Not that he wasn’t glad that his friend wasn’t dead. But how was he alive? Why was he alive? Where had he been all this time? Ach, Silas had a million questions.
If Josiah was alive, then…then…ach, he didn’t know. What would this mean for his new family? After all, Josiah was Bailey’s biological father. And what about Kayla? Would she regret marrying him? Would she leave him now that Josiah was alive? And apparently Englisch?
If Josiah had shown up just a month earlier, Silas would not have been able to marry Kayla. But what now? What would the leaders say to this new revelation?
“I’m not here to mess up your life, if that’s what you’re thinking. Did Kayla tell you about my letter?”
He frowned. Kayla knew? “Letter?”
“Apparently not.” He shook his head. “I wrote her about a month ago.”
“Nee, I know nothing of this.” He grimaced.
“You two are married now, right?”
“Jah.”
“Okay, good. I’d heard she was going to marry you.”
“You…you did not come for her?”
“No. I just wanted to get a peek at my kid. I’m moving overseas and I may not ever get another opportunity.”
“Bailey and Kayla are in the house.”
“Bailey? Like George Bailey?”
He had no idea who George Bailey was. “Nee, Bailey is a maedel.”
“So, I have a daughter. Or, you have a daughter, I should say.”
“Bailey is six now.”
“May I see her? I’d like to meet her. We won’t tell her who I am, just that I’m a friend of yours. Is that okay?”
“Let me speak with Kayla first. Wait here.”
Silas shook his head. Ach, how could this be? He paced to the house, unsure of what he would even say to Kayla. If she’d known about Josiah and she’d kept it from him… Nee, she couldn’t have known. If she had, she would have never married him. But Josiah had said something about a letter.
“Kayla?” He closed the door behind him. “Kumm, we need to talk.”
“But breakfast is ready.”
“Bailey may eat, but I need you to come here.”
She frowned, confusion on her face. “Okay.” She set a plate for Bailey and placed eggs and toast on it. “Go ahead and pray and eat, honey. Daddy and I will join you in a little bit.”
Silas tapped his foot. He grasped her hand and pulled her into their bedroom, then closed the door behind them. He swallowed and stared into her eyes. “Josiah is here.”
Her eyes widened. “Josiah? Is here?”
“You do not sound surprised that he is alive.”
“I knew. A couple of days before our wedding, I received this.” She went to the dresser and pulled out an envelope.
He opened it up and read the words within. “Ach. You did not write him back?”
“I did, but only to give him a piece of my mind.”
“But if you would have said something…” He shook his head. “Kayla…”
“If I would have said something, we wouldn’t have been allowed to marry, right? I wasn’t about to let anything mess up our wedding. I don’t love Josiah, I love you.”
“But the leaders will frown on this, Kayla. They might put you in the Bann. You deliberately deceived them. You deceived me.” He bit back his disappointment.
“I’m sorry that you’re disappointed. But you’d said it was God’s will. That He had put us together. That He had made a way for us.” Her voice softened. “Please don’t be upset. The leaders don’t need to find out.”
“But he’s here. He wants to meet Bailey.”
“Tell him no. He doesn’t deserve to meet her.”
“But she’s his dochder, Kayla!”
“Silas, don’t be upset. Please.”
“Ach, I’m not angry. I just don’t know what to do.”
“What does he want? Why did he say he was here?”
“He just wants to see his dochder. He’s moving out of the country and he might not ever get the chance again.”
“Fine. He can meet her, but he will say nothing about being her father.”
“Jah, that is what he said. We will just introduce him as my friend.” He sighed.
“Silas.” She reached up and stroked his beard. “I would say I’m sorry for not telling you, but I’m not. Marrying you made me the happiest woman alive. And nothing is going to change that. Not the Amish church. And certainly not Josiah. I love you. We have our own family now.” She placed her hand over her flat abdomen. Soon it would evidence the life within. A life Der Herr had blessed their union with.
“Jah, I love you too.” He intertwined his fingers with hers. “Let’s pray.”
They bowed their heads, and he uttered a silent prayer. A prayer of protection for his family and for God’s guidance.
