, the young woman continued to type, her fingers dancing across the keyboard. She glanced at him. “Doctor’s running a bit late. Just have a seat, and I’ll let you know when you’re next.”

  “Danke.” He sat next to Sarah, who seemed mesmerized by all the colorful art around her. “Your first time in a doctor’s office, too?”

  She smiled, a dimple he’d never noticed before making her look young and very attractive. He watched as she began to rummage through her big bag and brought out a faceless doll for Mercy. Knowing her background and Adolph’s rigid ways, he doubted she’d ever set foot in a doctor’s office, much less a pediatrician’s office, no matter how sick she’d been.

  “Yes, my first time. You?”

  “I’m sure I must have gone to the doctor at one time or another when I was young. I just don’t remember, so it’s like the first time.”

  Mercy reached for the bottle in his hand and began to suckle. She seemed so calm and healthy. How could anything be wrong with her? “Do you think we’ve made a mistake?” Mose asked. “She looks fine.”

  Sarah leaned back in her chair and pondered his question. “Right or wrong, we have to know. She deserves to be checked. If it’s not her hearing slowing down her speech, we have to find out what is wrong. She should be saying words by now, making sounds. She’s too quiet.”

  Mose saw her concern and felt foolish for asking his question. Sarah was a good mother, kind and attentive. He and the girls were blessed to have her. Gott had filled an empty spot in his heart. Every day he grew more grateful to have Sarah in his life. “I know you’re right. I guess I’m just nervous.”

  She looked at him. Worry etched her face with lines. “I’m concerned, too. Let’s try to stay calm until the doctor tells us something concrete. Gott has a plan for her life, and I’m praying it doesn’t involve deafness.”

  “Mercy Fischer.”

  Mose grabbed Sarah’s hand and together they walked behind the woman holding Mercy’s chart.

  * * *

  Down to just a cloth diaper, Mercy squirmed in her father’s arms, her face red from crying throughout the extensive medical examination given by the pediatrician.

  Standing next to Mose, Sarah brushed back the sweaty fair hair from the child’s forehead and glanced into her husband’s face. To a stranger his expression may have appeared calm, but she noticed the slight tick of nerves twitching his bottom lip. She knew he was as nervous as she felt. Would the Englisch doctor’s diagnosis be grim?

  “I have a good idea what’s going on.” Dr. Hillsborough finally spoke. She looked at Sarah and Mose and smiled. She grabbed her prescription pad off her desk and began to write. “I’m pretty sure Mercy has had several serious ear infections, which is very common in children her age. It looks like fluid’s now trapped behind her eardrums, keeping her from hearing little more than muffled sounds. This much fluid could cause uncomfortable pressure. Has she run a temperature recently, or seemed unusually cranky?”

  Mose hung his head. “She seemed hot and cried a lot on the train a few weeks ago, while on our way to Lancaster. I thought I’d just dressed her too warm and didn’t pay much attention to her crankiness. She’s cried a lot since her mother died and she’s been teething recently.”

  “You shouldn’t feel guilty, Mr. Fischer. Ear infections can easily crop up and get out of hand fast, even under the best of conditions. Babies are often cranky, and we assume it’s their teeth breaking through or a sour stomach. Let’s just make sure she takes a full ten days of the antibiotic I’m prescribing, and then we’ll have her in for a myringotomy. I’ll insert drainage tubes, so this buildup of fluids doesn’t happen again. The procedure is simple and then the tubes can alleviate any pressure pain she’s experiencing.” She tossed her pad on her crowded desk and turned to take Sarah’s hand. “Stop looking so concerned, Mrs. Fischer. Children are very resilient. They bounce back faster than we adults do.”

  “You’re positive surgery is necessary?” Mose’s arms tightening around Mercy’s thin body.

