LITMIR.BIZ

      Before leaving the house, Levi called David and Elizabeth back downstairs. He placed a hand on each of his children’s heads, the way he always did before he left them for a length of time. After silently praying for their safety, he removed his hands and gave them each a kiss on the cheek. “Ich leibe dich,” he said and the twins told him they loved him, too.

      On the porch he pushed his fingers into his gloves. Although the worst of his grief had subsided over the years, talking about Leora’s dream to live on a farm had brought up sorrowful emotions. Levi regretted she didn’t live to see the tree harvest finally coming to fruition. His wife believed farming was doing God’s work and she envisioned the two of them as pioneers, setting out for Maine on their own. Even though she missed Indiana and her family and experienced terrible morning sickness with the twins, Leora had never complained because she said their move was going to be worth it.

      Levi knew she would have been devastated he and the children were leaving Maine. But what else could he do? He’d already lost two nannies from his district, one from nearby Unity and one from Smyrna, in the northern part of the state, who had been visiting her cousins in Serenity Ridge. He doubted there were any other Amish nannies he’d find remotely suitable left in Maine, and if Sadie was any indication, Pennsylvania wasn’t that promising, either.

      Judging from the conversation he’d just had with her, she wasn’t going to work out. Which was disappointing—Elizabeth and David had taken an instant liking to her; in contrast with the other nannies, Sadie had shown a genuine interest in them, too. Levi had prayed for guidance. If Sadie refused to honor his instructions or chose to quit, that was as much clarity as he could ask for in regard to whether he’d made a mistake by hiring her. And when it came to his children’s well-being, it was better to know sooner rather than later if she was a suitable match.

      The sound of a truck clattering up the gravel road jarred Levi from his thoughts. Signaling the driver, Scott, to stop, he crossed the lawn to the barn, which was located on the opposite side of his house from the daadi haus. Halfway in between his house and the barn was a small workshop. Last week he’d rearranged his tools and workbenches to create an area where Maria could make wreaths. Beginning the day after Thanksgiving, the workshop would also serve as a place for her to ring up sales when the farm opened to the public. But Levi didn’t expect Maria to arrive until nine o’clock, so he continued toward the barn, where he stored the portable baler, the machine used to shake the needles from the trees and the chain and handsaws.

      By the time he and Scott loaded the equipment onto the truck bed, the rest of the crew had arrived. Levi spent the next couple of hours explaining the tagging system, showing the young men around the sixteen-acre farm, and demonstrating how to operate the machinery and palletize the trees for shipment, the way he’d learned from working at a tree farm the previous year. The guys groaned when he reminded them they were required to wear goggles and ear protection whenever they used the chain saws, so he delivered a stern lecture on injury prevention.

      He intended to supervise their work until he was confident they knew what they were doing and would do it safely, but Walker Huyard, a young Amish man who was employed by a tree service company during the warmer months, pulled him aside. “A word to the wise is sufficient,” he said. “You’ve got an experienced crew here.”

      “What do you mean?”

      Walker returned his question with a question. “Does Colin Blank watch you like a hawk or nag you like a schoolmarm when you’re roofing for him?”

      Levi got his point; on occasion Colin was overbearing, much to the consternation of his employees. Clapping Walker on the shoulder, he said, “You’re right. I’ll leave you guys to it. I’m going to take a break and I’ll be back by ten thirty—to help, not to harp on you.”

      He returned to the house to discover the kitchen empty, but laughter spilled from the living room, where Elizabeth and David snuggled against Sadie on the sofa. They were so enraptured by whatever she was saying they didn’t immediately notice his arrival. I don’t know if the kinner could handle the upheaval of another nanny leaving. Especially not Sadie. More to the point, he had no idea who he’d get for a replacement.

      Pausing silently at the threshold of the room, he studied her animated gestures; something about the artful way she moved her hands reminded him of Leora and he realized his wife had been Sadie’s age when her life was cut short.

      Sadie suddenly noticed his presence. “Can I help you?” she asked dryly.

      “Neh, I’m just checking up on you.” That sounded wrong. “I mean, checking in on you. To make sure there’s nothing you need, that is.”

      “Denki, we’re all set.” Her tone remained politely formal.

      “Sadie’s telling us stories about her brieder,” Elizabeth said.

      “One time they used a pulley and a clothesline to fly from the loft of the barn to a tree on the other side of the fence!” David exclaimed.

      “Her

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