The Farmer Next Door & Lancaster Country Target
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Patricia Davids
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CHAPTER ONE
If the Amish farmer standing outside her screen door would smile, he’d be a nice-looking fellow—but he certainly wasn’t smiling at the moment. His fierce scowl was a sharp reminder of all her life had been before—tense, fearful, pain-filled.
Faith Martin thrust aside her somber memories. She would not allow the past to follow her here. She had nothing to fear in this new community.
Still, the man at her door made an imposing figure blocking out much of the late afternoon sunlight streaming in behind him. His flat-topped straw hat sat squarely above his furrowed brow. That frown put a deep crease between his intelligent hazel eyes.
Above his reddish-brown beard, his full lips barely moved when he spoke. “Goot day, Frau. I am Adrian Lapp. I own the farm to the south.”
His beard told her he was married. Amish men were clean-shaven until after they took a wife. He had his pale blue shirtsleeves rolled up exposing brawny, darkly tanned forearms folded tightly across his gray vest. A familiar, nauseous odor emanated from his clothes.
Faith’s heart sank. It was clear he’d had a run-in with one of her herd. What had he been doing with her animals?
She managed a polite nod. Common courtesy dictated she welcome him to her home. “I’m pleased to meet you, neighbor. I am Faith Martin. Do come in.”
He made no move to enter. “Is your husband about?”
It seemed the farmer next door wasn’t exactly the friendly sort. That was too bad. She had prayed it would be different here. “My husband passed away two years ago. It’s just me. How may I help you?”
Her widowed status seemed to surprise him. “You’re living here alone?”
“Ja.” She brushed at the dust and cobwebs on her apron and tried to look like a woman who managed well by herself instead of one who’d bitten off far more than she could chew.
His scowl deepened. “Your creatures are loose in my fields. They are eating my beans.”
Faith cringed inwardly. This was not the first impression she wanted to make in her new community. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know how they could have gotten out.”
“I tried to catch one of them by its halter, but it spat on me and ran off with the others into the cornfield.”
She saw the green, speckled stain across the front shoulder of his shirt and vest. Alpaca spit, a combination of grass and digestive juices, was unpleasant but not harmful. What a shame this had to be her new neighbor’s first introduction to her alpacas. They were normally docile, friendly animals.
Faith never tired of seeing their bright, inquisitive faces waiting for her each morning. Their sweet, gentle natures had helped her heal in both body and spirit over the past two years.
“The one wearing a halter is Myrtle. She’s the expectant mother in the herd. You must have frightened her. They are leery of strangers.”
“So I noticed,” he answered drily.
“Spitting is their least endearing habit, but it will brush off when it dries.” Faith’s encouraging tone didn’t lighten his scowl. Perhaps now wasn’t the time to mention the smell would linger for a few days.
“What did you call them?”
“Alpacas. They’re like llamas but they have very soft fleece, softer than any sheep. Originally, they come from South America. How many did you say were in your field?”
“I counted ten.”
“Oh, no!” Fear blotted out any concern for her neighbor’s shirt. If all of her animals were loose in unfamiliar country, it would be difficult, even impossible, to round them up before dark.
Her defenseless alpacas couldn’t spend the night out in the open. Stray dogs or coyotes could easily bring down one of her half-grown crias, or they might wander onto the highway and be hit by a passing car. She couldn’t afford the loss of even one animal. She had everything invested in this venture and much more than money riding on her success.
Please, Lord, let me recover them all safe and sound.
As much as she hated to be seen using her crutch, Faith grabbed it from behind the door. It was wrong to be vain about her handicap, but she couldn’t help it. It was a personal battle she had yet to win.
The pickup truck that had crashed into their buggy two years ago had killed her husband and left her with a badly mangled leg. Doctors told her it would be a miracle if she ever walked again, but God had shown her mercy. After a long, difficult recovery she was able to get around with only her leg brace most of the time. But chasing down a herd of frisky alpacas required exertion and speed. Things she couldn’t manage without added support.
She pushed open the screen door, forcing Adrian Lapp to take a step back. She didn’t miss the way his eyes widened at the sight of her infirmity.
Let him stare. It wasn’t something she could keep secret. She knew her crippled leg made her ugly and awkward, a person to be pitied, but she wouldn’t let it be her weakness. Right now, the safety of her animals was the important thing, not her new neighbor’s opinion of her. “Where did you see them last?”
