Chapter 5
We’re almost there. It should be the next lane.”
At the driver’s words, Phoebe leaned slightly forward on the seat, eager to catch a glimpse of the place she’d call home for the next several weeks.
For the first thirty minutes of the ride she and Sandra, the driver, had carried on a lively conversation, helping Phoebe keep her nervousness at bay. But the conversation had eventually tapered off and Phoebe had been left to her own thoughts.
Now that she’d committed to taking on this task she was having second thoughts. This was the first time she’d been so far from home and, other than that summer she’d spent with Edna, it was the first time she’d spent time away from her eldre.
And no matter how much she told herself that she’d be able to run a household, with a bit of direction from Edna of course, a small part of her wondered if Mamm was right to doubt her.
But it was too late to turn back now—she’d told Edna she would do this, so do this she would.
The first thing Phoebe spotted after Sandra’s heads-up was a phone shanty. Just past that was a gravel drive. And though the sky was blue, everything was wet and glistening, an indication that the rain they’d passed through about twenty minutes ago had come from this direction.
Once they’d turned onto the drive, Phoebe leaned forward to study the buildings up ahead. There was a large, two-story white clapboard house, not very different from the type of homes peppering the landscape back in Bergamot. It was skirted with a wide wraparound porch that held a pair of rocking chairs on one end and a bench and three ladderback chairs on the other. She could also see a pair of clotheslines that stretched from the side of the house to the barn’s loft.
A paddock near the barn contained a pair of buggy horses who had tromped a muddy path around the inside of the fence. Before she could take in much more, Sandra had pulled the car to a stop near the porch.
Phoebe climbed out of the car onto the wet gravel and arched her back. It felt so gut to stand after sitting for so long.
Immediately the door to the house was flung open and the familiar figure of a woman with a ramrod-straight spine and a commanding bearing, her five-foot-two height and arm in a sling notwithstanding, stepped out on the porch.
Phoebe’s mood brightened and a little bubble of joy expanded in her chest.
Edna hurried to her with her free arm outstretched for a hug. “Wilkom, wilkom. I’m so glad you decided to come,” the woman said as the two of them embraced. Then she pulled away. “And the Beiler brieder will be happy to see you too.”
Phoebe looked around the place again. “Where are they?”
“Levi, Daniel and Mark are at work. Kish and Jesse are at school. Seth is in his workshop.” Then she waved a hand. “Ach, there he is now.”
Phoebe turned and studied the man approaching them. He appeared to be a little taller than Michael, the biggest of her brieder. His hair and beard were both a light brown, similar to a warm oak color. His easy, confident walk seemed unhurried yet ate up the distance with surprising speed.
The eldest brieder was more handsome than she’d expected, which made her uncomfortably aware of her own plain features. Then she frowned. He had a beard? She turned to Edna. “He’s married?”
“Widowed.”
Phoebe immediately felt a rush of sympathy for the man. She also had questions. What had happened to his fraa? How long had they been married? How long had she been gone?
But now was not the time to ask such questions.
When he was still a little distance away he stopped and she saw his eyes narrow. Then he looked from her to Edna, who had a suspiciously bland look on her face.
Whatever his thoughts or conclusions, however, they remained his alone—she couldn’t tell anything from his expression.
His eyes captured her attention as he drew closer. They were a grayish blue that reminded her of the soft denim of a well-worn pair of overalls. But there was nothing soft about the light reflected there. They were assessing, weighing, studying her with the same curiosity with which she was studying him.
A moment later he was moving again, only stopping when he was a few feet from her.
“Phoebe?” The voice was rich, deep.
She nodded, feeling suddenly tongue-tied.
“I’m Seth. Thank you for agreeing to come.”
Phoebe finally found her voice. “I’m happy to be here.” Then she touched her throat. “Ach, I almost forgot.” She spun around and leaned back into the car. “I baked some snickerdoodles last night for you and your brieder.” She backed out, holding the basket she’d carefully packed the cookies in.
Phoebe wasn’t sure exactly what happened next, but one minute she was turning to show him and Edna her gift and the next the basket was upended on the wet ground with cookies scattered all around it.
For a moment no one said anything, Phoebe wasn’t even sure she took a breath. All she could do was stare down at the cookies and think what a terrible first impression she was making.
Finally she broke the silence. “I’m so sorry. I’ll make some more when I get settled in properly.”
He waved a hand. “It’s all right. We’re not used to having sweets around here anyway.”
What did he mean by that? Didn’t they like sweets? Had she made a misstep already? She finally looked up and met his gaze. But she couldn’t tell anything more from his expression than she had from his tone. It was unnerving not to have any idea at all what he was thinking.
“And speaking of getting properly settled in,” Seth moved to the open trunk of the car where Sandra was unobtrusively waiting, “I’ll take your bags to the dawdi haus. Edna can help you get settled in.”
Edna nodded and waved her toward the house. “Kum, kum. I’ll put on a kettle so we can warm you up with a nice hot cup of tea.”
Up until now Phoebe hadn’t really felt the cold but suddenly that was all she could think of. Drawing her coat closer around her, she walked beside her friend, eager to see the place that would be her home for the next several weeks. Despite the accident with the cookies, she still had a chance to make a gut impression here. It would be the start of an adventure, a chance to see how she could prove herself away from her familye and friends.
Edna led her down the drive as it paralleled the house and after a moment Phoebe could see that the dawdi haus was attached to the main house via the shared back porch.
Once inside she found the dawdi haus to be very snug and cozy. The whole front interior of the house was an open area with a kitchen and dining table taking up about a third of the space and the living room the rest. There was a hallway leading off the middle of the room, which apparently led to the bedrooms and washroom.
Before Phoebe could take in much more Seth entered with her bags.
