Huckleberry Hearts by Jennifer Beckstrand
He took a deep breath. It would be better if he didn’t drive himself crazy today.
“This is Mammi’s foot doctor,” Ben said.
“The one your mammi talks so much about? The one who broke his nose?”
Ben nodded.
Emma smiled at Zach like a dear friend. Maybe Norman’s resentment hadn’t infected the rest of the family. “You and Cassie have matching scarves.”
Cassie fingered the scarf around her neck. Was she happy about the matching scarves or afraid they’d make trouble? “Mammi made them for us.”
“Mammi Anna is quite fascinated with you, Doctor,” Emma said. Her lively eyes twinkled as if she knew more than she was letting on.
“But how was she able to convince you to make a house call three times a week?” Tyler asked.
Emma nudged her cousin-nephew-relative-in-law in the arm. “Look at Cassie, Tyler. Do you think it would take much to convince the doctor to come around?”
Cassie lowered her eyes and turned pink with that attractive blush that Zach loved so much. It hadn’t even taken a puff of air to convince Zach to come to Huckleberry Hill. He’d follow Cassie to the Amazon jungle if he had to.
Ben’s lips curved upward slightly. “Mammi can be very persuasive when she wants to be.”
“The doctor cares for Mammi’s foot,” Norman said too loudly. “But Elmer Lee helped us butcher the hog yet.”
Titus pulled the toothpick from his mouth. “The doctor saved Priscilla from catching fire.”
Norman’s frown settled deeper into his face. “It wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t been chasing her.”
“It wasn’t Titus’s fault,” Cassie said.
Zach nodded. If she hadn’t said it, he would have.
Titus grimaced and stuck the toothpick back in his mouth. “I should have been a bunny.”
Emma laid a hand on Titus’s shoulder. “You would have made a wonderful-gute bunny.” She turned to Zach. “Cassie says you put out the fire with your hands and got burned yourself.”
“Anyone would have done the same,” Zach said. “Titus would have, but he was too far when it happened.”
“Elmer Lee fixed his sister’s roof during a snowstorm,” Norman said.
Zach almost laughed out loud. Cassie tried valiantly to suppress a grin. Norman couldn’t bear to surrender bragging rights. It was becoming a little comical.
Ben folded his arms across his chest and stared at Zach. “I like you. You’ll do just fine.”
What did he mean by “do just fine”? Do just fine with the sap collecting?
Zach’s smile faded as Cassie’s mother sauntered out of the house and down the porch steps with a battery-operated drill in each hand. She looked like a gunfighter from the Old West complete with scowl and menacing look in her eye. She zeroed in on Zach, and he could almost hear her hiss like a cat. What possible threat could he be? He was surrounded by Amish people, some of them as tall and muscular as he was.
Was there anything he could do to soften her up a bit?
“Gute . . .” Wait. Probably shouldn’t try that. His Deitsch seemed to raise a lot of hackles. “Good afternoon, Esther,” he said flashing the smile he only used for special occasions.
“Afternoon, Doctor,” she said with little enthusiasm. At least she didn’t snarl. “Good to see you, Ben and Emma, Tyler. How is Beth?”
“She is feeling a little better. She thinks the worst of the morning sickness has passed.” Tyler motioned to a little boy running circles in the snow. “I brought Toby. Neither of us have tapped maples before.”
“Neither have I,” Zach said.
Tyler nodded solemnly, which seemed to be his normal state of emotion. “We can learn together.”
“Elmer Lee has been tapping maples ever since he could walk,” Norman said.
“We have trees on our property,” Elmer Lee said. “There’s enough land to build two or three more houses.”
Zach pressed his lips together. Elmer Lee had land, and a girl like Cassie would want her man to build her a house.
He should buy some land.
“You’ve got to drill the holes just so or you’ll damage the tree,” Esther said. She handed a drill to Elmer Lee and one to Norman. “Norman, take the doctor with you and show him how it’s done. Doctor, you’ll have to carry the buckets and the taps. Cassie will go with Elmer Lee. No trees less than eighteen inches.”
