Letters to Katie (14 page)

“And when are you talking with the bishop?”

Sawyer paused. “That’s going to be a couple of weeks too. He wanted to wait a bit.”
Sawyer had wanted it to be sooner, but Bishop Esh was testing him to see if he was
sincere about his commitment. Sawyer didn’t like it, but he understood the man’s reasoning.

“So you’re going to squeeze in a quick trip, then.”

Sawyer nodded. “That’s the plan.”

Lukas remained silent for a moment. “
Sohn
, you’re an adult. I won’t tell you what to do.”

“Good.”

“Other than to make sure you’re being fair to your grandmother.”

Sawyer uncrossed his arms. “It’s not like she’s been fair to me.”

“That doesn’t give you the right to take your pound of flesh.”

“I’m not doing that.”

“Aren’t you?” Lukas glanced at him, his dark eyes calm, serious. “Vengeance comes
in different forms.”

“I know all about revenge.”

The word triggered unpleasant memories. Laura had wanted her revenge on Mark King
for any number of reasons: for stealing her parents’ life savings; for deceiving her
and using her to attain his own greedy ends; for nearly killing her and leaving her
scarred for life. In the end, God’s justice—and the justice system—had prevailed.
Mark was serving time in an Ohio prison. Sawyer didn’t know which one. He didn’t want
to know.

But there was no comparison between Laura’s deep, righteous pain over what Mark did
to her, both physically and emotionally, and the strife between Sawyer and Cora. “I
need to deal with my grandmother on my own terms.”

“
Ya
. You do.”

Sawyer opened his mouth to say something but closed it. His father got his message
across.

They rode the rest of the way in silence. When they arrived at the house, Sawyer could
see that Anna’s buggy was gone. She was off helping his aunt Rachel, Tobias’s wife,
prepare the house for church service on Sunday.

Lukas pulled the buggy underneath the covered area next to the barn.

“I’ll put the horse up,” Sawyer said.

Lukas nodded. He got out of the buggy. “I’ll check on the field, see how the corn
is doing. I might weed a few rows before nightfall.”

As Lukas left, Sawyer unhitched the horse from the buggy. He had just led the horse
into his stall when Lukas came into the barn.

“Sawyer. You’ve got to see this.”

His normally staid father had a smirk on his face. Sawyer couldn’t help but smile,
glad the earlier tension between them was gone. He quickly put the horse in his stall
and followed Lukas outside to the backyard. His father didn’t say a word. He just
pointed.

Sawyer froze. There was his grandmother, her mouth ajar and her head tilted back,
sound asleep on their swing.

“What’s she doing here?” Sawyer asked, stunned not only to find his grandmother in
Middlefield, but to see her in such an undignified position.

Lukas chuckled. “Came to see you, I’m sure.”

Sawyer didn’t share his mirth. “What’s so funny?”

“Cora. Never seen the woman so peaceful. Or so quiet.”

Sawyer tilted his head. “True.” Then he frowned. “Wonder how long she’s been here?”

“One way to find out.” Lukas gave Sawyer a slight shove. “
Geh
. Wake her up, before she starts catching flies.”

“I’m not waking her up.”

Lukas shook his head. “Don’t look at me. I’ve got a field to weed, remember?” He turned
and started walking away. “Tell her she’s welcome
to stay here if she wants. Although Anna will probably want her sleeping in the
haus
instead of on the swing.”

Sawyer groaned as he heard Lukas laugh again. At least someone thought Cora’s visit
was funny. He sure didn’t. And he didn’t want to wake her up. But he couldn’t let
her sleep there, so he slowly approached her. The breeze ruffled her short silver
hair. As he neared, he heard a slight snorkeling sound.

Was she snoring? The elegant Cora Easley snored?

He touched the shoulder of her soft leather jacket. “Grandmother.” When she didn’t
respond, he raised his voice. “Cora.”

