by Alison Stone
"Tea for everyone?" Betty added water to the kettle. "I could put on coffee."
"Tea is fine," Theo said and Olivia nodded.
Betty busied herself putting out teacups and a basket of tea bags while they all took stools around the large kitchen island.
"Where's Liam?" Violet asked.
"He's sleeping. My neighbor was kind enough to come over and sit in the house until I return." Theo brushed his hand down her arm. “I needed to see you."
The concern in his eyes touched her heart and threatened to make her break down in a blubbering mess. To save herself the embarrassment, she turned toward Olivia. "Is Elmer okay?"
"They took him to the ER. He had regained consciousness and I believe he'll be okay," Olivia said.
"Good," she muttered. She hated for the Graber family to suffer another loss.
"We do have news." Theo covered her hand. He cut a gaze to his sister, apparently encouraging her to go ahead and share the news.
"The sheriff's department found an accelerant, rags and bottles in Elmer's trunk consistent with those used in the trailer fire."
Violet leaned back on the stool, sighing. "Really?" As much as she wanted answers, she hated to think it was Elmer Graber, Abby's brother, who had nearly killed Liam.
Betty poured hot water into the teacups. "Can I get anything else before I leave you alone to talk?"
Violet slipped off the stool and gave Betty a big hug. "Thank you."
The older woman pulled back and gave her a confused look. "It's only tea."
"Thank you for everything. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Betty returned her embrace. "My pleasure, dear." She brushed a kiss across her cheek. "I'm going to bed." The Weavers were still sleeping in the main house so Violet wasn't alone. "If you need anything, knock on our bedroom door."
"Thanks." Violet pulled her hoodie sweatshirt tighter in around her. "Night."
Betty slipped out of the room. Violet turned to Theo, then let her gaze slide to Olivia. "What happens now?"
Olivia wrapped her hands around the teacup, but made no effort to dunk her tea bag. "Elmer remains in custody."
"Do you think he's the one behind all the attacks?" Violet was bombarded by a multitude of emotions.
"We still have to investigate. He hasn't admitted to anything, but after the evidence found in his trunk…" Theo squeezed Violet’s hand.
"Did you talk to him?"
"He's very angry with you over the loss of his sister." Olivia tore the paper from the tea bag.
"Enough to kill me?" She had seen the hatred in Elmer's eyes firsthand, but it seemed at odds with who Abby was. Who the Amish were.
"Irrational people do irrational things." Olivia dunked her tea bag into the hot water.
"Elmer works at the cheese factory down the road from the lumberyard. He had every opportunity to harass you," Theo added.
"Nothing would bring Abby back. So why? What does he gain?"
"He was pretty wound up. He said you weren't going to introduce the devil to Lorianne. Let the outside world get to her, too."
Violet furrowed her brow. "I offered to teach Abby's sister how to do the books at the lumberyard." She held up her palm. "I hadn't had a chance to mention it to you, with the fire in the trailer and everything." She shook her head. "I can't believe it. Abby never got along with her brother. I don't think any of the girls did. He was domineering. Cruel sometimes. But this…" Violet hugged her sweatshirt tighter around her. “But the flat tire happened on the day I showed up at the lumberyard. I only met Lorianne that day.”
“You had been to his house prior to then?” Olivia asked.
“Yes, I reached out to his family.” She sniffed, hating how things had turned out.
“You became his target after what happened to Abby.” Olivia set down her spoon. “In all likelihood, the attacks escalated as he feared you’d take Lorianne away from the family, too. But, at this point, it’s all speculation. We’ll cover all our bases before we close the investigation."
"Thanks."
"And Violet, you saved Elmer's life," Olivia said. "The fire would have killed him if you hadn't gotten him out of his vehicle when you did."
Violet tipped her head, emotion making her speechless.
"You did a good thing." Olivia touched her hand briefly. "Not everyone would do that.” She took a long sip of her tea. “That’s good stuff.” She smiled. “Well…I'll go warm up the patrol car. I'll give you a few minutes to chat." Olivia slipped off the stool and her footsteps could be heard as she crossed the foyer and let herself out the front door.
