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  Praise for

  Abby Finds Her Calling

  “A fresh new voice enters the world of Amish fiction with Naomi King’s Abby Finds Her Calling. King’s lyrical style shines in a tender tale of how love and forgiveness heal broken hearts and restore a family and a community. With its Missouri setting, King offers us a knowing look into a different Amish settlement. Readers will look forward to more Cedar Creek stories.”

  —Marta Perry, author of Katie’s Way

  “Abby Finds Her Calling is a heartwarming story, beautifully told, of forgiveness, redemption, and the healing power of love in its many forms: love between individuals, family love, love within a community, and God’s love. This story touched my heart.”

  —JoAnn Grote, author of “Image of Love”

  from A Prairie Christmas Collection

  “Naomi King writes with a heartwarming honesty that will stay with the reader long after the last page.”

  —Emma Miller, author of Leah’s Choice

  Abby Finds

  Her Calling

  HOME AT CEDAR CREEK

  | BOOK ONE |

  Naomi King

  NEW AMERICAN LIBRARY

  NEW AMERICAN LIBRARY

  Published by New American Library,

  a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,

  375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA

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  First published by New American Library,

  a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

  First Printing, March 2012

  1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

  Copyright © Charlotte Hubbard, 2012

  All rights reserved

  REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA

  LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA:

  King, Naomi, 1953–

  Abby finds her calling/Naomi King.

  p. cm.—(Home at Cedar Creek; bk. 1)

  ISBN: 978-1-101-57488-1

  I. Title.

  PS3613.A277A64 2012

  813’.54—dc23 2011044574

  Set in Adobe Caslon

  Designed by Elke Sigal

  Printed in the United States of America

  Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

  PUBLISHER’S NOTE

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  For Rhonda,

  who knows a lot about forgiving,

  letting go of the past,

  and moving on to a new adventure

  Acknowledgments

  Thanks once again, Lord, for showing me how, when one door closes, You’ve already opened another one for me. And thanks for leading me through this story these past months when our move from Missouri to Minnesota brought so many distractions.

  Many thanks to my agent, Evan Marshall, and to my editor, Ellen Edwards. I so appreciate your enthusiasm and vision as we enter into this Cedar Creek series together!

  Special thanks to Jim Smith of Step Back in Time Tours in Jamesport, Missouri—the largest Old Order Amish settlement west of the Mississippi—for your indispensable insights and assistance as I write this series. Blessings on you, Jim! It’s a real pleasure to work with you.

  Much love to you, Neal, for keeping me centered and sane while we sold a home, bought and remodeled another one, moved, and meanwhile shared a one-bathroom, one-bedroom apartment where I worked at a tabletop office.

  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

  —MATTHEW 6:12

  But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.

  —JAMES 3:17–18

  Abby Finds Her Calling

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Epilogue

  About The Author

  Chapter 1

  James Graber inhaled the crisp October air and grinned up at the rising sun. It was his wedding day! All his life he’d lived in anticipation of something grand, something beyond the immense satisfaction of his carriage-making trade, and finally, in about an hour, he would achieve that dream when Suzanna Lambright became his wife.

  As he gazed across the road, at the lane where horse-drawn carriages were entering in a steady stream, the Lambright place took on a new glow in his eyes. There was the Cedar Creek Mercantile, where Zanna’s elder brother, Sam, sold groceries and dry goods and where her sister, Abby, ran her sewing business. Beside it, Treva Lambright, Zanna’s mamm, had a glass greenhouse where she raised and sold a variety of vegetables and flowers. Down the long drive stood the tall white farmhouse where Treva lived with Sam’s family—his wife, Barbara, and their four children, Matt, Phoebe, Ruth, and Gail. And farther up the lane was the little home Abby had built for herself this past spring. These places, surrounded by sheep sheds, the barn, and acres of rolling green pasture, felt more special to James today, even though he saw them every time he stepped off his own front porch.

  And who could believe all these wedding guests? Nearly four hundred family and friends—some from as far away as Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indian
a—were arriving to celebrate with the Grabers and the Lambrights, families who had moved here to Missouri generations ago. The clip-clop! clip-clop! of the horses’ hooves made his heart sing to their ageless rhythm.

