The Winnowing Season Read online

  Landon put his phone on the table beside Samuel. “It’s Saturday. You might be able to place an order for a phone, but you can’t get the propane tank filled until Monday.”

  “Using his cell phone won’t be a problem?” Phoebe bit her lip. “You know, with those you’re reporting to.” Her brows furrowed. “Who are you reporting to until we establish our own church leaders?”

  “My bishop.” Samuel took a sip of his coffee. “And he won’t mind me using a cell phone while we get established. In Lancaster, Amish men use them regularly during the workday and turn them off when they get home. Are you worried about what our reports will say?”

  Landon raised his hand. “I am.” He nodded toward Rhoda, giving Samuel a clue as to what he meant, but she had her back to them, washing dishes. “Look, if you turn in reports about every bit of trouble we’ve had—from our problem with the tire to whatever is holding up Steven to Jacob’s not making the train—it’s going to sound as if we’re having nothing but bad luck.”

  “That’s nonsense.” Leah placed several pots on the counter.

  “Actually, it makes sense.” Samuel focused on the legal pad. “I see no reason to share anything more than necessary.”

  That was a relief. Landon hoped this would be the new start all of them needed, the Kings and the Bylers. He didn’t want anything to bring fresh problems for Rhoda or for the new settlement. Would it cause trouble if he used this new venture in Maine to get to know Leah a little better? Through the kitchen window he caught a glimpse of the moving van backing into the driveway.

  “The furniture has arrived!”

  “Bedroom furniture.” Leah’s eyes lit up, and she peered through the window. “For my bedroom, just for me.” She beamed at Landon, and he returned her smile.

  He’d never had to share a bedroom, and he imagined that Leah’s getting one of her own at almost eighteen was quite exciting.

  She hurried to the front porch.

  “She’s got her priorities all wrong.” Rhoda laughed and grabbed a kitchen towel as she and the rest followed on Leah’s heels.

  On the porch, Rhoda dried her hands on the towel. “The truck has herbs, homegrown mulch, and garden tools.”

  Phoebe mocked frustration with a loud sigh. “You’re both excited about the wrong things. It has clothing, bedding, and toys for my little ones. They’d love to have their favorite toys when they wake up.”

  Samuel crossed his arms, but Landon could tell he was pleased. “What that van has is about six or more hours of unloading, stacking it wherever, and weeks of sorting.”

  “Ya.” Rhoda flicked the towel at Samuel. “It has that too, but admit it. I’m right about the most important stuff.”

  Samuel looked at Landon. “Does she make you admit when she’s right?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never known her to be right.”

  Samuel laughed. “Me either, but that doesn’t keep her from trying to get me to say she is.”

  Rhoda scowled at them. “You both get entirely too cheeky when something as simple as a mover pulls into the driveway.”

  Landon went down the steps and guided the driver toward the house. Then he held up his hands. “Whoa.”

  The van stopped, and the engine turned off. Landon turned back to the others. “You know what I think?”

  “No, but we have no doubt you’ll tell us,” Leah chirped.

  “I think you Amish, for all your simple ways, really missed having furniture last night.”

  “What do you know?” Leah came down the steps. “The man is smarter than he looks.” She smiled, moving in closer. “And when a man looks like you do,” she whispered, “that’s saying a lot.”

  He glanced at the others. Had they heard what she said? Just how bold could they be about the sparks that flew between them? But the others were chatting and approaching the driver as he was getting out of the cab.

  Landon chuckled. “Is it? I’m waiting for you to correct your last statement by saying, ‘I meant, that’s not saying a lot.’ ”

  Leah said nothing, but her mischievous grin had his heart pounding. Was she old enough to know whether she truly wished to leave the Amish when the time came? Or was he setting himself up for some serious disappointment?

  FOURTEEN

  “Hey, where’d everybody go?” Samuel couldn’t see much of anything as he walked into the house, balancing a queen-size mattress as best he could. He heard Rhoda and Leah laughing.

  “That’s quite a blind spot you got there, big brother.” Leah’s statement made several people chortle, but his heart picked up a beat or two when he heard Rhoda’s lilt. Even though the last forty-eight hours had been heavy with stress, she was getting her feet under her again.

