Mamm pulled out a chair from the kitchen table and sank into it. “He loves her?”
Annie dropped into the chair opposite her mother. “So he says. And they … well, they are close.”
Mamm’s eyes narrowed. Her features pinched up into a scowl and then went white. “Are you telling me more than you’re telling me?”
“Maybe,” Annie said, clenching her hands in her lap.
Mamm blew out her breath and tilted her head back. She stared up at the ceiling and went completely still. Annie wasn’t sure she was breathing.
“Mamm?” Annie said. “You all right?”
A long moment passed, and Annie began to fidget. Then with a sharp intake of breath, Mamm stood.
“We’d better get back to the baking. Can’t have those women coming tomorrow to an empty table, now, can we?” She began to beat the dough with the same brute force she used to beat rugs on the clothesline during spring cleaning.
Annie watched her for a minute and then got up, too. She scurried to help her. They spent the next hour in silence, carefully avoiding any talk of Sarah.
Chapter Four
Annie stood just inside the front door, greeting the women as they flowed into the house for the frolic. There was loud chattering and exclamations of the cold weather as they gathered. Annie fortified herself for her cousin’s arrival, and she didn’t have to wait long. Through the screen door, she saw MaeAnn trundle out of the buggy her husband had driven up to the porch. MaeAnn gave him a wave, and Randall snapped the reins and left the drive.
“Annie!” MaeAnn exclaimed. She bustled up the steps and entered the house with a smile. She took Annie’s hand and squeezed it. “So nice to see you.” She began peeling off her cape and mittens. Then she unwound her scarf and handed it all to her cousin.
“Look who’s here!” exclaimed Mamm. “Welcome, MaeAnn.”
Mamm came forward and greeted MaeAnn with a squeeze to her arm. Within seconds, MaeAnn was surrounded by the women, all laughing and joking and patting her protruding stomach.
“Won’t be so long now,” Betty Grander commented. “I well remember my first boppli…”
Annie kept her smile pasted on, feigning excitement as she mingled with the rest of the women. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sarah standing on the stairs, watching her. Their eyes met, and Annie knew Sarah saw right through her. In the moment, Annie felt forever grateful to her sister. At least someone knew how she was feeling.
Annie moved around the chatting women and went to the stairs to stand with her younger sister. Sarah put her hand on Annie’s shoulder and rested her head on Annie’s kapp for a fraction of a second. Annie felt her muscles relax.
“So you came,” Annie said quietly.
“Didn’t have much choice now, did I?” Sarah countered.
“I’m glad.”
Sarah nodded.
“Annie!” Mamm called, looking around. She spotted Annie on the stairs. “There you are. Come on, now. We’re going to get started.”
Annie glanced at Sarah, and they both stepped down the last couple steps to join the gaggle of women. Annie heard Sarah take a deep breath as if about to plunge underwater. On the other hand, her own breathing was shallow and quick. She fought down tears as she walked across the room, ever mindful to keep her smile fixed firmly in place.
Annie made it through the frolic, and in the end, she joined the women in their satisfaction of a job well done. The quilt they had stitched was for Widow Black, a woman who’d recently lost her husband to a long-held illness. The widow, herself, was doing poorly. She didn’t get out much and the neighboring families had taken to bringing her meals and tending to her chores. She was fixing to move to Ohio to join her daughter’s family, but until she felt better, she wasn’t keen on traveling. The quilt had been sewn in a Jacob’s Ladder pattern, and the different blues blended right nice.
“Annie?” Amos asked her over supper that night. “How’d it go?”
Annie nodded. “Fine.”
“And MaeAnn was there?”
“Jah.”
“But you were all right?”
For some reason, Amos’s questioning irritated her that evening, and she fought to tame her tongue. “I was fine,” she muttered, although her voice was clipped.
Amos gazed at her, his hazel eyes soft.
Annie stood abruptly, picking up her plate which still held half her meal. “I think I’ll turn in early tonight,” she said evenly. She walked to the sink and set her dish on the counter.
“You’re sure you’re feeling okay?”
