A Miracle of Hope (The Amish Wonders Series) (9 page)

Simon leaned against the half wall. “You better
nett
put it off.”

He had to. What if Doctor Ethridge wanted to run tests again? He already had enough to cope with. He leaned the shovel against the wall and picked up the wheelbarrow handles. Simon opened the stall door for Josiah, and thankfully, his father-in-law didn’t follow along to continue his lecture.

Everyone coughs when he has a cold.
He wasn’t going to fret over the possibility that it might be more. And he wouldn’t live in fear. Although he agreed with Simon on one thing—he was under too much stress. He dumped the contents of the wheelbarrow on the compost mound.

Josiah had given Hannah enough time to cool down. He left the wheelbarrow and strode across the snowy lawn to the house.
Dishes clanked in the kitchen as he passed through the sitting room and down the hallway to his daughter’s room. Hannah was sitting on the bed, and when he sat on the edge of the mattress, she stuck her thumb in her mouth and stared at the wall.

Josiah tapped her shoulder. “You should give Lindie a chance,” he signed once he gained her attention.

Her bottom lip puckered, her thumb never leaving her mouth.

“She’s your new
mamm
.”

Hannah shook her head and turned her back to him again.

God, how should I respond to her disobedience? If I allow these actions to go unpunished, will she become even more unruly?
Josiah waited a few moments for Hannah to turn around on her own. When she didn’t, he had no option.

He traipsed to the sitting room and removed the wooden paddle from the nail on the wall.

Lindie came out of the kitchen wiping her hands on her apron. “Were you able to get her to understand?” Her eyes widened when she looked at the paddle. “Please, Josiah, give her time.”

“She turned her back in the middle of
mei
signing. I cannot allow her defiance.”

Lindie reached for his arm. “This is all new. For all of us. Please, don’t do something you might regret.”

He eyed her hand grasping his arm. “Are you familiar with the verse in Proverbs that instructs prompt discipline?”

“I’m familiar with the scripture.”

“Then leave me to do what I must do.”

Her grip tightened. “You said you believe in miracles. Give her time to
kumm
around on her own.”

How long would that take? His patience was wearing thin. But perhaps Lindie was right. He hung the paddle on the wall on his way outside. He needed air. Instead of going back out to the
barn and having to dodge Simon’s questions, he tramped through the field. A brisk walk through the snow should calm him, or exhaust him. And at the moment, he didn’t care which.

Four days after Josiah told Hannah about their marriage, the child still refused to communicate. Lindie understood why the girl would reject her, but now she had stopped signing even to her father. Josiah rubbed his forehead frequently as though the entire ordeal had given him a continuous headache.

Lindie had managed to keep her distance, afraid she would say something wrong and cause more problems. But today it appeared she didn’t have to say anything to get under his skin. Every cabinet he opened and shut caused her to flinch.

She set the stack of recipes written on index cards on the table and stood. “What are you looking for?”

“A glass.” He turned his head to cough, shielding his mouth in his bent elbow.

“Your cough doesn’t sound very
gut
. Are you okay?”

“I will be once I drink some water.”

She looked away from his piercing glare and opened the correct cabinet. “I moved them,” she said, reaching for a glass.

“So I see.” He shifted his stance.

She ran the faucet and handed him a full glass. “It didn’t make any sense having the glasses on the left when everyone is right-handed.” Most men wouldn’t care how the woman arranged the kitchen, but Josiah frowned as he held the glass up to his lips.

“Is this a problem?”

He set the glass down. “It won’t be after you return everything to its rightful place.”

Her mother used to rearrange the cabinets regularly, and Lindie couldn’t recall her father ever getting upset. She didn’t understand why something this minor would provoke such an inflamed response. She straightened her shoulders. “Why don’t you tell me what you’re really upset about? This isn’t about my moving the dishes, is it?”

The sluggish movement of his Adam’s apple as he drank made it look as though he was having difficulty swallowing. He set the glass on the counter, cleared his throat, then opened his mouth as if to say something, but stalked out of the room instead.

She took a step in his direction and stopped.
The right words at the right time will turn away wrath, but the wrong words at the wrong time will feed the fire
. These handed-down words of wisdom had worked for her mother. Growing up, Lindie had heard her mother quote the saying under her breath often. Lindie repeated her mother’s words aloud. “It’s better to hold your tongue than to say something you’ll regret.” This wasn’t the time to be confrontational. She needed to try to fix things.

If her mother were alive, she would know how to advise her. Then again, she wouldn’t want her mother to know what her life had become. Lindie sank down on the chair. So much for trying to make the kitchen more functional. She looked around the room. It would take hours to put everything back. Time she didn’t have if she was to have the meal ready when Josiah and Simon ended their workday.

Lindie scanned the recipe card for chili, then collected all the ingredients except hamburger. Josiah had said the meat was in the
icehaus,
and hopefully she would find a pound or two of ground beef. At the door, she slipped on her cape, then remembered Hannah. Lindie didn’t want her to be confused if she came out of her room and found the house empty. She wasn’t sure how
to convey to the girl that she was running out to the
icehaus
for meat, but she had to try.

Hannah sat on the floor, huddled in the corner, with a pad of paper on her lap. She didn’t look up from her drawing as Lindie entered the room, or when she crouched down beside her. Lindie studied the picture, speechless at what she saw. Hannah had drawn a deer standing near a cluster of birch trees. The shading detail was thorough. No one would believe a child had drawn the picture.

She tapped Hannah’s arm, then pointed to her picture. “That’s beautiful.” Even though she spoke slowly, Hannah’s eyes narrowed.

Lindie pointed to herself. “I”—she smiled wide at the little girl—“like”—she pointed at the drawing. “I like your picture.”

