Priscilla's Escape

by Diane Craver

  He noticed that Hannah wore a prayer covering over her brown hair. Her hazel eyes managed to look warm and assessing at the same time. She wore a short-sleeved dress with flip-flops. Here was another pretty Amish woman, but not as beautiful as Priscilla. “That sounds like fun. Thanks for inviting me. How old will she be?”

  “She’ll be twenty.” Hannah handed him a paper with the birthday information and her phone number. “Be sure not to let it slip. I think it’ll be fun to surprise her. I know she’ll miss her family on her birthday, but I’m hoping Priscilla will enjoy having a party with her new friends. I invited some from our youth group at the Amish church in Pinecraft.”

  Mitch picked up his water bottle and took a big drink. It didn’t look like Priscilla was going to join him by the pool.

  I guess I could call Hannah and ask her what she thinks Priscilla would like. I want it to be something memorable. I don’t want her to forget about our summer. If she should break up with her boyfriend, there’s a chance she might be more open to dating me. If I don’t become a rabbi, she might see me as more than a summer friend. I can go to law school at the University of Cincinnati. Priscilla hasn’t joined the Amish church, and I’ve seen the way she looks at me. I have a feeling she’s been sketching me. Maybe she wants to remember me when she returns to Ohio. Couples with different faiths do marry each other. It’s not impossible.

  Although he still wanted to become a rabbi, having Priscilla in his life would make him the happiest man. He had never felt this way before with any girl he’d dated. It was interesting that Hannah had invited him to the party. Had Priscilla talked about him to her friend?

  If he called Hannah to ask what to get for a birthday gift, maybe he could find out how serious Priscilla was about her boyfriend. Since she’d left Fields Corner to be a nanny, Priscilla might not be that into Stephen. Two months seemed like a long time if you were hopelessly in love with someone. He supposed that a problem was the distance and not being able to drive a car to see his girl. Stephen could take a bus, but flying would not be an option. Mitch had read online that the Old Order Amish never used planes for transportation. He’d found that interesting and couldn’t imagine being that limited. Although they didn’t drive automobiles, they hired drivers when traveling longer distances. Priscilla had said Hannah’s relatives paid for a driver to bring them to Florida, and it was nice they hadn’t needed to take a bus. It was hard for Mitch to imagine not having your own vehicle to drive places. Being dependent on a horse and buggy seemed like a difficult way to live. And what a nuisance to have to call a driver when you had a longer distance to travel.

  None of the Amish in the tiny village of Pinecraft had buggies and horses. Priscilla had commented on that while they were eating at Yoder’s Restaurant. She’d said it took some getting used to seeing many of the Amish riding two- or three-wheeled bicycles to get around. She laughed when an Amish woman had driven by the restaurant on a golf cart. Priscilla mentioned that no Amish person used a golf cart back home. If they didn’t have far to go in Pinecraft, the Amish preferred to walk. When heading to the beach, they might hire a taxi or take a ride on a city bus.

  Well, it might be beneficial for me that Stephen is far away. Even though Priscilla mentions talking with him a lot, she’s been warming up to me, Mitch thought.

  He could ask Heidi if she had any suggestions what to get Priscilla for a gift. They both were artists—but on second thought, asking Heidi would not be a good idea. For one reason, he doubted that Hannah had invited Heidi to the party. Priscilla might have mentioned the art show to Hannah, but that didn’t mean Heidi had been invited.

  He knew one thing he’d love to give her . . . a kiss. He’d give her a kiss on her luscious lips. If she complained about his kiss, he’d argue it was a birthday kiss. Usually, girls loved his kisses, but he was in uncharted waters with Priscilla. She was unlike the ones he’d dated in the past. Maybe she’d kiss him back. A shiver ran up and down his spine from thinking about holding Priscilla in his arms and kissing her.

  He was glad he’d talked to his dad about staying in Florida until after July fourth. That gave him a little more time to spend with Priscilla.

