by Sarah Price
On the one hand, Ella felt a little bit of joy that Hannes would forego the singing because she wasn’t permitted to attend. She could only imagine how Drusilla and Anna would have behaved as they tried to capture his attention. Hadn’t it been Drusilla who had been so boastful after worship that day, vowing that she would drive home from the singing in his buggy?
However, Ella also felt guilty that her inability to attend the singing was causing him distress. What would he do now? Clearly he knew no one else in the town. She hadn’t seen him converse with anyone during fellowship, not in away that indicated he had friends or family there. In fact, when she had served the platters to the tables during the first sitting, Hannes had been seated with the church leaders, not the other young men.
Suddenly, a wave of panic washed over her. If he knew no one, perhaps he had stayed in Echo Creek because of her! Maybe he had stayed just to take her home from the singing! That thought caused her even more anguish. Certainly he would be disenchanted with her now!
Hannes gazed in the direction where the courting buggy with Elizabeth Grimm and her suitor had disappeared just moments ago. As if reading her mind, he said, “Mayhaps I’ll go wander to that pond later this evening, though.”
She caught him peering at her from the corner of his eye.
“Sit a spell and try to double-skip some rocks, listen to the cicadas and owls . . .”
She could barely breathe. Why was he telling her this? Was he suggesting something? “That . . . that sounds lovely.”
Hannes faced her. “The sun sets at eight tonight. Mayhaps you’d find your way to the pond just before then. We could watch it set together and I could walk you home by nine?”
Quickly, Ella did some calculations. The singing wouldn’t end until about that time, so she wouldn’t run any risk of Drusilla or Anna seeing her. And surely Miriam and her mother would be gone by then. If not, Ella could excuse herself to take a brisk walk. If she just happened to walk to the pond and happened to run into Hannes, no one could fault her, could they?
Ella bit her lower lip and nodded. “Ja, I think I could manage that.” She could only pray that Linda wouldn’t ask too many questions if she left while Miriam and her mother were still at the house.
Hannes leaned forward and plucked the late-opening blue bloom of a morning glory that had climbed over part of the fence, the ever-twisting vines woven throughout the wire. He handed the flower to her, his fingers just lightly brushing against her hand.
The gesture startled her, especially when she felt as if an electric current raced through her veins. She took the flower and looked up at him, equally startled to see him studying her face, with the hint of a smile on his lips. Transfixed, Ella held his gaze, too aware of the fluttery feeling in her stomach.
Without turning, Hannes began to back away, his eyes still holding her gaze. “I’ll see you then, Ella.”
Nodding her head, she watched as he turned and hurried back down the lane toward town, a bit of a spring to his step. Only before he disappeared did he turn around and lift his hand in the air to wave goodbye. When he turned the corner, she noticed he had not headed in the direction of the singing.
Was it possible that he truly meant it? That he wouldn’t go to the singing? And was that because she wouldn’t be there?
Smiling to herself, Ella cradled the morning glory in her hand. She’d have to hurry if she wanted to press it so that she could keep the flower forever, a reminder of this special moment when Hannes’s intentions seemed clearer than ever: he may have come to Echo Creek on business, but Hannes appeared to have stayed for the pleasure of getting to know her.
Chapter Nine
“Now, Maem,” Miriam said slowly to her elderly mother, pointing at the tiles on the Scrabble board. “That’s not a word.”
The wrinkles in Mary’s forehead creased together, forming several deep lines as she scowled at her daughter. “I can’t hear you.”
Dismissively, Miriam waved her hand. “Oh, you can hear me just fine!”
“Cannot!”
Ella laughed at the playful exchange between mother and daughter. It was bittersweet to watch them, for she knew that she’d never have that type of relationship with Linda. However, she also knew that Linda would never have that relationship with anyone, not even her own daughters.
Miriam leaned forward and patted Ella’s hand. “What do you say, Ella? Is ‘accentor’ a word?”
