Abram's Daughters: The Betrayal Part 26

Leah was much relieved Naomi did not once mention Sadie's name.

Later, during the preaching, Leah sat next to Naomi, along with Adah the three young women all in a row, wearing their new blue dresses and white ap.r.o.ns while Bishop Bontrager gave the main sermon. He focused on the Old Testament marriages, beginning with the story of Adam and Eve, up through Isaac and Rebekah, and concluding with a story from the Apocrypha about Tobias heeding his father's counsel and choosing a bride from his own tribe.

Leah sat still as could be, trying not to dwell on the fact that two short weeks from now, she and Jonas had planned to be standing before the bishop, making their lifelong vows to each other. Her eyes dimmed at the thought. Hard as it was, she was following through with her promise to Naomi, being 343.

rt dm ilill wedding attendant. She hoped no one suspected her I .mi, though she a.s.sumed all of them had heard by now, one .ly or another.

She took in several breaths and attempted to paste on a I'i'i'manent smile as Naomi and Luke agreed they were "nrdained of G.o.d for each other" and would remain so till iich time as death should separate them.

Leah and Adah had decided beforehand they would not .1 ny for the barn games, geared toward the single youth and i ourting couples. Adah had suggested they return home I1 aether with Leah's family so she could spend the rest of the afternoon and evening with Leah, helping her through "such ;i hard day."

Gid sat with the menfolk, unable to keep his eyes off Leah. He wished he might do something to ease her sorrow, which was plainly evident. Leah was a plucky one, but knowing her as he did, he felt sure she was suppressing her grief. At least for the moment ... for Naomi's happiness.

What a girl! To think she'd lost her beau to her own fickle sister. The thought stirred him up, even though it meant the girl he'd always admired and cared for would not be marrying this month after all. Leah would still live neighbors to him under the covering of Abram's roof. Yet he felt sick to his stomach, enduring some of the pain that such a dear girl must be experiencing this moment as she stood tall and pretty next to the bride and groom. , Dat agreed there was plenty of room for Adah to ride home with them, and Leah was ever so glad. They didn't say 344.

-1 y =L-e w much as they rode together in the back of the spring wagon, with Lizzie and the twins in the next seat up, and Mamma, Lydiann, and Dat up front.

Once home Adah followed her upstairs so Leah could change into an everyday dress and ap.r.o.n. " 'Twas nice to see Naomi lookin' so happy, jah?" Adah said.

Leah had to agree. "To think what might've turned out to be." She didn't much care to discuss the aftermath of a reckless rumschpringe.

She hung up her new dress and ap.r.o.n, and the girls hurried downstairs and out the back door, both draped in their warm shawls. They headed through the rows and rows of brown stumps that had once been a cornfield, to Adah's house. There, Adah slipped out of her nice, new dress and hung it up for the next Preaching service. "I'm sorry you had to suffer through today, Leah," Adah said.

"I'm glad you were right beside me," Leah replied quickly. "Such a comfort it was. You just don't know."

Adah suggested they not attend many of the weddings this year. "I can think of plenty of things to do besides goin' from one weddin' to another all November long."

Leah appreciated her friend's thoughtfulness. "Mamma said she heard there were some spillin' over into December."

"No one should expect you to go to all of them ... or any, for that matter." Adah reached for her hand.

"Still, I'd hate to see you miss out, Adah. There'll be plenty of nice boys there, eager to play the barn games and whatnot. You really should go with your sister ... and Gid."

Adah, it was plain to see, was reluctant to say she would or wouldn't go. Leah knew that if Adah waited too long, she

344 345lOetrayal

il^Ilt tnlMN out on having herself a beau. It wouldn't be fair M AiIhIi Pdiuhey to be Gid's age and still single, waiting for In- "rlylil one" to come along.

I' niHN worked extra hard in the wood shop, recalling Leah ivrti In be a bridesmaid in Naomi Kauffman's wedding this day. i If HBt to sawing with such fervor that David looked up and urtVt1 notice, raising an eyebrow, before he returned to staining i table, Slopping to wipe his face on his sleeve, he shuddered to i lilllk Abram had succeeded in getting his first choice in a I "run tor Leah. So Gid had stolen his bride. Still baffled as to why lie hadn't known, or at least surmised as much, he found lilnwelf shaking his head in utter dismay. Leah had chosen to let him down by simply not responding to his important leti T by not coming right out and saying that, jah, she wanted I o obey her father's wishes.

There was only one thing to do now: try his best to forget her, that and the pain she'd caused him ... and his family. I lest leave the past right where it belonged behind. Yet that was anything, uut easy with Leah's beautiful and wide-eyed sisut practically living under the same roof. She was a constant reminder of what he'd lost.

Leah and Adah had been walking out near Blackbird Pond and beyond for over an hour. Even though Adah insisted they rest near the willow tree, Leah refused to stop. She had such pent-up energy, yet was nearing collapse at the same time. She wanted to calm down but wouldn't let herself.

"How will I ever forget Jonas?" The question poured out of 346.

lu J2e her like vinegar mixed with honey.

