Amish House of Secrets (6 page)

Chapter 7.

For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach,

because we trust in the living God,

who is the Saviour of all men,

specially of those that believe.

1 Timothy 4:10

Elsa-May and Ettie climbed out of the taxi at the address that Ettie had found for Harold Fielding.

It was a small house and a man was out the front, crouched in the garden and he rose to his feet as the ladies walked through the low gate.

“Would you be Mr. Fielding?” Ettie asked.

He placed his garden fork on the ground and took off his gloves. “Yes.”

“Did you once know a Dorothy Welby?”

The man studied the two ladies in turn. “What’s this about?”

“We’re friends of Dorothy Welby and she believes that you went missing in the war.”

“I’m sorry, I think you ladies are mistaken. Dorothy Welby is dead; I’m sorry to say.”

The ladies shook their heads. “She’s alive and well, two of our friends just visited her yesterday. She’s the same Dorothy Welby who you wrote letters to during the war.”

Harold sat on the front step of his house. “I was told she died.” He looked up at the two ladies and then said, “Give me a minute.” After a moment, Harold buried his face in his hands.

Elsa-May and Ettie looked at each other as they wondered what to do.

He took a handkerchief out of his wallet, rubbed his face and then blew his nose. “You ladies better come inside.”

They followed him inside and sat at Harold’s kitchen table.

“She’s really alive?” He studied the two ladies.

They nodded.

“Is she well?” he asked.

They nodded again.

“Who told you she died?” Elsa-May asked, already guessing the answer.

“Josephine.”

“The woman you married?” Ettie asked even though they knew that to be the case from the marriage records.

Harold stared at them. “You knew Josephine?”

“Knew of her,” Ettie said.

“How can it be that she deceived me? I cannot believe that she could have done anything so cruel to another human being. She knew how I grieved for her. Josephine helped me through my grief. I felt I owed her; I owed her my life. I would have taken my own life if Josephine hadn’t stopped me. She suggested we marry, and I agreed. She’s gone now; she died just six months ago.”

“That’s how we traced you, through her death certificate,” Ettie said.

“Where is Dorothy now? Does she know where I am?”

“No, she doesn’t know anything. She was told that you died, or officially, that you were missing in action.”

Harold nodded and said, “I was in a prison camp, but I was freed when the war ended. They didn’t release us when they should’ve, they held on to us longer than they should have. We didn’t even know that the war had ended. Thinking about my dear Dorothy was the only thing that got me through.”

“She thinks you were lost in the war and then her ‘friend,’ Josephine Cutter, disappeared suddenly,” Elsa-May said.

‘It was then that she moved to Lancaster,” Ettie added.

“She moved to live into our old house?” Harold asked.

Ettie nodded. “She hoped that you would come and find her there if you ever came back.”

“I never had reason to go by that old house. I assumed that since she had died and had no family that the old house would have been auctioned by the state. I put it out of my mind.” He looked at the two ladies intently. “This is all true is it? It’s not one of those reality television programs or someone playing a cruel trick on me, is it?”

“I can assure you we are telling the truth. Dorothy recently moved to a retirement home in Florida. She’s very much alive.”

“I must see her. Do you have a phone number for her?” He held his heart. “My old ticker is playing up. I’m not supposed to travel, well not on a plane. They took my driver’s license from me as well.”

“We’ve got friends in Florida right now. Our friend, Emma, bought Dorothy’s old house and found your old letters. They went to Florida to take them back to Dorothy. She told them the story about you, and that’s why we came looking for you.”

A smile lit up Harold’s face. “She kept my letters?”

Elsa-May nodded and patted the old man’s hand. “She kept them all this time, locked in a box.”

“Did she marry?”

“No, she never married. I don’t think, did she?” Ettie turned to Elsa-May.

Elsa-May shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“I must see her,” Harold said.

Ettie and Elsa-May looked at each other. They weren’t sure whether Dorothy would want to see him going by what she said to Maureen.

“Why don’t we tell our friends up there that we’ve found you and let them tell Dorothy?”

The old man nodded. “She doesn’t know I’m alive? Please. I’m sorry, ladies. This has all been a shock. I hope I didn’t appear rude when you arrived here.”

