Brush of Angel's Wings
Acclaim for
The Promise of an Angel
“First-time novelist Reid taps into two fan basesâAmish fiction and angel talesâin this lovely story that seamlessly blends both worlds. Reid has written a fine novel that provides, as its series title claims, a bit of âheaven on earth.'”
âP
UBLISHERS
W
EEKLY
“
The Promise of an Angel
is a fantastic read! This page-turner kept me up late at night as this unique and refreshing story unfolded. Fast-paced and with an ending that brought a happy tear to my eye, fans of Amish fiction are going to love this first novel in the Heaven on Earth series by debut author Ruth Reid.”
âB
ETH
W
ISEMAN, BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF
S
EEK
M
E WITH
A
LL
Y
OUR
H
EART
AND
P
LAIN
P
ROPOSAL
“Ruth Reid's
The Promise of an Angel
is a beautiful story of faith, hope, and second chances. It will captivate fans of Amish fiction and readers who love an endearing romance.”
âA
MY
C
LIPSTON, BEST-SELLING AUTHOR
OF THE
K
AUFFMAN
A
MISH
B
AKERY
S
ERIES
“Ruth Reid captivates with a powerful new voice and vision.”
âK
ELLY
L
ONG, BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF
S
ARAH'S
G
ARDEN
AND
L
ILLY'S
W
EDDING
Q
UILT
Brush of
Angel's Wings
Brush of
Angel's Wings
A Heaven on Earth Novel
Ruth Reid
© 2012 by Ruth Reid
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meansâelectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or otherâexcept for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Scripture quotations are taken from T
HE
N
EW
K
ING
J
AMES
V
ERSION
. © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Thomas Nelson, Inc., titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fundraising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail [email protected].
Publisher's Note: This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. All characters are fictional, and any similarity to people living or dead is purely coincidental.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Reid, Ruth, 1963-
   Brush of angel's wings / Ruth Reid.
     p. cm. -- (A heaven on Earth novel; 2)
   ISBN 978-1-59554-789-7 (trade paper)
1. Amish--Fiction. 2. Michigan--Fiction. I. Title.
   PS3618.E5475B78 2012
   813'.6--dc23
2011051932
Printed in the United States of America
12 13 14 15 16 17 QG 6 5 4 3 2 1
To my husband, Dan, and our three children, Lexie,
Danny, and Sarah. I'm blessed to be surrounded by
your love and support.
Contents
ach
: oh
aemen
: amen
aenti
: aunt
againish
: stubborn, strong-willed
Ausbund
: Amish hymnal used in worship services
babrag boi
: rhubarb crisp
bauch shmartzlich
: stomach pain
blabbermauls
: blabbermouths
boppli
: baby
bruder
: brother
bu
: boy
Budget
: Amish newspaper
daed
: dad
denki
: thank you
dokta
: doctor
doplich
: awkward
Englisch
or
Englisher
: a non-Amish person
fraa
: wife
geh
: go
grossdaadi haus
: grandfather's house
gut mariye
: good morning
guder nacht
: good night
gut
: good
haus
: house
hinkle
: chicken
hohchmoot
: pride
jah
: yes
kaffi
: coffee
kapp
: a prayer covering worn by the women
kumm
: come/came
leddich
: unmarried
lieb
: love
Loblied
: praise song
mamm
: mom
mammi
: grandmother
mariye
: morning
maydel
: girl
mei
: my
meiya
: tomorrow
nacht
: night
narrisch
: crazy
nau
: now
nay
: no
nett
: not
onkel
: uncle
Ordnung
: the written and unwritten rules of the Amish
Pennsylvania Deitsch
: the language most commonly used by the Amish
redd-up
: clean up
rumschpringe
: running-around period that begins when an Amish youth turns seventeen years old and ends when the young person is baptized into the Amish faith
schnitzboi
: split moon apple pie
schul
: school
sohn
: son
vass iss gut
: what is good
wundebaar
: wonderful
yummasetti
: traditional Amish dish using hamburger, egg noodles, and cheese as the main ingredients
R
achel Hartzler wove through the wedding crowd, then dashed toward the line of parked buggies. Now that her sister Iva's wedding ceremony had ended, Rachel needed to rush home and help with the meal preparations. It wouldn't be long before the throng of wedding guests migrated from her
aenti's
house to her parents' home to continue celebrating.
She hitched her horse in haste, hoping to avoid the guests and their comments. Several had already mentioned that she would be the next Hartzler married. The
last
Hartzler, she'd inwardly corrected. She wasn't holding her breath. Marriage wasn't around the corner for her. At age twenty, well past the prime time to court, she had yet to be offered a ride home after one of the youth singings. Lately she'd been praying about becoming a teacher. A good job for a
maydel
.
Rachel climbed into the buggy and fastened the canvas leg covering over her lap. Despite the clear sky and sun overhead, Michigan's early spring wind produced a teeth-chattering chill.
“
Geh
on, Ginger.” She tapped the reins. The horse obeyed and the buggy lurched forward. Once on the main road, she gave the horse a free head. The mare, feeling her morning oats, picked up the pace. A retired harness racer, Ginger ran faster than any of the other horses in her father's stock.
As a steady clopping of hooves from behind them grew louder, Ginger must have sensed competition approaching and her pace automatically increased. Rachel dismissed the fleeting notion to rein in the mare. After all, the icy winter had kept them both off the roads. With only a thin layer of slush on the pavement, it wouldn't hurt to let the horse burn her energy.
She glanced out the window opening at an approaching buggy. Shaded inside, the male driver's identity wasn't visible. His sorrel gelding came alongside her, nostrils flaring from the quick pace. The horse didn't have the zest to pass, despite his driver's calls to go faster.
It had been a long time since her last race. A flash of pride spurted through her veins. Ginger could win without an ounce more energy. But strategy was important.
Rachel caught a glimpse of how close the other buggy's wheel was to hers. Too close. Any connection would tangle them both into a heap. A good excuse to move faster. She clucked her tongue and Ginger happily obeyed. Her heart rate increased to match the faster clopping of Ginger's hooves. The brisk air burned Rachel's cheeks and a chill traveled down the back of her neck. She'd never gone so fast.
The stiff breeze caught her winter bonnet and slipped it off her head, saved from blowing away only by the loosely tied strings around her neck. Her flimsy prayer
kapp
flapped as a few of the pins holding the head covering in place loosened. She shifted the reins to one hand and used her free hand to grasp the strings of her
kapp
.
A few of her
aentis
had skipped the ceremony to prepare the meal, so she certainly didn't want to arrive home with her hair askew and her covering in disarray. Buggy racing was only something that happened between the boys, and even then the elders did not always overlook their boyish pranks.
The last buggy race she'd won caused some undesirable attention. She shouldn't want to risk spoiling her sister's wedding festivities just to prove she could handle a fast horse. Still, the excitement surging inside spurred her on. She would pull back on Ginger and drop her speed when they reached the bend on Northland Drive where the dirt road leading to the farm came into view. Continuing the race around the corner wouldn't be wise.
“Get over, there's aâ” The man's muffled yell was swallowed by a blaring horn.
Rachel stuck her head out the side opening. A semitruck driver laid on the horn again as he sped past. The truck's draft pushed Ginger off the road and onto the dirt shoulder. The shuddering buggy wheel dipped into a large hole. Rachel slid across the seat and slammed hard against the door. Another jolt lifted her off the bench and hurled her toward the window. Something solid thudded against the side of her buggy and kept her from catapulting out.