The Silent Order

by Melanie Dobson

  “How old was Henry when you left?”

  She brushed her hands together, and for a few seconds, he didn’t think she would answer his question. Her voice was barely above a whisper when she spoke again. “He was three weeks old.”

  “Three weeks?”

  She shook her head. “Don’t ask me about Henry’s father.”

  “You were so young…”

  She stopped walking, turning back to him. A shield barricaded the soft blue of her eyes. “Yes, I was.”

  “Were you afraid?”

  “Very,” she said. “And I’m still afraid.”

  “What are you afraid of?”

  “Not being the mother Henry deserves.”

  He lifted her chin, and he saw her fresh tears. “You are a good mother, Katie.”

  She broke away from his touch, her gaze sinking to the grass. “No, I’m not.”

  “Do you remember my mother?” he asked.

  “I remember seeing her at parties.”

  “She was intent on rearing me well, but she focused most of her attention on making sure I said the right words to her guests and combating the dirt on my skin and under my nails.”

  He rubbed his hands together, in wonder for a moment that his skin was still intact after the hours upon hours of scrubbing with lye soap. If only his mother could have seen him in France. Days would go by without the opportunity to bathe. Weeks sometimes. He hadn’t minded the dirt.

  “You aren’t so concerned about the words Henry says or the dirt he carries on his skin. You’re focused on molding Henry’s heart and mind, Katie.” He wanted to reach out, take her hand again, but he willed himself to keep his hands at his sides. “Henry is one lucky boy to be your son.”

  She shook her head again. “I love him so much, but I don’t know what to do with him. Salvatore was a terrible father, and my mother… She tried hard to love us, but she should have taken us far away from him.”

  He was proud of her and what she had done. She’d escaped from the clutches of the Cardano family and taken her son with her. She was brave and determined, and the enthusiasm that annoyed him as a young man endeared her to him now.

  “You’re not a Cardano anymore, Katie. You’re a Lehman.” He took a deep breath. “You will lead Henry into the right world for him, far away from your past.”

  “Thank you,” she whispered.

  When he looked into her eyes again, he didn’t see Liz in them. Nor did he see Nicola Cardano. He saw Katie Lehman—a courageous and beautiful woman. And, for the briefest of moments, he wanted to kiss her.

  His hands twitched and he stepped away from her, emotions stirring inside him. Anger at Malloy. Betrayal. And the passion that was drawing him to Katie.

  “Is my mother still alive?”

  “She is,” he said simply. Celeste would have to decide if she wanted Nikki to know about her role in Rollin’s life.

  “And she’s still with my father, isn’t she?”

  He nodded.

  “I thought she would leave my father after what happened. I thought she would finally see what he was really like and get away.”

  “You don’t think she knows what Salvatore is like?”

  “I think she likes his money and even his power. And I think she’s too afraid to break away from it.”

  “Maybe one day she’ll surprise you.”

  Her shoulders sloped. “I’ll never know if she does.”

  “Maybe I can take a message to her when I go back to Cleveland.”

  Because he would be going back to Cleveland.

  Over Katie’s shoulder, he saw Ruth Yoder in the kitchen window, waving at them. He waved back and then met Katie’s eyes again. “Do you think the Lehmans will let me stay for one more night?”

  “Erma said you are always welcome in our home.”

  “And Isaac?”

  She shrugged. “I didn’t ask him.”

  CHAPTER 23

  After the boy climbed to the top of the bank, he wiped his muddy hands on his pants and held one out to her. Celeste shook his hand, and he looped his fingers over his suspenders.

  “Are you lost?” he asked with a toothy grin.

  In the car, she’d rehearsed over and over what she would say when she saw Nicola or Erma, trying to explain why she was here, but at the boy’s simple question, the words tangled in her throat. Should she ask about his mother? His father?

  “I’m looking for someone,” she said.

  He rocked back on his heels. “I know just about everyone around here.”

  “Oh, good,” she said, sounding as relieved as she felt. “I’m looking for a family by the name of Lehman. Isaac and Erma Lehman.”

  She didn’t think it was possible for his smile to grow any larger, but it did. “Isaac and Erma are my aunt and uncle.”

  Her lips trembled, and she pinched them together before speaking again. “I see.”

  He pointed up the treed hill. “They live up there.”

  “Are your parents home?”

  He shook his head. “Mamm went to town to sell some eggs.”

  Her shoulders relaxed slightly. She had thought she was ready to see Nicola, but now she wasn’t certain.

  “What is your mother’s name?”

  “It’s Katie. Katie Lehman.”

  The words rolled off her tongue. “Katie Lehman. That’s a pretty name. Are you Henry?”

  When he nodded, she reached up to her neck and fingered the pearls hanging around them. She was looking at her grandchild.

  “How many children do you have?” Henry asked.

  “Three. I used to have three,” she said slowly. “Now I have one.”

  “What happened to your other two children?”

  “They…” she started. “They grew up.”

  He pulled out his suspenders, creeping up on his toes. “Mamm tells me I’m not allowed to grow up.”

