The Amish Deacon's Daughter Read online

  The Amish Deacon’s Daughter

  Book 3 Amish Maids Trilogy

  Samantha Price

  Amish Christian Romance

  Copyright © 2018 Samantha Price

  All Rights Reserved

  * * *

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  * * *

  Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

  * * *

  This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The personal names have been invented by the author, and any likeness to the name of any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  Contents

  Previous books in the series

  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

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Free books and newsletter

  Other books by Samantha Price:

  About Samantha Price

  Previous books in the series

  Book 1

  His Amish Nanny

  * * *

  Book 2

  The Amish Maid’s Sweetheart

  Chapter 1

  Amy watched Olive drive her buggy away. She turned and kicked a stone with her black boots as she walked toward her house. It wasn’t a good thing for an Amish girl to be approaching twenty with no man on the horizon, something her parents reminded her of almost daily. Being the eldest in a family of six girls increased the pressure on her to find a man.

  Her four friends had found men. What was it about her that she was the only one who remained single? For one thing, she was the one whose parents pressured her to be married, and day after day she bore the burden.

  Olive and Amy had been with their girlfriends for their usual Saturday get-together at the coffee shop in town. On the way home, all Olive talked about was her upcoming wedding, quite unaware that Amy wanted to talk about anything but. Amy told Olive to let her out way before her house and said she’d walk the rest of the way. She would surely scream if she had to hear more of marriages. For the first time, Amy was the odd one out amongst her friends.

  As she moved closer to the house, she heard her sisters before she saw them. When she turned onto the driveway, she saw them playing baseball in the field. It was a new game for them and they played it whenever they could.

  “Amy.”

  Amy looked up from kicking another stone to see Martha running toward her.

  When Martha reached her, she said, “I don’t know why you never take me to town. I’m nearly the same age as you and I love coffee.”

  “You’re not nearly the same age; you’re two years younger. Besides, they’re my friends, and they don’t bring anyone else. Why should I be any different?”

  Martha wrinkled her freckled nose and looked over her shoulder at the other girls who were still playing. She turned back to Amy. “I heard Mamm and Dat talking about you last night.”

  Amy stopped still. “Me?”

  “Mm-hmm.”

  “What did they say?”

  “It was something about a letter. They got a letter from someone, and then I heard them say you should go.”

  Amy tugged on her sister’s arm. “Go where.”

  “Ow.” Martha rubbed her arm.

  “Tell me.”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Think, Martha, think.” Amy slouched to look directly into Martha’s green eyes.

  Martha’s gaze rose to the sky. “It was something about sending you to marry someone.”

  Amy reeled back and her hands flew to her mouth. “Nee, it can’t be.”

  Martha leaned forward. “Mamm didn’t want you to go, but Dat said there are no men here your age, and if you don’t marry someone soon you’ll be alone like Marie Byler.”

  Amy rubbed her chin. Most people were too scared to even speak to Marie Byler. She found something wrong with everything. “They can’t send me somewhere, can they? And who is it that they think I should marry? Do they even know him?”

  “I don’t know, but Amy, you can’t tell ‘em I told you. I’ll be punished for eavesdropping.”

  Amy looked into her sister’s worried face. “I won’t say anything. I hope you were having a bad dream.”

  “Would it be so terrible? They might send you somewhere nice and you’ll meet a wunderbaar man. There’s no reason to think it’ll be awful.”

  “Hush, Martha. It’ll be painful. I only know this place; I was born here and I’ll die here. I don’t want to be anywhere else. Besides, all my friends are here. And you wouldn’t want me to go, would you?”

  Martha threw her arms around Amy’s waist and held her tight. “Nee, that would be awful. I want us to stay together forever.”

  Amy patted Martha on her back. “Gut. Now you tell that to Mamm and Dat if they try to send me away. I’m sure you were dreaming. Did you hear it at night?”

  Martha nodded and took a step back.

  “See? Just a bad dream.”

  Amy’s four young sisters ran to her giggling loudly.

  Amy sputtered to Martha before the other girls could hear. “You haven’t mentioned this to anyone, have you?”

  “Nee.”

  “Gut, then don’t.”

  Amy stayed outside with the girls for a while before she went into the house to help with the dinner. While she stood with her mudder cutting the vegetables, Amy noticed she was unusually quiet. “Is anything wrong, Mamm?”

  Her mudder shook her head and didn’t look at her.

