by Sarah Price
And, by now, surely people knew that Sadie was not at her father’s farm. Enough time had gone by that someone would have noticed.
Sadie had no idea how the rest of the town might have reacted to the news of her disappearance. The previous week, she had suspected that Rachel might not admit the real reason for her stepdaughter’s flight. To do so would be to admit to trying to force her to marry John Rabor, and that would put Rachel in a bad light, for sure and certain. People might believe that the normally levelheaded Sadie had just run away. However, that didn’t mean people weren’t looking for her. Surely her friends were concerned about her welfare.
Suddenly the silence of the forest broke and the sound of footsteps could be heard. Leaves crackled and twigs snapped under the weight of someone’s footsteps.
David turned his head away from the door, a pleased grin on his face. “See? I told you I heard someone. You can’t live out here in the forest without knowing when someone’s approaching.”
Despite David’s self-satisfaction, Sadie felt a wave of panic. In the short time she had been at the Grimm brothers’ house, no one had come to visit them. Who could it possibly be?
Immediately, Sadie turned away from the door. She stepped into the shadows and stared around the room. “I must hide!” In the one large open room, there were few places where she could conceal herself.
“Hide? Whatever for?”
Sadie felt as if every nerve in her body were on fire. How could David, the most intelligent of the brothers, ask such a question? “What if it’s my stepmother? What if it’s John Rabor?”
But David didn’t appear concerned. He merely shook his head at her. “Nee, no need to fret. It’s probably our cousin, bringing us supplies.”
Cousin? Though she had never thought about how the brothers got their basic supplies, she also knew that they had never mentioned a cousin who regularly visited.
Sadie wasn’t about to take any chances. She retreated to the far corner of the room and tucked herself in the shadows behind the ladder that led to the loft.
“Good day, Cousin!” David called out to the approaching visitor.
“And to you, David,” a male voice responded—a voice that sounded familiar to Sadie.
David hesitated and then asked, “What’s wrong? Why so long in the face?”
“Too much to explain, I reckon.”
Frederick? For a moment, she couldn’t make sense of why Frederick would be standing outside of the Grimm brothers’ cottage. And David had called him “Cousin.”
Suddenly a memory came to mind. Sadie recalled the day she had met Frederick, just moments after she had spotted that beautiful deer near the stream. Hadn’t he told her that he was coming from his cousins’ house, having stopped to visit on his way to Echo Creek? And, of course, both Anna Rose and Elizabeth Grimm, also cousins to the Grimm brothers, were related to Frederick. Their fathers had been Frederick’s uncles.
In her mind, Sadie envisioned the family tree. Like every Amish family, it was convoluted with twists and turns, interwoven branches that made a complicated mess when it came to genealogy. Because of frequent intermarriage, there was a tendency for certain genetic diseases, including dwarfism, to be prevalent in some communities.
Regardless, it made sense that, if Frederick’s mother had been a Grimm and Frederick was related to Anna Rose and Elizabeth, then he, too, was a cousin to the Grimm brothers.
She felt foolish that she hadn’t made the connection.
“I’m on my way to Echo Creek and have come to fetch your list of supplies,” Frederick said as he neared the front door of the house.
“Wunderbarr. We’re out of many things.” He gave a jolly laugh. “Allergy medicine being one of the most important, of course.” The jovial tone of David’s voice indicated his pleasure at seeing Frederick.
Frederick didn’t respond to David’s mirth. Instead, he paused, the silence feeling heavy to Sadie as she hid from view.
“I have a question to ask,” he said, his tone solemn.
“Ask away, Cousin. Hopefully I might have an answer.”
Sadie heard Frederick clear his throat, hesitating for just a moment before he spoke. “There’s a girl. A young woman, rather. She’s missing from Echo Creek. Have you seen her?”
Now it was David’s turn to pause. She was glad that the rest of the brothers were still off in the woods gathering their daily treasures. Surely one of them would have given away her presence in their home—probably Hank, since he always joked and laughed about everything. He’d never have been able to keep the secret. However, Sadie held her breath, wondering how David would respond to Frederick’s question.
“Missing?”
Frederick cleared his throat and exhaled. His voice sounded forlorn when he responded. “Ja, run off, I reckon, although no one seems to have a straight answer as to why that might be.”
“I wonder about that,” David said slowly.
“Ja, me, too.”
Sadie realized that David had answered by not answering at all. It warmed her heart that her protector had not lied, but he had also not given away her secret. Not even to Frederick.
There was a slight pause and the sound of heavy footsteps on the wooden floor. Sadie knew that Frederick had entered the house.
“What’s this?” Another pause. “Has one of you suddenly taken an interest in cleaning?” Curiosity underlaid the question. He took another few steps into the room, apparently approaching the table. “And washing your clothes?”
David stuttered. “Ja, well . . .” He hesitated as if searching for an answer. “You always tell us what a pigsty it is in here.” He gave a nervous laugh. “You could say we’ve decided to do a bit of housekeeping,” he added.
But it was clear that Frederick was not fooled.
“Nee, I don’t think you have.” His voice suddenly sounded more hopeful. “Someone else is here!”
