Read Online A Sister's Test by Wanda E. Brunstetter - Free Book Online

and forth on his heels. “She. . .uh. . .came out there with Martha to talk to us.”
    Grace frowned as she turned to face her sister. “I thought you were going to keep Anna entertained in the barn, not haul her out to the shop to bother the men.”
    “I didn’t
haul
her out there. We went there because—” Martha stopped speaking and glanced over at Dad.
    “What’s going on, Roman?” Mom asked. “You and Martha are acting so
missdrauisch
. Is there something you’re not telling us?”
    “We’re not acting suspicious,” he was quick to say. “It’s just that—well, we had a little incident in the barn a while ago, and I didn’t want to worry you.”
    “What kind of incident?”
    “Someone threw a stink bomb through one of the barn windows, and Martha brought Anna out to the shop to tell us about it.”
    Mom hurried into the barn, and the rest of them followed.
    Mom’s nose twitched. “I do smell something funny in here.”
    “I thought I had the barn aired out pretty good, but I guess the putrid odor will linger awhile.” Dad motioned across the room. “I’ll have the window fixed before the day’s out.”
    Grace’s stomach clenched as she gripped her mother’s hand. “This was Gary’s work. I’m sure of it.”
    Dad shook his head. “
Sell kann ich mir gaar net eibilde.
”
    “What do you mean you can’t conceive of that? Gary’s back in Holmes County. He promised to get even with me someday, and I’m sure he’s the one who did all those horrible things to us before he left for Pennsylvania.” Grace’s knees nearly buckled, and she leaned against a wooden beam for support. “I think Gary may have come here and thrown the stink bomb into the barn before he went to town. I–I’m afraid if he’s not stopped, he’ll continue to do more things.”
    “You’re worried for nothing, Grace. I’m guessing that stink bomb was thrown by some prankster,” Dad said.
    “You said that before, when the attacks first began. But things only got worse.” Grace drew in a deep breath to settle her nerves. “Anna or I could have been killed when our house was set on fire. I don’t think that was done by any prankster.”
    “She’s right, Roman,” Mom put in. “Whoever did most of those things to our property was out for more than a good time.”
    Dad stared at the ground, and a muscle in the side of his cheek quivered. “Cleon and I will keep an eye on things; I can promise you that.”
    Grace shrugged and headed out of the barn. “I need to get Anna and put her down for a nap.”
    “I’ll do that,” Martha said. “Mom, if you’d like to walk Grace up to her house, I’ll be there with Anna real soon.”
    Mom nodded, and they started up the driveway toward Grace and Cleon’s new home, Mom leading Grace by the arm.

    Martin hurried down the sidewalk toward the bakeshop. He’d come to Berlin to pick up some supplies for the harness shop, and since Abehad told him to take all the time he needed, he figured he may as well stop at the bakeshop and say hello to Ruth. He might even pick up a few doughnuts and take them to Abe.
    When he stepped into the bakeshop, the pleasant aroma of freshly baked pastries flooded his senses and made his stomach rumble. He was pleased to see that no customers were there at the moment, but then he spotted Ruth sitting behind the counter with her head resting in the palms of her hands.
    “Ruth, what’s wrong?” he asked, rushing over to the counter. “Do you have a
koppweh
?”
    Ruth lifted her head, and his heart clenched when he saw the weary look on her face.
    “I don’t have a headache, but I have had a rough morning,” Ruth said, rising to her feet.
    “What happened?”
    “That reporter, Gary Walker, is back in town. He came into the bakeshop a while ago, while Grace and Mom were here.”
    Martin pursed his lips. “Grace used to date that fellow, right?”
    Ruth nodded. “She thinks he’s the one responsible for all those acts of vandalism