A Daughter's Dream (21 page)

But of course, casting blame wouldn't help her feel better. “Which leg did she kick?”

Awkwardly, she pointed to the one stretched out. “That one.”

The hem of her dress was resting about mid-calf. He lifted the fabric to her knee.
Not seeing anything from that angle, he started to turn her calf when she cried out.

Growing alarmed, he moved to her other side so he could see the full extent of the injury. A large—very large—black and blue mark decorated her leg. It was also extremely swollen and slightly misshapen.

He would bet money that the bone was broken. Visions of her sitting in pain while on the floor of the dusty barn cut him deeply.

Once again, he ached to corner Lukas, Rebecca, and the missing Levi and give them a piece of his mind. Yes, Amelia was an adult, but she had been given too few choices. While the three of them spent their days how they wanted to, Amelia was stuck at home alone day after day.

He'd told Lukas more than once that he worried that something would happen to Amelia and she would be alone and helpless.

He wasn't exactly happy to be proven right.

But none of that mattered now. All that mattered was taking care of Amelia and getting her help as soon as possible.

“Change of plans,” he said as he pulled out his cell phone. “We need to get you to the hospital.”

The skin around her mouth whitened. “Do ya really think that is necessary?”

“I'm afraid so. I think your leg is broken.”

After staring at him for a few seconds, she sighed. “I'm afraid it is, too,” she whispered. “I tried to get up but I couldn't put any weight on it.”

After pausing for a moment to give thanks that the bishop had allowed him to purchase a cell phone for work, he dialed 911. He'd deal with the consequences of using the phone for a nonrelated work reason at a later date.

He had to walk out the barn door to get a signal, but God was good. In no time at all, he was connected to the emergency operator, explained Amelia's situation, and relayed her
address. Once he was assured they were on their way, he turned to her. “What do you want me to tell Lukas?”

“Don't call him yet.”

“Amelia, he ain't going to be happy to find out you didn't let him know about your accident. I bet he could get here before the ambulance leaves.”

She shook her head again. “
Nee
. If you call the mill, it's going to send Luke and Rebecca into a dither. They'll come running over and take charge. I'm not ready for that yet.”

Everything inside him disagreed with her. “They are going to worry.”

“I know. But canna you contact them after we get to the hospital? That's not too long to wait.”

Though he still didn't feel right about it, he didn't argue. She was in pain and she was also his weakness. He hated to refuse her anything. “The ambulance will be here soon. What do you need from the house?”

Relief filled her blue eyes. “
Danke
, Simon. All I need is my purse. It's on the kitchen counter.”

“I'll be right back. You sit tight.” Then he went to put a pouting Princess in one of the empty horse stalls and Oscar back in the house.

Unable to help himself, Simon wrote Lukas and Rebecca a brief note. He'd just finished it when he heard the sirens.

After grabbing her purse, he rushed back to her side. When she gazed up at him, her pretty eyes shining with unshed tears, he attempted to smile. “As you can tell, the ambulance is almost here. They'll take you to the hospital and give you something for your pain.”

She still looked agitated. “Simon, I'm afraid,” she admitted. Looking ashamed, she whispered, “The . . . The hospital brings back many bad memories.”

“I know it does.” He'd been in the same hospital waiting room when she'd learned that each of her parents had died.

“Would you go with me?”

“Of course.” He almost groaned. Was she truly that oblivious to his feelings for her? “I'm not going to leave your side, Amelia. You couldn't get rid of me if you tried.”

Her bottom lip trembled as she attempted to smile.
“Danke.”

“Never thank me for something like this. I don't want to be anywhere else.”

She smiled as she pushed back some stray strands of her white-gold blond hair from her face. Only Amelia could look beautiful at a time like this.

He smiled at her again before walking out the barn door and waving to the ambulance approaching.

“She's in here!” he called out when one man and one woman opened the doors to the vehicle.

As he watched them get out a stretcher, Simon realized that he had now made his choice. He was done thinking of other people. He was done biding his time.

“Are you a relative?” the man asked.

“Boyfriend,” he replied. Not even caring that it wasn't technically the truth.

As far as he was concerned, she would be his girl soon enough. He wasn't going to have it be any other way.

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S
ISTERS OF THE
H
EART SERIES

Hidden
•
Wanted
•
Forgiven
•
Grace

S
EASONS OF
S
UGARCREEK SERIES

Winter's Awakening
•
Spring's Renewal

Autumn's Promise
•
Christmas in Sugarcreek

F
AMILIES OF
H
ONOR SERIES

The Caregiver
•
The Protector
•
The Survivor

A Christmas for Katie
(novella)

T
HE
S
ECRETS OF
C
RITTENDEN
C
OUNTY SERIES

Missing
•
The Search
•
Found
•
Peace

T
HE
D
AYS OF
R
EDEMPTION SERIES

Daybreak
•
Ray of Light
•
Eventide
•
Snowfall

R
ETURN TO
S
UGARCREEK SERIES

Hopeful
•
Thankful
•
Joyful

A
MISH
B
RIDES OF
P
INECRAFT SERIES

The Promise of Palm Grove
•
The Proposal at Siesta Key

A Wedding at the Orange Blossom Inn

A Wish on Gardenia Street
(novella)

A Christmas Bride in Pinecraft

T
HE
C
HARMED
A
MISH
L
IFE SERIES

A Son's Vow

O
THER BOOKS

Redemption

Cover photograph and design by Laura Klynstra

This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

P.S.™ is a trademark of HarperCollins Publishers.

A DAUGHTER'S DREAM.
Copyright © 2016 by Shelley Shepard Gray. Excerpt from
A Sister's Wish
© 2016 by Shelley Shepard Gray. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

FIRST EDITION

Illustrated map copyright © 2015 by Laura Hartman Maestro

ISBN 978-0-06-233781-8

EPub Edition MAY 2016 ISBN: 9780062337825

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