  She wanted to reach out and tousle his thick hair, but she clung to the seams of her dress instead. “Your mother is a wise woman.”

  “She tells me that all the time.”

  A quiet laugh escaped her lips, and the laughter felt good. Her little girl had grown up, and Henry obviously loved her. If Nicola were lucky, Henry’s love would last even after he became a man.

  “I knew your family a long time ago,” Celeste said. “How are Laban and Josiah?”

  The smile faded from Henry’s face. “They’re in heaven now.”

  Her heart clutched. “They died?”

  “Laban caught the measles, and Josiah…” He shook his head. “There was an accident in the field before I was born, but they never told me what happened.”

  Celeste brushed her fingers over the goose bumps on her arms. Both she and her sister had lost children, but they hadn’t been able to comfort each other. She should have been here to hug Erma when her boys passed on, but she was in Cleveland instead, wallowing in her own pain.

  “Erma was always so good with medicine.”

  Henry nodded. “She’s the best in the whole county.”

  “And yet she couldn’t cure her own children.”

  “The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away,” Henry started, and she finished the verse with him. “Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

  She cleared her throat. “Where is your father?”

  His gaze fell to his bare toes. “I don’t have a father.”

  She nodded, almost glad that Nicola hadn’t married. Perhaps there was still a hint of her little girl left.

  Celeste bent down, confiding in him. “I don’t have a father either.”

  “You don’t?”

  “The Lord took him away a long time ago,” she said.

  Henry nodded, very adult-like. “I never had a father.”

  “Oh…”

  “But I have the best mamm in the whole world.”

  She twisted her pearls in her fingers again, a smile back on her lips. For so many years she wondered, questioning her decision to send Nicola and Henry down her
e alone during those late-night hours, and she’d been angry at herself for letting them go. But Nicola was well and so was Henry. Perhaps she should leave well enough alone.

  “What does Nicola—” Her daughter’s name escaped from her mouth, and she stopped talking for a moment. Surely they hadn’t told Henry his mother’s real name or what happened when he was a baby.

  She took a deep breath. “What does Katie say about her mother?”

  Henry scratched his neck. “She doesn’t talk about her parents very often.”

  She could hear the creek trickling in front of them, the geese honking again over her head as Henry reached for a stick in the tall grass. He shoved it into the ground, twisting it in the dirt.

  “Mamm told me once that her mother was scarred,” he said. “Something about the burdens of life.”

  “Indeed.”

  “Do you know my mother?” he asked.

  “I do.”

  “She will want to see you then.”

  Celeste nodded. “When will she return?”

  “I don’t know, but my aunt is home. Do you want to visit her?”

  She thought of going to Erma, catching up on all the years, but what if her sister asked her to leave before Nicola returned? She’d guarded her heart for so many years, pretending the pain was gone, but right now all she wanted to do was hug her daughter and her grandson. It would crush her to leave without seeing Nicola, even for the briefest of moments.

  “Perhaps I could come and visit your mother in the morning.”

  Above the trees, she saw a blaze of green soaring through the puffs of clouds, and she squinted her eyes. Henry reeled around.

  “It’s the airplane,” he shouted, leaping and waving his arms.

  Her eyes focused in horror as the plane soared toward them. With a glance toward the road, she clutched Henry’s shoulder and pushed him under the cover of the trees. Then she clung to his arm as the plane passed over them.

  “I want to see it.” His neck strained, struggling to watch the plane.

  “You can’t let those men see you!”

  She released his arm, and he whirled toward her. “Why not?”

  Why not? How was she supposed to answer that question…

  “You don’t know who they are.”

  “They’ve been coming around for days now,” he said. “The pilot always waves to me.”

  Fear snaked up her spine, and she shivered. “When will your mother be back?”

  He shrugged. “Could be after dark.”

  “I’ll return, Henry,” she said, moving toward her car.

  She needed to speak with Nicola right away.

  *

  Antonio Cardano waited by the long field for the airplane to land. The last time he’d seen Uncle Ray was that autumn night in the basement of Mangiamo’s when everyone went crazy. In his opinion, Uncle Ray was the smartest of the Cardano pack. He’d disappeared for a season to drum up business in Columbus and Cincinnati under a variety of names while the others battled the Puglisis in Cleveland.

  While the other Cardanos thought Leone orchestrated the murders of John and Arthur Cardano, Uncle Ray knew Salvatore was the one who’d killed their two older brothers.

  John had been picking up cigarettes at a local drugstore when he’d been shot through the head, right before noon. In spite of the daylight, no one stepped up as a witness, and the cops never solved the crime.

  Arthur Cardano was taken out during a fishing trip on Lake Erie. He’d gotten soused, the police report said, and fell overboard. Everyone in the family knew Arthur had never gone fishing a day in his life. He was terrified of water. But the flatfoots didn’t know that—nor did they need to know it.

  There had been rumors over the years that blamed the Puglisi family for the deaths of both the Cardano brothers, but Leone and the others denied having anything to do with it.

