Shelter in the Storm
Page 22
“Yes.”
“Wow.” Eric leaned against his seat and shook his head, still staring at Naomi. “Wouldn’t Cassidy have loved this! Our Amish little sister is getting married. I don’t know whether I should shake this guy’s hand or punch him in the nose. So who’s the lucky man?”
Naomi hesitated, unsure what to say. Eric was a friend, but she couldn’t afford to forget that he was also a reporter.
“We are alike in so many ways, but we are different in this, Eric. Among the Plain, engagements are considered very private things. Even friends are often not told until the wedding is planned and everything is in order. They may guess, but they do not know for sure.”
“Oh.” He looked taken aback. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know that.”
“That’s all right. Of course you didn’t know.”
“Well, congratulations. Or best wishes, or whatever is the right thing to say.”
“Thank you.” She turned her eyes expectantly to the front, waiting for him to merge back into the speeding traffic.
Instead Eric cleared his throat.
“I’m probably trampling all over a whole bunch of Amish taboos right now, Naomi, but this fiancé of yours. He isn’t the guy you’ve been working for, is he?” Eric’s eyes searched hers. “Oh, wow. He is.”
“Joseph Hochstedler is a gut man, Eric,” she said quietly.
“Well, he’s better than that hotheaded brother of his from all I’ve heard. But man, Naomi . . .” He trailed off, looking uncomfortable. “There are all kinds of stories going around about that family. Most of them probably aren’t true, but that doesn’t mean trouble can’t come from them, especially since you folks never want to get in front of the cameras to tell your side of things. And I don’t know if you’ve heard, but there’s likely to be more publicity coming. I just hate to see you getting tangled up in all this.”
“Eric—”
“Nope,” Eric cut in quickly. “For Pete’s sake, don’t tell me anything else, Naomi. Do you have any idea what this kind of information is worth? Don’t tell me, and don’t tell anybody else, either, especially not about the wedding.” The urgency in his voice made her draw back. “You have no idea what kind of media storm that little tidbit could unleash.”
“I’m not about to go around blabbing, Eric. I’m not so dumm as that. Anyhow, I wasn’t involved in what happened, and except for the sorrow of losing his parents, Joseph had no part in it, either. We’re small potatoes. Nobody’s likely to care if we get married or not.”
“Trust me, they’ll care plenty. This story is smoldering under the surface, but it could flame up again at any moment. People are fascinated by all this, so it’s had a longer shelf life than stories usually do. And your Joseph isn’t as small a potato as you may think. That shot of him shaking Stephen Abbott’s hand the day of the funerals? You wouldn’t believe how much money that brought. Only one guy had the best angle, and let me tell you, he cleaned up. Adding more romance to this story right now would be like throwing gasoline on a bonfire.” Eric ran one hand through his shaggy hair. “My producer would totally lose his stuff if he found out there was a Hochstedler wedding planned. I wish you hadn’t told me.”
“I only told you I was getting married. You guessed the rest.”
“It wasn’t hard. Never try to play poker, sis. Any card player worth his salt would read that face of yours like a book.” He checked the traffic over his left shoulder before pulling back out onto the highway. “If it’s okay with you, I’m going to turn on the radio. Otherwise, I’m going to want to ask you questions, and we’re both better off if I don’t do that. Okay?”
“Okay.”
Eric pressed buttons on his dashboard until he found a Christian station. Since he had to do a lot of fiddling to find it, Naomi doubted it was a station he usually listened to, and she appreciated his kindness in trying to find something he thought wouldn’t offend her. She didn’t recognize any of the songs, but it was nice of him to make the effort.
They rode in silence until they reached Knoxville. Eric pressed more buttons on the cell phone in the holder attached to his dash, and an electronic female voice guided them to a large brick building across the street from a sprawling medical center.
Naomi glanced at the hospital’s crowded parking lot and suppressed a shudder. No telling what all those folks were dealing with. No doubt some of them were experiencing one of the hardest days of their lives. Others would be experiencing the very last day of their lives, or of the life of someone they loved.
But, she reminded herself, kind nurses and doctors were there working, and no doubt babies were being born today, too. Joy bloomed right in the middle of sorrow, often as not. A person just had to decide which she was going to focus on.
“I don’t know how long my appointment will take,” she explained apologetically to Eric. “Feel free to go wherever you like. I can wait here if I am finished before you get back.”
“There’s nowhere I need to go. But hold up a second.” He levered up on one hip and pried a wallet out of his back pocket. He flipped it open and thumbed through its pockets. “Here. Take this in with you, just in case.” He handed her a silver card.
She accepted it automatically turning it to read the writing. Then she tried to return it. “This is your credit card.”
“I saw you going through your purse a few times on the way over, counting your bills. I know you don’t have insurance, and you’re obviously worried about having enough cash. If it turns out that you don’t, just put it on my card.”
“Oh, Eric, that’s very nice of you, but I couldn’t do such a thing.”
“Sure you can. If you don’t need it, fine, but if you do, you’ll have it. Please, Naomi. We could both use one less thing to worry about, I think.”
Naomi hesitated then nodded. She could take it in with her, if that made Eric happy. She didn’t have to use it. “Denki. You are very kind.”
