Preacher: part 10

ORIGINALLY WRITTEN CAROL DUERKSEN & MAYNARD KNEPP
?Well, did you have fun? How was Preacher?? Sue Ann greeted Jonas and

Becca from her position at the kitchen counter when they returned
to

Jacob and Fannie?s house around noon. Sue Ann was mashing potatoes
by

hand while E.J. crawled around on the floor at her feet. He tilted
his

head up at his father and big sister and drooled a grin.



?I rode Preacher!? Becca exclaimed. ?Where?s Lydianne? I?ve gotta
tell

her!? She scampered into the living room. ?Lydianne! Guess what I

did!?



?She rode Preacher?? Sue Ann questioned Jonas, who?d bent down to
pick

up E.J.



?Yep, she did,? he said, noncommittaly. ?They?ve been working with

him. Got him broke. He looks good. And what did my little man do
while

I was gone?? he asked, holding E.J. up in the air. E.J. giggled
and

Jonas put him on his shoulders for a piggy-back ride. ?You want to
go

for a ride too? Let?s go find your sisters!?



The topic of Preacher came up again over lunch when Fred asked
Jonas

how he was doing. Jonas tried to appease his father?s curiosity

without spilling his conversation with Merv to everyone gathered
at

the table. It was more than they needed to know at this point.



Later that evening when Jonas and Sue Ann were getting ready for
bed

by lamp light, Sue Ann broached the issue.



?What happened this morning, Jonas??



?What do you mean??



?I mean you haven?t wanted to say much about your time with
Preacher.

What?s going on??



Relieved to be able to talk about it in private, Jonas told Sue
Ann

about Preacher. How not just Merv but a trainer and jockey at the

stable had been working with him. How they wanted to put Preacher
on

the track next spring.



?I don?t know what to do,? he concluded. ?I need to let Merv know

before we go back,? Jonas crawled into bed beside Sue Ann and
turned

down the lamp on the bedside table.



?What happens if you let him race?? Sue Ann?s voice came softly
from

close to Jonas?s ear.



?He could get it in his blood and never settle down when we bring
him

home. Then we have no use for him.?



?Can we even own him if we let Preacher race? The church won?t
allow

it!?



?You?re probably right,? Jonas conceded.



?What happens if you bring him home now?? Sue Ann wondered.



?He?s still not broke to drive. We?d have to get somebody to do
that.

Then, hopefully we could start using him. Man, he?d look good
pulling

a buggy!? Jonas smiled in the dark.



?How did he act when Becca was riding him? She wasn?t riding him
by

herself, was she??



?No, no, Merv was leading him. And Preacher was real calm.?



?But he?s a thoroughbred. I?m a little bit worried about that with
the

kids around here. If you bring him home, Becca will want to ride
him.?



?I know. She really loves that horse.?



Sue Ann sighed deeply beside Jonas. ?Honey, maybe it?d just be
better

to sell him.?



Jonas frowned in the darkness. No. He did not want to sell
Preacher.



?I know,? Sue Ann murmured sleepily. ?You don?t want to.
Good-night,

Honey.?



?Good-night,? Jonas kissed Sue Ann?s dark hair. Then he lay a

More from article archives
Bluejay volleyball zeroing in on fourth straight title
ORIGINALLY WRITTEN TOM STOPPEL The Tabor College volleyball team swept Saint Mary...
Read More