The Hawaiian Quilt (8 page)

While Mandy and Ellen talked more about their situation, an elderly man and woman walked up to them.

“I don’t mean to interrupt,” the lady said, “but my husband and I couldn’t help overhearing what you two were saying about missing your ship.”

Mandy barely managed a nod.

“I’m sorry to hear it. If you’re looking for overnight lodging, perhaps you’d be interested in staying at the lovely bed-and-breakfast where my husband and I have been staying in Kapaa for the past two nights. I heard the owner mention they have a vacancy, so I don’t think getting a room would be a problem.” She brushed her thin, gray bangs to the side of her forehead before looking at her husband who nodded.

Mandy’s ears perked up when the elderly man mentioned the people who ran the B&B were Christians. “That’s why my wife and I have come back to stay there again. The Palos are so kind and down to earth. Real nice, genuine folks. We’d be happy to give you girls a ride to their place.” He held out his hand. “My name is Frank Anderson, and this is my wife, Dottie. We live in California, and this is our third time on Kauai.”

Ellen and Mandy introduced themselves, then Ellen turned to Mandy. “What do you think we should do?”

“I don’t believe we have much choice. We need a place to stay this evening.”

As Mandy sat in the backseat of Mr. and Mrs. Anderson’s rental car, her throat constricted.
This whole mess is my fault. If only I hadn’t lost my phone. What’s going to happen to us now? Surely the ship won’t come back to get us. I remember what we were told when instructions were given to all passengers about not being late. Now we we’ll need to find another way home
.

She glanced at Ellen, sitting behind the driver’s seat, while fingering her head covering ties again.
What is she thinking?
Mandy rubbed her hand on her chest.
Is Ellen as upset with me as I am with myself?
She had told her friend to calm down a while ago, but now Mandy was upset. She needed to pray and ask God to help them.

Closing her eyes, she sent up a silent prayer.
Dear Lord, please help us find a way to get in touch with Sadie and Barbara. And show us what we need to do in order to get home
.

Kapaa

Sometime later, they pulled up in front of a large, two-story house. The sun was about to disappear below the horizon. Mandy didn’t know if it was because they were in Hawaii, but the sky was breathtaking as it turned from a brilliant orange to a deep scarlet red. The porch light was on, and Mandy could read the sign by the front door: The Palms Bed-and-Breakfast. The name seemed appropriate, since two large palm trees, silhouetted by the sunset, stood in the yard.

Frank turned off the engine, and when he and Dottie got out, Mandy and Ellen did the same. Going up to the door without any luggage seemed strange. Since she and Ellen had not made reservations, she wondered if they would be allowed to stay.

Both of them held back until the Andersons entered the house. A pleasant-looking Hawaiian couple, who appeared to be in their late forties, greeted them.

“Luana and Makaio, these two young women missed their cruise ship and need a place to stay tonight,” Dottie explained. “They’re Amish, and their names are Mandy Frey and Ellen Lambright. Would you have a room for them?”

“I’m sorry to hear of your predicament.” A look of concern was quickly replaced by Luana’s pretty smile, revealing perfectly white teeth. “We have two rooms left, but one is reserved for some people who are expected to arrive later tonight. Would one room with twin beds work for you?” She directed her question to Mandy. “It’s the Primrose Room.”

“That would be fine.” Mandy hesitated, biting her lip. “How much does the room cost?”

“For a single room with a shared bathroom, the cost is ninety-five dollars per night,” Makaio spoke up.

“We’ll take it.” Ellen’s cheeks turned pink when she looked at Mandy. “Is that okay with you?”

Mandy nodded. It wasn’t like Ellen to speak up so boldly, but in this case, she was glad she had. Mandy was relieved they had enough money between them, even though it wouldn’t last forever. They wouldn’t be able to stay here too many nights, but for now, what other choice did they have? Mandy was dog-tired and stressed out from all the drama they’d gone through today. Ellen had to be feeling it, too.
I wonder if Barbara and Sadie are exhausted from worrying about us
.

Mandy couldn’t wait for her head to hit the pillow; although she wished she and Ellen were on board the cruise ship.
On a positive note
, she thought,
I’ll have a nice bed to sleep in tonight rather than a tight upper bunk in our ship’s cabin
.

She suddenly realized that they needed to get in touch with their folks as soon as possible to let them know what had happened. Hopefully, they could send them enough money for tickets on another cruise ship that would take them back to the mainland.

“Could we borrow your phone?” Mandy asked Luana after the Andersons headed down the hall to their room. “I’ll pay you whatever it costs for the long-distance call.”

