Kappy King and the Pickle Kaper

by Amy Lillard

  “That’s why it’s important we try to find this car.”

  “What?” Edie’s remorse fled and shock took its place.

  “Find the car? We have no idea what kind of car we’re looking for.”

  “Sure we do. It’s medium-sized with dark-blue paint and four doors.”

  “Be serious, Kappy. Do you have any idea how many cars in the valley fit that description?”

  “Three or four?” She shrugged.

  “Thirty or forty. At least.”

  Kappy’s hopes deflated a bit. “That’s not so many. And we don’t have any other clues.”

  “I’m not sure I’d even call this a clue. It’s more of a drop in a bucket.”

  “Listen. I’ve given this a lot of thought. All we have to do is drive around and look for cars that fit that description. Then we check out those people and see if they have any motive.”

  “At least you’re taking my advice on that one.”

  Kappy sniffed and raised her chin a bit higher in the air. She would not back down. Willie’s life might depend on it. “What do you say?”

  Edie shook her head. “I don’t have time to mess with this. Mose called and wants Jimmy to come in to work today.”

  “And you—we’re—going to take him to the bait shop. All we have to do is watch for cars on the way there. I’m telling you, there can’t be that many dark-blue sedans in Kish Valley.”

  * * *

  That was the first thing she got wrong.

  From the moment they pulled into Mose’s Bait Shop and saw a dark-blue sedan parked in the packed gravel drive, it seemed everything was stacked against them.

  That car ended up belonging to an out-of-state couple who were heading home and had to take some of Mose’s nearly famous honey back with them.

  But Kappy wasn’t giving up that easily and, as far as she was concerned, everyone except the three of them—her, Edie, and Jimmy—were suspects. She even walked around the blue car to make sure there were no dents or scratches that might indicate a collision with another vehicle. Or a yellow buggy.

  “Here we go.” Edie started the car and tossed a notebook and a pen to Kappy. “I’ll drive, of course, but you need to watch for these cars. Write down where we see them and a license plate if you can. Okay?”

  “Got it, boss.”

  Edie rolled her eyes, reversed the car, and started back down the highway. “We need to get some gas soon.”

  “Can you make it to the end of the valley?”

  “I believe so.”

  Kappy nodded. “Then let’s give this one pass, get gas, and turn around. Then we can come back from the other way and see if there’s a car we might have missed.”

  “You know we’re going to miss a couple. Maybe even a lot.”

  “But we have to try,” Kappy said. She felt the note of panic creep into her voice. “This is my hometown, and I will not have anyone terrorizing it and killing innocent teens.”

  “I thought you said they were after Jonah.”

  “Maybe. Unless they knew that Sally June would be making the delivery.”

  Edie shook her head as if to get her rattled thoughts back into order. “Who would know something like that?”

  “The family, maybe a few friends.”

  “Is Jonah Esh dating anyone?” Edie asked.

  “Don’t you think he’s a little young for you?”

  Edie sniffed her disapproval. “That is not what I mean and you know it. At the funeral, didn’t you say you heard someone talking about Jonah dating a girl his family didn’t approve of? Maybe she gave the information to a third party.”

  “Third party?” What did she mean by that?

  “Someone other than one of them.”

  “Wait a minute . . . what if Willie has a girlfriend?”

  Edie shook her head. “What are you talking about? I thought we agreed that we don’t even know for certain if Mr. Text is Willie.”

  “If he is, we should definitely check it out.”

  Edie nodded. “If you say so.”

  Kappy smiled. “I definitely say so.”

  * * *

  By the time they picked up Jimmy from work, they had five names on their list. Mrs. Robert Swanson, the new pastor’s wife; Mr. Delvin Roberts, who ran the grocery store; Mabel Mast the Mennonite; Judy Ames, the pizza delivery person; and Trevor Carson, who worked at the medical clinic at the end of town.

  Not bad for driving around all afternoon, Kappy thought. But they would need to do better. Even more than sitting at Edie’s table and trying to regroup.

