Winter of Faith Collection

by Rachel Stoltzfus

  “Okay. I don’t want to cause you any more pain and fright, Miriam.”

  “There is one thing I want to say about this morning, though,” Miriam said. “I want to thank you for trusting me through this whole mess. You could have believed that I was breaking my promise to marry you, but you didn’t. You believed me, even when Lance tried to trick me into spending some time with him and your daed saw us.”

  John gently slipped his arms around Miriam’s body, holding her to him. He rocked her back and forth, giving her the comfort she seemed to need.

  “Ya, I could have, but I saw your fear of him, Miriam. Yes, there were a few moments where I wondered what was happening. But, when we – you and I – talked, I could see that you didn’t want to get to know Mr. Newman. You only wanted him to leave you and your family alone, and when he wouldn’t stop bothering you, that’s when all of us started trying to help you. Ya, you made that one mistake, and when you realized it, you took steps to correct it. I have always trusted and loved, you, Miriam.

  “We’re both about to start almost five months of instruction before we are baptized. Once we’re baptized, we can marry each other. Because our instruction will end when this year’s wedding season ends, we won’t be getting married until the next wedding season. My daed has a grussmudderhaus next to his house, and that’s where we would live until we move into their house,” said John, thinking into the future.

  Miriam, caught up in the happy planning, forgot the terrible events of the day. “You know we won’t be able to move into their house until after we have our first child, right?”

  “Ya.” John looked at Miriam, seeming to see someone else. “I keep imagining a little girl with light brown hair and golden eyes, just like yours.”

  Miriam blushed, thinking of children and the future.

  “I have a confession to make,” she whispered. “When I imagine us married, I know it won’t always be very easy. I know we’ll have challenges and problems. But . . . I also see myself as the mamm of little boys with dark brown eyes and hair. Little boys who will grow up to look like their daed. And . . . it’s fine that we’ll live in the grossmudderhaus at first. It’s small, but that’s all we’ll need at first, until the bopplis start to come. We’re young, John, and we’re strong. We love each other and we will have a strong marriage,” Miriam said.

  John leaned down, pressing his lips to Miriam’s, mindful of the bruise on her lower face.

  “Tell me if that hurts, because I don’t want to make you hurt,” he whispered.

  “It’s . . . tender,” Miriam confessed.

  “Then, no kissing until that bruise and the soreness go away. I don’t want anything to ruin our time together,” John decided.

  “John, are you going to continue working with your daed on his farm after we marry?”

  “Ya. There’s a shortage of farm land, so that’s how I’ll earn money after we marry. I’ll till several acres and plant seed. What grows will be ours for harvesting. Daed and I have talked about this already. He has about five hundred acres and he’ll give me about one hundred. I’ll use the money from that to buy land when some goes on sale, then we will build our own house. What will you do? Continue making and selling quilts?”

  “Yes. I’m working on that huge order and I expect that I’ll continue to get a lot of orders, especially if I have good customers like the ones I’m working with now. That’s what I’ll be doing to bring money into our family. I can work from home to help you while we raise our kinner.”

  “I like that. Ya, keep making quilts and ask your customers to let their families and friends know about your work. You know, as artistic and expert as you are at your age, imagine just how in demand you’ll be in even 10 or 20 years!”

  “Oh!” Miriam said with a breathless laugh. “Thank you, John, but I have a lot yet to learn about quilting. Ya, I’m making some beautiful quilts now, but I have to thank my grossmuder for everything she taught me. I just enjoy making the quilts and giving pleasure and happiness to my customers. Every time I sit down to work on a quilt, I imagine the kinner and the adults, happy to go to sleep at night under their warmth. If they choose to hang my quilts on a frame or on the wall, I am happy with that.”

  “I have always wondered one thing, Miriam. Have you ever had unhappy customers?”

  Miriam thought back on her short quilt-making career.

