The Hope of Refuge (22 page)

Cara’s skin felt like a pincushion as she stepped forward. “I’m Cara, and this is my daughter, Lori.”

“Nice to meet you. You’re living here now. Is that correct?”

“Yes,” Ephraim spoke up. “For as long as they need.”

His bold statement shocked Cara. Anna Mary clenched her jaws and said nothing.

“Mrs. Forrester, this is my sister Deborah and a friend, Anna Mary.”

“Nice to meet you.” She walked to the kitchen table and set her briefcase on it. After pulling out a leather clipboard, she tapped it. “I’m just going to look around the place.” She faced Cara. “Then we’ll chat.”

Feeling almost as vulnerable as if Mike were looming over her, Cara nodded.

Ephraim motioned Deborah and Anna Mary to the back door. They filed out in silence. He turned to Cara. “You’ll do fine. I’ll be in the hiddy. It’s the area inside the hedges. When she’s ready to talk with me, just call.”

“Thanks.”

Ephraim followed Deborah and Anna Mary into his hiddy. He’d barely stepped through the narrow opening in the hedges when they came to a stop and faced him. Obviously Daed or Becca hadn’t said anything to his sister about Cara. Deborah’s eyes begged for answers, looking more worried than he’d seen her since their mother died. He hadn’t expected that, or maybe he hadn’t taken the time to really think about it.

Instead of looking jealous, Anna Mary seemed confused. “What’s going on?”

He realized the news, all of it, had to come out within the next few minutes, but sharing it as slowly as possible seemed wise. He was on the brink of being shunned, and Anna Mary should hear the truth from him. “Cara needs help, and I’m giving it to her.”

“Ephraim, where is she from? Who is she?” Deborah demanded. “How do you know her?”

“She’s from New York. Came here about a week ago. She was living in Levina’s barn, and I gave her a place to stay.”

“In the barn?” Anna Mary shuddered. “So where are you staying?”

“It’s complicated. Her daughter, Lori, was afraid the police would come back for them, so I stayed in the storage room the first night. Then I spent the last two nights in the shop.”

“The police? Were they after them?”

“No. Not really. It was mostly a misunderstanding, but they did show up.”

His sister stared at him. “Why would you do this?”

“Sometimes doing the right thing doesn’t look right at all.”

Deborah angled her head, looking worried. “If this gets back to the bishop, you’ll be excommunicated. And I can’t think what this could do to Daed.”

“Daed knows. I talked to him earlier. Healthwise, he took it well. I’ve made my choice.”

Anna Mary took a seat on the wooden swing. “Without even talking to me?”

He squelched his desire to say that he didn’t need her permission to help someone. Besides, there hadn’t been time for a committee meeting, and she wasn’t home when he decided it was time to tell her.

“You’d do this, knowing you’d be shunned?” Deborah wiped a stray tear. “This Cara person must be someone more to you than a stranger who hid in your barn. Who
is
she? And who is that Elaine Forrester?”

Ephraim took a seat next to Anna Mary. He wasn’t willing to talk to them about Cara’s ties to the community until he could first tell Cara that she had relatives here and that her mother had been raised Amish. “Elaine is a social worker. Cara’s a friend from long ago, and she needs help in order to hold on to her daughter.”

“Has she taken possession of your good sense?” Deborah asked softly.

Anna Mary sighed heavily. “Don’t make it sound like he’s interested in her. Do you really think he’d allow any girl this much access to his home if he was attracted to her?”

Thankful Anna Mary was thinking about this reasonably, Ephraim eased his hand over hers. “I’ve looked through ads and made calls, trying to find a place for her. There’s just nothing out this way.”

“There should be some jobs and apartments in Shippensburg,” Anna Mary offered.

Like a stick being flailed into a hornets’ nest, her statement struck him, stirring emotions and thoughts that stung. He didn’t want Cara in Shippensburg.

Stunned at the feelings surging through him, he turned from Anna Mary’s probing eyes and gazed out across the field. Answers to Cara’s past were hiding among the Amish of Dry Lake. And whether anyone in his community liked it or not, Cara deserved to be treated as a treasure once stolen and now returned to them by a power not her own.

Cara had replied to a hundred questions, including some probing ones about her relationship with Ephraim. Now she waited in the living room while Mrs. Forrester and Lori strolled through the home, chatting. She could hear Lori telling the woman about life in New York, being hungry some days since leaving there, and going on a picnic with Ephraim.

“Lori,” the woman said, “what’s your mommy like when she gets really mad?”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Lori answered, “She gets on her knees in front of me and points her finger right here.” Cara couldn’t see, but she was sure Lori was pointing to her nose. “She calls me Lori Moore, real quicklike. Then she says, ‘You stop.’” Lori mimicked her mother’s voice. “Sometimes she says, ‘Give me a break, kid. When you’re the adult, we’ll do it your way.’”

“Does she ever hit you?”

“No. But she hit a man at a bus station once. She wouldn’t tell me why, and I didn’t ask twice.”

“Has she ever left you with anyone who hit you?”

They walked into the storage room, and Cara couldn’t make out all their words. It sounded like Mrs. Forrester was going into more personal questions. A few minutes later the two reentered the room. The woman set the leather clipboard beside her and dug into her briefcase. Cara tried to catch a glimpse of her notes.

Mrs. Forrester tapped the legal pad where Cara’s full name and Social Security number were listed. “If I run your info through the New York database, will I get a hit?”

Cara swallowed, not sure she was ready for Lori to know “I was in foster care from eight years old until I was fifteen.”