  Amy placed the knife on the wooden cutting board. “What is it, Mamm?” She could see her mudder close her lips together, and then screw up her face.

  She looked at Amy with tears in her eyes. “I’ll let your vadder tell you.”

  Amy tilted her head. Her heart nearly stopped. Maybe Martha was right. “Tell me what?”

  Her mudder looked away, but not before Amy saw that a tear had trickled down her cheek. She was not going to get any words out of her mother, that was for certain. Amy left the vegetables and went to look for her father. Just as she stepped out of the house, she saw his buggy stop outside the barn. As she drew closer, she heard her sisters talking excitedly to their father.

  Amy strode toward him, determined to get answers. “Girls, Mamm wants to see you right now. Leave Dat alone. Go help with dinner.”

 
; The girls obeyed and went inside the haus.

  “I’ve never heard you speak to them with anger before, Amy.”

  Amy rubbed her temples. “Mamm said you had something to tell me. She looked upset.”

  “Ah.”

  “Well, what is it?” Amy’s body tensed as she waited for an answer.

  Her father walked over to his horse and patted him on his neck. “I’ll fix you in a minute, boy.” His father looked toward the house and then said to Amy, “Let’s find somewhere quiet to sit.” They walked into the barn and sat on wooden boxes.

  Amy’s vadder took off his hat and rubbed his head. “It’s not been easy for us with six girls. I’ve had to sell half the farm because we don’t have a son to help out.”

  Amy frowned. How was it her fault she wasn’t a boy? This wasn’t the first time she’d heard her parents’ preference for sons.

  “That aside, your mudder and I are concerned that some of your friends have turned to Englisch boys.”

  “Nee, that was only Claire, and Donovan said he might join us.”

  “Jah, but ‘might’ is a long way from making a decision. Olive Hesh is another one.”

  “Jah, but you know that Blake and Olive are getting married. Blake is getting baptized soon.”

  “It turned out that way, but what would Olive have done if Blake had changed his mind about joining us? Do you think that she wouldn’t have followed him right out of the community and into the outside world?”

  Amy shrugged her shoulders keeping quiet, knowing Olive would’ve most likely followed Blake anywhere; she wasn’t going to admit that to her father.

  “I’ve written to a bishop from another Amish settlement. He has a bruder who needs a fraa.” Her father’s face flushed red and even the tips of his ears went red.

  “And what does that have to do with me? There would be a lot of menner who need fraas.”

  When her father frowned, she knew her comment bordered on cheeky, so she looked away fearing a reprimand.

  His bottom jaw flexed. “You need a husband. You haven’t found one by yourself and you’ll soon be twenty.”

  Amy straightened and pulled her shoulders back. “That’s not so old. It doesn’t matter. I’ve got my maid job. I’m saving money to support myself.”

  “I’m a deacon, Amy. It’s important my familye sets an example for others to follow. One who is righteous is a guide to his neighbor, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.”

  “I’m a bad example because I’m not married? Dat, there are a great many bad things I could be doing, and I don’t think being unmarried is one of them.”

  “I’m not giving you my opinion alone, Amy. The Bible warns us to be careful who our friends are. Look what your friends have done. They’ve been associating with Englischers and looking for husbands among them.”

  Amy hung her head and covered her face with her hands. This could not be happening to her. She looked back to her father. “What is it you want me to do? Marry someone I don’t even know?”

  “Bishop John from Wisconsin is expecting you next week. You’ll stay with them.”

  Amy’s mouth fell open. “I can’t. What about my job?”

  “You’ll have to leave it. If you find the bishop’s bruder entirely unsuitable, you don’t have to marry him. You must give him a chance first, and get to know him.”

  Amy rubbed her temples. Martha had been right. “What do you know about him?”

  “He’s thirty and—”

  “Thirty?” Amy shouted. “That’s far too old. Why hasn’t he found a fraa; what’s wrong with him?”

  “Possibly the same thing that’s wrong with you.”

  Amy clutched at her throat, and her voice rose in pitch. “Jah, but I’m not thirty.” Amy huffed and crossed her arms. “You don’t mean it, do you, Dat?”

  “It’s arranged.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “And what does Mamm think about it?”

  He slowly nodded. “Your mudder and I are always in agreement.”

  Amy scowled and looked away. What he meant was her mother had been given no choice but to agree to his plan. Amy had already seen her mother wasn’t in agreement.

  “Go inside and help your mudder. We’ll talk later. I have to rub the horse down.”