  “I do this procedure almost every day. It’s not a serious operation, I promise you. She’ll only be in the hospital for a few hours at most and then go home. Simple infections have been known to become very serious if ignored over a period of time. It’s good that you noticed the problem so fast, Mrs. Fischer, and brought her in. Children have gone deaf from ear infections left untreated.”

  Sarah leaned in. “Is it possible the medication can work out her problems and the surgery not be needed?”

  “Sadly, no. The tubes in Mercy’s ears are very tiny, and she’s probably going to have problems until they grow a bit larger. I suggest we start her on the medication today and go from there. We’ll schedule the operation while you’re in the office...for two weeks from now. I’ll recheck her the day we do the surgery. Does that plan work for both of you?”

  Mose and Sarah nodded their head in unison. Sarah spoke up. “She will be able to hear clearly again?”

  “Oh, yes. She’ll be catching up with her sister’s chatter in no time. I know this has been a trying time for you and your husband, but now you can relax. You’re doing your very best for her.”

  Sarah was relieved when they walked out of the doctor’s office, into the warm breeze. She glanced over at Mose, saw the grin on his face and knew he was as thrilled with the doctor’s diagnosis as she was. There was only the surgery to get through and Mercy’s hearing would be restored. She lifted her face toward the morning sun and enjoyed its warmth. Thank you, Lord. You are ever faithful.

  * * *

  That evening Mose ate his meal, but didn’t taste the food. His mind stayed on Mercy and the upcoming surgery in a few weeks. Sarah had given the baby her first spoonful of antibiotic and he prayed Gott would protect the child sitting next to him.

  Mose leaned over, cutting Beatrice’s chicken, and reminded his daughter to use her napkin. He smiled at Mercy. The child banged her spoon at him, her grin growing into a drooling river of squished peas.

  “Today we took Mercy to see the doctor,” Mose said, picking a quiet moment at the table to speak.

  Otto’s fork full of cottage fries froze halfway to his mouth.

  Theda leaned forward. “You told me on the phone she’d be fine, but what else did you learn?”

  Mose looked into his mother’s eyes. “Mercy has an infection in her middle ear. She’ll need to have tubes inserted to help drain the fluid.”

  Otto finished his bite of potatoes. “Has this infection you speak of...has it damaged her hearing?”

  Mose pushed his peas around the plate. “Yes, her hearing was affected, but the doctor feels the surgery will fix the problem.”

  “Is the doctor sure?” Theda’s gaze was glued to Mercy.

  “We will ask for Gott’s will. He loves her more than we do.” Mose looked over at his mamm and then to Sarah and forced a smile.

  “Yes,” Otto agreed. “When is this surgery to happen?”

  “Soon. Two weeks,” Mose said, looking at his father.

  “Gott has a plan for Mercy. We must not question why this happened.” Otto continued to eat. The conversation had ended as far as his daed was concerned, but Mose’s br
ows pinched with concern. He’d believed in Gott’s will for Greta, and she had died in his arms.

  Would Gott protect Mercy? He wasn’t so sure. Mose looked at his food on his plate, his appetite gone. His thoughts swirled. Could he live with another loss?

  Sarah reached across the table and grasped his hand, her eyes conveying her love for his youngest child. “She will be fine, Mose. We have to believe Gott knows what He’s doing.”

  Chapter Twelve

  The shiny black car Mose had borrowed from his brother to run errands that morning seemed quiet without Beatrice’s constant stream of questions and comments coming from the backseat. They’d dropped the girls off at their Grandmammi Ulla’s house, and then gone for a ride through Sarasota, giving Sarah some much-needed rest and relaxation.

  The sway of the automobile soothed her, as Mose drove through the streets lined in plain white houses and tidy lawns. She fought the urge to close her eyes and sleep. Florida, with its sunny beaches and tall palm trees, was so different from the rolling Lancaster farmland she was used to.

