Josiah and Luke kept vigil at the fence. Josiah’s gaze darted back and forth between Paul and Dan. Luke cleaned his fingernails with a pocketknife. His casual stance didn’t fool Dan. He looked like a hornet’s nest, poised to explode with one stiff poke.
Dan felt like a hornet’s nest himself. For years Paul had been feeding Lily lies, not only about herself but about Dan and his family. Could he ever hope to counteract Paul’s poison?
He took off his hat and scrubbed his fingers through his hair. Every muscle in his body ached at the thought of losing Lily. Every instinct told him he didn’t have a chance. Paul had his hooks in her but good, and he wouldn’t let go without a fight.
Dan wanted to cry. He wanted to overturn a few buggies in his path. He wanted to yell at the sky until somebody up there heard him.
He wanted Lily. He was strong enough to fight for her but smart enough to know he couldn’t do it alone.
Dan squared his shoulders. If Paul wanted a fight, he’d get a fight.
What better person to help him than the woman who swung a mean meat cleaver and carried an unloaded shotgun?
Time to call on Aendi Bitsy.
Chapter Twenty-Five
How appropriate that Bitsy would open the door with her trusty meat cleaver in her fist. Dan took a step back in case it slipped out of her hands and chopped off his foot.
“Ach, Dan. It’s only you. Cum reu, but don’t let any bees fly in with you.”
It’s only you? Who was she hoping to greet with that meat cleaver?
Dan tucked his bundle underneath his arm and pushed the door open wider. He gasped in amused surprise when he saw the new meat cleaver divot right in the center of the kitchen table. “Has the mouse been up on the furniture?”
Bitsy folded her arms with the cleaver still in her hand. It stood straight up like a stop sign. “Your mousetrap didn’t work. I’m beginning to think you don’t know anything, Dan Kanagy.” She motioned toward the window seat with her shoulder where the cat lounged in padded luxury. “Farrah Fawcett better have lost her sense of smell or I’m about ready to turn her out of the house for neglecting her mouse duties.”
As if summoned, that pesky mouse skittered from beneath the table and toward the storage room. Bitsy didn’t even bother chasing it. She pitched that meat cleaver like a tomahawk in the mouse’s direction. The mouse disappeared into the storage room unharmed. The cleaver landed with its pointy corner stuck an inch into the floor. Bitsy had a very gute aim. Still, Dan didn’t like the idea of dodging meat cleavers every time he came over.
They really needed to get rid of that mouse while he still had toes and while Bitsy still had a wood floor.
Not to mention the fact that Farrah Fawcett’s way of life was in jeopardy.
Bitsy pointed to her cat. “Farrah Fawcett, how could you not know he was hiding under the table this whole time? Don’t look at me like that. I know you saw him.”
Farrah Fawcett deigned to lift her head and peer at Bitsy as if she were the scullery maid. Bitsy narrowed her eyes. That cat was treading on dangerous ground.
Dan held up the shoe box he’d brought with him. “I think I finally discovered a mousetrap that will work.”
Bitsy retrieved her cleaver from the floor. “I don’t put much stock in your promises anymore, Dan Kanagy.”
He laid the shoe box, tape, and scissors on the table along with the gift he had brought in a brown paper bag.
She immediately peeled back the brown paper and raised an eyebrow. “Everclear and a shoe box? Do you want to get drunk and then go dancing?”
Dan chuckled. “Nae. It’s a gift. My book says that Everclear is gute for removing propolis from frames because it’s not toxic.”
“Gute, because I’ll have you know that alcohol has never touched these lips before, and I’m not about to start now.” She leaned in close to whisper, “I have done a little dancing in my day, but don’t tell the girls. I don’t want them to get any ideas.”
He couldn’t help but grin. “Of course not.”
“What’s the shoe box for?”
“It’s for the new mousetrap,” Dan said. “Very simple, and hopefully it will work.”
Dan carried the mousetrap supplies to the counter while Bitsy shoved the bottle of Everclear underneath the sink behind the garbage can. “I’ll take this to the honey house when the coast is clear,” she said. “And denki. It’s a thoughtful, innocent gift that no respectable Amish woman would buy for herself.”
