Love's Abundant Harvest (5 page)

Sam jumped off his palomino, dropping the reins, and let it wander a couple feet
away. “You have anything you want to say to me, Manny Keim?” His eyes were slits
and his breathing heavy. His fists were balled and white-knuckled. Manny could feel
the man's steel grip without him actually taking hold of him. Sam stood a good four
inches above him and had twice the girth.

“I'm assuming this is about my visit at Frieda's place this afternoon.”

“You assume right.”

“If you're referring to Lucy's dizzy spell, I helped her gain her senses is all.”

Sam let out a long breath and dropped his fists. “You touched my wife.”

Emma stepped forward. “Now, just a minute here, Sam—”

Manny held up a hand and stood in front of her.

“She didn't feel like herself, and I helped her gain her strength back. That's all.”
Manny's heart beat in his chest. He didn't expect good manners from Sam, but he didn't
like to be accused of doing something completely different than what he had done.

“What is it you're concerned about, Sam? There were three other people there who
can tell you that we had a nice conversation and something to eat.”

Sam glared at Manny long enough to make him sweat a little. “Stay away from my wife.”

With that, Sam yanked his horse over and hiked himself up into the saddle. He gave
Manny one last look, kicked both sides of his mount, and then took off at a gallop.
When the cloud of dust disappeared, Manny looked away.

“I'm sorry, Manny.” Emma's voice brought him back to the moment.

“I wonder how word spread so fast,” he muttered under his breath. Then, realizing
what Emma had said, he looked at her. “Sorry for what?”

“I told Sam I saw Lucy on the road heading toward Frieda's when I was out earlier.
I didn't think a thing about
it. I guess someone told him you were there when she
had that fainting spell.”

“You didn't do anything wrong. Neither did I.”

“Then what's the fuss about?”

“Lucy had a dizzy spell, and I kept her from falling, is all. No matter what Sam
says, I only did what was necessary.” He watched Sam turn down the dirt road and
slap his horse on the flank.

“I never did understand that man or his wife.” Emma turned to go into the
haus
.

Manny suddenly felt protective of Lucy and resented Emma's comment. “Ya gotta get
to know someone before you decide how you feel about 'em.”

Emma stopped and glanced at the road. “Well, I think we both know how Sam feels about
you.”

Manny didn't care what Sam thought about him. What he did care about was what kind
of tongue-lashing Lucy would undergo when Sam got home.

T
here's a stray horse in my yard.” Sam let the back screen door slam shut behind
him.

Lucy stopped peeling potatoes and walked to the back door. She smiled when she saw
Sweet Pea grazing on the small patches of green grass. “I saw her out there the other
day.”

“Raggedy old thing.” He growled and sat down, waiting for his lunch. “You gonna serve
me a meal, or do I have to get it myself?” His mood was crustier than usual, but
so was she. Lucy just didn't have the courage to show it. She'd avoid him as much
as possible, which wasn't difficult, especially since she was with child. He'd lost
all interest in her once she'd become pregnant, and she thanked
Gott
for it as she
set his lunch down before him.

“More beef,” he demanded while stuffing a bite of the Salisbury steak into his mouth.

Lucy mixed the bread crumbs, ground beef, eggs and milk, and then made patties. As
she placed a patty onto the skillet, some grease popped up and hit her wrist. She
yelped and walked quickly to the cooler for a piece of ice and placed it on her wrist,
letting the cool water run down her arm.

“My food's burning.” His chair screeched across the wood floor as he stood and strode
to the stove. He grabbed the metal handle without the oven mitt and hollered so loudly
that Lucy covered her ears.

She withdrew, stepping back against the counter, and waited for his reaction. He
stared down at her, his eyes bulged, and his body shook with rage. Lucy almost apologized,
but she knew anything she did or said would only make it worse. So she waited and
prayed he would calm down or leave. His work boots seemed louder and his stagger
more pronounced as he headed for the back door.

Not knowing what to do, she wiped her face with her sleeve, slipped the spatula under
a slab of charred meat, and threw it out for the dogs. She went out and sat down
on the porch, letting her shoulders drop, feeling completely incompetent as Skip
and Hop enjoyed their special meal. She didn't seem to be able to do anything right,
at least when she was around Sam. She wasn't a great cook or
haus
keeper, but she
could hold her own. As stressful as Verna would be to have around, she might be able
to help with some of the details Lucy seemed to miss.

She looked over the large farm that Sam had built up after years of work. From what
she'd heard, he and his first wife had spent so much of their time working this place
that they did little else. No one seemed to really know them the way the rest of
the community knew and helped one another. It seemed strange, but then most everything
about this man was odd to Lucy.

She looked over at Sweet Pea, wondering whether she could take her back without Sam
getting upset. Sam didn't like her to leave the farm unless it was necessary. She
didn't know why, other than it might be another way to control her. But she was used
to that; she seemed to gravitate to controlling people.

It was wash day, and unlike most women, she did hers
alone. She decided to finish
her chores before returning the horse.

Sweet Pea whinnied, causing Lucy to stop and look her way. She smiled when the horse
stamped her hoof on the ground, as if demanding attention.

“What is it, girl?” Lucy moved closer, just enough to feel the horse's warm breath.
“I'll take you home soon.” The horse shook her head.

“You're going to have to wait. If I don't get something done around here first, I'll
pay for it when I get back.” She rubbed Sweet Pea's chest, watching the horse's eyes
droop with satisfaction. “You probably get spoiled at Manny's place.”

