“Ya.” Annie was about to continue when Mark discreetly touched her arm – Barbara was trundling along, trying to reach them. As she walked, she huffed breathlessly.
“Hello, Mark. How are you today?” As Barbara spoke, a smile stretched widely across her round face, seeming to split it in two.
“We’re fine. If you don’t mind, I’m here, visiting with Annie. Good night.” Lightly touching Annie’s elbow, he directed her back to her father’s farm, where they sat on the porch swing to talk and enjoy the cool evening. Mark pushed the swing gently back and forth, using the toes of his boots to propel the slow, back-and-forth motion.
The couple continued talking quietly, telling each other about their childhoods as they continued getting to know each other. Occasionally, Mark glanced at the distant road, seeing Barbara continuing to walk back and forth in front of the Fisher farm. Every so often, she would stare at them, as if waiting for something.
“Mark, would you like to come inside? She is making me . . . uncomfortable, with all that walking and staring,” Annie said softly.
“Wunderbarr, yes! I feel as if she is waiting for me to start courting her! And she is not the one I want to court . . .” Mark said, standing up. He opened the front door and ushered Annie into the house.
CHAPTER FOUR
Inside the Kurtz home, Barbara stewed, not troubling to hide her irritation. Her father sighed tiredly, shutting his eyes and shaking his head. As he did so, his wife glared at him.
“Barbara, what is wrong?” he asked. “You’re pacing, frowning and slamming things down.”
“Nothing. Nothing!” Barbara’s voice began to take on its over-dramatic tone and her father sighed once again.
“Something is upsetting you. Kumm, tell me,” he said, injecting patience into his voice.
“Daed, why do I not have a suitor? I’m . . . fairly attractive. I’m a good Amish woman, I follow the Ordnung . . . and still, no suitors!”
“Was in der welt?” What are you . . . who are you talking about?” Mr. Kurtz shook his head in confusion.
“Ach, don’t be so mupsich!” snapped Mrs. Kurtz. “She is looking for a suitor and they aren’t seeing what a fine Amish woman she is – that she would make an excellent wife! Barbara, kumm. Let’s talk.”
In Barbara’s room, she and her mother discussed her feelings for Mark Stoltzfus and his failure to notice her.
“Mamm, I would make him a good wife! Better than that skinny little Annie Fisher would! Barbara Stoltzfus . . . it even sounds good!” griped Barbara. “She has taken his attention when it should have been mine.” She scowled as she looked down at the hooked rug underneath her feet.
“Barbara, here is what you do. You have to make him notice you. He will start looking at you and making comparisons between you and Annie. Pah! You’ll make stronger children for him. Annie is too thin. She won’t be able to withstand the rigors of pregnancy and childbirth! Here . . . do this. You know his schedule, ya? When he works in his shop and when he courts Annie? You will start showing up and getting his attention. He will take notice of you, never fear. And, as he gets to know you, he will begin to shift his attention to you. I will talk to your daed and get him to allow you to begin courting once Mark Stoltzfus asks us for our permission.” Mrs. Kurtz nodded her head sharply once, as if the parental permission had already been granted, quite forgetting that the man in question still had to approach her and her husband.
Barbara grinned widely again. Because she was so unaccustomed to smiling, she bared her teeth, giving her a manic look as she nodded in response to her mother.
***
Barbara began her campaign immediately, working to get Mark’s attention everywhere in Peace Landing. When she was not helping her mother at home, she was in the buggy, driving slowly all over the Amish community. When she spotted Mark, she would either ride past his location repeatedly or stop at his carpentry shop, trying to get his attention as he worked on customers’ orders. She familiarized herself with his visits to the Fisher farm to spend time with Annie. She would either walk back and forth on the road adjoining the farm or she would ride back and forth in the buggy.
Mark began to feel as though he were a delectable insect being slowly enclosed in a black widow’s spider web. He felt constricted, as if he was being watched, and free movement within the community became impossible. Even worse, Barbara was frankly spying on his courting visits with Annie. After several weeks of Barbara’s stalkerish behavior, he finally came to a decision. Walking to the Fisher farm so his visit would not be detected, he approached John Fisher with his concerns.
