ATOP Chapter Forty-Eight

"I do not understand you, Rachel... how could it be that you have changed so much? Forsaken our faith... how could you, Rachel?"

Rebekah's voice echoed through Rachel's mind. Angry words swirling over and over. This wasn't supposed to hurt this bad. Finding her sisters was to have been the most joyful moment of her life... right? Rachel blinked back tears, turning to curl up against Ronnie. She was grateful that he was finally managing to get some rest... it was their third night on the homeward journey and the first one in which he had managed to fall asleep... and only of sheer exhaustion after the first two miserable nights. She knew just the motion of the ship rocking in the water brought back horrible memories for him.

"You know nothing of what I have suffered, Rachel... you did not go to the camps. You escaped... and while Shonie and I have suffered, you have been living easy... with your... American Aryan." Rebekah had hissed out the last few words, her eyes showering hatred on Ronnie. "Isaac was a good brother to me," she had added suddenly, pain flickering in her eyes. "And I know you loved him. I did not believe you capable of being so unfaithful to his memory... to marry again so soon... to a man who looks like that... and now you carry a half-Jewish baby... what if your baby looks like an Aryan?"

"I hope my baby looks like Ronnie," Rachel had whispered back, lacking the strength to speak out loud. "I am proud to be Ronnie's wife... and thankful and happy... and I love him more than I can say. He is one of the best men I have ever known... the kindest, the gentlest, the bravest, the strongest."

"But you hardly know him!" Rebekah had fairly shrieked. "You've spent... what... less than one year with him! You married him only weeks after he proposed... and you weren't even together during your engagement, Rachel Adler Cohen, what is wrong with you??"

"My name is Rachel Stewart now," Rachel answered calmly. "And true, I did not know him well when I married him, but Rebekah... the Lord told me... prayer can do so much, Bekah... and I knew I would be safe with him."

"The Lord told you, ha! Told you to marry a Gentile, eh? A man who embraces heresy! Accepts a false Messiah! Rejects the law of Moses!"

"Oh, Bekah..." Rachel had moaned, reaching out to her sister. She was brushed aside. "Bekah, it was Isaac who opened my eyes to Jesus. Ronnie has only helped me to strengthen my faith."

"Isaac..." Rebekah's voice shook. "Rachel... I... do not believe it..." She had stepped back, her eyes wide, and she shook her head slowly. "Rachel, it is impossible. Isaac would not leave our faith. It is that American Nazi of yours, he has poisoned your mind... with that Aryan blond hair and blue eyes of his..." she rolled her own black eyes. "I do not understand what has happened to you. I... I... wish"

"Say it," Rachel prompted as Rebekah hesitated. She knew she didn't want to hear what Rebekah would say next... and yet she could hardly help asking. "Say it, Bekah."

Bekah had stepped back again, wrapping her arms around her body and turning her face from Rachel.

"I wish that you had never come," she whispered, her voice so quiet it could scarcely be heard. "We've grown too far apart over all these years. Our lives have taken different directions. And I want to go to Israel. It... it is my dream..."

Rachel stifled a sob, flinching at the memory. It had only been one of dozens of like conversations in the past few weeks. Her sweet little sister... so unreachable, so full of hatred and defiance... she had known Rebekah was strong-willed, but like this? She hadn't been expecting this. And the way she seemed to hate Ronnie...

It was hard on Ronnie. She could see it every time his eyes turned gray and the way he turned away, hiding his face... 

Again, she choked back a sob, furiously wiping away the tears that would not stop. Ronnie stirred, mumbling something, only half-awake, and pulled her into his arms.

"...okay... sweetheart...?"

"Ach... Ronnie..." she drew a shuddering breath. "Thank you... dear heart..."

"Mmm... for what?"

"Just for being you." Rachel laughed softly through her tears as he pressed a sleepy kiss on her cheek and fell asleep again. 