Sweet Pea grunted her response, and her eyes closed.

“I bet he talks to you too.”

Sweet Pea opened her eyes wide.

“You're a good listener.” She patted her one last time and let out a long sigh. For
some silly reason, she felt better. Maybe Sweet Pea was good medicine.

After the clothes were washed, Lucy walked to the backyard to hang them up to dry.
It had to be very nasty weather to hang the clothes inside. Sam became especially
annoyed by the lines hung from wall to wall with damp clothes filling the room, but
their family room was only used for a short time before bed, when they read from
the Bible.

She found Sam in the barn shoeing a horse. This gave her some hope, as he didn't
seem as irritated doing this task. “How is your hand?”

He jolted and turned to her. “I'm in no mood. What is it you want?” He took hold
of the hammer and started
in again. The noise resonated in her ears, distracting
her from what she wanted to say.

“I should take the horse to her owner.” She didn't know whether he heard her, as
he kept pounding away. She waited until he finished and stuck the hot horseshoe in
a tub of water. The steam rose to the roof of the barn.

“I won't be gone long.”

“Make it quick. I'll be expecting an early dinner.” He glared at her with his ice
blue eyes and pulled the horseshoe out of the tub—his way of making her feel guilty,
making it hard to ignore. She had ruined his lunch, so he expected a large dinner.
She would be sure to give him one, just to keep the peace. Filling his belly would
be a sure way to do that.

She didn't know where these thoughts came from. She'd learned that submission was
the easiest and smartest way to deal with her life and her husband, especially with
a baby on the way. Lately that way of thinking was harder for her to do. Maybe it
was the hormones making her thoughts bolder than usual. Angry impulses crept in now
and then. Even anger toward
Gott
—something she'd never dealt with before, not until
the day she'd first seen Sam in action. She couldn't forget the sight of him taking
out his anger on an unruly horse.

Tiptoeing out of the barn in case he changed his mind, she heard him grumble but
ignored it.

Skip nipped at her heels, wanting to play. She lifted her head and kept walking.
Never would she have imagined that she would be so tense over such actions. She couldn't
so much as walk away from her home without worrying Sam would change his mind or
that she'd be scolded when she returned.

Once in the buggy, with Sweet Pea tethered to the side, she felt freedom in riding
along the road by herself. One of the many things she looked forward to was being
with her little one, just the two of them enjoying the countryside as she was doing
now.

As she came upon Manny's place, she noticed the dried and withered flower gardens.
It would be better to strip them and have an empty garden than the dead flowers that
were there now. Her hands itched to get on them and help them thrive. She could douse
each stem with life-giving water and pull out the weeds that sucked away all the
nutrients.

As the buggy drew closer to the farm, Lucy started to regret coming. She felt like
an intruder, but she hardly got the impression from Manny that he would feel that
way about her making a visit—especially with his horse in tow.

“
Hallo
!” She called toward the barn, which was where she suspected Manny might be
this time of day. With the milking done and morning chores completed, he should be
getting ready for lunch. As the
haus
came into view, she thought about how lonely
he probably was after losing his wife. Had they truly loved each other, the way she'd
hoped her marriage would be? Or was their marriage a simple business arrangement?

“
Hallo
.” Manny's voice sounded behind her. She tried to peek out the side of the
buggy, but her stomach cramped, so she stayed put. She had started worrying about
the baby, wondering especially about different ailments she might have. With some
marrying third and sometimes second cousins, more and more babies were being born
with defects. Though she and Sam weren't related, she knew very little about his
forebears. She often wondered if his
parents were second cousins, because that would
explain much about his short temper and other traits people put down simply to Sam
being Sam.

Manny appeared by her window and smiled. “Well,
hallo
there.”

“Manny, I've found something of yours.” She clambered out of the buggy, holding her
stomach, and tried to stand straight. Her short legs made it difficult to step down,
and she felt for the ground by dangling one leg behind her.

“So I see.” He took Lucy by the arm to help her balance and then moved away once
she was sure-footed. “Where did you find her?”

“Out in the backyard.”

He untied Sweet Pea from the buggy, and she heard his voice faintly comforting the
horse.

Lucky Sweet Pea.
Lucy wished she had someone to talk to her in the same way. “She's
a sweet horse.” Lucy stroked the horse's side, listening to her whinny softly.

“That's why I gave her the name.” He glanced back to Lucy and took a moment to study
her.

She felt her cheeks redden. Not from Manny's scrutiny, but the fact she'd forgotten
to hide her scar. She wondered why that bothered her more than usual when she saw
Manny. Many times she would go into town and face the gawking, but for whatever reason
she didn't want Manny to see her blemish.

“The grass must be greener at Sam's place.” It still sounded strange when people
called the place she lived only her husband's, but she felt like a visitor there.
Although Sam didn't come out and say it, she knew better than to think the
haus
was
anyone's but his.

“Would you like something to drink?” Manny offered,
but seemed a bit reluctant. With
no one around but the two of them, it was a little awkward. But Sam had approved
her going, and a glass of water sounded good.

“
Jah
, I'll wait on the porch.” She looked up to see more steps than she'd expected.
“Or maybe I'll sit on the steps.”

“
Nee
, I'll bring you a chair.” Manny took the stairs two at a time, grabbed a rocking
chair from the porch and set it down by the bottom stair. “There you go.” He looked
up at the nearby tree and then the ground where she sat. “You'll have some good shade
here.”