Hannah’s despondence unnerved Lindie. Behind those dark brown eyes was a lonely child. Lindie understood that emptiness too well.

The girl pretended not to read lips, and Lindie wasn’t about to let the child think she was frustrated. Lindie smiled again. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.” She stood and turned for the door, not expecting any response. The hem of Lindie’s dress caught and she looked over her shoulder. Hannah was holding on to it.

The girl released the dress, pointed at the picture, then made a few hand gestures Lindie couldn’t decipher.

She certainly didn’t want to discourage Hannah. She looked again at the picture and smiled. “
Jah
, it’s beautiful.”

A slight lift at the corners of Hannah’s mouth encouraged Lindie, but as she squatted next to her, Hannah stuck her thumb in her mouth and turned away. Not wishing to pressure Hannah, she stood back up. If she gave Hannah time, she hoped the girl would warm up to her eventually. Later, when she had a few
extra minutes, she would spend more time with the sign language book. But right now, giving her space was more important. Besides, she still needed to find the ground beef. Before leaving the room, Lindie glanced again at Hannah, who hadn’t changed positions. Lindie had made some progress. That should please Josiah. Maybe it would even lighten his mood.

The cold air nipped at her face as she crossed the snowy driveway. Next to the long pole barn stood a small shack. Since the other small outbuildings had firewood stacked up along their sides, she figured this was the
icehaus
. She unlatched the door and used her hip to nudge it open. The dark room would hold only two or three people. Frozen water jugs lined the walls. A few blocks of ice surrounded the food packages on the bench top. She wished she’d thought to bring a lantern since there were no windows. The opened door didn’t allow much light. She wouldn’t be able to read the markings on the brown paper packaging. After a few minutes of searching, her hands began to stiffen. She selected what she thought could be hamburger. If it wasn’t, she would figure out something else to make with the meat.

Back in the house, she discovered the package wasn’t beef, but ground venison. She hoped the deer meat cooked up the same. She fed the stove a few pieces of wood so the meat would brown up quickly. A gamey deer scent filled the air. A few hours later the pot of chili was still simmering on the stove.

Josiah entered the kitchen. “Simon will be in shortly.”

“This is ready.” She stirred the chili as he washed his hands at the sink.

“Where’s Hannah?” He dried his hands on a dish towel.

She set the ladle on the counter. “I’ll go get her.”

“
Nay
, wait.” He reached for her arm. “I want to talk with you a minute.”

“I didn’t have time to change the cupboards back to the way they were, but I will, after supper.”

“Caroline was left-handed,” he blurted.

“Ach.”
Now it all made sense. Why hadn’t it crossed her mind that he would defend Caroline’s arrangement?

“I’m going to try harder,” he said. “Please have patience.”

She nodded. Chili bubbles splashed onto the stove. Thankful for a distraction, she grabbed the pot holders.

Josiah stopped her from reaching for the pot. “Let me lift it.” He moved the sputtering chili.

“I’ll go get Hannah.” Lindie hurried down the hall to Hannah’s room and opened the door.

It was empty.

Chapter Seven

L
indie darted out the door behind Josiah. Why hadn’t she checked on the girl when she returned from the
icehaus
?

“I’ll find her.” Josiah pointed to the house. “Go back inside where it’s warm.”

“I’m
nett kalt
. I want to help.” She needed to help. This was her fault.

“Fine.” He stomped toward the pasture gate, his breath coming in thick, white puffs.

Lindie looked across the field. Empty. Where had the child gone? She cupped her mouth around her hand and called, “Hannah,” then listened for a response.

Nothing. She called again.

Josiah continued walking. His long-legged stride forced her to jog to keep pace. When he came to the wooden, split rail fence, he crawled between the timbers of the fence, then waited for her.

She lifted her dress midcalf and swung her leg between the rough-cut timbers, catching her prayer
kapp
on the fence. She couldn’t straddle the fence and pull her
kapp
loose at the same
time, at least not without ripping the material or losing a chunk of hair.

“Hold still.” Josiah squatted.

His warm breath fanned her face as he worked his hand over the board.

“Ouch.” He jerked his hand away and examined his index finger.

“Are you okay?”

“It’s nothing.” He brought it to his lips.

“Let me see if it’s bleeding.”

He pulled his finger out of his mouth, but didn’t show her the wound.

She wasn’t thinking clearly. Even if he’d cut his finger through to the bone, she couldn’t do anything about it with her head still caught in such an awkward position. “
Nett
this minute, but you might need a tetanus shot if you cut your finger on a rusty nail.”

“I’m fine. It wasn’t a nail.” He shrugged it off, shaking his finger. Then he reached over her again. After a few short tugs, he worked the cloth free from whatever had snagged her
kapp
. He clutched her elbow and steadied her as she climbed the rest of the way through.

“Denki.”
She readjusted her
kapp
. “I probably should’ve used the gate.”

“That’s what most pregnant women would do,” he mumbled under his breath as he stomped away.

She was doing nothing but slowing him down. Her feet sank into the snow as she hurried to catch up to him. She cupped her hands around her mouth and called for Hannah again.

Josiah smirked.

She ignored him and repeated the call, her voice strained. His expression hadn’t changed. Why was he looking at her like that?

“You do remember she’s deaf,
jah
?” he said.

Lindie dropped her hands to her sides. “What a
dummkopp
I am.”

He continued on course.

A few minutes later they reached the end of the pasture. Lindie spotted a fence. She wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

“You better stay on that side.”

He didn’t need to look so disgusted. “I can make it.”

“There isn’t a gate.” He lowered his gaze to her belly and scowled.

She flinched. So, he thought she couldn’t do it simply because she was pregnant? She would be happy if climbing a fence were the most difficult thing she’d face while married to him.