“Certainly, but don’t worry about paying us back. We have unlimited long-distance.” Luana spoke in a bubbly tone as she pointed to the phone sitting on a desk where the guest book lay. “Please, help yourself, and don’t forget to sign our guest book.”

“Thank you so much.” Mandy looked at Ellen. “I’ll call my folks first, and then you can call yours.”

“What about Sadie and Barbara? How are we supposed to let them know where we are?”

“That’s a problem. I can’t call Barbara’s cell phone, because her number was programmed into my phone and I didn’t write it down.” Mandy released a frustrated groan.

“Maybe when you call your parents and explain what happened, you could ask them to get ahold of Barbara’s parents, because they surely have her cell number,” Ellen suggested.

“Good idea.” Mandy picked up the receiver and punched in the number for home. After getting her parents’ voice mail, she left a message explaining what happened. She also gave them the phone number for the B&B, reminding them of the five-hour difference in time between Indiana and Hawaii. Then she handed Ellen the phone. “Your turn.”

“I’m bummed. The last thing I want to do is make this call to my folks. They’ll be so worried when they get my message.” The sound of dread in Ellen’s voice was evident.

Hopefully by tomorrow, one of them would hear something from someone back home. Mandy prayed everything would work out.

On the Cruise Ship

“Did you get ahold of Mandy?” Sadie asked when she stepped out of the bathroom and saw Barbara with her cell phone.

Barbara lay back on her bed. “Unfortunately, no. I did leave a message, though.”

“How many messages does that make now?” Sadie sipped a cup of tea she’d made for herself.

“Three.” Barbara sighed. “If they did miss the boat, which I’m almost sure is what occurred, what’s gonna happen to them?”

Sadie sat down on Ellen’s bed. “I don’t know, but they’re both
schmaert
. I’m sure they’ll figure something out. We’ll pray they get help this evening and things will work out as smoothly as possible under the circumstances they’re facing.”

“It’s hard to have faith sometimes—especially when something like this happens.” Barbara’s voice cracked. “This is horrible. It’s sure put a damper on our vacation.”

“I agree. It’ll be hard to get off the ship in Hilo tomorrow morning and go with the others who signed up to see the volcano.” Sadie looked down at the bed and brushed her hand over the blanket. “It’s probably not the right time to say this, but…”

“What were you going to say?”

“I’m taking Ellen’s bed and leaving the cramped upper bunk behind.”

“I don’t blame you for choosing to sleep there, and Ellen can’t say anything if she’s not here to talk you out of it.” Barbara’s eyes teared up. “Maybe we shouldn’t go sightseeing tomorrow. We should probably stay here and keep trying to get in touch with Mandy and Ellen.”

“What would that solve? You can keep calling her when we’re on the Big Island.”

“True.” Barbara picked up her cell phone again. “Think I’d better give my folks a call and tell them what happened. I’ll ask Mom to let Ellen and Mandy’s parents know about them missing the boat. After that, you can call your parents.” She grimaced. “Everyone—especially Mandy and Ellen’s family—will be
umgerrent
when they hear the news.”

The Big Island

S
adie stretched her arms over her head and released a noisy yawn. She hadn’t slept well last night, despite being in her friend’s bed. Thoughts of Ellen and Mandy kept her awake. Now she and Barbara were scheduled to take a tour to see the volcano, but neither of them felt like going anywhere. How could they have fun while their friends were stranded on Kauai?

“Even if we’re not in the mood for sightseeing, we need to leave the ship and join the tour.” Barbara gathered her sunglasses, along with her phone, and put them in her purse.

“You’re right. We may never visit Hawaii again, so we should try to make the best of this beautiful sunny morning. I hope we hear something from Mandy today.”

“Jah.” Barbara reached for her sweater and held it up. “You may want to bring yours, too. I heard it can be a bit chilly near the volcano.”

“I’ll get mine.” Sadie gathered up the rest of her things and put them in a tote. “Let’s be off.”

Kapaa

“This is a lovely room,” Mandy commented as she and Ellen put their only dresses on Friday morning before joining the other guests for breakfast. “The Primrose Room—what an appropriate name. The entire space looks like a beautiful flower.”

“And don’t forget these.” Ellen gestured to the twin beds, each covered with a lovely quilt. “Wouldn’t it be nice to buy a Hawaiian quilt to take home when we go?” Ellen walked to the bed and ran her fingers over the material.

Mandy brought her hands to her chest. “I would love to own one, but I hear they’re expensive.” She moved over to the mirror and put her head covering on. “If we end up staying here awhile, maybe we could make one. I don’t think they’re much different than our Amish quilts.”

“That may be, but we won’t be here long enough to make a quilt.” Ellen moved toward the door. “We’d better go downstairs. From the delicious aromas coming up the steps, breakfast must be ready.”