A Heart Made New (30 page)

Annie didn’t have the heart to tell Sadie she wasn’t sure David’s health was the problem. If David didn’t have cancer, would he shine his flashlight in her window? Would he meet up with her at a singing? It was hard to say anymore. “I told Sergeant Parker I already had someone—”

“And you do!”

Did she? Maybe Sadie knew something Annie didn’t. “Why do you think he’s spending time with this little girl, Kinsey?” And Kinsey’s mother. “What is that all about?”

“He’s helping a sick child, simple as that.” Sadie smacked the mop against the bucket so hard it sloshed water over the side. “Just like you’re helping Charisma and Gracie by giving them a place to stay. Your act of kindness gives them hope. David’s gives Kinsey and her mother hope. No big secret there.”

Sadie was right. They were both helpers. If only they could help people together. Annie would like that. “You’re right—”

The door swung open so hard it banged against the wall. The bell jangled and fell to the floor. Charisma marched in, dragging poor Gracie behind her.

“Take the baby, please!” She thrust Luke David at Annie, who braced the broom against the wall just in time to take the little bundle of joy. “Gracie, stop that howling now. You’re driving me crazy.”

“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!” Gracie threw herself on the floor, kicking and screaming. “Want Daddy!”

A thick, aching sadness enveloped Annie. Maybe it hadn’t been a good idea for Gracie to see Logan again. Out of sight, out of mind,
might be kinder. “Gracie, come here, sweetie.” Annie laid Luke David in the carrier they’d bought at the Goodwill store and turned to the little girl. “Come to Annie. You’re okay.”

“She’s not okay. If she doesn’t stop that screeching I’m going to smack her behind.” Charisma plopped onto the bench by the door and stuck the fat denim bag that doubled as a purse and a diaper bag on the seat next to her. Sweat shone on her face and beaded on her red nose. Her lipstick was smeared. “You’ll never guess what happened.”

Annie figured she wouldn’t have to guess. Charisma would tell her. Knowing Charisma, in great detail. She picked up Gracie and stuck her on one hip. The girl hiccupped, but her sobs subsided. “Cookie.”

“We could all use a cookie.” Annie patted her matted curls. “Especially Mommy.”

“Mommy, Mommy, I want Mommy.” Gracie arched her back and threw herself toward Charisma, the movement so sudden Annie almost dropped her.

“What did Logan say?”

“First he went crazy, looking at the baby, saying how it was his son, his boy, his baby, and he needed to get out and take care of him and Gracie.”

“And then you told him how you feel?”

“Yeah. And then he wasn’t talking to me any more. He told his lawyer he was gonna just plead guilty. That he didn’t have a reason to live if I didn’t wait for him, but the lawyer talked him out of it. He said they didn’t offer a good plea bargain cause they had him dead to rights with eyewitnesses. He needed to take his chances with a jury ’cause they were gonna think he was young and cute. He said I had to be in the courtroom every day with the kids so they could see that he’s a family man with kids to support.”

“Gracie in the courtroom?”

“I know. There’s no way she’ll sit still for two minutes, let alone two hours. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

Annie scraped a piece of dried dough from her apron with her fingernail. “So you’re going back.”

“They’re picking a jury right now. No sense in being there until
someone comes to get me on account of how they won’t let me be in the courtroom until they actually start the testimony. Sergeant Parker will come fetch me when it’s time, but the lawyer said not until tomorrow at the earliest.”

“Testimony?”

“Ain’t you never watched
Law and Order
?”

Annie tried not to look stupid. “Is that a movie?”

Charisma waved her hands, showering Annie with cookie crumbs. “Never mind. Until the lawyers start asking the people questions.”

“Is Logan really upset?”

“Yeah, I hurt him bad.” Charisma sniffled a little. “Real bad.”

Logan’s determined blue eyes the day he held a gun on her filled Annie’s head. “Can’t you take it back?”

“I don’t want to take it back.” Charisma dug around in the diaper bag and came out with a tissue she used to wipe her face. “Seeing him in handcuffs just made it all the more real. He’s going away for a long time, leaving me to raise two kids by myself.”

The consequences of doing the wrong thing, even if it seemed to be for the right reason. Annie had no answers.