♡♡♡

He saw her for the first time when the car pulled to a stop in the Stewart's driveway. He had come on a run from the barn when he first heard the crunch of tires on gravel and now he stood staring, jaw dropped a mile, as she stepped out. Just looking at her, Mickey felt something inside of him that he had never felt before, not in all of his sixteen years. He was starstruck, dumbfounded, flabbergasted, staggered, speechless, bowled over, floored... and whatever other synonyms the thesaurus could possibly come up with. Who was this... this... well, for lack of a better word... this girl? 

"Hey, Mickey!" Ronnie hollered from somewhere in the middle of the swiftly gathering crowd that was mobbing the car. "We made it! Come see who we've got!"

Was it even possible to put one foot in front of the other? Somehow, Mickey managed. But he was suddenly painfully aware of the fact that he was wearing filthy overalls and his hair was sticking up in every direction. He couldn't let a girl like that see him like this! 

But it was too late. Somehow his feet had brought him all the way over and now he was standing almost in front of her. 

Benjie flew past him, Boo tucked under one arm, and he was screaming uncontrollably... "Mommy! Daddy! Me's here! Me miss-ded you!"

Katie was practically jumping up and down, laughing hysterically through her tears, Mac was yelling wildly and waving a hat... and yes... it was Josh's hat, not his own... Rachel had flown from the car, paused to scoop Benjie up, and thrown herself into Emma's arms... and Mickey just stood still and stared.

"Emma, Josh..." Rachel's voice was saying in the background. She was speaking over Benjie's shoulder as he clung to her like a baby monkey. He had reached out one dimpled little hand towards Ronnie and now he had one arm wrapped around his mommy's neck as he clung to his daddy's hand with the other. "These are my sisters, Rebekah and Rishona. Emma is Ronnie's sister, Bekah... and Jim and Donna, Ronnie's parents... and there... come over here, Mickey... this is my brother-in-law, Mickey..." she giggled. "The one who spilled honey on the stairs."

Mickey only barely heard her words over the roaring of his beating heart in his ears. But he vaguely caught on to the honey reference and cringed miserably. Of all things for her to bring up, why did it have to be that one?

"Mickey." The girl lifted her chin, staring him up and down distrustfully. "Guten tag."

"G--g--gooten..." Mickey laughed nervously, wiping his hand on his overalls and offering it awkwardly. "Hey. I mean... hi. Welcome."

She ignored his hand. The younger girl, whom Mickey noticed for the first time just at that moment, had climbed out of the car and was now standing beside her sister, clinging to her arm. He grinned at her. She was much easier to face... just a tiny little scrap of a girl with great big black eyes. 

"Which one is Rebekah and which one is Rishona?" he managed, surprised at himself for getting that much of a sentence out of his mouth.

"I am Rebekah," the older girl offered and he felt his eyes dragged back to her, again losing his powers of speech. Never in all his life had he seen a girl so beautiful... he didn't know God made 'em so pretty! Pity she didn't look all that friendly... the thought of it made him shake in his boots. How was he to get to know her if she looked at him like that? 

So what was the matter with him? Wasn't like him to get scared off by a girl. He stuck out his chin, gathering all his courage and then some, facing her back with frank, open friendliness. Having gotten over his first shock, he could handle this just fine. 

"Well, Rebekah," he grinned wider. "Glad you made it. Both of you. Soon's you get settled in, I'll show you 'round. There's tons to do here... there's a creek back in the woods and the best swimming hole north of the Ohio River and... well... you'll see. Glad it's almost summer, we're gonna have a splendid time."

"Jah?" Just the barest hint of a smile showed on Rebekah's face... and vanished as quick as it had come. "We shall see." Something in her eyes startled Mickey... but he didn't have time to think what it was. Looking down at her sister, Rebekah rattled off a few sentences in a language he didn't understand and turned to follow Ronnie and Rachel into the house, Rishona never letting go of her arm.