[Kentucky Brothers 01] - The Journey (3 page)

Mom’s brown eyes brightened as she shook Allen’s hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you. Zach’s told us a lot about you and your family.”

“He’s talked to me about his family here, too.”

“I explained to Allen that Zach’s still at work and said he’s welcome to stay here until Zach gets home.”

Mom bobbed her head. “Why don’t you stay for supper? I’ll invite Zach and his family to join us. I think it would be nice for you to meet his wife and children.”

“I’d like that,” Allen said with an enthusiastic nod.

“If you need a place to spend the night, you’re more than welcome to stay here.” Mom smiled. “Since Titus is our only son still living at home, we have more than enough room to accommodate guests.”

“I appreciate the offer, but I’ve already reserved a room at a hotel in Bird-in-Hand.”

“That’s fine, but the offer’s open if you change your mind.” Mom turned toward the house. “I’d better go back inside and get supper going.”

As Mom headed to the house, Titus motioned to a couple of wooden chairs sitting beneath the maple tree on their lawn. “Why don’t we take a seat?” he said to Allen. “I’m real interested in hearing why you moved to Kentucky.”

E
verything sure looks good,” Grandpa said as he seated himself in his chair at the head of the table. “Did you make any part of the meal tonight?” he asked, raising his bushy gray eyebrows as he looked at Suzanne.

“She cut up the cabbage and tomatoes for the coleslaw,” Mom said before Suzanne could reply.

“What about the
hinkel?
Who fixed that?” Suzanne’s nine-year-old brother, Chad, wearing an expectant expression, pointed to the platter of crispy fried chicken.

“I made the chicken,” Mom said.

Chad pushed a hunk of flaming red hair out of his eyes and smacked his lips noisily. “That’s
gut
to know, ‘cause the last time Suzanne tried to bake a chicken, it came out of the oven chewy like rubber.”

“That’s because the chicken was old and tough,” Suzanne said in her own defense.

The skin around Chad’s blue eyes creased as his freckled nose wrinkled. “Wouldn’t matter how old the bird was, ‘cause you’da done somethin’ wrong to it.” He touched his jaw. “My mouth was sore the rest of the night after chewin’ on that horrible chicken.”

Grandpa’s pale blue eyes narrowed as he shot the boy a warning look. “That’ll be enough. Let’s pray so we can eat.”

All heads bowed. Suzanne’s silent prayer was short and to the point.
Heavenly Father, thank You for this food, and help my family to see that I have other skills that don’t involve cooking. Amen
.

Suzanne heard Grandpa rustle his silverware, so she opened her eyes. Everyone else did the same.

“Would ya please pass the macaroni salad?” Suzanne’s six-year-old sister, Effie, asked. She had the same red hair and blue eyes as Nelson and Chad, which they’d inherited from their father, who’d died in a farming accident two years ago. Suzanne’s hair was more subdued, a combination of her mother’s brown hair and her father’s red hair.

Suzanne handed Effie the bowl of Mom’s zesty macaroni salad, and then she turned to Grandpa and said, “Have you found anyone to work in the woodshop yet?”

He frowned as he shook his nearly bald head. “We’d thought about training Russell, but your uncle Dan needs the boy’s help at his dairy, so we’ve decided to look for someone who already has some woodworking experience.”

“There’s no need for that,” Suzanne was quick to say. “You can hire me.”

Her brother Nelson’s pale eyebrows lifted high on his forehead. “You’re kidding, right?”

“No, I’m not.”

“You’re not experienced,” he said with a shake of his head.

“I’ve made a few birdhouses and feeders.”

“Those are small and don’t begin to compare with the finely crafted cabinets, doors, and storage sheds we make in our shop.” Nelson motioned to the window facing their yard. “Besides, you’ve got plenty to do taking care of the vegetables and flowers we grow in our garden and helping Mom in the house.”

“But gardening is seasonal, and when I’m in the house for too long, I get bored.” Suzanne picked up her napkin and wiped the juice from the chicken on her fingers.

“You wouldn’t be bored if you spent more time in the kitchen,” Nelson said. “How are you gonna find a husband if you don’t learn to cook?”

Suzanne glared at him. “Why does everyone think a woman must marry? I personally don’t care if I ever marry.”

“You weren’t sayin’ that last year when you were hopin’ James Beiler would start courtin’ you,” Suzanne’s sixteen-year-old brother, Russell, chimed in. He was the only child in the Yoder family who had Mom’s brown hair and brown eyes.

Suzanne clenched her fork so tightly that her fingers turned numb. She didn’t need the reminder that she’d previously had a crush on Esther’s older brother. For a while, it had seemed like James might be interested in her, too, but then he’d started courting Mary Jane Smucker. Last fall they’d gotten married and moved to Lykens, Pennsylvania.

From across the table, Russell squinted his coffee-colored eyes at Suzanne. “I’ll bet the reason James dropped you for Mary Jane is ‘cause she’s such a good cook. About the only thing you can make is soup and sandwiches, and nobody wants that for supper every night.”

“That’ll be enough,” Mom admonished. “Just eat your supper, and leave Suzanne alone.”

Chad reached for a drumstick and plopped it on his plate. “Sure am glad Mom knows how to cook.”

As much as it hurt to be reminded of her shortcomings, Suzanne knew that her brother was right. Unless she learned to cook, she’d probably never find a man willing to marry her. Well, she wouldn’t worry about that until she found a man she was interested in marrying. Right now she needed to concentrate on finding some way to convince Nelson and Grandpa to let her work in their shop.

