He gestured toward several iron bars waiting to be made into something else. “I’ll come get her when I’m done here.”
“Don’t hurry. Maddie and I will have fun. Oh, and before I forget, you need to fill out enrollment forms for the children. I’ll need them before the end of the week.”
His easy smile vanished. “Can’t you take care of it?”
“I don’t know their history or where they went to school before they came here. I’ll need those records, too.”
His frown deepened. He began pumping the bellows again. “I’ll send Harley over to get the papers as soon as he gets back.”
“Danki.”
He didn’t respond so she left and crossed the road with Maddie beside her, wondering if she had somehow upset Willis.
At the steps of the school Maddie looked back. “Whew. Bubble sure had a hard time keeping her mouth shut today.”
Eva tried not to laugh but couldn’t help it. “Why don’t I read a story to you. That way Bubble doesn’t have to talk and neither do you.”
“Okay. I like stories. Do you have one about ponies? I sure wish Willis would put shoes on my pony.”
“I thought I saw him shoeing a pony last evening.”
“It wasn’t mine. Harley brought it over from his Englisch farmer friend. Would you ask Willis to shoe my pony? He likes you.”
Eva hoped that was true. “I’ll remind him.”
She saw he was watching them. She waved. He hesitated and then waved back. She entered the school with a light and carefree step.
For the next hour she read to Maddie and occasionally to Bubble when she couldn’t be silent. Eva sighed when Willis came through the door to get his sister. She had enjoyed spending time with Maddie even more than she thought she would. The child had quickly wormed her way into Eva’s heart.
“I was just about to teach your sister to write her name on the blackboard. Do you want to show her how it’s done?”
He held up both hands. They were black with soot. “You don’t want me handling your clean chalk and erasers.”
“Okay, Maddie is spelled with a capital M, lower case a, d, d, i, e.” She glanced at Willis. “Unless you spell it with a y or a single i?” She waited for him to clarify the spelling for her.
He shrugged. “Spell it however you like.”
His comment puzzled Eva. “I want to teach her the correct way.”
There was a thump against the side of the building. She glanced toward the windows. “What was that?”
Willis shook his head. “I don’t know. Maybe a bird flew into the side of the school.”
She frowned. “Do they do that?”
“Sometimes a bird will fly into a window by mistake. The first way you said. That’s the right way to spell Maddie’s name.”
“Okay.” She wrote the letters out and handed a piece of chalk to the child. “Your turn. All you have to do is copy what I’ve written.”
Shattering glass caused Eva to jump and Maddie to shriek. They all turned to look at the broken window. A fist-size rock lay on the floor amid the shards of glass. Eva and Willis stepped to the opening. She saw at once who was responsible. Otto stood a few dozen yards away with a bat in his hands. His eyes were wide with fear or shock. He dropped the bat and ran up the road.
“I can’t believe he just did that.” Willis scowled.
“It must’ve been an accident,” Eva reassured him.
“Who did it?” Maddie came over to look out the broken window, avoiding the glass on the floor.
“Your brother, Otto. I’ll bring him back to clean up this mess.” Willis left the school and headed down the road with purposeful strides. Eva followed him as far as the front porch.
Out on the road a woman had stopped her buggy. She leaned out the door. “I saw the Gingrich boy break the window. He was deliberately hitting rocks toward the school,” she called out loudly.
Eva’s heart sank. She had assumed it was an accident. “Are you sure you aren’t mistaken?”
The woman scowled, apparently offended by Eva’s suggestion. “I am not. The bishop and the school board will hear what has happened.”
“They will be informed, of course, but it would be best if the confession comes from Otto. He needs to face the consequence of his actions.”
“Then he shouldn’t have run off.” She slapped the reins against her horse’s rump and drove away.
Maddie came out to stand beside Eva. The child planted her hands on her hips. “Otto makes Willis want to tear his hair out every day. He’s not sure what he’s going to do with him.”
“I’m sorry Otto and Willis aren’t getting along. Otto shouldn’t have run away, but I can imagine he was frightened.”
Maddie looked up. “He could have said Bubble did it.”
“That would be a lie, wouldn’t it? You don’t blame something on Bubble if she didn’t do it.”
“I did when she knocked over my glass of milk last week.”
“Were her feelings hurt? If you said I did something but I didn’t do it, my feelings would be hurt.”
Maddie scrunched her face and then beckoned Eva to lean down. She cupped her hands around her mouth near Eva’s ear. “She’s not real so she doesn’t have feelings,” she whispered.
“Willis will be delighted to hear that.” Eva walked down to the lawn. “I think it would be best if you went home now, Maddie.”
“Okay, see you tomorrow, Teacher. I’ll practice writing my name tonight.”
“That’s an excellent idea. Have your brother help you.”
“I’ll have Harley do it. He’s a right helpful fellow. Even Bubble says so.”
As the child crossed