  “Hmmm. Only one, but that was because she wasn’t sure of the colors. I showed her patterns, then she asked me to make the decision about the colors. I told her that, because I didn’t know what colors she had in her home, it would be very difficult for me. So, she finally told me what colors she had in the bedroom and we decided on colors. Well, when I delivered her quilt to her, she brought it back to the market, unhappy because it wasn’t an exact match to the drapes and carpeting in her bedroom! I told her that’s why I needed to know precise colors so I could make something she would enjoy displaying. I ended up giving her back her money – and going into debt to daed and mamm on that quilt. That taught me to be very clear with customers on what colors and patterns they want in their quilts.”

  “That’s why I’m happy to plant crops and harvest them. The harvest is what we get. That’s what we use to feed our livestock, save up more seed and sell at market. No disputes about color or size. All we need to know is how many bushels a customer wants. We sell that to him and it’s done,” said John.

  Before the sun began setting, John and Miriam rode around to other picturesque areas of Ephrata so they could enjoy each other’s’ company without the fear of an unwanted visitor intruding on their courting time. As they spent that evening together, they discussed their plans for their future in more detail. As the sun began to descend in the evening sky, he started the slow drive back to Miriam’s parents’ house.

  Miriam rested her head on John’s solid shoulder, feeling tired from the events and stresses of the day. Her eyes began to droop as the buggy moved slowly down the road, and she slipped into a light daze. As John stopped the buggy and set the brake, she came to full wakefulness, raising her head from John’s shoulder and stretching.

  “I think you’d better go straight to bed when you get inside,” said John.

  “Ya, I plan to. I’m more tired than I thought,” Miriam said, yawning. John walked Miriam to the front door, kissing her softly.

  THANK YOU FOR READING!

  And thank you for supporting me as an independent author. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! If so, I hope you also enjoy the sample of the next book in the series, THE WEDDING SEASON, in the next chapter. Click on the link to be notified when the next book in the series is available for purchase.

  Also, if you get a chance to leave me a review, I’d really appreciate it (and if you find something in the book that – YIKES – makes you think it deserves less than 5-stars, drop me a line at Rachel.stoltzfus@globagrafxpress.com, and I’ll fix it if I can)

  All the best,

  Rachel

  THE WEDDING SEASON

  CHAPTER ONE

  Miriam woke up the morning after Lance Newman’s arrest, feeling oddly . . . free, like his passing into the hands of the law had opened the door to her prison. And in a way it had. No longer did she have to look over her shoulder or live with that persistent, itchy certainty that he might at any moment come back and attempt to do horrid things to her in the name of his own twisted sense of love.

  Out of my distress I called on the Lord; the Lord answered me and set me free.

  The psalm came to Miriam’s mind and she glanced upwards, the sense of peace and happiness that she’d felt upon awakening seeming to fill her even more. Yes, today was a new, wondrous gift, and Miriam was going to seize it.

  With that thought firmly in mind, Miriam dressed and combed her hair, twisting the gentle waves of light brown hair into a bun and pinning it beneath her prayer kapp. When she was ready for her day, she walked with light feet and a light heart down the stairs to the kitc
hen where her mamm had started making breakfast.

  “Guder mariye, mamm!” Miriam said, grinning at the smell of fresh bread. On the skillet, thick strips of bacon sizzled.

  Her mamm, Sarah Bieler, returned Miriam’s smile before waving the spatula towards a metal bowl on the counter beside the sink. “Whisk these eggs for breakfast, if you would, please?”

  “Ya,” Miriam said, crossing the room in easy strides and taking up the whisk to start at beating the eggs with quick, practiced motions. “I just—it’s a beautiful morning, isn’t it?”

  Outside the window, the skies were a charcoal grey, clouds hanging heavy the wheat field. By the barn, the horse stood idly, nibbling at the grass once before taking a couple of slow, heavy steps and bowing his head again.

  “Some days, it’s like we carry the weather inside us,” Sarah said, her eyes sparkling.

  Miriam laughed. “That is true. I feel like I’ve been slogging through a storm for so long. As long as he stays in jail, I can live again.”