Violet felt her cheeks flush. "I guess your sister thinks we need a few minutes to chat."
Theo stared intently into Violet’s eyes. He lifted his hands and slid them into her hair. She sucked in a breath in anticipation as he leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. "I'm glad you're okay, Violet Jackson." He pulled her into a tight embrace. "It's finally over."
She pulled back to meet his gaze. "Is it? They haven’t arrested anyone for Abby’s murder yet. Elmer could be cruel, but he would have never killed his sister. And the likelihood that he went all the way to New York City…” She shook her head. “I don’t believe that for a minute.”
“You should call your contact in New York. See where they stand on the case. It’s very likely they’re unrelated. Abby’s death was the reason Elmer had it in for you. That’s all.”
Theo gently brushed his knuckle across her cheek and dropped his hand. He kissed her forehead and took a step back.
"I know we're not doing this." He gestured from him to her with his hand. "But I'm relieved you're okay."
"Thank you," she whispered, unable to say more. If only their paths had crossed under different circumstances, just maybe…
Chapter 19
A few days later, Violet was in the new office, going through the receipts. Despite her efforts to recreate records destroyed in the fire by contacting suppliers and buyers, and getting help from Chad and Theo, something wasn't adding up. Something she probably would have noticed if she hadn't been so distracted by flat tires, falling boxes, fires and car crashes.
She rolled her shoulders and leaned back in the chair, feeling a headache threatening.
"Excuse me, Miss Violet."
She glanced up to see Abby's sister standing in the doorway, her hands clutched in front of her apron covering her Amish dress. Violet sat upright. "Lorianne." She said the name reverently, as if the young Amish woman might turn around and run away. Violet stood. "Please, come in. Have a seat."
Lorianne tipped her bonneted head. "I can’t stay long.” She fidgeted with the strings to her bonnet. “I wanted to thank you for pulling Elmer out of the car. I heard it was on fire.”
So many responses swirled through Violet’s head, but she settled on a simple, “Anyone would have done it.”
“Well, thank you. I also need to tell you that I won't be able to learn how to keep the books like we talked about."
Violet reached back and lifted a stack of receipts. "Oh, you don't know what you're missing." She laughed awkwardly, but she knew there was a greater significance to Lorianne’s job refusal.
Lorianne smiled tightly. "Out of respect for my family, I'm going to leave this job. I think I can sell some of my quilts for extra money. That’s what my sister Ellen does."
Violet had often wondered why one twin had entered the workforce and the other one stayed on the farm. She threaded her fingers, hating that because of her, Lorianne had to quit. "I understand. But I'll only be here temporarily. Maybe your parents will allow you to come back then. After I've left."
Lorianne shrugged.
"How is your family?"
"We trust God will get us through."
"Your faith is admirable." Violet ran her finger along the edge of the desk, trying to muster the courage to say what she had to next. “I called the police in New York City.”
“Oh?” Red crept up Lorianne’s cheeks
. Perhaps Lorianne’s ability to forgive allowed her to move on without the answers Violet desperately needed.
“They arrested a guy in the neighborhood for breaking into a young woman’s apartment. They have reason to believe he was targeting single women in the area.”
“He was the one who hurt Abby?” The flat tone to the question was probably more painful than if she had fallen to the floor in racking sobs.
“They believe so. They’re still investigating, but the detective seemed very encouraged.” Violet allowed herself to be encouraged, too. Elmer had been arrested for harassing her in Hunters Ridge and a person of interest had been arrested for Abby’s murder. Perhaps it was time to move on.
Lorianne smiled tightly. “Thank you for letting me know.”
“You’re welcome.” It seemed like such a feeble thing to say. If Violet hadn’t befriended Abby, she would probably be married to some nice Amish man by now and chasing children around the farm. “Please know that you’re welcome to come back here. I’m sure Theo would say the same thing.”
