Amish Country Threats

by Dana R. Lynn

  Then he remembered he’d made her one promise. He couldn’t promise her a life together, but he could give her an afternoon.

  “Do you still want to go with me on the buggy tour tomorrow?”

  Her eyebrows climbed her forehead. She thought he’d forgotten. He pushed down the guilt. She had probably noticed his avoidance. It had to be that way.

  But suddenly, the desire to have one more day in her presence, to bask in the sunshine of her personality one more time, was overwhelming.

  “Are you sure you want to take me with you?” she asked.

  He winced. Jah, she’d noticed.

  “I want you to cumme. Really.”

  * * *

  The next day, he had cause to second-guess his decision as she sat next to him. He couldn’t help but imagine a lifetime of riding beside her. She’d washed her dress out yesterday. Her face was scrubbed clean and she had a small smile on her face as they drove into town.

  She looked beautiful and serene. Content.

  The urge to reach out and hold her hand swept through him. He fought it back. They were not courting. This was a goodbye activity.

  He didn’t like to think of that, but it was. For his peace of mind, it had to be.

  As he’d expected, his boss was more than happy to allow Lilah to ride along with him. It made the tour seem more authentic. Levi curled his lip. It felt more real than he was comfortable with.

  Their first customers that day were a group of authors on a research trip. He had to admit, it was fun showing them around. They were full of smart questions, and he could tell that they truly wanted to respect Amish culture by getting their facts correct. Lilah helped answer some of their questions. It was fun having her with him.

  The second tour was harder to handle. A pair of newlyweds were his sole guests. They were more interested in staring at each other than anything he had to say. Lilah’s cheeks burned bright red when their guests started a rather inappropriate conversation.

  She glanced over her shoulder, then addressed him in Pennsylvania Dutch. “Don’t they know they’re not in private?”

  He answered in the same dialect. “They don’t care.”

  It bothered him, too. That kind of conversation should be private. In his way of thinking, it was a matter of respect for your spouse.

  Except he wasn’t ever getting married.

  Finally, the tour ended. The couple left the buggy, said a distracted thank-you and departed. He looked up at Lilah. “We have one more tour, in about an hour. Let’s go walk a bit, stretch our legs.”

  She climbed down and joined him. They walked along the sidewalk, looking at the various shops. They didn’t talk about anything personal, and by mutual agreement, also avoided conversation regarding the danger of the past few days.

  Levi didn’t know if Lilah felt it, but he wasn’t convinced about the danger being past. Maybe if Officer Dawson had been more convinced, he might have been at peace.

  As they reached the corner, a car careened around the bend. Levi hauled Lilah up against him and pulled her against the building. The car continued on, rock music blaring from the open windows.

  Teenagers. He growled in frustration. Looked down to inquire if she was all right, but the question never got asked.

  Blue eyes were regarding him as if he were the most amazing thing she’d ever seen. A man could drown in a look like that.

  Drawn beyond his power to resist, he lowered his head. When his lips met hers, he was lost.

  * * *

  Lilah’s lids fluttered shut as Levi kissed her. She’d been courted, but had never been kissed in her life.

  It was pure bliss, feeling the gentle caress of his lips against hers. The kiss was chaste, nothing more than a brush of skin, but she felt her heart speed up.

  And then it was done.

  Her eyes opened slowly. Levi’s face was pale. The kiss had shocked him. The joy of the past few seconds dissipated, and despair swept in. He regretted the kiss. All the thoughts she’d entertained in the past day were true. He had been avoiding her. He felt their connection, but he didn’t want it.

  Tears gathered behind her lids, but she refused to let them fall. Lilah knew she had fallen in love with Levi, but she wouldn’t beg for him to love her back. He had to want her in his life. He had been broken. She couldn’t be the one to fix him. Only Gott could do that.

  Pasting a smile she didn’t feel on her face, she said, “We should go back, jah?”

  Her heart broke further in her chest as he latched on to her suggestion. “Jah. We should go and wait for the next tour.”

  The next tour. How would she stand sitting so close to him on the bench of a buggy, chatting about Amish culture and customs, while her heart was shattering inside her?

  She couldn’t do it. The peace and closeness had turned to dust in her mouth.

  Silently, she walked beside him, trying to figure out how she could get out of it. She couldn’t ask him to take her home. Levi had a job to do. If he left, he could get fired. She wouldn’t do that to him.

  As they returned to the buggy, she stood aside as he checked it over and got the horse ready.

  Suddenly, she felt light-headed, as the reality of what she was about to lose washed over her. This man had saved her, and she had fallen in love with him. Now she had to leave him. She had to walk away and leave him, and the pain ripped at her.

  “Lilah?” Levi touched her cheek. She focused on him, trying to ignore the agony his gentle touch brought. “Bist du krank?”

  Was she sick? At heart, she was.

  “Nee. I’m a little light-headed.”

  Concern darkened his eyes. “Maybe I should bring you home.”

  “I don’t want you to get in trouble.” She looked around. “Look, I’ll go and wait in that café there.”

  He followed where she was pointing. He started to protest, but she cut him off.

