Amish Scarecrow Murders

by Samantha Price

  Chapter 20

  The next morning, Ettie decided they needed to tell Kelly that Dr. Grifford had been at the funeral. Selena was out of the house early doing some shopping and then she was going to look for a long-term place to stay since she couldn’t stay in Gabriel’s house any longer.

  As Ettie walked into the kitchen for breakfast, Elsa-May looked her up and down. “Is your back getting any better?”

  “It's okay. I wouldn't say it was better. It's about the same.”

  “I think you should go back to a doctor.”

  Ettie pulled out a chair and sat down. “Definitely not. If it's not getting any worse, why would I see one?” Ettie sniffed the air. “Is that pancakes you’re making?”

  “Don’t change the subject.”

  “I’m not changing it, I'm just done talking about it,” Ettie said. “When we finish eating our breakfast we’ll go to Kelly and find out about the silver car, and tell him the doctor was at the funeral.”

  Elsa-May smiled. “That’s fine by me.” She then placed a cup of tea in front of Ettie. “If he wants us to help, he must tell us what's going on, otherwise we only have half the pieces of the puzzle.”

  “There is no good telling me that. You need to help me tell him that. You could tell him that if he doesn’t tell us everything, we’re left halfway out on the tree limb.”

  “And to stop the limb from breaking, we need information.” Elsa-May chuckled and then flipped a pancake.

  Ettie sipped on her tea knowing that neither one of them would be brave enough to use his analogy. She wasn't looking forward to any such conversation with Kelly.

  “Do you think we should see if Gabriel can drive us in?”

  “I think we’ve bothered him and Selena enough for the last few days. Let's just go by taxi, shall we?”

  “Okay.”

  Ettie looked down at Snowy pawing at her leg for food. “Snowy needs a walk.”

  Elsa-May reached down and stroked Snowy. “I know. He’s been neglected with all that’s been going on. I’ll take him for a walk when we get back.”

  “Okay.” When Elsa-May gave her some pancakes, she broke off a piece and gave it to Snowy.

  They had to wait for Kelly when they got to the station because he was in a meeting. They sat in the hard seats of the waiting room.

  Twenty minutes had passed, and Ettie had to get up and stretch her legs—this seat was awful for her sore back. Elsa-May had brought her knitting and was happily engaged in 'one purl and one plain' while she waited on the hard wooden seat.

  Ettie sat down again. “I wonder what the meeting is about.”

  “He’s probably having a meeting with all the police officers to tell them what's going on. Unless he’s interviewing someone—they just said he was in a meeting.”

  Ettie sucked in a gulp of air. “Maybe they found the person who owns that silver car.”

  “I hope so, but I doubt it. Do you know how many silver cars would be out there?”

  Ettie frowned at her sister. “They got the plate number.”

  “Oh, that’s right.” Elsa-May put the knitting down in her lap and giggled.

  * * *

  The first thing Ettie asked when she was sitting across from the detective was about the silver car. She wanted to know why he hadn’t told them.

  “I knew you’d ask me about that.” He interlaced his fingers together and placed them down on the desk.

  After a moment, of silence, Elsa-May leaned forward. “And?”

  He drew his eyebrows together and opened his mouth to speak, but Elsa-May spoke up again before he had a chance. “Ettie’s a little annoyed that you expect us to help with various things and you don't give us the full information. She said it's like you're giving us two pieces of the puzzle and expecting us to finish it, but we can’t.”

  The detective looked at them and drummed his fingers. Then he interlaced his fingers again and placed them lightly on his desk. “Is that right, Mrs. Smith?”

  “Um … err ...”

  “You’ll be pleased to know that we located the owner of the silver car.”

  Ettie frowned. “You’re saying that as though it was stolen.”

  “Yes, that’s right, it was. Now, the reason the owner didn't report it stolen was that he thought one of his teenage children had taken it and forgotten to let him know. It’s a second car for the family.”

