A Measure of Mercy (9 page)

“I wasn’t smoking. What’s the matter with you?”

Astrid saw a couple of the men moving closer to the two of them.

Maydell narrowed her eyes and stared right at him. “How am I supposed to know I am your girl?”

“Well, because I told you so.”

“That was weeks ago.”

“That’s telling him, Maydell,” someone hollered from the sidelines.

Gus glared at her, but the glare had lost its impact.

“Show her who’s the boss,” someone else said.

“Then we better be getting married before you make a fool out of both of us.” Gus grabbed her hand and started across the barn floor.

Maydell started to resist, but then as his words sunk in, a grin lit her face. “Why, Gus Baard, you finally got it right.” She waved to a crowd that was beginning to laugh and clap.

Astrid groaned. Leave it to Maydell. She was getting her wish, although it was doubtful she’d ever live it down. At least from the look on Mrs. Valders’ face. One might think of apoplexy when watching her. Astrid glanced around. Toby had managed to disappear, either as planned or for protection.

“Can you believe that?” Deborah asked as she joined Astrid and Grace.

“Did he really say what I thought he did?” Grace signed and spoke both, her voice seeming a bit rusty.

Astrid nodded and rolled her lips to keep from laughing. “Leave it to Maydell.”

“How long before the wedding do you think?” Deborah signed too. All of them had learned to sign years earlier when Kaaren learned and taught the community. She turned to Grace. “How’s school going?”

“I love teaching there. I never thought I would be happy away from Blessing, but I am.” Her smile made the others smile back and follow her gaze as it located Jonathan talking with several of the men.

“He’s working mighty hard here.” Astrid leaned closer to Grace and signed like they used to when trading secrets without ever saying a word.

“Jonathan always works hard. He convinced his father to let him go to school in Fargo, and that was a big accomplishment.” Her pride in him made Astrid grin.

“Has he learned to sign well enough?”

“To get by. You should sign with him this summer.”

“I will. I hadn’t thought of that. You know, with you gone we don’t sign as much. One day when one of the deaf students came in, I was sure glad I knew how to do it. Dr. Elizabeth called for me immediately when she needed to tell him something to do.”

“With all the new people coming into town, the school will need to offer classes to those who want to learn.” Grace’s speaking could not keep up with her signing. “If the deaf school grows like we are dreaming it will, there will be many more deaf people in the area. Mrs. Wooster, a benefactor from New York, says that families will move here to be by their loved ones. I know it happens that way where I am teaching.”

Astrid watched Grace’s hands fly and thought about what she was saying. What if there were surgeries that could help restore hearing? Would Dr. Morganstein know about that? Dr. Elizabeth had told her of places that were specializing in different therapies. Was there one for ears and hearing?

She felt him behind her before she heard his voice.

“May I walk you home?” While Joshua spoke low and close to Astrid’s ear, the others stopped talking and grinned at her.

“Of course you may,” Deborah answered for her with a wide smile. “Shame it is not farther.”

Astrid could feel her face flaming. She glared at Deborah, which earned another burst of laughter from her friends. “I can speak for myself, you know.”

“Well, go on, then. Answer him.”

Even Grace was laughing. Having a choice between pouting and joining in the laughter, Astrid chose the latter. “Just wait. You’ll be the brunt of all this one day, and we’ll see how you feel.”

“All right, what is going on over here?” Jonathan asked as he strolled up to those laughing.

“Walking home. That’s what.” Astrid grabbed Grace’s hand. “You and Jonathan can come too.”

“We can’t go yet. We have to lower the piano down to the wagon and drive it back to church. We need all available young men. The old ones said it was our turn.”

“The old ones?” Haakan echoed from right behind Jonathan, who flinched and rolled his eyes.

“I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.” Now it was his turn to be laughed at, and they all took him up on it.

“We ‘old ones’ will show you young ones how to move a piano. Come along, both of you.”

The girls watched and cheered as the piano was lowered down the ramp to the wagon, where the young men climbed aboard and headed for the church. There they would unload it and get it ready for the next morning’s service.

The unmarried girls waved good-bye and walked home together, laughing and teasing as they headed to the Knutsons’ farm for the night.

“I think that was one of the most fun barn dances we’ve had,” Deborah said later as they prepared for bed.

“Gus will have a hard time living down that scene.”

“How long before they’ll be married, do you think?” Grace signed.

“If Maydell has any sense, she’ll tell us tomorrow that they’re getting married next week.” Grace and Astrid fell across the bed laughing.

“You think so?” Deborah sat cross-legged at the foot of the bed, brushing her hair.

“I do. Before he changes his mind.” Astrid wiped a tear from Grace’s cheek.

Giggling, the three tied ribbons around the ends of their night braids, blew out the lamp, and crawled under the sheet. A blanket lay folded across the bottom of the bed in case the night cooled down.

In the quiet Astrid signed to Grace’s hand. “I’m so glad you’re home. I really missed you.”

Grace curled up close like they did when little girls, only now without Sophie wiggling.

“Me too,” she signed back. “Long talk tomorrow.”

Maybe Grace could help her understand how not to miss Blessing if she went to Chicago.
If
she went. The ifs murmured her to sleep.

Astrid woke to the sound of heavy footsteps on the stairs. Onkel Lars had stayed late. She rolled over on her side, careful not to push Grace off the edge. Walking home with Mr. Landsverk would have been interesting, but was she ready for more complications in her life?

JOSHUA WAS WATING at the steps to the church when the Knutsons and their extra passengers drove up the next morning. The Bjorklunds arrived at about the same time. Joshua tipped his hat to Ingeborg in greeting and smiled at Astrid. “May I sit beside you in church?”

