An Honest Love (15 page)

“What happened?”

“
Nix
. Can you take me home?”

Her small voice tugged at his heart. “
Ya
. I’ll take you home.”

She started walking toward the exit of the barn, her arms still crossed, staring straight ahead.

He fell in step beside her, shoving his hands in his pockets, and cast a glance in her direction. She didn’t look at him.

When they reached the outside, he pointed to the left. “My buggy’s over here.”

She nodded, and they headed that way.

“Aaron? Aaron Detweiler?”

Aaron nearly tripped over his feet at the sound of the familiar voice. He turned to see a girl swaying slightly as she moved toward him. Even in the low light he could tell who she was. As if he could ever forget.
Kacey
.

“I can’t believe it’s you.” She stood in front of him, her black curly hair spilling over her shoulders. Her jeans clung to her body like they had been plastered on, and she had on a tight V-necked sweater. She held a cigarette in one hand and a bottle of beer in the other. “Never thought I’d see you at one of these again.”

For a moment he didn’t know what to do, his mind transported back to when he and Kacey were dating, hazy memories flooding over him. His feet wouldn’t move.

“Don’t say you don’t know who I am.” She transferred the cigarette to her other hand and threaded her fingers through his. “I know better than that.”

Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Elisabeth staring at him. He looked back at Kacey and pulled his hand from hers. “We’re just leaving.”

“We?” Kacey looked past Aaron’s shoulder. “So you found yourself an Amish girlfriend,
ya
?” She giggled, then took a drag from her cigarette. “Well, if you get bored with her, you know where to find me.”

Suddenly the wail of sirens pierced the air.

“
Cops!
” someone yelled.

Chaos broke out all around him as car engines roared to life. Amish kids jumped inside their buggies, and headlights flipped on, spreading blinding light everywhere. Aaron ran to Elisabeth.

“The police are here?” Alarm laced her voice.

“They will be soon,” he shouted. “We have to get out of here! Now!”

Her eyes widened. “Aaron, I don’t want to
geh
to jail.”

“Neither do I!” But if he didn’t leave before the police arrived, they might detain him. And if they ran his name through their computer system, he could be dragged back to the station. They’d throw him in a holding cell before he could explain himself. He couldn’t risk that.

Anxiety crashed through him as he saw the blinking blue and red lights of a squad car pulling up to the Schrocks’ property. His mind whirred. There was a chance he and Elisabeth could get inside the buggy and the police wouldn’t come after them. But he had no idea how many cop cars were out there, and with the slow speed of the horse, he could be caught. He looked across the road, barely making out a large field that seemed to stretch for acres.

He grabbed Elisabeth’s hand. “C’mon!”

“Where are we going?”

He didn’t answer, just dragged her along. They ran across the road. The police headlights flashed on them, but he didn’t slow down. Instead, he and Elisabeth ran into the field, plunging into the darkness.

“I can’t see!” Elisabeth exclaimed.

“Quiet!” Legs pumping, he felt the tall winter grass brushing against his trousers. He had no idea what was in front of them, but it couldn’t be as bad as what waited for them back at the Schrocks’. His toe hit a hard object and he tripped, sending him and Elisabeth flying forward.

“Umph!” He landed on his stomach, hard. Elisabeth hit the ground beside him, letting out a small cry. He flipped to his side and pulled her close to him, putting his hand over her mouth.

“Shh,” he said, low into her ear. “They’ll hear you.”

He couldn’t see her expression, but he could feel her heart pounding against his chest. He half expected her to bite down on his hand, but she didn’t. Instead she remained quiet. He removed his hand from her mouth, then felt the warmth of her breath on his cheek.

He tried not to breathe in the clean scent of her hair or think about her beside him. Instead he focused on staying hidden, making sure neither one of them did anything to reveal where they were.

They lay on the cold ground for a long time, not moving, the grass providing camouflage. Aaron strained to listen to the commotion across the street, his heart hammering in his chest. He could see the red and blue lights from the car reflecting in the sky. As long as the cops were still there, they didn’t dare move.

“Aaron?” Elisabeth’s voice was barely audible.

“What?”

“How long do we have to stay here?”

“’Til the cops leave.”

“Do you think they’ll find us?”

“Not as long as we keep quiet!”

“Oh. Sorry.”

Elisabeth moved closer to him, and she almost seemed to be snuggling against him. She lay on her back, leaning her head against his chest. The he realized why. Her body was shaking; she’d left her coat in the barn. Automatically his arm went around her shoulders. His pulse continued to race, but not just because he was afraid of getting caught by the police.

Finally the lights disappeared, and Aaron heard the crunch of the police car’s tires as it traveled down the dirt road. Only one squad car had shown up, but that didn’t mean the police hadn’t alerted other officers to be on the lookout for drivers under the influence.

Moments after the police left, and when the only noise he heard was the night music of crickets and frogs, he moved his arm away from Elisabeth.

“Is it safe?” she whispered, her head still lying on his shoulder.

“Let me check.” She moved, and he sat up slowly. The scent from the bonfire wafted toward them, but the lights in the Schrocks’ barn were out. He didn’t see or hear anyone else.

“We can
geh
now.”

“
Gut
, because I’m freezing.” She sat up, then rose to her feet.

He jumped to his feet and stripped off his jacket. “Here.” He put it around her shoulders. She slipped her arms inside the sleeves. The coat dwarfed her slim body.

He could see the remnants of the bonfire and headed in that direction, with Elisabeth trailing slightly behind him. His heartbeat finally slowed down as he realized he and Elisabeth were alone. He had no idea how many of the partygoers had been taken in by the police, if any. That the police hadn’t had any backup made him think only a few of the youth had been busted. He said a silent prayer of thanks he hadn’t been among them.

