The Protective One

by Shelley Shepard Gray

  “No. E.A. saw creepy David here,” Marie explained. “You wouldn’t believe the way he was staring at her.”

  John threw an arm around Marie’s shoulders. “And how was that?”

  “Like … like she was an ax murderer,” Marie blurted.

  The guys laughed. “That’s a bit much, don’t you think?” John said.

  “Not really. E.A. was really creeped out. I was, too.”

  John’s smile vanished. “Do you want us to go talk to him?”

  “No,” E.A. said. The last thing she wanted was another confrontation with him. “I just want him to leave me alone. I’m really tired of him saying bad things about me.”

  Will searched the crowd, obviously looking for David. “I didn’t know he was still bothering you so much. Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I didn’t want to make your first week in your new job any harder than it already was.”

  He ran a thumb along her knuckles. “E.A., you shouldn’t worry about things like that.” Looking like he had just made a decision, he said, “You know what? I’m tired of you being so afraid all the time.” He scanned the area again. “Where is he? I’m going to go have a talk with him.”

  “You mean another talk with him,” John said.

  E.A. froze. “Will, what does John mean?”

  “Nothing you need to worry about.”

  “Tell me the truth. Did you talk to David already?”

  “Jah. I had to do something.” He frowned. “It never occurred to me that he would act so contrary though. That ain’t gut. E.A., you stay here with Marie and John. I’ll come find you after I have a word with him.”

  “No way are you going to go by yourself,” John said. “I’ll go with.” Scanning the area, he pointed to the livestock pens. “Marie, we’ll come meet you over there.”

  Just as Marie nodded, E.A. shook her head. “John, Will, nee. I know you are trying to help, but I don’t want you confronting David here.”

  “I’m not going to make a scene,” Will said. “All I’m going to do is speak with him. Firmly.”

  “Please, no. Let’s just forget about him.”

  “I don’t see how that’s possible.”

  “It will be because I’m going to put him out of my mind,” she said in a rush. “And if I can, you all can, too.”

  “But you can’t live your life looking over your shoulder and worrying, E.A.,” Marie said.

  “I agree, but we came here to relax and have fun. And I need this day. Can we just go look at the lambs?”

  She knew she sounded desperate, and maybe she was. But something told her that she needed to encourage all of them to move on. She had the strangest sense of foreboding that something terrible was about to happen here on the fairgrounds. Looking at her three friends, she attempted to smile. “Please? I’d rather not let him ruin our day.”

  They all looked at her with strained expressions. No one said anything.

  At last Will spoke. “Sure. Of course. We don’t have to mention his name again.”

  “Danke.” She was relieved. Will cupped a hand around her cheek. “But you must promise to tell me if you see him again today. He’s already made you upset. We’re not going to let him create even more havoc in a place like this.”

  “If I see him again, I’ll tell you.”

  “Promise?” His gaze was intent.

  She nodded. “Jah. I promise.”

  But there was a part of Elizabeth Anne that was feeling on edge. No matter how hard she tried to see things another way, she was afraid that David had come to the fair for one reason only: he was determined to take his taunts and lies up a notch—which meant that she could lose everything she had with Will before their relationship had barely begun.

  TWENTY−NINE

  “About a half hour later, we were all gathered on the floor in my basement. Marie had borrowed a pair of my flannel pajamas, since I didn’t have a lot of other options. After my mother brought down a pot of hot chocolate and two big bowls of popcorn, Marie—well, Marie burst into tears.”

  Leading E.A. into the covered pen where all the lambs were waiting to be judged, Will tried to relax, but he was finding it a difficult task. In truth, he was as angry as he’d ever been.

  This David fellow was doing his best to make E.A. miserable, and he couldn’t do anything about it. He hated feeling so helpless.

  Worse, he’d thought he had put a stop to it when he’d knocked on his door and spoken to him that evening. He’d felt bad speaking to the guy behind E.A.’s back, but he’d hated seeing her so upset.

  Will had been sure that David had only needed someone to stand up to him. Bullies preyed on the weak, and it had been obvious to Will that David considered E.A. to be weak. Though E.A. was anything but weak, Will was happy to give her a hand.

  David seemed to have taken him seriously. When Will had walked away, he’d felt that the situation was much better—at the very least, E.A. wouldn’t have to worry about being harassed anymore.

  Unfortunately, it looked like that conversation had made little impact on the guy after all. He wished he had talked to their friends about it more, or his father or even Jake. Maybe one of them could have given him the advice he’d needed to make sure David left her alone for good.

  He was still stewing when they drew near a ten-year-old boy standing next to a pair of fuzzy black lambs on spindly legs. They had to be only a few weeks old, and were as sweet as anything he’d ever seen.

  When the girls ran right over to coo over the lambs, Will was grateful for the chance to work out his plan to confront David. Maybe he should bring Harley or John? David needed to stop bullying.

  “Hey.” John pressed a hand on his arm. “Buddy, I know what you’re thinking, but you’ve got to stop. This ain’t the time or place.”

  “You wouldn’t be able to stop, either, if some guy was practically stalking Marie.”