Theo appeared in the doorway. “What would I say?”
Lorianne tipped her head shyly. “I’m leaving my job here.”
“And I assured her she’s welcome back whenever she’s ready.”
“Of course,” Theo said. "You’ll be missed.” A crease marred his brow and his gaze drifted from Lorianne to Violet, apparently sensing something was off.
“I need to go now. I hired a driver to take me home.” Lorianne hustled out of the office.
Violet flopped down in the desk chair. "I wish she didn’t have to quit."
"Yeah, it's not uncommon. Most of the Amish women end up running their homes. Raising children." Theo sat in the chair across from her desk.
A twinge of anger pinged her gut. "She's not even married yet. She's only leaving now because her family doesn't want her around me."
"Don't borrow trouble. Her family probably wants her close now with Elmer in jail."
“What a mess.”
“Elmer created his own mess. You can’t feel bad for him. He was reckless in his grief. He could have seriously hurt you.” Theo’s voice grew softer. “Or worse.”
Violet wrung her hands and glanced down at the receipts in front of her. She needed to focus on the task at hand. "The trailer fire made this more of a challenge than I anticipated." Her annoyance at the Lorianne situation was evident in her tone. There was so much to be annoyed about of late. "I believe I contacted all the buyers and suppliers. Chad gave me a few receipts he had on file."
Theo leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs. "Chad or I can go through them. See if anything jumps out."
"That's what you hired me for. There are a few discrepancies I need to rectify. But I'll figure it out." She bit her lower lip.
"Having a party?" Chad joked as he stepped into the new office with a coffee in hand.
The new location of the office made it busier, with more distractions. It would be amazing if she could get anything done in a timely manner. She hated that she was in such a sour mood.
"More of the same," Violet deadpanned.
"I don't know how you do it. All that paperwork is tedious. Boring…" Chad dragged out the word, then lifted his hand to his cousin. "Yeah, I know. That's why you hired her."
"Maybe you can give her some help. See if she's missing any suppliers or customers. She has a few holes to plug."
"I gave you my files. Didn't they help?" Chad leaned over Violet's desk, angling his head to look at the computer screen. "I'm not sure why she has to go through all this effort. Couldn't we get some sort of waiver or something, considering the fire?"
Draping her arm over the receipts, Violet brushed her fingers across the touchpad on her laptop. "Don't worry, I'll figure it out. I've had far more challenging accounting issues when I was doing my internship for a big accounting firm before I got my CPA."
"Well, I guess we're in good hands, then." Chad lifted an eyebrow and turned to leave.
Theo caught Violet's eye for a moment, before she glanced down and typed away on the keyboard. She had to focus and wrap things up. She still wasn't back to her old self, but with each passing day she found a renewed urgency to get back to New York City, to get back to her life.
And away from Theo. It was too hard to work with someone she cared about, but knew she couldn’t have.
Violet had gone through all the receipts and something still wasn't adding up. She had run through some credit card statements from shortly after Mr. Cooper's heart attack. There had been some large cash advances. Perhaps undocumented medical expenses? She had to talk to Theo about it.
When she arrived at Theo's house, Liam opened the door and smiled ear to ear. Violet's heart melted. She had missed him in her attempts to avoid spending any more time than necessary with Theo.
"Hi, Liam. How are you?" Violet asked, trying to relax her shoulders that were up around her ears to stave off the cold.
"Great. Did you come for my birthday?"
"Oh." Violet jerked back her head, startled. Somehow the fact that it was his birthday escaped her. Quickly recovering, she said, "Happy birthday."
"Who's there, Liam?" Theo called from inside the house.
"It's Miss Violet!"
Theo appeared behind his son, a surprised look on his face that surely matched hers.
Violet lifted her hands. "I didn't mean to intrude on Liam's birthday party."
"It's just me and my dad. I'm going to have a big birthday party with my class next week at the bounce party place."
Violet caught Theo's gaze. He nodded as if to answer the unasked question, "Yes, I’m really that crazy to take a bunch of six-year-old boys to a bounce house."