  This morning she’d been glad to discover the town of Pinecraft was bigger than she’d first thought a week before. Small, brightly painted storefronts, with unique names, offered homemade goods and hot Amish meals to the constant flow of tourists invading the town in staggering numbers during the winter months. Pushing aside the damp hair that escaped her kapp, Sarah welcomed the cool breeze blowing in through the car window. It had rained in the early morning hours, just long enough to make the hot Florida air feel drenched with humidity.

  “Daed said the haus will be ready later today. I want you to see it before I tell him we’ll take it.” Traffic was brisk but Mose flashed a quick smile Sarah’s way.

  A small scar next to Mose’s mouth came into view. She’d never noticed it before, but then, there were a lot of things about Mose she didn’t know. Things she needed to know if she was going to be a good wife to him.

  “That’s gut,” she said. “The girls no longer have a place to call home. They’re desperate for order in their lives. Things have been so hectic this past week and Beatrice is having a hard time.”

  “If you mean she’s behaving badly, I agree.” Mose drove slowly down the street just blocks from his parents’ home. Every house in the neighborhood of central Pinecraft looked exactly the same. Square, white and set back from the road. Mose turned into one of the long driveways and slowed to a stop at the edge of the wide, wooden porch painted a glossy white. He jerked the keys out of the car’s ignition and turned back to her.

  “You sound like my mamm. Always making excuses for Beatrice. The time has come to get that young lady under control. I won’t have her treating Mercy badly, and the way she talks to you is completely out of line.” Mose reached over and touched Sarah’s hand, spreading a warm tingling sensation he’d come to enjoy. “I’m glad she has you, Sarah. You’re a kind woman and wonderful mamm.”

  “She doesn’t see me as her mamm yet. I’m just someone who takes time away from you. Give her grace until she’s adjusted.”

  Otto Fischer walked out of the house and waved, beckoning them to get out of the car. Cream-colored paint dotted the navy overalls that covered his shirt and pants. His gray hair stood in spikes, as if he’d been running his fingers through the thick mop.

  “Looks like daed’s ready to get this haus inspection over with.”

  “I’ve noticed your daed’s not a man to waste time.” Sarah gazed around the front yard as she stepped out onto sparse, crispy grass that begged for a soaking from the cracked hose on the ground.

  “You two took long enough.” Otto’s smile took the bite out of his words.

  “Guder mariye to you, too, Daed.” Mose stepped aside and insisted Sarah go into the house first. “We had to take the kinder over to Ulla’s, and she had much to say to me before I left.”

  “How many times did she mention she hasn’t seen the girls in a while? She called last night and you’d have thought it had been a year since their last visit to her haus. Guder mariye, Sarah. Did you sleep well?”

  “I did, danke.” Sarah glanced around the large open room they’d stepped into, taking in the dark wood floors and creamy walls. She hurried over to the gleaming kitchen in the corner, drawn like a bug to a light. She touched the island’s stone counter with her fingertips and marveled at the swirl of colors within the large slab of smooth granite. Making bread here would be a joy.

  She took a slow turn and tried to take everything in. She’d never seen a house as big as this. Linda had told her these large, newly built homes existed on the fringe of the small Amish community of Pinecraft, but to live in one herself? Sarah was used to small, closed-in rooms. This large area glowed with early morning sunshine. She’d never seen such fancy fixtures or appliances. How would she learn to cook on this gleaming stove with five burners? The house had to use electricity. She looked up and saw the light fixture and knew these were not oil lights. Perhaps a gas generator fueled the electricity? She turned to face Mose. This was an Englisch house he’d brought her to. What was he thinking?

  “I’ll leave you two to have a look round. I’ll be back inside later. I’ve still got to fix that sliding patio door. The thing keeps sticking.” Otto shifted the paint bucket and plastic sheeting he held in his hands. He scrubbed one paint-spattered hand down his overalls before opening the front door and letting it bang behind him.

  Mose turned to Sarah. “So, is the haus gut enough, or do you want to look at a few more? Daed can rent this one to someone else. We won’t hurt his feelings.”

