His shoulders relaxed. “That is not my sister’s fault.”
“Of course it’s not, but I had to tell the police she was there. Maybe she saw something I missed. I’m sorry the police came to your house, but they have to investigate Bartholomew’s murder.”
His eyes narrowed. “But you do not.”
I didn’t say anything.
His eyes slid my way. “You have a reputation in the county as being nosy.”
“Oh, well, then you’ve found me out.” I forced a laugh.
His shoulders relaxed just a little bit more.
“Did your bishop know you were working here?”
His guard was back up. “What does it matter?”
“This is a New Order business with electricity, and a lot of machinery . . .” I trailed off.
“This is a gut place for me to be,” he snapped. “I have to care for my wife and for my children. This job allows me to get them everything they need.”
It was a strange sentiment from an Amish man, especially one from such a strict district. Typically, they believed that God would provide.
As if he’d read my mind, he said, “Gott provided me this job.”
I set my empty plate on the table. “So the bishop didn’t approve?”
“What does it matter now? The man is dead.”
“Someone killed him,” I said.
“I have work to do,” he said, brushing past me.
I watched him go, wondering what he wasn’t telling me.
Chapter Twenty-five
“Pumpkin fluff is the winner,” Aaron announced. “Very gut work, Phillip.”
Phillip nodded at his boss. “Danki.”
Aaron offered one of his rare smiles, this time for his baker. “I knew it was a gut decision when I hired you.”
Phillip walked over to him so that they could discuss the pies.
Oliver waddled over to me, licking his chops.
“Hey,” I said. “I hope you’re not eating pie.”
Rachel smiled. “I gave him my pie crust—none of the filling, I promise.”
I looked down at the little black-and-white dog, and he cocked his head at me, making his black ear higher than his white one. Then he stood on his hind legs and licked my hand.
“What am I going to do with you?” I wagged my finger at Oliver and then at Rachel. “And what am I going to do with you?”
She chuckled.
I suddenly felt very tired. “I’d better head home. It’s been an especially long day.”
Rachel pointed at my hand. “I see you got your nails painted.”
“My mother.”
Rachel grinned as if that was explanation enough. “I’ll walk you out.”
I waved to everyone else, and Rachel and I headed for the exit.
I zipped up my jacket when we got outside. In the parking lot, the large white tent for the book sale looked like a ghost of a house, and the farm stands cast long shadows on the pavement. A cold breeze whipped through the tent, causing its end to flap open.
Oliver whimpered and I bent to pick him up. The movement of the waving tent flaps was a little too birdlike for his taste.
I shivered, wishing I had worn a warmer jacket. It wouldn’t be long until it was time to get out the hats and mittens. I wasn’t looking forward to it. I loved Ohio, but the winters were a little more than I had bargained for. Last winter I would not have gone out at all if the sheriff and Zander hadn’t forced me to go sledding. I packed a pretty mean snowball, after all.
“I’m surprised that Aaron will allow the book sale to go on as planned after what happened.”
Rachel frowned. “After almost losing the pie factory last year, he is reluctant to give the township trustees any excuse to close him down.”
It was my turn to frown.
She squeezed my hand. “It is all right, Angie. Aaron knew what he was doing when he allowed the book sale to go on. You don’t need to fix it.”
“Okay, but if any of them give you a tough time, you would tell me, wouldn’t you?”
She smiled. “So you can knock their heads together.”
“Something like that.”
Rachel wrapped her cloak around her arms. “I saw you talking to Phillip. What was that about?”
“The bishop.”
She nodded. “I thought that was it. Did he tell you anything?”
I shook my head. “Not really.”
Rachel rested her hand on her cheek. “He’s a great baker, and Aaron is very happy with his work.” She frowned. “But he’s not the friendliest man. Aaron said this does not matter because he is working in the factory, which is away from the public.” Rachel touched my shoulder. “What is it, Angie? Is something else wrong?”
I smiled at my best friend. When I lived in Dallas, I had many friends. As my mother’s daughter and Ryan’s fiancé, I had been part of the social scene there, whether I wanted to be or not. But none of the friendship held the same sincerity that I found with my friends in Holmes County, especially the one I had with Rachel. That was probably why my heart broke over her relationship with her father.
“Sort of,” I said. “I learned something today that I need to tell Mitchell, but I haven’t yet.”
She studied me. “Why haven’t you told him?”
“I’m not sure.” That wasn’t completely truthful. I knew I didn’t tell Mitchell because it made Austina look bad. In my mind, Bunny was the much more likely killer. A year earlier, I wouldn’t have been conflicted at all about keeping that information from him, but things had changed. I knew my loyalty should be to him over Austina.
“What did you learn?” Rachel stamped her small feet against the cold.
Here was the other tricky part. If I told Rachel, her father would come up in the conversation. She asked me not to bring him up again, but maybe it would be all right in this case since it was related to the crime.
“Someone told me he saw someone leaving the bookmobile on Wednesday morning long before my mom and I found Austina there with the body.”