Zach nearly bit through his tongue. The thought of spending the afternoon with Norman instead of Cassie was worse than the prospect of tooth decay.
“But, Mamm,” Cassie said. “Dr. Reynolds—”
“Won’t do us much good if he doesn’t know what he’s doing,” Esther said.
His hands were tied. If he put up any sort of a fuss about being with Cassie, he’d come across as selfish and disrespectful. Cassie hated conflict. If he wanted to make her happy, he’d try to please her mother.
Besides, Elmer Lee had been tapping maple trees for years. Zach needed to keep up.
He stole a glance at Cassie and smiled reassuringly. “I know I can learn a lot from Norman.”
With his gaze still fixed on Zach, Ben frowned and rubbed his fingers back and forth across the whiskers on his jaw. “Emma and I will take Titus and Tyler.”
“I have a drill,” Titus said as he, Ben, Emma, and Tyler headed toward the stack of metal buckets near the barn.
“Can I try the drill?” Emma said.
Ben furrowed his brow. “Uh, do you want to have all your fingers at the end of the day?” he asked as they walked away.
Esther pursed her lips. “Emma is a little accident-prone,” she whispered. She pulled two pieces of fabric from her pocket, one white and one black. It took Zach a minute to realize what they were. “I don’t know why your mammi made that hat when she knows I disapprove of them.”
“I’ll grab some buckets yet,” Luke said, sprinting away from them as if he couldn’t remove himself from the conversation fast enough.
Esther shoved the two head coverings into Cassie’s hand. “Put on a proper kapp and bonnet so I don’t have to be embarrassed for my daughter. And remember the devotion you owe to God.”
Cassie’s cheeks flushed bright red as she glanced at Zach, almost as if she were more concerned he’d say something than she was about her mother’s offensive behavior.
Zach clamped his teeth together so hard, Elmer Lee could probably hear them grinding together inside his mouth. But he didn’t speak. He didn’t lash out at Cassie’s mother like he ached to. Cassie wanted him to stay quiet even though she was the one hurt by her mother’s harshness.
He might have shut Norman up, but Esther was still around and she was worse than Norman. But how to get Esther to leave Cassie alone?
He couldn’t very well challenge Esther to a wrestling match. What about an old-fashioned gunfight with drills? Or a cutthroat round of Scrabble?
Cassie slid the beanie off her head. Wisps of her hair floated in the air, suspended by static electricity. Her hair was already pulled into a ponytail. Esther handed her some bobby pins, and she fashioned a bun at the back of her head before taking a breath and managing a weak smile. “You and Norman go on ahead. I’ll see you in the forest.”
Zach turned his back and walked in the direction of the buckets. He couldn’t watch Cassie’s humiliation without lashing out at Esther. But no matter how much Cassie appreciated it, it just about killed him to walk away. No need for a coat or long underwear or a scarf. He was steaming. He unzipped his coat and pulled the beanie off his head.
Ben and Emma stood with their heads together near the barn, deep in conversation. They turned and looked at Zach, and he knew without a doubt they were talking about him. Emma nodded and walked into the barn. Ben motioned for Zach to come near. Zach did so reluctantly. No matter how nice Ben seemed, Zach was kind of fed up with Amish people right now.
Ben glanced in Esther’s direction and put a hand on Zach’s shoulder. “Aunt Esther means well.”
Zach tried to temper his resentment. Ben didn’t deserve it. “Does she?”
“My aunt thinks she’ll be happy if she forces Cassie to be baptized. But that won’t make her happy. It will only make Cassie miserable.”
“Yeah. It will.”
“If she can convince Cassie to fall in love with Elmer Lee, she thinks all her troubles will be over. And you, Dr. Reynolds, are trouble.”
Zach snapped his head up to study Ben’s expression. He was grinning.
“Elmer Lee won’t stop trying as long as Norman keeps filling his head full of hope.” Ben fingered the whiskers on his chin like someone unused to them being there. “Emma and I are guessing that you don’t want to spend the day with Norman.”
“Esther wants me to spend the day with Norman.”
Ben’s mouth curled upward. “Don’t worry. Pretend to cooperate with Aunt Esther, and we’ll fix everything.”
