by Alison Stone
“Are you sure?” Jake put his palm on the door.
“Yah, it’s fine. Please go.”
Jake leaned in close. “Are you okay? You look pale.” He reached out to touch her arm and she blinked slowly, not answering him.
Jake pushed the door open and Tommy stepped back, a knife in his hand. The knot in Jake’s stomach twisted. He reached out to grab Rebecca, to pull her out of the way, but Tommy was faster. He grabbed Rebecca around her neck and held the knife against her cheek.
Jake lifted his hands in a surrender gesture. “Don’t hurt her. Whatever’s going on, I can help you.”
Beads of sweat glistened on Tommy’s forehead as he gritted his teeth. “If the two of you hadn’t stuck your noses where they didn’t belong... I needed to sell the drugs to pay tuition. Who was I hurting?”
Tommy yanked Rebecca’s head back and she gasped. Her brown eyes widened with fear. A single tear rolled down her cheek.
Tommy was not going to let her go.
“Hurting Rebecca won’t solve your problems.” Jake slowly took a step forward while Tommy walked backward.
“Killing Rebecca would have been justice. Justice for everything she took away from me.”
Rebecca groaned as Tommy tightened his hold.
“Let her go. It’s no longer about Rebecca. I’m here, too. You’ll have to kill us both.”
Tommy smirked, as if he had already figured that out.
Anger bubbled in Jake’s gut. Someone had really messed Tommy up.
“I’m not going to be easy to take down.” All of Jake’s senses went on high alert.
“I’ll take my chances.” Tommy continued his backward motion toward the door leading into the kitchen. He gave a quick glance over his shoulder and adjusted his direction. “I’m not going to live as a jobless nobody... And I’m not going to prison.”
Jake tried reasoning again. “We could have found ways to pay your college tuition without resorting to drugs. We can still find a way.”
Tommy’s laugh grated across Jake’s brain. “Yeah, right. I’m sure the financial aid office—which is already useless—will give me a scholarship. Perhaps from the pool of scholarships for convicted felons.”
Jake fisted his hands. “You haven’t done anything too serious yet. Hurt Rebecca and all bets are off.”
“There’s no going back.” Tommy’s voice shook with fury. He pulled Rebecca back with him and she flinched. He reached the swinging door and tripped backward over the lip on the floor.
Rebecca reached out and Jake grabbed her arm, pulling her away from Tommy, who had fallen onto his backside. Jake pushed Rebecca out of the way and swung into action. His army training all coming back to him.
Jake kicked the knife out of Tommy’s hand. It spun across the linoleum floor and disappeared under the stove. The young man scrambled to his feet and Jake slammed him into the wall.
“It’s over,” Jake said. “It’s over.” He met Rebecca’s gaze as she collapsed onto a nearby counter stool and bowed her head.
SIXTEEN
Jake held Tommy’s arms firmly behind his back while Rebecca called the sheriff. She stood by the doorway to the kitchen, as if she were ready to take flight if Tommy escaped his grasp.
That wasn’t going to happen.
“How could you do this?” Jake asked Tommy. “I trusted you. The young Amish men who talked to us trusted you.”
“An opportunity to make some easy cash. I couldn’t refuse. Tuition is expensive,” Tommy said, his tone flat and distant, as if he were replaying the choices he had made over the past year.
“The cash didn’t come easily, did it?”
When Tommy didn’t answer, Jake pushed Tommy’s cheek into the wallpaper that had probably been there since the 1950s. Tommy groaned. Straining his neck to glare at Jake over his shoulder, Tommy said, “What does it matter now? My future’s ruined.”
“Don’t be too rough.” At some point Rebecca had moved next to them.
“Yeah, listen to the lady,” Tommy said, full of snark and authority.
Rebecca’s gaze drifted to the door. “Here’s the sheriff.”
Sheriff Maxwell strode into the room, curiosity in his gaze. Jake and Rebecca explained what had happened and the sheriff took Tommy away in handcuffs.