Ella had never before heard the word, but she didn’t want to challenge Miriam’s mother. The woman was almost eighty-five years old and, despite her age, was known to be rather sharp. Besides, challenging an elderly woman seemed downright disrespectful to Ella.
With a gentle shrug, Ella replied, “I really couldn’t say.”
“Ach!” Dramatically, Miriam threw her hands in the air. “You’ve always been too kindhearted to stand up for your Scrabble rights!”
Ella laughed.
“Maem!” Miriam returned her attention to her mother. “You can’t play that word. It’s made up.”
“Is not.” Mary crossed her arms over her chest, the pale, thin skin on her hands sharply contrasting with the dark navy blue fabric of her dress. Defiantly, she pursed her lips. “Look it up.”
Linda clicked her tongue. “Ladies, please! It’s just a word.”
But Miriam persisted. “It’s on a triple-score space, Linda. That’s thirty-six points. Plus the fact that she’ll get fifty points for using all her tiles.”
Ella tried to hide a smile. She knew that Linda would not argue with the deacon’s wife, but the irritated look on her stepmother’s face was priceless.
Miriam nudged Ella’s arm. “Go fetch me the dictionary.”
Obediently, Ella pushed back from the kitchen table and hurried to the bookshelf, where the dictionary was set among the other books. She walked back to the table and handed it to Miriam, who proceeded to quickly flip through the book.
Her mouth opened and her eyes widened. “Well! I’ll be.”
Mary gave a partially toothless grin. “Told you so.”
“It’s a type of bird!” Miriam shut the dictionary and stared incredulously at her mother. “How on earth . . . ?”
“I know my birds, Dochder!” She couldn’t look much more smug. “Now I’m waiting to hear something from you . . .”
Miriam rolled her eyes. “I’m sorry I doubted you.”
Ella laughed, enjoying herself much more than she had thought possible. Surely this was more fun than a singing, after all.
No sooner had she thought that than the clock on the wall began to chime. It was seven thirty.
“Oh help!” She glanced at the tiles. She couldn’t start a new game if she wanted to get to the pond in time for meeting Hannes.
“Something amiss, Ella?”
Looking up at Miriam, Ella realized that she had spoken aloud. For a second, she stammered, trying to find the right words so that her stepmother wouldn’t be suspicious. “I . . . uh . . . I forgot that I haven’t turned out the cows and horse,” she finally said, which was true. She had purposely kept them inside so that she’d have an excuse to leave the house.
“Uh-huh.” Miriam gave her a sideways glance, a hint of mischievousness lurking in her gray eyes. “I reckon you’ll be wanting to beg off the rest of the game, then?”
Linda made a face and glowered at her stepdaughter. “Absolutely not! You can set them out later, Ella.”
“Oh, Linda! It’s a Sunday evening, ja? You were young once, too, weren’t you?”
Linda pressed her lips together.
“I thought so.” Miriam winked at Ella. “Ella was more than kind to stay and play Scrabble with us old birds when all the other young folk are out socializing. Such kindness for humoring us should be repaid, don’t you think?” And then, as her mother reached for her replacement tiles, Miriam glanced around the room quizzically. “Speaking of which, where are your dochders, anyway?” Without waiting for an answer, she continued, “Out gallivanting,
I suppose. Surprised neither of them saw fit to spend a Sunday with us.”
Oh, how Ella wanted to smile at Miriam’s comment. Clearly Linda’s plan had backfired; by keeping Ella home from the singing, her own two daughters looked poorly in the guests’ eyes.
Leaning over, Miriam placed her hand on Ella’s. “You run along, Ella. You work so hard all the time anyway. It’s right gut for you to have some fun for a bit.”
Grateful, Ella mouthed the word “danke” at Miriam before she swept her tiles into the little bag and excused herself from the table, but not before she caught the disapproving scowl worn by Linda. She’d have to deal with her stepmother later. For now, she couldn’t wait to run to the pond so that she could spend a few stolen moments with Hannes.