  “A little help, please.” He eked out the words.

  “Yes sir.” Rhoda giggled. “Just as soon as you rest for a bit.”

  With several awkward movements, he turned the mattress so he could see.

  Rhoda waved at him from the couch, and he was glad she’d finally taken a break. Her feet were propped up, and she had a letter in her hands. “We have furniture, and we’re putting it to good use.” She made a sweeping motion across the room, pointing out Leah, Landon, Phoebe, Arie, and Isaac. “My partners in crime.”

  He struggled under the bulkiness of the mattress, but putting it down would only require more energy to pick it up again. “I didn’t mean you. Uh, Landon, now rather than later, please.”

  Rhoda pointed at Landon. “Don’t you dare move.” She looked at Samuel. “Drop that thing and sit. We’ve been obeying your orders all day. We—meaning also you—are taking a lunch break.”

  “I’ll drop it when it’s in your room.” He headed for the stairs. He was determined not to stop for a break until the van was completely unloaded. Besides, he was trying to avoid enjoying Rhoda, and she was in a very friendly mood this afternoon, the kind of friendliness he often saw when Jacob was around or when the three of them were together. Samuel found it easier to relax with her when Jacob was between them. He meant what he’d told her last night—if she wanted a friend, she had Jacob for that. As soon as Jacob arrived, Samuel intended to withdraw from Rhoda’s reach both physically and emotionally.

  But Samuel did agree that she needed to take it easy for a while. Actually, he hoped once he got the mattress in her room, she would take a nap.

  “Kumm on, Samuel.” Rhoda shook the letter at him. “We found this in a closet. It’s a newsletter filled with church bulletin bloopers. I didn’t even know what a church bulletin was until Landon explained it. This newsletter’s got some really funny stuff, a collection of misprints and typos from bulletins across the country.”

  “I’m sure it’s quite entertaining.” Samuel moaned as he started up the stairs. “But right now …” He climbed a few more steps.

  “Then I’ll be just as stubborn as you’re being, and I’ll read while you work.” She sounded as if she’d gotten up from the couch and was at the foot of the stairs. “The sermon this morning is ‘Jesus Walks on the Water.’ The sermon tonight will be ‘Searching for Jesus.’ ”

  He’d never heard her laugh so hard, and it made him chuckle.

  “How about this one: ‘Ladies, don’t forget the rummage sale. It’s a chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house. Bring your husbands.’ ” She could barely talk for laughing.

  He could feel laughter bubbling up within him, more at her than the jokes.

  “Here’s a favorite. ‘Don’t let worry kill you off—let the church help.’ ”

  She burst into a cackle. Apparently she was punch-drunk from lack of sleep and the weight of the recent stresses. The more she laughed, the more he did, and the mattress shook uncontrollably.

  “I’m trying to work here.”

  “That’s what you get for ignoring my cease and desist order. Besides, you gotta hear this one. Can you imagine sitting in church, innocently reading the bulletin, when you come across this gem? ‘This evening at sev
en there will be a hymn singing in the park across from the church. Bring a blanket and come prepared to sin.’ ”

  He glanced at her and saw she was wiping tears from her flushed face.

  Laughter belted from him. “Could someone please lend me a hand?”

  “I will!” Isaac ran up the steps, knocking the mattress from Samuel’s weary grip. It flopped back and forth, and Samuel grabbed Isaac before it knocked him down the stairs. “Watch out!”

  The mattress slid down the slick steps, gaining speed. Rhoda’s back was to him, and those few seconds were too fleeting. It hit the wood floor and slid, hurtling against the back of her feet and sending them out from under her. When the mattress came to an abrupt halt, she landed on it with a thud, and all laughter stopped.

  Samuel ran down the stairs, carrying Isaac like a sack of potatoes. He passed the boy to Phoebe and wheeled around. “Rhoda?”

  She opened her eyes. “Why was the Amish woman frustrated with her beau?”

  “Are you okay?”

  “Because he was driving her buggy!”

