A Cousin's Prayer

by Wanda E. Brunstetter

  “Yesterday morning. Eunice’s daed came by the taxidermy shop with a fish he wanted stuffed, and he told Wayne that Freeman had been pruning some trees in their yard and fell off the ladder.” Loraine’s brows puckered. “I guess Freeman ended up in the emergency room with some broken ribs and a collapsed lung.”

  Katie covered her mouth with the palm of her hand. “That’s baremlich!”

  “You’re right, it’s terrible,” Loraine agreed. “Eunice’s daed said that Eunice told him that Freeman was in a lot of pain the day that it happened.”

  “Is he still in the hospital?”

  “I don’t think so. From what Wayne was told, Freeman was supposed to be released some time today.”

  Katie moved quickly toward the door. “When my mamm comes out of the bathroom, would you tell her I had an errand to run?” She scooted out the door before Loraine could respond.

  CHAPTER 44

  As Katie headed out with her horse and buggy, she reminded herself to relax, breathe deeply, and stay focused on the road. She hadn’t had a panic attack in several weeks, and she sure didn’t need one now.

  A flock of geese honked overhead and landed in a nearby field. At the same time, a car whipped past Katie, going much too fast, and she gripped the reins tightly, fearing that her horse might spook. Dixie, however, did okay, and so did Katie. She was more relaxed than she’d expected.

  Katie hoped Freeman was home from the hospital and that she was doing the right thing in going to see him. She just couldn’t leave Indiana without saying good-bye, and she needed to know that he was all right.

  When Katie turned up the Bontragers’ driveway, she saw a horse and buggy at the hitching rail near the barn. Apparently, Freeman must be home, and he already had some company. Katie didn’t want to say good-bye to Freeman in front of anyone else, and she considered leaving a note, along with the banana nut cake she’d brought for him on the porch. But she wanted to say goodbye to Freeman in person, so she quickly dismissed that idea.

  She pulled up to the other side of the rail, climbed down from the buggy, and secured her horse. Then she retrieved the container of cake and sprinted for the house.

  Stepping onto the back porch, she rapped on the door. A few seconds later, she was greeted by Fern.

  “I heard about Freeman’s accident,” Katie said. “I wanted to come by and see how he’s doing.”

  “His ribs are very sore, but he’s getting along okay.” Fern glanced over her shoulder. “Knowing my energetic bruder, he’ll be back on his feet in no time at all.”

  “Can I see him for a few minutes? I want to see how he’s doing.”

  “Eunice is visiting with him right now. They’re talking about some personal things, so I don’t want to interrupt.”

  “Oh, I see.” Katie heard muffled voices through the screen door and figured it was Freeman talking to Eunice. She cringed when she heard the words love and marriage. Eunice had obviously been telling the truth about getting married next spring. For all Katie knew, they might get married even sooner—maybe right after Freeman joined the church.

  She stared at the toes of her sneakers, trying to decide what to do. It had taken courage to come over here, and she couldn’t leave without at least letting Freeman know she’d been here.

  Katie handed Fern the container with the cake inside. “Would you give this to Freeman and tell him that I’ll be leaving for Florida tomorrow and wanted to say good-bye?”

  Fern tipped her head as she took the cake. “Are you moving back to Florida?”

  Katie nodded. “I’ll be living with my daed’s cousin and his wife until I’m able to get a job and a place of my own.”

  “Oh, I see. Well, that’s probably for the best.” Fern’s mouth turned up at the corners. “You were happier there, right?”

  “Jah, I was.” Katie could barely speak around the lump in her throat. She really didn’t want to leave Indiana, but hearing Freeman and Eunice talking about love and marriage made her even more certain that she was doing the right thing by moving back to Florida. “Will you tell Freeman I was here and give him the cake?” she asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

  Fern gave a quick nod. “I wish you the best in Florida, Katie.”

  “Danki.” Katie dashed down the steps and raced across the lawn. She quickly untied her horse and scrambled into the buggy. As soon as she took her seat, the dam broke and tears flowed freely down her cheeks.