“Wh-why would someone be here?” David stammered.
“Oh! I should’ve thought to check here sooner.” Frederick sounded desperate as he called out, “Sadie! I know that you’re here!”
For a moment, she hesitated. Would he be angry with her? Would he tell her family? Still, she knew that she couldn’t remain hidden much longer, not from Frederick or anyone else. Even if she did not reveal herself, Frederick would be suspicious and might tell others, and then there was no telling who would come. Perhaps Rachel or John Rabor would show up next!
Certainly, it would be better to face Frederick and explain it to him herself, rather than allowing him to hear it from anyone else. Perhaps he might understand and help her find a more permanent solution to her problem.
Hesitantly, Sadie emerged from the shadows and, with her head hung low, stepped into the center of the room.
“Oh, Sadie!” Frederick rushed toward her and, to her shock, pulled her into his arms. “How worried I’ve been!” His voice filled her with both relief and joy. If she had felt protected during her stay at the Grimm brothers’ house, she suddenly felt completely safe in Frederick’s embrace.
“You know each other?” David seemed taken aback by the unusually friendly greeting. And then he softened his tone. “Ah, of course you do.”
After what felt like a lifetime but wasn’t nearly long enough, Frederick pulled away. Gently, his hands pressed against her cheeks and he tilted her face so that he could stare into her eyes. “Have you been here the whole time?” His expression shifted from relief to guilt. “Oh, I should have known my cousins would’ve found you and taken you into their care!”
“I’m so sorry, Frederick.” The words were just a whisper on her lips, but they were shouted from her heart. “I . . . I didn’t mean to cause you any worry.”
He bent his knees, just enough so that he was eye level with her. With his hands still holding her cheeks, he studied her face. “What happened, Sadie? Whatever could have caused you to just run off?”
David coughed into his hand. Sadie’s eyes flitted over Frede
rick’s shoulder, and she saw that David was backing toward the door. Clearly he was uncomfortable. “I . . . I reckon you young people have things to talk about. I’ll just slip outside, then.”
Sadie glanced in his direction and saw him shuffle out the front door. Alone with Frederick, she lowered her eyes, staring at the floor as shame overcame her.
“I . . . I didn’t know what else to do. Rachel . . .” Sadie felt tears well up in her eyes. “She’s been so terrible to me lately. So angry and hostile. And then she began inviting that man to our house and had me watch his kinner without asking me.”
“That’s no reason to run away,” he said, in a soft tone but with a touch of reproach.
“Nee, it’s not,” she agreed. “But then she insisted that I marry John Rabor. She even convinced my daed that it was a gut idea.” She felt tears well in her eyes.
A noise of displeasure slipped through Frederick’s lips. “Marry him?”
“Ja, she was determined that I do so. And I would no sooner marry John Rabor than I’d . . .” She couldn’t finish the sentence. How could she explain how she felt about one man without revealing how she felt about the other?
“Than you’d what, Sadie?”
Only then did she look up at him, her blue eyes now overflowing with tears. “Than I’d deny how I felt about you.”
The expression on his face was transformed. The concern disappeared and he gave her a small smile filled with tenderness. “My little songbird,” he said. He brushed away the tears that fell down her cheeks. “What you have been through.”
The relief she felt at his reaction caused a sob to catch in her throat. “I was so frightened, Frederick,” she wept.
He embraced her once again, soothing her as he rubbed her back and kissed the side of her head. “Oh, Sadie, how I wish you had come to me.”
Another tear fell, this time staining his shirt. She pulled away and peered up at him. “I . . . I didn’t want to be seen as brazen. Besides, how could I have gotten a message to you anyway?”
He must have realized the truth of her statement. She didn’t know where he lived, and even if she did, it was too far away for her to walk there without being caught along the way. Frederick took a deep breath. “Well, I am here now and no further harm will come to you.” He looked around the large room. “And I know you are safe here with my cousins.”
Sadie lowered her gaze. “I . . . I worry, though. If people find out, what will they think?”
Her fear did not seem to give Frederick reason to feel anxious. “Nee, Sadie. No one knows that you are here. And if they did, no one would presume anything, I’m sure.” He guided her to one of the chairs and gestured for her to sit. Only when she had seated herself did he take a seat next to her. “No one in town knows where you are. But I’ll go to Echo Creek today and find out what I can. In the meantime, promise me that you will stay here. The cottage is deep enough in the forest that no one ever travels this way, only me when I stop on my way to Echo Creek to bring my cousins supplies.”
She nodded. “I promise.”
He reached for her hands and held them in his. “The relief that I feel knowing you’re out of harm’s way . . .” He sighed. “A great burden has been lifted from my shoulders.”
“But not from mine,” she confessed. “I know I cannot stay here forever, but I have nowhere to go.”
For a short moment, he appeared to ponder her plight. His eyes narrowed as if deep in thought. While he reflected, Sadie waited, hoping against hope that he might have a solution for her.
Finally, he took a deep breath. “You leave this to me, Sadie Whitaker. Let me visit town, for I was on my way there to fetch supplies for my cousins. Let me learn all I can about what people are saying concerning your disappearance and what they say of your stepmother.”