“What?” She sat straight up, her eyes flying open. “What’s going on?” She looked at
him, and for a moment she didn’t seem to recognize him. “Sawyer?”

She suddenly straightened, adjusting her jacket and running manicured fingers through
her hair. She stood, unsteadily and with no small effort, as the swing gave her a
difficult time with her balance.

Sawyer reached out to help her. She ignored the gesture and didn’t thank him.

“Where have you been?” She peered up at him, and he had the odd feeling that she had
shrunk. Then he looked down and saw the flat shoes that replaced her customary heels.
Still, she managed to make him feel like she was looking down on him.

“Work. What are you doing here?”

“I was waiting for you.” She sniffed, fully in control now.

That was one thing Sawyer knew about his grandmother. She wanted to control everything,
including his life. She’d tried it once before, and it didn’t work that time. It wasn’t
going to work now either.

“My luggage is on the front porch,” she said, pointing to the house. “Take it inside.”

“So you are staying?”

“I didn’t fly here for a day trip.” She peered at him again. “We have to talk. You’re
through avoiding me.”

“I wasn’t avoiding—”

“Don’t insult my intelligence, or yours. You were ignoring me, and you know it. And
on some level I understand. But the time for games is over. You have decisions to
make, important ones. And I’m not leaving until you make them.”

Sawyer sighed. “Then you’ll be here a long time.”

“As long as it takes.”

They stared at each other. He could be as stubborn as he needed to be. “I’ll get your
luggage,” he said, turning from her.

“Be careful with it. It’s very expensive.”

“Of course it is,” he muttered.

“I heard that.”

Sawyer clenched his teeth and walked toward the house, expecting her to be directly
behind him. But when he rounded the house and reached the front porch, he turned.
She wasn’t there. He waited a few moments and saw her appear from the backyard, walking
as if she were treading on eggshells. He didn’t remember her being so slow before.
If anything, she’d been surprisingly energetic considering her age.

When she reached him, she sounded a little winded. He frowned. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine.” Her tone sliced through the air. “What are you waiting for? Get my bags
inside before they gather more dust. And once you’ve taken them upstairs, we can have
our talk.”

Sawyer gripped the handles of the two bags. He lifted them, almost dropping them because
he misjudged the weight. What did she have in here, cement blocks? “Not tonight,”
he said, glancing at her over his shoulder.

She narrowed her eyes. “What could possibly be more important than our conversation?”

“Laura. She’s leaving tomorrow.”

Cora expressed surprise, and Sawyer thought he saw hope gleaming in her eyes. “She’s
leaving you?”

“No. She’s going back to Tennessee. To talk to her parents.” He took a deep breath.
“To invite them to our wedding.”

Cora’s face paled. With more pep than he had yet seen from her, she scaled the steps
and stood in front of him. “No. That can’t happen. You
cannot
marry her.”

“This shouldn’t surprise you. You know how I feel about her. Besides, you don’t have
the right to tell me who I can and cannot marry.” He looked down at her. “I’m not
my mother.”

She flinched, as Sawyer expected. It was a cruel blow, but she was irritating him.
He refused to bend to her wishes, which had nothing to do with what he wanted and
everything to do with her demands.

Cora took a deep breath and hiked her chin, as she always did before aiming a well-placed
barb. But no barb came. Instead she simply asked, “If you do, will you still move
to New York?”

He set her two-ton bags back on the porch. “I never said I’d move to New York. I’m
pretty sure I made it clear I wouldn’t.”

He had never met anyone so hardheaded.
Lord, give me the
right words. And patience. Lots and lots of patience
.
No matter how he might feel about Cora, she was his grandmother and did deserve respect.
He softened his tone. “Laura and I are getting married here. We’re going to live here.
It’s already been decided.”

“Hmmph.” Cora crossed her arms. “Maybe I should have a talk with her.”

“Leave her out of this. Our discussion is between you and me. I promise we’ll talk
tomorrow.”

“I know how you are about your promises.”