  As she guided Dixie down the lane and onto the road, she could barely see because of her tears, and her throat felt so clogged she could hardly swallow.

  ***

  “I’m sorry, Eunice,” Freeman said, “but there’s no point in us going out, because we can never have a permanent relationship.”

  “Why not?”

  Freeman searched for truthful words that wouldn’t hurt Eunice too much. “I, um, think we both know that our relationship isn’t based on anything more than physical attraction.”

  Eunice’s nose twitched. “Are you saying that the only thing you like about me is my pretty face?”

  “It’s not that. It’s just that—” He blotted his sweaty forehead with the back of his hand and cleared his throat a couple of times.

  “You’re in love with Katie, aren’t you?”

  He nodded slowly. “But I don’t know if—”

  “How can you love her?” Eunice scowled at him. “Katie has emotional problems, and she’s so immature.”

  Freeman’s fingers clenched as irritation welled in his chest. He was trying to be nice to Eunice, but he was getting tired of hearing her put Katie down all the time. “Katie’s panic attacks are getting better, and she’s not immature!”

  “Well, if you want my opinion, anyone who’d keep a baby when she should have notified the sheriff is immature,” Eunice huffed.

  “I’ll admit that wasn’t a good decision on Katie’s part, but she’s trying to make good decisions now, and she’s able to cope with things a lot better.”

  Eunice left the sofa and dropped to the floor on her knees in front of Freeman. “Katie doesn’t love you, Freeman.”

  “Maybe not now, but in time, she might. We’ve become good friends, and—”

  “If she loved you, she wouldn’t be moving back to Florida.”

  “What?” Heat shot up his neck and cascaded onto his cheeks.

  “I talked to Katie’s mamm the other day when I dropped off some candles at Ada’s. She mentioned that Katie plans to move back to Sarasota. She wouldn’t be doing that if she loved you, now would she?” Eunice looked up at him with questioning eyes and a hopeful smile. “Won’t you please give us another chance? I’m sure if we spend more time together—”

  “Did JoAnn say when Katie plans to move?”

  “Uh—I think she said in a few days, but I’m not really sure.”

  He breathed a sigh of relief. That would give him time to heal enough so he could go over to Katie’s and talk to her. Maybe if he came right out and told her that he loved her, she’d reconsider. Then again, a declaration of love might scare her off.

  Just then Fern stepped into the room holding a plastic container with a cake inside. “Katie came by a few minutes ago, and she wanted me to give you this.” She set the container on the coffee table.

  “Did she say anything else?”

  Fern glanced over at Eunice then back at Freeman. “She said she was leaving for Florida tomorrow morning and asked me to tell you good-bye.”

  Freeman groaned as he closed his eyes and pushed against the pillow. He couldn’t believe Katie was leaving so soon. Never in all his twenty-two years had he felt like this. The physical pain in his ribs was nothing compared to the emotional pain in his heart.

  ***

  Eunice smiled to herself. Katie was leaving even sooner than she’d expected, which meant she’d no longer be a threat. Given a little more time, Eunice was sure that Freeman would forget about Katie, and then he’d see Eunice in a different light.

  “I
think I’d better go and let you get some rest,” Eunice said, rising to her feet. “I’ll be back tomorrow to see how you’re doing.”

  Freeman opened his eyes and slowly shook his head. “Don’t bother, Eunice. It’s over between us.”

  Her mouth dropped open, and her eyelids drooped. “You—you can’t mean that.”

  “Jah, I do. It’s your fault Katie’s leaving.”

  Indignation rose in Eunice’s chest. “How can it be my fault?”

  He shifted on the sofa and moaned. “If you hadn’t started so many rumors about Katie, I don’t think she’d ever have decided to go back to Florida.”

  Eunice thrust out her chin and was going to defend herself when Fern stepped up to her and said, “Maybe it’d be best if you went home now. Freeman looks tired, and he needs to rest.”

  Eunice gave a quick nod and rushed out the door. She hurried to her buggy, untied the horse, and was soon on her way.