  ZAN-na! ZAN-na! James heard in that beat. Silly, the things he thought of when he envisioned her pretty face as she gazed at him in that playful way she had. Lord, please help me make her happy every single day of our lives!

  James was glad to be marrying on a perfect autumn day, after the harvest was in but before the traditional marriage month, because it meant these folks from back East had a chance to celebrate with them. Here in Missouri, Old Order Amish married anytime during the year, not just in November, when the many weddings meant that folks had to pick and choose which ones they attended. And what a backdrop the countryside provided: the sweet gum and maple trees blazed in their red and orange glory, with a hint of frost to make them sparkle in the sunrise.

  James’s younger sister, Emma, joined him in front of the house, smoothing her new purple dress. “That’s a mighty fine smile you’re wearing, brother. I hope to see it gracing your ugly face every day from here on out,” she said, her brown eyes sparkling.

  James cocked an eyebrow. “And what would you have to make fun of if I were a handsome man, Emma?” he countered with a laugh. “Zanna thinks I’m downright perfect, you know.”

  “Gut thing, too. Old as you’re getting, none of the other girls would have you.”

  “We’ll see what you say about that when you’re within spitting distance of thirty,” James shot back. Then, with a welling up of love for this young woman who kept their household running as well as anyone could now that their parents were aging, he slipped his arm around her. “Denki for keeping Mamm’s head from spinning off these last couple weeks, getting ready for this wedding,” he murmured. “A lot of the weight falls on your shoulders, taking care of her and Dat.”

  “They’re our parents, James. They’ve been taking care of us all our lives.”

  “Of course they have, Emmie, but…” James sighed, focusing on the window of Zanna’s upstairs room in the white farmhouse across the road. He couldn’t see inside, of course, but he liked to imagine her there… putting on her new blue dress and white apron about now, with Treva and Abby helping her get ready. “Not my place to ask Mamm and Dat to move into the dawdi haus, but I can’t help wondering… Do you think it’ll go all right, when Zanna comes to live with us?” he asked quietly. “Mamm’s tongue wags pretty constant and cuts pretty sharp, and we all know how Dat’s hearing gets worse, and his brain a little fuzzier, when he doesn’t want to listen to all her carrying-on. And neither of them is able to handle anywhere near as much as they used to.”

  “Zanna’s known them all her life, same as everybody hereabouts. It’s not like she’s walking in blind,” Emma replied, resting her head on his shoulder. It was a rare moment of physical affection from this girl who was usually busy at the stove or the sink or the washer, or looking after their parents, while he built custom carriages in his shop beside the house. “Truth be told, brother, Zanna’s all grins and giggles when she talks about you. Her eyes light up, and she’s been a different girl since you asked for her hand. I’m real happy for the both of you.”

  James smiled. His sister hadn’t been as generous with her praise for other young women he’d courted over the years. Maybe he was making up things to worry about—wondering how Zanna would adjust to the Graber household—which wasn’t normally his way. All in all, his times with Zanna had been among the happiest he’d known. He looked forward to a long life with her and many children to bless them.

  Even Sam, James’s good friend and Zanna’s older brother, had remarked what a fine couple they made—and had thanked James for asking to court Zanna rather than keeping his intentions secret, as was the custom. James had felt that the passing last spring of Leroy Lambright, Sam and Zanna’s dat and the head of the Lambright household, was an important reason to get Sam’s blessing early on, out of respect for Leroy and the family’s feelings. Sam had said right out that he thought James would be the steadying influence his youngest sister needed now that their father was gone.

  Imagine that—Sam Lambright, a stickler for the proper order of things, thought he, James Graber, could fashion Suzanna into a fine wife and mother. James suspected that might take some doing. Zanna wasn’t one who took to being molded into anyone else’s ideal. But what a happy challenge it presented. And what a fine-looking woman she’d grown to be. Truth be told, James secretly admired her tendency to think and speak for herself rather than to automatically submit to the men in her life.

  “Over the next several weekends you’ll spend visiting kin and collecting your wedding presents, we’ll all have time to adjust to Zanna’s being in the family,” his sister continued. “It’s the same kind of change every family goes through after a wedding.”

  “Change has never been Dat’s favorite thing. And he hasn’t been the same since his stroke.”

