Abram's Daughters 02 The Betrayal (10 page)

Hurrying off with Adah, Leah realized suddenly that she hadn't bothered to dress for the singing, since she hadn't planned to attend. For sure and for certain, she would not impress any of the young men in attendance. No need to when she was engaged to marry Jonas in a few months. Adah, mi the other hand, had combed her hair, taking care to wash lu-r face, Leah noticed, because it was shiny from the scrubbing. "What're you thinking?" Leah asked as they stood in the piping opening to the barn, peering in.

"Just that it's time you had yourself a bit of fun."

"Oh, I'm okay, really I am."

"You don't convince me." Adah smiled thoughtfully. "You look worried most of the time."

"I do?"

"Honestly, I've been wonderin' if you have second thoughts 'bout Jonas."

"What makes you think that?"

to,

Adah fell silent suddenly as, one after another, the young lolk made their way into the barn.

Leah waited for her friend to respond, but when she didn't, Leah added, "If I didn't know better, Adah, I'd think maybe it was you who's worried."

That got Adah talking again. "Whatever for?"

"I daresay you don't like the idea of us not bein' sisters-inlaw, for one thing." As soon as Leah said it, she knew she'd been needlessly insensitive.

"Well, jah, 'tis ever so true. ..."

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Leah was deeply sorry. "What I meant to say was "

"No . . . no, you should never have said such an unkind thing."

Beyond doubt she hated what had just happened; she'd had no intention of exchanging sarcastic words with her dearest friend. "I'm sorry, Adah, honest I am. I don't know what got into me."

"Well, I 'spect I do." Adah breathed in ever so deeply. "I think you're upset at Sadie. Naomi Kauffman told me the most revoltin' story the other day."

"You know I don't care to hear gossip," Leah replied.

"Ain't hearsay. Naomi says she knows what she's talkin' 'bout."

Leah panicked. Naomi probably did know something she oughtn't to be telling. Things concerning Sadie and their Friday-night adventures in the English world. "Is this so necessary to say?" she asked softly.

"Come with me." Adah led her away from the barn, up toward the mule road. "I'm not happy to be the one to tell you this, but. . ." She paused then, still walking hard. "I think you might already suspect as much. Could be the reason you're on edge."

"What's so important we have to walk clear away from the barn?"

"Your sister, that's what. Sadie took her baptism last year with an impure heart. If Bishop Bontrager knew of it, well, she'd be shunned for certain at least the temporary Bann."

The words sprang to life in Leah, smarting her eyes. "Impure?" .. . . ,

"Sadie had herself an English boyfriend." .-.;. ; ,, v ,

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. "I don't like what you're sayin'." She had to speak up. She couldn't just go along with Adah, yet she didn't want to let on she already knew.

"I'm only tellin' you in hopes you can talk sense to Sadie. Help her see the light before Naomi goes to Preacher with this."

Leah's heart sank. "What do you want me to do?"

"Talk openly, sister to sister. Let her know what Naomi's threatenin' to do."

Leah sighed loudly. "What if Sadie won't cooperate?"

"Just try, Leah. For the sake of your family . . . and to spare Sadie eternal punishment."

Leah looked now at Adah. She began to wonder if Adah wasn't actually relieved her precious brother was not roman' tically connected to the Ebersol family.

High above them, in trees silhouetted against a dark sky, whippoorwills called from unseen branches, and Leah felt sud' den despair. The thing she had greatly feared had come to pass. Sadie had been found out. Just how much Naomi knew, she had no idea. But she intended to worm it out of her.

In a few minutes' time, she and Adah had walked all the way to the brink of the forest. Without speaking, they turned and stood there, looking down over the Ebersol Cottage, as Leah liked to call her father's house. In the near distance she

spotted a single upstairs window aglow Sadie's and her bed' room where her bold and surly sister sat alone contemplating her Lord's Day misbehavior.

Meanwhile, their two-story bank barn was alive with light and music. Lightning bugs blinked yellow-white sparkles here and there over the field and beyond to the Peachey farm,

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making Leah think sadly of Smithy Gid. What a good thing he'd stayed at home and let his sister go it alone to singing this night. Indeed.

