"I don't see why you don't just turn the store and the farm over to the Uncle Amos and let him figure out what to do, Grace," Hope said as she reentered the kitchen with the baby in her arms. The baby, Glory, was Hope's fourth child, and she'd made it clear that she was nowhere near done having children.
"You know as well as I do that I'm not going to do that," I said as I flipped the finished pancake onto a waiting plate.
"Not going to do what?" Verity asked as she walked into the kitchen rubbing her eyes. "Something smells really good, Grace."
"Pancakes!" I said as I motioned toward the table. "You want to set it for breakfast?"
Verity nodded and began pulling the plates from the cupboard as she repeated, "Not going to do what?"
"Not going to turn over the store to Bishop Miller," I said as I put a second skillet on the stove and warmed it up before dropping the sausages in. The fat, brown links quickly began sizzling in the pan as I poured more batter into the first pan. "Did someone wake up Danny?"
"Grace, you're just being stubborn," Hope said as she rocked Glory. "Jakob says that Bishop Miller is best equipped to take over the business. After all, he's family."
"Just because he's Dat's brother doesn't make him automatically capable of running Dat's business," I said as I pushed the sausages around in the pan trying to remember how Mamm got them to brown on all sides without burning. I looked over and saw that the edges of the pancake were begging to turn too dark, so I quickly flipped it and realized I was a fraction of second too late. I muttered, "Darn it!"
"Here, let me help you, Grace," Verity said as she took the tongs out of my hand and stood over the sausage pan. I shot her a grateful smile as I flipped the slightly burned pancake on top of the first one and poured another ring of batter into the pan.
"We're just saying that you haven't been here for a long time and it might be better to turn the store over to someone who actually knows the community," Faith said in the prissy Sunday school voice that she knew I despised.
"I grew up here," I said clenching my jaw. "I know the community."
"Okay, well, maybe what we really mean is that people don't trust you, Grace," Faith said hitting her mark. I inhaled sharply and bit my lip to keep from saying the first words that entered my brain.
"Be that as it may," I said as I exhaled slowly. "I'm still not turning the store or the farm over to anyone until I have a clear idea of what's going on here. Verity, Honor, and Danny are still at home and they need someone to look out for their interests."
"Oh, and you're going to be the one to stay and do that?" Hope asked skeptically raising an eyebrow. "Won't your city friends and employer expect you back soon?"
"I took a leave of absence," I said as I leaned a little too close to the stove and felt my wrist hit the edge of the hot pan. "Ouch! Dammit!"
"Grace! Language!" Hope and Faith said in unison.
"All right, that's enough!" I roared. "You two either need to stop talking about things you know nothing about or you need to leave. It's your choice, but I'm not going to have breakfast ruined by your nagging!"
"No need to be so sour," Faith said as she stood up and wrapped the blanket around Glory before turning for the door. "We're just trying to help, Grace."
"I know, I know," I said as I flipped another pancake onto the plate and poured again. Verity had finished browning the sausages and had covered the pan with a lid before moving it to the table. "Look, message received. Now will you let me figure things out my own way, please?"
"Fine," Hope said as she gathered up her basket and followed Faith out the door. "If you need us, you know where to find us."
The door slammed as my sisters exited. I looked at Verity and rolled my eyes.
"Grace, you shouldn't be so harsh with them," she said as she smiled and shook her head. "They aren't as worldly as you are and they really are just trying to help."
"I know they are, Verity," I said as I added another pancake to the stack. "But I don't think they have any clue as to what it takes to actually run a business, so their advice is just annoying. Plus, they're both so bossy!"
"You must be talking about the Judgment Twins," Honor said as she walked into the kitchen with Danny close on her heels. They looked like bookends, small and thin with blue eyes and pale skin, but whereas Honor's hair was light like the rest of us girls, Danny's was dark and curly like Dat's had been. Looking at him was a painful reminder that he was the perfect mix of our parents.
"Gracie!" Danny signed as Honor moved toward the table. "I'm hungry! What's for breakfast?"
"Bullshit and attitudes, sounds like to me," Honor said.
"Honor!" Verity scolded in a pseudo-shocked tone. "That's not nice. What if Danny picks that up and repeats it?"
"Eh, let him," Honor shrugged as she tugged at her dress and then sighing in exasperation as she refastened the pins that held the front together muttering, "Stupid dress!"
"Good morning to you, too, Danny!" I laughed as Honor finished fussing with her pins and got Danny settled in his usual chair and reminded him to put a napkin in his lap. "I hope you're hungry this morning because I made a lot of pancakes that need to be eaten!"
"I'll eat 'em all, Gracie!" Danny signed as Honor nudged him toward his seat at the table. He signed, “Can I say a blessing this morning?"