When Martha directed her buggy up Abe Wengerd’s driveway, she spotted Martin walking toward the harness shop. She needed to be at Irene’s by three o’clock but had decided to stop on her way and see how Esta was getting along with Winkie.
Martha halted the horse near Abe’s barn and climbed out of the buggy. She was greeted by Esta, who had been in the yard playing with the puppy.
“Wie geht’s?” Martha asked.
“I’m doin’ good,” Esta replied. “Just givin’ Winkie some exercise.” Martha smiled. “Winkie’s a cute name.”
Esta nodded. “Anna chose it ‘cause the pup likes to wink one eye.”
“Jah, she told me.”
“How come Anna didn’t come with you? I like it when she comes over to play.”
“I didn’t invite her because I can’t stay very long.”
“Why not?”
“I’m on my way to work, and I’ll need to leave soon.” Martha bent down and stroked the puppy’s ears. “I’m glad Winkie has a good home.”
Esta nodded and scooped the little sheltie into her arms. “I’m takin’ good care of him.”
“I’m sure you are.” Martha squeezed Esta’s shoulder. “I’ll try to bring Anna along the next time I come over.”
“Okay.”
As Martha started for her buggy, she spotted Luke coming out of Abe’s harness shop, and her heart missed a beat. She wished she didn’t feel so giddy every time she saw Luke. She was sure he had no interest in her. If Dad knew she had a crush on Luke, he wouldn’t approve.
“Hello, Luke,” she said as he approached. “How are you?”
“Fair to middlin’,” he replied with a shrug. “And you?”
“Doing okay.” She was tempted to mention the acts of vandalism earlier in the week but thought better of it, in case Luke was the one responsible. She hoped he wasn’t. Even if Luke was angry because Dad had fired him, Martha couldn’t imagine Luke being behind any of the things that had been done to her family. Dad had asked around the day after they’d discovered all of the toilet paper on their buildings, but none of their neighbors had been bothered. That made Martha wonder if more attacks would be forthcoming.
“How’s the dog business going?” Luke asked, pulling her thoughts aside.
“Not so well. The female beagle I bought still isn’t pregnant, but I’ll be breeding Heidi and Fritz again when the time is right.”
“Maybe you should sell off the beagles and buy some other breed of dog.”
“I’ve thought of that, and I might put an ad in The Budget soon.”
“Or you could try the Bargain Hunter,” he suggested. “Might have better luck there.”
“That’s a good idea. Maybe I’ll run an ad in both papers.”
Luke moved away from the building. “Guess I’d better go. Just came by to check on a bridle Abe’s making for my daed. Now I’ve got a delivery to make for John.”
“How are things going with you working for him?” she asked.
“Compared to your daed, John’s real easy to work for.” He averted his gaze. “Guess I shouldn’t be saying this, but working for your daed every day was like going to the dentist to get a root canal.”
Martha bristled. As much as she liked Luke, she didn’t care for him saying things against her dad. “From what I hear, you weren’t so easy to work with, either.”
Luke shook his head. “Your daed didn’t like that I had my own ideas about how things should be done. He blamed me for Steven Bates’s cabinets falling off the wagon, and it wasn’t even my fault.”
“It doesn’t matter who did what or who said what. My daed let you go and you should accept that.”
His eyes narrowed. “Who says I’m not?”
“You wouldn’t try to get even with Dad, would you?”
“No way. I’d never do that, no matter how much he might irritate me.”
A sense of relief flooded Martha’s soul. “I didn’t think you would try to get even, but we’ve had a few more incidents at our place this week, so—”
“What’s been done?”
“A stink bomb was thrown into our barn, and then our house, barn, and Dad’s shop got toilet-papered.”
Luke frowned. “Sounds like some pranksters to me. I heard there was some toilet-papering done at one of the schoolhouses near Berlin the other day.”
“Dad thought it might be pranksters at first, but then he mentioned that he thought it could have been—”
“Me?”
She nodded.
“Puh! I’ve got better things to do than make stink bombs and spread TP all over the place.” Luke started walking toward his buggy.
Martha was more certain than ever that Luke wasn’t the one responsible for any of the attacks. The only question unanswered—who was responsible?
As Martin headed down the road in his buggy, his stomach twisted as though it were tied in knots. He’d come to a decision about his relationship with Ruth, and this evening he planned to talk to her about it.
When he arrived at the Hostettlers’, he spotted Ruth sitting in the glider under the maple tree in the backyard, reading a book. He halted the buggy, secured his horse to the hitching rail, and sprinted across the lawn.
“I’m surprised to see you,” Ruth said as he approached her. “I didn’t know you’d be coming by this evening.”
He licked his lips, and the knot in his stomach tightened. “I thought I would surprise you.”
“You did that, all right.” She set the book aside and patted the cushion beside her. “Would you like to join me?”
Martin took a seat. “I … uh … need to talk to you about something.” He removed his straw hat and twisted the edge of the brim.
“Are you all right? You seem kind of naerfich.“
“I am feeling a bit nervous.”
“How come?”
“Well … I …” He scooted a bit closer. “I know we haven’t been courting very long, but I’ve come to care about you.”
“I care about you, too.”
“Enough to be honest with me?”
“Of course.”
He drummed his fingers along the armrest of the glider. “Remember that day at the pond when you said you knew about the truck Toby and Sadie found in the woods?”
