“There is only one way to find out.” Ava got into the back seat of the car.
Elsa-May slipped into the front seat of Crowley’s car, while Ettie climbed in the back with Ava.
When everyone had clipped their seat belts on, Crowley turned around and looked at them all. “I just want to say before we get there, that you ladies are going to stand out like a sore thumb. If we have to follow someone, you might have to be ready to duck down when I say so.”
“We can do that,” Ava said, and then looked at Elsa-May and Ettie. “Will you two be able to do that?”
“Yes, of course, we can,” Elsa-May said.
“Off we go, then.” Crowley started the engine.
They arrived at the Cohens’ house just before eight in the morning. Crowley had parked up the road where they had a clear view of who was coming and going, but not close enough so they would be seen.
“What do we do now?” Elsa-May asked.
Crowley frowned. “We talked about this; it’s a waiting game. I thought you understood that we could be waiting here all day.”
“Yes I realize that, but it's quite boring just sitting here watching the house. This kind of work is tiresome, just waiting around.”
Crowley sighed. “I'll wait until nine o'clock and if nothing has happened by then, I’ll give Kelly a call and see where he's up to with things. If he doesn’t think it’s worth speaking with Nerida at all, then we’re wasting our time.”
“That's a good idea,” Elsa-May said. “That way, we’ll know if he’s going to talk with Nerida this morning.”
“Maybe we should’ve done that first?” Ava suggested.
“Down! All of you!” Crowley slid down in the seat the best he could. “That’s Kelly’s car. I hope he doesn’t know my car.”
“That’s good; things are happening,” Ava said. “We’re a fair distance away, so he shouldn’t notice us.”
“I hope not.” Crowley sat up a little. “I can see him talking into the intercom. Now the gates are opening, and now he’s driving through. At least we know now that Nerida isn’t going to the station to talk to Kelly. He’s come to her,” Crowley said.
Ettie raised her head enough so she could peep out the window. “It’ll be interesting to see where she goes after this.”
“If she does go somewhere at all, that is,” Ava said.
“Can we get up now?” Elsa-May asked.
“Oh, yes, sorry about that. But you'll have to get down again when he drives out.”
Elsa-May slid back up to a comfortable seated position. “That’s good, then.”
“We’ll have to wait and see,” Crowley said.
Kelly was in the house for half an hour before he drove out.
“Here he comes! Everyone get down again,” Crowley ordered.
Once Detective Kelly drove away, they only had to wait fifteen minutes before they saw a car drive through the gates. Once again, Crowley ordered the Amish women to duck down before he picked up a newspaper that he’d had pushed between the seats, to look as though he was reading.
“Has the car gone?” Ettie asked after a minute.
“Yes, you can get up now.” He started the engine. “I’m guessing that was Nerida, that is, if she’s a middle-aged woman with deathly pale skin and dark hair pulled back tightly.”
“That'll be her,” Ettie said.
“She’s in that light blue car just turning the corner now,” he said.
“Don't lose her,” Elsa-May blurted out.
“I can't get too close, or she’ll know she's being followed. I'll have to keep a fair distance back. There will be a chance that I'll risk losing her by doing so, but this is the best way. If I do lose her, I don’t want any grumbling or complaining. If I was still on the force, we’d have three cars tailing her, and we’d be able to communicate with each other. This is the best I can do.”
“We trust you,” Ava said.
“Do whatever you have to do,” Ettie said, while Elsa-May was silent.
They followed Nerida for fifteen minutes before Crowley noticed her pick up a cell phone. She drove another fifteen minutes before she stopped at a diner. When she parked the car, she got out, looked around, and then hurried inside.
“What do we do now?” Ettie asked.
“Is she just going there for breakfast or is she meeting someone?” Ava asked.
“She wouldn't go so far away to have breakfast here. It looks like a fairly ordinary diner. She must be meeting someone. And if our guess is right, she’s meeting Kel Flower.”
