The Gift (40 page)

Carrie eagerly agreed and got her coat, which hung on a low-hanging hook in the utility room. Hand in hand, they walked to the phone shack, with Coal following close behind. The Lab was so good with the girls, and he’d taken a liking to Leah, as well. She missed seeing Sparky every day, but he was better off staying at home with Mom. No doubt Sparky and Coal would have vied for her attention, and two dogs were just too many for Leah to deal with right now.

“Now just stand here and wait until I check for messages.” Leah smiled when Carrie reached for Coal and hung on to the thick fur on the back of his neck, while the dog sat close to her feet.

There was only one message, and it was from Priscilla. Her plans had changed. She wasn’t going to be able to make it for a foot treatment after all.

Going back into the house, Leah decided to start the laundry. Hopefully the spot remover had worked and the glue would come out once Adam’s pants were washed. Carrie seemed content to sit by the living-room window and watch the birds at the feeder outside.

“Carrie, I’ll be right back as soon as I wash your uncle’s clothes. Do you want to come with me to the laundry room while I do that, or would you like to stay here and keep watching the birds?”

“I wanna watch the birdies eat,” Carrie responded.

Leah reminded Carrie that she wouldn’t be long and to come to her if she got tired of watching the birds. There were some children’s puzzles Carrie could play with that were kept on a shelf in the laundry area, but Adam’s youngest niece seemed quite content to sit quietly looking out the window.

Leah was happy when she saw no evidence of the glue in Adam’s trousers after she’d washed them with a few other things. “He should be pleased with that,” she murmured, putting the clothes in the basket to take outside to hang on the line.

Setting the laundry basket by the back door, Leah went to check on Carrie, but the little girl was no longer at the window. “Carrie, where are you?” Leah called, going from room to room. “Now where could that child have gotten in so little time?”

Leah looked toward the hook where she’d hung Carrie’s coat when they’d come inside earlier. When she saw that it, too, was missing, Leah grabbed her own coat and immediately went outside.

Leah stood on the porch, yelling Carrie’s name. Silence. She realized that Coal, who always greeted her when she went outside, hadn’t appeared, either. Leah hurried to the barn and checked there, but Carrie was nowhere to be found. Leah continued searching, walking all around the outside of the house. Her heart beat wildly as she raced toward the pond, but luckily she saw no evidence of Carrie or the dog. She’d hoped at first that the girl might be playing hide-and-seek, but now Leah was afraid. “What am I going to do?” She nearly choked on the words.

Just then, she spotted Amy and Linda walking with a few other children, coming home from school. When the girls entered the yard, Leah told them that their little sister was missing.

“Oh, no!” Linda gasped. “What if we never find her?”

“I’ll bet she saw something she liked and wandered off someplace,” Amy put in.

“Well, we need to find Carrie before your uncle gets home from work,” Leah said. “Will you two help me look for her?”

Both girls nodded soberly.

While the three of them searched for Carrie, Leah tried to remain calm. Where was Carrie? Why did she leave the house? How would she explain to Adam what had happened, and what would he think? They’d only been married a week and already something had gone wrong. Leah told the girls to go back in the house while she went to the phone shack to call the sheriff. It was the last thing she wanted to do, but, at this point, she saw no other choice, especially since it would be getting dark in a few hours. After giving a description of Carrie to someone at the sheriff’s office, Leah mentioned that there might be a black Lab with her. She was beside herself, but she’d done all she could.

When Leah entered the house, Amy and Linda were sitting in the livingroom crying. Gathering them into her arms, Leah tried to offer the girls hope that their little sister would soon be found. She had to hold things together until they heard something from the sheriff.

Leah looked at the clock above the fireplace and couldn’t believe it had been an hour already since she’d first realized Carrie was missing. In that amount of time the child could have gone almost anywhere.
Please, Lord, let her be okay.

Suddenly, all three of them heard a slight barking sound from outside. Trying to get through the door at the same time, Leah, Amy, and Linda rushed outside. Leah was so relieved when she saw Coal walking next to Carrie, coming toward them from the edge of the backyard. Carrie clutched the Lab’s thick fur on the back of his neck. The dog, Leah realized, was Carrie’s protector, walking slowly beside the child so her two little legs could keep up with his four. Carrie was smiling, big as you please, while Coal’s tail wagged rapidly back and forth.

Leah couldn’t get to the child quickly enough. Running down the porch steps, she scooped Carrie into her arms, holding on for dear life.

“You’re squeezing so tight.” Carrie giggled, while Leah eased up but continued to hug her. Coal was barking loudly now, his tail going in circles.

Linda and Amy bent down and hugged the dog. “Good boy, Coal. Good dog,” they said in unison.

After Leah put Carrie down, Linda and Amy hugged their little sister.

“Where have you been, Carrie?” Leah asked. “We were so worried.”

“I saw Chippy and went after him, but he ran away.”

“I’m glad you saw the chipmunk, but you should not have left the yard,” Leah scolded.

Carrie’s chin trembled. “Sorry.”

Leah gave one of Carrie’s braids a gentle tug. “Please, don’t ever do that again.”

“I won’t,” Carrie promised. “I’ll stay in the yard.”

After Leah sent the children inside, she went to the phone shack and called the sheriff’s office again, letting them know that Carrie had been found. When she returned to the house, she put another log in the fireplace to warm the house up a little more for Carrie. In the meantime, Linda took some fresh water out on the porch for Coal. When they were all back together in the house, Carrie continued to tell them her story. While she’d been watching out the window, she’d seen Chippy in the backyard under the bird feeder.