“Disappearing into the cornfield beyond the orchard at the back of your property.”
“I will need to get their halters and lead ropes from the barn.” She left him standing on the porch as she made her way down the steps.
Adrian quickly caught up with her. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know… I will take care of the animals for you. There is no need for you to go traipsing after them.”
His offer was grudgingly given, but she sensed he meant well.
“I’m perfectly capable of catching them.” She didn’t want pity, and she wasn’t about to leave her valuable livestock in the hands of a man who didn’t even know what kind of animal they were.
Hobbling ahead of him across the weedy yard, she spoke over her shoulder. “Once I catch them, can you help me lead them home?”
“Of course.”
Faith headed toward the small, dilapidated barn nestled between overgrown cedars some fifty yards from the house. In the harsh August sunlight it was easy to see the peeling paint, missing shingles and broken windowpanes on the building. The Amish were known for their neat and well-tended farmsteads. She had a lot of work ahead of her to get this place in shape.
She didn’t know why her husband had never mentioned owning this property in Ohio or why he had chosen to leave it sitting vacant all these years, but finding out a month ago that she owned it couldn’t have come at a better time.
She pulled open the barn door. Copper, her mare, whinnied a greeting. Faith spoke a few soft words to her as she gathered together the halters and lead ropes that were hanging on pegs inside the doorway.
Adrian took them from her without a word and slipped them over his shoulder. She was grateful for his help but wished he wasn’t so dour about it. Why couldn’t her alpacas have chosen to eat the beans of a cheerful neighbor? Maybe she didn’t have any.
She led the way around the side of the barn to the pens at the rear. The gate panel that should have been wired closed had been pushed over, offering the curious alpacas an easy way out. Why hadn’t she paid more attention when her hired help set up the portable pen and unloaded the animals? Now look what her carelessness had wrought.
Adrian removed the thin wire that had proven to be an ineffective deterrent. “Do you have a heavier gauge wire than this or some strong rope?”
“I’m sure there’s something in the barn that will work.”
“Then I should find it.” He turned back toward the barn door.
Faith called after him. “Shouldn’t we find my animals first and then worry about how to keep them in? It’s getting late.”
He didn’t even glance in her direction. “It won’t do any good to bring them back if they can just get out again.”
She pressed her lips closed on a retort. She had learned the hard way not to argue with a man. Her husband had made sure she understood her opinions were not valued.
Leaving her new neighbor to rummage in the barn, Faith headed toward the rows of trees that stretched for a quarter of a mile to the back edge of her property, knowing he could easily overtake her. It was slow going through the thick grass, but at least she knew her alpacas would be well-fed through the summer and fall once she had her fences in place.
It didn’t take long for Adrian to catch up with her. As she expected, his long legs made short work of the distance she had struggled to cover. A twinge of resentment rippled through her before she firmly reminded herself it didn’t matter if someone could walk faster than she could. All that mattered was that she walk upon the path the Lord had chosen for her without complaint.
Adrian wasn’t sure what to make of the woman charging ahead of him through the tangled grass of the old orchard. Her handicap clearly didn’t slow her down much. He’d been curious about his new neighbors as soon as he’d spotted the moving van and large horse trailer inching up the rutted lane yesterday.
The farmstead had been deserted since he’d been a lad. It hurt his soul to see the good farm ground lying fallow and the peach orchard’s fruit going to waste year after year. He could do so much with it if only he had the chance.
Even though he’d seen he had new neighbors, he hadn’t gone to introduce himself. He didn’t like meeting people or answering questions about his life. He liked being alone. He preferred to stay on his farm and work until he was bone-tired and weary enough to fall asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow at night.
Too tired even for dreams…or for nightmares.
He wouldn’t be here today if Faith Martin had kept her animals penned up properly. This was costing him an afternoon of work that couldn’t wait.
He glanced sideways at her. She was a tiny slip of a woman. She didn’t look as if she could wrest this land and buildings back into shape by herself. A stiff wind could blow her away. Why, the top of her head barely reached his chin whiskers.
A white prayer kapp covering her chestnut-brown hair proclaimed her to be a member of the Plain faith, but he didn’t recognize the pattern. Where had she come from?