  Kappy tapped the end of her pen against the paper and shook her head. “This is not a very criminally-minded list.”

  “Don’t let that fool you. ‘Who knows what darkness lies in the hearts of men?’ ”

  Kappy raised her gaze to Edie’s, not sure whether to open the door and run for her life or laugh at her friend’s dramatic flair. “What?”

  Edie flicked a hand in her direction and shook her head. “Nothing. It’s from a movie. I think. Anyway, the point is you don’t know what a person has in their heart.”

  “I guess not.” Kappy looked at the list again. If any of these people were guilty she would eat her shoes. A preacher’s wife, the mild-mannered grocery store manager, the laid-back pizza delivery person, the caring nurse, and the Mennonite. Kappy couldn’t fathom how any of them even knew a young, twenty-something Amish man who worked hard for his family and kept to himself.

  “We need to compare notes with Jack,” Kappy mused.

  “Isn’t he looking for a black car?”

  “He said dark-colored or black. Maybe there are a few people on this list who would be the same. And he would have access to all sorts of city and state records, wouldn’t he?”

  Edie nodded. “I suppose.”

  “Invite him to dinner.”

  “What?” She pushed at Kappy, causing her chair to rock a bit.

  “For a pacifist you certainly are violent.”

  “Who said I was a pacifist?”

  For all Kappy knew, Edie had given up her peaceful ways the day she took off her prayer kapp. “True dat.”

  “Ugh!” Edie growled.

  “Are you going to ask him out or not?”

  “I can’t ask him out.”

  “Sure you can. You just call him up, tell him that you’ve been thinking about him, and that you want him to come out and have supper with you. And Jimmy.”

  “And you.”

  “Me? Why do I have to be there?”

  “The same reason I have to be there.”

  “Whoa . . . I don’t like Jack nearly as much as you do.”

  “And I do not like Jack at all.”

  But the sparkle in her eyes when she said his name was enough to turn those words from a statement to a lie.

  “Pretend there’s some other reason. Like . . . like helping me with the fence.”

  “Shouldn’t you be the one to invite him, then?”

  “Fine. Be that way. I’ll invite him myself, but we’re coming here to eat.”

  “But . . . but . . .” Edie sputtered.

  “No buts. It’ll be dark by the time we eat, and I like your new solar lights. And I have a feeling that Jack will, too.”

  “Humph.”

  “You’re welcome.” Kappy flashed her a quick smile. “By the way, has the bishop said anything about the solar panels?” Kappy didn’t know a soul in Blue Sky who had solar panels. Not a soul in the entire valley had them, but as bold as brass, Edie had them installed. She didn’t have unlimited power like she would have in an Englisch house, but she had a little more light at night. And she had heard through Jimmy that Edie had been watching YouTube videos after the sun went down.

  “The bishop has no say in the matter,” Edie said. Though Kappy couldn’t agree. The bishop had a say in all matters he chose. “Sure,” she said, and Edie rolled her eyes.

  “I am no longer a member of the Amish church,” she said emphatically.

/>   “But Jimmy is.”

  Edie stopped. “And this is why staying here is so difficult.” “Maybe you should go talk to Bishop Sam and tell him how you feel.”

  “I couldn’t talk to him when I was eighteen. I surely can’t talk to him now.”

  “But I would think—”

  “Hup.” Edie held up one hand to stop Kappy’s words. She had been about to say that Edie had grown up a lot since she was eighteen. Perhaps it might even be easier for her to talk to the bishop now. But Edie was hearing none of it.

  “I guess I’ll invite Jack. Let me have the phone.” Kappy held out her hand.

  But Edie shook her head. “How do I know you won’t be texting Mr. Text and asking his name?”

  “Other than the fact that I can barely make a call on that crazy thing? I guess you won’t.”

  “Then no.”

  “No?”

  “No. You can’t have the phone.”

  “How am I supposed to call Jack and invite him to supper?”

  “I guess you won’t.” Edie shot her a self-satisfied look. She had effectively killed two birds with one stone.

  “I could go to the shanty.”

  Edie shrugged, but a little of her smugness melted away. “Suit yourself.”