  “You live no matter what, in God’s hands,” her mamm said cryptically, “Now add some onions and peppers to those eggs.

  “It’s just good that daed called the Englisch police. I didn’t want him to at first, but I also worried that Mr. Newman wasn’t getting the message – that he didn’t want to get the message.”

  “Nee, he didn’t. Did you add the milk already?”

  “Ya, it’s in there. Miriam sniffed the fragrant smell of bacon sizzling in the pan as she scraped the diced vegetables into the egg mixture. “Mmmm. I love making omelets.”

  “Gutt, now put some hustle to it. All of this worrying has the whole family hungry.”

  Ten minutes later, Joseph Beiler walked in, sniffing appreciatively. Miriam and Sarah were dishing up the hot breakfast and placing it at the long kitchen table.

  “Denki, Sarah!” Mirian’s daed said, giving her mamm a warm smile. “You must have known I was extra-hungry after yesterday,” he said.

  Sarah smiled back. “We are all hungry now that we don’t have to worry for Miriam’s safety. Dig in! We all have busy days ahead of us.”

  “Miriam, I don’t know the particulars, but you will have to testify in court hearings. Everything you can tell the judge that will keep that Lance character away from you, you’ll have to remember,” Joseph said.

  Was—did that mean she had to face him again? Miriam looked out the window into the fields. The clouds hung as charcoal heavy as before, but now she felt the weight of them. “Why? I mean, didn’t I already— “

  “He has the right to face his accuser. That’s Englischer law.”

  “So Lance Newman has rights and I have—“

  “If you want him to stay in prison, it’s what you have to do.”

  “That’s not fair!”

  “Stop whining, Miriam. You’re becoming a woman, not a child. And we will be with you. Your mamm and me.”

  Miriam wanted to cry. She knew she wasn’t a child, but she’d done nothing to provoke this man, and just when she thought she was finally free of him, the law that was supposed to protect her was dragging her back into his clutches. Miriam pressed her lips together and took a deep breath through her nose. When she could speak without her voice cracking, she said, “If this is what I have to do to keep him in jail, then I will do it.”

  “Gutt,” her father said, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. “I know you are strong. Stronger than this and stronger than him. You’re our daughter and God’s child. We’ll be with you and so will God. What does this criminal Lance have to match that?”

  Miriam nodded, and her dead squeezed her shoulder, the strength of his grip comforting. “You will do yourself and us credit, Miriam,” her daed said.

  Miriam desperately wanted to believe her daed, but she feared that when the time came for her to step into that courtroom and tell her story again under Mr. Newman’s cold gaze, she might freeze up, the truth turning to ashes in her throat.

  ***

  Indeed, a day later, Joseph came in from the carpentry shop, saying that he needed to go to a hearing.

  Miriam’s stomach twisted. “Do I have to—“

  “Nee, not at this time. A driver is coming by to pick me up,” he said as he raced past Miriam.

  “OK, I’ll let you know when he is here,” she said, watching him run upstairs.

  Ten minutes later, Joseph came down, wearing his Sunday clothes and a straw hat. He put on his black meeting jacket before stepping out the door.

  Late that afternoon, he returned.

  “Miriam, Sarah, here’s what happened,” he announced. “Mr. Newman will not get out on bail. It’s not a matter of not having the money. The judge was going to make him pay bail, but when the district attorney told him that you were nearly kidnapped, Miriam, he changed his mind and said ‘no bail.’ Mr. Newman was not happy.

  “You didn’t need to be at this hearing, but you will have to be at what they call a ‘preliminary hearing.’ At other hearings, you will also have to be present. Your memories and truths will be important to keep him away from you so you can be safe here at home,” pointed out Joseph.

  At hearing that Lance was still behind bars, Miriam let out a huge sigh she hadn’t been aware she was holding.

  “Good! That means I can go where I need to go without having to take you away from your work.”

  “Ya, but this incident has taught us to be more careful. Miriam, if you see any strange Englischer cars, please avoid them,” pleaded Joseph.