Charisma snatched Annie’s hand from her lap and held on for dear life. “You have to come with me to the courthouse. Don’t make me go by myself. Please!”

Luke would never allow it. But maybe Annie didn’t have to tell him. She’d been in the courthouse this morning. Not in the courtroom, though. Splitting hairs. Wrong was wrong. The thought stuck in her throat, making it hard to breathe. Annie never denied Luke’s authority. Having him in charge made her feel secure. Everything was right in her world, but now things were all topsy-turvy. Bringing Charisma into their home had created a crack in their united front. “I can’t. I have to work. And who’ll take care of Gracie?”

“Deborah will do it, I’m sure.” Sadie spoke up from behind the counter. “She’s my oldest daughter,” she explained to Charisma. “I’ll stop by her house on the way home tonight to ask. Go by there on your way into town tomorrow morning.”

Sadie’s daughter had five children of her own. Surprised, Annie shifted Gracie onto the bench and went to the counter. “You think I should go with Charisma?”

“Luke was right in saying we shouldn’t testify against that boy.” Sadie swished the mop in the bucket of water. “Going to the courthouse to support a friend is a different cup of tea.”

“Should I tell him?”

“You know the answer to that question.” Sadie stopped mopping. “Only, I wouldn’t tell him, I’d ask him.”

For once it would be nice not to have to do the right thing. Annie picked up Luke David. She inhaled his sweet baby scent as he cooed in her ear. “Come on, bobbeli. Let’s go home.”

D
avid lifted Kinsey onto Blackie. Her grin stood out in stark relief against her pale skin. She looked a whole lot better. She’d only been in the hospital four days this last time. Now she had more energy. Enough for the two of them. As her enthusiasm for the task at hand increased, his energy seemed to wane. His regimen of chemo had ended, but he hadn’t rebounded the way he had the last time. David tried to ignore the clock ticking in his head. Tomorrow he would go for tests. In a week or so he’d know if the treatment had been successful this time. He refused to get his hopes up. Not again.

This time in limbo made him thankful Annie was still at the bakery. Or maybe the courthouse. Knowing Annie, she’d want to support Charisma. It was a wonder she didn’t march into the courtroom and tell the judge to let the robber go free. That would be his Annie.

No. Not his Annie. Not now. Not ever, most likely.

He shook his head, trying to clear the painful thoughts. Why did he keep doing this to himself? Focus on Kinsey. Focus on the lessons. They’d managed to get in two more lessons since the first one and each time Kinsey had done better. Each time, Annie had managed to be at the farm instead of at the bakery. But not today.
Gut.
That was
gut
. He would just keep telling himself that.

“Here you go.” He handed Kinsey the reins. “Hold the reins lightly,
but let Blackie know what you want him to do. You’re in charge. Squeeze with your knees.”

“You’re letting me handle him by myself?”

The awe in her voice produced a sudden lift in David’s spirits. Something so everyday in his life, in the life of most Plain people, served as something special and memorable to this young, sick girl.

“You’re ready. Just hold steady and walk him around the corral.” He hoped the gruffness of his voice didn’t give him away. He cleared his throat. “Easy now. Let him know who’s in control.”

The
clip clop
of Blackie’s hoofs mixed with the sound of another horse. David looked up. A buggy approached. The bishop. What was Bishop Kelp doing here? A ripple of unease ran through David. He wasn’t doing anything wrong here. Just helping a little girl through the day. An Englischer, yes, but their lessons were simple and out in the open.

Bishop Kelp hoisted his rotund frame from the buggy and strode toward them, his steps ponderous. “David, I wish to speak with you.” His gaze encompassed Willow and Kinsey, who kept Blackie moving right on by. “It might be best if we talk alone.”

“Mom, look at me! I’m riding. I’m riding Blackie!” Kinsey’s voice sang out, strong and happy. “Look, Mister Whoever-You-Are! I’m riding all by myself!”

David held his breath.

Bishop Kelp’s face cracked into the briefest of smiles. “So you are.”

David hustled toward Blackie, aiming for the reins. “Kinsey, maybe you should get down for a second while I talk to Bishop Kelp.”