“Will you introduce them? I don’t want to see Josiah.” Kayla frowned.
“Nee, you need to. This will close the door once and for all.”
“You’re right. I do need closure, I suppose.” She sighed deeply. “Bring him in then, I guess.”
~
Silas briefly spoke with Josiah, who agreed to follow his lead.
“She’s eating breakfast,” he said, before stepping into the house.
“So, this is our place,” Silas announced loud enough to let Kayla know they were inside. He briefly showed Josiah around. “Come into the kitchen and meet my family.”
Josiah followed behind him.
“This is my wife, Kayla. And my daughter, Bailey.” He gestured to the table, where Bailey ate and Kayla sipped a cup of coffee.
“Hey.” Josiah nodded, studying Bailey. He glanced at Kayla. They’d made brief eye contact, then both looked away.
“Would you like some coffee?” Silas offered.
“No, thank you. I need to head on out. Thanks for showing me your place.” He lifted a hand toward Kayla and Bailey. “It was nice to meet you two.”
“Gut to meet you too,” Bailey said, between bites.
“You be good for your mommy and daddy, okay?” Josiah smiled.
“Oh, Mommy says I’m a very good girl.” She grinned at Kayla.
Silas nodded to Josiah and he followed him back out of the house.
~
Once outside, Josiah offered his hand to Silas. “So, no hard feelings? I feel bad for tricking you into thinking I was dead, but look on the bright side. You got my woman and my kid.” His hand feathered through his Englisch hairstyle. “Man, I can’t believe how much she looks like me.”
“You should not have made us think you died. Was the note real? Did you even go out swimming in the ocean that day?” Silas huffed.
“No. That was just to throw you off. Apparently, it had worked.” He smiled, as though he were the most brilliant man alive. “That’s why I left all my bags and stuff too. I figured it would be much more believable if I left with just the clothes on my back.”
“You really need to let your folks know. It’s not right.”
Josiah shook his head. “You know they would consider me better off dead than Englisch. You remember our friend Michael?”
“Jah, he jumped the fence before you disappeared.” He and Michael had never been that close. Michael was more of a wild boy, and Silas had tried to keep on the straight and narrow.
“Well, I’ve kept in touch with him. He had received letters like that. Letters from his folks saying they wished he had died instead of leaving the Amish. They were sure he was doomed to Hell.” Josiah chuckled as if it were some joke.
From what Silas knew of Michael, his folks were most likely right. Their friend lived a wicked lifestyle that wasn’t pleasing to Der Herr. As far as Silas knew, he hadn’t found a personal relationship with Jesus. “But Michael had already been baptized into the church. You aren’t.”
“No.”
“You should go back. Your folks love you.” Silas pled. But if Josiah did go back…ach.
“Maybe someday.”
/> Silas’s heart clenched. Had he actually thought Der Herr impressed on him to make Kayla and Bailey his family? He’d thought so. But now he was second-guessing himself. Perhaps it had been his own emotions influencing his thoughts and actions. Ach. “Why didn’t you come to me before the wedding? I would have walked away. It would have killed me, but I would have done it anyway. This role was rightfully yours.”
“Don’t you see, Silas? I don’t want that life. I like doing my own thing…without attachments.” Josiah sighed. “You and Kayla are good together. And I have no doubt you’ll be a better father to Bailey than I could ever be. It’s almost like God put you two together.”
Wow.
If that hadn’t been confirmation, he didn’t know what was. “Jah. Jah, He surely did.”
EPILOGUE
Two years later…
Bailey bounded through the door. “Mamm, guess what? Onkel Paul and Emily are coming over for supper tonight. Aentie Emily said that I can have one of her new puppies!”
Kayla locked eyes with Silas, who stood behind their daughter. “A puppy, huh?”
“Only if Mamm says it’s okay,” Silas corrected.
“Please, Mamm!” Bailey begged.
“We’ll have to see. How was school?”
She shrugged. “It was okay. Timmy Stolzfoos was mean to me today.”
Silas frowned. “How so?”
“He said Mamm was fat.”
Kayla gasped, but Silas chuckled. He came near to her and wrapped his arms around her. He looked at Bailey. “Can you keep a secret?”