  “Do you believe that?” Ettie asked.

  “I have no reason not to believe it. Seems it was stolen, and possibly the murderer was using it for a time.”

  “Have you located the car?”

  “Yes, it was abandoned and we’ve got it impounded as a crime scene. Forensics are doing their job now. Initial results show the same traces of mud and straw that match what was on the scarecrows.”

  “Who owns the car?” Elsa-May asked.

  “If you’re asking me if you know the man who owns that silver car, I can tell you he runs an antique furniture store downtown.”

  Elsa-May’s eyes bugged out. “The second hand Amish furniture store?”

  “Yes.”

  “Is that the same one that also sells the newly-made Amish furniture?” The very first suspect they’d followed to the Amish furniture store suddenly seemed more interesting. What if the car hadn’t been stolen at all?

  “It’s the big store downtown. The one with the big windows.” Kelly looked at Ettie. “What's going on in that head of yours, Mrs. Smith?”

  “Oh, nothing. It's just that we drove past there the other day, didn't we, Elsa-May?”

  “We did, and what about this doctor? We haven't mentioned him yet. There was talk about the scarecrow murderer having medical training.”

  “Did I tell you that?”

  Ettie put her fingers to her mouth. “Someone did. The man from the prison—Cedric—he was talking about a doctor being responsible.”

  Kelly nodded. “I heard it all on the recording.”

  “That’s right. What’s happening with his deal to get out of prison?” Ettie asked. “He seemed pretty adamant that the doctor was the killer.”

  “These things take time. It's a slow process and first off, we need to determine if there’s any truth in what he’s claiming.”

  “Wouldn’t that be hard until you hear what he says?” Ettie asked.

  “That’s right it is, but I can’t tell you the number of times that prisoners offer information to get out or have their sentences lessened. It doesn’t mean the information they’re offering up is genuine. More often than not it’s a fabrication woven out of something they’ve overheard.”

  Elsa-May screwed up her nose. “So, he won't tell you until you give him the deal, is that right? And you won’t give him the deal until you hear what he's got to say, because he could be lying?”

  Kelly chuckled. “That's right. We have to be fairly certain he has information before we enter into any deals with him.”

  “I see. It all goes around in a circle.”

  When Kelly nodded, Ettie leaned forward. “And what have you learned so far that you can share with us?”

  “I’ve found out the doctor in question studied Amish genetics. He’s more of a scientist. He was based in New York and has done some study of the Amish in this area. He now works locally as a general practitioner.”

  That fit with what Cedric had told them, and it was nothing they didn’t know already—except for the New York part.

  Ettie’s mind was elsewhere, however. “If the killer used one stolen car …”

  “Yes. I know where you’re coming from, Mrs. Smith. I’ve got my team looking into what cars were stolen around the time of each of the murders. I’m determined to pull this thing together and find the perpetrator.”

  “Or perpetrators.”

  “Yes. What I’m asking of the both of you is to keep your eyes and ears open. You know what to do. No, I’ll go further than that.” He rubbed his nose with the back of his hand. “Ask around, the way you do, and see what y
ou can find out. Don’t overstep your limits. Stick with people from your community. Someone must know something. These victims could be connected in some way other than being ex-Amish members, and please, don’t go talking to people outside of your community.”

  “You said that already,” Elsa-May remarked.

  “I’m saying it again. You two have the habit of having selective hearing sometimes.”

  “What was that?” Elsa-May asked.

  Ettie snickered—she couldn't help it. Detective Kelly had set himself up perfectly for that one.

  Kelly rolled his eyes and shook his head. “I’ll walk you both out.”

  * * *

  As the two sisters once again tackled the task of getting safely down the front steps of the police station, Elsa-May asked, “Where to next?”

  “I think we need to look at furniture.”

  Elsa-May chuckled. “I thought that was what you were going to say.”

  “Then, you weren’t disappointed.” They walked down a few more steps and then Ettie stopped still.

  “What is it?” Elsa-May asked.

