Annie's Truth (Touch of Grace) (6 page)

“This is a path that calls my heart, Mamm. I have to follow where it leads me.”

The shuffling noise of Thomas dragging his slippers across the floor caused them both to turn to him.

“I’m hungry.” He plunked down in a chair with sleepy eyes and rested his head on his stuffed rabbit that he’d laid on the table. His eyes slowly closed, jerked open for a second, and then closed.

Mamm squeezed Annie’s hand. “You’d best get some sleep.” She pressed her lips together. “Tomorrow’s a new day.”

Annie nodded, feeling her mamm understood. She might not welcome Annie’s decision, but at least Mamm seemed to know how she felt and what she needed to do. Annie rested in that as she walked up the flight of stairs to her room.
Not only a new day, but a new beginning.

 
Chapter Five
 

A
NNIE WOKE TO
hear the barn doors thumping together repeatedly. The wind howled against the house as if angry that the building blocked its course. The windows shuddered, weakening under the influence of the high-powered winds.

Annie rushed to the window and watched as ominous clouds from tornado-producing winds clung together. A thunderstorm raced down the fields, causing a burst of thunder from a violent storm. She dressed quickly and ran downstairs.

Amos watched the sky as Mamm gathered the children. Eli coaxed Samuel out from the false safety of underneath his bed.

“Come, boys, to the cellar.” At the sound of Mamm’s voice both Samuel and Thomas ran to her, with Eli and Augustus following. The girls met them in the hallway, and they huddled together down the stairs as the wind screamed its warning.

Amos stood at the door with coats and blankets. “Stay together as we walk to the cellar. Keep your head down, and follow the feet of the one in front of you,” he yelled over the roaring storm. He picked up Thomas and nodded for Eli to take Samuel.

When Amos opened the door, Annie heard a roar as loud as an approaching train. She ducked into the slicing gales, lifting her arms to cover her face. She stumbled against the wind, keeping her gaze on Eli’s boots in front of her, while Hanna grabbed her robe from behind.

Samuel squealed, and Thomas cried as the wind slapped their faces with sharp gusts of hard air. Frieda stood straight, pushing against a wall of wind. She tried to place a foot forward, but it snapped back. Annie grabbed Frieda’s arm, pulling her close, helping her walk. Augustus followed behind to make sure everyone was accounted for.

The dull sun peeked over the colorless hills, as if hesitant to join the fitful storm. The clouds covered the light, and visibility dropped. Annie tightened her hold on Frieda, unable to see her in the darkness. The others were clinging to each other for the same reason.

Daed and Eli struggled to open the hatch, only to have the wind slap it back down again. John suddenly appeared at another side of the door and without a word helped the other two open the door just enough to let the others enter.

When Annie came close, John placed his hand on her shoulder, shielding her from the unpredictable wind. She ducked under the wooden door, fearing it would snap down on her head. She, Hanna, and Mamm all stood on a stair and held the door open for Daed and the boys.

This time they let the wind push the door shut, and the darkness cut off the light. Annie moved down the stairs, acutely aware of the slanted, vacant area at the end of the cellar. She held John’s hand and refused to let go.

Samuel and Thomas sniffled in the dark. The men’s boots shuffled against the dirt floor. She stood still and caught her breath.

Hanna pulled away from Annie’s side. “I’m going to fetch Samuel.” Annie felt her move and listened to the direction she went. She reached for the earthen walls just as a match was scratched and a lamp lit. Daed held the lantern up and moved it around the room.

“Let there be light,” Mamm whispered as she drew Thomas in to her.

“Come close.” Daed laid blankets on the floor and then pulled their jackets tightly around them.

Annie felt safe next to John and turned to see the courage in his strong face. “I’m glad you’re here.”

The seriousness in his eyes faded slightly. “I started over the minute I heard that wind pick up.”

She wasn’t surprised he’d come, and it meant a lot to her that he had.

“Is your family safe?”

“My family went into the cellar in plenty of time.” He stopped and listened, looking up to the streaks of light pushing through the darkness from the cracks in the door. “We haven’t seen the worst of it yet.”

The dimly lit, damp cellar grew colder. Annie shivered, and she noticed the others scooting closer together. John wrapped Annie’s coat around her and moved closer for warmth. She nestled against him and tried to shut out the roar of the monstrous wind and the rattle and bang of the door as it jumped and shook under the stronger bursts. Samuel startled the first time but became accustomed to the noise and slowly drifted off.

Thomas eyed the jarred food, and Mamm looked over at him. “Our farm’s at stake, and you’re worried about your stomach?”

“Sorry, Mamm.” He tucked his chin down and after a few minutes closed his eyes.

Their daed leaned against a dirt wall, only moving when a louder sound than usual caused him to stir. Hanna sat next to her brothers. She nodded off once, but the noise of the stubborn wind woke her.

As suddenly as the storm had come, it went, leaving in its wake a calm and unnatural quiet. Amos looked to John, and he nodded. John was the first up the stairs, with Daed close behind him. He lifted the door with ease, looked out, and then motioned for the others to follow. Annie heard Eli groan and scrambled up the stairs to see what the storm had left them.