She wore a long blue dress with a black apron and the same type of dark stockings and sturdy shoes that all the women in his family wore. As she walked beside him, the breeze fluttered the long ribbons of her kapp about her heart-shaped face, drawing his attention to the slope of her jaw and the slender curve of her neck. She was a pretty little thing with eyes bright blue as a robin’s egg. She had long eyelashes and full pink lips.
Lips made for a man to kiss.
He tore his gaze away as heat rushed to his face. He had no business thinking such thoughts about a woman he barely knew. What was wrong with him? He’d not taken this much notice of a woman since his teenage years.
He used to look at Lovina that way, used to imagine what it would be like to kiss her. When they wed he discovered her kisses were even sweeter than he’d dreamed. After her death, he’d buried his heart with her and raised their son alone until…
So what was it about Faith Martin that stirred this sudden interest? He studied her covertly. She pressed her lips into a tight line as she concentrated on her footing. Did walking cause her pain?
Her eyes darted to his face, but she quickly looked away as if she were uncomfortable in his presence. Her glance held a wary edge that surprised him. Was she frightened of him?
He hadn’t meant to scare her. He quickly grew ashamed for having done so. He wasn’t used to interacting with new people. Everyone in his family and the community knew of his desire to live alone. He truly had no reason to be surly with this woman. Her alpacas hadn’t actually damaged his crop.
He glanced at her again. How could he set this right? How could he bring back her smile?
Adrian abruptly refocused his attention to the task at hand. He had a corncrib to finish and more work waiting for him at home. He didn’t have time to worry about making a stranger smile. He would help her gather her animals and then get back to his labors. A few moments later they reached the end of the orchard.
The fence that separated her land from his had fallen down long ago. Only a few rotting uprights remained to mark the boundary. Beyond it, his cornfield stood in tall, straight rows. There was no sign of her odd creatures. They could be anywhere by now.
Faith cupped her hands around her mouth and called out, “Myrtle, Candy, Baby Face. Supper time.”
He listened for any sound in return but heard only the rustle of the wind moving through the cornstalks. What did an alpaca sound like? Did they moo or bleat?
She took a step farther into the field. “Come, Socks. Come, Bandit.”
Suddenly, a wooly white face appeared at the end of the row a few yards away. He heard Faith’s sigh of relief.
“There’s my good girl. Come, Socks.” The animal emerged from the corn and began walking toward her with its head held high, alert but wary. It was butternut-brown in color with a white face and four white legs. Its head was covered with a thick pelt of fleece, but the long neck and body had been recently shorn, leaving the animal with an oddly naked appearance. It approached to within ten feet, but wouldn’t come closer.
Faith glanced at Adrian. “Give me one of the halters and a lead rope and wait here.”
He had no intention of venturing closer. Although the animal looked harmless, he still reeked of Myrtle’s earlier disapproval.
Faith walked toward Socks with her hand out. The animal made a low humming sound, then ambled up to her and wrapped its long neck around her in a hug.
“Were you lost and scared? It’s okay now. I know the way home.” She crooned to it like a child as she slipped the halter on, then scratched behind the alpaca’s ear.
A second animal stepped out of the corn. It already wore a halter. Adrian recognized it as the one that had spit on him. As soon as she caught sight of him, she turned back into the cornfield.
Faith led Socks to Adrian and handed him the lead rope. “Try not to scare her. If one gives an alarm cry, they may all scatter.”
Faith took several halters and ropes from him and disappeared into his cornfield without another word. Adrian found himself alone with the strangest animal he’d ever beheld.
He studied the creature’s face. It was calmly studying him in return with large, liquid black eyes fringed with long black lashes. Besides doe-like eyes, Socks had a delicate muzzle with two protruding lower teeth. Her narrow, perked ears reminded him of a rabbit. Her round body was similar to a sheep, but she had long legs like a deer. Looking down, he saw two large, hooked toenails on each front foot that could have belonged to a giant bird.
When Socks tried to nibble his beard, he drew back abruptly, uncertain of her intentions. “I have orders not to scare you.”
Socks hummed softly and didn’t spit.
So far, so good.
Reaching out, Adrian scratched behind her ear as he’d seen Faith do. Socks closed her eyes and nuzzled into his hand. Her thick wool was as soft as anything he’d ever touched. He smiled at the sound of her hum. They might be odd-looking creatures, but they had a certain appeal. When they weren’t spitting.