  He broke into laughter. “Kumm.” He hesitated to offer his hand, so he clapped his hands. “Up! Up! Up!”

  “Are you barking orders at me?”

  He saw himself from her point of view and lowered his hands. “Only a fool would do that.” He held out his hand.

  She shooed him away before drying her tears of laughter. “I’m not getting up until you agree to eat some lunch and take a break. It’s going on three, and you’ve yet to take a breath or eat.”

  Isaac crawled onto the mattress beside his aunt and prattled apologies in the only language he knew—Pennsylvania Dutch. Rhoda told him he’d done a good thing by making Samuel stop working and giving her a place to lie down.

  Samuel tousled his hair, assuring him it was okay. “Fine. I’ll take a break as soon as we get this mattress in your room.” He knew she needed a place she could go to find some real quiet. It’s who she was, and he wasn’t stopping until he gave her that space.

  “You just have to win, don’t you?” She peered at him from the mattress.

  “You can’t even sit up. You need a nap, and not one in the middle of the living room.”

  She scowled. “I’m about to call the rest of the gang to sit on this mattress.”

  “No! We’ll compromise.” He held up his hands in surrender. She meant what she said, and she had the influence over the others to follow through. It was becoming clear that controlling their interactions had been much easier when he was willing to be cross or rude. “How about if I tell you a joke? Then you can dip up a bowl of the stew for me while Landon helps me get this thing up the stairs. Then I’ll take a break.”

  “Deal.” She extended her hand, clearly inviting him to help her up.

  He nodded his head toward Landon and then to her.

  She glanced at her hand and gazed up at him. “I have cooties or something?”

  Landon was useless when it came to running interference between Samuel and Rhoda.

  He helped her up, and she straightened her dress. “The joke better be at least good enough for a smile.”

  He shrugged. “Being good wasn’t part of the deal. Here goes: the peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been canceled due to a conflict.”

  She grinned, nodding her head. “Not only was it funny, but it fits who we are so perfectly.” She headed for the kitchen. “I’ll get you some stew.”

  “Ach!” he called after her. “What it takes to get some cooperation around here!” He suppressed a smile as he turned to Landon and Leah and clapped his hands. “Let’s go.”

  Leah’s back was stiff, so she volunteered to take the children upstairs to their room so they would be out of the way. Phoebe and Landon picked up the head of the mattress, and Samuel took the foot. Samuel pushed, slowly edging the mattress upward.

  “No, wait.” Landon barely got the words out before the mattress lurched back at Samuel. “It won’t fit through her bedroom door.”

  “I’m losing my grip here,” Samuel belted out.

  “Her door must be several inches shorter than the others. Hang on.”

  The slick, uneven stairs under the mattress and the pull of gravity, mixed with the lack of an easy grip, kept Samuel from being able to latch on to it. He grabbed a handrail and used his shoulder to keep the mattress—and him—from careening to the foot of the stars. “I’m losing my grip again!”

  “Coming!” Rhoda thundered up the stairs, clutched the other handrail, and put her shoulder to the lower section of the mattress. Together, they held it in place.

  “Now?” Samuel yelled.

  “Yeah,” Landon answered. “Push on three. One … two … three!”

  Samuel put all he could into shoving the mattress, and Rhoda did the same. They’d been moving furniture for about seven hours, and she knew only one way to work—with all the force she could muster.

  The mattress moved up several steps, then stopped cold, knocking Rhoda and Samuel off balance. He grabbed her arm with one hand and the banister with the other.

  Her eyes grew large. “Denki.”

  He didn’t let go, making sure her feet were steady. “Bischt du allrecht?”

  She shifted her feet on the uneven steps. “Ya.”

  “Hold up, guys,” Landon said. “We’ve hit another snag.”

  Rhoda’s arm brushed against Samuel’s. The soft warmth of her skin made all thoughts of unloading the moving van fizzle into nothingness. He needed physical distance from her. Now. He hollered up the stairs. “What’s the deal?”