She welcomed Adah's gentle touch on her shoulder, and they fell back into their silent, somber walk. The two friends had shared both sadness and joy through their years together, but today Leah's despondency was far more intense than any time she could remember.

"Love must be disappointing at times," Adah said. "I 'spect you'll never forget him."

They walked in silence till Adah spoke up again. "Mamma sometimes says, 'Love is faith with its work clothes on.

Leah had heard that said, too. "It's all I can do to rise in the morning, missin' him ... missin' the life we'd planned. I have no hope in me, Adah." She wouldn't go so far as to reveal that as children she and Jonas had made a love covenant of sorts. It was pointless to talk about, let alone consider now ... especially with Gid's sister.

"I s'pose after some time pa.s.ses, you'll delve deep into your heart and find forgiveness there for what Jonas and Sadie have done to you."

"Forgiveness warms the heart and soothes the sting," Leah said softly. "Aunt Lizzie has said that my whole life, growin' up. Easier said than done."

"The Good Lord will help you, Leah. I'll do my part, as well."

Giving Adah a quick smile, she slipped her arm around her best friend, and they walked one more time around the large pond.347rOeirayal Tuckered out, Leah said good-bye to Adah at last and liriulril across the field to the barn. She went around the back way, toward the earthen barn bridge leading to the second level. The haymow beckoned her.

She stepped inside, taking in the familiar and sweet scent. l,iMiking around, she made herself a spot to nestle in and sank down into the warm hay. Fatigued as she was, she called to mind her conversation with David Mellinger yet again.

Jonas and Sadie ...

Together.

Jonas's name connected to her sister's. Why? How? Oh, Lord G.o.d heavenly Father, please help this weary soul of mine!she prayed.

She drifted off to tearful sleep and dreamed she was pitching hay, the raked pile seemingly never ending as she gripped the pitchfork. Her arm muscles and clenched fist throbbed with the intensity of the ch.o.r.e, and she roused herself slightly, only to relax once again and return to sleep.

In search of a shovel, Smithy Gid climbed the ladder to the haytbft and was thunderstruck to see Leah there, fast asleep. Several gray mouse catchers had positioned themselves around her like miniature guards, but by the look of their relaxed and furry bodies, getting forty winks was uppermost in I heir feline minds.

Lest he disturb Leah's peaceful slumber, he decided against tramping through the hay just now and would have immediately descended the ladder if he hadn't noticed Leah's tearstreaked face. Unable to move away, he stared unashamedly at the curve of her eyelashes, the blush of peach on her 348.

e u> e r I y lu J2e cheeks, the relaxed expression on her lips.

Most precious she is. ...

His heart wrenched and his breath caught in his throat. He would move heaven and earth if he could to let her know, in the appropriate time, that he was eager to offer his hand of friends.h.i.+p. If it should take years, he would wait. For goodness' sake, Leah must not live life as a pa.s.sed-over maidel due to the outright heartlessness of Jonas Mast.

Two cats awakened and blinked their green eyes at him, staring him down. Pressing his finger to his lips, he hoped to ward off any piercing meows; then he realized how futile the gesture was. Cats cried, even screeched, as they desired. A body could simply look at a barn cat and a ruckus could follow if the cat's mood was just right.

He stood motionless, hoping the cats in question might run off or return to their dozing. Just keep still, he thought.

Again s.h.i.+fting his gaze to Leah, he found himself wanting to lean forward, stretch just enough to touch her face ... even gently press the loose strand of her brown hair between his fingers. But he held fast to the ladder.

Gid struggled, knowing he had always been a distant second in Leah's mind. Can I persuade her otherwise? He recalled the coolness of her hand in his that day in the woods. Several times during their difficult trek down the entangled hillock, he had reached for her innocently steadying her, keeping her from stumbling or worse.

But now it appeared she had fallen, having succ.u.mbed to the cruelly twisted jumble of her life. And though he was willing, he had been unable to keep her from doing so.

11.

349A.

t solid half hour came and went as Leah napped quietly. HI it-m irred in and out of a dream, aware of voices below her.

"No ... no, Leah can't handle this now. I've just lost one daughter; I won't lose another!"

It was Dat's voice ... in her dream? But no, she was right lii-ir in the hay.

Lost in a sleepy stupor, she tuned her ears to whatever she thought she'd heard.

"Time's%un out, Abram. There are people who know the Irulh. ..."

Aunt Lizzie? Was she nearby, too? She wondered what on earth Dat and Aunt Lizzie were doing in the barn together.

"There's no need to be rus.h.i.+n' ahead with this, 'specially with the wedding called off," Mamma said. "And 'tis a difficult time for the family just now, what with Sadie soon to be shunned."

"1 agree," Aunt Lizzie said. "But wouldn't you rather tell her than have her find out through the grapevine?"

350.

Leah rose and shook the hay off her dress and ap.r.o.n, the cats scattering as she did so. Bewildered, she walked to the edge of the loft and peered down. "Dat? Mamma?" she called softly, surprised to see all of them in a huddle by the feed trough.

Dat turned and spotted her, his face paling instantly.

