Free A Cousin's Prayer by Wanda E. Brunstetter

head.
    ***
    JoAnn glanced out the kitchen window. It was nearly lunchtime, and still no sign of Jeremy and Katie.
I wonder what’s taking them so long.
    She moved away from the window and over to the stove to check on the chicken soup that was heating.
    She hoped nothing had happened to them. There’d been several buggy accidents on the stretch of road between their place and Shipshewana lately, and she couldn’t help feeling some concern.
    The whinny of a horse drew her attention back to the window, and she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Jeremy’s horse and buggy roll into the yard.
    A few minutes later, Katie entered the house, her face as pale as fresh-fallen snow.
    “What’s wrong, Katie?” JoAnn asked. “Aren’t you feeling well?”
    “I’ve got a koppweh, and I feel kind of shaky.”
    “Maybe some food will make your headache better.” JoAnn gestured to the stove. “The soup should be hot enough now, so as soon as your daed comes in, we can eat.”
    Katie shook her head. “I’m not hungry. I need to lie down.” She hurried up the stairs to her room.
    ***
    A cool breeze trickled through the open window in Katie’s bedroom as she sat on the edge of her bed. She wished she could tell someone what was on her mind, but no one would understand. How could they when Katie herself didn’t?
    She flopped onto the pillow and released a puff of air as she thought about finding Clara on the kitchen floor. What if she had been dead? What if she’d died with no one with her? What if—
    Katie rolled onto her side and squeezed her eyes shut. She didn’t want to think about death. She didn’t want to think about anything at all. She just wanted to sleep.
    An image of Timothy popped into her head, so real she could almost feel his warm breath on her face and see the twinkle in his eyes when he teased her.
    Tears stung Katie’s eyes, and she clutched the edge of her mattress. It was bad enough when a person got old and died, but to have someone snatched off the earth in the prime of life wasn’t fair! How could God be so cruel? Why did bad things happen to good people?
    Katie curled into a tight ball and sobbed until no more tears would come.
    ***
    JoAnn sighed as she stood at the stove stirring the soup. It upset her that Katie didn’t want to eat lunch. She’d been eating like a bird ever since she came home, and she was too thin for her own good.
    The back door swung open, and Jeremy stepped into the room. He sniffed the air. “Somethin’ smells good in here. I hope whatever you’ve fixed is ready, because I need to eat and get out to my shop and start workin’.”
    “The soup’s ready, and I’ll dish it up while you wash your hands.”
    When they were seated at the table a few minutes later, Jeremy looked at Katie’s empty chair and frowned. “Where’s our
dochder?
”
    “Our daughter’s upstairs in her room. She said she had a koppweh and wasn’t hungry.” JoAnn slowly shook her head. “I’m worried about her, Jeremy. I don’t think she’s happy being home. Maybe we should have sent her back to Florida with my mamm.”
    “But your folks are moving to Wisconsin.”
    “I know, but maybe Kate could have moved there with them.”
    Jeremy shook his head. “We’ve had this discussion before, and I don’t think Katie’s behavior has anything to do with her not being happy here. I think she’s still grieving over Timothy.”
    “How do you know?”
    “There was an incident over at Clara’s place this morning. Seeing how shaken Katie was made me realize that she’s not come to grips with Timothy’s death.”
    “What are we going to do about it?”
    “If she doesn’t snap out of it soon, we might have to make her an appointment to see one of the counselors at the mental health facility.” He bowed his head. “In the meantime, we need to pray and eat our lunch.”

CHAPTER 10
    Katie squinted against the intense morning sun as she stepped into the yard to feed the chickens