Until that day comes
, she thought,
I’ll continue to sneak out to the woodshop when no one’s there and see what I can do on my own
.

Paradise, Pennsylvania

“I’m so glad you’re here, and I can’t wait for you to meet my wife, Leona, and our three kids,” Zach said as he, Allen, and Titus made their way across the yard to the picnic tables that had been set up on the lawn.

Allen grinned and draped his arm across Zach’s shoulders. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time. Just never got around to it until now.”

Titus noticed right away the look of happiness on Zach’s face. He was obviously pleased to be reunited with his childhood friend.

“So what brings you to our part of the country?” Zach asked, raking his fingers through the sides of his sandy brown hair. “The last time we talked on the phone, you said you were real busy at the carpentry shop in Tacoma and didn’t know when you might get away.”

Titus was tempted to jump in and share all that Allen had told him that afternoon, but he figured he’d better let Allen do the talking for now.

Allen moved to one of the wooden benches. “Let’s sit down. While we’re waiting for the rest of your family to show up, I’ll tell you the other reason I’m here.”

Titus took a seat on one bench, and Allen and Zach sat across from him.

“As you know,” Allen began, “after the lumber mill where I worked in Tacoma shut down, I began working for Todd Foster as a carpenter.”

Zach nodded. “That’s what Titus does now. He’s been working for our brother-in-law, Matthew, for the past year.”

“I told him that before you got home,” Titus put in.

“Anyway, while I worked for Todd, I built a home that I thought would be for myself. I even acted as my own contractor.” Allen leaned his elbows on the table and smiled. “Then before I had a chance to move in, someone offered to buy the house from me. So I sold that home and built several others, which I also ended up selling.”

“Is that how you became a full-time general contractor?” Zach questioned.

Allen nodded. “Of course, I had to be licensed and bonded first. Even though I continued to do some of the carpentry on the new homes I built, I hired a paint contractor, an electrician, a plumber, and … well, you get the picture.”

Zach glanced at Allen’s pickup, sitting in the driveway. “The sign on your truck says W
ALTERS’S
C
ONSTRUCTION
, H
OPKINSVILLE
, K
ENTUCKY
. Is that where you’re living now?”

“That’s right. After my girlfriend, Sheila, was killed by a drunk driver near the Tacoma mall, I felt like I needed a change.”

Zach’s eyebrows shot up. “I didn’t know about that. I’m sorry, Allen.”

“It happened six months ago, and it’s my fault for not letting you know. I grieved so hard at first, and then when my cousin Bill, who lives in a small town near Hopkinsville, suggested I move there and start up my business, I jumped at the chance.” Allen ran his fingers through his thick curly hair. “I’ve been working there for the last five months, and since I had some business in Pennsylvania this week, I decided to come see you.”

Zach smiled and thumped Allen’s shoulder. “I’m real glad you did. I’ve missed all the times we used to spend together.”

“I’ve missed them, too,” Allen said with a nod. “Which is why I’m hoping you might consider the offer I’m about to make.”

Zach leaned forward with an expectant look. “What offer’s that?”

“I was wondering if you’d like to move to Kentucky and work as a subcontractor for me, painting the houses I build.”

Zach clasped his fingers behind his head and squinted his dark brown eyes. “That’s an interesting idea, but I was away from my real family for over twenty years when I was living in Washington as Jimmy Scott. There’s no way I could move away now and leave them all. Besides, our painting business is doing real well, and I sure couldn’t leave Arthur in the lurch.”

“I understand, and I’m not trying to pressure you.” Allen tapped his fingers along the edge of the table and glanced over at Titus. “I’m also looking for a carpenter who’d be willing to work for one of the Amish men I know in Kentucky. The man has his own woodshop and does quite a bit of my work, but he’s got arthritis pretty bad and can’t use his hands for woodworking anymore.”

“Allen’s already talked to me about this, and I said I’d go,” Titus spoke up.

“Go where?” Mom asked as she and Dad joined them at the picnic table.

“To Kentucky,” Titus replied without hesitation. “Allen knows an Amish man there who needs a carpenter. He phoned the man awhile ago, and when he told him about me, the man said he’d be willing to give me a try.”

Deep wrinkles formed across Mom’s forehead as her dark eyebrows furrowed. “Why would you want to leave your job here and move to Kentucky?”

“Phoebe and I broke up today.”

Mom’s brown eyes widened, and her mouth formed an
O
.

“She’s going to California with her friend Darlene,” Titus explained.

Dad grunted.
“Em Phoebe sei belaudere mehnt net viel.”

“You may think Phoebe’s talk doesn’t mean very much, but I believe her,” Titus said with conviction. “I don’t think she’s planning to come back, either.”

Titus noticed the look of relief on Mom’s face. She was obviously glad that Phoebe was leaving.

Dad’s steely blue eyes stared intently at Titus. “Just because you and Phoebe broke up doesn’t mean you should move to Kentucky.”

“I’d like a new start—go someplace where I’m not reminded of Phoebe. I think moving to Kentucky’s the best thing for me right now. Allen’s agreed to rent a horse trailer so I can take Lightning along. We’ll be leaving in the morning.”

“You can’t be serious!” Mom’s voice rose to a high pitch, and her face tightened, making her wrinkles more pronounced.