Arms of Mercy Read online

  “Yes, please.” Elijah breathed a sigh of relief as the bus driver applied the brakes.

  The driver opened the door and pointed to the steps. “Get off.” His face flared with anger. “Why do I get all the looneys?”

  With a quick word of thanks to the driver, Elijah bounded down the steps, his feet barely reaching the pavement before he heard the gears grind as the bus pulled away. He probably had sounded as though he’d lost his mind, going on in another language like that. But he achieved his purpose. The driver stopped the bus a few blocks away from the diner, but he was off the bus nonetheless.

  Snow mixed with sleet numbed his face. Elijah tugged his coat, pulling the collar higher to cover his neck. In between buildings, a haze of pinkness lit the eastern sky. Even in daylight, the barred windows and boarded-up buildings were uninviting.

  The thug who had made off with Catherine’s bag proved to be a much faster runner who had an unfair advantage of knowing the area. The man had darted down an alley and disappeared before Elijah could catch up. Forced to abandon his pursuit, Elijah had to run hard to make it back to the bus on time. He hoped Catherine wasn’t carrying anything important in her bag. Yarn and needles were easy to replace, and he’d brought enough money with him that she wouldn’t have to worry about purchasing food or drinks. The image of her fear-stricken expression when the bag was stolen burned in his mind. Elijah increased his pace.

  The alley where she’d fed the cat was empty. He rushed into the diner, his gaze immediately drawn to the table where they had eaten breakfast. Empty. His pulse quickened as he scanned the room and the faces of strangers.

  “Sir?” A woman’s voice drew his attention, and he turned to his left to see a woman in her midfifties with short salt-and-pepper hair smile. “I saw your wife go into the restroom.”

  He released a pent-up breath, some of the tension easing out of his body. Catherine was here and safe. “Thank you.”

  “Are you Amish or Mennonite?” the helpful woman asked.

  “Amish.” He kept his gaze glued to the door of the woman’s restroom.

  “I’ve read all about the Old Order Amish in Pennsylvania. Once I even went to visit Bird-in-Hand. I found the horses and buggies fascinating . . .”

  He caught the inflection change in her voice and glanced at her. “I’m sorry. Did you ask me a question?”

  “I wanted to know how fast you can go, traveling by buggy.”

  “With a gut horse, upward of eight miles an hour.” He motioned to the back of the room. “Do you know how long she’s been in the restroom?”

  “Not too long. She looked so frightened and upset, I almost followed her in to see if she needed me to help with anything. I suppose you two don’t travel much. Are you from Pennsylvania?”

  “Nay, Michigan.” He smiled politely in an attempt to dilute the curtness in his tone from reaching her ears. The woman was only trying to be friendly, and compared to other well-meaning Englischers, she wasn’t all that intrusive—yet.

  “I didn’t know Amish lived in Michigan.” Her mouth gaped momentarily, then curled into an even bigger smile. “Whereabouts?”

  “There are several settlements throughout the state. We’re from Presque Isle County.” He needed to check on Catherine. “It’s been nice talking with you.” He aimed his gaze at the bathroom door and headed in that direction. With some of the people already gone, the room wasn’t as crowded. Still, he had to step aside for the waitress to pass between tables with the coffeepot in hand.

  “Sit anywhere you like,” she said. Apparently overwhelmed by the rush of customers, she’d forgotten that she’d already served him.

  He squeezed into an empty chair off to the far side just to get out of the foot traffic. Depending on how long it would be before the next bus arrived, maybe Catherine would like another mug of coffee. Elijah had just barely sat down when he glimpsed Catherine coming out of the restroom, his duffel bag slung over her shoulder. She blotted her eyes with a tissue. From where he sat, she looked dazed. Elijah stood and waved, but she’d put her head down as if to avoid eye contact with everyone.

  Before he could call her name, the spokeswoman for Budget Bus stood. “If I could please have your attention. In ten minutes another bus should arrive. Seating is limited. However”—her voice rose above the commotion of chairs sliding across the tile floor as people stood—“a third bus will pick up those of you who are remaining. As I mentioned before, you will be rerouted.”