“I’m sure,” she said. This time, her irritation was more than evident in her tone. An awkward silence stretched across the room. “I’m sorry, Amos. I’m tired.”
Amos set down his fork. “Quilting is hard, tedious work, so it’s no wonder.”
But from the look on his face, he was fully aware it wasn’t fatigue from the quilting weighing on her. That wasn’t it at all. And they both knew it.
Early the next morning, frantic pounding on the door brought Annie to a run. She threw open the door, and Mamm practically fell inside.
“Why are you knocking?” Annie asked, stunned that her own mother would knock at her door. “What’s wrong?”
Mamm’s kapp was askew, and she gulped in air. “She’s gone!” she cried, between gasps. “Sarah’s gone!”
Instant anxiety grabbed Annie’s heart. “What do you mean she’s gone?”
“I can’t find her anywhere. Miriam looked, too.”
“Did you check the barn? The chickens?”
“Jah!” Mamm grabbed Annie’s arm. “Her bed is made.”
“But that’s good. It means she’s probably around somewhere doing chores.”
Mamm shook her head. “Nee! Every day I’m after her to make it up. I don’t think she came home last night!”
Annie’s eyes went huge. “She’s with Eric then,” she whispered. “That has to be it.”
“Eric? The Englisch boy? Where does he live?”
“I don’t know. She never told me.” Annie inhaled sharply. What was Sarah thinking to stay out all night? And just when was she planning to come home?
Mamm grabbed the doorknob. “I’ve got to tell Levi.”
“Wait! Dat doesn’t know yet?”
“I thought she might be with you so I came here first.” Mamm started out the door. “Tell Amos, will you?”
Mamm hurried down the steps and began to run across the frozen yard. Annie flew after her, not even stopping for her coat. She needed to find Amos in the woodshop. Maybe he could hitch the cart, and they could drive out to Powter’s Point. Even as she thought it, she realized it was a foolish idea. No one would be at Powter’s Point in the early morning.
She and Mamm were nearly to the outbuildings when a black car swerved into the drive. Annie stopped running and stared. It was the same car she’d seen at Powter’s Point. It skidded to a halt, and the passenger door opened. Sarah tumbled out, laughing. But when she spotted Annie and Mamm gaping at her, her face quickly went serious.
“Mamm?” she said, loud enough to be heard across the lawn.
The driver’s door opened, and Eric got out. He looked at Annie and Mamm over the roof of the car.
Mamm rushed forward and grabbed Sarah’s arm, pulling her towards the house.
“Wait! Please, ma’am!” Eric said, bustling around the car. “I’m sorry. This isn’t Sarah’s fault.”
At that moment, Dat emerged from the barn. His brow furrowed as he took it all in. “What’s happening here?” he asked, coming forward.
Mamm stood, her grasp still firm on Sarah’s arm. “Your daughter just came home!”
Dat’s eyebrows flew up and then bunched into a frown. “What?”
“It was my fault, sir,” Eric said, stepping forward.
Dat glared from him to Sarah and back. “You can be going, now, young man,” he said, his voice tense.
“But—” Eric started.
“You
can be going,” Dat said even more firmly. “Thank you for bringing our Sarah home.”
Sarah was trying to wiggle her arm loose from Mamm’s grip, but it was obvious she wasn’t going anywhere. Mamm had a death grip on her, and that was all there was to it.
Eric flashed a desperate glance at Sarah and then got back in his car. He drove away, slowly, as if the car was tiptoeing out of the drive.
Annie rushed to Sarah. “Are you all right?” she asked.
Mamm gave Annie a look to kill and dragged Sarah into the house. Dat was at their heels. Annie stood watching them, her heart sinking to her very toes. Sarah was in for it now, rumspringa or not. Annie hustled around the barn to the wood-working shed. Amos was bent over a long board, sanding it, flecks of wood dust making piles at his feet. She took a deep breath of the woodsy air and approached Amos.
“Ach! Annie, you startled me.” Amos paused his sanding and his eyes grew alarmed as he looked at her. “What’s happened?”
“Sarah just got home.”
“Where did she go so early this morning?”
“Nee. She just got home. She’s been out since last night.”