“We thought he died,” Linda spoke up. “I’m so glad he’s okay.”

Carrie’s lower lip jutted out. “When I went outside, Chippy ran, so I followed him.”

“But where did you go?” Leah asked. “We looked everywhere for you.”

“I went far away—in a field, where Chippy ran.” Carrie paused, tears pooling in her eyes. “Then I didn’t know how to get home.”

“Didn’t you hear us calling for you?” Leah asked calmly, so as not to further upset the little girl.

“Uh-uh. I’m sorry.” Carrie hid her face with her arm.

“Come here, sweetie.” Leah lifted Carrie onto her lap.

“How did you get home?” Amy questioned.

“Coal kept tuggin’ on my coat, so I gave up looking for Chippy.” Carrie looked up at Leah and sniffed. “Are ya mad at me?”

“Of course not.” Reaching for the child’s small hands, Leah squeezed them gently. “We’re just glad you’re home, safe and sound.”

Leah was so happy she was about to burst. As a reward for bringing Carrie home, Leah had thought about letting Coal come inside. That way he, too, could enjoy the warmth of the house. She decided to wait until Adam got home, however, since Adam had made it clear that he didn’t want the dog inside. Leah hoped that after he heard the details of Carrie’s safe return, Adam would change his mind and let Coal come in.

When Adam got home, Leah explained what had happened with Carrie. His heart hammered in his chest, thinking about what could have happened, but he’d quickly calmed down, seeing that Carrie was okay. Leah had apologized for not watching Carrie closer, but Adam knew she couldn’t be with the child every moment of the day.

Like he normally did each evening after supper, Adam had gotten a bowl ready and fixed Coal’s food, but this time he’d opened the door and called the dog inside. As Coal came running in, Adam stole a glance at Leah and the girls and grinned back at them as Coal hungrily slurped his chow.

Adam turned off all but one of the gas lamps and stood by the wall where the glow of light reflected. Even Coal, who’d been lying near Leah’s feet, looked up and watched.

“Can any of you guess what this is?” Adam asked, making a shadow figure on the wall.

“It looks like a dog!” Linda shrieked with delight, while Carrie clapped her hands. Even Amy wore a grin.

Next, Adam made a bird and flapped his hands, making the shadow look as if it were flying. After that, he made a rabbit and several other animals. Linda was so intrigued that she jumped up and joined Adam, asking if he would teach her how to do it.

“Okay, now you put your hands like this.” He positioned her hands and showed her how to make an easy hand shadow. “This one you can do with one hand, raising your index finger a little.”

“It looks like a dog,” Linda squealed.

“Now make him bark by moving your thumb up and down a little.” Adam watched as Linda succeeded in making the motion.

Carrie came forward, and Linda showed her how it was done, while Adam stood off to one side. He glanced at Leah, who smiled as she, too, sat watching the girls. Being here with his nieces and Leah made Adam feel like he was complete, like he had a family. How could he have ever been content to keep to himself for all those years?

Only one thing was missing, and that involved Leah. Did he dare express the way he felt about her? He’d be taking a risk if she didn’t share his feelings of love. Adam knew from the way Leah responded to the things he said that she respected him as the head of the house. But he wanted more.

As Adam sat down on the couch next to Leah, he made a decision. When the time was right and he felt a little more confident, he would open his heart to Leah. But he couldn’t do that until Leah showed some sign that she loved him, too.

“That’s really good, girls,” Adam said, focusing once more on Carrie and Linda. “The hand shadow you made looks just like a bird. Now see if you can make him fly.”

Unexpectedly, a vague memory worked its way into Adam’s consciousness. He remembered someone else making shadow figures on the wall when he was a child. Until now, he’d kept this memory buried all these years.
My mother taught Mary and me how to do this.

“Are you okay, Adam?” Leah asked. “You’ve become very quiet.”

“I’m fine. Just watching the girls.” Adam broke out in a sweat. There was no way he was going to let this one little memory make him forget what his mother had done to him and Mary, not to mention Dad.
We suffered all those years without a mom, and I won’t let one good memory erase all of that.

W
hen Jonah entered his buggy shop on Friday morning, he found his father hard at work. “Am I late?” Jonah asked. “Thought I was getting here right on time.”

“You are.” Dad grinned. “I woke up early this morning and decided to come on into the shop and get started. We’ve still got two buggies we need to complete before Christmas, you know.”

Jonah nodded. “And I’m ever so thankful to have you working with me, Dad.”

“How are Sara and the boppli doing?” Dad asked, reaching for one of his tools.

“The baby is doing well, but I’m worried about Sara.” Jonah moved across the room to his desk.

Dad’s forehead creased. “What’s wrong? Has she been doing too much?”

“Not really,” Jonah replied with a shake of his head. “Between Mom and Sara’s mamm, now that she’s arrived, they’re taking over the household chores and cooking.” He grimaced. “I think Sara’s MS is flaring up. She’s had a few dizzy spells, and her legs have been kind of weak. She’s been using a cane to get around the house, and I can’t help but worry.”

Dad set his work aside and joined Jonah at his desk. “Try not to worry, son. Remember what God’s Word says in Philippians 4:6: ‘Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.’”

Jonah clasped Dad’s shoulder and squeezed it. “That’s good advice. Danki for the reminder.”