Amish Romance: Annie's Story: Three Book Box Set

by Brenda Maxfield

  “It will be all right,” Annie assured her for the hundredth time. “Truly, it will.”

  Sarah sighed and closed her eyes.

  Jah, it would be all right. God would see to it.

  The End

  Escaping Acre’s Corner

  Annie’s Story #2

  Chapter One

  In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.

  Job 12:10 (King James Version)

  Sarah braced herself against every bump in the road, determined not to move. Not to jiggle. Hardly to breathe.

  She’d been torn from her home, forced to exile in Ohio at her Cousin Isabel’s house, but that didn’t mean she had to go willingly. Or politely. Or even alive. Not alive? She snorted inwardly at such a stupid thought. But still…

  Her hands instinctively went to her stomach, resting on the hardly perceptible bump. She had a boppli to think of now. She glanced out of the corner of her eye at her sister Annie. Annie’s eyes were still wider than usual, and Sarah watched to make sure she was even blinking. Yes, there it was. Her sister’s excitement was palpable, but Sarah didn’t like the taste of it. She wanted to spit.

  In truth, Sarah wanted to scream and yell and cry. But she didn’t. She was done with that. Instead, she conserved her energy, her mind spinning with ideas. Plots. Schemes. Call them by whatever name you liked—Sarah had no intention of following her dat’s insane plan.

  Inwardly, she seethed. She still couldn’t believe her dat was trying to force her to give her baby to Annie and Amos. Merciless. Not to mention heartless. Sarah pressed her lips tightly together, willing herself not to say anything stupid or suspicious. Truth be told, when the trip to Ohio had begun two hours earlier, she’d pretended to be glad that Annie would be raising her child.

  Wait … her child? Nee! It’s Eric’s child, too. Sarah’s stomach cramped, and she sucked in her breath before she could stop herself.

  “Sarah?” Annie asked, her gaze intent. “Are you all right? Is something wrong?”

  Sarah took a slow breath, and the pain subsided. “I’m fine,” she said, surprised at how normal her voice sounded. “A bit tired.”

  Annie shifted and faced her more squarely. “Shall I tell the driver to stop? Do you want to get out and stretch a bit?”

  “Nee. I’m fine. I told you.” Impatience seeped into her voice, and she quickly gave Annie a smile. “Don’t fret so.”

  Annie’s brow furrowed. “I can’t help it. I promised Mamm I’d take care of you. Are you hungry?” She began to rustle in the bag of food she’d brought along.

  Sarah put her hand on Annie’s arm. “I’m not hungry. I’m fine.”

  Annie stopped digging. “All right.” She set the cloth bag that Mamm had stuffed full of food on the seat between them. “Let me know if you change your mind.”

  Sarah nodded and resumed staring out the window. The landscape rushed by in a blur, but Sarah no longer marveled at such speed. She’d ridden in cars plenty of times over the last few months. She’d been justified, too, since she was in her rumspringa. She closed her eyes and exhaled.

  Well, that was over now.

  It was her fault, and she knew it. She wasn’t as deluded as that. She and Eric had consummated their love too early, and there was no taking it back. She straightened her shoulders. She didn’t want to take it back. She loved Eric. With every ounce of her being, she loved him.

  But she’d made a mess of things, for sure and for certain. Dat and Mamm had sent her off to protect her. She shook her head and scoffed softly. More like to protect themselves. As if sending her away would do any good—Sarah knew how the gossip chain worked. She predicted that the whole community of Hollybrook would know her condition within two weeks. Three weeks, tops.

  Annie’s tension made Sarah itch. She knew her sister was over-the-moon excited about this baby. She and Amos had been trying for years to get in the family way, and with no luck. Poor Annie. It didn’t help that nearly every of-age married woman in Hollybrook was expecting. Or so it seemed. And then to have her little sister up and get pregnant without being married… Sarah could only imagine the anguish she’d caused Annie.

  But now? Now, Sarah was the hero because Annie was going to get the baby to raise as her own. Dat’s absurd idea.

  “An hour more,” the Mennonite driver called over his shoulder. “You girls doing okay?”

