Murder, Handcrafted (Amish Quilt Shop Mystery)

by Isabella Alan

  Mattie stood in the doorway to Running Stitch, gripped the sides of her apron as if she needed its support. “Angie, what on Earth is going on?”

  I sighed and told her about the trustees’ meeting the night before.

  She shook her head. “Many of the Amish aren’t going to like this.”

  That’s what I was afraid she might say.

  Two men sold Bigfoot key chains in front of Running Stitch. Their display blocked the view of the shop’s door from the street. Mattie went inside to prepare the shop for opening, and I walked over to them. “I’m going to have to ask you to move. You’re blocking access to my store.”

  One of the men, with a goatee and who I guessed was in his late twenties, stared at me as if he had seen a ghost. “It’s you.” He pointed at me.

  I stepped back. “Excuse me?”

  A second man, who was clean-shaven and larger than the first, took a step up to me. “It is her. You’re right. We found her. I can’t believe it. We’ve been looking for you everywhere!”

  I took a bigger step back. “What are you talking about?”

  “You’re the girl,” Goatee said. “You’re the one in the video. You saw him.”

  “What video?” I asked, starting to become annoyed.

  “What was it like?” the second man asked. “Could you smell him? I know it was kind of far away from you, but I have always wondered what a Sasquatch smelled like. Experts say it’s kind of musky.”

  “Yeah,” his friend agreed. “Like wet fur.”

  Now there was a small crowd gathering around us.

  “What on Earth are you talking about?” I shouted.

  “Bigfoot. You saw him.” He waved his smartphone at me. “I have it right here on video. It was just posted early this morning, but it’s already all over the Internet. You’re famous in the Bigfoot world. If we can get more proof of the Sasquatch’s existence for the nonbelievers, you might be famous in, like, the entire world.”

  “Let me see that.” I held out my hand, and he placed the smartphone in my palm. The screen showed a YouTube video. I tapped to play.

  The video was from two days ago and showed me standing in my parents’ front yard with Petunia. Yikes, my blond curls were wild; it was clear that I had dashed out of the house after Jonah’s urgent call. I was talking to Petunia. Suddenly, I look up and stared across the street at the large tree. My mouth falls open as if in shock. The shot widened out and showed me and the furry figure across the street. On the video, the thing looked even more like Bigfoot than I remembered. The camera doesn’t zoom in on the creature, instead it stays on me. Eban arrives in his cart and I talk to him pointing at the tree. He shakes his head and leaves the shot. Officer Anderson comes out of the house and it shows me accosting him and pointing across the street. Clearly, I’m telling him to go check it out. Mitchell appears and Anderson takes off toward the tree after a direct order, but the creature is gone by then. The last scene is Mitchell touching my cheek.

  “Lady, I know it’s none of my business, but I think that cop has a thing for you,” Goatee said. “He seemed a little too familiar if you ask me.”

  “Yeah,” the second one agreed. “He was using your fear to get fresh.”

  I looked heavenward. I could see no good coming of me telling these men that Mitchell was my boyfriend and therefore not getting fresh, whatever “fresh” might mean.

  “The shot on the creature isn’t as good as we would like to see,” Goatee said. “But all the evidence points to a Bigfoot.”

  “Definitely,” his friend agreed. “I don’t have any doubt in my mind that’s a Bigfoot.”

  “Who posted this?” I scrolled down and found the screen name: AmishInsider. Interesting screen name.

  “See, the guy who posted this is Amish. It must be authentic. Amish don’t lie.”

  “That is impossible,” I said. “The Amish don’t use YouTube.”

  There was a tiny image of the AmishInsider next to his name. I pinched the screen for a better look. Blown up, the picture was fuzzy, but I immediately recognized the face. I handed the man his phone. “I have to go.” I hurried away.

  “Wait? What? You didn’t tell us about your sighting.”