She nodded.
“Mamm isn’t fat, she just has a boppli inside.”
Bailey’s eyes widened. “She does? But Emily said bopplin come from the stork.”
Kayla laughed. “Is that what your parents told her? And she still believes it?”
He chuckled. “Yep.”
“You mean, me and Judah are going to have another brother or sister to play with?” Bailey’s eyes danced with excitement.
“That’s right.” Silas leaned close and kissed Kayla’s cheek. He nuzzled her neck and whispered in her ear, “And hopefully many more.”
The baby’s cry called from the bedroom. Kayla smiled. “Speaking of Judah…”
“I’ll get him,” Bailey declared, then disappeared in short order.
Kayla turned in her husband’s arms, and indulged in the kiss she’d been missing since he’d left for work that morning.
“Mm…that was nice.” Silas gazed into her eyes, contently holding her in his arms.
A clash of thunder shook the house.
“I didn’t even know we were expecting a storm today!” Kayla moved to the window just in time to see a bolt of lightning illuminate the darkening sky.
Silas chuckled. “Welcome to Indiana.”
“Oh, I think I received a pretty good introduction to Indiana about three years ago.”
“Has it been that long already?”
“That long? I’d say we’re making pretty good time, seeing that we’ve been married two years and have our third child on the way.” She laughed.
“Jah, you’re right.” He grinned and pulled her back into his arms. “I’ll always be thankful Der Herr sent that storm that day. If it weren’t for that storm, I’d still be a lonely widower.”
“And I’d be a single mom floundering on my own. Now, I’m part of a wonderful community, and I’ve found the love of my life.”
“Gott knew what we both needed.”
“A storm?” She smiled.
“Jah, it seems like we wouldn’t have the blessings without the storms, ain’t so?” He reached for her hand. “Kumm, let’s go sit outside on the porch swing and enjoy the light show.” He beckoned.
She followed him out the door, and they snuggled on the porch swing. “Who do you suppose He’s blessing this time?”
“Maybe he’ll bring in a fraa for Paul,” Silas muttered.
They looked at each other, then laughed. “Nah.”
THE END
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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. In the opening scene, Kayla is attempting to drive through a storm. Have you ever driven through a really bad storm? Have you ever had to pull off the road to find safety?
2. When Silas discovered a stranger in Minister Yoder’s home, he felt bad asking her to leave. If you were in a similar situation, how do you think you would have responded?
3. Kayla is intrigued by the simple ways of the Amish. Is there anything about the Amish that is intriguing to you? What?
4. Have you ever used a wringer-washer?
5. When Silas learns the reality of Kayla and Bailey’s circumstances, his heart is filled with compassion. Do you think he let his feelings influence his decisions?
6. Silas hadn’t been searching for any particular verses, but happened upon one that was relevant to his situation. Has God ever spoken directly to you through His Word?
7. Silas’s mother was concerned about her son. Do you feel her reaction was just? Why or why not?
8. Was there ever a time you were angry at God? How did you resolve your anger?
9. When Kayla learns that God’s hand had been guiding her all along, he attitude toward God changes. Have you ever acted foolishly as a result of misunderstanding a situation?
10. Paul loves to tease his brother relentlessly. Have you ever had a ‘Paul’ in your own life?
The next book in the series The Heartbreaker (Amish Country Brides):
THE HEARTBREAKER
Amish Country Brides
To Miriam Yoder, Michael Eicher is everything she doesn’t want. Prideful, cocky, arrogant. A defector of the Amish life. And those are just a few of his qualities. Why would a gut Amish woman like Miriam even consider being his friend again? Especially after what he’d put her through—professing his affection then skipping town. She didn’t have the heart to go through that again. It was easier to keep her heart sealed up and hidden away, than to chance vulnerability. And she’d be fool to ever trust Michael again.
Michael has lived most of his youth as a worldly young man. But when he’s forced to return home, his eyes are opened to the community he’s neglected. Can this self-centered man who’d only lived for himself find something—or someone—greater to live for? Will he be able to convince Miri to give him a second chance?
The Trespasser (Amish Country Brides) Page 13