  Annie smiled. “We’re doing fine, thank you.” She turned to Sarah. “Only another hour.”

  Sarah nodded. Annie reached over and gave Sarah’s hand a squeeze. Sarah squeezed back, mainly to allay suspicion. She wanted to give Annie no reason to question what thoughts might be whizzing through her head.

  The last hour passed without incident. When the driver pulled off the main highway and started winding through the backroads to get to Cousin Isabel’s house in Acre’s Corner, Sarah perked up. She focused hard at each passing landmark, attempting to memorize her way to Isabel’s house. She fully intended to use her knowledge to find her way right back out. She wasn’t sure how. She wasn’t sure when.

  But she was sure.

  The driver turned into a long drive and approached a large white farmhouse with six rockers lined up on the front porch. Sarah hadn’t been there for years, but she would always remember the number of rockers on Isabel’s porch. She knew that every evening during the summer, they were full. Her relatives would sit there, rocking gently as they either knitted, sewed, or like Cousin Andrew, smoked a pipe. At least that’s what always happened when she was visiting.

  “We’re here,” Annie said. She gathered up her various bags and barely waited for the van to stop before she plunged outside. She glanced back at Sarah with a hesitant look.

  “Quit studying me all the time,” Sarah snapped. She instantly regretted her harsh words and put on a contrite smile. What had happened to her resolution to stay calm?

  Annie flinched. “Ach, I’m sorry, Sarah. Truly.”

  The front screen flapped open, hitting the side of the house. Cousin Isabel and three little girls trundled out the front door.

  “You’re here!” Isabel cried, moving down the steps with surprising ease, considering she was balancing a boppli on her hip.

  “Jah, we’re here,” Annie answered.

  Sarah climbed out slowly, arranging her face in a pleasant smile. “Hello, Isabel.” She looked down at the three little ones who had suddenly become shy and were partially hidden behind their mama’s skirt.

  “Hello, young ones,” Sarah continued. Her heart pinched as she studied the kinner. Her hand began to go to her stomach, but she stopped herself.

  The driver was busy unloading their suitcases. He carried them to the porch and then turned to Annie. “Is that all, miss?”

  Annie nodded. “Dat paid you, right?”

  “It’s all taken care of. You two have a nice visit now.” He touched his eyebrow in farewell and got back into the van and drove away.

  A moment of awkward silence ensued.

  Then Isabel shifted her baby from one hip to the other. “Let’s get you settled then.” She led them back inside the house. Sarah stood just inside the door, taking it all in. The front room was considerably larger than theirs, as was the kitchen and dining area. It was sparsely furnished, but the pieces were heavy and showed excellent craftsmanship. Sarah had the fleeting thought that Annie’s husband, Amos, would like to chat with the man who had made such fine pieces.

  There was a pile of wooden toys on the braided rug in front of the warming stove. Sarah craned her neck and peered inside the mud room at the side entrance. A row of boots was lined up with all toes pointing toward the wall. A thick towel lay over the rim of the sink and a chunk of lye soap sat next to the faucet.

  “Sarah?” Annie questioned.

  Sarah flinched. “Jah?”

  “What do you think?”

  Sarah’s face grew hot. Had Annie been talking to her? Her focus was off, way off. Ever since she found out she w
as with child, she couldn’t seem to concentrate more than a few minutes at a time.

  “About what?” she asked sheepishly.

  Annie’s brows drew together. “Would you like a bit of food first, or do you want to go on upstairs and unpack?”

  Sarah swallowed and mentally measured her level of nausea. Perhaps a bit of food would do nicely. “I’d like to eat something first,” she said.

  “Wonderful,” Isabel said. “Sarah and Annie, come sit down. Girls, go wash your hands.”

  The three little ones scrambled into the washroom, and Sarah heard them scrape the wooden stepstool up to the sink so they could reach. She looked forward to getting to know them better; they seemed so precious. Then she frowned. What was she thinking? She wouldn’t be getting to know them better at all. She didn’t plan on staying long enough.

  “Perhaps we should wash up, too,” Annie stated. “We were hours in the van.”