He ran a hand down her camel-like neck. She stood, patient and unconcerned. With his confidence in her temperament restored, he gave free rein to his curiosity. He wanted a closer look at her strange feet.
As soon as he grasped her leg, Socks lifted her foot as any well-trained horse would do. To his surprise, the bottoms of her feet were soft pads much like a dog’s foot, not a hoof at all.
Straightening, he stroked her nose and chuckled. “It appears the Lord assembled you from leftover animal parts.”
Socks looked past him and called softly. He turned and saw another alpaca, this one black as night, emerge and look in his direction. Should he call out to Faith or would that scare the animal?
It looked more curious than frightened. He gave a gentle tug on the lead rope and walked with Socks toward her friend. He made a soft humming sound, hoping to soothe the animal and not frighten it into running away. Was he going to help Faith, or was he about to make things worse?
Tired, hot and discouraged, Faith emerged from the forest of corn thirty minutes later with only two of her alpacas in tow. The sun was touching the horizon. It would be dark within the hour. How would she find the others then? She would need dozens of people to comb this acreage properly in the dark.
It seemed she was destined to meet more of her neighbors tonight and not under the best of circumstances.
She had no doubt they would come to help. That was the Amish way. She would not be prideful. She would ask Adrian Lapp to gather a group to help in her search.
To her surprise, Adrian wasn’t where she had left him. She glanced around, wondering if she had come out of the corn in the wrong place. No, this was the spot. Had he gone back to his own work? What kind of neighbor was he, anyway?
“I shouldn’t be judgmental. Perhaps his work is as pressing as mine.” As usual, Myrtle proved to be a good listener and followed obediently behind Faith.
“All I have to do is round up my missing animals, start a business and ready a dilapidated house to pass inspection in a week’s time so I may become the guardian of my brother’s child. I’m sure Mr. Lapp is equally as busy.”
Tears pricked the backs of Faith’s eyes as she struggled through the long grass. The past two years had been incredibly hard. First, there had been the terrible crash and her husband’s death. She’d spent weeks in the hospital afterward. Her small savings had covered only a fraction of her medical bills. Thankfully, the congregation at her church had taken up a collection to pay the rest, but it left her little to live on. It had taken her more than a year to get back on solid financial ground.
Then, three months ago came word that her brother and his wife had been killed in a flash flood, leaving their five-year-old son an orphan. As the boy’s only relative, she was willing and eager to take Kyle in. She’d been halfway through the maze of paperwork and home studies needed to approve his adoption when her landlord had informed her he had to sell the farm she’d been renting.
Her adoption plans fell apart. She couldn’t take in a child when she was about to lose the roof over her head.
But in the midst of her despair, the Lord had delivered what seemed like a miracle. A delinquent property tax statement had arrived in the mail addressed to her husband. It was then that she’d learned she owned a house and farm in Ohio. She’d spent every penny she could scrape together to pay the bill and move.
She hadn’t expected to find the place in such deplorable condition.
Was this God’s way of telling her Kyle didn’t belong with her? Did He want Isaac’s child raised in the English world her brother had chosen instead of in her Amish faith?
Why would God see fit to give Isaac’s child into her care when He had denied her children of her own?
She had no answers to the questions and doubts that plagued her. It would be all too easy to sit down and bawl like a baby, but what would that fix? She sniffed back her tears and blinked hard, refusing to let them fall.
Tears hadn’t made her husband a kind man. They wouldn’t bring back her brother or undo any of the pain she had endured. They certainly wouldn’t build fences for her alpacas, clean her house or make it a home for a lonely little boy.
She stopped to rest her aching leg and looked heavenward. “I know You never give us more than we can bear, but I could use Your strength right now. Help me, Lord. I beseech You.”
As always, she felt the comfort of God’s presence in her life whenever she turned to Him. She must not let her despair or her fears gain the upper hand. God was watching over her.
Had not the letter come in her hour of need telling her she owned this land? So what if it was going to take hard work to make it livable? She knew how to work. God would provide. She had faith in His mercy. Here in Ohio she had started Kyle’s adoption process again. Now she had to prove to a new agency worker that she had a safe home and a stable income.
Which was exactly what she didn’t have yet.
Drawing a deep breath, she started forward again. The time for tears was past. This was the new path the Lord had chosen for her. She had to believe it would be better than the life she’d left behind.
