Mary's Home Read online

  BOOKS BY JERRY S. EICHER

  THE ADAMS COUNTY TRILOGY

  Rebecca’s Promise

  Rebecca’s Return

  Rebecca’s Choice

  THE BEILER SISTERS

  Holding a Tender Heart

  Seeing Your Face Again

  Finding Love at Home

  EMMA RABER’S DAUGHTER

  Katie Opens Her Heart

  Katie’s Journey to Love

  Katie’s Forever Promise

  FIELDS OF HOME

  Missing Your Smile

  Following Your Heart

  Where Love Grows

  HANNAH’S HEART

  A Dream for Hannah

  A Hope for Hannah

  A Baby for Hannah

  LAND OF PROMISE

  Miriam’s Secret

  A Blessing for Miriam

  Miriam and the Stranger

  LITTLE VALLEY

  A Wedding Quilt for Ella

  Ella’s Wish

  Ella Finds Love Again

  THE ST. LAWRENCE COUNTY AMISH

  A Heart Once Broken

  Until I Love Again

  Always Close to Home

  PEACE IN THE VALLEY

  Silvia’s Rose

  Phoebe’s Gift

  Mary’s Home

  STANDALONES

  My Amish Childhood

  The Amish Family Cookbook (with Tina Eicher)

  HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS

  EUGENE, OREGON

  Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.

  Cover design by Garborg Design Works

  Cover image © Yanika, volgariver, Dean Fikar / Bigstock

  The author is represented by MacGregor Literary, Inc.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  MARY’S HOME

  Copyright © 2017 by Jerry S. Eicher

  Published by Harvest House Publishers

  Eugene, Oregon 97402

  www.harvesthousepublishers.com

  ISBN 978-0-7369-6934-5 (pbk.)

  ISBN 978-0-7369-6935-2 (eBook)

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Names: Eicher, Jerry S., author.

  Title: Mary’s home / Jerry S. Eicher.

  Description: Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, [2017] | Series: Peace in the valley; 3

  Identifiers: LCCN 2017006751 (print) | LCCN 2017010983 (ebook) | ISBN 9780736969345 (paperback) | ISBN 9780736969352 (eBook)

  Subjects: LCSH: Amish—Fiction. | BISAC: FICTION / Christian / Romance. | GSAFD: Christian fiction. | Love stories.

  Classification: LCC PS3605.I34 M37 2017 (print) | LCC PS3605.I34 (ebook) | DDC 813/.6—dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017006751

  All rights reserved. No part of this electronic publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any other—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The authorized purchaser has been granted a nontransferable, nonexclusive, and noncommercial right to access and view this electronic publication, and purchaser agrees to do so only in accordance with the terms of use under which it was purchased or transmitted. Participation in or encouragement of piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of author’s and publisher’s rights is strictly prohibited.

  CONTENTS

  Books by Jerry S. Eicher

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Discussion Questions

  About the Author

  A Beautiful Rose, like True Love, Never Fades

  Dreams Never Die When You Believe in Them

  Ready to Discover More?

  About the Publisher

  ONE

  Mary Yoder drove Danny Boy toward Deacon Stoltzfus’s place with Betsy on the buggy seat beside her. Spring had arrived in the valley, and the trees were draped in a fresh hue of green. The colorful Adirondack flowers would soon blossom and dot the roadsides in their brief display of glory. Tonight, the breezes from the foothills to the north bore the last memory of winter snows that had blasted the community with drifts along the road, four feet high in some places.

  Betsy pulled her shawl tighter under her chin and muttered, “Why didn’t I go to the rumspringa gathering with Enos tonight?”

  Mary gave her younger sister a bright smile. “Because there’s a load of young people coming in from Lancaster, and Enos changed his plans when he found out. Everyone will be at the volleyball game instead. Just think!”

  Betsy’s face darkened. “I don’t want to meet any young people from Lancaster.”

  Mary didn’t answer as Danny Boy’s hooves beat a steady trot on the pavement. Betsy’s attitude toward the community and the Amish way of life was a grave family concern. Lately, Betsy expressed her views with greater frequency—even in public, much to Mamm and Daett’s chagrin. They would have to pray that the Lord would see fit to draw Betsy’s heart toward the right ways.

  “You don’t have to be so critical of me.” Betsy gave her sister a sharp sideways glance, as if she had read Mary’s thoughts. “I have my reasons.”

  “I didn’t say anything,” Mary protested. “And I do understand.”

  “How can someone with your plans understand me?” Betsy huffed. “I know why you are so excited. You plan to snag an Amish man, perhaps even tonight. I know that’s why you left your rumspringa time early.”

  “I saw Jonas Troyer making eyes at you at the last hymn singing,” Mary encouraged her sister. “I’m sure he’ll talk to you soon. Jonas might even ask you home on a date—once you’ve both decided to settle down in the community.”