Sadie’s eyes widened. How could he find out any news without giving away her location? “Promise me you won’t tell anyone where I am!”
He gave a little laugh and pulled her hands toward him, pressing them against his chest. “On my dying breath, I would never do such a thing. You’re safe here, and I wish nothing more than to keep you that way.”
There was something about the way he looked at her that made her feel as if butterflies fluttered inside her stomach. Surely God had led her to the Grimm brothers’ house for a reason. He must’ve known that the one—and only—person who would help keep her safe was Frederick Keim. And, in that moment, Sadie knew, without doubt, that everything would be all right. With God’s help, Frederick would straighten everything out.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The next day, Frederick returned, this time with a sack of dry goods. It was slung over his shoulder in such a way as to make it easier to carry, since he could not bring his horse and buggy into the woods to the brothers’ house.
Stevie met him at the door. “Please tell me you have my allergy medicine,” he sniffled.
Frederick laughed and swung the bag onto the floor. “Indeed I do.”
Sadie watched as the seven Grimm brothers surrounded the burlap bag. For a moment, there was nothing but joy in the small house as they unpacked all the items that Frederick had purchased for them: flour, coffee, sugar, salt, yeast, and other things that could not be replaced by items found in the woods.
“We thought we might see you again yesterday evening,” Sadie said as the brothers set the items onto the table.
Frederick nodded. “Ja, I usually return the same day when I fetch their supplies,” he explained. “But I stayed over at Anna Rose’s haus.” He leveled his gaze at her. “I had much visiting to do in town.”
She didn’t need to inquire further as to what he meant. Surely he had been talking with people and trying to find out what he could regarding what folks knew of Sadie’s disappearance. She was eager to hear what he had learned, but knew that patience was a virtue.
Oblivious to their exchange, the Grimm brothers began to clamor around her like small children on Christmas morning.
“Oh, Sadie,” Ben asked, his eyes averted to the floor as he shuffled his feet nervously. “Might you make us some more fresh bread?”
“Of course I will,” she promised.
Stevie sniffled as he tried to open the allergy medicine. “And those cookies? The chewy oatmeal ones?”
“How about a pie?” Hank asked hopefully. “I love pumpkin pie!”
Gideon rolled his eyes. “You and your pumpkins!”
Samuel yawned. “I don’t see you complaining when you’re eating her food.”
Gideon nudged him with his arm.
“Now, now,” Sadie scolded in a teasing tone. “I’m happy to make bread and cookies and pumpkin pie.” She gave Samuel a kind smile. “Even if Gideon pretends not to want me to.”
Several of the Grimm brothers snickered, and Gideon crossed his arms across his chest, scowling.
“Now, mayhaps you might put those things onto the counter,” she said, “instead of the table?”
Eager to please her, Hank and Ben quickly complied with her request.
“Might we go for a walk, Sadie?” Frederick whispered into her ear. “I have some things to discuss with you.”
Sadie wiped her hands on her apron and followed Frederick outside. He led her down the path, away from the noise of the seven brothers, who were arguing about what meal they’d like Sadie to make them for supper.
“Seems you’ve made quite an impact on my cousins,” he said.
She laughed. “I’m not certain whether or not they are serious or pretending to argue. Seems they enjoy teasing each other.”
“Ja, that’s true. But I can assure you that no closer bruders ever lived. And I’ve never seen them so happy.” He paused before adding, “Or their haus so clean!”
She laughed. “I imagine living alone, without much company—”
“Any company,” he interrupted.
“Ja, any company, is sure to make them not care that the haus is so dirty.” She stepped over a fallen branch. �
��I wonder that it’s not lonely for them out here, alone in the woods in their little cottage.”
“Mayhaps it would be, for you or me. But they live the way they want, free from the scrutiny of those who might mock their small stature.”
Sadie knew only too well how some people tended to view those who were different. She had only to look at Belle and her husband, Adam. It was a shame that people judged others on their appearances and not on their substance.
“Such a shame,” she mused. “And to think that those very people claim to be Christians.”
Frederick raised his eyebrows and tilted his head. “Aren’t we all sinners?”
“Some more so than others, it appears.”
He laughed at her observation, but Sadie didn’t join him. While she had enjoyed the peace and tranquility of living in the woods during her short stay, she was still bothered by the idea that such kindhearted, righteous men were not part of a proper community.
“But no family comes to visit them, then?”
Frederick pressed his hand on his chest. “I do.”
“Ja, well, of course. But what of other siblings or extended family?”
Frederick shook his head. “Nee, just me and sometimes my family. They’ve no one else living nearby. They had two older sisters who are normal-sized. They married a few years ago and moved to Shipshewana.”
Sadie hadn’t known that. “That’s far from here, no?”
“Ja, and their parents passed away many years ago. They were both older in years, you see.”
“And you are related, how?”
“Ah, that.” He smiled. “My maem and their daed were siblings. Half siblings, anyway. There’s almost a thirty-year age difference between my maem and the bruders’ daed. My grossdawdi took a second wife after his first had passed. He was over fifty when my maem was born. Several of my cousins are older than my maem.”