But Seth was ignoring her at the moment. And who could blame him?
****
Seth skated alone on the outer edge of the pond, thinking to himself that he wished he’d never agreed to chaperone the skating party. He felt humiliated at the thought of his earlier daydreams of skating romantically with Lillian. It was obvious that she’d been escorted by Henry Graber. He didn’t know much about the lad, except that he, himself was more than ten years older than the young man. He felt suddenly very old—too old to be skating among the youth. But he was a chaperone tonight, which made him feel that much older.
Abby bumped into Seth. “Aren’t you going to skate with Lillian?”
Seth hung his head. “She’s here with Henry Graber. He escorted her; I can’t just take his date from him.”
Abby smiled. “Sure you can. She doesn’t look like she’s having a very good time with him. She almost looks like she’s trying to skate away from him. What I don’t understand is why she didn’t mention Henry escorting her. She told me she was going with Hannah and Jonathon.”
“Maybe she didn’t want me to know about it. But she promised me a skate around the pond when I saw her yesterday. She seemed genuinely happy about the idea. Maybe I was wrong.”
Abby smiled. “There’s only one way to find out.”
As Lillian and Henry were skating by, Abby shoved Seth into them. Henry broke free from Lillian to keep from falling, but she began to fall until Seth reach out a hand and steadied her. It irritated him that Henry skated away to save himself, but that didn’t matter now. He was holding Lillian, and she was smiling for the first time tonight.
“Are you hurt?”
She smoothed the flap of her coat. “Nee, I’m fine.”
“I’m sorry I’m so clumsy. I didn’t mean to scare off your date.”
Lillian flashed him a confused look. “Henry’s not my date. He rode with my schweschder and me, but he didn’t escort me.”
Now it was Seth’s turn to smile. “I have to admit, I’m happy to hear that. May I skate with you?”
She tightened her grip on his arm that she hadn’t yet let go of. “I thought you’d never ask.”
Seth whisked her across the ice as though they were made to skate together. She felt comfortable in his arms, and he now wished the night would never end.
****
Henry stood on the outside edge of the pond fuming. But when he caught sight of Abby skating alone, he knew the best way to seek vengeance against Seth for stealing Lillian away was to skate with his young niece. Pushing off with one foot, he skated fast to catch up with Abby. He held his arm out to her and she took it with a smile.
“You’re Abby, jah?”
“Jah. And you’re Henry? I thought you were Lillian’s date.”
“Nee. I came here with my cousin, Jonathon and his betrothed.”
Abby looked at him whimsically. “Hannah and Jonathon are to be married?”
“Jah. The Bishop will publish their wedding at next week’s service. How about you? Do you have a beau?”
Abby giggled. “Nee. My daed says I’m too young.”
Henry smiled. “How old are you?”
Abby slowed a little so she could skate at the same pace as Henry. “I’m fifteen.”
Henry pulled her toward the opening of the dead brush around the edge of the pond so they could step off the ice. “So you’ve entered your rumschpringa years.”
Abby shook her head. “My daed says I’m not allowed to have a rumschpringa either, even though he told me I could have one when I first met him.”
“Wait a minute. You’re the girl that moved here a few years ago when you found your real daed?”
“Jah. My mamm and I lived in Ohio before we moved here.”
Henry motioned for them to sit on the edge of one of the logs that surrounded the fire pit so they could warm up a bit and talk more.
“Was it fun living among the Englisch?”
Abby shrugged. “I thought it was before I moved here. But my familye is here, and the life is simpler. Quieter. Less troublesome, and I prefer that to the Englisch ways.”
Henry gazed into the fire, mesmerized by the flames licking the logs. “Not me. I have a friend who is Englisch, and I have been thinking of going to stay with him and starting a life for myself among the Englisch. There isn’t anything here for me except farming, and I’m not very gut at being a farmer.”
Abby rolled her sore ankles, rotating them clockwise and then counter-clockwise. “What would you do there with no familye to support you?”
Henry sat up straight. “I’ll have to get a job. Don’t you ever miss it? Being in the Englisch world?”
Abby giggled. “Nee. We live in the same world as the Englisch, but I can see how you might see it that way.”
Abby stared into the fire, holding up her bare hands to warm them. She had thought about returning to Ohio, and what, if anything might be there for her. Maybe just a few childhood memories, but none of that was worth leaving her familye.
**********************
CHAPTER 21
**********************
Seth was so preoccupied with his skating partner, and the easy conversation he was having with her, that he hadn’t noticed Abby sitting with Henry. Now he watched them every time he and Lillian rounded the curve in the pond. He took note when they sat around the fire pit in the open field outside the edge of the pond. Henry was far too old for Abby to be getting caught up in his false charms, but she was laughing like the young school-girl that she was.
Lillian nudged Seth with her hip, nearly sending him into the brush that bordered the edge of the pond.
“Are you worried about Abby?”
“Jah. I don’t like her talking to Henry. He’s much too old for her.”