Dan smiled. “All we need to do for this mousetrap is cut a trapdoor in the top so the mouse will fall through into the box. He won’t be able to get out once he’s in there.”
He drew a square on the lid, and Bitsy cut it out with the scissors. She seemed to have forgotten about her meat cleaver. Now would be a gute time to act. “Bitsy,” he said, cutting out a trapdoor from the sheet of cardstock he’d brought, “I need to tell you something.”
She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and frowned. “Did you trample my dandelions on the way in?”
“Paul Glick has convinced Lily to sell your honey to him for a dollar a pint when he knows it’s worth four times that much. He’s using his friendship to cheat you out of your profits. He makes Lily feel guilty and tells her he’s doing her a favor.” Dan put down the scissors and caught Bitsy’s gaze. “He’s not. And your family is suffering because of it.”
“I see.”
“There’s a woman in Shawano who wants to buy all your honey for $4.00 a pint. She’ll be here in a few minutes to talk to you about it. We can stop Paul from taking advantage of you.”
Bitsy spread her hands and leaned them on the counter. “Why are you so concerned with the price we get for our honey?”
“Because Paul shouldn’t be allowed to cheat you like that.”
Bitsy looked at him as if she could read his mind. “Do you really want to help us? Or do you just want to get back at Paul for having first dibs on the girl you love?”
She knocked the wind right out of him. “How did you . . . what are you saying?”
She shook her head as if annoyed that she needed to explain herself. “I’ve got eyes. You’ve loved her since that first night you came to my door.”
Dan didn’t even try to deny it. He sighed and slumped his shoulders until they were almost scraping the floor. “A lot longer than that.”
“No need to get dramatic. Boys have been in love with my girls before, you know.”
“I don’t doubt it.”
“But you’re different. Aside from the fact that you’re not careful with dandelions, you’re a gute boy who puts his love into action. I can get a lot of work done around here from a lovesick boy. It only stands to reason that you want to nudge Paul out of the way.”
“I never set out to steal another boy’s girlfriend, but Paul isn’t right for her. You probably can’t see it, but he doesn’t treat her well.”
“I see everything, Dan Kanagy, and don’t you forget it.” She pointed her finger in his direction. “No more kissing on my porch.”
A shocked laugh escaped his lips. “You know about that?”
She curled her lips. “I do now.”
His mouth fell open. She’d tricked a confession out of him.
She didn’t, however, waste time dwelling on it. “Rose, Poppy, and I have all been worried sick about how Paul treats Lily. Contrary to what you think, we can all see it.”
“If they marry, he’ll crush her spirit.”
“He’d very nearly done it until you came along.” She taped the cardstock over the hole in the shoe box. “I asked Gotte every day to show me the way.” She inclined her head in his direction. “I prayed you here.”
Dan gazed at her doubtfully. “I’ve never been an answer to someone’s prayer before.”
“Don’t get a big head about it.”
“It only makes me anxious that I’ll mess things up.”
“My Lily took it wonderful hard when her parents died. She buried
herself in her books so she wouldn’t have to linger in the pain. She has always been so sensitive, so easily wounded. She saw Paul as her champion during a difficult time in her life. She is very grateful to him.”
Dan felt the familiar lump in his throat. “If it hadn’t been for me . . .”
“You were a pill, Dan Kanagy.”
“You have to believe I didn’t mean for my teasing to hurt her.”
Bitsy nodded. “It doesn’t matter how it was meant, only how it was taken. Eight years ago, I saw Paul Glick as an answer to my prayers. At least Lily had a boy who paid attention to her.”
The shame nearly choked him. “I know.”
“Lily feels that she owes Paul a huge debt of gratitude. Her loyalty overshadows every decision she makes and motivates her to excuse every mean and selfish thing Paul does. At her lowest point, when she felt ugly and unlovable, Paul gave her a little attention.”
She might as well have buried that meat cleaver in his chest.
