A Man of His Word (27 page)

Chapter 12

M
oriah perused the bolts of soft pastel fabric neatly lined up in rows in her cousin’s fabric store. She had decided to make a baby quilt, even though she had done little quilting before. Her sewing consisted of making clothing, mostly her own and baby clothes.

After selecting a combination of pale blue, green, and yellow, she picked up a couple spools of thread and a packet of needles, then went to the front of the store to check out. The store was empty this afternoon, and her cousin Mary was sitting behind the cutting table engrossed in a book.

“Find what you need?” Mary set her book down and picked up a pair of shears from a box near the table.

Moriah set the bolts of fabric down. “
Ya
. I need a yard of each.”

“Okay.” Mary took the fabric and started to measure it out, talking as she worked. “How have you been doing?”

“I’m all right. Keep myself busy.”

“I’ve been meaning to get over to see you,” Mary said, not looking up. She slid the sharp scissors down the width of the blue fabric, separating it from the bolt. “I’m sorry, but things have been real hectic here lately.” A flush appeared on her face as she glanced at Moriah. “Except for today. For some reason it’s really slow. Could be because it’s a nice summer day. June is always one of the best months, I think.”

Moriah nodded. “That’s all right. You can stop by anytime.” She’d had few visitors since Levi’s death almost a month ago. At first that had been fine with her; she had appreciated the time alone. But now she wished for some company other than her immediate family. And of course Gabriel. He had been paying visits to her on a regular basis. She assured him everything was all right with the baby, but he still insisted on visiting every other day. She wasn’t sure what to make of that.

“
Danki
,” Mary said, putting the last yard of cloth in a white plastic bag. “I will.”

Once outside, she put her bag in the buggy and began to step inside when a sharp pain zigzagged across her abdomen. Instinctively she put her hand on her stomach, and the spasm soon subsided. The door to the shop behind her opened, and Mary came rushing to her side.

“Are you all right? I saw you through the window. What happened?”

Moriah straightened, expecting to feel another spiky twinge and was relieved when she didn’t. “I don’t know,” she said. “I just had this sudden pain, and now it’s gone.”

Mary’s expression relaxed. “I wouldn’t worry about it too much. I got those with my children every once in a while. But if it keeps happening, make sure you let someone know. Are you using a midwife?”

“
Ya
.”

“Next time you see her you might want to mention it. Now, go on home, have some tea, and unwind.”

“
Danki
. I’ll do that.”

As she headed home, Moriah tried to stem her worry. Despite her cousin’s reassurances, she couldn’t help but be concerned. Her baby was everything to her. She couldn’t bear if something happened to her child. Not when she had lost everything else.

Rachel plopped down on her bed and opened one of the new books she’d purchased from the gift shop at the restaurant. She didn’t read many novels, but this one looked kind of interesting and featured Amish characters. And a romance. “Might as well get some romance somewhere,” she mumbled as she turned to the first chapter. “It’s not like I’ve got any in my life.” If she was lucky, she might also learn a thing or two.

Very little time elapsed before she put the book down. Her mind had wandered too much, and she’d ended up reading the second page three times, only to realize she still didn’t know what it was about. Shoving the book aside, she flipped over and lay on her stomach, resting her chin on top of her clasped hands. An unsettled feeling came over her.

Christian had been gone about two months now. The Monday after the buggy incident with Tobias, he’d called the restaurant using a neighbor’s phone and told her he decided to stay in Charm for a couple more weeks and work on his aunt’s farm. He wasn’t any more specific than that about his return. Even though he had written her a couple of very brief letters, she felt their relationship was spinning in circles again. How were they ever going to get to know each other better if they spent all of their time apart?

She hated to admit that a part of her was glad he hadn’t come back right away. She wasn’t sure how she was going to face him after kissing Tobias.

But it was only one teeny, tiny kiss, and that’s all it would ever be. Never mind that it was a kiss she still relived in her mind, nearly every night in her dreams.

A glance at the clock told her it was 1:00 p.m. Yesterday she and her mother had tended both the flower and the vegetable garden, and the lawn didn’t need mowing or edging either. The day was too nice to spend inside. Scrambling off her bed, she fixed her
kapp
and straightened the white ribbons. She had to find something productive to do or she’d go crazy.

As she made her way downstairs, a thought occurred to her. She would visit Moriah Miller. She hadn’t seen her since Levi had passed away a few weeks ago. What a tragedy. The circumstances surrounding his death had been so sad; her heart had gone out to Moriah.

A stab of guilt pricked at her. She should have visited Moriah long before now. Although their mothers were close friends, she and Moriah had never been. During visits to the Bylers’, Rachel often played outside with Tobias and his brothers, while Moriah had preferred to be inside with her mother.

The thought that Tobias might be there, and that she might run into him, crossed her mind, but she shoved it out of the way. She wasn’t going there to see him; she was lending her support to Moriah. But if she did happen to catch a glimpse of him . . .

Good grief, she was hopeless.

She rushed downstairs and headed for the kitchen. Warm summer sunlight streamed through the open window, illuminating the kitchen. Rachel enjoyed the warmer months of the year. They used the gas lamps and woodstoves less, and the windows were wide open, letting in fresh air. Her mother sat at the kitchen table, sorting through index cards of recipes.

“Where are you off to?” Sarah asked, examining a dog-eared card.

“I thought I’d visit Moriah Miller today.”