“Who is ‘we’?”
“My wife is smart. We like you. And Cassie deserves a good man.”
Zach’s heart swelled inside his chest. “You think I’m a good man?”
“Don’t break her heart, okay?”
“Never.”
Ben twisted his lips into a wry smile. “That’s a piecrust promise, Doctor. Be careful how you make it.”
Ben grabbed four buckets from the stack. There were galvanized metal buckets and the plastic five-gallon kind. It probably didn’t matter what they used to catch the sap. Zach grabbed four as well and went to join Norman on the path deeper into the woods.
Felty came out of the house carrying a bucketful of metal pieces that looked like waterspouts. He waved to Zach. “Hullo, Doctor. It’s a perfect day for maple sugaring.” Zach rushed to his side and took the bucket from him.
It was heavy. Felty shouldn’t have been carrying it. He never behaved like an old man. “These must be the taps for the trees.”
“Jah. They’re called spiels. Cassie washed them last night. I need to hand them out.”
Felty followed behind as Zach took the bucket of spiels and set them on the ground near the trailhead. Cassie’s relatives gathered around Felty with their buckets and drills, three or four power drills and a couple of hand-operated ones. Zach stood next to Felty, envying Elmer Lee and Luke, who stood next to Cassie. Their eyes met, and she smiled at him. His heart thumped wildly. She looked beautiful in everything she wore, even the black bonnet, but the very sight of it made Zach clench his fists involuntarily.
“Everybody take some taps,” Felty said, “and don’t drill too deep into the trees. The birds need a home this summer.”
Cassie grabbed several taps from the bucket. Zach caught a whiff of her as she came close. Vanilla and roses. Was she deliberately trying to make him go nuts?
She leaned in close. “Thank you for not being mad about my mamm.”
Not mad? He was livid. He must have been a better actor than he thought. He proved it by smiling at her as if her mamm’s unacceptable behavior hadn’t even crossed his mind. “You look cute in that bonnet.”
She rolled her eyes. “Maybe. But I’m wearing lip gloss in protest.”
She shouldn’t have said that because his gaze immediately traveled to her supple and well-glossed lips. He knew without even asking that they’d taste like vanilla. Vanilla was one of his favorite flavors. He pressed his hand to the side of his face. He’d be practically useless for the rest of the day.
“Norman is good with the tapping, and he’s really very nice once you get to know him. It might be fun.” She studied his face. “Please don’t be mad.”
He gave her the smile she needed to see. “I want to learn how to make maple syrup. What better teacher than Norman?”
She flashed a half smile. “He’s really been trying hard to get along. He hasn’t said a word about my joining the church for days. I think he finally understands me and respects my decision.”
Zach pressed his lips together and nodded. Respect had nothing to do with it. He would never again underestimate the power of a friendly wrestling match. Norman had honored his promise.
Elmer Lee came up behind Cassie. “I’ll carry your buckets. And the taps.”
A twinge of jealousy sliced into Zach’s chest as Cassie smiled at Elmer with her shiny lips. Darn that Elmer Lee for being a gentleman. Zach should have been the one to be a gentleman, but thanks to Esther, he’d be stuck with Norman, which was going to be just about as much fun as yanking out his own ingrown toenail.
Norman was the last to get taps from Felty’s bucket. He loaded his pockets while taking breaks to glare at Zach. As fun as ten ingrown toenails at once. “Can you carry the lids?” he said as if he thought Zach wasn’t capable of doing anything.
Norman carried the drill, a hammer, and the buckets. Zach carried the bucket lids and a pocketful of taps. He fell in step behind Norman as they hiked into the woods. Cassie and Elmer Lee were already a hundred feet ahead of them, Cassie with a hammer and her black bonnet, Elmer Lee with the buckets and a satisfied look on his face.
Zach took the crisp, clean afternoon air into his lungs. Patches of snow still covered most of the ground, but here and there the muddy forest floor was visible where the snow had begun to melt. The trees lifted their bare branches to the sky as if they were praying for spring. Not a cloud, and the sky was so blue, it hurt Zach’s eyes to look at.
