Free An Amish Christmas With the Bontrager Sisters by Hannah Schrock

life itself slackened, her body relaxed and her eyes rolled back in their sockets. A boppli’s cries pierced the night.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN
A Very Merry Christmas
    It had stopped snowing late last night. All sound had been snuffed out and the world shone bright in the sunlight. Martha felt like she was floating in a dream. The winter roses that rested in her hair were fragrant and looked particularly stunning against her dark hair.
    Five months pregnant and glowing like a lantern in a stormy night, Emma fussed about Martha, fixing a loose strand of hair here, adding a tweak to her dress there. She finally tied the kapp and stood back to look at the effect.  
    Mamm and Emma had tears in their eyes.
    “You make a beautiful bride,” Emma managed to say.
    “If only Sarah were here,” Mamm sobbed.
    “Ach, Mamm ,” Emma soothed but the sudden wails of a boppli got her attention. She leaned over the small crib and picked up the boppli , pink cheeked and mewling. “I think Jeramiah needs a nappy change,” Emma cooed. “ Mamm , could you?”
    Martha knew Emma had asked Mamm to take care of Jeramiah because it diverted her thoughts away from Sarah towards more pleasant things. Like Martha’s wedding to Jacob Lapp.
    Jacob had done more than follow through with his promise. He had purchased the house and barn and he had persuaded his family, with the help of Bishop Amos, to trust in Gott’s will and to exercise forgiveness and kindness.
    Mamm and Daed had been stunned when Mr. and Mrs. Lapp had arrived at their home to personally apologize for the pain they must have caused them by involving Aunt Lizzie and demanding the ridiculous thing they had demanded of Martha.
    Martha and Jacob had resumed their courtship soon after and now on Second Christmas day they were going to be married in Eli’s barn. Eli’s barn, which held so many memories for Martha. She had taken refuge in it when she had returned to the community, too afraid and guilt ridden to face anyone so she had starved for weeks before Jarron and Emma had found her.
    “Can you believe it,” Emma said, “a year ago none of us were this happy.”
    “I certainly wasn’t,” Martha agreed. “And Sarah had just gotten the blow.”
    “The Bontrager’s have come a long way since then,” Emma nodded. “Me with child, you getting married, and Sarah…”
    “And Sarah finally agreeing to treatment,” Martha grinned. “If you hadn’t taken her to the hospital on time we might have lost her Emma.”
    A shadow crossed Emma’s face at the memory of that horrible night, how she had clutched a newborn Jeramiah, slippery with blood and birth, and ran all the way to the house, screaming for Jarron to get the buggy.
    It was lucky that Jarron had found her missing from bed ten minutes ago and hitched the buggy in readiness.
    “ Ant Martha,” Ruth came running in, her bouquet of flowers clutched in her tiny hands. “ Grossdaed says to hurry up. He says Onkel Jacob will leave without you if you are late.”
    “He wouldn’t dare,” Martha giggled and followed Emma and Ruth out the door to the wagon where Jarron waited. Daed kissed his daughters goodbye. Mamm waved, Jeramiah in her hands. Martha thought the custom ridiculous. Daed and Mamm would be attending the feast after the ceremony so why not attend? But who was Martha to question Gott’s will.
    The snow crunched under the wagon’s wheels and the atmosphere inside the wagon was giddy and cozy. Eli’s barn was full of people from the community but Jacob’s parents, just like her own, were not allowed to attend.
    Jacob stood at the other end of the barn, looking dashing in his trousers and shirt of sky blue. It made his eyes sparkle extra blue, a depth in which Martha saw an abundance of love for her. He was wheeling Sarah around in her wheelchair so she could greet the folk who had come to celebrate the union.
    Martha walked over to Sarah, frail and papery-skinned but very much alive. Her eyes were sparkling and