“Because?”

“My mother had died, and my dad… left.”

“But you were only in the system until you turned fifteen? Why?”

“I ran away.”

The woman pulled out several pamphlets and set them on the coffee table. “What made you leave New York?”

“Does it matter?”

“I won’t know that until you talk to me.”

Cara stood firm, not wanting to give an answer in front of Lori. “There are reasons. Good ones.”

The woman leaned forward. “I’m not here because of an anonymous tip. This visit was initiated because the police filed a report based on what they had witnessed. Added to that, you removed Lori from school the first part of May. School doesn’t end in New York until mid-June or here for another week. Technically, she’s truant, and you’re the reason.” She tapped the pamphlets. “My gut says something’s going on that has nothing to do with questions about your parenting ability. Although your decision-making process does seem questionable.”

Great
. More viewpoints from the clueless. Cara figured the woman might survive two weeks with someone like Mike hounding her, maybe less.

Mrs. Forrester shrugged. “I’m only here to help, but I want answers to every question.”

Cara didn’t want her kind of help, but she stood. “Come on, Lori. You can wait outside with Ephraim.”

Lori took her hand and walked silently until they were outside. “Is she gonna put cuffs on you and take you somewhere?”

“No.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.” She wasn’t sure of much else, but that part didn’t worry her. They walked to the six-foot hedges and found the slight entrance. She spotted Ephraim on the swing with Anna Mary. They made a striking couple. “Can she stay with you for a few minutes?”

“Ya.”

Lori clutched her hand tighter. “I wanna stay with you.”

Ephraim stood. “How about if we walk to the barn and check on Better Days?”

Lori shook her head.

“We’ll bring the pup back here.” Ephraim held out his hand, but Lori didn’t take it.

Cara pulled her hand free. “I’ll be here when you get back. I promise.”

“No.” Lori clutched her mother’s leg.

Cara pried Lori’s hands free and knelt in front of her. “Come on, kiddo. I’m going nowhere. Can’t you trust me on this?”

Lori wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck. “I’ll be good. Just don’t leave me.”

“You couldn’t get rid of me if you turned into a whole gang of trouble. Never forget that.” Cara hugged her tight and then stood. “I’ll be here when you get back.”

Lori swiped at her tears and took Ephraim’s hand.

He moved in closer to Cara. “How’s it going in there?”

“Good, I think, except I’m afraid she’s going to ask questions about my life that I don’t have the answers to.”

Ephraim chuckled, but it sounded forced, making her wonder if he actually cared. She knew he had honor to him or he wouldn’t be doing all this to help her. But that was different. Honor was what made people do certain things so they could live with themselves. Caring? Well… that meant she and Lori mattered.

When she went back inside, Mrs. Forrester was on the couch waiting for her. Cara went to the rocker and sat, ready to answer the toughest questions yet.

“Cara, what caused you to leave New York that you’re not willing to talk about in front of your daughter?”

In spite of wanting to stonewall the woman, Cara described her years of dealing with Mike, and the woman took notes.

Mrs. Forrester tapped her pen on the legal pad. “Logically one would think he’d have given up stalking years ago. But when you were in foster care and told the authorities, somebody blew it, Cara. I might be able to do some investigating, but you need to contact the police.”

“No.”

“He could be doing this to others.”

She cursed. “That’s not my problem. When I tried to turn him in years ago, everyone ignored me. The only thing that matters to me is staying alive so I can keep Lori safe.”

“Okay, okay.” She took the pamphlets off the table. “There are programs that offer assistance. Lori’s past the age to be eligible for WIC, but there are other policies in place to help provide food and shelter.”

Cara held her hand up. “I don’t understand. Am I in a battle to keep Lori or not?”

“Did you know your daughter saw Kendal doing drugs?”

Cara swallowed. “Yes…Lori told me. Kendal and I had a big fight about it. It didn’t happen twice.”

“Having no friends can be better than having bad ones.”

“Oh yeah? When you have some maniac running everyone out of your life, let’s see how you feel.”

The woman sighed. “Cara, you have a new start now, and I see no reason to consider removing your daughter from you.”

Hope hung frozen in the air. Afraid it might turn to vapor and fade into nothing, Cara didn’t move.

The woman stood. “I’ll do a follow-up or two. You need to get her enrolled in school before the next year begins.”

“Is…is that it?”

“We’re done for now.”

Cara’s heart danced inside her chest, some weird, excited tap she’d never felt before.

“I’ve seen and heard a lot in my years as a social worker, and overall you’ve handled a bad situation pretty well.” She passed the pamphlets to Cara and explained how to get government help.

“I don’t want assistance. I just want to be left alone.”

“Your decision. If you change your mind, let me know.”

When they stepped outside, Ephraim walked toward them. Cara’s eyes met his, and she wondered if he knew what he’d done for her.

Mrs. Forrester turned to her. “Thank you, Cara. I’d like to speak to Ephraim alone for a few minutes.”

Deborah and Anna Mary told Ephraim good-bye and left. Cara took Lori inside, hoping Ephraim would come talk to her as soon as he could.

“How’d I do, Mom?”

She knelt in front of Lori. “You were you.” She licked her lips, trying to keep the tears at bay. “And that was absolutely perfect.”

“Are the police coming back?”

She tugged on her daughter’s dress. A week of wearing mostly the same dress day and night made for a very tattered outfit. It’d been a long journey to get free of Mike, but they finally had a new start. “Nope.”