  “Jonas!” Betsy snapped. “The man has straw in his hair, and he goes barefoot in the winter—well, most of the winter. Stomps right through the mud! How would that look in a woman’s home? He’d leave tracks all over the house, and not just in the kitchen. If I have to settle for that sort of man, I’m not settling.”

  Mary laughed in spite of herself. “I’m sure Jonas can be cleaned up a bit. If not, there will be others. You’re a nice girl.”

  Betsy grunted and fell silent.

  They had been over this ground before. Betsy bore the scars on her face from a childhood accident, but her saucy attitude did
more harm than the burn marks on her skin.

  Mary tried another tack. “I found a poem this afternoon in the old cedar chest upstairs that I wrote when we were in school. You like Englisha things. This one is about the Mona Lisa in Paris.”

  “See, you are more Englisha than you admit,” Betsy said. “You know about such things, and you write poetry. We should jump the fence together.”

  Mary ignored the suggestion to quote by heart,

  The world is drawn to your face,

  To your quiet beauty and your grace.

  They hang your portrait in their lofty halls;

  They captured you upon their walls.

  Some man conceived with paint and brush

  To touch your heart and show the hush,

  Which sorrow wrote upon your life,

  The peace that came amidst the strife.

  For beauty does not rise in mortal eyes,

  Unless the lines are written from the skies.

  With pain you showed us heaven’s touch,

  And so your smile is loved so much.

  “Not bad,” Betsy allowed. “But my point stands.”

  Mary didn’t answer as they bounced into Deacon Stoltzfus’s lane. Further conversation on the subject would get neither of them anywhere. She would have to think of something else to say. Ahead of them lantern light glowed in the windows of the barn, where the volleyball game would be held. Several boys stood chatting near the door. When they noticed the buggy, they came toward Mary and Betsy to help them unhitch.

  “Those are Lancaster boys,” Mary whispered out of the corner of her mouth. “One of them might be your future husband.”

  Betsy pretended not to hear as she hopped down from the buggy. She chirped, “Goot evening, boys.”

  There was a chorus of goot evenings in response. Betsy could project a cheerful and happy attitude if she wished, but the subject of an Amish husband and her future in the community brought out her dark side.

  Cousin Enos came toward them with a wide smile and made the introductions. “These are two of our Yoder girls, Mary and Betsy. Both of them are charming, sweet, and available.”

  Laugher rippled around the buggy, as two men from Lancaster nodded to Mary.

  “Josiah Beiler and Ronald Troyer.” Enos waved his hand to include both of the girls. “They are staying for the weekend, and maybe for another week if things work out.”

  Laugher filled the air again, and heat rushed into Mary’s face. Everyone knew what Enos referred to. If one of the Lancaster men found a love interest in the valley and took a girl home from the hymn singing, he would wish to stay another weekend to cement the relationship before being reduced to letter writing for communication.

  Mary snuck a long look at the two men. The truth was, her decision to end rumspringa early was a risk. There were no unmarried men in the valley who had given her more than a passing glance, but faith was firmly fixed in her heart. Her dream of home and family in the community would be fulfilled. She believed the Lord would lead her to a man who would love her and hold her close to his heart, so she had stepped forward with confidence.

  One of them, Josiah, caught her look. He was handsome enough. In fact, Mary thought him quite handsome. His eyes twinkled as he said, “So you are Mary Yoder.”

  “Yah.” Her eyes met his, and shivers tickled her spine.

  “You live far from here?”

  “A little ways.” She sent a nod toward the Adirondack foothills. “Down Duesler Road, just outside of town.”

  A smile filled his face. “Don’t know where that is. I’ve never been here before.”

  “Are you staying over the weekend?” As she spoke, Josiah didn’t appear to notice the heat that rushed up Mary’s neck.

  “Everyone’s staying over for Sunday,” he said, chuckling. “Longer than that? Depends, I guess. You’re not dating, are you? A girl like you?”

  Now her whole face flamed red.

  “Sitting on the edge of your rumspringa?” Concern had crept into his voice.

  “No! Not at all. I…” The words stuck in her mouth. Was the Lord answering her faith this soon?

  “Are you coming, Josiah?” Enos had his hand on Danny Boy’s bridle.

  Josiah grinned. “In a little bit. But don’t worry. I’ll bring Mary with me.”

  “Oh…” Enos cooed. “Has Cupid shot his arrow and hit the mark?”

  Laugher rose again, but Mary kept her eyes on the ground. Thankfully, the others moved toward the barn as Betsy cast her a baleful glance. At least Betsy had engaged the other Lancaster man, Ronald, in conversation.

  “Sorry about the teasing,” Josiah said once the others were out of earshot. “Are you okay?”

  “Yah, I’m fine.” Mary caught her breath. She clearly wasn’t, and Josiah noticed.