Their eyes held. An awkward silence fell between them, and Leah saw that both Mamma and Lizzie were befuddled, too. Lizzie's hand flew to her mouth; Mamma's eyes glistened, her face quivering.

At last Dat broke the stillness. "Leah, how long have you been up there?"

"I don't know ... must've fallen asleep." She moved toward the ladder and made her way down.

"Come here to me, child." Mamma opened her arms to embrace her.

She felt the breathless heaving of her mother's bosom and wondered why her heart beat so fast.

Dat turned to Aunt Lizzie, his mouth open as if he wanted to speak, but the words wouldn't come.

Mamma held fast to Leah. "I think 'tis best for Abram and me to be alone with Leah for now, Lizzie. You understand, ain't?"

Eyes downcast, Aunt Lizzie sighed audibly, and Leah observed the intense struggle between what Dat and Mamma were wanting whatever it was and what Lizzie must have been hoping for. Lizzie seemed to shrink in size just then. For an agonizing moment her aunt stood next to Mamma, saying not a word, looking forlorn and alone.351/Oelraual When Aunt Lizzie raised her head, she fixed her sad eyes on Leah.

"Sister?" pleaded Mamma softly.

Slowly turning away, Aunt Lizzie wandered slump shoul' tli'ivd over to the wide barn door, leaning hard against it as it inched open.

Leah felt the rush of cool air as her dear auntie headed outside.

Once they were alone, Dat sat down on a square bundle i >l alfalfa. He looked at her, beard twitching to beat the band. "Ir's time you heard the truth, Leah." He placed his big hand on the spot beside him. "Come, sit beside oP Dat."

Just the way he patted the baled forage made Leah I remble.

Lizzie was beside herself. Why had they sent her out of the barn? In all truth, she had every right to be present when her honey-girl heard the story for the first time.

She stumbled up the mule road toward home, continuing to worry. Had they made a mistake deciding to tell Leah? Poor ihing, she'd been through so much lately. Lizzie had seen how washed out and frail Leah looked as a bridesmaid in Naomi's wedding this morning. A wonder she'd managed to get through the wedding service at all!

Heartsick as she was, Leah didn't need to learn that Lizzie, not Ida, was her real mamma ... not this day. How awful self' ish of me, Lizzie thought.

Hurrying to the back door of her house, she pushed it open and went straight to the wood stove to begin boiling water. Some strong mint tea would help calm her, if that was 354.

e 0 e r I y I u JL-e w i ; Bontrager, who welcomed Lizzie into the church after she freely repented. She was baptized a year later, along with a number of unsuspecting youths.

So the secret was set, and Leah was raised as Abram's and Ida's own. Altogether plump, Ida didn't have to make much excuse for this new baby showing up three years after Sadie. Only a handful of folk knew much of anything at all, though rumors flew like lightning bugs when Lizzie moved into the Ebersols' Dawdi Haus till her little log house could be built up behind the bank barn.

Lizzie turned away from the window and went to sit for a spell. She was ever so tired all of a sudden. Her head spun with the memory of years.

Setting the teacup down on the floral saucer, she sighed and leaned back a bit, wis.h.i.+ng she'd never, ever breathed a word to Abram today, nor this week for that matter. What had she been thinking? Poor Leah needed a respite from sadness and pain. Not a revelation that could cause her further grief.

Closing her eyes, she breathed a prayer for what must surely be happening in Abram's barn this very moment her dear Leah was being presented with such untimely news.

Tears sprang to her eyes. What'll happen when Leah hears the truth? Will she distrust me? What of Abram and Ida? Will our girl view us as betrayers, all these years?

Just how long she had been resting there, she didn't know. Maybe only a few minutes when she heard someone calling in the distance.

"Aunt Lizzie!"

Getting up out of her chair, she flew to the southeast- 354 355Id el r a y a I lucln^ window in the spare bedroom and looked out. There, limning up the mule road, was Leah, skirts flying like a kite In ;i windstorm.

"Aunt Lizzie!" her daughter called.

Oh, Lizzie thought she must be seeing things. Her heart Imped into her throat. How would Leah react to such jolting iirws: Lizzie ran to get her shawl and hurried out the back door, down the narrow porch, and past the flower beds, finished for I he season. Over the gra.s.sy yard she went, past the stone wall and down the hill to the edge of the woods, where the light broke free, clear as gla.s.s.

She kept going, fast as she could, though young Leah's pace was far quicker. "Are you all right?" Lizzie called to her, nearly out of breath.

Leah's feet pounded hard against the dirt path, and if Lizzie wasn't mistaken, her face was marked with tears.

And then they were in each other's arms, Leah sobbing and whimpering. "Oh, Aunt Lizzie, it was you all along ... all these years, 'twas you."

Stunned at what she was hearing, she kissed Leah's soft, wet cheek. "The Lord G.o.d be praised," she said, breathing much easier now. To think how Leah might have responded to the news. Well, she dared not dwell on that. Not now. She wanted to soak up all the love, capture the brightness in Leah's eyes, the pure delight she saw in them, reflected in her own. Truly, she was more than relieved; she was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with utter gladness.