She thought about Leah’s most recent letter, describing Reuben Miller and even his family, including his nine siblings and quite a few nephews and nieces. Leah hadn’t spelled it out, but it sounded like she was quite attracted to him and Reuben to her.

Ellie had replied with several questions about Reuben and asked how Carolyn’s children were doing, then mentioned meeting Cheryl Herr at the fabric shop. Did Lisa and Kimberly like the animal pillows she made for their birthday? Ellie had written.

She pondered Leah’s moving away from Bird-in-Hand and the People here, making a new life for herself in Chambersburg and finding a potential beau among the Amish. “I wonder how Leah’s family feels ’bout that,” she whispered. “’Specially Sol.” At least Leah hadn’t abandoned the Plain life altogether. After all, she’d been living with fancy folk all this time.

Suddenly, in the midst of the flowering branches and the solitude, Ellie heard shouts of “Coward!” and “Draft dodger!” and then curses from the direction of the road. Never in her life had she heard so much hatred and anger in people’s voices, and she felt sorry for whoever was their target. After a few nerve-racking minutes, an engine roared to life, and she heard the sound of tires spinning against gravel as a vehicle raced away.

Part of her didn’t want to get anywhere near whatever had just taken place, but the other part felt compelled forward, though she took care to remain close to the apple trees as she went. A moment later she heard a deep moan. Hurrying to look, she saw Sol in his church clothes, struggling to sit up on the shoulder of the road, his black coat crumpled on the ground nearby, his left hand covering his left ear. He was breathing hard, rocking slowly. A nasty gash on the left side of his head had already stained his long-sleeved white shirt with blood.

“Sol!” she cried, her heart in her throat as she rushed across the road and knelt beside him. Several rocks lay scattered on the ground. “What happened?” Quickly, she removed her bandanna and pressed it against the gash to try to stop the flow of blood.

Sol gave her a dazed look. “Ellie,” he mumbled, then glanced in confusion toward the road as if looking for whoever had attacked him.

“Can ya put your hand where mine is?” she asked, moving his left hand there. “Try an’ keep a firm pressure on it, okay?”

He nodded slowly but winced at the motion.

“I can help you up,” she said, lifting his coat from the ground and tucking it over an elbow. “If you can walk, I’ll get ya to Dawdi’s.”