“Who did this person see?”
“Austina.”
She winced. “Does the person think Austina killed him?”
I nodded.
“Then he should go to the police. If he goes, then you don’t have to worry about telling the sheriff yourself.”
“I’m not sure he will. He’s Amish.”
“Who is it? Do I know him?”
“Um, kind of. He’s your father.”
The light dulled in her eyes, and the curiosity I had just seen there vanished.
“I need to talk to your father again,” I said. “He might know more about this case. And when Mitchell finds out, he will definitely want to talk to him.”
“Why are you telling me this?” Rachel wouldn’t look at me. “There’s nothing to stop you from talking to him.”
“I don’t want you to hear it from a third party or think I’m meddling in your life.”
“Angie, you have nothing to worry about. I have made peace with my past,” she said in her quiet way.
I wrinkled my nose.
“Don’t give me that face. I have.” She stood straighter. “Until you ran into my father last Christmas, I hardly thought of him.”
“And now?” I couldn’t stop myself from asking.
“It doesn’t matter.”
I didn’t say anything.
She adjusted the cloak on her shoulders. “I can tell by the weight of your silence. You don’t believe me.”
“I want you to be okay. That’s all,” I said just above a whisper.
Oliver reached a paw out to her as if seconding my sentiments.
She held his paw. “I am okay. I have my husband, my children, and gut friends like you. I don’t need anyone else.”
>
I tried to imagine what it would be like without my father in my life. I didn’t like the image. My dad was my rock. My mother tended to panic and wanted to fix things, so he was the one whom I leaned on when I was in trouble. It was my father who I told first when my engagement broke up. And it was my father who told me that he was glad and thought Ryan was a punk, which was the perfect reaction for the circumstances.
“Please, don’t talk to my father about me. Promise me you won’t. If you need to talk to him about Austina and Bartholomew, that is fine. You do what you need to do for Austina. But leave me out of it.”
I opened my mouth to protest. Now would be a bad time to tell her I invited Nahum to the pie factory’s grand opening tomorrow.
She looked up and met my eyes. There were tears in hers. “I’m asking you as my best friend—promise me.”
It was the first time that Rachel had called me that. We weren’t in middle school where we would trade bracelets or anything, but it still meant the world to me. Rachel was my best friend too. The corner of my own eyes began to itch. “I won’t mention your name. I promise.”
She smiled and went back inside the pie factory.
Chapter Twenty-six
The next morning, my alarm went off at seven and I groaned. Dodger jumped on my legs and walked the length of my body. I kept my eyes closed, as if to fool the cat that I was still asleep.
I had had a fitful night’s sleep as my conscience nagged me that I needed to tell Mitchell everything that I’d learned. Finally, at two in the morning, I had sent him a text message telling him I had information about the case. Usually, Mitchell slept with his phone under his pillow, so he always heard it. Part of me had expected a call to clear my conscience. No call came. Instead of making me feel better, it worried me that he was out on the road somewhere or possibly in danger. It wasn’t easy dating a cop; the nagging concern for his safety was always at the back of my mind. His first wife had warned me it would be like this. I hadn’t wanted to believe her.
Dodger pawed at my nose, and I ducked under the covers. He smacked me in the face through the blankets like a boxer alternating between his right and left cross. He packed quite a punch for such a small creature.
I heard a whimper on the floor. I didn’t know if Oliver was whimpering because Dodger was beating the stuffing out of me or because he was ready for breakfast too.
I shot up in my bed. “All right, already.”
Dodger went flying across the room and hissed.
I leaned over the edge of the bed. “Are you okay?”
He gave me the evil eye. It appeared the only thing that was injured was his dignity. There would be payback, and it would come when I least expected it.
Oliver ran over to him, and licked him up one side of the face and down the other.
Dodger, now covered in doggy slobber, winced.
“Oliver, don’t worry. He’s fine.”
Dodger mewed a complaint. I feared my slippers would be shredded while I was out today.
I pushed my curls out of my face and my cell phone rang. Maybe it was Mitchell. I reached across to the nightstand for my phone.
There was no caller ID. “Hello?”
“Angie, it’s Sarah.” Her voice was so soft, I could barely make out her words.
“Sarah, is everything okay?”
“Ya.” Her voice was still distant. “I need you to come over to my farm.”
“Where are you calling from?”
“The shed phone down the road.”
I was wide awake now. “Why? Has something happened? Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. My family is fine.” She paused. “Most of my family. Levi is here and very upset. I’m afraid he might do something.”
“Something like what?” I hopped out of bed.
“I don’t know. He’s so distraught. I’m afraid he might hurt himself.”
I threw open my dresser drawer looking for something to wear. “Maybe you should call the police.”
“Nee. The police can do nothing.”
I grabbed a hair tie off of my nightstand. I was surprised that I actually had one left, and that Dodger hadn’t batted it underneath the oven or my bed. “Did Levi say something?”