Lillian smiled at his protective nature, and wondered if he would be that protective over his own dochder someday. Her thoughts made her blush, but her cheeks were most likely already pink from the cold. Still, she turned her face instinctively to hide her intimate thoughts.
“You shouldn’t worry about Abby. She’s a tough girl. I think she can take care of herself. Besides, they’re only talking.”
“I hope you’re right. Something about him just doesn’t feel right to me.”
Lillian giggled. “You’re only saying that because you thought he was my date for the evening.”
Seth smiled. “I just wanted to make sure I could skate with you, that’s all.”
Why was he so afraid to admit how he felt about her? She’d just given him the perfect opportunity, and he didn’t take it. Was he really that afraid of rejection?
“Would you like to go sit down by the fire? You’re shivering.”
She had to admit she was chilled to the bone, but she was also enjoying the quietness of the pond since most everyone had stopped skating to warm up around the fire. With only the sound of their blades scraping the ice, and Seth’s melodic voice chattering away as if they’d been friends their entire lives, she wasn’t ready to trade this for warmth among the crowd.
Seth looked over and noticed Abby and Henry walking away from the rest of the youth to a secluded area near the Miller’s barn.
“I’m sorry, Lillian, but I should probably check on Abby. She’s going off alone with Henry, and I don’t think that’s wise.”
Reluctantly, Lillian agreed. He undid the laces of his skates quickly, and shoved his feet into his boots, and then ran toward the Miller’s barn.
Lillian opted to sit near the fire and warm herself while Seth dealt with his niece alone. She sat down on one of the logs where she’d left her boots. Pulling off her skates, she paused to hold her feet up toward the fire for a few minutes. Before she realized, she heard shouting. It sounded like Seth and Henry were yelling at one another. She pushed her feet in the boots and stood up in time to see Seth and Henry rolling on the ground in the distance.
Were they fighting?
****
Seth approached Abby
and Henry cautiously, hoping to avoid embarrassing his young niece. “What are the two of you doing out here away from the rest of the youth?”
Abby held a hand to her chest. “Onkel Seth you startled me.”
Henry grabbed for Abby’s hand. “We weren’t doing anything wrong. We were just following a rabbit and her boppli.”
Seth stood his ground. “That may be so, but it appears as though you were trying to lure my niece into a dark corner for unsavory things. Even if you weren’t, being in this position could soil her reputation.”
Abby held tight to Henry’s hand. “I’m not a boppli anymore, Onkel Seth.”
Henry grinned eagerly. “You heard her. She’s capable of making her own decisions. Run along and leave us alone.”
Seth took a step toward Abby. “You go back to the rest of the youth right now. Henry is too old for you. He’s nearly five years older than you, and that’s too much.”
Abby let go of Henry’s hand, placing her fists on her hips. “You’re five years older than Lillian and you think it’s okay to date her.”
Seth’s patience was wearing thin. “We are both adults. You are not an adult, but Henry is, so that makes it wrong.”
Henry took a step forward. “You mean to tell me you’ve had a thing for Lillian this whole time? Why did she agree to come here with me tonight if you two are dating?”
Seth scolded Abby again and told her to go back and sit with the other girls.
Then he turned to Henry. “My relationship with Lillian is none of your business.”
Henry took a step forward, getting closer than Seth felt comfortable with. “It’s my business if she’s a tease. She comes here with me, and then ends up with you? Maybe she isn’t such a nice girl after all.”
Seth ground his teeth against the accusation. “I don’t think you should say things that could hurt a woman’s reputation like that.”
Henry laughed coarsely. “Did she tell you she was kissing me in the back of the buggy on the way over here tonight?”
Abby gasped at his statement.
Seth took a threatening step closer to Henry. “I don’t believe you.”
Henry smiled devilishly. “I was doing her a favor since she’s probably going to end up a spinster.”
Seth could feel the anger rising up in him. “So now you aim to destroy the reputation of two girls? You’re a liar, and I would appreciate it if you would tell the truth.”
Henry poked Seth in the chest with his right index finger. “I did kiss her and she enjoyed every minute of it. I guess that makes her mine. But you can have her back if you don’t mind having a soiled fraa.”
Seth wanted to shove him away. “Someone should teach you a lesson, but you aren’t worth my time. You’re a disgusting liar, and I aim to tell the Bishop of your actions.”
Henry stepped closer into Seth’s personal space.
“When you talk to the Bishop, make sure you tell him that I hit you, too.”
Dumbfounded by such a ridiculous statement, Seth didn’t see Henry’s fist come at him until it was too late. Pain shot through his jawbone and he barely had time to register the taste of blood in his mouth before another blow connected to the side of his face. Something in Seth made him react—maybe adrenaline—maybe pent up anger over years of being overly submissive to his daed’s stern upbringing, or even the deep sadness of never getting over his mamm’s death. But whatever it was, it made him want to hit Henry. Before he realized, the two of them were on the ground, rolling around and punching one another until Jonathon pulled his cousin away from the fight.