  “I just saw someone familiar.”

  “Who?”

  “Don’t worry about who. That’s not the point. Remember when Selena thought she saw her ex-boyfriend?”

  “Eugene Ryder, jah, and he’s her ex-fiancé, Ettie.”

  “Yes. The one who’s in England ... but, what if he’s not?” Ettie shook her head as dark thoughts sprouted like mushrooms in the dark recesses of her mind. “What if he’s out to kill Selena and make it look like she’s been killed in a spree of killings—the scarecrow murders? It’s a perfect cover.”

  “It would be a perfect cover. Kill a few people, then kill the real person you want dead—but Kelly said he checked on Eugene and he’s in England.”

  Ettie leaned on her stick. “He might’ve fooled everyone. Unless someone went over there and saw him with their own eyes, how would they know he was there for certain? He could’ve been there and then flown back.”

  Elsa-May nibbled on a nail. “Okay, I see what you mean.”

  “And he's a lawyer, so he's smart, and maybe he mimicked the old murders to really throw the police off the track.”

  “Come and sit down.” Elsa-May led Ettie over to a bench. “You think he’s responsible?”

  “I do. For certain, now I think about it.”

  Elsa-May flopped down next to her. “What about the doctor?” Elsa-May asked. “He seems a little weird and he’d be used to death.”

  “He could’ve done it too.”

  Elsa-May rolled her eyes. “You’ve certainly given up on Eugene quickly. You just said you thought he did it.”

  “Nee! Why don’t you ever listen? I said what if he did it—it would’ve been the perfect cover. Quite clever.”

  “What you said is that you were sure he did it.” Elsa-May rolled her eyes, and Ettie caught her.

  “Don’t be mean.”

  “I’m not,” said Elsa-May. "Why don’t we find out for sure if Eugene’s in England like everyone thinks?”

  “Okay, but how do we do that? I mean, Kelly said he was, for certain. He’s not going to listen to us.”

  “Maybe Kelly didn’t try too hard. He wasn’t thinking Eugene was a serious contender to be the scarecrow murderer.”

  Ettie said, “Why don’t we get Selena to call the place where Eugene’s staying in England and ask to speak to him herself?”

  “Good idea.”

  “Before that, I’d just like to eliminate someone who’s been nagging at the back of my mind.”

  “The doctor?”

  “Nee.”

  “The owner of the Amish furniture store who we’re on our way to see?”

  Ettie shook her head.

  “What? Someone else?”

  “That’s right.” Ettie nodded.

  “Who?”

  “Eli and Kate’s son, David. Let’s see if they’re still here.”

  “That’s right, he stands to gain a lot of money by Eli’s death. But we still haven’t been to the furniture store.”

  “The furniture store isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, but David and Kate are leaving soon.”

  “So, as well as the doctor and Eugene, you suspect David?”

  Ettie looked up at the fluffy clouds drifting across the sky while she was thinking about Eli and Kate’s son. Could David really have done the same thing as she wondered about Eugene, and killed others as a smokescreen for killing his father?

  Ettie soon got a jab in the ribs. “Are you going to answer me?” Elsa-May asked.

  “Did you ask me something?”

  “Forget it. You want to go see Kate and David?”

  “That’s right.”

  “Okay, let’s go. You sit there until I get a taxi.”

  When Elsa-May walked away, Ettie smiled. “I was going to do just that.” It was fun for Ettie to be fussed over for a change.

  Chapter 21

  The taxi brought Ettie and Elsa-May to Kate’s house. Already, there was a "For Sale" sign planted, and a big moving van out front. Two men from the moving company were bringing boxes from the house to the truck.

  “Let’s go inside and see what we can find,” Ettie said.

  Right at that moment, Elsa-May slapped Ettie on her arm.

  “Ow! What do you think you’re doing?” Ettie frowned at her in disgust. Elsa-May should’ve been looking after her because of her sore back, not hitting her.

