Read Online Rebecca's Promise by Jerry S. Eicher - Free Book Online

or less. It won’t matter.”
    “Why aren’t the children here?” Mattie asked. “Breakfast is ready.”
    “I forgot to call them,” Rebecca said, sorry to have made yet another mistake.
    “Well, that’s easy enough,” Lester said, moving toward the stair door quickly. He hollered up the stairs, a full bellow, full of hunger for pancakes, “Breakfast, children. Now!”
    There was an instant response. The sound of covers being pulled from creaky beds and feet hitting the floor was followed a little later by a patter on the stairs. Each child slid into his or her seat, and the table was quickly lined with five sleepy-eyed children, hungry for the pancakes set before them.
    “Let’s pray now before we all starve. Shall we?” Lester said, as the children bowed their heads in silence. Then after the “Amen,” there were no sounds except those made by a hungry family at the breakfast table.
    Mattie brought up the first conversation, after pulling the last pancake onto her plate. She announced quite suddenly, “Aunt Leona is having her baby, probably next week. She’s asked for Rebecca to help out. What do you think, Lester?”
    “When would she need to go?” Lester asked, turning options over in his mind.
    “There’s a load coming through on the way to Milroy. Saturday, I think,” Mattie said. “That might be a good time to catch a ride.”
    “Who’s going to Milroy?” Lester asked. “On Sunday, people were just here from there.”
    “No, this is a load from Holmes County,” Mattie said. “They want to be here by Wednesday, then travel out on Saturday morning. Older people. They have relatives here and in Milroy.”
    Lester nodded in understanding.
    Rebecca finally found her voice, grasping the implications of her mother’s words. “But what about the chores around here? And I’d have to tell John. Why didn’t you say something sooner?”
    “That’s because I didn’t know. I only made my mind up this morning,” Mattie replied. “Leona has been after me about this, but I figured there would always be local help. Then I just got a letter from her on Saturday, saying that there have been two other births in the area, and two more are expected right soon. There does seem to be a real need. I’ll mail a letter this morning, telling her that you are coming, if that’s okay with you, Lester. I think it would be good for you to go, Rebecca. Matthew can take care of your chores. If not, I can fill in.”
    “Fine with me,” Lester said, shrugging his shoulders. This was women’s business, and he would only get so involved, and this was his limit.
    “Good, then it’s decided,” Mattie said. “You can tell John at a youth gathering this week, and I’m sure he’ll understand.”
    “But…” Rebecca started to say something, but her mother interrupted.
    “You’ll find a way. John will understand. It’s only for a week or so.”
    Rebecca nodded, knowing John probably
would
understand, but what she really wished he would understand had nothing to do with Leona’s baby.

C HAPTER N INE
     

     
    R achel Byler stood by the kitchen window, washing the dishes. The suds rose on the water, stirred by her vigorous hand movements. And in her mind, thoughts were rising to the surface too, not yet forming a solid plan of action.
    She needed to speak with Luke. She had thought that after breakfast there would be a chance, but with the snowstorm, Reuben had wanted Luke to scrape the driveway.
    They were out in the driveway now, Reuben driving the steel-rimmed tractor with a drag attached by a chain. Luke followed, shoveling the trail of snow left on either side of the drag farther off to the side of the driveway. His shoulders were humped over, as his arms rose and fell with the swing of the shovel. Snowflakes, big, round, and heavy, swirled around the tractor and the shoulders of the two men.
    Anger rose up in Rachel as she watched them make the circuit—up to the barn, turn around, and back down the