Rebecca collapsed onto the stool and put her hand on her forehead.
Jake walked over to her side and grabbed the back of the stool, even though he really wanted to pull her into an embrace. Thank God he’d arrived when he had. He glanced around at the people milling about outside and he knew a hug wouldn’t be appropriate.
“Are you okay?” he asked, squeezing the back of the chair. He wanted to push a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
When it came to Rebecca, he was definitely in trouble.
“I am now.” She swallowed hard. “What brought you to the diner tonight? If you hadn’t come by...” She shivered and wrapped her arms around her middle.
Jake ran a hand across the back of his neck. He hated to bring Rebecca any more bad news.
She must have read it in his eyes. “Tell me. It can’t be worse than this.”
“The TV was on in the student union on campus. There’s a news crew in front of your house. I wanted to make sure you didn’t have to face them alone.”
Rebecca’s forehead furrowed. “News crew? From the television. Why?”
“Someone must have alerted them about Samuel’s arrest, so they set up on the road in front of your farm.”
“How did they find out?”
“They have ways. They might have seen his name on a police report and wondered if he was related to Willard.”
“Fisher is a common Amish name,” she said. “It would have been a leap to make the connection.”
“Maybe it was Tommy,” Jake suggested.
“Yes, it had to have been. He told me he was going to make it look like Samuel had killed me.” Rebecca covered her mouth, bowed her head and whispered, “I could have been killed tonight...and my daughters wouldn’t have had a mem.”
“I’ll never let anything happen to you.” The words came out of his mouth before he had a chance to think how they would affect Rebecca.
She looked up at him with watery eyes. She covered his hand with hers, then quickly pulled it away and placed it in her lap.
“I didn’t mean to add to your stress tonight.” Jake smiled. “We can discuss our relationship at another time.”
Rebecca blinked slowly. “Tommy told me Samuel was innocent. He wanted to rub it in my face that I’d never be able to tell anyone.”
Tommy had been willing to kill her.
“Do you think Tommy’s confession will be enough to bring Samuel home? To untangle this mess?”
“We can talk to the sheriff. It’ll definitely be a good start.”
Jake slipped his arm around her back and helped her stand. “I’m going to take you home.”
Rebecca looked up at him. “Thank you. I can’t thank you enough.”
Jake brushed his thumb across her cheek. “Thank God I was here.”
Rebecca touched his arm. “Can we pick up Katie and Grace before you drive me home? I need to see them.”
“Of course.” With a hand to the small of her back, he escorted her to his vehicle parked along the curb out front.
* * *
Jake parked his truck sideways in front of her house, blocking the view of the front door from the news truck. Rebecca ran ahead with the girls and unlocked the door while Jake walked down to the street and asked the crew to leave.
Rebecca closed the door behind her and drew in a deep breath. The scent of an old fire in the stove and a hint of peppers from breakfast reached her nose. Home. She had never been more grateful to be home than she was tonight.
She bent and drew her daughters into a hug. The Amish weren’t big on physical displays of affection, but tonight Rebecca would make an exception. She might have never seen her daughters again if Tommy had had his way.
>
“Are you girls hungry?” Rebecca asked.
“Neh,” Katie answered.
Grace shook her head. “Maybe Katie can read me more of Little House on the Prairie.”
“Yah,” Katie said without hesitation. “I want to know what happens next.”
Rebecca placed her hands on their heads. “Well, okay. But instead of going up to your room, stay down here.” Rebecca wanted the company of her daughters after everything she had been through.
Katie ran upstairs for the book and then the two girls settled in the rockers in the sitting room. Rebecca went into the kitchen to put on some water for tea as she listened to Katie read to her little sister. Her heart was full.
A moment later, Jake slipped into the kitchen. “The news crew is packing up. I called the sheriff. He promised them a statement if they came down to the station. He also promised them a photo op with Tommy if they hurried.”
“A photo op?” Rebecca repeated, confused.