“You’re welcome.” He smiled, his eyes gentle and sad. “I’d offer to come in, but honestly, doctors’ offices make me break out in a cold sweat ever since . . . these days. But I really hope you get good news, Naomi.”
She smiled back as she opened the car door. “So do I.”
Eric wasn’t the only one who got naerfich in doctors’ offices. Naomi’s whole body tensed the minute she walked into the beige and ice blue waiting room. She’d never been in this particular office before, but it felt far too familiar.
As usual, she was by far the youngest person there. Most of the other folks were gray-haired, and several had oxygen tanks parked by their chairs. Naomi went to the half-moon reception desk and picked up the pen to sign herself in.
The plump, middle-aged receptionist gave her a brief professional smile. Curiosity glinted in the woman’s dark eyes as she scanned Naomi’s clothes. She flipped the chart around to look at the name. “Naomi Schrock?”
“Yes.”
The woman tapped keys on her computer and frowned at the monitor. “We have the records from your cardiologist in Kentucky, so we’ll just need you to fill out a couple of forms for our office.” She clamped papers to a clipboard and handed them to Naomi along with a ballpoint pen. “Dr. Lawson has been called away, so a nurse will be doing your initial evaluation. I assume that’s all right?”
Naomi bit her lip. Her cardiologist back home had told her this doctor was accustomed to seeing Amish patients, that he understood their ways and their boundaries. Well, she’d just have to hope that understanding extended to his staff.
“That’s fine.”
She settled in a nearby chair, nestling her small tote bag between her feet so she could balance the clipboard on her knees. She’d barely finished the forms when a nurse with iron gray hair and a no-nonsense expression beckoned to her.
“I’m Deborah,” the nurse said over her shoulder as she walked Naomi through a maze of e
xamination rooms. “I’ll be doing your examination today. Dr. Lawson was called to emergency surgery.” She led the way into a small room and bumped the door shut with one substantial hip, studying a little tablet she held in her hand. “Hop up on the table, there, please. You’re having some symptoms?”
“Ja. I mean, yes.”
“I understood you, don’t worry about that. We get a lot of Amish folks in here. So what’s going on?”
“Mostly I’m just getting tired too easily,” Naomi explained. “I’ve been working more, so hopefully it’s nothing, but I thought I’d best check.”
Deborah nodded as she checked Naomi’s blood pressure. “Always good to be sure, hon.” The nurse pulled the stethoscope from around her neck. She plugged the ends in her ears before sliding the metal piece under Naomi’s cape to the fabric just above her heart.
The nurse’s expression shifted, and Naomi knew.
She knew before Deborah told her that she needed to do an EKG and a sonogram in the office, even though the nurse’s face never registered anything after that first unguarded moment. She knew, even though Deborah told her that the results would have to be gone over by Dr. Lawson himself, so there would be no answers that day.
Something was wrong. The cage that she’d escaped was closing, and once again she was on the wrong side of the door.
Before leaving, she was given a time to call in to speak with the cardiologist in a few days, proof that the practice really was accustomed to dealing with Amish patients. Naomi counted out the bills from her purse with surprisingly steady fingers, grateful for the substantial discount she received as an uninsured patient, paying with cash. She had enough money, and that was a blessing.
Somehow that little success made her feel better. She mustn’t let herself get upset. She must trust Gott, just as she’d had to do when she’d been sick before. Whatever happened from here on, she’d accept His will with all the grace and courage she could muster. She’d witnessed Miriam and Joseph Hochstedler doing that very thing, as they walked through their troubles, so she had good examples to follow.
What, she wondered, should she tell them about all this? She tucked her deflated wallet back into her bag as she thought it over. She’d wait, she decided. She’d hold off until after she’d talked to the doctor before discussing this with Joseph. She hadn’t said anything before because she’d hoped that today she’d get a quick reassurance that nothing was really wrong.
That hadn’t happened, but she still didn’t know anything for certain. The concerned expression on the nurse’s face might have meant nothing at all. Naomi wouldn’t know for sure until the phone call with the cardiologist—if then. Probably they would want to run further tests. Doctors almost always did.
She’d wait until after the phone appointment, but then she’d have to talk this over with Joseph. Her stomach dipped as she realized what that talk would likely lead to . . . but then she pushed the thought out of her mind.
She wouldn’t cross that bridge until she had to. She’d gotten through the roughest parts of her long illness that way, by living one day at a time, and enjoying whatever blessings she was given to the fullest.
Outside Eric was waiting in his tiny car. He glanced up as she opened the door.
“How’d it go?”
She managed a smile. “They ran some tests, but I’ll not know anything for a few days.” She didn’t want him to ask any more questions, so she quickly changed the subject. “Is there anything else you need to do in Knoxville while we are here?”
Eric’s smile dimmed. He understood, she realized, without her having to say a word. “There’s nothing I need to do, but I’ll take you anyplace you want to go, Naomi. Anyplace at all.”
“Just home.” She settled against the seat and sighed. “Thank you, but I just want to go home.”
They drove back in a companionable silence. By the time they’d hit Johns Mill, the light was beginning to dim, and the promised snow had begun to fall. Great, fat flakes drifted down like wet bits of lace.