Sarah put the card down and smiled. “I think that’s a wonderful idea. I know Emma’s been worried about her.” She clucked her tongue. “Poor thing. She’s such a sweet girl, and has been through so much.”

Rachel nodded. “I won’t be gone long, just a couple of hours.”

Sarah picked up another card. “Let her know my prayers are with her.”

“I will.”

Half an hour later Rachel pulled her buggy into the Bylers’ driveway. As she maneuvered her horse to the parking area next to the woodshop, she saw Emma leaving her house.

“Hello, Rachel!” Emma walked down the porch steps and met Rachel at her buggy. “What brings you by?”

“I came to visit Moriah. Is she home?”

“Oh, you just missed her. She’s at the Millers’.” Her expression sobered. “She said something about cleaning their house and making some meals for Gabriel and John. I tried to talk her out of it.”

“Why?”

“She’s been working hard lately, especially since Levi’s death.” Emma crossed her thin arms over her chest and sighed. “I don’t want to see anything happen to her or the
boppli
.”

“I’ll be glad to help her,
Frau
Byler.”

“That would be wonderful, Rachel. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind if you stop over there for a bit. In fact, I think she’d be delighted.”

“
Danki
. I’ll do that.”

A little while later she arrived at the Millers’, eager to help Moriah. After tethering her horse, she caught sight of her brother emptying a barrel of trash into a small dumpster behind the shop. If she had seen him infrequently before he had started working for Gabriel, now she saw him even less. He left before she awakened, and always went to the job on foot, which was a good three-mile walk. So far he’d managed to keep the job for a couple months, something he never would have been able to do when he was using drugs.

Still, despite this positive aspect of his life, she felt more disconnected from him than ever. He was more reticent lately. Before his arrest, he and their father had shouting matches, with Aaron’s anger verging on physical violence. Yet since his return he had been a model son, albeit a nearly silent one. She’d considered talking to him once, not just words in passing but a real conversation. But Aaron was even less approachable now than he’d been when he first came home, and she wasn’t sure what she should say to him. So she didn’t say anything.

As if he sensed someone watching him, Aaron glanced at her over his shoulder. He gave her an imperceptible nod, as if she were no more familiar than a stranger, and went back in the shop.

His emotional distance stung. Suddenly, an overwhelming sense of rejection consumed her. Everyone wanted to keep their distance from her—her brother, Christian, even Tobias had been cursorily polite to her the few times she had seen him. What was wrong with her? “Rachel? Is that you?”

At the sound of Moriah’s voice, she swallowed her pain. Angling her body a quarter turn, she saw Moriah standing on the front porch several feet from the shop. Mustering up what she hoped was a decent smile, Rachel waved to her. “Hi!” she said, a little too brightly.

Moriah didn’t seem to notice. “Are you here to see your brother?”

“
Nee
. Actually, I came to see you.”

Moriah’s face lit up. “Then come on in. I just made some tea.”

“Sounds great.” Rachel gave her a real smile this time, Moriah’s warm welcome chasing away some of the despair she’d felt a moment earlier.

Moriah held the door open for her, and Rachel walked in. “Come on back to the kitchen. We can visit in there.”

Rachel had never been inside the Millers’ house before. There had never really been an opportunity, as Gabriel and Levi’s parents had been much older than her own folks, and she hadn’t spoken too much to the twins while they were growing up. She took in the tidy front room, with its sparse furnishings and small wood fireplace. She noticed the Millers still had a woodstove. Her own family had purchased a propane stove a couple years ago, when the church leaders had agreed to allow some propane-powered appliances in the home.

Following Moriah to the back of the house, she inhaled the scent of chicken stew cooking on the stove. “Smells wonderful,” Rachel said.

“Would you like some?”

“
Nee
, I’m not really hungry. But
danki
for offering.”

“I thought I’d surprise Gabriel and John when they come in from work. I’m sure they’re getting tired of casseroles all the time.” Moriah retrieved two mugs from a kitchen cabinet, then lifted the tea kettle off the woodstove and poured the hot amber liquid into the cups.

“That’s thoughtful of you. I’m sure they’ll appreciate it.”

Rachel accepted her mug of tea but didn’t drink it right away. Instead she sat down at the kitchen table and observed Moriah, who was rolling out biscuit dough on the floured countertop. The rolling pin suddenly slipped out of her hands, hit the floor, and rolled underneath the table.

“I got it.” Rachel bent down and retrieved the rolling pin. As she went to the sink to wash it, she saw Moriah rub her temple with her fingertips. “Are you okay?”

Moriah nodded and handed Rachel a clean, dry towel. “
Ya
. I’m fine.
Danki
for washing that.”

“You’re welcome.” Rachel saw dark circles of fatigue underneath Moriah’s eyes. Now she understood why Emma was concerned. “How about if I finish up the biscuits?”

“
Nee
, I can do them.” She took the rolling pin from Rachel and applied the wood cylinder to the dough. “I’m almost done anyway.”

“Is there anything else I can do to help?”

Moriah shook her head, then turned and gestured toward the kitchen table. “Please, enjoy your tea.”

Rachel hesitated, but then finally sat down. She sipped the lemon-flavored tea, which had cooled to the perfect temperature. But before long an odd uneasiness came over her. In the past, though their conversations were infrequent, she and Moriah would talk about their siblings or funny things that happened to them during their families’ visits together. Yet so much had happened this past year, especially to Moriah, that for the first time, she didn’t know what to say.