  Catherine fell into the mix of people working their way to the door.

  Elijah lost her in the swarm. Feeling the panic of losing her again, he began whistling.

  Her head bobbed up. “Elijah?”

  The moment he caught sight of her red-rimmed eyes, his insides melted. In spite of her emotional state, she looked as beautiful as ever. “Catherine.” He waved, heading toward the throng of travelers exiting the building.

  She broke through the crowd, dropped the duffel bag on the floor, then surprised him by stretching out her arms and pulling him into a tight hug. “I’m so thankful you came back for me,” she said, half weeping, half rejoicing. “When I saw you getting on the bus, I didn’t think I would see you again.” Her eyes glistened.

  “You can’t get rid of me that easily.” He squeezed her tighter, not caring that they were in the middle of the restaurant, creating a spectacle of themselves. He’d been taught that public displays of affection were never warranted, but today he was changing those rules. Having almost lost her, he wasn’t about to let her go and risk them being separated again. And for however long she clung to him, her face buried in the crook of his neck, he would savor the wisps of her warm breaths.

  Catherine took a few calming breaths and mentally let go of every thread of apprehension she had about being in Elijah’s arms. The wall she’d built to protect her heart from falling in love with him again crumbled like the walls of Jericho when Joshua led the Israelites around the city blowing horns.

  His strong hands pressed her tighter against his chest. The world around her could fall apart, but she’d be safe. Breathing in the woodsy scent on his coat, she wanted to block out the bustle of people moving about the room.

  But they needed to make the bus. She didn’t want to stay in this town one minute more than they had to. She lifted up her head and looked into his eyes, a bit taken aback by the depth of his stare. Her eyes automatically closed as he leaned down and kissed her lightly on the forehead, leaving her body showered in shivers.

  “We’d better go,” he said, his voice husky.

  She nodded.

  Elijah reached for the duffel bag and swung it over his shoulder. “How did you know it was me whistling?”

  She laughed lightheartedly. “If you only knew how off-key you are, you wouldn’t have to ask how I recognized you.”

  He lifted his brows. “That bad?”

  Nay, that wunderbaar. She grinned. “At least you caught mei attention.”

  “So you say.” Elijah twined his fingers with hers and led her outside into the freezing drizzle.

  The bus filled immediately with those ahead of them, and they were among a handful of others turned away.

  “Another bus will kumm shortly,” Elijah reassured her. “Let’s go back inside.”

  But Catherine didn’t need reassuring when she had him. She wasn’t nearly as eager to get to Florida as she had been at the beginning of the journey. In fact, she was enjoying this trip— besides the misfortune of having her bag stolen and the panic of seeing Elijah getting on the other bus. She hadn’t felt this blissful in a very long time. Dare she dream of a new future, joy that would last?

  Elijah had said he was going to Florida to visit his cousin, but he hadn’t indicated how long he planned to stay. Catherine hoped she wasn’t so busy at the bakery that there wouldn’t be some free time to spend with him.

  Her thoughts shifted to Dawn. Somehow she needed to let her cousin know about the delay. Was it too early to call the bakery?
r />   Elijah opened the diner door for her to enter. Inside, she scanned the room for a pay phone. Then, remembering her address book with the bakery’s phone number was in her tote bag, her enthusiasm dimmed and she let out a heavily weighted sigh.

  “You must be tired.” He pulled a chair out from the table.

  “A little.” She sat in the chair opposite him. “What about you?”

  He shrugged. “I could probably sleep,” he said, nonchalantly, adding, “standing up” with a head tilt and the crossing of his eyes.

  She smiled. “You’re narrish.”

  “I’ll take crazy over dull.”

  Catherine ignored the dig at Zach. She could argue Zach wasn’t dull when it came to things he was interested in, like his clockmaking, but sadly she’d have to admit that his interest had excluded her. There was no denying Elijah was night-and-day different.