  Sarah joined Annie at the kitchen sink. They washed up quickly and returned to the table as the girls organized themselves on one of the long wooden benches.

  “I’ve got fresh banana bread and some canned peaches. I hope that will suit.”

  Sarah looked at her cousin. “It will suit fine.”

  After their snack, Isabel led them upstairs. There were six bedrooms, all of ample size. Isabel’s family presently occupied three of the rooms.

  “I didn’t know if you wanted to share,” Isabel said, pushing open the door to a room with a double bed, a tall dresser, and numerous pegs along the wall. “I made up two of the rooms just in case.”

  Sally, the oldest of the three girls, stood in the middle of the room staring at Sarah with large blue eyes. Annie stepped forward and patted her on the head. “We’re so happy to get to stay with you for a while.”

  But Sally paid no mind to Annie. She kept staring at Sarah, her tumbling blond curls hugging her neck.

  Isabel cleared her throat. “Sally, run along now. Go tend to your sisters.”

  Sally pursed her lips and ran off, calling, “Mary! Phoebe! Let’s play downstairs.”

  “She’s so sweet,” Annie commented, setting her suitcase on the bed.

  “Jah, and a big help, too.” Isabel handed her baby to Annie. “So, you’re wanting to share rooms?”

  Sarah’s mind spun. If she shared a room with Annie, it would make her getaway that much more difficult. If she had her own room, she could be gone for hours before anyone was the wiser. “I’d like to have my own room, if that’s all right,” she murmured.

  Annie’s gaze flew to her. “Really? But it would be like old times to share a room.”

  “It’s not old times, though, is it?” Sarah asked.

  Isabel’s eyes widened, and she looked uncomfortable, but she recovered quickly. “Your own room is fine. As I said, I freshened up two rooms.”

  Sarah knew Annie was hurt, but there was nothing to be done about it. She could see that her sister was going to be much too clingy for her taste. Might as well put some distance between them from the start. Sarah bent down to pick up her suitcase again. A flicker of sorrow flashed through her. She and Annie had happily shared a room until Annie had married and moved into the daadi haus. They’d gotten along fine. And at first, after Annie moved out to join Amos, Sarah had missed her something fierce.

  But it wasn’t old times, was it? Hadn’t she just said as much?

  Sarah’s burning need for privacy was something new. As a general rule, there wasn’t much privacy to be had in Amish homes. Most shared their bedrooms with a passel of siblings. So where did this urgent need come from? Sarah clasped her suitcase more firmly. Perhaps she had adopted more of the Englisch ways than she’d thought.

  “Annie, would you hold the baby for another minute or two?” Isabel asked.

  Annie was more than willing to accommodate, and she said so.

  “Thank you. Come on then, Sarah, and I’ll show you to your room.” Isabel went back into the hall and indicated the door adjacent to Annie’s. “Here you are.”

  Sarah walked into the room, noting that the wooden floors creaked with each step. She’d have to learn where to place her weight if she wanted to move about in secret. The bed was narrow and had a beautiful pink and green quilt spread over it. A small rag rug lay next to the bed, and a tall dresser, similar to the one in Annie’s room, flanked the side of the window.

  “This is fine,” Sarah said. “Thank you, Isabel.”

  Isabel peered out into the hall and then shut the door quietly. She turned to Sarah. “Are you all right?”

  Sarah had wondered when Isabel would question her, but it had happened sooner than she’d anticipated. She felt a slow heat come to her cheeks. “Jah.”

  “Andrew and I do have a request.”

  Sarah raised her brows. A request? She hadn’t expected that at all. But since they had taken her in, she could hardly refuse. “What is it?”

  “Our girls are young, it’s true. So they wouldn’t understand a lot of things. But even so, we don’t want them … well…” Isabel paused.

  Sarah’s heart fell. So, that was it. “You don’t want me talking to them? You don’t want me influencing them?”

  Isabel put up her hand. “Nee. Not that.”

  Sarah sucked air. “Then what?”

  “Don’t be talking about how you don’t have a husband, all right? I’m not asking you to lie. We just don’t want them knowing everything.”