It only took her fifteen minutes to get to the very place they had met just a few days before. The entire time she walked there, she fretted that she’d be too late, and then she worried that she was too early. The last thing she wanted was to appear overly eager. After all, Hannes didn’t know her very well . . . not many people did. She’d hate for him to think that she was a fast girl on rumschpringe!
As she walked down the path that led to the pond, she worried that he might have left already. Even worse, what if he hadn’t shown up at all? Upon seeing Hannes standing at the edge, skimming rocks along the top of the water, she felt immediate relief.
Just a few yards away from him, she stopped walking. Her heart pounded, and she realized that this was both the most exciting and the scariest thing she had ever done, sneaking out of the house to meet up with a young man. Her hands shook and she felt shy, standing there, so uncertain what to do.
“Hello,” she called out at last, not wanting to startle him.
He glanced over his shoulder, and when he saw her there, he broke into a broad smile. “I wasn’t certain you’d make it.” He took a step toward her. “Thought your Scrabble game might be a bit too exciting to leave!”
She liked how he teased her. “Oh, it was getting fairly intense, let me tell you. Why, when I left, there was a major battle over the word ‘accentor.’”
“Accentor.” His eyebrows knit together. “That’s a bird, ja?”
Stunned, Ella stared at him with an open mouth. “How on earth did you know that?”
He gave her a playful wink. “I know my birds.”
“Funny. That’s what Miriam’s maem said just this evening!”
He chuckled, his lips pursed as if enjoying a little secret. “Ja, well, my family always liked to bird-watch,” Hannes said before, standing upon a rock, he reached for her hand. “Kum, Ella. I’ve gathered some rocks here. We can have a skimming contest.”
“A contest?”
He wiggled his fingers, encouraging her to take his hand. “Ja, who can get the most skips.”
She eyed his proffered hand. Surely he didn’t think that she couldn’t walk without his help. Over the past year, she had come to this pond more times than she could remember. It was the only place she could escape and think, pray to God and reflect on how much her life had changed since her father had passed away. Oh, she had climbed over that rock many times.
However, he was watching her with such an earnest look upon his face that she felt compelled to take his hand. What harm, she thought, in letting him assist me?
Slowly, she placed her hand in his, almost jumping when she felt his fingers embrace hers. She had never held a man’s hand before . . . not even her father’s! It felt warm and wonderful. The color rose to her cheeks, and she averted her gaze.
Carefully, Hannes guided her over the rock and down the narrow path alongside the pond, where, true to his word, he had gathered several small piles of rocks. Ella couldn’t help but wonder how long he had been there, for each pile was large enough to keep them occupied well past sunset.
“My word!” she exclaimed. “You must think an awful lot of my stone-skipping skills!” With wide eyes, she looked up at him. “And after seeing only one throw, at that!”
“Sometimes, Ella, that’s all it takes to make a strong first impression.”
More heat rose to her cheeks, and she heard him chuckle.
“Now, let’s get started with that contest, ja?” He pointed to a pile to the left. “Those are yours. I put the flattest rocks there.”
She eyed the rock pile and frowned. “And in the other pile?”
With a quick glance over his shoulder, he gave a little shrug. “All the rest.”
“Hannes?”
He met her gaze. “Ja?”
“You know that flat rocks skip the best, don’t you?”
He nodded.
“Then why would you take the pile filled with all the round rocks?”
At that question, he gave her a sheepish grin. “Aw, Ella. You caught me.” He held up his hands as if he were giving up. “I figured I’d give you the better rocks and kept the round ones for myself.” The expression on his face, complete with his blue eyes flashing at her in a mischievous way, made her laugh.
For the first few minutes, they focused their conversation on the art of rock skimming. Ella wondered if Hannes felt half as awkward as she did. But each time she glanced at him, he seemed poised and collected, completely at ease conversing with her.
“You’re quite good at this,” he complimented her. “But can you do this?” He reached down for one of her flat rocks and angled his throw in such a way that the rock skimmed not once or twice, but five times across the shimmering top of the water.