"Won'tcha come to the singing with me, please?" Adah asked.

"I'm not dressed for it," she said.

Adah looked her over, brushing Leah's apron off. "There, now."

Her dear friend's pleading eyes tugged at her heart. "S'pose I could go with you, but only for a little bit."

"Wonderful'gut!" Adah's face lit up and she reached for Leah's hand, and the two of them went running down the mule road toward the barn.

Gid caught himself breaking into a full grin, having just now spotted Leah Ebersol and his sister Adah come strolling into the barn, hand in hand. And just when he was starting to wish he'd stayed home to frisk with his new litter of German shepherd puppies. Soon he would be advertising again by word of mouth the way he liked to, since it took nothing away from his growing savings account letting folks know his full-bred pups were weaned and ready to purchase. His father had mentioned not two days before that he was well pleased with the amount of money Gid had saved over the past few years, thanks to the thriving side business. Gid would have liked to be looking to marry before too long, though the girl he really wanted to court was Abram's Leah, who was all caught up with a beau clear out in Ohio. Just what was Jonas Mast thinking, learning the carpentry trade? Gid wondered. But it wasn't his place to question. He knew

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there had been talk amongst the brethren and this had come straight from his own pop that Bishop Bontrager didn't take too kindly to young men who chose to make their way by doing something other than farming. Working the soil was the expected way in the eyes of the People. Anything else was "mighty English." Besides, there was ample farmland in Lancaster County.

Gid slowed his pace, hoping to appear relaxed as he approached Leah and Adah, who were talking off by themselves. Not wanting to barge in he did and he didn't he hoped to make Leah feel comfortable with his presence. Yet what was she doing here, where the singing activities were meant for coupling up? Surely Leah and Jonas Mast were secretly engaged by now. But that was anyone's guess ... at least up until the second Sunday after fall communion, when the deacon named each couple in the district who planned to marry during the wedding season. After the publishing, Abram Ebersol would stand and invite everyone sixteen and older to the wedding, also announcing the day and month.

Gid had lor^g thought he might have some reason for staying away from church that day. Wouldn't think of putting on like he was ill, though. Although, if he thought on it long enough, he could be. But he would try to put on a smile for the Ebersols, no matter what inner turmoil he would battle that day. Because wedding or not, Abram and his family were mighty special in his book.

"Hullo, Leah . . . and Adah." He stopped a few feet from them, forcing his gaze on his sister and away from Leah, who always seemed to draw his eyes to hers. How was it a girl could

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wear her sweet spirit on her face? It had always been that way with Leah.

"Oh, Gid, you're here!" Adah said, letting go of Leah's hand and gripping his arm.

He felt his face flush red. "I decided to come over at the

last minute."

Adah turned to Leah. "Same as you did, Leah," his sister declared, eyes sparkling.

"Oh, Adah ... for goodness' sake." Leah turned from Adah and looked at him, smiling pleasantly, not flirtatiously. "I came to keep your sister company, is all," she said.

" 'Twas my idea, for sure," Adah agreed.

"Well, I'm glad you're both here." Their talk quickly turned to King, Leah's dog, and it seemed she considered him a devoted pet.

"Dat likes having King round, too," Leah stated. "He's even said it might be nice to have one or two more dogs."

Adah brightened again. "Really?"

Leah was nodding. "Dat thinks havin' dogs on the prop' erty keeps outsiders honest."

"Not that he distrusts the English, I don't s'pose," Gid spoke up. He knew Abram well enough to know better.

Leah shrugged. "Dat sometimes worries over us girls . . . be in' there's only one man to do the protectin'." She must have suddenly caught herself, realizing what she'd said, because she looked quickly at Adah and turned too rosy in the cheeks.

Gid stepped closer and found himself forming a circle with the two of them. He thought he smelled a hint of homemade soap probably Adah, who'd cleaned up right good for

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the evening. Still, there was a unique freshness about Leah, the way her eyes shone with joy, her surprising openness. She was as confident as any girl he knew; not shy at all, nor too frank like one of the girls here from the Grasshopper Level area. He hadn't seen her, but some of the fellows had said Jonas Mast's spunky sister Rebekah was in attendance, along with three other girls from that district. "Bold Becky" had shown up tonight to one of her first singings since she'd turned sixteen. He was careful not to concentrate too hard on Leah, dividing his attention between both her and Adah . . . though it was mighty difficult.