  Since Isabel’s daughters were seven and younger—Sarah couldn’t remember exactly—it was hardly likely she’d be telling them any details. Her skin went even hotter. How foolish did her cousin think she was? She sank to the edge of the bed.

  “Of course,” she managed to eke out. A surge of irritation swept through her. None of this was her idea. It was Dat’s fault she was there, imposing on her cousin’s family and interrupting their lives.

  Isabel put her hand on the doorknob and then looked back over her shoulder at Sarah. “Your father didn’t give us the full story. I’m sure you understand that we can’t help but wonder. You have asked Gott for forgiveness, then? You’ve spoken with your bishop?”

  Sarah’s chest tightened, and she worked to keep her tone even. “I’m tired, cousin. I wonder if we might talk about this later.”

  Isabel fluttered her lashes and seemed a bit abashed. “Jah, of course. I should have realized. You rest now, Sarah. Supper will be at six.”

  Sarah nodded and lay back on the bed, so Isabel could see just how tired she was. But when her cousin left and closed the door behind her, Sarah sat back up. Her throat burned with indignation. This was going to be worse than she’d imagined—and she’d imagined it bad. She stepped to the window and attempted to view the road. Unfortunately, there were large willows throughout the front yard, blocking her view.

  She flattened her hands on the window pane and leaned into the glass. If she pressed her face flat against the cool surface, she could almost see a bit of road to the right. She sighed and backed away. It was no use. She’d have to go down there to get a better look.

  Surely, there was a phone shanty in the area. She opened her suitcase and dug around until she found her small purse of coins. She knew how to operate a public phone. One, she had used one in the center of Hollybrook when she’d made a call to the Miller’s barn. Isaiah Miller had answered and acted as if he was about to drop the phone when her voice came on the line. But it was a legitimate business call. She was checking to see if he could supply honey for her friend’s booth at the local farmer’s market. Sarah smiled thinking about it. Martha Ann wouldn’t touch the phone, saying her dat would have a fit if he found out. Sarah had argued that business calls were all right, but Martha Ann had turned her back with a flourish, crossing her arms indignantly. So, Sarah had ended up calling Isaiah Miller for her. Which, of course, hadn’t bothered Sarah at all.

  Sarah took a few coins and pushed them into the waist of her dress. She had no idea if the phone shanty would be a public phone or a regular p
hone. If it was a regular phone, she wouldn’t have to worry about slipping coins into it. The farmers in the area could be sharing the bill, and if they were, she could simply pick up the phone and make a call.

  She fretted a bit, though, because her call would be long distance. She knew enough about area codes, so that wasn’t the problem. What she didn’t know was whether the farmers would figure out who had made the call when the bill came due.

  She grabbed the end post of the bed and grimaced. If she was Englisch, she’d have her own cell phone and this wouldn’t be an issue. Yet another reason to give up her Amish ways. She pulled off her kapp and undid the bun at the nape of her neck. Her long chestnut hair fell over her shoulders like a waterfall. She ran her fingers through its soft silkiness. Absently, she twisted a lock around her finger as she thought of Eric.

  “Soon,” she whispered. “Soon, we’ll be back together.”

  Someone rapped lightly on her door, and she went to answer it. Annie looked in, her eyes slightly red.

  “You been crying?” Sarah asked.

  Annie bustled into the room and sat on the bed. “Not much,” she said. “I wanted to know if you’d like to stretch your legs a bit. Maybe take a walk or ask Isabel if we can be of help with some chores.”

  Sarah’s brows rose. Was it to be this easy? “I’d love to take a walk,” she said, delighted that she’d be able to scope out the land and look for a shanty.

  Annie nodded and stood. “Gut. That’s real gut. I’ll tell Isabel. Shall we ask the girls to come along?”

  Sarah stiffened. “Nee. I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

  “But I’m sure they’d love to go with us.”

  “Annie.” Her voice was so solemn that Annie’s face crunched into worry.

  “What is it?”

  “Isabel and Andrew aren’t keen on me spending time with the girls.”