Studying his face, Bitsy said, “What’s done is done. You can’t take it back.”
“I might not be able to fix it either.”
“Paul has shoved my Lily down so many times that she believes she doesn’t deserve any better. And he’s made her think he’s wiser and more righteous than she is so she doesn’t dare question him. We’ve done our best here at home to help her see herself the way she really is, but Paul’s influence isn’t easily undone.”
Bitsy draped her arm over Dan’s shoulder, and he thought maybe her eyes got a little misty. “And then you showed up. You don’t even know how to make a good mousetrap, yet you’ve done more good for my girl in one short month than Rose, Poppy, or I have done in years of trying. And you’re about to mess it up because you want revenge on Paul Glick.”
“Not revenge. He’s cheated you out of a lot of money over the years. I want to see you get the money you deserve.”
“Sounds like revenge at Lily’s expense.”
“Nae,” Dan said. “I would never do anything to hurt Lily.”
Bitsy pinned him with a look that could have withered all her dandelions. “You told her you trust her to make the right decision about Paul. You told her you think she’s smart.”
“I do.”
“Do you really? Because if you and I make this money decision for her, she’ll know we don’t truly have confidence in her ability to make the right choice. We’ll crush her confidence as sure as Paul ever did. Even if I go broke, she has to know that I trust her to do what is best for our family. If you invite that buyer over, all your professed faith will evaporate and your words will sound hollow and insincere. That’s what she gets from Paul. She doesn’t need it from you.”
Dan ran his fingers through his hair. “I would never push her around or browbeat her into doing something she didn’t want to do.”
“But that’s exactly what you’re doing. You’re letting your anger cloud your judgment. Paul manipulates Lily to get his way. He thinks it’s his right as a man and her future husband. He justifies himself by telling her she’s not smart enough or by making her believe he’s more righteous. He convinces her that her opinions and desires are worthless, that she is worthless.”
They heard the faint rumble of a car engine coming up the lane. Dan glanced at Bitsy. “There’s the honey buyer.”
“Get rid of her, or break Lily’s heart.”
Dan pressed his lips into a hard line and nodded. “I’ll get rid of her.”
“Do you want to take my shotgun?”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Lily followed the car up the lane in her buggy. They didn’t often get Englisch visitors at the Honeybee Farm, especially this late in the day. The sun had already dipped halfway below the horizon.
“Who do you suppose that is?” Rose said, peering out the window and clutching the potted chrysanthemum Mammi had given her.
Poppy squinted against the car’s bright red taillights. “It looks like somebody with really big hair.”
The car stopped and parked behind the familiar open-air buggy that Lily had come to love seeing parked in her lane. Her pulse quickened at the mere thought of Dan Kanagy. He’d probably brought plans for a new mousetrap. Oh, that his designs would never work so he would have to come back again and again!
“Dan’s here,” Poppy said, as if it were the best news they’d had all day.
Definitely the best news they’d had all day. The visit with Mammi and Dawdi had been taxing. Dawdi kept dropping hints that once Lily had married Paul, Poppy and Rose would move in with them. Lily and Poppy finally had to put their collective feet down to stop such talk. Even if Lily married Paul, there was no chance that Poppy and Rose would consider leaving Aunt B.
Rose fingered one of her tiny chrysanthemum petals. “It wonders me if Dan bought anything at the auction this morning. He said Josiah Yoder was going to help him pick out a heifer for the dairy.”
Lily pulled the buggy beside the car and set the brake. Rose left her chrysanthemum on the seat as Lily and her sisters climbed out of the buggy, linked arms, and stood between the buggy and the car ready to greet the Englisch visitor.
A middle-aged woman with curly, brown hair and impossibly long fingernails gave them a toothy smile and jumped out of her car. “Is one of you girls Bitsy? Dan Kanagy asked me to come by and talk to you.”
Lily smiled back. “Actually, we are her nieces. I’m Lily. This is Poppy and Rose. My aunt Bitsy is probably inside.”