  John’s blue eyes flashed. “I agree. But that doesn’t mean it would be the right decision.”

  “John, I canna—”

  “Jah, you can. Listen to me. If you continue looking like you want to strangle that guy’s neck, E.A. isn’t going to be able to do a thing but worry.” He lowered his voice. “We all work too hard for you to ruin today with a bad mood.”

  Will knew John had a point. He needed to help make E.A.’s day better, not stress her out even more. “I hear you.”

  “Gut.”

  Watching the girls squeal when one of the lambs nosed E.A., Will smiled. Then, he grimaced again, thinking that E.A. should have been enjoying herself the whole time they’d been there. He turned to his buddy.

  “John, I just canna help but think that if I would have done a better job of protecting E.A., she wouldn’t have had to worry about David at all today. Or ever.”

  “Look at her. She gave her worries to us and, hopefully, to the Lord. She’s not worried now, she’s playing with the lambs. You should do the same.”

  Will felt like grunting, but he also knew his buddy had a point. He needed to enjoy the day with his friends. He would sit down and get advice about what to do later.

  He walked over to E.A. “Having a good time?”

  “Oh, jah. Do you see how adorable this little one is?” E.A. called out. “His name is Blackie!”

  John, who was now crouched next to Marie and petting another lamb, smirked. “Now there’s an original name for a black sheep.”

  “Hey, their owner is only nine or ten,” Will said. “I would have called him the same thing.” Standing up, he shook the boy’s hand. “Congratulations. That’s a right good-looking lamb.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Are they both yours?”

  “No, the other one is my brother’s. He went to go get some nachos.”

  “I see. Well, when is judging?”

  “Two hours. My dad is with my little sister now. She’s showing a calf in the main arena.”

  “Sounds like your whole family has a lot to be proud of today,” Ma
rie said.

  “Yep.” The boy grinned, showing a missing tooth.

  “Best of luck to ya,” Will said kindly before walking with E.A. down the aisle toward the next stall. “You know what? I’ve never been a real big fan of sheep, but those little lambs are adorable. Want to keep looking at them?”

  “I do.” Smiling in Marie’s direction, she said, “After that, Marie and I want to go see the pigs. Marie heard there are potbellied piglets!”

  He laughed. Of course she wanted to see piglets. His sister, Nan, would have wanted the same thing. “Let’s go see them then. I’ve a mind to see the calves, too. They’re getting shown in the arena.”

  Looking excited, E.A. led the way. As they walked, stopping to pet the other lambs and chat with the boys and girls showing their livestock, Will forced himself to relax.

  John had been right. This was what was important. Days like this came few and far between. He needed to remember that instead of dwelling on his problems.

  * * *

  Things were different now. Oh, not just with her and Will, but between them and Marie and John. They’d gone from simply being friends to being two couples. It was a slight shift in the way they acted toward each other. Sure, they all still joked around, but E.A. found herself smiling softly at Will when Marie or John made a joke. She stayed by his side when they walked up to a vendor or when they visited an exhibit.

  Things had shifted to a new dynamic. Something not necessarily better, but very different. She was now not just part of the Eight, she was also part of a couple. It made her feel more stable. Maybe not as alone, though she’d never really considered herself to be alone.

  “You sure look like you’re thinking hard,” Will said as they walked toward the next arena. Marie and John had left to get some iced tea with John’s parents, and they’d agreed to meet back up in an hour. “Are you still upset by David?”

  “By David? No, not at all. Actually, I was thinking about the Eight.” Realizing that Will looked really confused now, she added, “This might sound strange, but I was just thinking that it feels a little different, going to the fair as a couple with John and Marie. I didn’t expect that. Different in the best of ways,” she hastened to clarify.

  Will nodded. “I remember Harley telling me something like that soon after he married Katie.” He smiled. “Guess what? Harley said he’d felt surprised about how different he felt. I guess he thought he wouldn’t feel as protective over Katie as he did.”

  “That makes me smile.” If there was a member who liked change less than she did, it was Harley. Both of them were late bloomers who had recently made a lot of changes in their lives.

  Will leaned close. “You know I feel the same as you about us being here as a couple, right? I’m pleased as punch.”

  She chuckled at his old-fashioned expression. “Gut.”

  “So, what would you like to do now? We have an hour all on our own. Are you hungry?”

  “I feel like all I’ve done so far is eat.” E.A. looked up at him. “Would you mind if we just walked around and maybe looked at a couple of the arts and crafts booths?”

  “Not at all.”

  They continued walking down the packed dirt paths, stopping every so often for children to dart by or to say hello to various acquaintances. It was amazing how many people they knew there. Amish men and women. Mennonite friends from E.A.’s church. Customers from the sewing shop. Work associates from Will’s work at the trailer factory.

  E.A. would be lying if she said she hadn’t felt a burst of pride the first time Will had introduced her as his girlfriend. She felt included and loved. Though she didn’t want to think about David, she did find herself reflecting that she’d never felt as valued as she did now, when she was by Will’s side. Whenever he introduced her, she heard a hint of pride in his voice. He really was pleased to have her as his girlfriend. In contrast, David had always acted as if he’d been doing her a favor by being her beau. She realized now that she’d become so used to that way of thinking that she hadn’t allowed herself to envision being in a true romantic relationship.

