[Kentucky Brothers 01] - The Journey

by Wanda E. Brunstetter

  Someone touched Suzanne’s shoulder. She jumped up from the chair and whirled around, surprised to see Esther and her parents.

  “We came as soon as we got your phone message,” Esther said. “How’s Titus?”

  Suzanne shrugged. “I haven’t heard anything yet, and I’m really worried. What if he’s—” Her voice caught on the sob rising in her throat.

  “You took a chance going over to his place when I told you not to,” Henry said. “You could also be in the examining room right now; not just Titus.”

  “I … I couldn’t help it. I needed to know whether he was all right.”

  “Why’d you go over there in the first place?” Dinah asked.

  “I was on my way home from the greenhouse and decided to stop and see if I could help him clean up the mess in the trailer.” Suzanne drew in a shaky breath. “I hope Titus will be okay.”

  Esther reached for Suzanne’s hand and gave her fingers a gentle squeeze. “We just need to keep the faith and pray for him.”

  “Who were those men, and why’d they want to hurt Titus?” Henry asked.

  “I’m not sure, but from what I heard the sheriff say while we were waiting for the ambulance, I think it has something to do with the money Titus found in his phone shanty.” Suzanne paused for a breath. “By the time the sheriff got to Titus’s place, the men were gone. They’d just run off and left Titus bleeding on the living room floor.”

  Dinah’s eyes widened. “If those men aren’t caught, they might come back or try to hurt someone else.”

  “Not to worry,” Allen said, stepping into the waiting room. “I just spoke with the sheriff, and the men have been caught. They were found hiding in the woods.” He looked down at Suzanne and smiled. “Thanks for letting me know about Titus. How’s he doing, do you know?”

  She shook her head. “I haven’t heard a thing since they took him in.”

  “I’m going up to the nurse’s station and see what I can find out, and then I’m going to phone Titus’s brother Zach so he can let his folks and the rest of the family know. I’ll be back soon.” Allen paused and pulled a cell phone from his pocket. “This belongs to Titus. He left it in my truck this morning. Too bad he didn’t have it with him when those men showed up at the trailer. He might have been able to call for help.” He turned and hurried from the room.

  Suzanne sucked in another deep breath and tried to relax. If she felt this bad about Titus, she could only imagine how Esther must feel.

  “Do you think Titus’s folks will come here when they get the news?” Esther asked her mother.

  Dinah nodded. “I’d travel any distance if one of my kinner had been hurt.”

  “It would be nice to meet Titus’s folks,” Esther said, “but not under these conditions.”

  Suzanne shuddered. She couldn’t imagine how horrible it would be for his parents if they traveled all this way only to be told that their son was dead.

  Stop thinking negative thoughts, she scolded herself. Pray, and thank God in advance for Titus’s healing.

  Paradise, Pennsylvania

  Fannie had just sat down on the sofa beside Abraham, hoping to read awhile before going to bed, when the door flew open and Zach rushed into the room, his eyes wide and his face glistening with sweat.

  “What’s wrong? You look umgerennt. Has something happened?” Abraham asked.

  “I am upset. Something pretty terrible has happened.” Zach paced the floor for several seconds; then he finally took a seat in the rocking chair across from them and drew in a couple of deep breaths. “I don’t want to frighten you, but I just had a phone call from Allen, letting me know that Titus is in the hospital in Hopkinsville.”

  Fannie dropped her book and sat up straight. “What’s happened? Why’s Titus in the hospital?”

  Zach explained all that he’d heard, and ended by saying,” Allen spoke with one of the nurses, but she wasn’t able to give him any information about Titus’s condition.”

  Fannie jumped up. “This wouldn’t have happened if he hadn’t moved!” She trembled as she turned to face Abraham. “We have to go to Kentucky!”

  Abraham nodded grimly. “You’re right. We’ll leave right away.”

  Hopkinsville, Kentucky

  Titus moaned and opened his eyes. A middle-aged woman wearing a white uniform stood beside his bed. “Wh-where am I?”

  “You’re in the hospital.” She placed her hand gently on his shoulder. “You have a concussion and a pretty deep gash on the back of your head. You’ll have to stay in the hospital a few days for observation.”

  He moaned again. “No wonder my head hurts so much.”

  “There’s a young man out in the hall who says he’s your friend. Would you like to see him?”

  “Sure.”

  The nurse left the room, and Allen entered a few seconds later. A deep frown etched his forehead as he moved toward Titus’s bed. “I’m really sorry about this. I should never have let you go home alone.”

  “It’s not your fault. You had no idea the men who ransacked the trailer would come back.”

  “I’ve talked to the sheriff, so I know the men have been caught, but I have no idea what happened before the sheriff came. Do you feel up to filling me in?”

  “The men have been caught?”