Annie scanned the fields, which lay barren as far as she could see. Yesterday’s hard work had sailed away with the gales, which reached down and snatched the corn leaves, shafts, and husks. Their buggy laid on its side, along with assorted shovels, rakes, and hoes. Some were picked up and tossed a few feet away; others were completely gone. The destructive winds had been selective in what they kept and discarded.

“Thank Gott we moved in our crop.” Mamm let Samuel slide down her side.

“The Lord provides.” Annie spoke softly, taking in the power of the wind.

John stepped up beside her and touched her shoulder. “Are you okay?”

“Jah.” Annie gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “Do you need to go?”

He studied the wind and looked up at the sky, now void of clouds. An eerie stillness hung in the lifeless air. “My daed has four sons to help him.” He turned to her. “I’ll stay and help Amos.”

They walked over to Amos as he examined his farm and then slowly walk toward the barnyards. “Let’s check the livestock.” The boys followed; even Samuel was at his daed’s heels, anxious to see what was left and what was lost.

The east barn was torn down into splinters. Great trees and shrubs had been ripped from the ground, broken off and uprooted, and bark had peeled from tree trunks. Fields were covered with rubble, boards, and timber. Fences lay scattered across the dirt road leading up to their home, which was still standing but with a large hole in the roof. Articles of clothing from the clothesline were matted together or hanging from trees. Grain spilled out from the torn side of one of the granaries.

John walked past the barn to look for hurt or wandering animals. Most had run off when the howling wind came upon them. Others were long gone, and the family could only hope they would find their way back. Only a handful of livestock remained within sight. The storm had chosen an erratic path, leaving some areas untouched while others were stripped bare.

Annie’s voice broke the silence. “Does anyone see Otto?” She hated to even hope for him to have made it but couldn’t help asking. She scanned the area, but the horse wasn’t in view. No one answered, telling her he wasn’t around.

A feeling of depression seemed to settle over them. No more words were spoken as they began to pick up debris and haul off broken posts and destroyed tools. The younger ones didn’t have the strength to help with the heavy farm equipment, so Annie found a functional wheelbarrow that Augustus pushed around while they threw wreckage into it.

A cluster of men walked down the path, picking up what they could carry along the way. This was the way their community functioned. They would go from farm to farm until every family was tended to. It would take days or weeks to complete the task, but for today they would assess each one’s damage and help those most in need first. Hearing their comments, Annie was saddened to hear of the devastating loss.

“Ezekiel lost every one of his chickens, but the tornado didn’t touch the rest of his herds.”

“Mel’s family took cover in a cave when they saw that twister coming. Good thing too, because their house is gone and everything in it.”

“I hear the west side didn’t get hit at all—not a single farm. Hard to figure.”

Annie’s sadness changed to appreciation that they were all well, and as she looked out to the farthest pasture, she saw a four-legged creature sure to be Otto. She felt the air seep out of her lungs with relief.

Her daed thought she was too attached to the animal. “He’s a work horse, not a pet,” he’d tell her when she gave him special attention, so she would steal time with him away from her daed’s sight. She rationalized this by telling herself she was caring for one of Gott’s creatures.

She clucked to him, and he lifted his huge head toward her. As he made his way over, Annie looked out over the fields. Strange how some were affected and others were left unscathed.

Much like when God puts more obstacles in one person’s life than another’s.
With the new burden she carried she felt like one of the former. One piece of knowledge had turned her whole life upside down. Now she could humbly relate to others with hardships to bear. Now she knew how it felt to be in pain.

As Otto approached, Annie turned and headed to the barn, corralling some of the other wandering horses and animals that were scattered along her path as she went. Once they had been tended to, she made her way into the house to help Mamm. The men would stay in the fields trying to salvage what they could, and the women would prepare a good meal for them before they went out to help.

Mamm stood over the counter cutting up meat into pieces while Hanna cut up vegetables. Frieda was attempting to mix up a batch of dough to make rolls, and Annie went over to help her.

“Need a hand?” She took quick steps over before the bowl of lumpy batter fell onto the floor. When Frieda removed her hands from the bowl, a sticky string of dough trailed along with her.

“Oops!” Frieda stretched her fingers out full of dough and went to the pump to clean up.

Mamm looked over at them. The smile that mishaps usually brought out in her was replaced with hard eyes and straight face. “Hanna, Frieda, will you take this out to the men?” She handed them some cups and a large bottle of water.

Hanna’s eyebrows drew together in question. Annie was curious too. They had much cooking to do before the men would come in to eat. Hanna helped Frieda off the stool where she washed, and they went out back with the water.

Annie added flour to the dough to try and save the mushy mess Frieda had made. Mamm picked up the pieces of meat and put them in a large pot that was simmering with broth.

“Annie, are you going to go through with this idea of leaving?” She looked up after she asked and gazed into Annie’s eyes.

Annie looked away and answered, “Jah, Mamm. I hope you underst—”

Mamm turned, and they both continued with their work. “If that is so, I will make contact with a family that can take you in.” She reached up to the top shelf of the hutch and pulled out an old flour container. Mamm pulled out a roll of cash and handed it to her. “Here, you’ll need this.”

Annie had not had many occasions to deal with money, aside from the few times they’d gone to town and she’d been asked to pick up something for her mother, which was rare. Paper or a particular spice that Mamm used for fall cooking that she couldn’t grow in her garden, or one time when Daed purchased a tool—those were the only times she could remember. They had all they needed.