Mary walked beside her stiefmutter, delaying any lecture from Daed, as her gaze scanned the area for Noah.
“What’s going on, Mary, why was the bishop so upset?” Sarah waved her hand in the direction of the bishop storming off then wrapped her arm back around Liza.
Daed walked up on Mary’s other side. “What did you do? No doubt it has something to do with Noah. As soon as the festival is over, it’s time for you to move back to Sweet Delights. It should be ready to open in a couple of weeks.”
Sarah nodded in agreement. “Mayor Conrad told us that this year the festival has broken an all-time attendance record. He said it’s because of the publicized feud between you and Noah, which was also the reason why they raised the prize money to $20,000. Is that what’s bothering the bishop?”
Mary lowered her head as Sarah’s words galloped over her like a runaway horse. She gulped a breath. “Jah, but it sounds like the town should be thanking us.”
“The town is praising you and Noah, but the bishop is upset with all the notoriety and attention a member is bringing to his Community. We are a Plain, quiet people. Having the news media say an Amish woman has an opportunity to win money, a trophy and a trip to New York City doesn’t sound Plain or quiet,” her vater chided.
“You can’t accept a trophy. The bishop is looking out for our church,” Mamm softly chastised.
“I know, it was never supposed to blow up into this big of a deal.” Mary threw her arms open and gestured to the park bursting with tents and festivalgoers.
“What’s going on between you and the store owner?” Daed tilted his head toward Noah standing at the contest tent motioning for her to come over there.
“Nothing. I work at his store. That’s all. You two are imagining things.” Mary slipped her arm around her mamm and pulled her over to the quilt tent.
She walked beside mamm up and down aisles while Daed followed behind with Lena squirming in his arms wanting to get down.
Mary turned to look at a quilt behind her and noticed Amanda and Ethan hurrying toward her.
Amanda caught Mary’s arm. “Come, they are getting ready to read the names of the finalists.”
“Ach, I didn’t realize the time.” She turned to Sarah. “They are going to read the names of the finalists. I’m going with Amanda to the contest tent.”
Mamm nodded. “Go, we’ll see you there.”
Mary followed Amanda and Ethan and as she approached the contest tent, she watched for a glimpse of Noah but couldn’t find him.
Inside the contest tent, Amanda weaved her way through the throng of people to the front by the podium. Mary searched the faces of the crowd. Off in the corner, Noah stood talking to Cynthia Návar, the chef from Chicago.
The loud speaker squawked. “Good afternoon, everyone, I’m Connie Goodnight. We are so pleased to see such a great turnout for our festival and participation in the baking contest. Just a refresher of the rules before I announce the names. It is mandatory that all three, category winners bake their final entry in front of the judges. They will evaluate and assign points on degree of difficulty, originality, presentation and taste.”
Whispers and shuffling of feet sounded throughout the tent. Connie tapped on the microphone for quiet. “The names I read will be the finalists, who will meet tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. at Lazy Susan’s. The contestants must bring everything they need to make their dessert. They will receive the use of the restaurant’s stoves, ovens and refrigerators. Good baking to you all and please hold your applause until all three names are announced. Category one, Mary Brenneman. Category two, Noah Miller. Category three, Cynthia Návar.”
The tent erupted into applause.
Amanda grabbed Mary and squeezed her in a hug. “You did it, but I knew you would.”
Ethan patted her shoulder. “Congrats, Mary. You deserve it. I’ll be rooting for you.”
“Danki, Ethan.” A rush of excitement soared through her, and tears clouded her vision as she blinked them away. She drew a choked breath. “I’m so excited I’m going back to the store right now to get my supplies ready to take to Lazy Susan’s. I don’t want to forget a thing.” I’ll deal with the bishop later.
“Amanda and I’ll give you a ride back,” Ethan offered.
“Danki but you two stay. It’s only a few blocks, and I want to walk off this energy and clear my head.”
Mamm and Daed had waited for her by the tent opening. “Congratulations, honig. We are so happy for you.” Mamm patted her cheek.
“Danki but the bishop isn’t. He said the Gmay has forbidden me from competing any further in the contest. What will they do if I continue?”
Mamm looked at Daed, then leveled her gaze back on Mary. “He will probably discipline you. You may have to apologize in front of the congregation.”
“Is that all?”
Daed placed a hand on Sarah’s shoulder. “Mary, if the bishop has warned you, he will take action. If they find you in violation of a biblical teaching, you may have to go before the Gmay to confess or explain your behavior. Be careful, tochter, it’s a serious matter.”
“I asked permission to enter, and the bishop said I could. Now that the news media has made a story out of Noah and me, and they printed my name in the paper, our community is upset. I can’t control that.”
Sarah’s voice turned dire. “Mary, you need to talk to the bishop and the Gmay. They don’t like the attention that’s being given to the Plain community.”