  Allen nodded. “After one of them slugged you on the head, they took off. But the sheriff’s deputies caught them hiding in the woods behind your place. They’re in jail now, and the sheriff will be questioning them about the money they hid.” Allen took a seat in one of the chairs beside Titus’s bed. “It’s a good thing we haven’t spent any of that money, because I’m sure now that it was stolen.”

  Titus tried to sit up, but it hurt too much, so he lay there with his eyes closed, trying to remember all that had happened. “Everything seems kind of hazy, but I remember getting ready to go to Esther’s for supper, and then …” He paused and rubbed his forehead. “Then two men showed up and demanded that I tell ‘em where the money was.”

  “What’d you say?”

  “Said it was in the bank.” Titus grimaced, as the details became clearer. “One of them shoved me real hard, and the other one said I’d have to take ‘em to the bank and get the money. Then I heard a horse and buggy pull into the yard, and when I saw that it was Suzanne, I shouted a warning to her. That must have been when I got hit on the head, because I don’t remember anything after that.” His eyes snapped open. “Where’s Suzanne? Is she okay?”

  “She’s fine. She and Esther, as well as Esther’s folks, are in the waiting room.” Allen glanced toward the door. “I think Suzanne was really worried about you, because the sheriff told me that she insisted on riding to the hospital with you in the ambulance.”

  “Tell her I said thanks.”

  “If you’d like to tell her yourself, I’ll go ask her to come in.”

  “Maybe later. I’m tired and my head hurts too much to talk anymore right now.”

  “Okay. I’ll leave you alone to rest.” Allen stood. “Oh, I forgot to mention. I phoned Zach and asked him to let your family know what happened. I’m sure your folks will hire a driver and come to Kentucky right away.”

  Titus moaned. “That’s just great. If Mom sees me in the hospital, she’ll insist that I move back home. Well, I won’t do it. Kentucky’s my home now, and I’m stayin’ put.”

  CHAPTER 33

  Fannie’s heart pounded as she and Abraham hurried down the hall toward Titus’s hospital room. They’d hired a driver to bring them to Kentucky, and it had taken them over twelve hours to get here. She was not only tired and stiff from riding in the van so long, but she was also apprehensive about what they’d learn when they saw Titus.

  “Don’t look so glum,” Abraham said, as they approached the door. “From what we were told, Titus’s injuries aren’t life threatening.”

  “I know, and I’m grateful for that, but it upsets me to know he was hurt by those men, and I shudder to think of how much worse it could
have been.”

  He nodded. “We have much to be thankful for, because the Lord was surely watching out for our son.”

  Fannie paused at the door, and tears gathered in her eyes. She blinked several times, to keep them from spilling over. “Are you going to help me convince Titus to come back home with us once he’s well enough to travel?”

  Abraham shrugged. “Let’s not talk about that right now. Let’s put on a happy face and say hello to our son.”

  When the door to Titus’s room opened and his folks stepped in, he blinked a couple of times. “Mom. Dad. I figured you’d come.”

  Mom moved quickly to the side of his bed, and Dad followed. “How badly are you hurt?” Dad asked.

  “I have a concussion and a gash on the back of my head, but I’ll live. ‘Course, I have a chunk of hair missing now because they had to shave it in order to stitch up the wound. Guess I’ll have to wear my hat all the time until my hair grows back.” Titus forced himself to smile. He figured he’d better make light of the situation so Mom wouldn’t be too upset.

  “Tell us what happened,” Dad said as he and Mom seated themselves in the chairs beside Titus’s bed.

  Titus explained all that had transpired, being careful not to make it sound as frightening as it actually had been.

  Mom’s eyebrows drew together as she reached for Titus’s hand. “You need to move back home. It’s not safe for you here.”

  “The men have been caught, and there’s no reason for me to move back.”

  “Oh, but I think—”

  Dr. Osmond entered the room.

  “These are my parents,” Titus said, motioning to Mom and Dad. “They came here from Pennsylvania because they were worried about me.”

  “And well they should be.” The doctor moved closer to Titus’s bed. “I’m going to release you to go home, but only if you promise to take it easy for the next several days.”

  “Oh he will,” Mom spoke up, “because we’re going to be there to make sure that he does.”

  “That’s right,” Dad said with a nod. “We’ll go home with him and stay until he’s well enough to manage on his own.”

  Titus appreciated the fact that his folks had come, but he was worried about what they would think when they saw the trailer. It was bad enough that the place was so cramped; now thanks to the men who’d broken in, everything was a mess.

  Pembroke, Kentucky

  “This place is a disaster,” Suzanne said to Esther as they worked together to get things cleaned up in Titus’s trailer.

  Esther wrinkled her nose. “I can’t believe those horrible men did this, can you?”

  Suzanne shook her head. “What I really can’t believe is that they hurt Titus. He did nothing but try to warn me that they were here.”

  Esther stared at Suzanne. “You like him, don’t you?”