Violet held up her hands. "I don't mean to intrude. I can talk to your dad at another time."
"No, don't be silly." Theo reached out and took Violet's hand. "Come in. We were just about to have fish sticks and corn."
"Oh." Her stomach did a little flip-flop. She wasn't sure if it was from the menu or his warm fingers on her cold skin.
Theo didn't let go of her hand until they were in the kitchen. He grabbed the mitt and opened the oven door. He pulled out a tray of fish sticks neatly in rows on a cookie sheet lined with foil. Corn bubbled away on the stove in a pot of water.
Liam picked up a stepstool. Holding it to his little chest, he carried it across the kitchen and put it down against the cabinets. He stepped up on it and retrieved a plate from the cabinet. He busied himself until he had set a place for her.
How could she refuse Liam's invitation now? It was his birthday, after all.
"Here, let me take that." Theo touched the collar of her coat and helped her off with it before she could refuse. He placed it over the back of a chair.
After Theo put the fish sticks on a serving platter and drained the water from the corn, they all sat down around the small table.
"This is my favorite meal," Liam said, happily dipping a fish stick in a blob of ketchup.
Violet picked up her fork, not sure if she should stab the fish that had somehow made it into the shape of a stick or if she should follow Liam's lead and pick it up with her fingers. "I've never had fish sticks."
"Really?" Liam asked in disbelief.
Theo snapped off the flip-top lid of the ketchup and squeezed a blob onto his white plate. He reached over with the bottle turned upside down, offering to pour some ketchup on her plate. "So much better with ketchup."
Violet gave a slight nod of her head. She had eaten cuisine from all over the world, but she had never had this kid favorite in her own country.
She picked up a stick with her fork and swirled it in the ketchup, then took a bite.
"Good, right?" Liam asked, picking up another one with his fingers.
"Mmm…" Violet muttered noncommittally. She supposed anything was more palatable if it was deep fried and dipped in ketchup.
Theo watched her with an amused look on his face.
"Well,"
Violet said, not wanting to be pressed for her opinion on tonight's menu again, "I'm afraid I came over without a gift because I had no idea you could possibly be turning six years old already."
Liam sat up straighter in his chair and puffed out his chest. "I'm one of the oldest kids in my class."
Violet nodded, showing that she was impressed. "What did you wish for your birthday?"
Liam licked a smudge of ketchup from his upper lip. "From you?"
"Liam," Theo warned his son quietly. "You shouldn't—"
"Sure. From me." She smiled, enjoying how comfortable Liam had become around her.
"You said you used to go snowshoeing in the woods behind your house when you were a kid," Liam said, his eyes bright.
"You want to go snowshoeing?"
"Yeah. I want you to show me how so I can get good and then show my dad how to do it."
"Okay. Sure. We'll make plans to go snowshoeing, then."
"I don't have school tomorrow. Can we go tomorrow?" Apparently Liam knew it was necessary to pin adults down to a specific date and time, otherwise things didn't happen.
"You shouldn't put people on the spot," Theo said.
Violet set her fork down and smiled. "No, it's okay. It's his birthday and if he wants to go snowshoeing, then we'll go snowshoeing. And I think tomorrow would be perfect."
The phone on the wall rang and Theo pushed back his chair to answer it. He then held the receiver out for Liam. "It's for you. It's your mom."
Liam scooted off his chair and ran for the phone. Violet could hear him telling his mom that he was going snowshoeing, and Violet hoped that wouldn't cause more trouble for all the parties involved.
Theo leaned across the table. "You don't have to take him. He gets very excited and he can be very persuasive."
"No, it’s fine…" Liam had suffered so much disappointment and loss in his life and she didn't want to add to that.
"Okay, if you're sure."
"I'm sure."
"I mean, you already took one for the team tonight. I can't believe you have never had fish sticks before."
Violet slowly shook her head, a warmth coiling around her heart at the genuineness of the man sitting across from her.