  Once back inside, Amy organized a game in the living room for her sisters so she could talk privately with her mother in the kitchen. She was her only chance of escaping this scheme. “Dat told me about sending me away.”

  Her mother nodded and her bottom lip quivered.

  “I know it’s Dat’s idea.”

  “You do need a husband, Amy.”

  “Jah, but Gott can just as easily send one to my door. Why do I have to be packed off to some place I’ve never even heard of? Where was it again?”

  “Wisconsin. I hear it’s very nice. It has rivers and fishing and it’s north of here and colder … I think.”

  “I don’t like the cold. I hate it. I’ve been longing for the hot weather to return.”

  “You don’t have to stay long. Your vadder and I had planned to talk to you about it after dinner when the girls would be in bed. We’ll have no more talk of it now until after dinner.”

  Amy nodded and turned her attention to slicing the beans. She’d never been away from home or her family.

  Chapter 2

  When the girls were in bed that night, Amy sat in the living room with her parents.

  “Well, what have you got planned for me?” Amy didn’t like it, but she saw no choice but to comply with their plans.

  “You’ll stay with the bishop and his fraa. Their names are John and Jane Miller. They have five kinner, and you will live with them in exchange for helping Jane in the haus.”

  Amy tried not to show she was upset. She’d been doing well saving money with her maid’s job, and now she was going to be an unpaid maid at a place she didn’t want to be at. “How am I going to get there?”

  “I’m going out tomorrow to make the arrangements and buy the tickets. You’ll catch a train to Wisconsin, and once you’re there, you’ll get a bus to Augusta, on the Eau Claire line. I’ve been told it’ll be more than six hours on the train and over three hours on the bus.”

  Mamm added, “You should take some needlework with you.”

  “That’s very far away.” Amy looked at her mother. “Do you really want me to go, Mamm?”

  “Nee, I don’t, but your vadder’s right. It’s best for you to go out and find a mann and start your own familye.”

  Her father put his hands in the air. “We’re not saying you have to marry Andrew Miller, just meet him and see what you think.”

  “See, Amy? No one’s forcing you to do anything,” Mamm said with a smile.

  “I’m sure Gott would’ve placed someone for me closer than Wisconsin. I don’t even know where that is. I’ve never been on a bus or a train before.” She breathed out heavily. “What if I get lost? I won’t know where to go or what to do.” The thought of finding her way among strangers in an unknown place filled her with fear.

  Dat said, “You’ll find where to go. It’ll do no good going back and forth over the matter. The decision’s been made.”

  “Can I ask a question?”

  Her father nodded.

  “What do you know about this Andrew man?” Amy asked.

  “Andrew is John’s bruder. I met John when he came here for Gabe Birchell’s wedding two years ago. We often send letters and discuss community matters and the like. I asked him if he knew of any single men looking for fraas, and he told me of his bruder. He said Andrew is a strong man of Gott. He has a sawmill, works hard, and needs a woman in his home.”

  Amy breathed out heavily. Why doesn’t he get a maid to help him? That’s what she wanted to say to her vadder. It sounded easier to stay where she was than be packed off somewhere because the man needed someone to cook and clean for him – being a fraa should be much more than that.

  What do I know about sawmills, and Wiscon
sin, and thirty-year-old men? Nothing!

  At least her father had said she didn’t have to marry him if she didn’t like him.

  Amy leaned back in the couch aware both parents were waiting for her to say something. Yes, she’d go, have an adventure, and before she knew it she’d be home again. Amy fixed a smile on her face. If they were forcing her, she’d make the most of it.

  Poor old Andrew Miller could feel as awkward about this whole thing as she did. Maybe he didn’t like the prospect of a wife so much younger. It amused Amy to think that John might be sitting down right now talking Andrew into meeting her. So vivid was the image of that in her mind, she almost felt sorry for Andrew, the middle-aged sawmill owner.

  The next Saturday afternoon, Amy was with her friends at the coffee shop.

  When she told them her horrific news, Lucy was the first to comment. “You’re not going, are you?”

  “I have to. You know what Dat’s like and how he’s always saying that his familye has to be a gut example. He thinks twenty is too old to be single, and he doesn’t want me to end up with an Englischer. I also reckon he thinks I should be married, so my younger sisters don’t take a long time to marry.” Amy slumped further in her chair. She might not see her friends for a long time.

  “How long will you be gone?” Jessie asked.