“Not at all,” Ettie said. “You weren’t to know who we were or what we wanted. Why don’t you tell us how you met Dorothy?”

“That’ll be a long story; I’ll make us some coffee or would you prefer tea?”

“Coffee will be fine,” Elsa-May said. “We’ll help.”

When the coffee was ready they all sat down.

Harold blinked back tears and cleared his throat. “Well, here’s how we met. It was at a dance.” Harold relaxed back into the couch. “When I walked into the dance hall that night, I wasn't expecting much. Times were hard, for me at least, and there was talk of war. We were young and had the need for fun and excitement beyond what we were faced with every day.”

He paused and the ladies saw a sparkle in his eyes. “Back then, there were plenty of eager women anxious to get their hands on a husband. I wondered if I might be called up if war broke out. I had to do my duty.” He slurped his coffee.

Elsa-May asked, “When did you see her?”

“I didn't at first. Music was playing, and people were milling about, each trying to capture the attention of another. Somehow through all of the chatter, I heard the faintest sound of a giggle. Can you believe that? In a noisy dance hall filled with laughter and music, my ears caught a hint of sweet giggle. I looked around, thinking that I was hearing things.” He looked up and smiled at Ettie and Elsa-May. He seemed happy to tell them how he met Dorothy.

He continued, “I saw her sitting at a table with a lot of people. She wasn't just any girl. She was the prettiest girl I'd ever seen, bright green eyes shining underneath long lashes; she was as pretty as a movie star. One of those Hollywood starlet beauties, you know? They used to call them pin-up girls. Our eyes met as she continued to giggle with her girlfriend. She blushed and I blushed. My friends teased me and pushed me in her direction. I stammered. I didn't know how to speak to such a pretty woman.”

“So, what did you do when your friends pushed you toward her?” Ettie asked, engrossed in his story.

A smile splashed across the old man's face. “I panicked, of course. Now, mind you, I never had trouble talking to women before, but this one...well, she made me nervous. I don't know whether it was her smile or her eyes or her perfectly coiffed blonde hair, but she did something to me. All I could muster was a ‘hello.’ Then, I stood there looking like a fool with a silly grin on my face.” A hearty laugh escaped his lips.

Elsa-May asked, “Then, what happened?”

Shrugging his shoulders, he continued, “She answered me after she laughed at my awkwardness. I didn't care because at least she didn't shoo me away. We spoke for a few minutes. I don't know what we spoke about exactly. All I can remember is her beauty. I couldn't help but stare into her eyes. They were a shade of green I'd never seen before. Just beautiful and honest looking.”

Leaning toward the women, he asked, “Do you know what I mean? How you can tell someone's a good person by the look in their eyes? I saw that with her. Everything about her, her alabaster skin and her not-so-done-up face told me she was real – authentic. I mean she wasn’t all gussied up or looking like she was trying to impress.” Swallowing hard, the old man put his hands to his head.

Elsa-May and Ettie knew that he was lost in the memory of that pretty girl he met at the dance. They sat in silence and waited for him to continue his story.

“Boy, I'll tell you. That woman made my heart sink into the pit of my stomach. I'd heard people use that expression, but I never experienced it before that night. Every word out of her mouth made my knees weak. My hands shook so hard I had to tuck them into my pockets so she wouldn't see. I'm sure she noticed, but she never said a word about them. I'll never forget the smell of her perfume, it hinted of lavender. Yup, even in a smoke filled dance hall, I could smell her sweet perfume. Every time I smell lavender, I think of her.”

The two women looked at each other.

“Did you ask her to dance?” Ettie asked.

A broad grin preceded another round of hearty laughter before he answered. “You bet I did, but I wouldn't call it dancing. It was more of me tripping over my own feet while she pretended I wasn't an idiot. It worked out though. She didn't leave me standing on the middle of the dance floor. It gave us something to laugh and talk about later.”

He shook his head. “She loved to dance. I loved to try to keep up with her. It gave me an opportunity to take in that sweet lavender scent and hold her tiny frame for a few moments.”

Ettie asked, “What happened next?”

“After we danced?”

The two women nodded.