  “What is life like here in the valley?” he asked, as if they were sharing a normal conversation on the couch in Mamm and Daett’s living room. Dizziness swept over Mary at the image of Josiah seated in that familiar place with her beside him.

  “Not much different than Lancaster,” she managed. “The country is beautiful, but so is Lancaster.”

  “Do you visit often?”

  Mary shook her head. “Most of our immediate relatives are here in the valley.”

  He regarded her for a moment as a buggy trotted past them and parked at the end of the line. “How old are you and Betsy?”

  Mary rushed out the words. “I’m almost twenty, just coming off my rumspringa, and I took my first baptismal class two weeks ago. Betsy is a bit younger.”

  He appeared impressed. “That’s exceptional. I joined last year. A little early, but I was ready to settle down.” Josiah gave Mary a warm smile. “What does everyone do for rumspringa around here?”

  Mary tried to breathe evenly. “There’s not much going on. The biggest town nearby is Utica, which is still a good distance away. Most of the Amish boys don’t get automobiles, so we’d have to drive with Englisha friends to get there.”

  “Pretty tame then?” His pleased expression didn’t fade. “I broke down and got an automobile. I kept it hidden in Daett’s barn, but cars aren’t what they are cracked up to be. I guess that’s what rumspringa is about, though. Finding out that the world doesn’t offer what’s advertised.” He gave her a glance. “I was never one to dream of jumping the fence. Not many of our people do, I suppose, but there are some.”

  Mary looked away. What would Josiah say if he knew of Betsy’s determinedness to find herself an Englisha husband?

  “What happened to your sister’s face?” His chin motioned toward the glowing loft windows. “Or was I seeing things?”

  Mary shook her head. “Betsy’s scarf caught fire when she was small. She was tending the stove, and Mamm didn’t get there in time. There was scarring, as you can see…” Mary let the words hang.

  Mary often wanted to tell Betsy that her scars were not that bad, but how could she say so when men like Josiah noticed them? Other men obviously did the same, which went to the heart of Betsy’s complaint about Amish life.

  “Such things happen.” He shrugged. “There will be a man for your sister. Scars shouldn’t scare them away.”

  “Betsy has her struggles,” Mary managed.

  Josiah would hear the truth from someone, perhaps even from Betsy’s lips if he stayed in the community long enough. Better to give the impression that she was not hiding the matter. Even if Josiah was an open door from the Lord straight into Mary’s dreams, honesty was still the best policy.

  “Should we go inside?” Josiah suggested.

  Several young people from the other buggy had paused to stare at them. Who was this handsome young man Mary Yoder was speaking to? Mary could practically hear the question rippling through their minds, and heat tingled at the base of her neck again.

  Josiah’s clear blue eyes twinkled as if he had read their thoughts too. He turned toward the others, and she fell in beside him. The introductions were up to her if she could find
her voice.

  “Josiah Beiler from Lancaster,” Mary heard herself saying as everyone shook hands.

  Josiah stayed near her as they made their way to the barn loft. The other girls clearly noticed. They whispered to each other, and she could guess at their remarks.

  “Did Mary know this would happen?”

  “And he’s so goot looking.”

  “How did she do it?”

  “Snagged the handsome fellow with a twirl of her finger!”

  She would not be proud, and this was not a sure thing. Josiah might leave after the Sunday services and not ask her home for an evening date. If he didn’t, she would not allow disappointment to grip her heart or sow discouragement—but the wound would sting deeply. Very deeply!

  As the group entered the barn, the light of the lanterns burst around them. Two buggies had been set up a short distance from each other with their wheels blocked up on hay bales, and a volleyball net was stretched between them. This was not the usual rumspringa gathering, but a calmer, approved community event. Here, both the young people who had joined the baptismal class and those still on rumspringa could attend.

  Mary glanced at Josiah. She had no regrets about leaving her running-around time behind. Risky experiences, such as local Englisha rock band concerts, did not compare to her dream of home and family with a man like Josiah Beiler. Thankfully, she had made the decision to join the baptismal class before Josiah appeared, so she would be assured for the rest of her life that the choice had been made for the right reasons.

  “We want Josiah on our side!” Ronald Troyer hollered from his place beside one of the buggies. As a visitor from Lancaster, Ronald had been given one of the honored positions of team captain for the evening.

  “Maybe he can’t play volleyball!” Enos retorted from his post beside the other buggy.

  Everyone laughed. They could tell that Josiah Beiler knew how to play volleyball. Mary stole a glance at his limber frame and guessed he would be an excellent player.

  “Well, I guess visitors have privileges,” Enos declared with a grin. “Let’s stop arguing and get to playing.”

  “You’re playing by my side,” Josiah told Mary out of the corner of his mouth.

  Mary’s knees weakened, but she managed to follow Josiah to their assigned places. Ronald gave Josiah a slap on his back as they passed, and whispered to Mary, “Looks like you are in the game.”