  “It’s wedged between the landing and the ceiling. We’re working on solutions. Even Phoebe and Steven don’t have a mattress this size, and Rhoda’s petite.” Landon’s grumbling didn’t seem to faze Rhoda at all.

  Samuel sighed, leaning his forehead against the mattress.

  “At least my mattress is in the house already.” Rhoda nodded and waggled her eyebrows. “I could make the living room my bedroom, ya?”

  He’d set his will not to enjoy her company, longing to be kind but distant. It seemed an impossible task. Hiding behind a foul temper was so much easier, but that had been cruel and wrong and childish. Now that he saw the ridiculousness of his behavior, it embarrassed him.

  His learning curve left him a long list of things he still didn’t know, but he was very clear on one thing: he would never again be impolite to Rhoda, not even to guard his heart. She deserved his kindness, and that’s what he’d give her. Seeing her in that meeting in front of the firing squad disguised as leaders, and realizing how hard she tried to do what was right, and knowing she had saved his family but had never told him … It was like having his heart transplanted—a selfish, cold one had been surgically removed. One filled with a passion to do what was best for her had replaced it.

  His feelings for her aside, he doubted he would ever see life through the same ill-tempered filter again.

  She nudged him with her elbow. “I said, at least my mattress is in the house tonight.”

  He nodded. What he would give to jump into bantering with her. To tell her, True. That piece of info isn’t the least bit helpful, but it’s definitely true. She would retort with something sassy and funny. But he said nothing else.

  “Okay, we’ve done what we can. Let’s try again,” Landon hollered. “We just have to get it unstuck.”

  Samuel and Rhoda pushed, but the mattress wouldn’t budge.

  “Hallo?” Steven’s voice echoed through the house.

  “Oh. Up here, honey!” Phoebe’s usually quiet demeanor disappeared. Her excitement became apparent to all.

  “Daed! Daed!” the children clamored from upstairs.

  Rhoda looked at Samuel, her eyes bright. “If love can move mountains, it should be able to move a mattress through a too-small opening, right?”

  “It’s worth a try.”

  “Kumm.” Rhoda motioned to her brother. “If you want to see your wife and children, add some muscle.”
/>   Steven wedged in, putting his hands on the very bottom of the mattress. Rhoda and Samuel pushed from the middle. “Ready? One … two … go!” Samuel grimaced.

  With Landon and Phoebe guiding and Rhoda, Steven, and Samuel pushing, the mattress finally dislodged, and they ran with it into the room. Once through the doorway, momentum flung Steven, Rhoda, and Samuel like they were dishrags. Samuel fell against a wall, but he managed to keep Rhoda from landing on the floor. Phoebe caught Steven. The two embraced as if they had been separated for months.

  Everyone laughed, though whether from the absurdity of the moment or from relief that Steven had arrived, Samuel wasn’t sure.

  “Daed! Daed! Kumm!” The little ones were across the tiny hallway behind a safety gate. Steven told everyone hello, and then he and Phoebe went to the room with their children.

  “Whew, we did it.” Landon wiped his brow. “Steven should have shown up sooner.”

  “The power of love.” Rhoda sat upright. “Speaking of which, check your phone.”

  Landon did so. “Sorry, Rhodes.”

  She smiled and shrugged. “No worries.”

  Samuel didn’t believe her. If Jacob had called Erlene again, she would’ve called Landon to tell him. Or Jacob could call Landon, but if he knew that number, why hadn’t he called Landon the other night? It didn’t matter. If Jacob could get to a phone, he would call Rhoda a second time.

  The fact that he hadn’t seemed to be nibbling away at Rhoda.

  Samuel prayed for his brother. It seemed unfair that Jacob’s past had showed up now. He’d returned home broken and different and determined to move beyond his mistakes. He had been dedicated to his family and the Amish ways and had finally met someone who filled his life with meaning. And now he’d been sucked back into his past.

  “He’ll call before bedtime. I’m sure of it.”

  Samuel wasn’t so sure that Landon was right, but he hoped it was true.

  Leah leaned against a wall. “I know Jacob. He’ll arrive without warning. But it’ll be after we have all the beds set up, the furniture arranged, and the kitchen in working order.”