Read Online Forevermore by Cathy Marie Hake - Free Book Online Page B

talking. As their sympathy for him waned, so had the invitations for meals. The thought of food made Konrad’s stomach rumble. He rubbed it and smiled ruefully. “I change my mind. It’s been forever since my Annie left. Of course, I started saying that the second day she was gone. I’m a horrible cook.”
    “Come next Sunday for supper.”
    “I will.” His smile broadened. “I’ll give you all the news Annie wrote.”
    Volkner nodded. He squinted at the fields around them and let out a sigh. “Your wheat—it looks good. I should have planted wheat this year. The greenbugs got all my sorghum.”
    “Mine too. Crop’s ruined. If the weather holds good, the wheat might be enough to save me.”
    “I’m glad for you.” Volkner took off his straw hat, raked his fingers through his wavy blond hair, and slapped the hat back on. “For me—the loss is too much. I’m going to go south and hire out to help with harvest. By the time the crops there are in, your field will be ripe. I wanted you to know so you can still rely on my help.”
    Konrad nodded curtly. “Thanks. If you go to Jakob Stauffer’s farm, be sure to tell my Annie I miss her. When do you leave?”
    “Day after tomorrow . . . but don’t worry, I’ll be sure to tell everyone at home that you’re coming to Sunday supper.”
    Konrad watched Volkner ride off. The exchange went as well as it could, considering everything. It wouldn’t be hard to make up a story or two about Annie and Jakob’s kid. In fact, Konrad considered himself a skilled storyteller. So what if his words were lies?
    He looked down at the envelope and opened it with one savage rip. Cash slid out. Five dollars. Five paltry dollars a month. That’s what Jakob sent to keep him away. It wasn’t enough, but Konrad couldn’t leave now. He had no one to mind his crops.
    Rage filled him as he strode toward the house. Konrad was the one who had worked the land these last six years, toiled under the scorching sun to bring in each crop. That, and he’d married Stauffer’s mousy daughter. Everything had been going according to his plan until two years ago, when the old man died. Oh, Konrad planned on his dying. In fact, Annie babied the old goat and kept him alive far past what anyone expected. Konrad played his part well, too. More than once, the old man had said he was just like a son. In the end, it was all easy enough. He’d sent Annie to bed and done away with the old man by simply holding a pillow over his face. No one ever suspected anything, and Konrad knew all he’d ever wanted now belonged to him.
    Or so he had thought.
    A son ought to inherit—but after the funeral, at the reading of the will, Konrad learned he’d been cheated out of everything he’d planned on, sweated for, and expected. The house should have been willed to him, but Annie’s father hadn’t bothered to see the attorney and change the paper work. His will left the farm to be split evenly between his sons—but with Bartholomew dead, that meant Jakob inherited everything. Everything—the house, the barn, the animals, the land—all went to the sole surviving son.
    Jakob didn’t need it; he had a farm of his own. Even more, Jakob didn’t deserve it. But Jakob wielded his ownership of the farm in a way Konrad never anticipated.
    Jakob unexpectedly whisked Annie away one afternoon. Left on the table was a scrawled note. The words burned in Konrad’s memory and soul: Work the land. Keep the profit, but stay away from my sister .
    He’d dared to leave such an order—as if Konrad was still a hired hand instead of the man of the house and the one who ran things.
    A wry smile twisted Konrad’s mouth. He refused to stand for such an order. The money in his hand proved he’d fought back and won. He’d fired off a letter that resulted in Jakob sending funds each month.
    Now Konrad wished he’d demanded more money. A farmer earned about twenty dollars a month, a hired hand got about ten. Women weren’t worth