  “Look at that car there.”

  Ettie turned to see a gray car. “What of it?”

  “A silver car was seen by Laine.”

  Ettie rolled her eyes. “Will you forget that? The car that was seen by Laine has already been identified. That’s why we were off to the furniture store.”

  “I’m sorry. You’re right. I forgot that.”

  “Keep up with what’s going on, okay? Sometimes I wonder …” Ettie came close to an eye-roll, but managed to stop herself.

  When Elsa-May nodded, Ettie walked ahead and knocked on the door.

  Kate flung open the door. “Ooh, it’s so nice to see you before I leave. No one else in the community has bothered with me. I was beginning to think you were going to forget me too, Ettie.”

  “I wouldn’t do that. How are you doing?” Ettie asked as she walked past Kate and into the house.

  “Better than I thought I would be. I don’t think it’s hit me yet. David's been so good. I don’t know how I could’ve managed without him.”

  “Where is he?”

  “He’s asleep inside. I’m not taking much with me. David wanted me to fill up the truck, but I’m just taking a few things that are important to me and I’ll leave the rest. The realtors said it wouldn’t matter if I left some of the furniture in here; although it’s not worth much.”

  “When did David arrive here? Wouldn’t it take days to drive from Canada?”

  “He was already here on vacation. The first time in ages that we’ve seen him. He came alone.”

  “Alone? Not with his wife?”

  “No, she had to work. It was convenient he was here with his car. Now I can drive back with him.”

  “Yes, very convenient,” Ettie said giving Elsa-May a sideways glance as they followed Kate further into the house.

  When they walked into the kitchen, Kate turned around to face them. “I do hope that they can find out who did this, but still, it’ll be too late for my Eli.”

  She brought them into the kitchen that overlooked the garden; poured them coffee and set down a plate of cookies.

  “Will you be okay living with David and his family?”

  “I’ll stay there for a while and might even buy a place of my own. David suggested I give him Eli’s life insurance money so he can buy a big place for us all to live.”

  “Eli had life insurance?” Ettie acted as though she didn’t know.

  “Yes, quite a bit. He sold insurance ever since we left the community, so he had plenty. He wasn’t train
ed for anything else and sales suited him so well. He loved being around people. I’m now a very rich woman, money-wise at least.”

  Ettie reached for one of the cookies and nibbled on it. Maybe David was the killer. He never got along with his father, and now he’d be a rich man if he got rid of his mother too, or got his hands on the money. He could’ve killed the others knowing the investigators would be looking for a scarecrow serial killer.

  * * *

  When they left there, Elsa-May asked, “What did you think of that?”

  “We have to tell the detective what we’ve just learned.”

  “He already knows all about the life insurance, Ettie.”

  “Let’s just call him.”

  “You call him.” They got the taxi to stop at the nearest public telephone and Ettie called Detective Kelly’s cell phone.

  “Detective Kelly?”

  “Yes, I’m still working on it, Mrs. Smith,” he replied in his usual bored tone.

  “I’m calling regarding David, Eli’s son.”

  “What about him?”

  “He’s been here a few weeks and … well, I’m concerned about the life insurance. It was a sizable sum.”

  There was silence. “We have talked to him already, but I was thinking of bringing him in for another round of questioning.”

  Ettie was so pleased that she replaced the phone’s receiver without saying goodbye. When she realized she’d just hung up on Detective Kelly, she froze in shock, then she figured it didn’t matter because he so often did the same to her.

  “What did he say?” Elsa-May asked when Ettie got back into the taxi.

  “He’s going to talk with him again.”

  “Okay, now let’s go talk to Selena and see if your other theory has any credence to it.”

  “It’s not my theory, she’s the one who thought she saw him. I’m just thinking, what if she did? What if she really did see him?”

  “I know, no need to go over it a thousand times.”

  * * *

  When Ettie and Elsa-May got back to their house it was around lunchtime. Selena was there, in the kitchen making coffee.