  I ignored him and popped my head into the quilt shop. Mattie was counting out the cash drawer. “I have to run an errand,” I told her. “I don’t know how long I’ll be gone.”

  She looked up from the drawer with concern. “Did something happen?”

  “I’m an Internet star, but I may have solved at least part of the mystery.”

  “An Internet star?” she asked, confused.

  “I have to go. I’ll explain everything when I return.”

  “But—”

  I stepped back onto the sidewalk in front of the shop before she could finish her question.

  “There she is!” Goatee shouted. “She’s the one from the video!”

  I gave a sharp intake of breath as I saw a crowd twenty strong of Bigfooters surrounding me.

  “Tell us what you know,” another voice said. I couldn’t make out who in the crowd.

  I had to get out of there. Scooping up Oliver, I pointed across the street to Willow’s shop. “There he is. It’s Bigfoot!”

  There was a collective gasp as the crowd turned in the direction in unison.

  I slipped around a woman to my left and dashed down the alley between my and Martha’s shops.

  “Where’d she go?” I heard someone cry.

  “Down the alley,” another voice called.

  I didn’t wait to hear any more and ran for all I was worth through the back gardens of the shops toward the community parking lot across from the mercantile. I glanced back to see them racing down the alley. I doubled my pace, holding Oliver to my chest and my heavy hobo bag thumping against my thigh hard enough to leave a bruise.

  Chapter Thirty-four

  Feeling like an escaped convict on the run, I darted behind an RV in the middle of the parking lot, still clutching Oliver to my chest. “Shhh,” I whispered to the Frenchie.

  A moment later, I heard the Bigfooters’ thundering feet hit the pavement.

  “Where did she go?” one cried.

  “She couldn’t have disappeared into thin air!”

  There was more grumbling, and then someone called over the others. “Let’s head back to the tea shop or we are going to miss Raymond’s presentation. We’ll find her later.”

  The sound of their thundering feet receded. I slid to my knees behind the camper on the asphalt.

  The camper door opened, and an overweight man stepped out. “You all right, miss?” He peered at me.

  I straightened up in my kneeling position.

  “Are you praying or something over that dog? Is he sick?”

  I realized that it might appear that I was praying from how I knelt with Oliver in my arms. My face flushed, and I scrambled to my feet. “No, I’m not, and the dog is fine.”

  He rubbed the stubble on his chin. “Do I know you from somewhere?”

  That’s when I saw the Bigfoot T-shirt stretched across his belly.

  “Gotta go!” I cried, and hurried through the small parking lot and across the street to the mercantile.

  The mercantile front door opened just as I was reaching out to open it, and Liam Coblentz stopped me from plowing into him by grabbing me by the shoulders. “Whoa, careful there.” He let me go.

  Out of breath, I asked, “Where’s Cameron? Is he here?”

  Liam stared at me as if I had asked him if aliens had touched down in the middle of the mercantile. Considering there were a good number of people wandering around Rolling Brook that morning who thought Bigfoot was real, I wouldn’t be surprised if my pursuers would accept an alien invasion too. “Why don’t you come inside?” he asked. “You look like you’re about to pass out.”
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  I stumbled after him into the store, feeling a tad shaky. I hadn’t run this much in, well, ever. Maybe I should take up exercise just like my father. I followed Liam to the back of the store. I glanced around. “Are you open?”

  He shook his head. “Not yet.” He sighed. “Monday should be the day. I do have a sidewalk sale going on out front just to take advantage of Bigfoot Day.” His eyes twinkled when he said Bigfoot Day. I was glad he found it amusing. After being chased up and down Sugartree Street, I could no longer see the humor in the situation.

  A frown formed on his lips. “Angie, I’m glad you stopped by. I’ve been wanting to talk to you.” He paused. “About Mattie.”

  I set Oliver on the floor. “What about Mattie?”

  He swallowed. “I just want you to know that I care about her, and I will court her properly. I plan to talk to her brother later today and ask his permission. I know that she hasn’t had an easy time in the past with suitors. I need you to know that I won’t be like her last beau.”

