Free In Plain View by Olivia Newport Page A

beginning. If we let the British have Boston, we’re done for.” Jacob swung himself up into the wagon’s seat and picked up the reins. As he pulled away from Sarah’s stately Philadelphia home, he resolved to return to his own land the long way—by way of the Conestoga Valley. It was better to stay off the main thoroughfare between Philadelphia and Berks County anyway, and honesty was the best route with his brother as well.

    Christian flipped back the canvas and flicked his eyes toward Jacob. “That is a great deal of saltpeter.”
    Jacob nodded.
    “You can only have one end in mind for such a load.”
    Again, Jacob nodded.
    “Jacobli, this saltpeter will produce far more gunpowder than your household requires. Remember that I once hunted the hills of Berks County alongside you.”
    “If you want me to state my intentions, I will.” Jacob cleared his throat. “Though we differ in our acts of conscience, I don’t intend to deceive you.”
    “You’re making gunpowder for the Patriots.” Christian slapped the canvas back in place then caught himself. He would not allow Jacobli’s choices to provoke his temper.
    “The colonists are going to fight the Crown,” Jacob said. “But they can’t hope to be successful if they must continue to depend on the French for gunpowder. We must have our own supply.”
    Christian’s belly heated. He prayed regularly and fervently for Jacobli and all his siblings to find the way of peace. Would God never answer?
    “The land behind the tannery is more than suitable for a powder mill,” Jacob said. “It’s a good distance away from any other families, and it will be easy to hide the operation if need be. Having the creek so near is an advantage as well.”
    Christian could hardly bear the thought. Beautiful Irish Creek, once a thriving Amish settlement, was reduced to this.
    “Daed swore an oath to the Crown you now defy,” Christian said. “I was there that day. I heard it for myself.”
    “Daed could not have foreseen the events of the last thirty- five years.” Jacob was unbending. “I thought you were not taking sides.”
    “I’m not.” Christian swallowed his frustration. Jacob had always had a way of using Christian’s own words to provoke him. “Of course I shall remain neutral.”
    “Christian, this is the best way to put an end to the kind of danger your Maggie’s young man faced.”
    “By arming the perpetrators? I fail to see the logic.”
    “We will put an end to this war before it can spread beyond Boston. The Patriots will have what they want. Establishing a new nation will leave them little time to harass peaceful Amish farmers about their lack of loyalty.”
    “Peaceful Amish farmers are very loyal, Jacob. It’s only that we seek to serve a higher power.”
    “My gunpowder will ensure that you can continue to do so.” Jacob stared at Christian, unmoved.
    “You’d better go, Jacob. I don’t want Magdalena to see what you have in your wagon.”

Nine
    A nnie wore the red dress to church.
    She scrounged up a pair of shoes with lower heels and tamed her hair demurely with a silver clip at the base of her neck, but she wore the dress.
    The Friesens sat together in a pew about halfway back in the sanctuary. When Annie was young, the family attended church a couple of times a month. During high school, her training program and track competitions almost always interfered with church events aimed at teenagers. She had a few friends who had gone to the same church, and they had stayed in touch in a general way. But since she had given up Facebook and Twitter, she no longer tracked the path of their lives. And explaining her new life to anyone? Complicated.
    The lively contemporary music, with a six-piece band and a concert-quality sound system, made Annie feel out of practice. She tried to sing the unfamiliar songs, but she could not bring herself to clap as others around her did. Her months of worshipping with the Amish had left their mark. The