When Grace awoke the following morning, she felt as if she hadn’t even gone to bed. Besides the morning sickness she’d been dealing with for weeks, her head hurt, and her hands shook so badly that, as she cracked eggs, several pieces of shell fell into the bowl. If only Cleon would forgive her. If he could just show some excitement over the baby she carried in her womb.
Soon after Grace and Cleon had become betrothed, they’d begun talking about the family they would have some day. Cleon had said he wanted a large family, and Grace had looked forward to the day when she could hold another baby in her arms and know it wouldn’t be taken from her. Now she would have that baby, as well as her five-year-old daughter, but she feared she would never have her husband again. Not in the real sense of the word, anyway.
A knock at the back door halted Grace’s thoughts. Since Cleon hadn’t come downstairs for breakfast yet, she dried her hands on a towel and went to see who was at the door. Martha stood on the porch.
“Why didn’t you come in rather than knocking?”
“I—I wanted to be sure I could talk to you alone.”
Noting how pale her sister’s face looked, Grace felt immediate concern. “Are you feeling grank this morning?”
Martha shook her head. “Not physically, but I’m sure sick at heart.”
Grace’s heart pounded against her chest. “Has there been another attack?”
“I’m not sure.” Martha stepped closer, and her voice lowered to a whisper. “Where’s Anna? I don’t want her to hear what I have to say—at least not yet.”
“She’s upstairs in bed. I figured I would wait until breakfast was ready to wake her.” Grace motioned to a couple of wicker chairs sitting on the other end of the porch. “Let’s sit over there.”
Once they were seated, Martha leaned over and massaged her forehead. “Rose is dead.”
“Rose?”
“The puppy I promised Anna she could have if you said it was okay.”
“She asked me about it last night, but I’d forgotten that she’d called it ‘Rose.’” Grace touched her sister’s arm. “What happened? How did the pup die?”
“I’m not sure. I found both kennel doors open when I went out to feed the dogs this morning, and then I discovered them running around the yard.” Martha paused. “Except for Rose; she was dead.”
Grace covered her mouth.
“I don’t know how I’m going to tell Anna. She really liked that puppy and was looking forward to calling it her own.”
“I’m her mamm; it’s my place to tell her.”
“I feel awful enough about losing one of my dogs, but I hope it won’t affect how things are with you and Anna.”
“I hope not, either. Do you have any idea why the hundli died or how the dogs got out of their kennel?”
“They got out because the doors were open, and I guess the pup could have climbed onto one of the bales of hay that sat near the barn and then fallen off.”
“You don’t suppose someone did this on purpose, do you? I mean—let the dogs out of their cage and … and killed Anna’s puppy?”
“I hope that’s not the case.”
“How do you think the cage doors got open?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I forgot to latch them when I fed them last night.”
“But you’re always so careful when it comes to things like that.”
“That’s usually true, but I’ve had a lot on my mind lately, so I suppose I could have forgotten.” Martha released a sigh. “Are you sure you don’t want me to tell Anna?”
“No, I’ll do it after breakfast.”
“Guess I’d better go bury the puppy.” Martha released a sigh. “I don’t want Anna to see it that way.”
“No, that wouldn’t be good.” As Grace rose from her chair, a wave of nausea hit her, and she clutched her stomach.
“Are you okay?”
“I’ll be fine. It’s just a touch of morning sickness.”
“What did Cleon say when you told him about the boppli?”
Grace rubbed her hands briskly over her arms and shivered even though the early spring weather had turned quite warm. “He already knew.”
“He suspected it? Is that what you’re saying?”
“I guess Cleon learned about it when he went to Dad’s shop to see if he would hire him.”
“Dad told Cleon you’re in a family way?”
Grace nodded. “I’m sure he thought Cleon knew about the baby. He probably figured I’d already told him. Now Cleon thinks I deliberately kept another secret from him, and—” Grace couldn’t finish her sentence.
“Didn’t you explain why you hadn’t said anything yet, and that you had planned to tell him last night?”
“I tried, but Cleon doesn’t trust me anymore, and he—”
“He what, Grace?”
Grace took a few seconds to compose herself as she sniffed and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Cleon didn’t show any enthusiasm about the baby. I—I don’t think he wants to be a daed. At least not to any of my children.”
Martha wore a look of disbelief and slowly shook her head. “I didn’t think things could get much worse around here.”
