Read Online Waiting for Summer's Return by Kim Vogel Sawyer - Free Book Online Page B

ax had sounded for nearly an hour now. He had rolled up the sleeves of his plaid flannel shirt, and even from this distance, she could see the bulge of his muscles as he raised the tool over his head.
    With a mighty thrust of the ax he split a sizable length of log into two halves, then thunk! thunk! —the halves became quarters. He lifted all four pieces and carried them to the woodpile, where they were added to a neat stack. He repeated the process with another log. Did the man never tire?
    Every task Mr. Ollenburger performed was done with precision. His woodpile was as straight as a row of soldiers marching in parade. The grounds of his property were neatly kept. The house, though far from fancy, had a tidy appearance. She knew it could use an additional sweeping and dusting—those were things a woman would notice more than a man—but it was obvious the man took pride in everything he did. He also took pride in his son. The stack of books, purchased by an illiterate miller, were proof of that.
    Turning from the window, she noticed the grandmother’s expression had changed from worry to something else. Her thick brows hung so low her eyes were mere slits, and her jaw was firmly clamped. Her gnarled hands wrapped around the arms of the rocker, her posture stiff. Was she all right? Just as Summer prepared to ask, the old woman seemed to relax, easing back into the chair and putting her hands in her lap. Although her focus never wavered from Summer’s face, the tense look disappeared. Puzzled, yet afraid to address the woman, Summer turned her attention back to the boy.
    Thomas put down the pencil and held up the slate. She crossed to the table and examined the writing. “Well done. That’s the last word on your list. Shall we move on to arithmetic?”
    He wrinkled his nose. “Can’t I take a break?”
    She allowed her expression to answer. Although he blew out a breath of aggravation, he reached for his arithmetic book. They spent an hour on long division. Thomas’s quick mind absorbed with ease the concept of remainders, and Summer discovered she didn’t need to teach him but merely direct him.
    When Mr. Ollenburger came in for lunch, she told him, “You were right. Thomas is a very bright boy. He’ll be caught up with the studies he missed and perhaps even ahead of his classmates by the time he returns to school.”
    The man’s eyes shone. “Oh, that boy takes after his mother, for sure. A very smart woman she was.” He tapped his temple. Turning to the old woman, who had remained in her chair all morning, he said something in German. A wary smile flitted across her face. He turned back to Summer. “I tell her what you say about the boy.”
    He shrugged his massive shoulders. “It is a good thing two parents a boy has. From me he gets his big size and from his mother he gets his good head. Together he becomes a boy strong in body and mind. A good mix, for sure.”
    Summer sensed an undertone in his statement. Definitely she saw that he was proud of his son, but there was something else. A sense of inferiority, perhaps. Being illiterate must be difficult. How did he run a business if he hadn’t the ability to read? A fleeting idea crossed her mind—should she offer to teach him? While Thomas undoubtedly read things for his father now, what would the man do if Thomas chose to leave Gaeddert when he came of age?
    “Mr. Ollenburger, would you like to sit in on Thomas’s reading lessons? I could teach you at the same time.”
    The man’s face flooded with color and he reared back, his jaw clamped. He spun away from her, presenting his rigid profile. “The boy needs your teaching. I do not.” All warmth was gone from his voice.
    Guilt washed over Summer for creating his discomfort. “Very well. That-that’s fine.” She gathered up the papers and books strewn across the table. “I made sandwiches for lunch. You must be hungry.”
    He turned back, seeming to deliberately relax his stiff shoulders. “