“Mr. Fisher, everywhere I go, Barbara Kurtz is there. Whether I’m working or spending time here with Annie, she is watching me. I have been courting Annie now for several months, and we still need to get to know each other better before . . . well, before we make a decision about marriage. Sir, we cannot do that if Barbara Kurtz is watching all of our conversations. I would like your permission to come here and pick Annie up so I can take her to our farm, where we can visit and court, under my parents’ supervision, please.”
“Ya, I have seen her going through Peace Landing. Until today, I didn’t know what she was doing. Now, I do, and it is . . . disturbing. Ya, Mark, you have my permission, as long as you have Annie back here before it gets dark,” said John.
“Denki, Mr. Fisher! I will have her back on time. Her good reputation is important to me, as well. Is she nearer to baptism?”
“Yes, she is! She has spoken to the ministers and they have accepted her request. She will soon be ready to make her confession of faith,” answered John.
“Denki, sir. I would like to pick her up after supper this evening, if that is okay with you. I will have her home before it gets dark.”
“Ya, that is fine with me . . . let me know if you have any more problems with Barbara Kurtz. I get along with her father, and I will be happy to speak with him,” John offered.
As Mark considered the offer, he felt a strong wave of apprehension, but he could not figure out what caused it.
“Nee, nee, nee, Mr. Fisher. That won’t be necessary. As long as I visit with Annie at our farm . . .”
“She has been following you around town as you work and deliver orders, Mark. I don’t like what I see happening. You’re a fine, intelligent young man and I like you.”
“Mr. Fisher, I get the feeling that, if anyone speaks to her family, something will happen. Why I get that feeling, I don’t know. If she continues following me, I have no problem telling her to leave me alone. It won’t bother me to tell her I’m not interested in her,” Mark said, standing straight.
John Fisher sighed. “Okay. But, I am going to keep an eye on her. I won’t let her or her family know. If I see anything that troubles me, I will speak to you and your parents.” As he finished speaking, Annie came to them, toting a large laundry basket.
“Daed, what is troubling you? Hello, Mark,” she said, greeting the two men.
Mark sent a silent message to John, telling him that he didn’t want Annie knowing what had been happening.
“It’s nothing. Mark came to me with a small request – when he comes to visit, he will be taking you to the farm,” John told Annie.
“Ach. Okay. You mean, because Barbara Kurtz has become our shadow lately?” Annie tilted her head at her father and Mark, giving them both a smile.
Mark laughed. “Ya, because she has been spying on us. What she is doing isn’t right, and, the next time I see her following me, I plan to tell her so.”
“Gut. Seeing her watching us is . . . unsettling, to say the least.”
As Annie finished speaking, Mark got the uneasy feeling she knew what he and her father had been discussing.
“Annie, I will pick you up after supper and take you to our house. Your daed has given us this permission, as long as . . .”
“I am back before it’s fully dark. I’m looking forward to it!” Giving him a bright smile, she waved and returned to hanging cl
ean laundry outside.
“Sir, does she keep you on your toes?” Mark laughed, shaking his head.
“Ya! She is too smart for us. Mark, I think she knows what we were talking about. You’ll have to tell her, sooner, rather than later,” John warned.
“Ya. I will, but not until the time is right. I don’t want to scare her . . . “Mark said, glancing around to make sure that Annie wasn’t close by.
That evening, Mark knocked at the back door just as Annie had tossed the wet dish towel and her apron into the laundry basket. Picking up a warm sweater, she greeted him and pointed to the barn, where her father and mother were.
“Daed, mamm, we’re leaving now. I will be back before dark,” Annie promised. Mark took her hand as he helped her get into his buggy. Looking surreptitiously around, he assured himself that Barbara Kurtz was nowhere nearby. Flicking his horse’s rump, he started the ride to his parents’ farm. At the farm, his mother poured glasses of lemonade and gave Mark a plate of cookies, which they took outside with them. As they visited and talked with each other, they munched the delicious, homemade cookies.