  “And Mamm’s gotten crankier, keeping after him. There’s that,” Emma agreed with a sigh. “But Lord love them, they’re getting by as best they can. I’ll work on them while you and Zanna make your family calls these coming weeks. They may as well get used to the fact that their last two kids have lives of their own.”

  And what would they do when Emma married? James wondered. Would she move away like their two elder sisters, Iva and Sharon, had? James breathed in deeply and then exhaled, consciously relaxing the tightness this thought caused in his belly. Inevitably, the day would come when his sweet, capable sister would cleave to her own husband and start a home… which would leave him, as the only son, and Zanna, as his wife, to care for his parents. As well they should.

  But this was no time for such concerns. His bride was waiting for him. James lightly kissed Emma’s temple and then released her. “I’d best go over to help Sam with the last-minute details. See you in a few. Or would you rather I took Dat over to—”

  “Get out of here! What with Daniel and Amos, our big, burly brothers-in-law, staying with us last night, I’ve got lots of help with Dat this morning. And Sharon and Iva are in there helping him dress.” Emma shook her white apron at him to send him on his way. “If you dare to poke your face into that Lambright kitchen full of women, you might see how Mamm’s doing. Tell her I’ll be there directly.”

  James hurried down his family’s gravel lane, pleased to see the pie pumpkins that remained in Emma’s garden. He stopped beside his shop to wave at Zeke and Eva Detweiler in one buggy, and the two buggies full of Detweiler children that followed them—including the carriage he’d designed to accommodate young Joel’s wheelchair. Then he crossed the road and strode alongside the mercantile, which was closed on this Thursday so the Lambrights could celebrate this special day.

  It struck James how many of the tipped-up buggies behind the Lambright barn had come from Graber Custom Carriages—how every family in Cedar Creek depended upon his vehicles and repair work. It was a blessing, indeed, to live among the friends he served and to be entrusted with getting their families where they needed to go. And today it seemed every man, woman, and child for miles around was showing up to wish him and Zanna well. Fellows in their black hats and suits stood chatting in clusters outside the house while their wives gathered in the kitchen to finish preparing the wedding feast.

  He gazed again at Zanna’s upstairs bedroom window. As he recalled tossing pebbles against it those first Saturday nights he’d courted her, James grinned like a kid. She’d looked so pretty in the moonlight, smiling down at him before she’d let him into the kitchen. She’d seemed tickled that a successful, established fellow she knew so well wanted to win her heart.

  Had Zanna come downstairs for the wedding yet? Did she feel as frisky and excited as a new foal, the way he did? In his black vest, trousers, and high-topped shoes, with a radiant white shirt, James was filled with an excitement he’d never known. He greeted Matt’s border collies, Panda and Pearl, wit
h exuberant pats on their black and white heads. “Dressed for the wedding, I see,” he teased.

  In less than an hour, Zanna would be seated with him and their four newehockers. It might be difficult to sit through most of the long wedding service, and Bishop Gingerich’s lengthy sermon, before they were at last called to stand before this gathering of family and friends.

  James paused when a familiar figure stepped out the Lambrights’ front door. Ordinarily folks came and went through the kitchen entry, but something about Abby Lambright’s expression announced that she was on no ordinary mission. She glanced across the yard, where their many male guests stood visiting, and then she headed straight for him.

  “Gut morning, Abby!” he called out, hoping to dispel her gloomy frown as she pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders. Abby was a maidel, a few years older than he, and in his entire life he’d never known her to raise her voice or lose her temper.

  “James,” she replied with a stiff nod. Her eyes looked puffy, but her gaze didn’t waver as she stopped a few feet in front of him. “There’s something we’ve got to tell you, James. And since Sam’s talking with the bishop, he’s asked me to let you know that… Well, there’s no easy way to say it.”

  Frowning, he stepped closer. “Did somebody fall sick? Or get hurt carrying all those tables and pews and—”

  “I wish it were as simple as that,” Abby interrupted. She bit her lip and took a deep breath. “James, Zanna is nowhere to be found. As far as we can tell, she didn’t sleep in her bed last night… and we have no idea where she might have gone.”

  Chapter 2

  Abby regretted being the bearer of this bad news. James surely must have felt like he’d been kicked in the chest by a spooked horse. As he crushed the brim of his hat in his sturdy hands, Abby ached for this man in ways he couldn’t imagine. Never had she felt more embarrassed and sickened and worried.