  “Who?”

  “Titus. Who else are we talking about?”

  Suzanne focused on sweeping the floor and said nothing.

  “I saw how worried you were about Titus the night we were at the hospital.”

  “Of course I was worried. Titus was hurt, and I didn’t know how badly.”

  Esther set the broken dish she’d been holding on the kitchen table and stepped in front of Suzanne. “Do you like him or not?”

  Suzanne looked up. “Titus and I have had our share of differences, but as I’ve gotten to know him better, I’ve come to realize that he’s really a caring person. Even the way he cared for that runaway horse let me know what type of person he was.” Suzanne dropped her gaze to the floor. “I do like him, but only as a friend.”

  “Would you like to be more than friends? Do you wish you were being courted by him?”

  “I know how much you care for Titus, and I wouldn’t think of trying to come between you.”

  “I was interested in Titus at first, but after spending some time with him, I’ve recognized that we’ll probably never be serious about each other.”

  “Why not?” Suzanne asked, fixing her gaze on Esther.

  “We don’t have much in common, and he’s really not my type. So if you’re interested in him, you have my blessing.” Esther bent to pick up another piece of broken glass and tossed it in the garbage.

  “Are you sure about that?”

  Esther nodded. “I don’t think he’s serious about me, either.”

  “Well, even if I were interested in Titus, he’d never be interested in me,” Suzanne muttered.

  “How do you know?”

  “Because I look like his ex-girlfriend. Besides, I can’t cook, and what man wants a woman who can’t cook?”

  “I’ve told you before that I’d be happy to teach you.”

  “I guess it would be easier to learn from you than Mom.” Suzanne sighed deeply. “When it comes to cooking, I’ve always felt like a failure next to her.”

  Esther slipped her arm around Suzanne’s waist. “You’re not a failure. I’m sure you can learn to cook, and if you let me teach you, I’ll try to be very patient.”

  “We’ll see.” Suzanne glanced out the window. “A van just pulled in. Looks like Titus and his folks are here now.”

  “Oh great. We’re not done cleaning the kitchen yet.”

  “At least we got the rest of the house picked up, and it shouldn’t take us long to finish in here.” Suzanne motioned to the few broken dishes that were still on the floor.

  “Let’s go meet Titus’s parents and see how he’s doing, and then we’ll finish cleaning in here,” Esther said.

  They hurried from the room, and Suzanne opened the back door just as Titus and his parents stepped onto the porch.

  “I’m surprised to see you both here,” Titus said when they’d entered the house.

  “We heard you might be coming home today, so we came over to clean up the house before you arrived,” Esther replied.

  “That was nice of you.” Titus motioned to his parents. “These are my folks, Abraham and Fannie. Mom, Dad, meet Esther and Suzanne.”

  Fannie and Abraham shook hands with Esther first, saying it was nice to meet her. Fannie acted a little cool toward Esther, though. When she shook Suzanne’s hand, she stared at her strangely. Suzanne wondered if there was something about her that Titus’s mother didn’t like. Could it be because she reminded her of Titus’s ex-girlfriend?

  “It was nice of you both to clean up the place,” Fannie said, directing her comment to Suzanne, “but now that I’m here, I can take over the job.”

  Suzanne glanced at Esther, wondering if she felt Fannie’s coolness.

  Esther merely smiled and said, “We’re almost done. We just have a few more dishes to pick up in the kitchen.”

  “Oh, I see. I guess you can do that while we get Titus settled in his room.” Fannie glanced around. “This place is so small. Does it even have a bedroom?”

  “It’s at the back of the trailer, but I’m not going to bed.” Titus motioned to the sofa in the living room. “Why don’t we have a seat so we can visit awhile?”

  Sensing Fannie’s hesitation, Suzanne said, “I think Esther and I had better finish cleaning the kitchen, and then we’ll be on our way.” She smiled at Titus. “You look much better than when I saw you in the hospital. How are you feeling today?”

  “My head still hurts, but I’m doing okay.”

  “Remember now, the doctor said you’ll have to take it easy for several days.” Fannie put her hand on Titus’s shoulder. “That’s why your daed and I will be staying to help out and see that you behave yourself.”

  Titus’s face colored, obviously embarrassed by his mother’s comment making it seem as if he were a child.

  “I guess we’d better get back to work. It was nice meeting you.” Suzanne smiled at Titus’s parents.

  “Nice meeting you, too.” Abraham returned her smile, but Fannie only nodded before taking a seat on the sofa beside Titus.

  Suzanne moved toward the kitchen. “Are you coming, Esther?”

  “Of cours
e.” Esther followed Suzanne into the kitchen.

  “For whatever reason, Titus’s mamm doesn’t like me,” Suzanne whispered to Esther.

  “What makes you think that?”

  “Didn’t you see the strange way she looked at me? She didn’t want to visit with us either.”