“Me, neither. It makes me wonder if God cares how much we’re all hurting.”
Unable to control her emotions, Grace leaned her head on Martha’s shoulder and sobbed.
When Cleon entered the kitchen, he was surprised to discover that it was empty. When he’d first wakened, he thought he’d smelled coffee brewing, so he figured Grace had to be awake. He had tossed and turned most of the night and needed a cup of coffee to clear the cobwebs from his foggy brain.
He spotted the coffeepot sitting near the back of the stove and was about to take a mug from the cupboard, when he noticed a carton of eggs on the counter, a sure sign that Grace must be nearby. Maybe she was using the necessary room or had gone outside for something.
Cleon poured some coffee and was about to take a drink when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. A few seconds later, Anna entered the kitchen dressed in a long, cotton nightgown.
“Where’s Mama?” she asked, rubbing her eyes and looking around the room.
“I’m not sure. She must have been in the kitchen at one time, because breakfast has been started.” Cleon motioned to the coffeepot and then to the eggs. “She wasn’t here when I came downstairs, and I don’t know where she is now.”
Anna padded over to the table and climbed onto a chair. “I’m hungry. I wanna eat now so I can play with Rose.”
“Who’s Rose?”
“My new puppy. Aunt Martha said I could have her if Mama said it was okay.” Anna’s head bobbed up and down. “Last night Mama said it was all right with her.”
Cleon leaned against the counter and studied the child. Her long brown hair hung down her back in a mass of heavy curls, reminding him of how Grace’s pale blond hair had looked on their wedding night after she’d taken it down and he’d begun brushing it for her. His heart clenched as he thought about how soft Grace’s skin had felt beneath his touch, and how full of love his heart had been for her that night. He ached with the knowledge of her deception. Didn’t honesty come with love? Had she ever truly loved him?
“Are you gonna look for Mama so we can eat?”
Cleon’s mind snapped back to the present. “Uh, I’ll see if she’s outside.” He headed for the back door, but it opened. Grace stepped in. Her face looked ashen, and her eyes were red and swollen. Had she been crying because of him, or had something else happened?
He stepped aside. “What’s wrong? Have you been crying?”
“I—I can’t talk about it right now.” She glanced over at Anna and grimaced. “I’ll deal with it after breakfast.”
Cleon shrugged. If she didn’t want to talk about what was bothering her, he couldn’t do much about it. He took a seat at the table.
Anna looked up at her mother. “I’m hungry.”
Grace nodded and hurried to the stove. “I’ll have some breakfast on the table real soon.”
“Can we go see Rose after we’re done eating?”
Grace shook her head.
“You said I could have the puppy.” Anna thrust out her lower lip. “I wanna see her now.”
“You need to eat breakfast. We can talk about Rose after you’ve finished your scrambled eggs.”
“I wanna see her now.”
“Your mamm said after breakfast,” Cleon said before Grace could respond. “Now quit whining and sit there quietly until breakfast is served.”
Grace glared at Cleon. “There’s no need to be yelling at her.”
“I wasn’t yelling.”
“Yes, you were.” Anna pointed at Cleon. “Your face is red, too.”
A muscle on the side of Cleon’s cheek pulsated. He debated whether he should say anything more and finally decided that if Grace chose to ignore the child’s sassy attitude, then she could deal with it, not him.
Anna hopped off her chair and raced for the back door.
“Where are you going?” Grace called to her daughter’s retreating form.
“To see Rose.”
“No! You can’t see her now.” By the time Grace started across the room, Anna had already opened the door. “Come back here, Anna!” She reached out and grabbed the child’s arm, pulling her back into the house.
“I wanna see Rose!” Anna screamed as she tried to pry her mother’s hands off her arm.
Grace’s shoulders trembled, but she kept Anna in her grip. Cleon wondered if he should step in and attempt to calm the child or if it would be best to let Grace handle things.
“Anna, listen to me now.” Grace knelt down and wrapped her arms around the child, holding her firmly until she finally calmed down. “Rose is dead. Your Aunt Martha found her that way this morning.”
Anna stiffened. She pulled away sharply. “Rose can’t be dead!”
“I’m sorry, Anna. Maybe Aunt Martha will give you another puppy when Flo has some.” Grace reached out to wipe the tears from Anna’s face, but the child jerked open the door and bolted out of the house.
Grace rushed after her. Cleon sat too stunned to move.