The Decision (26 page)

Elaine hurried to get dressed and then went to the kitchen to start breakfast. She found Grandma mixing a batch of pancake batter. A slight breeze from the shady side of the house drifted through the open kitchen window.

“Don’t go to any trouble for me this morning, Grandma,” Elaine said. “My throat hurts, and I don’t feel like eating much right now.”

The wrinkles in Grandma’s forehead deepened. “Are you grank? Do we need to call the doctor?”

Elaine shook her head. “I don’t feel sick, and my glands aren’t swollen. Think I either did too much talking yesterday, or my sore throat is from sitting under an air-conditioning vent at the restaurant where I went with Priscilla and Leah yesterday.”

Grandma went to the cupboard and took down a jar of honey. “I’d better fix you a lemon-and-honey drink. That’ll make your throat feel better,” she said, after taking a lemon from the refrigerator.

Once the lemon had been squeezed and the juice poured into a glass, Grandma added a spoonful of honey and stirred it well. Then she handed the glass to Elaine. “We have to get you better so you don’t miss too much school. Sure don’t want you falling behind on your studies or ending up with a lot of homework to do in order to catch up.” Grandma touched Elaine’s forehead with her cold hands. “I don’t think you have a fever, but it might be best if you skip school today and go back to bed.”

Elaine drank the lemon/honey mixture and grimaced; not from the taste of it, but because of what Grandma had just said. “Grandma, I’ve been out of school for several years now, so you don’t have to worry about me missing school or having any homework to do.”

Grandma’s eyebrows squished together as she stared at Elaine for several seconds. Then a light seemed to dawn, and she snickered, giving a quick nod. “Well, of course you’re not still in school. Silly me. Guess it was just wishful thinking.”

As Grandma resumed making pancakes, Elaine placed her empty glass in the sink and stared out the window. If only she could turn back the hands of time, she’d go back to when she was a little girl. Her life had been carefree, and Grandma’s memory had been just fine. Was this what she could expect in the days ahead—Grandma acting okay one minute and living in the past the next?

Elaine closed her eyes.
Dear Lord, please give me the wisdom and strength I need in order to care for Grandma
.

Jonah reached for the thermos of coffee he’d brought to his shop that morning and opened the lid. Overnight, a warm front had moved in, and he hadn’t slept well. It was going to take more than one cup of coffee to get through the day, much less get the house ready for his folks’ arrival in a few days. Jonah wished the cooler weather had lasted a bit longer, but it wasn’t the temperature that had given him a restless night. Thoughts of Elaine and her announcement that she didn’t love him had kept him awake. He’d tossed and turned for hours, trying to come to grips with everything. He still couldn’t believe she didn’t love him. All these months they’d been courting, and even though she’d never actually said the words, she’d never given any indication that she didn’t love him.

Why now?
he wondered.
Maybe I need to talk with one of Elaine’s friends about this. I’m sure either Leah or Priscilla would know if Elaine has ever loved me or not. Think I’ll stop by and see Priscilla after I’m done working today
.

“Wow, it’s sure gettin’ warm out there.” Timothy wiped his brow as he entered the shop. “Where should I put the bolt of upholstery that just came in?”

“I don’t care. Put it anywhere!” Jonah snapped.

Timothy flinched, and he silently hauled the material to the table on the other side of the room.

Jonah knew immediately that he’d spoken too harshly. “Sorry for snappin’ at you, Timothy. I didn’t get much sleep last night. Guess it put me in a bad mood, but then, that’s no excuse.” He poured coffee into his cup and took a drink. “Hopefully this will help me wake up and be more civilized.”

Timothy shrugged. “That’s okay. My daed isn’t worth much till he’s had a few cups of coffee in the morning. He doesn’t snap, though. Just doesn’t say a lot till he’s fully awake.”

“Jah, well, my being tired is not a good reason for barking at you, and I’ll try not to do it again.”

“Would you please load that up and take it over to Rockome Garden Foods at Rockome?” Priscilla’s mother asked, motioning to a box filled with raspberry jam that sat on the counter in their small shop.

Priscilla nodded. “Sure, Mom. Is there anything else you want me to take over there?”

Mom shook her head. “Just the jam for today. Oh, and when you’re out and about, maybe you could drop by Edna’s place and see how she’s doing. I still feel terrible about blurting out that she has dementia.”

“It wasn’t like you did it on purpose.” Priscilla gave her mother’s shoulder a gentle pat.

Mom sighed. “I wish there was something I could do to help Edna deal with the terrible disease.”

“I feel the same way about Elaine. It’s going to be difficult for her, too.”

“We can pray for them and be there to help out whenever possible.”