  “Well,” she mumbled, gripping the reins, “I may never have Freeman, but Katie won’t, either.”

  Eunice drew in a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm herself as she pulled out of the driveway. The trees lining the road swayed in the breeze, and the twittering of birds could be heard all around, but she barely took notice. “At the rate I’m going, I’ll never find a husband,” she mumbled. “Why have all my boyfriends pushed me away?”

  Eunice had gone only a short ways when she spotted a dead possum in the road. She guided her horse and buggy around it but had just moved back into her lane when the sunlight caught a piece of metal lying on the shoulder of the road. The flash of light from the reflection temporarily blinded her and apparently startled her horse. He whinnied, stopped dead in the road, and then backed straight into the ditch.

  Eunice snapped the reins, but the horse wouldn’t budge. She reached for the buggy whip and cracked it over the horse’s head. He lunged forward, but the buggy didn’t move. The wheels were stuck.

  She cracked the whip again, and the horse reared up. Clutching the reins, she tried to get him under control, but he only tossed his head from side to side and stomped his feet.

  Suddenly, the buggy lunged forward, rocked back and forth, and jerked to the right. The next thing Eunice knew, it had flipped on its side, spilling her out.

  She felt groggy from hitting the hard ground, but she didn’t think she’d been seriously hurt. Her first impulse was to jump up and run after her horse, which had managed to break free from the buggy and was galloping down the road. Before Eunice could make a move, she heard the rumble of buggy wheels coming down the road from the opposite direction. A few seconds later, the horse and buggy pulled in behind her rig. Andrew got out and secured his horse to a low-hanging branch.

  “Are you all right?” he asked, rushing over to Eunice.

  Inhaling slowly, she nodded and said, “I think so.”

  He reached out his hand to her. “How’d your buggy end up in the ditch?”

  She stood and brushed a clump of dirt from her dress; then she quickly explained how her horse had reacted to the reflection and had backed into the ditch.

  “Don’t think I can do much about your horse,” Andrew said. “He took off down the road like a flash of lightning and is probably halfway to your place by now. I’d be happy to give you a ride home, and then I can come back for your buggy later on.”

  “Danki.” Eunice hoped her smile would convey the feelings of gratitude she felt. This was the second time Andrew had offered his help when she was in need. Hmm ... maybe he would make a good husband.

  ***

  As Freeman lay on the sofa, he decided he had to see Katie, and it had to be now. Gritting his teeth, he winced as he rose from the sofa. He was almost to the back door when Fern stepped out of the kitchen and snapped her fingers. “Just where do you think you’re going?”

  “To the barn to get my horse.”

  “What for?”

  “I need to see Katie.”

  “Oh no, you don’t.” She positioned herself between him and the door. “You’re not up to going anywhere right now, much less hitching the horse to the buggy.”

  He leaned around her and reached for the doorknob, but a searing pain shot through his ribs, and he braced himself against the wall for support.

  Fern snapped her fingers again and pointed to the living room. “You ought to be lying down, and there’s no need for you to see Katie today.”

  “Jah, there is. She’s leaving tomorrow morning; you said so yourself.” He grunted and held his hands against his sore ribs. “I wish you’d have invited her in so I could’ve talked to her.”

  “Would you like me to go out to the phone shed and leave a message for Katie on their answering machine?”

  He shook his head. “She might not get the message before she leaves in the morning. I need to talk to her now.”

  Fern folded her arms and stared at Freeman as if he didn’t have a lick of sense. Several seconds went by; then she puckered her lips and said, “You’re in love with Katie, aren’t you?”

  “Jah. I don’t know if she could ever love me, but I can’t stand the thought of her leaving without me telling her the way that I feel.”

  Fern moved away from the door. “If you’re determined to go, then let’s wait until after supper, because it’s almost done.”

  “Us? Are you suggesting that you’ll go with me?”

  She nodded.

  “Huh-uh. I need to speak with Katie alone.”

  “That’s fine; I’ll wait in the buggy while you talk to her, but I can’t stay here and worry while you go there alone.”