  The grin on his face told her he liked the house. Would he understand if she didn’t want to live here? She wanted to please him, not be picky and difficult, but would she ever feel at home in this modern palace? “There seems to be plenty of room.”

  “I hear a but on the end of that sentence.” Mose moved closer and took her right hand. His thumb rubbed her palm in a swirl of rough skin against soft. His gaze flirted with hers until she looked away, a shy smile on her lips, the room suddenly uncomfortably warm. She pulled her hand away and turned toward the window above the deep sink. Somehow Mose had gotten under her skin, made her feel things she hadn’t felt since Joseph was alive. The emotions swirling in her stomach scared her. Clearing her voice, she spoke, hoping she wouldn’t sound as shaky as her legs felt. “Nee...nee. I like the house. It’s just more modern than I’m used to, that’s all. And so large.”

  “We can look at other houses.”

  She turned back to Mose and silently chastised herself. Mose’s father had gone to a lot of trouble to make this house nice for them. The least she could do was make a fair assessment before coming to a decision. “Please.” She forced a smile and prayed Gott would speak to her about what to say and do. Often she handled things wrong and she so desperately wanted to get this right. “Let’s look through the rest of the house and see if we can make a home here. I’m just surprised by the extras. I’m not used to such grand living. Pinecraft is so different from Lancaster. I hope you understand.”

  His grin was back, his gaze warm. He took her by the arm and playfully propelled her forward. “Let’s go take a look.”

  Sarah smiled and let him guide her down a long hall lined with closed doors. She enjoyed his lighthearted manner and thanked Gott she’d found him. Joseph had been easygoing and had often made her laugh, too. Her heart ached as soon as she thought of Joseph. She touched her stomach with the flat of her hand and felt the bump, their child growing deep inside. She had to tell Mose about the baby. There was no use putting it off. The truth had to come out.

  “Look at this bedroom. It’s perfect for the girls.”

  Sarah realized she still stood in the hallway, her hand on her stomach, reeling with new, raw emotions. She was going to be the mother. The thought was so wonderful she had to fight not to cry.

  “I’m coming,” Sarah called and entered the soft pink room. She whirled around, her long skirt fluttering about her ankles. The ro
om had big windows and a closet large enough to hold all their clothes and then some. “What a terrible waste of space.” Shelves filled one side and two clothes bars filled the other. “Do the Englisch really have this many clothes?”

  “I can’t speak from experience but since this house was once owned by Englisch, I have a feeling they do.” He walked a few feet and opened a pair of double doors at the end of the hallway.

  Sarah gasped as she took in the sheer size of the light tan room. Large windows and a sliding glass door allowed light to flood inside.

  “It’s not that big.” Mose’s laughter mingled with his words.

  “Maybe not to you, but to me it’s the size of a barn.” Sarah tried to imagine a bed and dresser swallowed up in the expansive room. “What will we fill the room with?”

  “The new king-size bed I finished just before I left for Lancaster. It’s been waiting in the barn for someone to buy.” Mose grinned and disappeared through a door at the back of the room.

  She’d never seen a king-size bed, but couldn’t wait to see it. Several pieces of furniture in his mamm’s house showed his fine workmanship and she grew excited.

  She walked into the master closet and shook her head in disgust. Again, what a waste of space. She owned a handful of dresses and two pairs of shoes. She had no clue how many clothes Mose owned, but they’d never fill this large walk-in closet.

  “The bathroom’s nice.” Mose’s voice echoed, bouncing off the walls.

  Sarah moved toward the door he’d disappeared through and paused. Two sinks, a toilet and bathtub gleamed in the bright overhead lighting. Stepping in farther, Sarah saw her own reflection in the massive mirror over the sinks. She had no idea her hair was so bright red, or that she’d put on so much weight. What made Mose look at her as though she was a plate of iced cookies? She turned on her heel and scurried back to the kitchen.