“Ah . . .” She glanced at her mother, who nodded. “I guess so.” No man had ever asked to sit next to her like this. But when they shared a hymnbook and his full baritone harmonized with her alto, a thrill raced up and down her spine, then sparkled off her fingertips. Surely the entire congregation was singing better because of his voice.

When it was time for the sermon, Pastor Solberg stepped forward and gestured to a man who was sitting in the chair next to him behind the pulpit. “Today I would like to introduce a missionary friend of mine, the reverend Ted Schuman, who is serving in Kenya, Africa. He will bring us not only the message for the day but a report on his mission there.”

Astrid had trouble concentrating on the beginning of the sermon with the warmth of Joshua’s arm right next to hers. But the speaker caught her attention when he quoted Jesus’ words from John’s gospel: “ ‘Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.’ ” He went on with a quote from Matthew: “ ‘The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few.’ ” After a pause where he looked around at all the faces in the congregation, he softened his voice. “The harvest is indeed ready, but the laborers are terribly few.” He continued with stories of his life in Africa, of the native people who had come to faith in spite of their old beliefs, and the witch doctors who fought to destroy the light the white man preached.

He closed his sermon by saying, “If God is calling you to serve Him as a missionary in foreign lands, please hearken to His call. We so desperately need help, especially those with medical training.”

His eyes seemed to bore right into her own. Astrid swallowed. Surely he didn’t mean her. She didn’t even want to go as far away as Chicago.
He couldn’t mean me. Lord, is this really you?

7

J
oshua felt a huge weight leave his shoulders as he sat next to Astrid in the service. She had not refused his slightly impertinent request to sit with her. Maybe his impulse to return to Blessing was right and not crazy, as he’d been wondering, although he’d been pretty sure of that when his heart about jumped out of his chest as soon as he saw her again. He tried to compare the young girl he’d tried to forget with this Astrid sitting beside him
. I stayed away to
give her time to grow up, and now I’m back and she didn’t seem to
be troubled or irritated by my attention. Then suddenly she became
distant, like in a trance.

What happened? What was that speaker talking about? Africa. Joshua had tuned him out, conscious only of the girl next to him. His concern for her blotted out the remainder of the service. But even after the benediction she didn’t move until Joshua cleared his throat.

“Miss Bjorklund?”

Astrid blinked. She stared at the seat back in front of her, then up at Joshua. “What did you say?”

“Astrid, are you all right?” Mrs. Bjorklund’s voice came from the other side of her, but she continued to stare as if on the far side of the valley and only echoes came to her. “Astrid!” Her mother spoke sharply this time.

Astrid nodded and slowly rose. She looked toward the pulpit and then turned slowly to the guest speaker at the doorway beside Pastor Solberg, greeting all the people. Joshua studied her, feeling a frown between his eyebrows.

“Did you ask me something?” She looked up at Joshua with a slightly dazed expression.

“Yes, I did, and I’ll ask it again. Are you all right?”

When Mrs. Bjorklund laid her hand upon Astrid’s wrist, she turned to smile at her mother. But it was an odd smile, like one painted on a wax-headed doll.

Ingeborg kept her voice low and comforting. “Astrid, is something wrong? You are not acting like yourself.”

Tears filled her eyes. She shook her head and shoved past Joshua, heading for the side door. She seemed to be trying to avoid speaking to either Reverend Schuman or Pastor Solberg. Joshua had no idea which or why, but she was definitely upset. He hesitated for just a moment and then followed her, walking silently alongside her, matching her stride for stride. She sniffed and sniffed again. He handed her a precisely folded white handkerchief.

As she accepted it, a shudder went through her. Tears coursed down her face, and sobs wracked her chest. Planting one foot in front of the other, she seemed to keep time to something she alone could hear. And then he heard her say, “Not me. Not me. Not me.”

Joshua kept silent and kept pace. All he could think was to take her in his arms and comfort her, protect her from whatever was bothering her. But he didn’t. He kept his arms at his side, his muscles rigid with the effort. He’d come all this way to find her again, and now this was happening. What could be wrong?

Lord, if I were a real praying man, I would most certainly do that
now, but I’ve not bothered you with much for some time. So if you don’t
want to listen, I understand. But if you are really the God that Pastor
Solberg and the other man talked about, the God my mother told me
about, please hear me and help this young woman. I don’t know what to
do. Did I come too late? Is there someone else? What happened to her in
that service? She was fine before, friendly, and seemed happy to see me.
And now she can’t quit crying.
Throwing propriety over his shoulder, he stepped forward, turned, and let Astrid bump into him so he could put his arms around her. No one should have to cry alone when suffering, as she obviously was.

Wishing he could do more but with no idea what to do, he held her and let her tears soak his shirt. She clung, fists clenching his shirtfront. When the storm slowed somewhat, he could finally make out what she was saying.

“I don’t want to. Please, I don’t want to.” Sobs continued but now they were intermittent.

“Don’t want to what?”

“Go to Africa. I don’t want to go to Chicago even, but I really don’t want to go to Africa.” Gulps punctuated her words, breaking the thoughts into pieces that he tried to string together to make sense.

“Who said you had to go to Africa?” He hoped she could hear him but realized he sounded as confused as she.

She used his handkerchief to mop her face and blow her nose, but the tears dripped on. When she looked up at him, all he could see were diamonds and sapphires sparkling in her Bjorklund blue eyes. If he hadn’t been positive he cared for her before, he was a goner now for sure.

He cupped his hands around her face and used his thumbs to wipe away the tears. “Astrid, please, all is well. You do not have to go to Africa. You don’t have to go anywhere you don’t want to go.”

She sucked in a staggering breath and closed her eyes, resting against his warm chest. “Oh, my goodness.” Obviously appalled at her behavior, she stepped back.