  “I’m glad to hear it.” I paused. “Because if you break her heart, you will have to deal with me.”

  He grinned. “She already told me that I would.” He chuckled. “I think I’m more afraid of you than I am of her brother Aaron.”

  “You should be.” My smile took the bite out of my words. “Mattie deserves a happily ever after.”

  “I mean to give her that.”

  “Now that that’s settled, is Cameron here?” I repeated my original question.

  “Blane’s son? What do you want with him?”

  “I discovered he’s the one behind the Bigfoot prank, and I have to talk to him. It might be the only way to put all of this Bigfoot hysteria to rest.”

  “Who’s looking for my son?” Blane appeared in the middle of the aisle behind Liam, holding a pair of wire cutters.

  “I am,” I said. “I’m sure you’ve seen all the excitement in Rolling Brook over Bigfoot, and I think the thing that eyewitnesses were actually seeing was part of a movie Cameron was making.”

  Blane shook his head. “I knew he was working on a movie, but I didn’t know it was that.”

  “Can I talk to him?”

  “He’s not here,” Cameron’s father said.

  “Do you know where I can find him?” I asked.

  Blane considered my question. “He said that he had to film today to finish the project he’s working on for class. He and his friend Sam are working on the assignment together. Out in the backwoods near Yoder Road.”

  “Yoder Road?” I asked. I swallowed. I didn’t want to alarm Blane, but that was the street closest to Nahum’s shack. This wasn’t good. I backed out of the store, picking Oliver up as I went. “Can you text or call him to see where he is?”

  Blane scowled. “I’ve been trying all morning, and he doesn’t text me back. He’s either ignoring me or out of range. If you find him, you tell him he is grounded for the entire summer. I don’t care if he’s over eighteen.”

  That was more confirmation to me that Cameron might be in Nahum’s woods. The cell reception there was terrible.

  “One more question,” I said to Blane.

  He lowered his wire cutters to his side as if in resignation. “What?”

  “Was there a second electrical accident in Griffin’s past, other than the one that killed Kamon Graber?”

  He glowered at me. “You are still on that.”

  “Can you just answer the question?”

  “There was. In the second accident, a barn burned down.”

  My hands began to tingle when he said that. I knew it was important. I took a deep breath. Before I could track down the barn fire, I had to save Cameron from Nahum’s pitchfork. I put my hand on the doorknob. “I’ll track Cameron down. Don’t worry.”

  Outside, I ran around the back side of the mercantile, all the while on the lookout for Bigfooters. I waited for a buggy to cross my path and dashed across the street. At least my car was parked in the community lot across from the mercantile. I wouldn’t have to go back to Running Stitch and risk being seen by the mob that thought I was an Internet celebrity.

  “Angie!” Willow called. “I saw the video. I can’t believe that we have evidence that Bigfoot is real and you’re on the tape!” Her purple crystal twirled in the sun as she hurried toward me.

  “It’s evidence, but not in the way you think.” I unlocked my car with the fob.

  She frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “Cameron, the teenager who posted that video, is a film student. He must be making a Bigfoot, or some type of creature, movie. I’m going to confront him now about it. Then, maybe these Bigfooters will leave the county.”

  Willow’s face fell. “You mean the video’s not real.”

  I put Oliver in my car. I hated to be the one to burst her bubble, but I had to be honest. “It’s not. It was a teenage boy playing a joke. Now, I have to go find him.” Before Nahum finds him first.

  Behind Willow, someone shouted. “There she is!”

  The next thing I knew, the mob was headed straight for us.

  Willow jumped into my car. “I’m coming too.”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the Bigfooters coming for me. I didn’t have time to argue with her. “Buckle up,” I ordered.