  When they eventually made their way to the arena, John and Marie were already seated on the back row of the metal bleachers.

  “Hey, you two,” Marie said as E.A. and Will scooted down the row toward them. “We were wondering when you were going to show up.”

  “Are we late? Sorry, we kept stopping and talking to people,” Will said. “Then, of course, we had to get something to drink.”

  “It’s really warm out,” John said.

  “How are your parents?”

  “They’re gut. They’re planning a trip out west.”

  “Where?”

  “Colorado.”

  “My aunt and uncle went to Estes Park two years ago,” Elizabeth Anne said. “They said it was lovely.”

  When John started sharing his parents’ plans, which involved being gone for three weeks on a Pioneer Trails bus, E.A. turned her attention down to the center of the arena. Boys and girls, roughly between twelve and fifteen or so, were showing calves. She loved seeing the pride shining in their faces almost as much as she loved watching some of the prettiest calves decide not to docilely walk beside them.

  “Oh, Marie, look at that little girl trying to convince her calf to move.”

  Marie craned her neck and chuckled. “Isn’t that how it always is? Animals have a mind of their own.”

  E.A. was just about to comment on how cute a little girl in a cowboy hat and boots was when she noticed Marie’s expression had changed. “What do you see now?”

  “It’s nothing. I just hate to see a husband treating his wife that way.”

  “What?”

  “Do you see that lady in the yellow print dress across the way? They’re sitting almost directly across from us.”

  E.A. searched for a bright yellow dress and instantly recognized the woman wearing it. A whole wealth of emotions coursed through her. Happiness at the thought of seeing Marta again, curiosity, since she’d never thought of Marta as being particularly interested in farm animals … and dread, because she didn’t want to see her husband mistreat sweet Marta. “I know her. She’s my sewing student. What did you see?”

  Marie frowned. “I noticed her because of that bright dress. But just as I was looking at her, thinking that she looked awfully familiar, I saw her husband grip her arm and say something harsh enough for her to look stricken.”

  Remembering that she’d witnessed that same kind of interaction at the restaurant, E.A. felt her heart sink. “Her name is Marta. She’s the nicest woman, but I tell you what, I don’t think she’s very happy. Her husband won’t even let her have a car. She has to walk to our classes and is always worried about getting home on time.”

  “Marie?” John reached for her hand. “You look upset. Is something wrong?”

  “Not at all.” After sharing a look with E.A., she turned to her husband. “I was just telling E.A. how blessed I am to have you.”

  John raised his eyebrows but said nothing. Just looked pleased.

  Just then the announcer began introducing the children and their livestock, and so there was no more time to talk. E.A. decided that was just as well. As much as she still enjoyed watching the children, she now kept finding her attention drifting toward Marta and her husband.

  There was something about her that E.A. couldn’t ignore—and she couldn’t help but wonder how such a different woman had made such an impression on her.

  Lord, is there a reason You brought Marta and me together? she silently asked. Was it to remind me to count my blessings, too? Or is there another, maybe more important reason? Maybe it didn’t even matter.

  She and Marta were friends. Though they might never be especially close, Elizabeth Anne definitely cared about her. That meant that her concern for Marta and her private life was growing. Just as her confusion about how she could help her was, too.

  Time and again, even as the children showed their calves, her attention return
ed to Marta and her husband. She wondered what was going through Marta’s mind.

  “Hey,” Will said as he leaned close. “What has you looking so glum?”

  “My English sewing student is sitting across the way. I can’t help but keep looking at her. She doesn’t seem very happy to be with her husband.”

  “E.A., you know you canna judge any relationship simply by observing from a distance.”

  “I know.” She lowered her voice. “But something just isn’t right with them.”

  “I know it’s not right for you to be staring at them so much,” he chided. “You need to stop, jah? After all, there ain’t nothing you can do.”

  She nodded, knowing Will was right.

  But that still didn’t stop her from wondering what she could do to help her timid student.

  Or if she would simply be told to mind her own business if she said anything at all.

  THIRTY

  “I should probably add here that my parents weren’t real happy when they learned that I’d not only snuck out of the house but also taken the car without asking. They said they’d talk to me about that in the morning.”

  Frank Zook was making Marta’s life difficult. Instead of ignoring her and focusing only on Alan, he kept attempting to include her in the conversation. No matter how hard she tried to stay in the background, and yes, wait for Alan to say that she should leave the arena for an hour, the man kept asking her questions.

  She knew he was simply being kind, and if she were anywhere else, she would have been grateful for his attention. He was treating her like a real person. But unfortunately, all of his questions about her life were difficult to answer. Alan stared at her so intently that she worried about every word she spoke. Suddenly, even sharing that she stayed home by herself most of the time seemed like too much information to share.

  It made her a nervous wreck and made Alan irritated, especially when it was more than obvious to Mr. Zook that Alan knew next to nothing about his wife. He looked flabbergasted when she’d admitted that she’d actually made the backpack she’d brought.