  * * *

  In the afternoon, Priscilla and Olivia made cookies and put M&M’s in the dough. Once Priscilla had the cookies on the baking sheets, Olivia pressed five candies on the top of each cookie. She’d told Priscilla, “Five pieces of candy for my age.”

  While the cookies baked, Priscilla helped Olivia with a Toy Story puzzle on the kitchen table. Olivia thought it funny that Priscilla had never heard of the popular Toy Story movies. She invited Priscilla to watch them with her sometime. She had watched a couple of movies with Madison and Olivia when she wasn’t busy painting. Usually, she valued her spare time in the evenings and painted.

  Madison came into the kitchen carrying her favorite coffee cup. It was bright red and had Best Mom in white letters on the mug. “I smelled something good coming from the kitchen, so I decided to see what you girls are up to.” She glanced at the kitchen countertop by the oven. “Oh good, I see you’re making M&M cookies. They are my favorite.”

  Priscilla had to tease her boss. “I thought you said that the oatmeal raisin cookies we made last week were your favorite.”

  Olivia grinned. “She also said that your chocolate chip cookies were the best ever. I think we have a cookie monster on our hands.”

  Squeezing her daughter’s shoulder, Madison laughed. “And this is coming from the biggest cookie monster ever. I knew I had to take a break to get cookies before they are all gone.”

  While Madison and Olivia continued talking, Priscilla thought about her own mother. She loved baking cookies and other desserts. When Priscilla baked with her sisters and mom, it was so much fun. Her mother made everyone feel cherished and important. Madison’s comment about smelling the cookies reminded Priscilla of her father. Whenever he was in his study, the sweet smells caused him to leave to see what they were baking.

  She missed her family. The weather wasn’t helping her mood. It’d been raining since early in the morning. She wondered if the crops were getting enough rain back home. Glancing out the huge window, she noticed it was still raining. She’d been surprised that there had been several days with pop-up showers, but it was obvious if she painted today it would be inside. Maybe she’d call her mother later today. It’d be nice to talk with her. Since she’d been away, her mother had never criticized her or been judgmental. Her letters were sweet and made Priscilla miss home even more. As much as she loved the beach, it would be nice to go back home earlier than she had originally expected. It was hard living in two different worlds. When she’d worked in the fabric store, it wasn’t a big deal. She’d gone back to her Amish home in the evening. At times, it was hard to decide if God wanted her to remain in the English world or to return to her Plain home.

  And would she be able to adapt to living without electrical appliances when she returned to Fields Corner? She liked using the microwave and enjoyed having an ice maker on the refrigerator. It was something pushing a button to have ice cubes poured into your glass. Although she enjoyed watching the episodes of When Calls the Heart on Madison’s Blu-ray player, Priscilla could live without watching television.

  I escaped home for many reasons, but I might be ready to escape all the worldliness here. Living a simple life keeps a person’s mind clearer to focus on God.

  Once back home, she’d miss Madison and especially Olivia. She was a lively, smart, and sweet little girl.

  When it came to Priscilla’s feelings about her next-door Jewish New Yorker, she was confused. Mitch made her feel uncomfortable at times with his intense glances. And that seemed crazy to her, because he was understanding, thoughtful, and kind. She’d finally accepted the notion that he was interested in dating her. Before his friends Kevin and Ryan had left to go home, Mitch always made time to see her. Why else would he want to take walks with her and take her to get ice cream?

  Mit
ch was another reason she wanted to return home. His attention and her response to him was disturbing. He wasn’t Amish or Christian, so she didn’t want to be attracted to him, but it was hard not to with his gorgeous looks.

  When the timer went off, Priscilla jumped up to remove the cookies. After grabbing pot holders and opening the oven door, she pulled out the cookie sheet on the top rack.

  Madison smiled at her. “You have made me look bad. I buy premade cookie dough for a shortcut when I bake cookies with Olivia.”

  Turning away from the oven, Priscilla said, “I’m sure they’re delicious too. The important thing is you’re spending time together in the kitchen. Besides, using a shortcut saves you time to enjoy other things together.”

  After the cookies had cooled for a bit and were placed on plates, Madison poured milk for them and they ate the cookies.