“I just got started.” Her smile melted into a frown. “You said I could ride as long as I want.”

He hadn’t said that. David started to protest, but Bishop Kelp held up a hand. “She can ride. I only need to speak with you and the girl’s mother. It’s not a conversation for small ears.”

Keeping an eye on Kinsey’s progress, David quickly made the introductions. A puzzled look on her face, Willow shook hands. “David is doing us a big favor by teaching Kinsey to ride. It’s something she always wanted.”

“I understand that.” Bishop Kelp removed his hat and wiped at his forehead. “I’d heard a few murmurings here and there about it and I wanted to see for myself that all the proprieties are being observed.”

“Rumors?” An arrow of anger shot through David. For people who were supposed to be full of grace, this community sure knew how to be suspicious and backwards. “Who—”

“Propriety?” Willow slapped her hands on wide hips. “Seriously?”

“You’re not from around here, I understand.” Bishop Kelp didn’t seem the least bit put off by her tone. “We’re a small, close-knit community. We want no wedge to be driven between our members. We try to keep the ways of the world from becoming our ways.”

“We also try to show a Christlike attitude to those in need.” David clamped his mouth shut. Arguing with the bishop would only lead to greater repercussions in the long run. He didn’t want Kinsey to suffer because of his inability to keep his thoughts to himself. “I’m teaching her to ride, that’s all.”

“If you’re suggesting there is something going on between David and me, well, you can just think again.” Willow’s face darkened to the color of an overripe tomato. “That’s just…it’s disrespectful to me and to him. David’s been nothing but a gentleman. My daughter has been so ill and his kindness has meant everything to her. He’s making her dream come true.”

“Her dream?” Micah Kelp looked puzzled. David knew the bishop had the same thought he’d had at first. What sort of dream was riding a horse? All Amish children did it. “I don’t understand. She had a dream that she rode a horse?”

“To ride a black horse. It’s what she wants.” Willow’s voice quivered. “It might seem a small thing to someone like you, people like you who have horses all over the place. But for me, it was an impossible dream. You see, it’s just me and her and Grammy. We have no one else. No means of doing this.”

The bishop stared at her, his expression thoughtful. “And the girl’s father?”

“Not in the picture. Never has been.”

“I see.” Micah Kelp’s expression said he saw a great deal. His gaze went to Kinsey. Both her hands were gripping the horn of the saddle, her grin stretching from ear to ear as she passed them on the other side of the corral fence. “I’m sorry for your difficulties.”

“Thank you.” Willow straightened her shoulders crossed her arms over her chest. “You won’t forbid it, will you?”

“No. I wouldn’t do that.” His gaze went to David. “I think my work here is done.”

“Yes, it is.” David couldn’t help himself. “There’s nothing here to see.”

“Watch your tone.” The bishop’s stern expression did nothing but fan David’s anger. “Watch yourself.”

“It seems plenty of people are doing that for me.”

“For your own good and the good of our community.” Bishop Kelp’s tone softened. “Your family and friends want what is best for you. We’re here to help you see what that is. That’s all.”

David had no response to that. The bishop believed what he said, no doubt, but David was sure small, fearful minds had more to do with this visit than anyone’s good.

Bishop Kelp slapped his hat on his head and walked as fast as his enormous legs could carry him back to his buggy. David didn’t watch him drive away. He called out to Kinsey, who waved with one hand and yelled, “Yippee-yay-yah!”

He couldn’t help it. He laughed. Her enthusiasm was a salve for his soul.

“Let’s ride.” He untied Rosie’s reins from the fence post and hoisted himself onto the horse. Time to give Kinsey twenty or thirty minutes free from disease, free from thinking about hospitals and shots and tests.

He waved at Willow, who opened the corral gate and stood watching and waving as they rode away. Her smile didn’t waver, but he knew how much it cost her to let her daughter go on this journey. She wanted to keep her in a safe, sterile cocoon. Life wasn’t like that, much as parents might want it. His own mother wanted it. He knew she grappled
every day with letting go of her youngest child. He was a man, but to her, still a child. Such was the role of a parent. He glanced at Kinsey’s smiling face. A role he’d never know.