Amos leaned heavily against his work table. “Where was she?”
“With Eric.”
“And your parents?”
“They’re with her now.”
He shook his head and wiped his forehead, leaving a trail of wood dust behind. “This isn’t gut.”
“Nee, this isn’t gut at all.” Annie blew out her breath. “Ach! Miriam! I need to fetch her. She doesn’t need to be hearing what’s said.”
She turned on her heel and ran to the big house. She braced herself and opened the side door, listening intently to determine where her parents and Sarah were. She heard voices coming from the front room. She crept into the kitchen and wondered how to find Miriam without disturbing her parents. Finally, she decided to simply walk through the room and go upstairs. Miriam was most likely up there. She hoped her little sister wasn’t eavesdropping. Who knew what conclusions she might jump to?
Annie grimaced. The same conclusions she herself had jumped to. She shook her head. Surely not—Miriam was only a young girl. Still, it would be best if she didn’t hear everything said.
Annie stepped into the front room and all talking stopped. Sarah’s eyes were red, and she sat stiff and unmoving on the couch. She glanced at Annie and then averted her eyes to stare out the window. Mamm’s eyes were red, too, and her cheeks were damp. Dat sat hunched and sunken in. Annie had never seen him look so old, and so … defeated. She wanted to rush to him and put her arms around his heavy shoulders, but she didn’t dare.
“I’ve come to fetch Miriam,” she said meekly, and headed through to the stairs.
“Nee!” Mamm cried. “You can come in here, too. This has to do with the entire family.”
Sarah bristled. “My business is my own!” she cried.
“Hardly,” Mamm snapped. “You’ve made it everyone’s.”
Dat closed his eyes and moaned. “Come in here, Annie,” he said. “Your mamm’s right. This will affect us all.”
Annie let go of the railing and slowly moved to an empty chair. She sat down. Her chest hurt, and she realized she was holding her breath.
“What is it?”
“Sarah will be going away,” Mamm said.
Sarah’s hands formed fists on her lap.
“Going away?” Annie asked.
“Jah. She’ll be staying with your cousins in Ohio for a spell.”
“In Ohio?” Annie looked at Sarah, but Sarah simply stared at her hands.
Mamm took a handkerchief from her apron and blew her nose. “With your cousin Isabel.”
“I see.” Annie’s mind whirled. Were they hoping to stop Sarah’s relationship with Eric? Or were they hoping she’d stop her running around?
“I’ll order the van for tomorrow,” Dat said, standing up.
“Tomorrow?” Annie asked. “So soon?”
Mamm clenched her handkerchief until her knuckles went white. “We don’t have much time.”
“But why? What do you—” Annie’s words froze in her mouth, and her gaze flew to her sister. “You don’t mean…”
Mamm began crying again, tears running down her cheeks. She brushed her hand across her face.
“Ach, Sarah. Tell me it isn’t so.”
Sarah took a huge breath and stood. Her body was rigid, and Annie worried she might topple over.
“You make my decisions as if I’m not even here,” she said, and her voice was a controlled roar. “You think I don’t have feelings? You think Eric is nothing but an Englisch boy? You think he doesn’t love me?” Her nostrils flared, and her face went red as she continued.
“You think I don’t love him? You think I don’t want to leave here forever? You think shoving me off to Ohio is going to change anything?”
She was nearly spitting the words now. Annie pulled back against the chair, her spine stiff.
Dat cleared his throat. “Doesn’t matter what you think now, daughter. I have to protect you and this family.”
“Protect me?” cried Sarah. “From what? Loving someone? Having some fun for once in my life?”
Annie gasped and watched her sister morph into a raging animal.
“You think I don’t want this baby? You think Eric doesn’t want it?” she screamed.
Annie’s gaze jerked toward the stairs, praying that Miriam was tucked away safely in her room. Sarah fell back into her chair, her hands still clenched into fists.
Mamm stood and took a jolting step to stand by her husband. She stared at Annie. “You can go, too.”
Annie blanched. “What?”
“You can go, too. Stay with her in Ohio till she gives birth. Then the two of you can return, and the baby will be yours.”