“Well, after I nearly broke my ankle and hers on the dance floor, she invited me to her table. Of course, her friends and my friends tried to be nonchalant about it, but we could hear their snickering. It didn't matter though. All I cared about was getting to know her better. Aside from her looks, she really was the sweetest thing and smart too. That awkward night proved to be one of the best nights of my life. What I wouldn't give to be able to dance with her again.”

The old man breathed out heavily. “I can’t wait to see her again; I thought I’d have to wait ‘til I died. Does she have a phone number?”

“I suppose she might,” Elsa-May said as she looked at Ettie who shrugged her shoulders showing that she wasn’t sure.

“Can you get me her phone number? I’ll give you mine, but I can see that you ladies are Amish and wouldn’t have a phone, would you?”

“We can still use a phone,” Ettie said, leaving out the information about her secret cell phone.

Elsa-May sucked in her lips and then said, “We haven’t told her that you are alive. I’m sorry to say this, but there’s a chance she might not want to see you.”

The smile left Harold’s face. “I’ll have to abide by her decision. Please let me know what she decides, as soon as possible? I’d dare say she won’t be happy when she hears I married Josephine.”

Ettie and Elsa-May left Harold’s place with his phone number.

“It must’ve been a nasty shock for him that Josephine told him that Dorothy had died, and then tricked him into marrying her,” Ettie said.

Elsa-May nodded. “A terrible shock. Maybe he found out that she was a deceptive kind of person after they’d been married for a time.”

“Maybe.”

Chapter 8.

Charge them that are rich in this world,

that they be not highminded,

nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God,

who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;

1 Timothy 6:17

Maureen hung up the phone after Ettie told her the situation from Harold’s point of view. Harold had been deceived by Josephine Cutter into thinking that Dorothy was dead. Then he married Josephine almost out of a sense of gratitude or obligation for her helping him through his grief.

“How are we going to tell her that?” Maureen asked Emma.

“Should we tell her? She’ll be devastated. She did tell us not to tell her if he was alive and hadn’t bothered to find her. This is worse than him not trying to find her, isn’t it?”

Emma and Maureen talked about it for a while longer before they decided that Dorothy should know what happened between her friend, Josephine, and her old beau, Harold.

The very next morning, Emma and Maureen knocked on Dorothy’s door once more.

“Come in, come in,” Dorothy said when she opened the door and saw them standing there. “To what do I owe the pleasure of your company again?” Dorothy asked.

“Can we sit down?” Maureen asked.

“Of course, I’ll fix us some tea, shall I? I was just about to have some myself.”

Maureen and Emma sat in the living room and looked at each other. Emma could scarcely stop her fingers from fiddling with the strings of her prayer
kapp.
She hoped that Dorothy would not be too upset at finding out that her best friend had lied to Harold and then married him.

When Dorothy appeared with a large serving tray, Maureen helped her carry it to the coffee table.

“I’ll pour,” Maureen said.

“Thank you, it’s not often I’m waited on. Now, you two are looking very serious. Do you have bad news for me? I can take it. You don’t have to be scared.” The old lady brought the teacup to her lips, her eyes flitting between Maureen and Emma.

“We found Harold,” Emma said.

Dorothy put the teacup back down on the saucer. “Is he dead?”

Maureen and Emma shook their heads.

“It’s a complicated thing,” Maureen started. “He is very much alive. He was married, but his wife died recently.”

“He married, but where is he? They told me he was missing.”

“He’s living close to Lancaster County. Two of our friends went to visit him yesterday. He told them that he was in a war prison overseas, but he did come back a little time after the war had ended.”

Dorothy pursed her lips. “Why didn’t he come and find me?”

“He was told that you had died,” Maureen said softly.

The old lady’s two hands flew to her open mouth. She stared from Maureen to Emma then placed her hands back in her lap. “Who told him that?” she said, her voice croaky.

“That’s the thing where it gets a little complicated.” Maureen threw a sideways glance at Emma.

Emma raised her eyebrows and knew that she should be the one to deliver the sad news; after all she was the one who found the letters and wanted to get them back to their owner. “You see, it was your friend, the one who went missing, it was she who told him that you died. The woman called Josephine Cutter.”

Dorothy pushed herself back into the couch and was silent for a while. “How would you know that for sure?”

“Harold said so. I’m afraid that she went on to marry Harold.”