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1 VJLonday morning after completing her milking duties, Leah hurried off on foot to pay a visit to Naomi Kauffman.

Arriving at Kauffmans' dairy farm, she hurried across the barnyard to the milk house. There she found Naomi looking mighty surprised to see her. "I hope you don't mind me comin' so early."

"Leah, what is it? Something happen over at your place?"

"Everything's just fine." She paused. "I have to talk to you." She werft on to share in whispered tones what Adah had confided last night. "I'm worried sick 'bout Sadie what might become of her if you . . . well, if you go to Preacher before she has a chance to repent on her own."

"She's had plenty of time, wouldn't you say? Nearly a year's passed since she started spendin' time with her worldly beau. And what's worse, she kept seein' him after she was bapI ized. I know she did 'cause Melvin Warner, Derry's English hiend, told me so. 'Course, now, I was wild, too, 'cept not ihinkin' on bein' baptized . . . not till recently." Naomi took

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a deep breath. "I just don't understand how Sadie could tempt the Lord God thataway. And she never made things right with the church brethren, neither." Naomi looked at her with stony eyes. "Has she confessed these things to you?"

Leah couldn't lie . . . not before God and her fellow baptismal candidate. "It's a touchy subject, the rumschpringe . . . so private it is, you know."

"Which is why Dat's been talkin' to Preacher Yoder and others about doin' away with it. Goodness' sake, I nearly got myself in a fix. Sadie and I ... we went together clear up to Strasburg, seekin' out fancy fellas. We were narrisch crazy. Truly we were."

"You don't have to come clean to me, Naomi. You've repented to God and Preacher, as we all must."

"Then, will you urge Sadie to do the same? Plead with her to go to the brethren."

"Why, so you won't have to?"

"Ach no, but ain't it true if a person knows of sin and doesn't encourage the sinner to own up ... well then, they may be found to be just as guilty?"

Leah hated to think she, as well as Aunt Lizzie, was at fault right along with Sadie. Oh, they'd made futile attempts to get Sadie to express regret, pushing for her to at least tell Mamma what she'd done. Jointly and separately they'd done so, till they were blue in the face. But Leah couldn't reveal any of this to Naomi. It would never do to let her in on the fact that Leah had known all this for a long time.

"Jah, I'll do my best talkin' to my sister," Leah promised. "I'll tell her what you said. Or you could tell her yourself. Might be a gut thing for her to witness how you've turned

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V< >ur back on the world and all."

Naomi nodded. "Still, if she isn't willin' to ask for forgiveness, then I won't have any choice but to "

"Talk to your beau's grandfather?"

Naomi blushed. "Has nothin' to do with Luke and me."

"Well, I surely hope not."

Squaring her shoulders, Naomi continued. "Listen, Leah, I'm hein' truthful with you. I couldn't live with my conscience

11 I didn't speak to someone. Don't you see? I want to present myself as a living sacrifice and follow the Lord Jesus in holy I'iiptism with a pure heart."

Leah agreed. "Just as I do."

So it was settled. Sadie's my sister, after all, she thought.

Sadie would have one short month to offer atonement to her parents and, if she was willing, the church.

At half paBt ten in the morning, the postman delivered I Ik; mail. Leah ran down the lane, eager to hear from Jonas. Just as she expected, there was a new letter from Millersburg.

Tearing the envelope open, she began to read.

M31 dearest Leah,

You are constantly in my thoughts and prayers! Just think, : one month from now I'll hold you in my arms again. While I'm there for baptism, let's you and 1 talk over where we plan to live. We could have a look-see at the rental house you wrote about earlier.

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Today as 1 worked in the carpentry shop, 1 had an inter' esting idea. I hope you might consider it. 1 realize there must have been an important reason for you to remain in Gobbler's Knob through the summer. But now, here we are in the middle of August, and I'd like for us to be in the same town together, at least for our final weeks as a betrothed couple. I want to court you in person, Leah. My heart longs for your smile, your sweet face . . . your dear, dear ways.