  “I think two cookies will be my limit for now.” Madison patted her stomach. “I don’t want to have too much weight gain for the next time I see my doctor.”

  Hearing Madison mention her doctor made Priscilla wonder what she was doing about her appointments. Although Madison was in the first trimester of her pregnancy, monthly appointments were still important. “Do you need to go home to see your doctor?”

  “I had an appointment before I left Ohio. My obstetrician gave me a name of someone to see here in Sarasota, but we decided to go home. I made an appointment yesterday, so I can just see my doctor, and this way Jason won’t have to travel here for a change. I thought maybe you could see if Hannah could stay with you at night, so you won’t be alone. I’ll miss your birthday, but I’ll be back in time to meet Stephen.”

  Priscilla thought it made sense for Madison to go home to see her own doctor, but why did she decide this now? Was there a problem that she wasn’t sharing? It seemed Madison had been feeling okay. “Maybe Stephen can come a week later, and Olivia can stay here with me.”

  Madison shook her head so hard that her blonde hair bounced against her shoulders. “I don’t want you and Stephen to change your plans. That’s sweet of you to offer, but Olivia wants to see a few of her friends in our neighborhood. Olivia and I will leave Thursday afternoon. My appointment is on Friday. We’ll fly back on Sunday.”

  Priscilla bit on her lower lip. It didn’t seem right for her to stay when she wouldn’t be working for Madison. She wondered about taking a bus home while they were gone, but that would be silly. She’d hardly get to spend any time at home before she would have to turn around and come back to Florida. “I’ll stay with Hannah when you leave. I don’t feel right being here while you’re gone. If I was allowed to fly, I could get home quickly by plane, and that way Stephen wouldn’t have to come here.”

  Madison gave her a startled glance. “I’m sorry. I don’t want you to change your plans. You should stay here for your birthday. I remember you said Stephen was excited about coming to Florida. I think he’ll enjoy seeing the Fourth of July fireworks too. They are amazing to see over the water.”

  Why did Madison care if she stayed here? Madison had already mentioned shortening the time of the job. That was fine, but now she was flying home to see her doctor. What if Madison decided not to come back?

  I disobeyed my parents by taking the nanny job, but maybe Daed will be so pleased if I return home now that he’ll forgive me.

  Olivia finished drinking her milk. “We are going to take you out for breakfast for your birthday before we leave.” She grinned. “You’ll get to celebrate a day early with us. That means you have two birthdays. One with us and one with Stephen.”

  Priscilla nodded and said, “That will be fun.”

  But anxiety smashed into her stomach because Priscilla didn’t know how to deal with Madison’s news. What if Hannah didn’t want her to stay at the beach house? It seemed safe enough to be by herself, she supposed, but would be weird to be in an empty house when Stephen arrived. Her parents wouldn’t think it was proper for her to be alone. She could go to the bed and breakfast to wait for him there and could stay with Hannah overnight there until Madison returned from Ohio.

  Chapter Twenty

  In the evening, the rain had stopped, so Priscilla went to the beach. She needed to breathe in the ocean air, hoping to clear her head. The sky over the beach was leaden gray, but the storm clouds on the horizon had disappeared. Her bare feet sank into the soft, wet sand. Wearing one of her Amish dresses and her white kapp felt right to her. Fortunately, she’d packed one of her older dresses, and it was a shorter length. She didn’t have to worry about the bottom of her dress getting wet if she got too close to the waves rolling in.

  Thankfulness filled her soul as she stopped walking to gaze at the beautiful turquoise water. Each time she stared at the ocean, she saw the greatness of God. His love and peace filled her whenever she quietly walked on the beach. When she tried to capture the beauty of God’s ocean on her canvas, she felt close to Him. The Lord gave her the talent she had, and hopefully, her paintings honored Him.

  As she gazed at the ocean, a someone behind her said, “Well, if it isn’t the bishop’s daughter.”