“Mamm, the final contest is tomorrow. There isn’t time to ask permission. Just because my name was mentioned in the newspaper, it doesn’t go against biblical teaching or the Ordnung. Gossiping and bringing false accusation against another member is also a biblical teaching.”
“Be careful, Mary. You need to think about your actions.” Daed pressed his hand on Sarah’s back and guided her down the sidewalk. “We’ll see you at home.”
“Congratulations, Mary.” Noah tapped her shoulder.
She jerked and whirled around. “Jah, to you, too. We did it. I can hardly believe we made it into the final contest.” She caught control of her wavering voice.
“Is everything all right?”
“I—I’m not sure. The bishop told me our Gmay is concerned about all the publicity I’ve been receiving. They said it looks bad for the Plain community and have forbidden me to bake tomorrow.”
Noah laughed. “Really, who is saying that? I was over at the Amish wood-crafting shop, and they told me business is booming with all the tourist and festivalgoers in town this week. They also said the Plain community bakery in the country is doing very well.”
“Are you teasing me, Noah?”
“No, that’s what they said. Did he say the names of those complaining?”
“Nein, but I’ll ask next time and repeat what you told me.”
“Are you going back to the bakery? I can give you a ride.” He motioned to his vehicle parked a few hundred feet away.
“Danki, but I’m in enough trouble. Besides, I want to walk and think though this mess before I make a decision.” She crossed the street and headed down the sidewalk.
Maybe someone was jealous of her chance to win $20,000. Jealousy and envy were also against biblical teachings.
Mary unlocked the back door of the store and was surprised not to see Noah. She hung her bag and found his note. “I’ll let you work alone, and I’ll pack later. N.”
She pulled a box out of the pantry for her supplies to take to Lazy Susan’s. As she practiced making a pie, she washed and placed each bowl, measuring spoon, whisk and ingredients in the box. She made a copy of her recipe and placed that in. When the pie cooled, she sat down, drew a deep breath and took a big bite... Perfect.
Mary grabbed her box out of Noah’s store on Saturday morning and hurried to Lazy Susan’s. After a sleepless night, she was running late and Amanda said Noah had already left for the restaurant.
When she knocked, Simone opened the door and led her to the kitchen. Noah and Cynthia had already arrived and set up their workstations.
Mary nodded as she passed them, following Simone to her area. She set her box down, and laid out all her utensils and ingredients on her station as Chef Simone André instructed.
Simone watched the clock. “Five minutes, chefs.”
Mary blotted her hands on her apron, drew a deep breath and prayed.
“It’s ten o’clock. You have four hours. Go!” Simone yelled.
Mary simmered fresh spices in apple juice, added the sugar, and thickened it. She made the crust, peeled and sliced the apples. She arranged them piled high in the shell then poured the spice mixture over top. She set the pie in the warmed oven and set the timer. While that baked, she made the caramel sauce. When the pie came out of the oven, she set it to cool then added the warm caramel sauce.
Simone called a thirty-minute warning, then ten. “Stop. Please bring your desserts to the judges’ table in the restaurant area.”
Mary led the way into the restaurant, set her dish down in front of the judges, took a step back and waited for Noah and Cynthia to follow suite.
“Thank you, contestants, your jobs are done. You may go and enjoy the festival. The winner to the baking contest winner will be announced at four o’clock.” Simone smiled and waved her hand toward the door.
Mary stepped out the door, her heart pounding like a sledgehammer, and drew a deep breath. “I’m glad that’s over.”
Noah and Cynthia followed her out, stopped and heaved big sighs.
“Would you two ladies like me to give you a ride back to the festival?” Noah’s gaze bounced from Mary to Cynthia.
“Thank you, but my husband, Brian, is waiting for me.” Cynthia slipped her cell phone back in her pocket as she approached the car at the curb. She turned back to Mary and Noah. “See you at the announcement.”
Noah fell into step beside Mary. “It seems we’re always together, and I get the impression your family doesn’t like it.”
“I’m going to meet Amanda and Ethan at the festival, but I’ll walk. My family is protective of me. They don’t want to see me get hurt again by someone who doesn’t have my best interests at heart.”
Her words walloped Noah’s chest. He fought to take a deep breath. Seth had hurt Mary deeply, that was obvious. While she walked back to the festival, he hurried to the store and entered the backdoor to the kitchen. The steamy heat of fresh-baked peanut butter bars wafted through the air. “Mmm, the bars smell good.”
Emily held up a plate. “They’re all ready for the contest. Jenny helped me.”
“Well, sort of.” Jenny hugged her little sister. “Emily really knew what she was doing. I was impressed. Amanda and Mary did a great job of teaching our little girl how to bake.” Jenny beamed with pride.
Emily set her plate down and covered it with plastic wrap. “Thanks for coming home, Jenny, to watch me compete in the contest, Noah, are you going over to the festival with Jenny and me?”
“I wouldn’t miss it, little sister, but we need to get going.” Noah stopped at the checkout counter in the front of the store. “Jean, if I’m not back by six o’clock, go ahead and lock up.”
