Ray of Light (13 page)

Chapter Sixteen

It was raining. “Could there be anything worse than rain in March?” Roman asked his horse as he double-checked the lines on the buggy that he'd just attached. “Our journey to the store is going to make us both a wet, soggy mess.”

Chester tossed his head as if in agreement . . . or maybe it was annoyance. Roman figured the old horse was probably as irritated by the bit in his teeth as the cold rain soaking his coat. Of late, Chester had become quarrelsome. “Sorry,
gaul
,” he murmured, rubbing the horse's neck. “We've all got our jobs to do. Pulling me in the rain is yours today.”

Chester looked away and pawed the ground with a hoof.

He was still smiling at his horse's strong personality as he strode into the barn and saw Elsie standing next to one of the stalls. “
Gut
matin
,” he said. “What are you doing out here so early?”

“I have something to tell you.”

Elsie was wearing a look he knew well, one that said she was ready to chat for hours. Well, the horse wasn't the only one in the barn impatient to get on his way. “Can it wait? I've got to get into town before the weather gets worse.”

She shook her head. “I don't think so.”

“Go ahead, then. What is it?” he asked as he shrugged into his coat.

“I called Amanda this morning.”

Roman froze. He wanted to ask a million questions. Ask if she was talking about
his
Amanda. Ask how she'd even gotten Amanda's telephone number.

But instead, he asked the question that mattered the most. “Why would you do that?”

She tugged on the edge of her apron. Crinkled it into her fist. “Well, Viola and I got to talking . . . ”

“And?”

“And, we were discussin' how you've been mooning over her . . . ”

“Lord, save me from twin sisters! Elsie, you and Viola had no business talking about me like that.”

Releasing the apron, her chin rose. “You're our brother. Of course we're going to talk about you.” She pressed on, her words tumbling out of her mouth in a rush. “It was easy enough to get her number. Cousin Beth had it.”

He breathed a sigh of relief. He supposed it was good that the pair of them hadn't gone through his room, looking for the small scrap of paper in his desk drawer that held the precious information. “What did you say to Amanda?”

“Oh, not much. I introduced myself. Told her about me and Viola . . . ”

“Elsie, get to the point.”

“Well, actually, after we talked for a bit . . . I invited her and her daughter to come visit.”

He could hardly believe his ears. She'd picked up the phone. Called up Amanda. And asked her to come to Ohio. That's all. “It's Regina,” he said.

She blinked in confusion. “Hmm?”

“Her daughter's name is Regina,” he repeated, mainly to buy himself some time to rein in his growing temper.

“So, what do you think?”

He thought he had the two most interfering sisters on the planet. That's what he thought.

“I'm not sure why you care what I think, Elsie,” he snapped. “Seein' as how you've taken it upon yourself to get involved in my life and all.”

“It wasn't just me.”

“You. And Viola.”

“So you're mad at us?”

“You could say that,” he bit out. “Honestly, did you two really think I'd be grateful for your interference?”

After a moment, she nodded. “
Jah
.”

“You two are more trouble than a pair of goats in love.”

She blushed. “I think not.” Stepping a little closer, she said, “It's been my experience that family members usually meddle with the best of intentions.”

“Just because someone doesn't mean to cause damage, when they do, things still need to be repaired. You should have minded your own business.” He could only imagine how horrified Amanda must have been, receiving a call from his sister.

“Nothing is hurt, Roman. Nothing needs to be repaired.”

“Oh, really? What am I supposed to do now?”

“Call her and say you want her to come.”

“Is that right?” He snapped his fingers. “I'm sure it's just that easy.”

“It sounded to me like it was.”

He stared at her, forgetting about the rain, about his ornery horse, about his irritating younger sisters. “Did . . . Did Amanda sound like she wanted to come north? To see Ohio?”

“Well, she sounded like she wanted to see
you
, Roman.”