“I guess I should call Kelly to see where he’s up to with things.” He stared at each lady in turn. “Now, you’ll all have to be quiet. I’ll put him on speaker.”
They nodded in agreement.
Detective Kelly answered Crowley’s call. “Crowley, how are you doing?”
“Not bad, not bad.”
“I hope those old Amish ladies aren't giving you too much grief.” Kelly laughed.
Elsa-May opened her mouth in horror and both Ava and Ettie leaned forward and covered her mouth so she wouldn’t speak.
Crowley shook his head at Elsa-May and held up his hand in an effort to communicate to her to keep silent. “They're okay. I'm just calling to see where you're up to with things in this kidnapping cold case.”
Kelly rattled off the latest, and then he’d checked to see if there was any connection between the suspected kidnapper and criminal, Kel Flower, and Nerida Flower who work for the Cohens. Kelly went on to say, “Turns out, Nerida has a cousin called Kel Flower, but she says she hasn't seen him in years and doesn't know his whereabouts.”
“That's interesting,” Crowley said. “If I can be any help with anything let me know. I'm not doing much these days.”
“Thanks. I’ll keep it in mind.”
“Okay.” Crowley ended the call.
“Did you hear what Kelly said about us Ettie?”
“I certainly did, but that's not what I'm concerned about right now, Elsa-May. Just ignore it. What he said wasn’t too bad.”
“Look! That looks like the man from the photo. He’s getting out of that yellow car.” Ava pointed at the man.
“That’s him all right,” Elsa-May said. “She said she’d lost touch with him.”
“What do you think about that, Crowley?” Ettie asked.
Crowley pulled out his phone. “I think I should take some photos of them talking with each other. You all stay here while I go in and buy something. While I’m waiting, I’ll pretend to be reading messages while I take photos of the two of them. And I'm afraid I might have to let Kelly know.”
“Know what?” Ettie asked.
“Can't you say that we showed you the photos of the man and then you just happen to be here having breakfast?” Elsa-May asked.
“Let me just get in and get those photos first. I'll figure something out.” When he was halfway out of the car, he wagged his finger at all of them. “You ladies stay here and if anyone comes out of the diner, you put your heads down, okay?”
“Yes,” Ettie said.
“Understood,” Ava said.
Around twenty minutes later, Crowley got back into the car with a take-out coffee. “I got the photos,” he said.
“Did you hear what they said?” asked Elsa-May.
“Were you close enough to listen to what they were talking about?” Ettie asked at the same time.
“No. They did have concerned looks on their faces. It seemed she was telling him the police were asking questions. Of course, that doesn't make him guilty of anything.”
“But it does mean that she lied to the police,” Ava added.
“She wouldn't be the first person who's lied to the police.”
“Quick, get down!” Elsa-May said. “They're coming out.”
From Ettie’s crouched position in the back seat, she said, “Shall we follow this Kel character?”
“That’s a good idea, Ettie. We might as well see where he goes.”
They followed Kel's car fo
r half an hour before he turned into a housing estate.
“I'm going to have to turn a different way from him now. If I keep on his tail, he's going to know we’re following him.” Once they had turned into the estate, the yellow car went left and Crowley turned right.
“I just hope these streets are on a grid system.” Crowley drove around, turning down several streets. “No. I think we've lost him. I didn't realize these streets would’ve had so many dead ends.”
“Keep trying,” Elsa-May said. “He can't have gone too far. He’s in this estate somewhere.”
“It looks as though there’s only one way in and one way out. I could pull over and look at the GPS.”
The next street he turned down, Elsa-May said, “Look! There’s the yellow car!”
He drove past to see that Kel Flower had just gotten out of his car and was standing in front of a woman. Then, a little boy ran out to Kel. Crowley had no choice but to keep driving past.
“Did you see that?” Elsa-May asked.
“Yes, it was a boy,” Ava said.
“Do you think it could be Langley?” Ettie asked as shivers traveled up and down her spine.
Crowley said, “I wonder. What's the name of the street?”