“What?” Annie stared at her mother. “What are you saying?”
“You can raise the baby as your own. No one need know.”
Sarah erupted from her chair. “Nee! You can’t be giving away my baby! It’s my baby! Mine and Eric’s!”
Dat stiffened then and seemed to grow larger before Annie’s eyes. He towered over all of them. Annie watched him, transfixed.
“You lost your choice, Sarah. You’ll do as I say. I’m the authority in this house, something you have sorely forgotten lately. I take the blame for that. But now, I’m speaking, and I’m deciding. You’ll go to Ohio. You’ll give the baby to Annie and Amos. And you’ll come back here, and may Gott help us, you’ll be baptized and join church.”
“Dat!” Annie cried. How could he decide such a thing as baptism without Sarah’s approval? And what about her husband in all this? Would he have no say in this plan? And Sarah…
“Nee!” Sarah continued screaming. “You can’t force me! You can’t!”
Mamm stood and for a brief second, Annie thought she was going to plummet to the ground. But she rallied and went to Sarah. Sarah stood facing them all, her face beet red and shaking all over.
The next motions were slowed to a crawl, as if time itself had stopped functioning. Sarah turned to Mamm and began to crumple like folded paper. Mamm stretched out her arms to catch her as Sarah’s face went white and contorted. Mamm caught Sarah just as she buckled against her.
“She’s going to vomit!” cried Annie, rushing forward and tearing at her apron to get it off.
She crammed the wadded fabric beneath Sarah’s mouth just in time.
Sarah was crying now, tears streaming from her face, and her nose running.
“Sarah! Come! Sit down!” Annie grabbed her sister’s arm.
Mamm still held Sarah’s sagging body, and she and Annie got her to the couch.
“It’s all right, daughter,” Mamm murmured to Sarah. “It’s all right.”
Annie blew out her breath in quick gasps, trying to pat and comfort her sister. She glanced up at Dat who was watching them, his mouth open and his face bleached of all color.
“Get me a wet washrag, Annie,
” Mamm directed.
Annie flew from the room, balancing the soiled apron in her hands. She dashed to the kitchen, dropped the apron in the sink, and snatched up a clean dishcloth. She stuck the cloth under the faucet until it was good and wet and then wrung it out. She hurried back to Mamm and Sarah.
Mamm took the cloth and gently wiped Sarah’s face. Sarah’s eyes were closed now, her breathing shallow but steady.
“Annie?” came Amos’s voice from the side door. “You in here?”
Annie looked toward the kitchen and then back at Mamm. “Are you all right?” she asked.
Mamm nodded, her lips set in a pained frown.
Annie swiped her damp hands down the side of her dress and hurried into the kitchen to find Amos.
“I stayed back to give your parents and Sarah some privacy. But I wanted to check on all of you—” He regarded Annie and then grabbed her shoulders. “Ach, what’s happened?”
Annie inhaled sharply and then fell against him sobbing.
“Annie!” he said, his voice full of alarm. “Tell me what’s happened?”
“Sarah,” she muttered into his shoulder. “She…” Annie’s voice clogged with tears, and she couldn’t continue.
Amos held her for a moment, squeezing her close, and then he released her and led her to the kitchen rocker in front of the warming stove. “Sit and tell me.” He grabbed a kitchen chair from under the table and pulled it in front of the rocker. He placed his calloused hands on her knees and looked into her teary eyes.
“She’s with child,” Annie blurted.
Amos reared back as if struck. “What?”
Annie nodded, miserable. “She’s in the front room with Mamm and Dat. She’s just vomited.”
Amos let out a low whistle. “What’s to be done?”
Annie shook her head. “Dat’s sending her to Ohio. He wants me to go with her and come back as if the boppli is mine. I mean, ours.”
Amos stared at her, his mouth open. Annie gulped as she watched the emotions play over his face. First, the shock and then confusion, and then back to shock.
“I know,” she said, her voice catching. “It’s a lot…”
“You agreed to this?” he asked. His eyes were intense on hers, and she couldn’t read what he was thinking.
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