  Her thoughts flitted to the instant she recognized his off-key whistling and the goose bumps that developed as she molded into his arms. Squeezing him the way she did had elicited a sharp gasp from him. Zach would have peeled her away for showing that much emotion in public.

  A shadowy figure appeared in Catherine’s peripheral vision, and she jolted.

  The waitress stood before them, coffeepot in hand. “Do either of you need to see a menu?”

  “Could I have a glass of water, please?” Catherine asked.

  “Nothing for me, thanks.” Elijah watched the waitress walk away, then looked back at Catherine. “I think you fell asleep with your eyes open.”

  She shook her head. “I wasn’t sleeping, just . . . deep in thought.”

  “About what?”

  She should have expected him to ask. Her face warmed. “I think it’s gotten warmer in here.” She fanned her face, hoping it didn’t look as on fire as it felt. “It’ll sure be nice to get out of this kalt wedder and make it to Florida. How many hours do you think we’re behind schedule nau?”

  He looked at her strangely. “Close to six. Why?”

  “I wanted to get word to mei cousin that I’ll be arriving later than expected, but I don’t have the phone number for her bakery.”

  “If you know the name of the business, we can ask the operator for assistance.” He swept the room with his gaze. “I don’t see a pay phone. We’ll have to look for one at the next stop.”

  “I hadn’t thought about the operator.” Catherine breathed easier knowing he had it all figured out. “You’re a smart man, Elijah Graber. You know exactly what to say to ease mei mind.”

  “I have more things I want to say—” He clamped his mouth closed as though he’d already spoken too much, which spiked her curiosity.

  “What do you want to say?”

  “I’ll tell you later.” He jutted his chin in a forward nod toward people leaving the building. “The bus is here.”

  They made their way back outside and didn’t have to stand in the drizzling icy rain too long.

  She climbed the bus steps but halted when the driver put his hand out.

  “Your reboarding pass, please.”

  Catherine spun to face Elijah, her jaw fallen slack. “Mine was in the tote bag.”

  Chapter 15

  What else can go wrong?

  Elijah positioned himself between Catherine and the beefy driver, whose soft belly hung loosely over the belt of his uniform trousers and rubbed against the steering wheel. “Sir, if you would allow me to explain. Catherine’s bag was stolen—”

  “No time to listen to ex-plan-a-tions. Just need to see your reboarding passes.” His rough voice sounded like he was chewing gravel when actually he was trying to talk around a wad of chewing tobacco lodged between his yellow-stained teeth and cheek. “Ya got one or not?” He certainly wasn’t as friendly as their first driver, and his manners left much to be desired. He used his shirt sleeve to chase away a dribble of dark-tinted saliva that escaped the corner of his mouth when he talked.

  Lord, we need Your favor. This area is dangerous, and we must get on this bus. We’re both road weary, Father. This will take a miracle for the driver to overlook our shortcomings.

  “Well?” the driver growled.

  Elijah swallowed dryly. The words of the woman representative rang in his head. “Keep your personal items on you at all times. Reboarding passes will not be reissued.” No denying they’d been warned, but who could have foreseen a theft?

  Catherine sidled up a step closer and gripped his arms with trembling hands. If he glanced at her now, he would, no doubt, find her shrouded in fear. He dreaded having to tell her they were stuck at the diner until other arrangements could be made.

  “This is the last bus. We have to get on it.” He’d hoped to appeal to the man’s sympathy, but the driver pointed at the door and grunted, “Off.”

  “You can’t leave them here.” The woman who had asked him the Amish questions pushed up from her seat and strode to the front. “These people were on the other bus,” she insisted.

  “I don’t make the rules. No ticket, no ride.”

  “Her ticket was stolen.” Elijah wasn’t about to mention he’d given his ticket to the first driver and had forgotten to ask for it back when he got off the bus.

  “You two out!” The driver pointed to the exit, then twisted in his seat to address the helpful Englischer. “Ma’am, take your seat or get off with them. This bus is leaving. I have a schedule to keep.”