Ava replied, “I noticed this is Walnut Street, and the number on the house was twelve.”
“I'm going to have to tell Kelly. If that’s Langley, they’ll be on the move now—there’s nothing surer.”
Crowley pulled his car over, and then forwarded Kelly the pictures of Kel and Nerida before he called him. He managed to leave the ladies out of the conversation and Kelly did not ask how Crowley had come by the information, neither did he ask how Crowley just happen to be at that same diner.
“I'll get someone out there right now,” Kelly said before Crowley hung up the phone.
Crowley released a deep breath. He looked at Elsa-May and then glanced back at Ava and Ettie. “I would say that was a day’s work well done.”
“And it's not even afternoon,” Ettie said.
“I can't believe I let you ladies talk me into this.” Crowley chuckled and rubbed his face with his hands.
Elsa-May jutted out her bottom jaw. “If I remember correctly, you offered.”
“Maybe I did.” He grabbed the steering wheel. “I’ll take you ladies home, and then I’ll drop by the station to see what I can find out.”
Chapter 21
Elsa-May was on her way out of the house with Snowy when she saw Genevieve getting out of a car. She stuck her head back inside and yelled to Ettie. “It’s Genevieve, Ettie, come quickly.”
Ettie hurried out of the kitchen with her heart pumping fast, anxious to hear news of Langley. Was it purely a coincidence that Kel Flower had driven straight to the house of a woman with a small boy who seemed the same age as Langley would've been?
Genevieve Cohen approached after she took her small baby out of his car seat.
“Come in; it's lovely to see you,” Elsa-May said with a firm hold on Snowy’s leash.
“I hope I'm not intruding, am I? I believe you don't have a phone; otherwise, I would've called first.”
“People drop in on us anytime. Everyone does. Come inside out of the cold,” Ettie said.
Once Genevieve was seated, Elsa-May said, “I’ll put the dog out and wash my hands so I can have a hold of Luc.”
“Can I please hold him?” Ettie asked.
“Yes, of course,” Mrs. Cohen said.
Ettie took Luc out of her arms. “He’s still so tiny and adorable.”
“He certainly is. I can’t stop staring at him.”
“It’s a nice surprise that you’ve come to see us.”
When Elsa-May came out of the bathroom, Ettie handed the baby to her.
“I just wanted to come here and thank you ladies for everything you've done. And, I've got a bit of good news—possible good news—that I might be able to tell you.”
“What is it?” Ettie asked as she sat down on the couch next to Genevieve.
“The police think they might have found Langley.”
“Really?” Ettie asked, acting as though she’d never heard anything about it.
“How did that come about?” Elsa-May asked as she rocked the baby to and fro.
“I think it had something to do with Nerida, my personal secretary. She up and quit unexpectedly. Then I found out that she’s being charged with a number of things. One of them is withholding information and… something like obstructing the course of justice?” She shook her head. “I’m not certain of the exact words, but she had knowledge of the kidnapping. Craig is simply furious.”
“That’s dreadful! And you trusted her so much,” Ettie said.
“What did she know about the kidnapping exactly?” Elsa-May asked.
“From what I know, she wasn't directly involved. She must've known those who were. I feel dreadful that I trusted that woman with my most precious possession—my child. It just goes to show that you can't trust anybody.”
“Tell us more about this boy that could be Langley,” Ettie said. “What have the police found out so far?”
“He was found at the home of the sister-in-law of one of the suspected kidnappers. There is no birth certificate for that little boy, and no record of the woman who claims to be his mother ever having given birth to a child. She couldn't produce any paperwork whatsoever. We should know tomorrow or the next day if he’s Langley. He’s in foster care at the moment. If he’s not my boy, he’ll be somebody else's, but I'm hoping he’s Langley. We’re crossing our fingers that he’s Langley.”
“I’m surprised the police told you all this before they knew for certain,” Elsa-May said.