  “Don’t worry. I’ll be inside, and you can find me when you cumme back. I think it will help me to get out of the sun and drink something. Maybe I’m dehydrated. When you return, I’ll be fine.”

  He didn’t look convinced. It took some doing, but she managed to convince him. She watched him as he greeted his next customers and climbed up on the bench.

  He looked lonely.

  She shook the thought away. She couldn’t help him. If Levi ever opened up enough to let someone in his heart, she’d gladly be part of his life.

  But until that day...

  He flicked the reins, and the mare pulled the buggy away. His gaze sought her out one more time. She smiled for his benefit. His brown eyes bore into hers for a moment before he looked away. The smile slid from her face the moment he was out of sight.

  Sighing, she turned to go into the restaurant.

  A hand grabbed her arm. Something jabbed into her back. Chills broke out. Her intuition told her it was a gun.

  “Don’t look at me, don’t scream. Just start walking. Or I’ll call someone to come and take care of your friend.”

  She understood. Levi would die if she didn’t go. If she did, then he had a chance to survive. She started walking. Sweat poured down her back and beaded on her forehead. The knot in her stomach continued to grow, twisting and turning. Her legs shook, not from exhaustion, but from terror.

  She was going to die. She sent a prayer winging to Gott. Give her strength. Protect Levi and his family.

  She hadn’t told him she loved him. Now she wished she had. At least he’d know.

  Nee, she’d been right not to tell him. Knowing she loved him would be one more burden for Levi, and she didn’t want that for him. Especially if she died. She didn’t want to leave him with that kind of guilt.

  The gun dug deeper into her back as she tripped over an uneven patch of concrete.

  “Careful,” the man growled in her ear. />
  There was something familiar about the voice, but she couldn’t place it. Billy, Tammy and Pete were all in police custody. Who else could it possibly be? Her mind whirled as she tried to place it. She couldn’t think of anyone. Maybe it was one of Jacob’s clients. That would make sense, that someone he knew in his business would be connected to the evil that he was trying to shut down.

  “I didn’t expect that your friend would know how to drive,” the voice continued. “I planned on shooting the cop, then you’d be easy to grab. Your guy messed up my plans.”

  Odd. There was almost a grudging respect there, as if Levi’s quick thinking and unusual skill with vehicles had earned his admiration.

  What a foolish idea.

  The man edged her off the main street and down an empty alley.

  Her fear ratcheted up a notch. She could smell her own terror. It stung her nostrils.

  “Hurry up.” The gun twisted. She gasped, her back stinging.

  Would she die here, now that they were away from any witnesses?

  But her captor didn’t stop or shoot her. Instead, he continued to shove her in front of him, marching her on to some place only he knew.

  What would Levi think when he came back and found she was missing? Had anyone seen her leave?

  Her feet began to ache. She didn’t dare complain, though. If she could stay alive, maybe there was hope that Levi could find her. His boss had a phone. Levi could call the police, and they would come. Officer Dawson, she was sure, would immediately realize that she was in trouble. She just had to stay alive.

  How long had they been walking? Fifteen minutes? Twenty?

  Levi’s tours lasted from forty-five minutes to an hour. He wouldn’t be back yet. No one knew she was missing. Not yet.

  The man suddenly dragged her sideways. There, parked at the end of the forlorn alley, was an undistinguished four-door sedan. It was gray. She’d seen similar cars on the road frequently. Nothing about this vehicle stood out.

  It was deliberate, she knew.

  Suddenly, the hope she’d been carrying withered.

  Even if they searched, they wouldn’t know about this car. Unlike the green Jeep that Officer Dawson knew about, this car would blend in seamlessly.

  He stopped at the back of the car. She began to turn toward her captor. The gun was removed from her back and she saw an arm lift.

  Raising her arms instinctively to protect herself, she backed away a step.

  The gun gleamed as it was brought down and smashed against the side of her head.

  She was out before she hit the ground.

  SIXTEEN

  She couldn’t see anything. The small, enclosed space she found herself trapped in was a dark, inky black. A stale, moldy odor wafted past her nostrils. She gagged. Her mouth was covered with some kind of tape, probably duct tape.

  Shifting, she attempted to get her hands free. That was when she realized her feet were tied together at the ankles. Her arms had been tethered behind her back. She wiggled, seeing if she could free them. The movement sent pain darting through her head.

  She became aware of something sticky on her face. Blood.

  The memories flooded back. She had waited for Levi while he had been working. Someone came up behind her and forced her to move at gunpoint. When he stopped at his car and she had started to whirl to face the person, she had been struck on the temple.

  The floor beneath her cheek vibrated. Suddenly, she realized that she was stuffed in a car trunk and being taken somewhere. For a moment hope bloomed. Maybe they didn’t plan on killing her.

  The hope died as she thought about other things that could happen to her.

  Levi was her one hope. Would he find her? A sob tore at her throat. How could he possibly find her? She was taken when he was gone, and they hadn’t figured out who the sniper was, or who had hired Tammy to set the fires. Unless her abductor had left an obvious clue, she didn’t see how Levi or Officer Dawson would be able to find her.

