Chapter One

      “We are in agreement. Eva Coblentz, the position is yours. Do you have any questions for us? Now would be the time to ask them.”

      Eva gazed at the stern faces of the three Amish church elders sitting across the table from her. She should have a dozen questions, but her mind was oddly blank after hearing the news she had been praying for. The teaching job was hers. She wouldn’t have to return home in defeat.

      She wanted to pinch herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. The men were all staring at her expectantly.

      She gathered her scattered thoughts. “I’ve no questions at the moment, Bishop Schultz. I’m grateful for the job.”

      “Very goot, then.” He nodded once.

      She inclined her head toward the other men. “I would like to thank the school board for giving me the opportunity to teach at New Covenant’s first Amish school.”

      She had the position. One that would support her for many years, God willing. Joy and relief made her giddy. Was she grinning like a fool? She wanted to jump for joy. She lowered her eyes and schooled her features to look modest and professional.

      But a tiny grin crept out. She had the job! She could do this.

      She glanced up. The bishop gave her a little smile then cleared his throat. “The house and furnishing will be yours to use as you wish.”

      “Danki.” A job and a home. A huge weight lifted from her chest. Her brother Gene was going to be shocked. He had discouraged her wild plan to travel to Maine alone as a foolish whim. Only her younger brother Danny understood her need to go. Gene said she would be back begging for a place to live in a matter of weeks, but she wouldn’t.

      The bishop gathered his papers together. “I think we can adjourn, brothers.”

      The meeting was being held in her future classroom. The building itself was so new it still smelled of cut pine boards, varnish and drying paint. Dust motes drifted lazily in the beams of light streaming through the south-facing windows that lined the room. The wide plank floor didn’t show a single scuff mark, and the blackboard’s pristine condition begged her to scrawl her name across it with chalk. It was a wonderful place to begin her teaching career.

      “You do understand that this is a trial assignment,” the man seated to the left of the bishop said. She struggled to recall his name. Was he Samuel Yoder or Leroy Lapp? The two had been introduced to her as ministers who shared the duties of overseeing the Amish congregation along with the bishop, but she had been so nervous their names didn’t stick with their faces. They were men in their fifties or sixties with long gray beards, salt-and-pepper hair and weathered faces.

      “I do understand that my contract will be on a month-by-month basis until I complete a full school year.” She had the job, but could she keep it? She had never taught before. She wasn’t sure what would be expected of her. Her school days were far behind her. What if she wasn’t any good at teaching? What if the children didn’t like her?

      The man beside the bishop sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. “I have taken the liberty of writing out a curriculum.” He pushed a thick folder across the table to her. “We expect modest behavior at all times. You must be an example to our kinder.”

      “Of course.” So no jumping for joy. She had the feeling her actions would be watched closely by this man.

      “Not everyone is suited to life in northern Maine. Our winters are harsh,” the same man said, giving her a stern look.

      She decided he was Samuel Yoder, the newly elected school board president. Well, it got mighty cold in Arthur, Illinois, too, and that had never kept her from her duties.

      She lifted her chin slightly, not wanting to appear overly bold