She nodded. “Have fun.”
At the park, Jenny excused herself to find friends, and Noah guided Emily to the judging tent and helped her register her entry. “Shall we walk around and come back later for the contest results?”
“Yes, but I’m really nervous, Noah. All the other entries looked yummy.”
But Emily forgot about her entry by the time they reached the first game booth. She tried to knock over bottles with a tennis ball to win a prize. “I’m not a good ball thrower.”
“I’m not either, Emily. I spend my time baking, not throwing a ball.”
Noah followed his sister around the festival from booth to booth. At the next booth, she caught a plastic, floating duck and won a hair barrette. While she picked out her prize, Noah glanced at his watch. “Let’s hurry back to the judging tent and find chairs before they’re all gone.”
They found their seats. Five minutes later, Noah watched Emily squirm around on her chair. She jumped up and stood then flopped back down. When Goodnight walked to the podium and tapped on the microphone, Noah grabbed Emily’s hand and squeezed. She glanced up at him and smiled. Their mom would have been so proud of her little girl so grown up and baking.
“We will announce the three finalists’ names to the children’s bakeoff in no particular order. You can all come forward, but audience, please hold your applause until all the names are read.” Connie glanced at her paper. “Roger Ferguson, Summer Conway, Emily Miller.”
Emily flew off the chair and ran to the front. Noah smiled and blotted a tear at the corner of his eye as the tent erupted into applause.
Finally, Connie raised her hand for quiet. “Again, please hold your applause until all names and places have been read, they receive their certificates and first place gets their pink backpack. In third place, Summer Conway. Second place winner, Roger Ferguson. And first place winner, Emily Miller.”
The tent roared with clapping and cheers. Noah jumped from his seat, pushed his way to the front, grabbed Emily and hugged her. “I’m so proud of you.”
“Noah, I didn’t think I could do it! I would have been happy winning third place. I can’t believe I actually got first place. Now I want to start working for you in the bakery. I could make my peanut butter bars and cookies and—”
“Slow down.” Noah laughed. “You can make a few things, but don’t forget you’re still in school.”
“I know, I’m just so excited!”
“Emily!” Kate, Emily’s friend, squealed as she ran up and hugged her. “You won. I’m so proud of you. Now you can teach me to bake better. My folks are waiting for me, do you want to come and walk around the festival with us?”
Noah nodded his approval. “If you can’t find me when you’re done, go back to the store, and I’ll be there at six when Jean leaves.”
“Okay, Noah.” Emily grabbed Kate’s hand, and they ran off through the crowd.
The microphone squawked, and Connie held her hand up. “Please take your seats. We need to make the presentation for the main baking contest.” She waited for the tent to quiet down.
Noah found his seat and looked around for Mary. He saw Cynthia sitting next to the tent wall on the opposite side with her husband. She waved and gave Noah a thumbs-up.
Mary pushed her way past a couple of people waiting for chairs. “Is this seat taken?” she asked him.
Noah moved his arm from the back of the chair. “I was saving it for you. Did you see Emily win?”
She slid around Noah and sat down. “Yes, Amanda, Ethan and I were in the back with Jenny. I caught Emily on her way out. She’s ecstatic over her win. I’m so happy for her. It gave her a boost of confidence.”
“I’ll say. Now she wants to bake for me.”
“She’s old enough to help. I baked at her age.”
Connie put her hand in the air, motioning for quiet. When the crowd finally simmered down, she glanced down at the paper in her hand. After a few seconds, she leveled her gaze at the audience. “This year’s contest has turned out to have a very unusual result.” She waved her hand toward the table with the desserts from the three finalists.
“But first, let me introduce our panel of judges. Magdalena Morgan from Magdalena’s Pastry Shop, Chicago, Illinois. Joel Bélanger from Bélanger French Cuisine, Des Moines, Iowa. And Simone André from MyBaking Channel.
A round of applause acknowledged the judges.
A voice directly behind Mary broke through the noise. “Hope one of you two show them how it’s done in Iowa.”
Mary smiled. “Danki, Frank.”
Connie motioned for the crowd to simmer down. “Next, let’s have our three finalists come up front. I will call names in no particular order. Cynthia Návar, Mary Brenneman and Noah Miller.”
She held up a hand for the clapping to stop. “According to the rules, the judges were to select a finalist based on degree of difficulty, originality, presentation and taste. However, the judges have told me there is a clear third place, but two of the dishes met all the criteria and their numbers added up to the same score.”
Murmurs from the crowd grew louder as she tried to talk. Connie raised her voice. “Please, just give me a few more minutes to explain. Two desserts were so close in taste that it was impossible to tell which was best. In fact, the tastes seem identical. It was brought to our attention that these two dishes are from contestants who are friends and who work together.”
Mary gasped and turned toward Noah. “You stole my recipe?”
Her words flamed across the space between them and seared into Noah’s gut.