The woman shook hands with the three of them. “I’m Carole Parker. I run a specialty market in Shawano. Dan says you have some honey you want to sell, and I’m ready to buy. The tourists love anything Amish, even honey.”
Lily gazed at her in confusion. “Dan asked you to come by?”
“Yes. He called me this morning and wanted me to talk to your aunt Bitsy about honey. He says the market here in Bienenstock doesn’t pay you near enough, and he thought Bitsy would want to know she has options.”
“I’m in charge of selling our honey,” Lily stuttered, finding it hard to breathe. She’d already told Dan that she would sell to Paul. Hadn’t she explained herself well enough? Her heart sank. Jah, she had explained herself fine. He simply hadn’t approved of her decision.
The front door opened, and Dan appeared on the porch. “Carole,” he called, practically sprinting down the steps.
“Hi, Dan. It’s nice to see you again.”
Dan barely acknowledged her greeting as his eyes darted from Lily to Carole and back again. “Something’s come up, and today is not a good day. Can I call you later?”
Carole put her hands on her hips and did a quick visual inspection of the house and garden. “All right. I suppose you know where to find me.” She reached into her bright yellow handbag and pulled out a business card. “Do you like my bag? We sell these at the store. They’re made by a local crafter. The tourists like local.” She slipped the business card into Lily’s hand. “Call me when you’re ready to sell. Don’t let those folks at the Amish market shortchange you. I’ll buy every pint you’ve got.” Carole climbed back into her car and spun the wheels before finding purchase on the gravel and backing down the lane.
A wave of nausea nearly knocked Lily over. She gazed after Carole, pretending to be very interested in the car inching its way off her property. Even though she didn’t look, she could tell Dan was staring at her. Was he trying to find a way to soften his rebuke?
Guess what, Lily? You are too stupid to run your own honey business so I thought I’d step in and save you.
Poppy and Rose stiffened beside her. They were staring at her too, as if they’d suddenly figured out whom to blame for their money troubles.
Lily wanted to shrink into a little ball and blow away with the wind.
With her gaze squarely focused on Dan, Poppy turned on like a switch. She grabbed Rose’s elbow, pulled her along, and marched toward the house. “We’ll go see what B is up to.”
Just like that they disappeared, le
aving Lily and Dan standing there all by themselves.
Dan slid his hands into his pockets. “It seemed like a good idea this morning,” he said weakly.
Lily felt sick at heart. “You didn’t think I’d be here.”
His gaze intensified. “I was wrong to ask her to come. You’re the one who makes the financial decisions.”
“You went behind my back,” she murmured, more to herself than anyone else. “Because I’m ruining the family finances.”
“You are not ruining anything. I shouldn’t have invited Carole over. I wasn’t thinking straight.”
Dan always talked a good story, but the truth was plainly written on his face. He thought he needed to save her and her family from her stupidity. All his talk of her being smart was just talk.
That knowledge hurt more than any name he’d ever called her. Dan, who’d claimed to have complete confidence in her, had gone straight to Aunt B. The shame nearly engulfed her. “I’m . . . I’m not as dumb as you think I am, Dan Kanagy. There are other things to consider besides profits.” Lily said, feeling her power sinking even as she tried to sound forceful.
“I know, Lily. You’re right. I’m sorry.”
Even though Dan had backed down, Lily felt compelled to defend herself. “Paul is smart about these things. He gives us a lower price but takes on more risk by agreeing to buy all of my honey, no matter how much is left over at the end of the year. He loves me. He’s willing to sacrifice profits so that we have a place to sell our honey no matter what.”
Something flared hot behind Dan’s eyes. He suddenly wasn’t backing down anymore. “Have you ever had honey left over?”
His question took her confidence down a notch. She didn’t know how much excess honey Glick’s Market had at the end of each year. Paul always took care of those details. “Paul loves me,” she said, her voice cracking like an eggshell. “He doesn’t want me to have to worry about it.”
“It’s so kind of Paul to take care of you,” Dan said, the bitterness evident in his voice. “You’re barely scraping by on all that kindness.”
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