  “I’m reporting you.” The woman pulled out her phone from her purse. “Don’t underestimate me. When I set my mind to something, I know how to get an audience. TV, newspaper, social media—should I go on?” She continued talking as she pressed the buttons on her phone with her thumbs. “I think I’ll call it: Driver leaves helpless Amish passengers at an undesignated location.”

  “Lady, get off my bus!”

  The woman’s thumbs stopped, but she ignored the driver and instead directed her attention to Elijah and Catherine. “Is this your first time riding Budget Bus?”

  “Jah, it is.” Elijah glimpsed the driver. His narrowed eyes were hooded by heavy brows, and as red as his face was growing, he looked about ready to explode. Perhaps irritating the man wasn’t the answer.

  “Lady, I’m warning you,” the driver growled.

  “What are you going to do, kick me off the bus for trying to help these people?”

  “For getting on my nerves.”

  “You’ll have to drag me off the bus. Last I knew we had freedom of speech in this country.” Appearing even more determined, the woman moved her thumbs over her phone faster.

  Elijah couldn’t let this situation escalate to violence. He turned to Catherine, who was wiping tears from her eyes, and laid his hand on her arm. “We’ll have to trust God for another way to get to Florida.”

  Catherine nodded and started to turn.

  “No, wait.” Extending her arms, the woman aimed her phone toward the driver, then panned over to them. “This is coming live from Budget Bus number 1248 where first-time Amish passengers—it is your first time, right?”

  Elijah nodded.

  “Where first-time Amish passengers are being denied entry onto the bus.” She rattled off a brief explanation of how they ended up at the diner, stressing its location being an undesignated bus stop. “Can you explain what happened to your tickets?”

  Aiming her phone at Elijah, she smiled and waited for his reply. Early childhood teachings had taught the Amish to avoid cameras and to cover their faces when an Englischer tried to take their photograph. This had to be different. “Catherine’s ticket was in her handbag, but it was stolen.” He hadn’t noticed that several of the other passengers were pointing their phones at them as well until one shouted to look their way.

  Elijah moved in front of Catherine. She certainly didn’t need to be part of this. Answering the question, he’d exploited her himself. “Thou shalt not make unto thyself a graven image.” The biblical teaching caught in his throat.

  Passengers on the bus began to chant. “Let t
hem on. Let them on.”

  Elijah glimpsed Catherine’s lowered head and rounded shoulders. Subjected to this form of embarrassment, she must have wanted to crawl under a rock. He placed his hand on her back between her shoulder blades and was about to direct her off the bus when the driver grunted.

  “Find a seat. But I’m only taking you as far as the next bus station.”

  “Thank you,” Elijah breathed in relief. At least at a bus station, he could plead his case to an official. Left at the diner, at a place other buses didn’t stop, he had no idea how they would get to Florida.

  As he made his way down the aisle, he noticed one empty seat toward the front and directly across from the Englischer who had spoken up for them. Glancing farther down the aisle, the other seats appeared to be taken. “Catherine, take that seat.”

  “But—”

  The driver barked for them to sit down, leaving neither of them any choice. Elijah continued to make his way down the narrow aisle as the driver put the bus in gear and they rolled away from the curb.

  Finally he plopped down on an empty seat near the back of the bus as the overhead speakers squawked.

  “For those of you who are new, welcome aboard bus 1248. I’m sorry for the delay, ladies and gentlemen, but with a few rerouting adjustments and weather permitting, we should be able to make up the time and still reach West Virginia by Saturday afternoon. In the meantime, please relax and enjoy the ride.”

  West Virginia. How much longer would it take to get from there to Florida? Elijah hated being separated from Catherine, but for now at least they were safe. Perhaps later someone would kindly offer to switch places so they could sit together.

  He glanced at the passenger seated next to him. In his early twenties, the man wore a black T-shirt with a skull on the front and ripped jeans, and he had wires hanging from his ears. Slumped against the window, his eyes were open yet he gave no indication he was aware Elijah had sat beside him. Perhaps it had something to do with his loud music. Even Elijah could hear thumping sounds coming from the man’s earbuds.