She lowered her voice even more. It was barely above a whisper. “Angie, he says it’s his fault the bishop is dead.”
I almost dropped the phone. “Don’t let him leave. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
I dressed at lightning speed. Oliver and I were out the door in two minutes. As I drove to the Lehams’ farm, I couldn’t help but wonder whether I was about to hear Levi’s confession to the murder.
I called Mitchell on his cell phone. Again it went to voice mail, so I left a message. I was starting to worry. I almost called Hillary to find out whether she knew anything, since Mitchell would keep her informed because of Zander. Then I stopped myself. Things would have to become a lot worse before I called Hillary over Mitchell’s whereabouts.
I called Jonah’s shed phone too and left a message on his answering machine. I hoped he or Anna would hear it. I had a feeling that I would need them. Not for the first time, I wished my Amish friends carried cell phones. It certainly would make my life easier.
Sarah was standing on the wide front porch of her house when I arrived. She waved at me. My typically carefree friend looked worried. She twisted the edge of her apron in her hands.
After getting out of the car, I opened the passenger door, and Oliver jumped out. He sniffed the ground, checking for birds. Thankfully, the Lehams were strictly vegetable farmers.
“Come on, Ollie,” I said as I hurried to the porch.
I took the three steps at a run.
Sarah grabbed my arm. “Danki for coming, Angie. I didn’t know what to do. Jeremiah isn’t here. He’s on a roofing job with my cousin. When the harvest is done, he works construction with my family.”
“You’re here alone with Levi?” I squeezed her hand.
She nodded. “All the children are at school. I’m happy for that. I would not want them to see their uncle in such a state. It was hard for me to see him this way. I was afraid to leave him to call you, but I knew this was more than I could handle on my own.”
I hugged her. “I’m glad you did. You know you can call me anytime if you need anything.”
“Danki. I know that.” Her face was drawn with worry.
“Did you try anyone else?”
“I left a message for Anna on their shed phone, but I knew you would get the message faster.”
I smiled. “I called Anna too. I’m sure she and Jonah will be over as soon as they hear the messages.”
She nodded.
“Let’s go in,” I said.
She took a deep breath and opened the front door. To reach the kitchen, we walked through the living room. The black potbelly stove in the corner of the room heated the entire house. Oliver went over to it and warmed his face.
We went straight to the kitchen, and he followed along too, probably in the hope he would get breakfast. We’d skipped it because we left in such a rush. Luckily I had enough time to fill Dodger’s food bowl before I left. A hungry Dodger was a destructive Dodger.
There was no door between the living room and the eat-in kitchen, just a large archway. As I entered the room, I could see Levi sitting on the far end of the table with his head on the table and his arms wrapped around his head.
I shivered. He didn’t seem to be breathing. I hoped he wasn’t dead. Finding one dead body that week was already over my quota.
“Levi?” Sarah asked.
He lifted his head as if given a couple of jolts of electricity in his back.
His reaction made me jump. Okay, he was very much alive. That was one less worry. There were others. Levi Leham looked as if he’d gone on a bender. Depending on the distric
t, some Amish were allowed to drink, but I seriously doubted alcohol of any kind was allowed in Bartholomew’s district. And getting drunk was a big no-no in the entire Amish world. I didn’t think any district condoned that. And Levi Leham was very, very drunk. “Who’s that?” he slurred.
“It’s my friend Angie—you met her yesterday.” Sarah’s voice was an octave higher than usual.
He blinked at me through bloodshot eyes. “You’re that Englischer who’s going to find out who killed the bishop.” He snorted. “You found him.” He dropped his head back onto his folded arms.
“I’ll make some coffee,” Sarah said.
“Good idea. Make it extra strong,” I added in a whisper.
She nodded and went over to the stovetop.
I waited for Sarah to finish the coffee before I said anything more to Levi. I noticed the knuckles of his right hand were raw and cut as if he had punched a wall. I waved at Sarah and pointed at Levi’s hands. She pursed her lips.
“Here you go, Levi.” She put a steaming mug of coffee in front of him.
He lifted his head. The smell must have roused him. It was very strong.
He curled his right hand around the mug as if it were a lifeline. It made the cuts on his hands bleed.
Sarah clicked her tongue and went to the sink to wet a clean rag. “Let me see your hand.”
Levi didn’t argue. He gave it to her. She wrapped it around his hand three times and tied a knot in the middle of his palm. He didn’t fight her, and covered the mug with his uninjured left hand. He’d yet to take a sip from it.
“What happened to your hand, Levi?” I asked.
He pulled the mug closer, right under his nose. “I hit a wall,” he said dumbly.
“What kind of wall?”
“Barn wall.” He grunted.
“Ahh, and where was that?” I tried to keep my voice low and friendly.
“At the Beiler farm.”
I shot Sarah a look. She stood at the counter, drying breakfast dishes. Even in moments of crisis, Amish women had to keep busy. It was ingrained into them.
I scooted my chair closer to the table. “What were you doing there?”
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