  She spun around, and her mouth tightened. It couldn’t be the one who’d frightened her when she was sixteen, but it was. Although she hadn’t seen him in years, Priscilla would never forget him. Fear went through her for a second, but she quenched it as soon as she could. She must not show fear or anxiety to Elmer Riehl. It was obvious he enjoyed seeing her speechless and shocked.

  “Hello, Elmer.” She noticed he wore a short-sleeved shirt with shorts. Had he left the Amish church? Or maybe he’d changed out of his Plain clothing to be more comfortable on the beach. But he had a neatly trimmed beard, so maybe he’d married. After an Amish man got married, he grew a beard. That might be a false assumption on her part, because it seemed many English men sported beards these days.

  “Are you living here now?”

  Priscilla shook her head, wishing she wasn’t alone. As she looked up at him, she noticed Elmer was bigger than she remembered. “Nee. I am visiting.”

  “That makes sense. I can’t imagine you leaving Fields Corner.” His eyes raked over her. “You are even more beautiful than I remember.”

  “I heard you moved to Florida. Are you living nearby?”

  He pulled on one of her kapp’s ties. “I see you’re still the proper Amish girl, wearing your hair covering even on the beach. And to answer your question, I live in Sarasota. Maybe we can rekindle our friendship. Ach, that’s right, you were too good to want my kisses.”

  His sarcasm wasn’t lost on her. “I don’t think you’re remembering what happened very well. You were giving me a ride home after a singing for the first time. We barely knew each other.”

  “That’s not true. I’m only a couple years older than you. We attended the same school. You knew me and teased me by eagerly agreeing for me to take you home. Then you protested when I kissed you.”

  “I think we have entirely different memories of what happened. You forced yourself on me.”

  A man yelled, “Hey, Riehl, get back here. We’re going to play now.”

  Priscilla looked in the direction of the voice and saw several young men. One held a volleyball and motioned to Elmer.

  “Catch you later,” Elmer said, then jogged away from her.

  “I hope not,” she mumbled. Since this was the first time she’d seen Elmer on the beach, he probably didn’t come often to Siesta Key. She could always hope that they wouldn’t meet again.

  When she heard her ringtone, Priscilla knew it was a little early for Stephen to call. She hoped it would be her mother calling her back. Once she pulled her phone out of a jacket pocket, she saw their home phone number on the screen. “Hello,” she answered eagerly.

  “Hello. It’s Daed.”

  When she heard her father’s greeting, her jaw dropped. She hadn’t expected to hear his voice. Was he calling to tell her to come home? “It’s good to hear your voice.”

  “How are you?”

&n
bsp; “I’m fine. How is everyone at home?”

  “Okay, except we all miss you.”

  “I might be coming home two weeks earlier. Madison is hoping to finish her book before the two months, and her husband is tired of flying to Florida on the weekends.”

  “How do you feel about that?”

  “I was surprised when she told me. I love the beach, but it’s not home.” She wondered why he was really calling her now. Was he going to tell her his secret? She’d been surprised that Molly hadn’t told her what their father had kept from them. Priscilla couldn’t imagine what it could be.

  “After you left and we read your letter, your mamm got on me about something that I never told you or the other kinner. I have realized it was wrong of me not to tell you . . . especially you.” He paused for a moment, then continued, “The first time your mother told me to tell you about my talent was before you left. It was the time that I told you to stop painting for a couple of months. I have never liked to talk about my past experience because it didn’t seem right for me to tell what my father did to me. I used to love to paint, and my mother did too. We painted in secret because our church district disapproved of it.”

  “You used to paint?” Priscilla said. She couldn’t believe her daed used to enjoy painting. She’d never seen him hold a paintbrush.

  “Ya. On a day your grandfather went to the attic to look for something, he saw me painting. He grabbed a ruler and hit my knuckles with it as hard as he could. When my paintbrush fell to the floor, he yelled at me to clean up the small amount of paint on the floor from the brush. He looked around the room and saw all the paintings my mother and I had done. But he only took mine. Your grandmother had put her initials on hers. I never knew why he didn’t take hers. He made me go with him when he set my paintings on fire.”