  Chapter Thirty-five

  I had been to Nahum’s shack one time before, over a year ago in the middle of winter. This time there weren’t feet of snow to contend with, but the woods were soggy from the frequent rains. I would have to take care where to step in order to protect my cowboy boots from permanent damage.

  If I thought my footwear was impractical for a trek into the woods, Willow’s was downright ridiculous. She wore pointy-toed granny boots with a two-inch heel.

  “You’re going to get stuck in the mud with those,” I warned.

  She waved away my concern. “I’m a pro at walking in these. You’ll see.”

  After his first step in the forest, Oliver held up his paw to me and whimpered. He might live in the country now, but Oliver was born in Dallas and was still very much a city pooch.

  “We’ll wash your paws when we get back to Running Stitch,” I said.

  He sighed and set his paw on the muddy ground.

  I glanced back at Willow as I made my way through the woods. “Nahum’s cabin is about a quarter mile in. Keep an eye out for him, Cameron, or Bigfoot.”

  “You got it,” she said cheerfully.

  At least one of us was enjoying herself.

  I heard Cameron long before I saw him.

  “Help! Help!” the teenager’s voice broke through the trees.

  I scooped Oliver up and took off at a run, following the sound. I broke through the trees into the clearing where Nahum’s shack stood. Nahum’s yard was like a minefield with pieces of twisted metal and wood sticking out all over the place. Some were alone and others were attached to cast-aside appliances. The first time I had seen it, it had been buried under snow. Now, I could see the metal objects and they made the yard look far worse. I wondered if Nahum decorated his yard with them to serve as a barrier around his property. The sparse tufts of grass completed the horrendous landscaping.

  “It’s a project for school. I didn’t mean any harm!” Cameron cried.

  I couldn’t see Cameron yet, so I followed the voice. As I came around the side of the shack, I found Nahum holding Cameron and Bigfoot at pitchfork point.

  Bigfoot wore white sneakers just like Eban had described. He was clearly an impostor.

  Cameron saw me. “Hey, we need help! This Amish dude is going to skewer us!”

  “Yeah,” Bigfoot agreed. “I’m too young to die!”

  “Nahum!” I shouted at the older man. “What are you doing?”

  “I found these boys sneaking around my land, taking moving pictures of my property.” He
jerked the pitchfork in their direction.

  Bigfoot jerked back.

  Cameron looked at me pleadingly. “I didn’t know anyone lived here, honest! I thought it was an old abandoned shack. We were only here to shoot a scene for my movie. I wouldn’t have come here if I knew he was living here. Honest!”

  Nahum thrust the business end of the pitchfork forward, stopping just short of Cameron’s chest. “This is my home!”

  Cameron’s hands went up. “I know that now, and I’m sorry. I’m really sorry. I was just making a movie for my class.”

  “Bigfoot, remove your mask,” I said.

  The creature didn’t move.

  Nahum waved the pitchfork at him. “Do what the lady says or prepare to meet your Maker.”

  Bigfoot removed his mask, and what appeared was the sweaty and pimply face of a teenage boy Cameron’s age.

  “What your name?” I asked the teen.

  “S-Sam Bauer,” he stammered, watching Nahum with wide eyes.

  I folded my arms across my chest. “Well, Sam and Cameron, do you know the township of Rolling Brook has been overrun by people who believe that Bigfoot is here because of your little movie?”

  Cameron, whose hands were still suspended in the air, said, “I was just doing a school project. I didn’t mean anything by it. I never thought all these people would come.”

  “When you saw the rumors about Bigfoot in the county growing larger and larger, why didn’t you come forward and tell someone what was really going on?” I asked.

  He scowled. “I didn’t want anyone to steal my idea.”

  “Yeah,” Sam agreed. “We wanted to win the film award at school, and the best way to do that would be to keep the content of our project secret. Last year, someone in the same class let his idea be known, and he was totally sabotaged by another kid in the class.”

  “Are you going to tell him to let us go?” Cameron asked, sounding winded. “My arms are getting tired.”