Their small group spread out among the trees in what Norman called a sugar bush, which as far as Zach could tell was the name for the grove of bare maple trees where they were going to tap. He’d lost sight of Cassie already. Hopefully she and Elmer were having a miserable time.
Norman picked a tree, set the buckets on the ground, and immediately started drilling a hole in the bark.
“Do you have to go a certain height on the tree?” Zach asked. “How deep does the hole have to be?”
“I’ll do all the figuring,” Norman said, snapping at Zach as if he were a teenager who’d forgotten to take out the garbage. “Just hand me a tap when I need it and don’t get in the way.”
Zach had the sudden urge to kick Norman’s buckets and scatter them around the snowy forest floor. He didn’t. “Look,” he said, folding his arms across his chest. “You don’t like me, and that’s fine. I get it. I don’t like you either. In fact, I think you are the rudest, most arrogant, self-righteous person I’ve ever met.”
Norman’s nostrils flared, and he scowled.
“I could have refused to come, and I could walk away right now and take Cassie with me. So maybe you should keep your mouth shut.”
“Maybe you should leave our family alone, Doctor.”
Zach wouldn’t be defeated that easily. “I’m not going anywhere. Teach me what to do.”
Norman seemed to chew on his words like a piece of gristle. Zach could see the indecision in his eyes. Would he put up a fight or give in?
Norman relaxed his shoulders slightly. “Okay. I will teach you how we do it. But don’t expect me to let you use the drill. I don’t trust you that far.”
Zach pursed his lips. It was probably as much of a concession as he’d ever get from Norman. He nodded curtly. “Show me.”
Norman pointed the drill at the tree. “A tree this big can take two or three taps. You want to drill on the southern-facing side because the sap runs better on the warmer side of the trunk.” He traced his finger along the bark about shoulder height. “This tree has been tapped before. Do you see the old holes?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t drill a new hole vertical to an old hole. They have to be staggered or the sap won’t run.”
Norman showed him how to point the drill slightly upward and drill only an inch and a half into the tree. Once he made the hole, Zach fit the spiel and Norman hammered it in. “Hammer only until you hear the tap slip into place. If you hammer too hard, you’ll split the wood.”
Zach watched in amazement as the sap, which looked like water, began to drip from the spiel almost as soon as it was in place.
They repeated the process on the same tree about a third of the way around from the first tap. Norman let Zach hammer the spiel and hook the bucket onto the bottom of it. “Someone empties the buckets every day,” Norman said. “We can get ten to twenty gallons of sap from one tree.”
“That’s a lot of syrup.”
Zach could see a snide reply forming on Norman’s lips. Instead, he took a deep breath and gave Zach a half smile. “It takes forty gallons of sap to make a gallon of syrup.”
“No wonder it’s so expensive.”
“The syrup money gives Mammi and Dawdi a little bit of extra income.”
“You’re kind to help your grandparents out.”
Norman looked at him as if he were crazy. “It’s what we do. We help each other. That’s why I try to help Cassie see the right way. I would be heartbroken if she sinned herself out of heaven.”
Zach took a deep breath and counted to ten. Mom said it always worked for her. It didn’t seem to work for him. “We’re never going to see eye to eye, so maybe you should save your breath.”
“Fine,” Norman said. “You won’t see what you won’t see.”
Whatever.
Titus ran toward Zach and Norman’s tree as if the forest were on fire. Zach immediately scanned the area for Cassie. Had there been an accident?
Titus yanked the toothpick from his mouth and hurled it to the ground. “Norman, you’ve got to come help Emma with her tree. She’s trying to drill a hole, but she’s holding the drill upside down and it’s making a funny noise.”
Someone plowed a furrow into Norman’s forehead. “Where’s Ben?”
Titus seemed almost too breathless to reply. “He’s helping Cassie.”
The furrow got deeper. “Where’s Elmer Lee?”
“He’s helping Tyler Yoder.”
Norman’s voice pitched higher with each question. “What happened to Luke?”
Titus squinted at Norman in frustration. “Will you come and help Emma or not?”
“Why can’t you help Emma?”