Free The Amish Doll: Amish Knitting Novel (Bonus Knitting Pattern Included) by Karen Anna Vogel

doorknob and opened the door. “Eb,” he yelled.
    He heard a shuffling sound and soon Eb emerged. He was in his pajamas and robe with a brown scarf around his neck. “Stay right there, Son, I have some kind of flu.”
    “I can take you to the doctor,” Raven offered.  “Where’s your thermometer? We need to take your temperature.”
    Eb walked over to an overstuffed chair and collapsed. “I’m sorry, dear one, I don’t have a thermometer.”
    She went over to feel his forehead and quickly turned to Joshua. “He’s burning up. Can you make me a snowball?”
    He ran outside and took some snow from the front porch rail and pressed it together. “Here, this should bring it down.”
    Raven took the snow and put it on Eb’s forehead. She broke off a piece and wiped it on both cheeks. Eb closed his eyes and moaned.  “What hurts, Eb?” Raven asked.
    “Everything. Mostly my head and joints.”
    She kept the ice on him for two minutes then felt his forehead again. “He’s burning up. We need to get him to the ER.”
    ~*~
    Susanna sat up in bed, admiring her new quilt.  It was warm and made with love. By the glow of the oil lamp, she saw each square had a flower embroidered on it and the name of its maker in small letters on the bottom. She was thankful Mary and Lottie had stopped in to visit and deliver the gift. Maybe she was wrong about Lottie and overly sensitive about her son’s feelings.
    She knew these quilts were usually made for those who were terminally ill. That she was, no denying it. All the people tested had not produced one donor match. She’d thought of putting an ad in Die Botschaft but it was illegal to solicit for a kidney, but knew many other people would get tested if they knew of the need.
    She laid her head on the pillow and thought of the shouting she’d heard the other night. Rueben was getting nervous, she could tell, but there was something in his voice as he shouted about Eb’s rumspringa days. It was guilt. But why? What was it about Eb that made him so cautious, always wanting him to keep his distance from Joshua?  Was there something Rueben knew about Eb that she didn’t know? None of it made sense. She soon saw Rueben come in and slip in beside her, concern on his face. “Joshua still isn’t home? No trace of where he went?”
    “None,” Rueben mumbled. “It’s not like him to up and go without saying a word.”
    Susanna took her husband’s hand. “You carry a lot on those shoulders of yours. I’m still here to help.”
    He squeezed her hand. “You’re sick and need rest.”
    She leaned toward him. “What happened during your rumspringa , Rueben? I’ve asked before and you make light of it, but I can tell it haunts you.”
    Susanna felt his hand stiffen and pull away. The silence in the room mocked the whistling wind that beat on the windows. Nothing made her husband turn cold as ice, unless she brought up the wild oats she guessed he’d sown in his youth. Rueben and some other fellows got a car and drove it to Jamestown and Salamanca. Everyone looked the other way, since they were allowed to explore the outside world to make sure they wanted to make a permanent commitment to the Amish faith.
    Susanna could only think of one thing that could linger so long in his memory. Unrepentant sin…the sin of sexual immorality. “Rueben, I may not be here for you to ask me to forgive you, so I want to say right now, that I do.”
    She looked over at him and saw a tear glide down his cheek and felt him take her hand. “Eb was the ring leader and I can’t forgive him. He kept taking us to a bar and I had too much to drink.” He turned to her. “It was only once, as God is my witness. She meant nothing to me.”
    Susanna felt a stabbing pain in her chest, and swallowed hard. “Only once, you say?”
    “ Jah , one big mistake. I told Eb I’d never go down with him again, and I didn’t.”
    Susanna prayed immediately for grace. Her instincts were right. He’d been with