“You’re right about that.” Priscilla picked up the box. “Guess I’d better get going. I’d like to be home before it gets too hot. This weather isn’t good for me or my horse. See you later, Mom.”

“Mammi! Mammi!”

Feeling as though she’d been drugged, Sara groaned and forced her eyes open. Mark stood at the side of her bed, red-faced, with tears running down his cheeks.

“Oh, my poor baby.” Sara rolled out of bed and scooped Mark into her arms. Feeling a bit light-headed, she sank back to the bed and cuddled him close. She glanced at the clock on her nightstand and grimaced when she saw that it was nine o’clock. She couldn’t believe she’d slept so long, even after a restless night. It had been so warm in her room that she’d lain awake for several hours before finally dozing off. Apparently, she’d been sleeping so hard that she hadn’t heard Mark climb out of his crib and walk to the side of her bed, tugging on the quilt as he continued to fuss. She wondered how long he’d been calling to her.

When Sara stood up again, her head felt fuzzy and the room seemed to tilt at an odd angle.

I wonder if I’m coming down with something. Maybe it’s just the stuffy heat in this room making me feel so off-kilter
.

Going to the window, Sara opened it to let in some fresh air. After taking in several deep breaths, she felt a bit better, so she took Mark by the hand and headed down the hall to the kitchen.

Moving slowly so as not to upset her equilibrium, Sara managed to scramble some eggs for breakfast. When they finished eating, she ran water in the sink to wash their dishes. By the time she had them washed, dried, and put away in the cupboard, Sara had little strength left in her arms.

Something is terribly wrong
, she thought, taking a seat at the table while Mark sat on the floor, playing with a few pots and pans.
Maybe I overdid it yesterday when I was cleaning house
.

Sara sat with her head down, massaging her temples, until she heard the
clip-clop
of horse hooves coming up her driveway. She groaned. “Now is not a good time for company.”

Rising to her feet, Sara peered out the kitchen window, watching her friend Jean climb out of her buggy and secure her horse at the hitching rack near the barn. Then Jean went around and helped her three children out of the buggy.

Mark would be excited to have someone to play with this morning, but Sara wasn’t sure she could take all the activity. Well, she couldn’t be impolite and tell them not to come in, so she forced herself to go to the door.

“Guder mariye,” Jean said cheerfully when she and her children entered the house. “We’ve been out doing some shopping, plus I wanted to show you the progress I’ve made on the quilt I’ve been making for our upcoming charity event.”

Sara knew how much Jean liked to quilt. Her current project was going to be auctioned off to benefit a local family in need.

“Morning,” Sara said, forcing a smile. “I’m interested in seeing the quilt, but first, why don’t we have a cup of tea?”

“That sounds nice. The kinner can play while we visit awhile.”

Another wave of dizziness came over Sara, and she grabbed the back of her chair to steady herself.

“Are you all right?” Jean took hold of Sara’s arm and guided her into a seat.

“I had trouble sleeping last night, and when I finally dozed off, I slept later than I’d planned,” Sara explained. “I think I’m still kind of drowsy and a bit light-headed.”

Jean eyed Sara curiously. “This isn’t the first time you’ve felt like this. I really think you ought to see a doctor, at least to rule out any kind of problem.”

“Maybe another foot treatment with Leah will help. In fact, I’ll make an appointment with her right away.”

“That’s up to you, but please don’t put off seeing the doctor.”

Sara nodded slowly. Until she saw some money coming in from the aprons she’d been making for one of the gift shops in town, she really couldn’t afford to see the doctor. Still, she had to be well in order to care for Mark, so if another treatment with Leah didn’t help, she would call the doctor.

Jonah was about to tell Timothy they were done for the day when Priscilla entered the buggy shop.

“What can I do for you?” Jonah asked, pleased to see her, since he’d planned to ask her about Elaine.

“I’m on my way to Rockome Garden Foods and discovered that there’s a problem with one of my buggy wheels,” she replied. “It’s kind of wobbly, and I’m worried that it might fall off.”

“Want me to go take a look at it?” Timothy offered, rolling up his shirtsleeves.

Jonah nodded. This would give him a few minutes to talk to Priscilla privately, which was exactly what he needed.

As soon as Timothy went out the door, Jonah turned to Priscilla and said, “I’ll see what I can do about your wheel in a minute, but first, there’s something I’d like to discuss with you. In fact, I was planning to stop by your place later today to talk about it.”

She tipped her head back to look up at him, and he noticed that her cheeks were flushed, probably from the warm weather. “Oh, what’s that? Is something wrong?”

He cleared his throat a few times, feeling suddenly unsure of himself. “Uh…well, it’s about Elaine.”