The Divided Family

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Book: Read The Divided Family for Free Online
Authors: Wanda E. Brunstetter
of magazines.
    “Sorry I’m a little late.” Elsie set the basket down, removed her jacket and bonnet, and hung them on a wall peg near the door. “I hope you haven’t been working on your own for long.”
    “No—only fifteen minutes or so.” Arlene held up one of the magazines. “Just when I think we’ve come to the end of catalogs and magazines, I find there are more.”
    “I don’t suppose you’ve found Dad’s will in any of them?”
    “No will, but I did find this inside the first magazine I went through.” Arlene pointed to the dollar bill lying on the coffee table in front of her.
    Elsie pursed her lips. “I wonder why Dad would put money inside a magazine.”
    “Maybe he was preoccupied and didn’t realize he’d done it.”
    “Or perhaps he put it there for safekeeping. I need to put some food in the refrigerator that I brought for Glen, and then we should keep looking.” Elsie picked up the basket and headed for the kitchen. After she’d put the food away, she returned to the living room.
    “When we decide to take a break, I’ll need to change Glen’s sheets and make up his bed. He’s been busy with work, not to mention taking care of Dad’s horses and doing chores around this place, so I want to help out.”
    Arlene nodded. “That’s understandable. I’d do the same if one of my kinner were staying here.”
    Elsie walked by the front window and looked out. “It will be nice having Aunt Verna and Uncle Lester for Christmas.”
    “Jah. I enjoy having all the family gathered together for the special holiday, celebrating Jesus’ birth.”
    “Well, I guess we’d better get busy.” Elsie grabbed a stack of magazines and took a seat beside her sister. Instead of turning each of the pages, she held the magazine by the bound edge and shook it. To her surprise, several bills fell out. “Wow! We may be on to something here.”
    She grabbed another magazine and gave it a good shake. Arlene did the same with the one she held. More money came out—mostly dollar bills, but a couple of fives were also included. As they continued going through the magazines, they discovered more, and then the money stopped.
    “Guess maybe Dad only put money in those few magazines.” Arlene picked up the bills and counted them out loud. “I can’t believe it. Two hundred dollars. What should we do with it?”
    Elsie shrugged. “I’m not sure. It would probably be best to set it aside for now. You never know. We might find more in the days ahead.”
    A knock sounded on the door, and Elsie went to answer it. She was surprised to see Ben Yoder, a local taxidermist, holding a pheasant of all things. It took her a few minutes to recognize it, but then she realized it was the same bird she’d found in her dad’s freezer several months ago.
    “Your
daed
asked me to taxidermy this for him a few months back.” Ben held up the pheasant. “Business has been slow lately, so I got it done sooner than expected.” He dipped his head slightly. “Unfortunately, not soon enough for Eustace to enjoy.”
    Elsie nodded. She would give nearly anything to have her dad back.
    “Do you want the pheasant, or should I try to sell it to someone in the area?”
    “One of the men or boys in our family might like it. What is the cost?”
    “Normally, a bird like this can go for upwards to four hundred dollars, but since it’s standing and not in a flying position, I didn’t have to do quite as much work.” Ben pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. “This is how much I was planning to charge your daed.”
    Elsie stared at the paper and blinked. The bill was for two hundred dollars—exactly the amount she and Arlene had found in the magazines this morning. It seemed as if it were meant to be. “If you’ll wait right here, I’ll get the money.”
    He gave a nod and handed her the pheasant.
    “I need the money we found in Dad’s magazines to pay for this,” Elsie announced when she returned to the living room. She

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