When the rock finally sank into the depths of the pond, Ella gasped. “I’ve never seen a rock skip that many times!”
“Want me to show you how to do it?”
Eagerly, she nodded. “Ja, of course.”
To her surprise, he walked around behind her and, after stooping to pick up another rock, he stood with his chest practically pressed against her back. His nearness made her nervous, especially when he reached for her hand, his arm pressed lightly against hers. He stood so close that she could smell the lingering scent of lavender on his clothes.
“Now, you hold the rock the regular way . . .” he said, molding her fingers around the rock. “Ja, that’s right. Just like that. But when you pull back to throw it”—he moved her arm backward and she felt his fingers press against her wrist—“you need to angle it like so.” Tilting her hand backward, he pulled her arm farther back and lightly pushed it forward. “See? Like that?”
She held her breath, feeling light-headed.
Hannes took a step away from her and motioned toward the pond. “Now you try it, only with speed this time, of course.”
Forcing herself to return her attention to the rock in her hand, and not the man standing behind her, Ella swallowed. If nothing else magical ever happened in her life, Ella would forever remember this very moment as being the most enchanting.
“Ella?”
She cleared her throat, concentrating on the task at hand. She followed his instructions, bringing her arm back and angling her wrist before sliding the rock through the air. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. It skipped five times.
“Good job, Ella!” he shouted good-naturedly. “What an astute learner you are!”
She felt the heat on her cheeks and lowered her eyes. “Perhaps it was the teacher.”
He gave a little laugh. “A blending of the two, I think. Just like at school. No pupil can take all the credit, nor can the teacher. It requires both of them to give their best in order to get good results.” He glanced at Ella. “I imagine you were a strong student, ja?”
His attention on her made Ella feel nervous. She wasn’t used to people asking her personal questions. “I reckon no more so than any other student.”
He gave her a cheeky grin. “And modest, too. I like that.”
Personal questions and sweet compliments made her far too uncomfortable. “What about you?” Ella asked, hoping to deflect the conversation away from her.
“Me? Oh, I was a right gut student. My older bruders made certain
of that. And then, just as they stopped attending, one of my schwesters became the teacher.” He laughed. “Oh, I didn’t dare step out of line with her standing at the front of the school.”
“You’ve lots of siblings, then?”
He gave a firm and serious nod. “Ja, I do. Two older bruders and two younger ones. Same with the schwesters. But the older girls have moved to their husbands’ towns and one of my bruder’s farms.”
“And the other bruder?”
“Works with my daed.”
He didn’t offer any more information, and the way he said that sounded rather flat. So Ella remained quiet. It wasn’t her place to pry into other people’s business. But she certainly had a lot of questions she would have liked to ask, including why, exactly, he was in Echo Creek to begin with.
“Let me show you something,” he said at last, breaking the silence that had fallen between them. Stooping down, he grabbed a round rock from his own pile, trying to skip it, but it just sank to the bottom. “See what happens when you choose the wrong type of stone? When you make bad choices, the stone sinks and the ripples spread far and wide.”
Standing up straight, he stared at the pond. “It’s like life, I suppose,” he said thoughtfully, his gaze still on the water. “Bad stones sink; good stones soar. It’s all in the choice.”
Ella watched him, taking in his broad shoulders and determined stance. She wondered why he had suddenly grown so serious. Rather than ask, however, she waited patiently for Hannes to finish his reflective moment.
“I try to make good choices, to follow God’s Word, and to be fair to others.” With a quick glance over his shoulder, he took a deep breath and sighed. “It’s hard to watch other people who do not walk the same path.”
Ella tilted her head, studying his expression. Gone was the jovial, teasing Hannes, replaced with this more serious, contemplative man. There was another side to Hannes, and Ella found her curiosity piqued. She replied slowly, echoing his serious tone, “The choices we make, Hannes, are the one thing we truly own. If some people choose poorly, we can only pray for them, ja? We cannot be responsible for others’ poor decisions.”