  Freeman took a few minutes to think things through; then he finally nodded. It would be a lot easier if Fern drove the buggy. He turned toward the living room. “I’m going back to the sofa to rest. Call me when supper’s ready.”

  ***

  When Katie entered the barn after supper that evening, she was greeted by the gentle nicker of the horses in their stalls and the sweet smell of hay.

  She seated herself on a bale of straw and listened to the soft cooing of the pigeons in the rafters overhead. She’d come to say good-bye to Dixie and the other animals, but now that she was here, all she wanted to do was sit and cry. She would miss this place—her family, friends, and even the critters who lived in the barn. Most of all, she would miss Freeman. In the months since she’d come home from Florida, she had allowed herself to get closer to him than anyone else. She hadn’t even felt that close to Timothy. It had been as if she and Freeman were soul mates. The only problem was that she loved him and he loved Eunice.

  Katie moved across the room, reached over the gate in Dixie’s stall, and stroked the horse’s soft nose. Dixie whinnied and nuzzled Katie’s hand.

  Maybe it’s best that I didn’t get to say good-bye to Freeman, she decided. It would have been too painful. At least this time I’m not running away from the memory of the accident that took Timothy’s life. This time I’m going because I can’t stand the idea of seeing Freeman with Eunice, which to me is just as painful as losing someone in death.

  Katie backed away from the stall, doubled over, and gave in to her tears. She would never let herself fall in love again. She would be an old maid for the rest of her life.

  CHAPTER 45

  Freeman woke up with a start. The room was dark, and at first, he didn’t know where he was. Then he remembered that right after supper he’d gone back to the living room to rest one more time while Fern cleaned up the kitchen. They were supposed to head over to Katie’s as soon as Fern got done with the dishes. Apparently, he’d fallen asleep. What he couldn’t figure out was why Fern hadn’t awakened him. It made him wonder if she’d let him sleep so he couldn’t see Katie. From some of the things Fern had said in the past, Freeman knew that she liked Eunice a lot and hoped Eunice and Freeman would become a couple. He also knew that Fern saw Katie as an immature girl who had too many emotional problems, so it wouldn’t surprise him if Fern purposely had let him sleep.

&
nbsp; Freeman pulled himself to a sitting position, turned on the gas lamp on the table near the sofa, and groaned when he looked at the clock above the fireplace mantel. It was almost midnight! It was too late to go over to Katie’s now. He wished he knew exactly what time she planned to leave in the morning. Now he’d have to set his alarm clock to go off early and hope he would make it over to the Millers’ place before Katie left. If he didn’t get there on time, he might be making an unplanned trip to Florida.

  ***

  “I wish you’d change your mind and stay here with us,” Mom said tearfully as Katie set her suitcase by the front door.

  “I wish I could, but going back to Pinecraft is the best thing for me right now. Maybe someday I’ll come home again, but that might be a long time off.”

  Mom pulled Katie into her arms and gave her a hug. “I want you to know something before you go.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I’m sorry if I’ve seemed pushy or controlling. Since you’re the youngest of my kinner, it’s been hard for me to let go and allow you to make your own decisions.” She gently patted Katie’s back. “I hope you know how much I love you and only want what’s best for you.”

  Katie nearly choked on the sob rising in her throat. “I know that, Mom, and I love you, too.”

  “Your mamm and I will come down to Florida to visit you this winter,” Dad said, joining them in the hall. “It’ll be good to get out of the cold, snowy weather we’ll no doubt have here.”

  “I’d like that,” Katie said as she hugged him. “Maybe I’ll even have a place of my own by then.”

  Beep! Beep!

  “That must be Clarence and Mae’s driver,” Dad said. He picked up Katie’s suitcase and opened the door.

  She followed him outside, and Mom walked beside her to the van. Clarence and Mae were in the back, but when Dad put Katie’s suitcase inside, they both got out to say their good-byes to Mom and Dad.

  “Take care of our girl,” Mom said, hugging Mae.