  “He asked me for directions. How was I supposed to know—“

  “Just, be careful, Miriam.”

  It hurt Miriam to know that her parents were blaming her, but she understood their worry. The thought of Lance getting free or of some other man like him following her, making her a prisoner in her own life, was terrifying. “I will be careful, daed, I promise.” She took a breath and squared her shoulders. “But, I also have to buy some new supplies. I’m just about finished with the green-on-green quilt and I need the thread to finish it. Then, I can start the second child’s quilt.” And she wasn’t going to let Lance’s ghost hold her back from her dreams.

  “When will you go to town?” asked Sarah.

  “Tomorrow. I would like to go with Anna – I still feel safer having someone with me,” Miriam said as she moved the large salad bowl to the table. Moving back to the refrigerator and stove, she loaded her arms with food and set it on the table.

  “Ya, that is fine, but don’t be too long,” Sarah said with entreaty in her voice. “I still worry for your safety. I know, Joseph, I need to leave that up to the Lord, but it’s not too easy!”

  “Ya, I know, wife, but He will protect her.” Joseph reminded her. “And so will we.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  The next day, Anna stopped by the Beiler house for Miriam.

  “You two have fun, but don’t be too late,” reminded Sarah. “It looks like it might rain, and, you just never know who’s out there and what they might do.”

  Miriam nodded. “Mamm, we’ll be careful. Please don’t worry.”

  As Anna drove, she and Miriam discussed the events in Lance Newman’s court case.

  “Nee, Anna, I don’t know much. All I know is that the Englischer judge wouldn’t let him get out of jail, even though he said he had the money to pay that bail. Daed told me that I have to be at hearings – and being in the same room as Lance Newman scares me!”

  “Ya, and it should,” Anna said wisely. “He is very smart, very mupsich or very sick. Now that you know he meant to do you harm, will you be less trusting of some Englischers?”

  “Some. When I see some of them at the market, they’re just curious. Some try to take our photos because they don’t understand why we avoid having our pictures taken. Some are just curious and they want to respect us. Them, I like the best,” asserted Miriam.

  “Ya, me, too. I will tell you which ones to av-”

  “Avoid? Anna, there’s no need. I’ve figured that ou
t already! Mr. Newman just made himself seem harmless, but I still picked up on . . . something,” mused Miriam.

  As the friends drove slowly down the road, they took in the bucolic scene – the deep-green leaves adorning the trees, the long road as it wound toward town, the sunlight splashing over everything and, dotted here and there, farmland and large, two-story houses. Miriam, remembering her mother’s warning about the weather, gazed around until she spotted the towering, fluffy white and gray clouds. While they were still a long distance away, Miriam saw that they were definitely rain clouds that could bring thunder and lightning with them.

  “Let’s hurry, Anna! There’s that storm mamm told us about,” Miriam urged.

  In response, Anna lightly flicked the horse’s back and she began to trot more quickly. Within half an hour, the friends were at the Englischer craft store.

  Miriam quickly found what she needed and made a mental note to return for some brightly patterned fabric for children’s quilts. Anna found several cross stitching patterns and stocked up, tossing them into her basket, along with several skeins of embroidery floss and more even-weave fabrics.

  After they paid, Miriam felt the coolness of the breeze on her cheek as it picked up. Looking in the direction of the clouds, she gasped.

  “Anna, let’s go fast! Look!”

  “No need to warn me! Blackie will move fast as well – she doesn’t want to be in the rain, either,” responded Anna. She didn’t have to flick Blackie’s reins. Instead, the horse took off at a fast clip, wanting to beat the storm home.

  “Okay, I’ll drop you off, then I’d better get right home,” Anna said tensely. “I don’t want to be out in this because I think it’s going to get bad.”

  As she promised, she stopped momentarily at the Beiler farm, allowing Miriam to jump down with her purchases. As soon as Miriam was clear of the buggy, Blackie took off, at nearly a run. Miriam ran inside, feeling the wind speed picking up.