Home by Dark. Marta Perry

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СКАЧАТЬ thought it would cause so much pain.

      “Mommy, why doesn’t he like us?” Mandy didn’t sound hurt so much as curious.

      “He doesn’t dislike us, sweetheart.” She picked her way through the thicket of explaining incomprehensible adult behavior to a child. “You see, he and my mother were really hurt when I ran away from them to marry your daddy. I think it’s hard for him to forget that.”

      “Well, but you’re back now.” Mandy’s tone was practical. “I wish we could make up and be friends. Then I’d have a grandpa and grandma like everybody else.”

      “I wish that, too.” She couldn’t let Mandy see her pain, because it was important that Mandy know she could count on her mother to be strong. “Maybe it will happen. We just have to be patient.”

      Mandy stared at her for a long moment in much the same way she’d studied Daadi. “I’ll try,” she said finally, as if being patient was the hardest thing in the world. Well, maybe it was to a nine-year-old.

      Rachel managed a smile. “Now, why don’t you find something to do while I finish up the dishes? Maybe we’ll have time for a game afterward.”

      Mandy nodded. “I know just what to do. I’m going to make a picture of Duke. I’ll show you when I’m done.” She darted off, the kitchen door swinging behind her.

      Rachel stared at the sink. She ought to get moving on the dishes. She ought to do a lot of things, but right now all she could think about was Benj. Her parents had to be very worried indeed for her father to come to her door.

      The back window looked out over the outbuildings and beyond them to the creek and the covered bridge that crossed it, delineating Amish farms from the village proper. Daad had already appeared on the other side of the covered bridge. He paused for a moment, looking downstream, and fear curled inside her. Twenty yards or so beyond the bridge the stream tumbled over the small dam that had been there as long as anyone could remember. Pearson’s Dam, it was called, but she had no idea who Pearson had been. The dam wasn’t more than three feet high, but the force of water was such that a person could be swept under by it as if caught in a riptide. That was what had happened to Aaron Mast.

      But Daad was walking on, heading for the stretch of woods along the south pasture. Obviously there had been no one at the dam.

      Still, the fear was admitted, wasn’t easily dismissed. She ought to do something, but what?

      A memory slid into her mind as if it had been waiting for the chance. Colin had said he’d expected Benj to show up to work on the lawn. Maybe that was the answer.

      Without giving herself time to think about it, she went quickly to the telephone in the hallway. It was the work of a moment to look up Colin’s number and punch the buttons. If Colin thought she was making an excuse to call him—

      She nearly hung up at that thought, but she already heard his voice in her ear.

      “Colin, it’s Rachel Mason. I’m sorry to bother you, but is Benj at your place, by any chance? My father is looking for him.”

      “He’s not here now. Let me ask my father if he came over earlier.”

      She heard the sound of muffled voices and could tell that the answer was negative even before Colin came back on the line.

      “Dad hasn’t seen him today. Is something wrong?” His voice deepened on the question, and she knew he was revisiting their earlier conversation about Benj.

      “No...no, nothing.” That wasn’t quite true, but it also wasn’t Colin’s business.

      “Come on, Rachel. You wouldn’t be calling me if nothing was wrong, now would you?” Something that might have been amusement threaded the concern in his tone. “What is it?”

      “My daad stopped by to see if Benj was here, that’s all. He didn’t come home for supper. It’s not exactly earthshaking.” She tried to sound as if she were taking Benj’s absence lightly and was afraid she didn’t succeed.

      “I’ll come over,” Colin said instantly, proving that she hadn’t deceived him.

      “No, don’t do that. He’s probably turned up by now.” She rushed the words, regretting that she had called. “Thanks.” She hung up quickly, before Colin could say anything else.

      Walking to the rear window, Rachel peered out. She couldn’t see her father now. Had he gone back to the house? Or had he walked into the woods beyond the pasture?

      Standing here worrying wasn’t helping. She went quickly to the bottom of the stairs. “Mandy, I’m going outside for a minute. I’ll be right back.” Her voice seemed to bounce around the turn in the stairs.

      “Okay, Mommy.”

      Judging by the sound, Mandy was in her room, probably hard at work on the promised picture. Since that room overlooked the willow on the side of the house, Mandy would be unlikely to see her in the backyard, looking...well, she wasn’t sure where she was going to look. She just knew that doing nothing wasn’t an option.

      Pulling on the navy windbreaker that hung in the back hall, Rachel slipped out the back door. The sun was just beginning to disappear behind the ridge, and she knew how quickly darkness could claim the valley after sunset. The air was already cooling, and she was glad of the jacket.

      The garage, the old stable, other outbuildings she hadn’t yet identified—there were plenty of places for a skinny teenager to hide, even without going into the woods. But why was she thinking about hiding? Logically speaking, Benj had no reason to hide, but fear wasn’t logical, and she had seen fear in her little brother’s eyes lately, no matter how he tried to hide it.

      She walked past the outbuildings toward the covered bridge. Daad had already looked there, of course. She’d seen him. But that didn’t stop her from wanting to have a quick glance herself.

      The inside of the one-lane bridge was already dark, with the arched opening at the other showing an empty stretch of lane. The covered bridge had only one window cut into the side that looked downstream. It was a simple, utilitarian structure, built over a century ago to provide both access to the village from the farms and to give farmers a place to shelter a loaded wagon in case of a storm.

      Rachel put one hand against a rough-hewn timber and shivered. When she was young, she’d seen the bridge as her gateway to the world. Now it seemed a barrier, cutting her off from what had once been so familiar.

      Shaking away the thought, she turned back the way she’d come. She stepped out of the bridge and found herself face-to-face with Colin. Her breath caught.

      “What are you doing here?” That came out more sharply than it should have, probably.

      “Has Benj turned up yet?” He answered with a question of his own.

      She shook her head. Surely Daad would let her know if Benj had been found. He’d know she was worried.

      “I’m sure he’s fine. Goodness, he’s fourteen, not four.” But she couldn’t prevent a sideways glance down toward the dam, spilling over into its pool.

      “You’re imagining him falling over the dam. Not very likely.”

      Colin СКАЧАТЬ