Dorothy’s mouth fell open, and her eyebrows rose. “Where’s Harold now?”

“Lives close to Lancaster County. He’s keen to see you if you want to see him,” Maureen said.

“He knows I’m alive now?”

Maureen nodded. “He certainly does.”

“You said that his wife had died. Does that mean that Josephine is dead?”

Maureen nodded. “I’m afraid Josephine died not too long ago.”

Dorothy’s eyes looked into the distance. “I always thought that Josephine liked Harold. Harold told me once that she made a play for him. I laughed at him and told him that he must have imagined it. Now, it falls into place, but I never thought she would be capable of doing what she did.”

“Do you want to see him?” Emma asked.

“Yes, of course, I do. The past must be as water under the bridge. I’ve little time left for this world, and I’ll not bear a grudge for the rest of it.”

Emma and Maureen nodded.

“He’s not able to travel; he’s got a bad heart. You could come back on the train with us if you’d like to see him,” Maureen offered.

“Of course I’d like to see him. When are you going back?”

Emma said, “We planned to go tomorrow, but we could stay a little longer if you won’t be ready tomorrow.”

“Thank you. I’ll be ready for tomorrow. I’ve waited for this for many years.” Dorothy gave a little laugh and clapped her hands together. “I can’t believe this is happening.” Dorothy leaned forward and took both Emma and Maureen’s hand. “You two ladies are angels. God has sent you to make an old lady happy. I thank you from the depths of my heart for bringing my Harold back to me. If I just see his face before I die, that will make me a happy woman.”

Early the next morning they called for Dorothy in a taxi and took her to the train station.

Once they settled into their train seats, Emma noticed that Maureen was looking around nervously. “Don’t worry, it’s hardly likely that he’ll be on the train this time.”

Maureen laughed and looked down into her hands.

“What’s the matter, Maureen?” Dorothy asked.

Before Maureen could answer, Emma leaned over toward Dorothy who was sitting opposite. “When we were travelling on the train to see you, Maureen spotted an old beau on the train. We had to hide from him and couldn’t even eat our meal that we had already paid for. It was when Maureen was younger; she cancelled her wedding just two weeks before marrying him.”

Dorothy looked startled and turned to Maureen who was sitting next to her. “I thought you Amish would have arranged marriages.”

Maureen drew her body away from her. “No, never.”

Emma giggled. “We have our own choice who we marry.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. So, you’re not married, Maureen?”

“I was married, but unfortunately he became very ill for quite a few years before he died.”

“I’m sorry to hear that Maureen.” She looked across at Emma. “What about you, Emma?”

“I was married too and he died about a year ago.”

“Emma’s engaged to someone now, though,” Maureen said with a smile.

“That’s lovely,” Dorothy said, “Did I tell you that I was once married?”

Emma and Maureen shot each other a look.

“No, we didn’t know,” Maureen said.

“Yes, it was five years after the war. I knew Harold wasn’t coming home, and I met someone I thought was a nice man, but he turned out to be too fond of the whiskey and the women. We only lasted six months together before I filed for a divorce.” Dorothy looked out the train window. “I never should’ve married him; I hoped that by marrying someone else it would take the pain of my Harold away.”

Emma joined Dorothy in looking out the window and wondered whether she was trying to block the pain of losing Levi by marrying Wil.

The old lady looked back to Emma. “Tell me about your fiancé, what’s he like?”

Emma smiled. “He makes me happy. He’s carefree and makes me feel that I’m young again. He’s always so full of energy.”

“Goodness me, Emma, you are young, compared to me anyway. Is your man handsome?”

Emma nodded. “Yes, he is tall and quite handsome.”

Maureen nodded in agreement.

Dorothy turned to Maureen. “Have you found yourself another man?”

“There is someone I like, but he’s very quiet; maybe, a little too quiet. Sometimes I don’t know what he’s thinking, and it unnerves me.”

“In what way?” Dorothy asked.

“It’s just that I can’t work out if we have things in common or if we think the same way on things because he never comments.”

Dorothy took hold of Maureen’s arm. “Take the advice of an old lady, don’t be in a rush.” She looked over to Emma. “You too, Emma. You can’t date someone else, or have a relationship with someone else when you are still in love with someone else, even if they are dead – or missing in action - assumed dead.”