He should have known she wouldn’t let that go. “You have my word. We’ll talk about
whatever you want, but it has to be tomorrow.” Laura was already waiting for him.
Emma had cooked a going-away meal for her and had invited him over. He wasn’t about
to miss out on that, especially since it would be two weeks or more before he’d see
her again.

“Very well. I’ll give you your time with Laura.” She sniffed. “But tomorrow you and
I are going to talk.”

Sawyer picked up Cora’s bags again and headed for the front door. “Can’t wait,” he
muttered.

“I heard that.”

“Finest meal I’ve had in ages.” Wagner patted his round belly. “Beefsteak and onions.
Can’t beat that.”

Johnny forced a chuckle, just as he’d had to force himself to eat his favorite meal,
which had been cooked to perfection. “Just aiming to please.”

“Please you did.” His wife, Lois, who was as small as Wagner was large, wiped the
corner of her mouth with her napkin. Despite her size, she’d put away the food with
as much gusto as her husband. “I’m surprised you’re such a good cook, Mr. Mullet.”

Guilt slammed into him. “I can’t take the credit. A friend of mine made the meal.”

“Oh? Well, I wish she were here so I could thank her.” Lois looked at Johnny. “She
is a
she
, correct?”

“Ya.”
Remorse snowballed in his gut. He had dismissed Katherine as if she’d been a servant,
his personal maid. Only after she left did he notice the little things she’d done
to make tonight special for his guests. The flowers. New dish towels. A bread basket
that Lois had called “charming.” Stuff he wouldn’t have thought about, yet Wagner’s
wife had noticed and seemed to appreciate.

But he needed to get Katherine out of his mind or he would blow this deal. “Are you
ready to see the property?” he asked, giving off what he hoped was a confident, commanding
demeanor.

“Sure.”

Half an hour later Wagner, Lois, and Johnny went back into the house. Again Johnny
was struck by how clean and tidy it now was. Sure, there was still more work to be
done, but at least it was neat. The scent of supper still hung in the air.

All smiles, Wagner sat at the table. “I’ve seen enough. True, things are a little
shabby, but the outside is as clean and well kept as the inside. Shows you’re serious
about making a go of it. Let’s
review the business plan. You all right with that, Lois?”

She nodded, scooting her chair closer to her husband.

Johnny rose and pulled a red folder out of a kitchen drawer and handed it to Wagner.
“Here’s a copy of my business plan.”

Wagner slipped his reading glasses out of the pocket of his shirt and put them on.
He and Lois read the plan together, both of them nodding at certain points almost
at the same time. Johnny gripped the edge of his chair. He couldn’t tell from their
blank expressions what they were thinking.

Finally Wagner put the plan back in the folder and closed it. He set it on the table.
“This is a decent plan. It could use some tweaking, but I can see you’ve been thinking
about the future.”

“Yes. I want to make a success of this farm, Mr. Wagner.”

Wagner held out his hand. “Please. Call me James. I’m always on a first-name basis
with the folks I do business with.”

Johnny relaxed his grip. “Does this mean you’ll invest?”

“We’ll have to discuss it, of course.” Lois smiled. “We’ll get back to you as soon
as we’ve made a decision.”

Johnny’s smile slipped a bit. He should have known they wouldn’t instantly agree to
something this big without giving it some thought, and hopefully some prayer. When
he had bowed his head to give thanks for the meal, they had both joined him, which
fortified his belief that the Wagners weren’t in his life by accident.

“I understand,” he said. “Take the time you need.”

Just don’t take too long
.

After they left, Johnny went back inside to the living room,
collapsing on the old couch he’d picked up at the thrift store the day after he moved
in. Every bone and muscle in his body ached with fatigue and tension. He tried to
relax, but the silence in the house overwhelmed him.

Odd, it had never bothered him before. But having Katherine here, just for these two
days, with her smiling and her humming as she cleaned the house and prepared the meal,
made him realize how lonely it was here.