Seth scrambled to his feet, blood filling his mouth. He spat on the ground, leaving a red stain in the fresh snow. Wiping the side of his cheek, he stepped away from the crowd and over to Abby. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.
“I’m not! You should have hit him a few more times.”
Seth placed a hand on her shoulder. “That’s enough. We are peaceful people. That fight should never have happened.”
“But Onkel Seth, you were only defending yourself after he hit you. And someone needed to teach him he can’t go around telling lies about Lillian. Sometimes it’s necessary to fight back. I don’t blame you for that, and neither will Gott.”
“The Bishop will surely hear of this and I could be disciplined harshly.”
Lillian rushed to his side. “Are you alright? That cut on your cheek might need stitches.”
He wasn’t ready to face Lillian just yet. He needed to sort out his feelings about what Henry had said. It was very likely that the young man had lied about kissing her in the back of the buggy, but what if he hadn’t lied? What if there was some truth to his statements? Was Lillian that kind of woman?
Lillian reached up to touch the side of his face, but he jerked away from her before her hand could make contact with him.
“I’m sorry; I was only going to move your hair aside to get a better look at the cut on your cheek. I didn’t mean to worry you.”
Seth didn’t know how to react to her concern over his injuries. But why hadn’t she asked what they were fighting about? Did she already know? Or was she innocent in all of this, and her concern for his well-being was sincere? He couldn’t think straight at the moment. He needed to go home, and to pray the Bishop wouldn’t demand he be shunned for his actions.
**********************
CHAPTER 22
**********************
Lillian stood in the snow, wondering what had just happened. She didn’t understand why Seth would fight with Henry, and what was even more confusing was his reaction to her when she tried to get a look at his injury. He’d backed away from her like she was contagious with influenza. She struggled to find a reason for his change in attitude toward her, but no matter what she thought of, none of it made any sense. One minute they were on the ice talking and laughing, getting along almost as if he was her beau. And the next minute he was fighting like a violent man. She’d never seen anything in Seth that would make her think he was violent. So what had caused him to physically fight Henry?
Lillian hadn’t seen who started the fight, but it apparently changed Seth in a way she wasn’t sure she liked. She hadn’t known too much about Seth personally until recently, but she’d always thought of him with respect. He was a kind man, not at all like the man she’d witnessed walking away from a brutal fight just moments ago. What had pushed him to the point that he would turn into the type of man who would hit another? She sighed. Perhaps if this was the type of behavior he was capable of, she was glad she found out before her heart became too invested in him.
****
Seth went straight to the barn when he reached his farm. He’d warned Abby not to tell his schweschder about the fight until he had a chance to sort it out and go to the Bishop. He wasn’t sure if what he’d done required a confession, but he knew Abby would back up his story about Henry initiating the physical confrontation.
His mind wandered to Lillian and the shame he felt so deeply, he couldn’t even allow her to console him after the fight. He knew she was only trying to be the kind and loving woman he’d grown to love, but his actions were shameful. Now he just couldn’t face her. Why hadn’t he just walked away? Abby had commended his defense of her honor and that of Lillian’s honor, but he didn’t feel very honorable. He was a peaceful man, but something inside him raged—something he’d been holding in for a long time.
After washing the blood from his face, he headed toward the haus, intending to go straight to bed. When he walked into the kitchen, his daed sat at the table, his fingers laced around a steaming mug of kaffi.
“When I heard the buggy pull into the yard, I put on a pot of kaffi. Thought you could use something to warm you up, but by the look of your face, I’d say you need more than kaffi.”
Seth sat down after pouring himself a mug of kaffi. His daed looked pale, and he wondered why he was still awake at this late hour. He was glad he was still awake because he needed to talk this out before it ate
away at him.
Seth sighed heavily. “I really messed things up, daed. I let a hot-tempered young man get to me. He swung the first couple of punches, but after that, I hit him back.”
Hiram tried not to pass judgment on his son, who was obviously remorseful for his actions. “What started the fight?”
Seth hung his head in shame. “He was trying to lure Abby away from the group, and then he made inappropriate comments that could soil Lillian’s reputation.”
Hiram cleared his throat. “I can understand you wanting to protect your niece, but what on earth could he have possibly said about Lillian that would cause you to react so negatively?”
Seth looked his daed in the eye. “He claims that she was kissing him in the back of Jonathon’s buggy.”
“Do you think there’s any truth to his statements?”
Seth pushed the mental image from his thoughts.
“I don’t know. I hope not, but I can’t be certain.”
Hiram leaned forward in his chair. “Did you ask her?”
“Nee. I couldn’t face her after what I’d done. She knew about the fight, but didn’t know why, and I wasn’t going to tell her the horrible things he said about her.”
Hiram placed a shaky hand over Seth’s. “If he tried to compromise her, the Bishop should know about it.”
Amish Winter Wonderland: Book Two Page 7