“So, tell me how you scared your daed when you climbed your apple tree,” Mark requested with a smile creasing his lean cheeks.
“I followed my cousin. He had my book and I wanted it back. We both got into so much trouble, but I got my book back!” Annie said, giggling.
Mark gently pushed the porch swing after placing the plate of cookies onto his lap. Chewing thoughtfully, he remembered the time he had hidden himself from his cousin. He had gotten in trouble when his cousin went, wailing, to his parents, saying he couldn’t find Mark.
“Ya, I’ve done the same. My cousin wanted to play a game that bored me, so I hid from him. I couldn’t have been more than 6 then. My daed switched me hard for that one!”
Annie giggled, seeing the scene in her mind. Later, in the buggy, she shivered and pulled her sweater around her.
“Cold?”
“I’m gut. I will be warm in a minute. Do you have a full workday planned for tomorrow?
“Ya. I have a big order I am finishing for an Englischer family in town. Once that’s delivered, I start a new order. What do you have planned?” Mark asked.
“I will be working on more doll quilts for the Beiler’s tourist business, then I need to get some cleaning and cooking done for my mamm. I’d also like to further discuss how she handles her more . . . ‘difficult’ students so I know what to do. We’re discussing some options,” Annie said.
“By ‘difficult,’ you’re referring to Barbara Kurtz’ little brothers. Right?”
Annie nodded. “Figuring out the key to helping them might give me an idea of how to deal with Barbara. She’s never liked me, but lately . . .”
“She really doesn’t like you. Listen. I need to talk to you. This needs to come from me, rather than anyone else. The reason I am bringing you to my parents’ farm for visits . . . is because of . . .”
“Barbara. She’s been following us – you – everywhere. Mark, I’ve heard the gossip. I haven’t participated, but I’ve heard how she turns up wherever you happen to be, working or not. You’re worried.” The last two words were a statement, not a question.
Mark sighed. “Ya, I am worried. If she keeps following me, I plan to tell her directly that I’m not interested in her – not in that way,” Mark said resolutely.
Annie’s eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. “Ach, I do not envy you that!”
Mark dropped the reins with one hand and pointed at Annie. “You also have to be careful. I don’t trust her. Something feels . . . wrong . . . about what she’s doing, but I can’t put a finger on it,” Mark mused.
Annie’s eyes widened even more at Mark’s solemn words. “Okay, I’ll be careful. But you’re scaring me!”
“You should be scared. My message to her that I don’t like her hasn’t gotten through. She’s not hearing what I’m saying.”
Annie felt a cold breeze of apprehension blow through her body. Shivering, she nodded slowly and wrapped her arms around herself. At her farm, Mark walked her to her front door, tipping his hat just before he left. She walked in, slowly closing the door.
“Annie? Is everything okay?” Mary asked.
“Ya, mamm. No, it isn’t Can we talk?” Annie asked, walking into the crafting room.
“Annie, what is it?” Mary asked with a look of concern clouding her gentle brown eyes.
“Mamm, Mark and I were talking while he was bringing me home. He got daed’s permission to take me to his farm for our visits because of – because of Barbara. She has been watching us as we visit here. She drives through Peace Landing, looking for him, and when she finds him, she, well, she bothers him while he’s working. He has told her he doesn’t like her, but she’s not listening to him. He told me to be careful around her, Mamm. That . . . scared me,” Annie said, rubbing her arms again.
Mary sighed, taking Annie’s hand and pulling her down into a padded chair.
“He’s right. Annie, you know how we Amish descend from only a few families. Because of this we are more likely to develop disorders than the Englischer people. These disorders don’t have to be only physical – they can be mental as well. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Annie’s smooth brow creased as she thought. “You mean, because we have only a few bloodlines, conditions that the Englischers might not have, we get?”
“Ya, exactly. Mr. and Mrs. Kurtz are third cousins. Therefore, any conditions that run in their family are more likely to develop in their children.”
