Wanda E. Brunstetter - On Her Own

On Her
Own

OTHER BOOKS BY WANDA E. BRUNSTETTER:

DAUGHTERS OF LANCASTER COUNTY SERIES

The Storekeepers Daughter
The Quilters Daughter
The Bishops Daughter

BRIDES OF LANCASTER COUNTY SERIES

A Merry Heart
Looking for a Miracle
Plain and Fancy
The Hope Chest

SISTERS OF HOLMES COUNTY SERIES

A Sisters Secret

BRIDES OF WEBSTER COUNTY SERIES

Going Home

NONFICTION

The Simple Life
Wanda E. Brunstetters Amish Friends Cookbook

CHILDRENS BOOKS

Rachel Yoder...Always Trouble Somewhere Series:
Schools Out (Book 1)
Back to School (Book 2)

WANDA E.
BRUNSTETTER

BRIDES OF WEBSTER COUNTY

2007 by Wanda E. Brunstetter

ISBN 978-1-60742-022-4

All scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

All Pennsylvania Dutch words are taken from the Revised Pennsylvania German Dictionary found in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission of the publisher.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the authors imagination or used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, and/or events is purely coincidental.

For more information about Wanda E. Brunstetter, please access the authors Web site at the following Internet address: www.wandabrunstetter.com.

Cover design by Mllerhaus Publishing Group

Published by Barbour Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 719, Uhrichsville, OH 44683, www.barbourbooks.com.

Our mission is to publish and distribute inspirational products offering exceptional value and biblical encouragement to the masses.

Printed in the United States of America.

DEDICATION/ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Two are better than one;
because they have a good reward for their labour.
For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow:
but woe to him that is alone when he falleth;
for he hath not another to help him up.
ECCLESIASTES 4:910

C radling the precious infant she had given birth to a short time ago, Barbara Zook lay exhausted, her head resting on the damp pillow.

We have four sons now, David, she murmured into the stillness of her room. I wish you were here to see our boppli. Im planning to name him after you. Unbidden tears sprang to Barbaras eyes as she struggled against the memory of what had happened almost eight months ago. If she lived to be one hundred, she would never forget the unsuspecting moment when her world fell apart.

Barbara squeezed her eyes shut as her mind drove her unwillingly back to that Saturday afternoon when shed been happy and secure in her marriagewhen shed been full of hope for the future.

Barbara sat in the wicker rocking chair on the front porch, watching her three young boys play in the yard and waiting for her husbands return. It was their tenth wedding anniversary, and David had taken their horse and buggy to Seymour to pick up her gift. Hed said it was something Barbara both wanted and needed.

She patted her stomach and drew in a deep breath as the rocking chair creaked beneath her weight. When David gets home, Ill give him my giftthe news that Im pregnant again, she whispered. Barbara had known for a couple of weeks that she was carrying Davids child, but she had wanted it to be a surprise. She was sure her husband would be happy about having another baby, and she was hopeful that this time it would be a girl.

She planned to share her good news the moment David arrived. He had been gone several hours, and she couldnt imagine what could be keeping him.

Barbaras stomach rumbled as she noticed that the sun had begun to drop behind the thick pine trees on the other side of the field. It was almost time to start supper. She had just decided to head for the kitchen when the sheriffs car rumbled up the driveway.

She stood and leaned against the porch railing while Sheriff Anderson and his deputy got out of the vehicle and strode toward her.

Barbara shuddered. Something was wrong. She could feel it in every fiber of her being. Mmay I help you, Sheriff? she asked as the two men stepped onto the porch. Her voice cracked, and she swallowed a couple of times.

Mrs. Zook, the sheriff said, moving closer to her, Im sorry to be telling you this, but theres been an accident.

An accident?

He nodded. It happened about a mile out of Seymour.

Barbaras heart thudded in her chest. Is it...David?

Im afraid so. We were called to the scene by one of your English neighbors whod been heading down Highway C and witnessed the accident. He identified your husbands body.

My husbands body? The words echoed in Barbaras mind. Its not true. It cant be. Davids alive. Today is our anniversary. Hell be home soon with the surprise he promised me. Davids always been so dependable. He wont let me down.

Im sorry, Deputy Harris said, but a logging truck pulled out of a side road and hit your husbands buggy. The stove that was tied on the back flew forward and hit David in the head, killing him instantly.

The porch swayed in an eerie sort of way, and Barbara gripped the railing until her fingers turned numb. Davids dead. He bought me a stove. David cant be dead. Todays our anniversary.

The wail of an infants cries pushed Barbaras thoughts to the back of her mind, and her eyes snapped open. Her nose burned with unshed tears as she focused on the joy of having a new baby in her arms. Little David needed her. So did Zachary, Joseph, and Aaron.

Ill do whatever I need to in order to provide for my boys, she murmured.

A knock sounded at the bedroom door, and Barbara called, Come in.

The door creaked open, and Davids mother, Mavis, stuck her head through the opening. How are you doing? Are you ready for some company?

Barbara glanced down at her son, who was now enjoying the first taste of his mothers milk. She nodded at her dark-haired mother-in-law. Youre welcome to come say hello to your new grandson, David.

Mavis entered the room and closed the door. Alice told me it was a boy and youd named him David. She moved closer to the bed and sniffed deeply, her brown eyes filling with tears. My son would be real pleased to know he had a child named after him.

Barbara swallowed around the fiery lump in her throat. David never knew I was pregnant. He died before I could share our surprise. She stared down at her infant son. It breaks my heart to know this tiny fellow will never know his daed.

Mavis reached out to touch the babys downy, dark head. If I could do something to help, I surely would.

You already have, Mavis. You and Jeremiah have helped us aplenty, same as my folks.

Mavis nodded. Your mamm has been real good about watching your kinner so you could keep working in the harness shop, and your daeds been willing to help there despite the arthritis in his hands.

Thats true. Barbara thought about how determined her husband had been to open his own business here in Webster County, Missouri. Because of it, they had made enough money to put food on the table and pay the bills. The truth was Barbara actually enjoyed working in the shop. To her, the smell of leather was a sweet perfume. These days she found the aroma even more comforting because it reminded her of David.