Read Online Cousin's Challenge by Wanda E. Brunstetter - Free Book Online

that they’ll be in trouble with me if they tease your students.”
    â€œIf they could only communicate with Irvin and Sylvia, things might be better,” Jolene said.
    â€œI think I have an idea.”
    â€œWhat’s that?”
    â€œHow would you like to come into my class a few times a week and teach the scholars to sign?” Fern smiled. “I think it would be good if I learned how to sign, too.”
    â€œI’d like that.” As Jolene headed for the schoolhouse, she felt a little better about things.
    ***
    There was a spring in Lonnie’s step as he headed for the pigpen with a bucket of slop. He was in good spirits, and it had nothing to do with feeding and watering smelly pigs.
    His injured hand felt much better, and as soon as he was done with his chores, he’d head over to the Yoders’ to work for Rueben.
    In just one week, Carolyn would be coming. It would be great to see her again, and he had figured out exactly how and when he’d propose. He didn’t know what he’d do if she turned him down. He loved her so much, and while she’d never actually said the words, he felt sure that she loved him, too.
    By the time Lonnie reached the pigpen, the wind had picked up, scattering fallen leaves all over the yard. If the wind kept blowing, maybe the leaves would blow out of the yard and no one would have to rake them.
    Lonnie poured the slop into the trough and watched with disgust as the gluttonous hogs raced for it, grunting noisily while pushing and shoving each other with their snouts.
    â€œDirty, greedy pigs,” he mumbled. “I’m glad I don’t have to smell you all day.”
    Lonnie turned on the water and filled the watering trough before he headed back toward the house. As he approached the place where their propane tank sat, he halted and sniffed the air. The pungent rotten-egg aroma of propane gas drifted up to his nose. Could there be a leak in the line, or had the nozzle on the tank not been closed tight enough?
    He was tempted to move closer to investigate but decided that it would be best to call the company that delivered their propane and ask them to come and check things out.
    Lonnie hurried down the driveway toward their phone shed, but he’d only made it halfway there when an earth-shattering explosion shook the ground beneath his feet. When he turned his head, he saw flames shooting into the air and a fence post coming straight at him!

CHAPTER 9
    Jolene handed Sylvia and Irvin their pieces of paper and asked them to copy the words she’d written on the blackboard. She’d tried talking to Irvin about what had happened outside before school started, but he wouldn’t respond to her at all.
    Maybe I should have a talk with Irvin’s parents. Jolene tapped her pencil on the edge of her desk. But if they find out that Irvin was teased by those boys, they might take him out of this school and send him elsewhere for his education. I’d really like the chance to prove that I can teach these children, so maybe I should speak with Kyle and Elmer’s parents instead, and let them know that their boys were antagonizing Irvin. She continued to tap her pencil. No, that might make things worse. If Lydia or Joe Beechy punishes Kyle and Elmer for teasing, then the boys might try to get even with Irvin and torment him even more.
    She leaned back in her chair and tried to relax, deciding that it was best not to say anything to either set of parents right now. She’d wait and see if the boys could work things out on their own. In the meantime, she needed to concentrate on teaching.
    While the children did their assignment, Jolene made a list of projects she planned for them to do—making posters to hang in their class and cutting out pictures to color during recess when the weather turned cold and they couldn’t play outside. She hoped that doing some fun projects might draw Irvin out of his shell. She knew it