Emma shot a look at Maureen, and they both smiled at each other. Emma was always willing to listen to her elders. When Emma was younger she thought she knew it all, but as she matured she was grateful to listen to advice. Even though Dorothy was not Amish it did not mean that her advice was of no consequence.

“Were you talking about Bob Pluver just now, Maureen?”

Maureen nodded. Emma did not think that Bob was a suitable match for Maureen, and she hoped that Maureen would listen to Dorothy’s advice about not rushing in.

“Tell me, Dorothy,” Maureen said with a laugh in her voice, “Did you ever run into that man you married after you divorced?”

Dorothy laughed and put a hand to her mouth. “Heavens, no. I don’t know where he’s moved. I heard he moved away when I told him to leave the house for the last time. I would cross the other side of the street if I ever saw him walking toward me.”

“So you’re divorced now?” Emma asked.

Dorothy nodded. “You can’t divorce in your religion, can you?”

Both Maureen and Emma shook their heads.

“It always seems that you Amish have an ideal lifestyle. Many of my neighbors were Amish, and they were always so nice and friendly. The children were always so polite. I’d see the children walk by to school as I worked in the garden of a morning.”

Emma pictured the small front yard of Dorothy’s house. It did have a nice garden or would have been nice around six months ago before Dorothy moved.

“How do you like living in Florida?” Emma asked.

“I like the weather; it was far too cold in Lancaster County. Now it’s warm and sunny all year round. At its coldest, I just need wear a light cardigan, and that’s all.” After a pause, Dorothy said, “Did I mention I have a son?”

The ladies shook their heads.

“A year after I married I had a son, I called him Harold. He’s still living near my old house, where he grew up.”

“It must’ve been hard to leave him when you moved to Florida,” Maureen said.

She shook her head. “He’s busy now, with his own family. He’ll visit me though. I’ve got a spare bedroom and the children, my two grandchildren, can sleep in the fold-out in the living room.”

“Would you like to stay overnight at my place when we get to Lancaster? We can go and see Harold first thing in the morning,” Emma said.

“Thank you, that would be lovely. You ladies have been so kind.”

“I have to work tomorrow so I’ll have to leave you in Emma’s hands.” Maureen said.

* * *

Ettie and Elsa-May were excited for Harold and Dorothy to meet, so they had invited themselves to Harold’s
haus
for the reunion.

Emma helped Dorothy out of the taxi. As they walked toward Harold’s front door, Dorothy said, “I feel as though I’m going to burst. I hope he’s not disappointed to see how old I’ve gotten.”

Emma laughed. “Nonsense, everyone gets old, he’s older too and you look lovely.”

When they were nearly two yards away from the front door, it swung open, and Harold stood in the doorway with a huge smile covering his face.

Dorothy walked toward him with outstretched arms. He touched her hands and then they looked into each other’s eyes before they hugged.

Emma looked past Harold to see Elsa-May and Ettie just inside the house. Ettie wiped a tear away from her eye, and Elsa-May smiled sweetly.

Once Harold and Dorothy finished their embrace they looked into each other’s eyes once more as their arms locked together.

“I can’t believe it; I just can’t believe it,” Dorothy said.

“I don’t know what to say, Dorothy.”

Dorothy looked him up and down. “You don’t need to say anything, it’s so good to see you.”

“Come inside,” Harold said.

Elsa-May and Ettie disappeared back into the house while Emma and Maureen followed.

Harold briefly introduced Ettie and Elsa-May and Dorothy introduced Harold to Emma and Maureen.

“Thank you, ladies, for doing what you’ve done. I’m so grateful; you’ve got no idea what this means to me,” Harold said with his arm around Dorothy.

Elsa-May grunted and said, “You two catch up with each other, and we’ll make the tea.”

Emma helped the three ladies in the kitchen.

“I found out that Dorothy was married briefly and has a son. She called her son Harold and he lives somewhere around these parts. She divorced his father a long time ago,” Maureen told Elsa-May and Ettie.

“She most likely never got over Harold,” Ettie said.

“I’ve been thinking that maybe he, the son, can drive her back to Florida when she’s ready, or take her back on the train. She’s a bit frail to travel by herself,” Maureen said.