Aaron heard Elisabeth stumble behind him, and he slowed down his pace. He took her hand and together they navigated the dark field and crossed the road to the Yoders’. Only when they reached his buggy did he release her hand.

Aaron steered his horse to the road, then headed to Elisabeth’s house. When he was several yards away from the Schrocks’, he turned on the buggy lights and the small lamp inside. He snuck a look at Elisabeth. She sat on the other side of the seat, as far from him as she could, her arms hugging her body.

He reached back behind the seat and pulled out an old, clean quilt and handed it to her. She took it, but instead of wrapping it around herself, she set it on the seat and stared straight ahead. He’d never known Elisabeth to be anything but a chatterbox, but she hadn’t spoken since they’d left the Schrocks’.

After a few moments, her silence unnerved him so much he had to speak. “Are you all right?”

She nodded.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m fine, Aaron.” Her tone was flat and lifeless.

“You don’t sound fine.” He gripped the reins, the leather digging into the palm of his hand. “Did something happen back there?”

“
Nee
.” She shifted in her seat, angling her body away from him.

“Because if somebody was messing with you—”

“I said nothing happened.” She looked down on the floor. “Take me home, Aaron. I just want to go home.”

It took nearly forty-five minutes to get to her house. By the time they arrived, he figured it was close to midnight. All the lights were out at the Byler home when he pulled into the driveway. As soon as the horse came to a stop, Elisabeth opened the door and jumped out. She started to shut the door, then hesitated.

“You were right. I shouldn’t have gone.” Then she shut the door and ran to the house.

He considered following her, then thought better of it. He didn’t want to risk waking up her parents, which would surely happen if he followed her inside the house.

It wasn’t until he’d made it almost home that he remembered Kacey. He hadn’t seen her since he’d gone to jail. She was the last person he thought he’d run into at this party. Two years since his arrest and she was still drinking and smoking. Her ultra-thin frame made him suspect she was still using drugs too. It saddened him to think that at twenty-one she was still hanging out with younger kids and getting high.

Aaron shook his head and turned into his driveway. Despite his thoughts about Kacey, he couldn’t get Elisabeth out of his mind, or their narrow escape from the police. The memory of lying next to her ran through his mind, but he forced it away. He didn’t want to think about how good it felt to hold her for those brief moments.

He pondered what had happened before he found Elisabeth coming from behind the haystack. Something went on, and he had no idea what, but he had a strong suspicion Chase was involved.

“Elisabeth. Elisabeth!”

Elisabeth opened her eyes at the muffled sound of her mother’s voice. She squinted against the sunlight that streamed through her bedroom window. A bitter, sour taste coated her mouth. She licked her dry lips and tried to wake up.

A knock sounded at her door. “Elisabeth? Are you sick? It’s past seven.”

She bolted upright out of bed. Seven? Normally she was up before five-thirty. “Just a minute.” She rose from her bed, walked to the door, and opened it.

Emma Byler stood in the doorway, a puzzled look crossing her face. “Why are you wearing one of your brother’s coats?”

Elisabeth glanced down at Aaron’s coat, surprised. She hadn’t realized she’d slept in it. After Aaron dropped her off she went straight upstairs and right to bed, trying to put the party behind her. But she tossed and turned most of the night, which probably explained why she’d overslept. “I’m cold,” she explained.

“I’ve never known you to go to bed with a coat before. Or sleep in your
kapp
.” She peered at Elisabeth. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

No, she wasn’t all right, but Elisabeth wasn’t about to admit that to her mother. Or explain that the coat she wore belonged to Aaron. “I don’t think I’m feeling so
gut
.”

“Oh dear, I hope you haven’t caught Stephen’s cold. It took him two weeks to get over it. Well, there’s still some breakfast left over downstairs. Biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs, and a few pancakes. I don’t think your brother ate them all.”

“I’m not hungry.”

Emma frowned. “You must not be feeling well. You’ve never turned down breakfast.” She put the back of her hand to Elisabeth’s forehead. “You don’t feel warm.”

“I think I’m mostly tired.”

Emma gave her a pointed look. “Maybe you stayed up too late. How was your outing last night?”

Elisabeth’s face flushed. “Fine,” she said quickly, then backed away from the door.

“I’m glad you had a nice time. Oh, there’s some grass on your coat.” Her mother reached over and plucked two blades off her shoulder. “Some over here too. Where did it all come from?”

“I, um, don’t know.”

“There’s probably grass on your bed. Make sure you shake out your quilt. Don’t worry about the chores. Ruth can help me with them this morning. Why don’t you get some rest, and if you feel better, you can come downstairs later.”

“
Danki, Mami
.”

When her mother walked away, Elisabeth closed the door, then leaned against it, thankful she didn’t have to go downstairs, and even more thankful her mother hadn’t questioned her any further. What she told her
mami
wasn’t a complete lie—she really didn’t feel very good. But it had little to do with catching germs.

Her eyes closed as the memories flooded back. Deborah leaving with a guy and abandoning her. Taking a sip of the drink Chase had spiked. And worst of all, him practically dragging her behind the haystack. Opening her eyes, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, as if she could erase the fact that he kissed her. She should have gone home the minute he had started talking to her.

Regret filled her. She’d always wondered what her first kiss would be like and had always imagined it would be with the man she loved, the man she would marry. Instead it had been at a party with a slobbery, drunk Yankee. And she could never take it back.

Taking off Aaron’s coat, she shook it out, a few more blades of grass floating to the floor. Then she walked over to her bed and plopped down, ignoring her mother’s advice about shaking out the quilt. She hugged Aaron’s coat to her body. Why hadn’t she listened to him? She knew the answer to that. Because her desire to prove him wrong had overridden her common sense.