As Eric pulled into the Lapps’ driveway, Naomi leaned forward against the seat belt. A horse and buggy waited near the front porch. She frowned, peering through the dim light.
Sure enough, that was Titus standing in the falling snow. What was Joseph doing here? Miriam could never have ridden over to the Lapps’. She couldn’t even force herself to venture outside the house. What was going on?
Well, there was only one way to find out.
She turned to Eric. “Thank you for the ride.”
“I was glad to do it, Naomi. If you need another ride for follow-ups or anything, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
“I will let you know. Denki-shay, Eric.”
Joseph walked out of the shadows on the front porch, and Naomi was thankful for the screening snow. He wouldn’t be able to see who was driving; not that he would have recognized Eric anyway. Even so she hoped Joseph wouldn’t ask any questions. She had a feeling he’d not approve of her having a reporter drive her anyplace, no matter how well she knew him.
She got out of the car and hurried toward the porch. “Joseph! It is a surprise to see you here! Is something wrong with Miriam?”
“Nee.” He was frowning slightly, watching Eric turn his car around. “Miriam is all right. Katie and Aaron have gone over with the boppli to visit for a few hours, so I came here. I don’t recognize that driver. Who is it?”
“Oh, that’s gut!” Naomi skipped over the question. “Miriam will enjoy playing with Sarah. But you should have stayed there, Joseph, to enjoy the visit, too.”
The distraction seemed to work. As Eric’s beetle-car scooted safely off down the road, Joseph dropped his gaze to his feet. “Ja, well. I had other plans.” He kicked one boot against the post of the porch, as if suddenly interested in the soundness of the wood. “The truth is, I asked them to come over. I needed them to keep Miriam company so I could be here to meet you when you got back.”
“Oh?” In spite of her new worries, sweet warmth expanded in her breast. What a very Joseph-like thing to do. “That was real kind of you, but I’m sorry you put yourself to such trouble on my account.”
“It was no trouble.” He kicked the post again. “If you’re not too worn out from your trip, I was wondering if you would like to go for a ride.”
Naomi crinkled her brow, puzzled. “A ride? Now? Wherever to?”
The glow from the battery-operated lantern in the living room window revealed a tide of red rising into Joseph’s cheeks. “Nowhere in particular. It’ll be right pretty, maybe, with the snow falling. We’ll stay off the main roads, so you’d have no need to feel naerfich. So? What do you think? Would you like to go for a drive with me, Naomi?”
Naomi didn’t understand what was happening for a couple more seconds, and when the truth finally dawned, she was too astonished to answer right away. She’d seen the bravest boys asking the prettiest girls similar questions at the singings she’d attended, all with the same hopeful, shamefaced expressions. Can I drive you home, then?
But nobody had ever asked Naomi such a question, not until this minute.
The prickly worries of the day slipped away, replaced with a grateful, glowing joy. Maybe she didn’t know what her future held, but right now, in this moment, she was happier than she’d thought she’d ever be.
Joseph Hochstedler had come courting, and she meant to enjoy every second of it.
“Ja,” she answered shyly. “I think a drive in the snow with you would be wonderful fun, Joseph.”
His slow, answering smile warmed her all the way to her chilly fingertips. “That’s what I hoped you’d say.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Joseph offered Naomi his hand as she climbed into the waiting buggy. Her slender fingers pressed gently down on his as she boosted herself up. Feeling as skittish as a teenager, he hurried around to climb in himself.
“Denki.” She shook the heavy fabric open and layered it over her dress. He waited until she was well settled, then snapped the reins on Titus’s back and clucked to the horse.
“Don’t worry,” he reassured her as he pulled onto the road. “We’ll only be on the highway for a minute.”
“I am not worried, Joseph.”
There was a strangely determined note in her voice, and he shot her a curious look. It was no use; he couldn’t read her expression in the dim glow from the battery-operated lights Caleb had installed on the buggy dash a few years back.
“Courting lights,” his daed had called them with an understanding chuckle. Newer buggies came with such lights, but until Caleb got to tinkering, the Hochstedlers had made do with a kerosene lantern hung on the side of the buggy. These lights were stronger and made night driving far easier.
His father had tweaked their position so that they cast some light into the depths of the buggy as well as the road ahead. When Caleb protested, Daed had given him a knowing look and a shake of the head. “Gott sees well even in the dark, son. But your mamm and I will sleep better if other folks can see you, too.”
Joseph cast around in his mind for something to make small talk about. He was rusty at this. He’d never courted much. Once he’d set his heart on Rhoda, he’d not so much as looked at another girl.
Until Naomi.
He turned off the highway onto a narrow lane, glancing warily at Naomi as he did. This little road wasn’t often traveled by Englischers, but it was a favorite among the Plain youngies in the area. It wound its way through conveniently secluded pastures, and there was a bridge over a tumbling creek that was a well-known smooching spot. The road’s real name was Cobbler Creek Road, but it had a descriptive nickname that he hoped Naomi hadn’t heard.
She shifted in the seat and lifted an eyebrow. “We’re taking Kissing Creek Road?”