  “I will.” She turned toward the barn. “Jimmy!”

  He stepped into the sunshine as if he had been waiting for her summons.

  “I’ve got to make a call at the shanty. Want to go with me?”

  “Jah. Sure!” He skipped toward her, his excitement palpable. “Who are we calling?”

  “Jack Jones,” Kappy said with her own victory grin at Edie.

  “I like Jack.”

  “Me too. And your sister has graciously agreed to cook supper for us all.”

  “Hooray.” Jimmy pumped his fist in the air.

  Kappy laughed but Edie appeared a bit shocked. “I thought you didn’t like him.”

  Jimmy frowned. “I never said that. I said he wasn’t Amish.” “Wanna walk down with us?” Kappy asked to change the subject.

  Edie shook her head. “Fine. You can use my phone.”

  Kappy laughed. “Not on your life.”

  Jimmy grinned. “Good. I want to go for a walk.”

  “Whatever,” Edie said with a defiant lift of her chin. “I’ll stay here and change out the water in the swimming pool.”

  Jimmy’s expression fell. “That’s my job. You want me to stay and do it? I will.”

  “Go on ahead. I’ll do it,” Edie replied.

  The phone shanty sat on School Yard Road, but was a stone’s throw from the highway. Sure, it would have been easier to call from Edie’s phone, but this was about principle. Edie couldn’t dictate all of Kappy’s phone calls and she wanted Edie to know that. No matter how immature the thought seemed.

  The small green building was barely bigger than an outhouse, though instead of a toilet, it contained a phone for the Amish families who lived in the area to use.

  Families, Kappy thought with a mental shake of her head. There was her, Nathaniel, Ephraim, Martha Peachey, Edie and Jimmy, and that was it.

  “Can I call?” Jimmy bounced on his toes with excitement.

  “Sure.” Kappy opened the door and motioned him inside.

  He seemed gloriously happy that Jack might come to dinner. Jack was just that sort of guy, likeable and fun to be around . . . mostly. But Kappy wasn’t blind. She could see the spark of interest between Edie and the detective. And if she could get them to act on that . . . well, Edie might just stick around a bit longer. Like forever.

  The interior of the phone shanty barely had enough room for one person. Kappy pulled Jack’s business card out of her pocket and was going to dial the number for Jimmy. He protested, saying he wanted to do it all himself. Being independent was so very important to him, and Kappy nodded.

  “Just tell him that we want him to come to supper Friday night at yours and Edie’s house, okay?”

  Jimmy nodded. “Got it.”

  Kappy allowed the door to close, then turned toward the road. With any luck, this long shot of inviting Jack Jones to supper would pan out. Either in another clue or even a love interest for Edie.

  Her friend would be angry when she discovered Kappy had set them up, but it would be worth it. Or Jack would be angry when he found out they had used him for information. If he found out. But either way, it would be worth it. Whoever killed Sally June Esh couldn’t get away with it.

  The sound of a car approaching drew her attention to the highway. She had never really taken stock of how close the phone shanty sat to the main road, but it was barely a hop, skip, and a jump away, as Aunt Hettie would say.

  A dark-blue car whizzed by. It was a miracle that Kappy noticed the driver at all, but there she was: a woman with long dark hair, just like Mr. Text had described!

  Kappy took off toward the highway, chasing after the car as if she could actually catch it.

  A car horn sounded, and she skidded to a stop in the gravel fringe that welcomed School Yard Road to the highway.

  “Hen’s teeth!”

  Their suspect had just slipped through her fingers.

  Chapter 14

  Kappy could barely contain herself as she ran back to Edie’s house. Jimmy grumbled that she was going too fast, but her excitement kept getting the better of her, and she would have to stop and wait for him to catch up.

  “Edie,” she called, opening the front door. “You are not going to believe what just happened.”

  Her friend came out of the kitchen wearing a flowery apron and a frown. “You joined the circus and promise never to darken my door again.”

  “Funny,” Kappy quipped in return.