“Bottom line, they’re gone. I also told the sheriff about Tommy’s statement that Samuel was innocent. They’ll work on Tommy. See if they can get an official statement.”
Rebecca closed her eyes and felt the weight lifting from her chest. “Thank you again.”
In the privacy of the kitchen, Jake took her two hands in his. “I’m glad I was there for you. We are both truly blessed.”
Rebecca felt her cheeks heat and she turned her face away. She could still hear Katie’s soft voice reading to her sister. “After everything that happened with Willard, and then Samuel, I had often felt uncomfortable in my own home. But tonight, when I realized I might never get to return, I realized that a house doesn’t make a home. It’s the people.” She lifted her eyes to meet his. “Oh, listen to me ramble on.” She shook her head and smiled up at him. “I’m happy to be home with my daughters.”
She met his gaze and with a burst of courage she didn’t know she had, she said, “I’m glad you’re here, too.”
He pressed a kiss to her forehead and her heart expanded.
Then with even more courage she said, “I’m never leaving the Amish. If you want to become Amish, you need to do it because it’s best for you. I don’t want you to resent the decision.”
Jake dragged the tie of her bonnet through his fingers. “You talked about home. I’ve never felt more at home than when I’m with you.”
Her pulse beat steadily in her ears. The voice of her daughter faded off into the distance.
“My parents left the Amish in search of something else,” Jake said. “I’ve been searching all my life for someplace to belong. The army. College. Through my research. But I always felt at a distance.” He pointed to his chest. “I know my place is with you.” He grazed her cheek with the back of his hand. “I need to be baptized to court you.”
All the world disappeared and the only thing she could see was his handsome face. She wanted to tell him once again that if he joined the Amish it had to be for his own reasons. Not for her. But she couldn’t get the words out.
Knowing this warm, compassionate man had tender feelings toward her made her heart soar. He brushed a soft kiss across her lips and whispered, “Wait for me.”
EPILOGUE
Sixteen months later...
“Why didn’t Mem go ice-skating with us?” Katie asked as she held out her arms and did a shaky twirl.
Jake skated over to her, ready to catch her if she hit a rough patch on the frozen pond. “I suppose she had other things to do.”
Grace skated toward them with short choppy steps. Jake had been working with the girls for an hour each day, ever since the pond had safely frozen over two weeks ago.
“Maybe Mem’ll have hot chocolate waiting for us,” Grace said, her words came out on an icy puff of air. She clapped her blue mittens and said, “I’m cold.”
“How about you, Katie? Ready to go in?” Jake squinted against the flurries. The sun low in the sky reflected off an ominous, gunmetal cloud in the distance. “Looks like more snow is on the way.”
“No school!” Katie said as she glided to the edge of the pond.
Jake smiled. Some things were universal.
It took a few minutes for the three of them to change from their skates into their boots. Jake had set up a little wooden bench by the edge of the water for just this purpose. He had grown to love the simplicity of life since quitting his job at the university and becoming Amish. He worked the land and built things, and he finally had time to work on a book about the Amish he had long been planning. He wasn’t sure how the church elders would feel about that, but he figured he’d present it to them before he published it.
He vowed to show the Amish in the best possible light while also sharing some of their struggles. Struggles that were real. The Yoder brothers were currently both in prison for their involvement in aiding Tommy in his drug venture. Tommy was in prison, too, but his sentence was much longer. Maybe there would be a role for someone like Jake to work with young Amish men who wrestled with the decisions facing them as they moved into adulthood, bridging the gap between the Amish world and the one outside.
“Last one to the house is a rotten egg,” Grace hollered as soon as she had slipped on her second boot. She was off like a shot over the fields to the tiny dot that was his home now.
Katie rolled her eyes as she tied the laces of her skates together and hiked them up on her shoulder. “Let her run ahead. I don’t really care if I’m a rotten egg.” She smiled, and it reminded him of his Rebecca.