  Her only hope was to pray. She was so weary, even praying seemed to take too much energy. She settled her head down on the metallic surface. Tears leaked out of her eyes and slipped to the trunk.

  Please, Gott. Please.

  The vibrations slowly rocked her to sleep.

  * * *

  She lifted her head and blinked blearily against the sunlight as the trunk popped open. A man leaned down and dragged her out of the trunk. She couldn’t make out his face yet. Those hours in the trunk and the bright sunlight had her vision confused. All she saw was a dark hulking form. His hands on her arms were hard. He swung her up over his shoulder and carried her into a building.

  As her vision became acclimated to the light, she noticed her surroundings. She was in some kind of store. Antiques were all around her. He led her past the merchandise, through a long hallway and then into a back room. It looked like a smaller version of the store. She saw more antiques, although they weren’t placed in any order. This must have been where they brought the antiques before displaying them.

  Before she could take further stock of this room, he hauled her back over his shoulder and dropped her on the ceramic tile floor like a sack of potatoes. Her wrists protested her rough treatment and she ached where her tailbone connected with the floor.

  Glaring, she faced her abductor.

  “Owen!” She couldn’t believe it. The funny driver Levi had hired was the man who had taken her.

  A moan over in the corner drew her attention. Hannah. She was pale and her eyes were rimmed with red. But she was alive. Even as Lilah watched, her sister-in-law’s face contorted in pain and she began to pant.

  “Hannah!”

  “Lilah...” Hannah moaned. “The boppli is coming early.”

  The blood curdled in her veins. The boppli couldn’t have picked a worse time to make his or her appearance.

  “I love family reunions, don’t you?”

  Lilah shifted her attention back to Owen. He seemed so normal. She would never have guessed him as the leader of the drug ring. Never.

  “Why?”

  There were so many questions in that one word. Why had he killed Jacob? Kidnapped Hannah? Shot at her and Levi? Destroyed Jacob’s office? The list went on. It was too overwhelming to mentally sort through it all.

  “Why?” He sneered. “Your brother was going to destroy me. For four years, I supplied him with the drugs he needed to support his addiction. He was in pain—I helped him out. It was a business! Then I get a frantic call from Billy, one of my, ah, shall we say, business associates. Billy saw Jacob in a meeting and recognized the gentleman as the cop who’d arrested him earlier. So, I confronted Jacob. He had gone to the police and was going to hand over evidence he’d gathered against me. He planned to demolish me. I offered him money. All I needed was for him to hand over the evidence he’d collected. But Jacob wouldn’t deal. He had a family. He couldn’t be a part of my ‘evil’ business.”

  Owen made air quotes with his fingers. He speared her with a hard glare. She shuddered. His eyes were full of menace and hate.

  “I needed to take care of him, so I hired Tammy to set the fire. Arson is her specialty. She did a good job. It would have all been fine, but then you got nosy. I was at the house the day of the funeral. I heard you when his wife kicked you out. You were going to snoop. I knew you’d be more familiar with where your brother kept things. I had to stop you.”

  She stared at him, appalled at what he was saying. In one corner of her brain, she knew he planned to kill both she and Hannah. Otherwise, he wouldn’t tell them anything.

  “And then she started asking questions,” he pointed his thumb at Hannah. “When the police said that the fire was arson, she started trying to find out who it was.”

  A phone rang in the store beyond.

  Owen’s mouth twisted. “Don’t go away.”

 
He stalked out.

  “Lilah.”

  Hannah’s voice was soft and pleading. “I was trying to protect you. When I kicked you out, I knew I was going to try and get answers. Jacob had loved you and tried to protect you. I couldn’t look until you were out of danger. Jacob would have wanted me to keep you safe.”

  With those words, Lilah forgave everything. All the pain and all the distress had been unimportant. There were so many things she wanted to say to Hannah.

  “Hannah—”

  But she couldn’t say anything else. Owen stormed back into the room, his face like a thundercloud.

  “Where is it?” he shouted at Lilah. “I talked with one of my dealers. The cops have finally left your place. My guys went there and found everything had been dug up. I know they found it! Where is his box? The one your brother was going to turn in to the police. I know you and your boyfriend have it. I want what was inside! Where are the pictures? The receipts?”

  He grabbed a large vase from the counter and slammed it to the floor. Shards of glass flew out in every direction. He toppled over a cabinet. It landed on Lilah’s ankle. She screamed in agony.

  * * *

  Levi paced the conference room at the police station. Lilah had been gone for three hours. Three hours! Anything could have happened to her in that time. He spun around to escape from the violence of his thoughts.

  Why had he left her alone? If he had been with her, he could have stopped this from happening.

  Maybe. His chin dropped to his chest. He was Amish now, and no longer carried a gun. Never again would he point a weapon at another person. Nor would he ever want to. So, if Lilah’s kidnapper had come at them, he wouldn’t have shot him or her.

  But he would have stood between her and any enemy who tried to hurt her without caring about the risk. Even if it meant taking a bullet.

  But he hadn’t been there.

  Officer Dawson charged into the room, holding a paper high in the air.

  “We’ve got ’em!” She slapped the paper on the table. “Owen Brown.”