“She said that?” With effort, he tried to keep his body and expression cool and detached. Inside, however, he was raising his fist in the air in triumph.

“More or less.” Amusement lit her voice. “Amanda said she would look forward to speaking to you about it. So that sounded positive to me. But then again, I don't know her like you do.”

Roman couldn't help but smile. He liked the thought that he knew Amanda, that he understood her. But then he gathered his resolve again. He had a sister who couldn't see him softening. “Elsie, you don't know her at all.”

“But I'd like to. She sounded really nice. She sounded fond of you, Roman. Which, of course, makes me like her a whole lot more. I do want to meet this Amanda in person. Viola and I both do.”

His sister was so earnest, so sincere, he couldn't stay mad at her for long. “Have I ever told you that you're my favorite twin?”

“Last month, just days after you told Viola the same thing. Right before you said we were going to be the death of you.”

“I didn't mean that.”

“But this time?” She raised a brow.

“This time I think it's true.”

She chuckled. “Call Amanda sometime today, Roman. What can it hurt?”

“I might just do that,” he said grudgingly. “
Danke
, Elsie. I owe you.”

“Don't worry, one day you can help me when I'm being courted. Viola's going to be of no use, since she'll be in a foreign country and all.”

“Of course I'll help you,” he called out as he watched her carefully make her way back to the house.

But as he watched her stumble on the edge of a stone step and straighten her glasses, Roman wondered when Elsie was ever going to come to terms that she would most likely never have a husband.

As he trudged out to the buggy, he couldn't help but shake his head. It truly was a shame, he realized. Because in many ways, she was the best of the three of them. Continually happy, eternally poised. A hard worker and patient.

She would have made some man a wonderful wife.

A wonderful wife.

Pushing off thoughts of his sister, he let his mind drift back to Amanda and the upcoming phone conversation. And to his surprise, he wasn't dreading it at all.

Turning back to Chester, he said, “Well, boy, let's get this trip to town over with. It looks like I have much to do today. So much, I might not even mind the rain.”

The disdainful look Chester gave him in response was priceless.

And pretty much made him grin most of the way into town.

 

It seemed everyone wanted to go to the airport with her. “I told ya, Mr. Cross said he'd be happy to take me and make sure I got on the plane just fine,” Viola said to her siblings, her grandparents, her mother, and—unbelievably—Mr. Swartz. “He took Edward.”

“I'm sure Mr. Cross is a
verra
nice man. But he ain't family,” her mother said briskly. “And he is most definitely not your
muddah
.”

“That is true,” Atle said with a gleam in his eye. “It's been my experience that no one can take a mother's place when it comes to fussin'.”

As they piled in the van that her grandfather had hired for the day, Viola held her purse tightly on her lap, and double-checked her papers and plane itinerary again. And then slowly opened her passport and glanced at the photograph of herself.

Not for the first time, her grandfather held out his hand and examined the blue booklet carefully, running his finger over her signature.

Though he'd never actually said so, Viola felt that of everyone in the family, he'd been the one who was most unhappy about her choices. “Are you terribly upset, Grandfather?”

“With what?”

“With me, because I'm getting on an airplane and going to Belize.”

“To see your man?
Nee
. I'm not upset.”

“Then you understand?”

“I understand what it's like to miss someone you love. And I understand what it's like to take a chance on something new, too. You forget, when your
mommi
and I moved to Ohio, we didn't know anyone at all. It was a scary adventure.” He glanced to his right. “Wouldn't you say that, Lovina?”

She chuckled softly. “Well, I would have to admit that that time is all a blur to me now. I was newly married, and had just become Amish.”

This was the first time her grandmother had ever mentioned her transformation in such a casual way. Viola wished Elsie was sitting nearby so she could give her a nudge.

But perhaps Elsie had already read her mind. “Mommi, what was it like, moving with Dawdi?”

“Scary. I didn't want to let him down.”