So was Ettie, but she’d kept silent about that, knowing the police must be certain that the boy was one and the same to have told the parents anything about him.
“I don’t think they were going to at first, but Craig went down to the station and demanded to know what was going on once Nerida quit and we found out about the police charges against her.”
“We’ll be praying for you and your husband,” Ettie said. “When will you know for certain?”
“In a day or so,” Genevieve repeated.
Elsa-May, who’d been busily cooing at Luc, looked up and asked, “What's happening in a day or so?”
“The DNA results will be back. We’re not getting our hopes up just yet. We’ve had too many disappointments.”
“That would be wonderful,” Elsa-May said, staring at Luc again. “Look at his little face, Ettie.”
Ettie stood up and looked down at Luc. “He has to be the cutest baby I've ever seen. He’s just so lovable.”
“He is, isn't he?” Genevieve said.
“Ava will be so disappointed that she’s missed out on seeing him. She cried when he left us that time when the social worker came,” Elsa-May said.
“Why don't you have her come ‘round, I'm not in a hurry unless you are?”
“We’ve nowhere to be. Would you mind waiting?” Ettie asked.
“I don't mind at all.”
“She doesn't live that far away. I guess it will take her fifteen or twenty minutes to get here.”
“That's fine,” Genevieve said.
“I’ll call her,” Ettie said.
“While you’re out, I’ll put the pot on to boil. By the time we have cake and a cup of tea, Ava should be here.”
“That's if I can catch her at home,” Ettie said.
“Fingers crossed,” Genevieve said as Ettie headed out the door.
Genevieve talking about fingers crossed was something to do with superstition, which reminded Ettie of what Crowley had said about her daughter, Myra.
Myra had strayed from the path that she was raised on. She was raised to believe in the Bible and to follow the Ordnung. But what was to become of her now that she wasn’t following the ways of the Lord? Myra was just as lost as Langley, even though she was a middle-aged woman. Yet Ettie knew nothing she could do would change anything�
��it was out of her hands. Things had been easier when her children were younger—when they listened to what she said and she could protect them. Now that they were older, they no longer needed her and even though she had great-grandchildren now, she still found it hard to let go if she thought they were heading in the wrong direction or making bad decisions.
Ettie had always assumed all of her children would stay within the Amish community—after all, that was how they’d been raised. They’d had a good life. She struggled with being worried about Myra's choices and consciously had to remind herself that there was nothing she could do. Gott had given all a gift of free will to choose their own way, and Ettie would have to let Myra choose her own path even though it was one with which Ettie strongly disagreed.
Once Ettie reached the shanty, she put the money in the tin and dialed Ava’s number.
After a couple of beeps, a breathless Ava answered. “Hello?”
“Hello, Ava.”
“Ettie?”
“Jah, it's me.”
“Is everything all right?”
“Jah. We have a visitor here… if you’re not on your way out somewhere already, we have a visitor here who would like to see you.”
“Who is it?”
“Luc and Genevieve Cohen. She said she would wait until you got here if you want to see the baby.”
“Oh, I’d love to see the baby. I was just on my way out to the markets, but I'll do that tomorrow. I'm coming right over now. I've got the buggy ready to go. Bye, Ettie.”
Before Ettie could even say goodbye, Ava had hung up the phone in her ear. Ettie walked back to the house still thinking about Myra and how hard it was to let go of someone you once held so tenderly in your arms as a small babe. Myra hadn’t written for nearly two years now, and Ettie knew she’d have to face the fact that she might never return to the community.
When Ava arrived at Elsa-May and Ettie’s house, she knocked on the door and opened it before anyone had a chance to answer it. Everyone was finishing off the cake in the kitchen when Ava walked in.
“That didn’t take long,” Elsa-May said.
Ava only had eyes and ears for the baby. She said a brief hello to Mrs. Cohen before she asked if she could hold Luc. Mrs. Cohen handed him over and Ava sat down at the table with them.
Ettie Smith Amish Mysteries Box Set 2 Page 39