She nodded.
“You acted like you knew who owned the truck, but you didn’t seem to want to talk about it.”
She stared at her lap, and her chin trembled slightly. “I … uh … do know who owns the truck, but I promised I wouldn’t tell anyone.”
“Does it belong to someone I know?”
“Jah.”
He reached for her hand. “If we’re going to have a close relationship, then I don’t think we should keep secrets from each other, do you?”
She slowly shook her head.
“I’d like to know who owns that truck.”
Ruth’s forehead creased. “If I tell, will you promise not to repeat it to anyone?”
“Jah, if you don’t want me to.”
“The truck belongs to Luke.”
“Luke Friesen?”
“Jah. He keeps it hidden there so his folks won’t know.”
Martin groaned. “I knew Luke was still going through rumschpringe, but I had no idea he owned a truck. Doesn’t it seem strange that he would keep it hidden—especially since many Amish young people openly own cars?”
Ruth nodded. “The fact that he kept secrets from me and wouldn’t settle down and join the church was the reason I broke up with him.”
Martin brushed his thumb back and forth across the top of her hand. “I can’t say that I’m glad Luke’s not settled down, but I am glad you broke up with him.” He swallowed a couple of times. “I … uh … have another question I’d like to ask you.”
“What’s that?”
“Will you be my wife?”
Her mouth hung slightly open. “You—you want to marry me?”
He nodded. “I love you, Ruth. I know it’s sudden, but I feel a strong need to make you my wife as soon as possible.”
A blush of pink cascaded over her cheeks.
“It’s not just a physical need,” he was quick to say. “It’s a sense of urgency I can’t explain.”
“I—I don’t understand.”
“I have a feeling that if we don’t get married soon, we might never marry.”
“Is it because you’re worried about the attacks against my family? Are you afraid something will happen to me?”
He nodded. “Could we be married this fall—maybe early October?”
She lifted her gaze to meet his. “Most couples have a longer courtship than that.”
“I know.” He squeezed her fingers. “Will you at least give some consideration to my proposal?”
“I don’t need to consider the proposal, Martin.” A smile spread across Ruth’s face as a flicker of light danced in her dark eyes. “I’d be honored to marry you.”
“Really?”
She nodded. “Shall we go inside and discuss this with my folks? I want to be sure we have their approval.”
“Maybe it would be better if you talked to them alone. In case they don’t approve of you marrying me.”
“I don’t see why they wouldn’t approve.”
“Jah, okay.”
When Ruth and Martin stepped into the kitchen, Ruth spotted her parents sitting at the table, each reading a section of the newspaper. Her throat felt so swollen she wasn’t sure she could speak. What if they didn’t approve of her marrying Martin? What if Mom and Dad wanted them to wait until they’d been courting longer?
Martin squeezed Ruth’s hand, and the warmth of his fingers gave her the confidence she needed. “Mom, Dad. Martin and I have something we’d like to tell you.”
“What’s that?” Mom asked, glancing up from her paper. She smiled at Martin. “It’s good to see you.”
“Good to see you, too,” he replied.
Dad merely grunted as he kept reading the paper.
Ruth shifted uneasily. “Martin has asked me to marry him.”
“What?” Mom and Dad said in unison.
Dad dropped his paper to the table, and Mom reached to steady the glass of iced tea sitting before her.
“I’ve asked Ruth to be my wife.” Martin gave Ruth’s fingers another squeeze. “She said she’s willing—that is, if you approve.”
Dad squinted as he leveled Martin with a most serious look. “I have no objections to you courting my daughter, but I think it’s too soon for you to be thinking about marriage.”
Ruth opened her mouth to comment, but Martin spoke first. “I love Ruth, and I’d like us to be married as soon as possible.”
Dad held up his hand. “What’s the rush?”
Martin moved closer to the table. “I—I feel a sense of urgency to marry her.”
“He’s worried something will happen to me,” Ruth quickly explained.
Mom’s eyebrows furrowed as she looked at Martin. “Why would you think that?”
“All the things that have happened in our community lately have made me realize life is fragile, and one never knows when they’ll lose someone they love.”
“Are you thinking about Abe losing Alma?” Dad asked.
Martin nodded. “That’s part of it. I’m also concerned about all the attacks on your family. If Ruth and I were married, she would be in my care.”
A muscle in Dad’s cheek twitched rhythmically. “Are you saying I haven’t cared well for my fraa and dechder?”
Martin’s face flamed. “I’m not saying that at all. I’m sure you’re doing a fine job caring for your wife and daughters.”
“I do my best,” Dad mumbled.
Mom reached over and patted his arm. “Of course you do, Roman.”
Ruth cleared her throat. “Do you have any objections to Martin and I being married in October?”
“I think it would be better if you waited until November,” Mom said. “That will give us time to get some celery planted, make your wedding dress, and get everything done before the wedding.”
“It will give you more time for courting, too,” Dad put in.
Ruth looked at Martin and was relieved when he nodded and said, “November it’ll have to be, then.”
She smiled and bent to hug her mother. “Where’s Martha? I want to share our good news with her.”
“Out in the barn with those dogs of hers,” Dad said with a scowl. “Where else would she be?”
Ruth kissed her father’s forehead. “Danki, Dad.” Then she grabbed Martin’s hand, and they rushed out the door.