  “Don’t darken it. If we do anything we should paint it blue. Like Kappy’s. I like blue.” Jimmy grinned.

  Both Edie and Kappy decided to ignore that comment.

  “Now answer for real.”

  “Jack’s coming to eat with us.” Jimmy hopped from one foot to the other in a sort of jiggy victory dance.

  “Oh, yay.” Edie rolled her eyes and started back to the kitchen.

  “I saw the car. I saw our girl.”

  Edie stopped in her tracks. “What?”

  “You heard me.”

  Edie whirled around, supper forgotten as she pulled Kappy toward the table. She nudged her down into one of the chairs and took the one opposite her. “Tell me everything.”

  Kappy started at the beginning, but the story didn’t take more than two minutes to retell.

  “Did you get a license number?”

  Kappy shook her head. “Was I supposed to?”

  “It would have helped.” Edie sat back in her seat and blew her bangs off her forehead. “Without it we’re no further along than we were before you saw the car.”

  “I messed up.”

  “You didn’t know.”

  “It took me by surprise. One minute I was thinking about how close to the road the phone shanty is, and the next a murder suspect was driving by.” She shivered. Had she really been that close to a killer? “What if this was just an accident?” she asked, raising her gaze to Edie’s.

  “I thought we had gone over this.”

  “Jah, we did, but I can’t help thinking . . .”

  “Well, don’t. You want to believe that everything is good and right in the world, and some things are just wrong.”

  “I suppose.”

  Edie pushed to her feet and made her way back into the kitchen. Kappy could hear her but not see her as she continued. “That’s the thing about Blue Sky. I mean, even the name sets up unrealistic expectations of a place that will live up to its name. And it simply . . . can’t.”

  Kappy rose and followed Edie into the kitchen. “Smells good.” She lifted one of the lids and inhaled the delicious-smelling aroma.

  “So much for you cooking.”

  She shrugged. “Someone had to invite our supper guest.” “I’m still not sure this is a good idea.”

/>   “It’s the perfect idea. Especially now that we’re this close. I could practically touch her as she drove by. You can’t hide in a town the size of Blue Sky.”

  “Amen,” Edie muttered.

  Kappy took a step back and propped her hands on her hips. “That’s the problem, isn’t it? You can’t hide here.”

  “Whatever.” She rolled her eyes.

  “Make any sort of face you want, but I know the truth.”

  “You’re just making stuff up.” Edie shook her head, then laid her spoon to one side. “Okay. Fine. You’re right. There’s no hiding here. Everybody knows what everyone else is doing. Or not doing, as the case may be. The Englisch are bad enough. The Amish are even worse.”

  “We just care about our fellow man.”

  “Uh-huh. You just keep telling yourself that. Without TV and Internet, I guess you need some sort of entertainment.”

  Something akin to anger—or was it disappointment?—shot through Kappy. But it was gone as quickly as it came, leaving behind a new sense of awareness. “That may be true. But ask anyone here for help, and they would give you their last penny and you know it.”

  “That doesn’t mean I want to stay here.”

  “Jah. But it’s a pretty good reason not to leave.”

  * * *

  Friday dawned as the perfect soon-to-be-fall day. The wind held a small chill, but the sun’s rays were warm enough to chase it away.

  Kappy got up early as promised and walked over to the Peacheys’ to help with the chores. She didn’t mind. She actually liked helping, but there was no way she was telling Edie that. Her newfound friend was having a hard enough time making up her mind about staying or leaving. Kappy didn’t want to add any more to the mix.

  But Edie was nowhere around as Jimmy and Kappy fed the puppies, cleaned the gerbil hutch, and refilled the plastic swimming pool for the ducks.

  “Where’s your sister?” Kappy asked as they finished up. It wasn’t like Edie to leave Jimmy alone for this long. Not that he was truly alone. He was with her, but Edie seemed to hover over Jimmy. His time in jail seemed to change his sister’s attitude toward him. Then again it wasn’t every day that a person’s brother was accused and jailed for killing their mother. Or maybe it was their mother’s untimely death that had caused the changes in Edie.