That seemed like a strange comment. Viola looked at her grandmother in surprise. “Why would you have been worried about that?”

“Because I was always doing things wrong.” She shook her head in a guilty manner. “I could hardly speak Deutch.”

“I didn't expect you to know everything.” Her grandfather looked at Viola then and grinned—a very cheeky, very male grin. “It didn't matter so much to me, anyway. She was the prettiest woman I'd ever seen.”

This time it was her mother who spoke up. “Is that right, Aaron? You were taken in by a pair of pretty brown eyes?”

“Yes, I was.” He cleared his throat in a gruff way as he handed the passport back to Viola. “And that will be the end of this talk.”

They all laughed. The mood in the van was light and comfortable, bringing back memories of times when things weren't so confusing and hard at home.

Viola gave thanks to God for reminding her that while things weren't perfect in the Keim family, it wasn't completely broken, either. It was the first glimmer of hope she'd felt in weeks—just as she was leaving town.

“Everyone is going to have to tell me how Roman looks at Amanda,” she said just to keep the conversation light. “Because we all know Roman won't tell me about the visit.”

“I'm sure there will be nothing to tell,” Roman said.

“I'm sure there will be lots to tell,” Elsie teased. “After all, you called her just days ago, and now she's on the bus to Ohio. That was quick.”

“She got a special price on the tickets, that's all,” Roman said.

“I'm putting my money on the girls, Roman,” his grandfather said with a wry look.

Roman scowled. “When she gets here, no one better be looking at the two of us.”

Viola raised her brows at Elsie, conveying silently that Elsie better plan to give her a full report.

Her mother and grandmother chuckled.

As did Atle. “Come now, Roman. Are you really so backward that you don't think everyone's going to be watching you together?” he asked. “I'm counting on getting as many reports as possible at Daybreak.”

To their amusement, Roman's cheeks turned red. “I don't want Amanda to feel awkward,” he sputtered. “Plus, she will have her daughter with her, you know. Everyone needs to take care around her.”

“Whose name is Regina, I believe,” Elsie said. “Isn't that right, Roman?

Roman groaned.

Viola bit her lip to refrain from commenting on that. Around her, she felt the rest of the group's efforts to hold their tongues. Roman was a private man. If they teased him too much, there was no way he'd ever say another word about Amanda again.

Luckily for her brother, their driver soon announced they were approaching the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Now she had no thoughts except for her worries about traveling alone to a foreign country . . . and an almost breathless anticipation about finally seeing Ed again. Their six-week separation had felt at times like an eternity.

She only hoped when they were together again that their reunion would be as sweet as she'd imagined. What would she do if Ed acted differently toward her in Belize?

What would she do if she hated Belize? If she found that no matter how hard she tried she couldn't live in a foreign country?

Or if she realized she didn't want to be a missionary's wife?

Or, worst of all, if she didn't think she could work with the people that Edward served? She would be so embarrassed.

And Edward would be so disappointed!

As they stopped in front of the terminal, she felt a calm hand on her shoulder. “Don't,” her grandfather murmured, just for her ears.

“Don't what?” she whispered right back.

“Don't start fretting and worrying.” When her eyes widened, he said, “Your thoughts are written as plain as day, all over your face.” Moving his hand from her shoulder to her chin, he raised it slightly. “Have faith, Viola. Have faith in yourself and in Edward, and in the Lord. I feel certain that he isn't leading you down this path just to feel pain.”

Her grandfather's words were just the boost she needed. Feeling better and more confident than she had in days, she led the procession out of the van and inside the airport.

The moment they were in the brightly lit, noisy building, no less than three airport personnel rushed to their side. Viola guessed their Amish clothing stuck out like sore thumbs.

When she told them what airline she was flying on, and to where, they guided her—and the whole family—to a check-in booth.

Ten minutes later, her suitcase was on a conveyer belt, she had her travel documents in hand, and another person was offering to walk her to the airport security station.