The two walked across the field, their boots crunching the snow underneath. “We might have to put snowshoes on next time we come out here. It’s really starting to snow.”
When they reached the steps, Katie slowed down and looked up at him. She had yet to hit her teenage years, but every so often, in her mannerisms, he detected a hint of the woman she was becoming.
“Denki for being nice to me and my little sister.”
Jake’s chest tightened. “Of course.” How could he be anything but to these two precious girls?
“My dat was very strict and made my sister and me afraid. It’s just...” She seemed to be struggling with the words. “It’s nice to have peace in the home.”
“Yes, it is.” He held out his hand, encouraging her to go ahead of him, but she paused.
“Is it okay if Grace and I call you Dat?” Katie glanced down and drew circles in the freshly fallen snow with her boot. “Grace and I have talked about it, but we wanted to ask first. You and Mem are married and everything.”
A knot formed in Jake’s throat. “Of course, I’d like that.”
“Okay, then.” Katie slipped the ties of her skates off her shoulder and hustled inside.
Jake turned and canvased the land. God’s land. He was truly home.
* * *
The door swung open and Grace ran in, leaving a trail of wet puddles from the snow in her wake.
“Slow down there,” Rebecca admonished.
Grace stopped and smiled, panting. “Katie’s a rotten egg.”
“Oh, stop that. No one’s a rotten egg.” Rebecca couldn’t help but smile. This past year had brought much happiness to her little family. Jake had followed through and had been baptized this past summer. They were married in October, as soon as the harvest season was over. Now a few months later they had settled into a nice routine.
The only time Rebecca went to the diner now was to meet her friend Hannah for lunch. It was also nice to catch up with Flo. Jake had saved up some money, allowing Rebecca to stay home with the girls on the farm, and allowing them to plan for the future. Meanwhile, Jake had thrown himself into working the farm the summer before their marriage and truly seemed satisfied with it. Now in the dead of winter, he spent his time with the family and his writing.
Rebecca had feared he’d regret becoming Amish, but he truly seemed at peace.
The door opened again and Katie stepped in, followed by Jake. He smiled at her and her heart fluttered, a reaction only his s
mile inspired. They all took off their winter gear and settled around the heating stove.
“Mem, you should come skating with us tomorrow. I want to show you how I can skate,” Grace said, rubbing her hands together near the stove. “Can you come with us?”
Rebecca looked up, meeting Jake’s eyes. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.” She placed her hand on her belly. She had felt sick this past week, but after a quick visit to the doctor today, she knew for certain.
Over the heads of their two daughters, Jake raised his eyebrows. Really? he mouthed.
Love expanding in her chest, Rebecca nodded. Jake closed the distance between them and pulled her into a tight embrace.
She closed her eyes and breathed in his scent, the fresh smell of soap mixed with the great outdoors. When she opened her eyes, Katie and Grace were staring up at them with curiosity.
With his arm still wrapped around his wife, Jake placed his other hand on her belly, an intimate gesture reserved for husband and wife. He met her gaze, getting her unspoken approval.
“Katie, Grace,” he said, “how would you like to have a baby brother or sister?”
They both scrambled to their feet and came to their mother’s side. “Is it true?” Katie asked, always the more conservative of the two.
Rebecca reached out and cupped her eldest daughter’s cheek. “Yes, honey. Are you happy?”
Katie nodded, but her lower lip quivered.
“What’s wrong?” Rebecca whispered.
Jake put a hand on Katie’s shoulder.
“I’m happy.”
“Then why are you crying?” Grace asked in the way only little sisters can.
Rebecca brushed away the tears with her thumb. “Those are happy tears.”
Katie nodded. “I can’t wait to tell Samuel. When will we see him? He gets to be a big brother again.”
“He and Marian are coming for a visit next week if the weather’s good.”
After all the drug charges had been dropped, Samuel had remained near Rochester in an Amish district in communion with Apple Creek. He’d been baptized around the same time as Jake and had married a pleasant Amish girl from a big family there.