“And you think Barbara – and her brothers – might have inherited a mental illness that runs in their family? And this is why Mark wants me to be careful?”
“Ya, Annie. He may not know what I’m telling you. But his instinct is telling him something is not right within the Kurtz family.”
“Oh. Okay. Mamm, she has never liked me, but now that Mark is courting me, . . .
“It’s outright dislike. Ya, Annie. I have been hearing things throughout Peace Landing. I’m glad Mark talked to you tonight. He is right. You do need to be very, very careful.”
***
Over the next several weeks, Annie continued working with her mother to get ready for her first year as a school teacher. Annie visited Mr. Kopp and the school board, during a meeting, to ask them to consider hiring an Englischer therapist to work with the Kurtz children. During that meeting, Annie was required to lean heavily on the education she had received in the community college. Using the knowledge she had gained, as well as relying on her mother’s long-standing professional relationship with the board, she convinced them to think about the therapist.
“Denki, Mr. Kopp. I can promise you that any therapist you might authorize me to speak to will only work with the Kurtz children. And, naturally, everything will stay completely confidential,” Annie said calmly, feeling strong relief that she had gotten this far.
***
At about the same time that Annie was talking to the school board about hiring a therapist to work with the Kurtz children, Barbara Kurtz began realizing that something had happened with Mark. He isn’t visiting her anymore? Did they stop seeing each other? If they have, I need to remind him that he can start visiting with me! The next morning, after she had hurried through her chores, she offered to do the shopping for her family. Accepting the money and a list, she left hurriedly, thinking she could shop after she had found out where Mark was.
Finding him coming back to Peace Landing after delivering furniture, she waved wildly at him when she recognized him and his horse. Wanting to be seen as attractive, she pasted what she thought was a vivacious, friendly smile on her face.
Mark sighed heavily, seeing the plump woman approaching him.
“Ya, Barbara?”
“I just realized that you aren’t seeing Annie Fisher - that is, I haven’t seen you visiting her.” Barbara grinned again, the corners of her lips quivering nervously.
“Nee. We are
still courting. You are wrong. Barbara, I don’t know where you got the idea that I’m interested in you. I am not. I am courting Annie Fisher. Good-bye.” Mark gently flicked the reins on his horse, starting him trotting again. “Don’t follow me, Barbara. I mean what I say – I am not interested in you.” Mark’s deep voice grew deeper as he solemnly told her that he didn’t find her attractive. Turning to face his horse, he left quickly.
Barbara was stunned and breathless. Never . . . never! Had anyone ever talked to her in that way! Setting her round face into a pronounced frown, she flicked the horse’s reins hard and drove to town for the grocery shopping. When she was done, she came back to Peace Landing quickly, wanting only to lick her wounds and brood over Mark’s harsh words. At home, she unloaded the buggy quickly and helped her mother put everything away.
Once that was done, she made a beeline for her bedroom, where she slammed the door resoundingly and collapsed onto her bed. Propping her plump face in both hands, she ruminated on the entire encounter. I don’t know where you got the idea that I’m interested in you. Don’t follow me, Barbara. Sighing deeply with an air of hurt pride, she decided something had to happen – to Annie. At a harsh knock on the door, Barbara grumbled under her breath.
“Ya?”
“Barbara, it’s me. Let me in,” her mother commanded.
Barbara knew better than to defy her mother – she would never hear the end of it! Grumbling some more under her breath, she stomped to the door and opened it.
“Why did you slam the door?”
Barbara told her mother the whole story, including Mark’s order not to follow her. “Mamm, he told he doesn’t like me! He’s the only man in Peace Landing that I like! What am I going to do?” As she spoke, she picked up a small clay figurine sitting on her dresser and threw it against the wall. Hearing the shattering sound, she felt oddly satisfied.
“Barbara, we will talk and I will tell you how to handle Mark Stoltzfus. Then, you will go downstairs for the broom and dustpan. You will sweep that figurine up. You will!” ordered Mrs. Kurtz.
Simple Amish Love 3-Book Collection Page 3