  Raymond Cardano disappeared from Cleveland soon after Arthur’s body washed up on the shores of Lake Erie. For a long time, Antonio thought his favorite uncle had gone swimming with the fishes as well, but last year he received a letter from Raymond. Over the next few months Raymond’s intentions became clear—his uncle was ready to return to the Cardano circuit. And he wanted to partner with Antonio to run it.

  Salvatore didn’t know about Raymond’s return tonight or his desire to modify their current leadership, but his father was anxious about this meeting. In order to beat the Puglisi family, they had to expand their business dealings from Cleveland across the state of Ohio. Even though Salvatore worried about the risks of expansion, Antonio knew that his father’s obsession with beating the Puglisis far outweighed his worry.

  Antonio would deliver tomorrow night and this expansion would be the final nail in the Puglisi family coffin. He would earn the respect of the men who once thought Club Cardano was king, and they would follow him.

  Antonio brushed his sweaty hands on his beige slacks.

  He hated his father—everyone coming to this meeting hated him—but hating him didn’t mean it would be easy to eliminate him. He would have to be strong if he were going to take over the organization. He would have to prove to the men that he was ready to lead them alongside his uncle.

  Raymond Cardano hopped out of the biplane, tossing his goggles back onto the seat. His uncle’s hair had grayed over the years, but his easy grin hadn’t changed. Antonio wondered if the grin was still as deceptive as it had been a decade ago. Back then, Uncle Ray wasn’t afraid to kill anyone.

  “Junior, boy.” Raymond clapped him on the back. “When did you become a man?”

  He cringed. “I’ve been one for a long time.”

  “And you’re finally acting like one too.” Raymond glanced around the flat pasture in front of the house. “Who is here?”

  Antonio rolled off their names.

  “And when will the rest of them arrive?”

  “Tomorrow. Late afternoon and evening,” he said. “Everyone will come at a different time so we don’t attract attention.”

  “Good thinking, Junior.”

  It had been his father’s idea, but he didn’t mention that to his uncle.

  “Only Benito and Larenz know why they’ve been invited,” Antonio said. “The rest will be surprised.”

  “It will be a good surprise to all of them.”

  “I hope so.”

  “And we’ll be finished before daylight?”

  “Long before,” Antonio said.

  “When does Club get here?”

  “Around five tomorrow.”

  “I’m sure he’ll make a splash.”

  “He’s waiting until we have everything almost ready.”

  “We’ll have everything ready, all right,” Raymond said with a wink. “Get my bag, would ya?”

  Antonio retrieved the luggage from a compartment in the back of the biplane and led his uncle toward the house. “We have some catching up to do.”

  “Plenty of time for that, boy. Plenty of time.”

  Antonio looked back at the men guarding the barn. His uncle had less time than he knew.

  CHAPTER 24

  The road back to the Lehmans’ house was marred with holes and bumps. Even so, Rollin handled the cart and horse like he’d driven one his entire life. As she rode beside him, Katie didn’t dare look over. If she did, he might see the admiration in her eyes, and she couldn’t let him glimpse that.

  She hadn’t thought she would ever tell him about her family, but now he knew she’d once been Nicola Cardano, the ridiculous girl who kept pestering him and Liz. She couldn’t imagine what he must have thought about her then. Or now.

  She shook her head.

  It didn’t matter what Rollin thought about her. Even though he hadn’t gone back to Cleveland last night, he would return to his life in the city soon. Once he figured out how to stop Heyward Malloy. Her heart would remain in Sugarcreek, completely intact without him.

  Still, it was good to know Rollin was surprised when she told him that Heyward Mal
loy made a dark deal with her father years ago, a deal sealed with blood. She’d wondered for a long time if Rollin was part of her father’s large network of supposedly good guys. And maybe even one of the men who’d help cover up the reason Liz died.

  But Rollin hadn’t known, and the thought lightened her heart.

  “After I take you back to Isaac and Erma’s,” Rollin began. She kept her eyes focused on the gravel road in front of them. “Can I borrow Prince?”

  She turned. “You’re not going back…”

  “I’m going to find a way into the barn.”

  “Into the barn?” Her voice was climbing, but she didn’t care. “That’s impossible.”

  He lifted the reins a few inches. “I have to find out what they are doing.”

  “You can’t go inside there,” she huffed. “Not without friends to back you up.”

  “Darkness is my friend.”

  She sighed at his set jaw. If something happened, no one would even know he was gone.

  “I’m going with you, Rollin.”

  His eyes narrowed. “You most certainly are not.”

  “You need help…”

  “No, I don’t.”

  She crossed her arms, bracing herself for a fight. “What if they are speaking Italian?”

  “They’re always speaking Italian.”

  “I can translate for you.”

  He shook his head. “I know enough to figure out what they’re saying.”

  She tapped her hands on the edge of the open cart, her kapp strings trailing in the breeze. “How do you plan to get inside?”

  “I’ll wait until someone leaves the back door unguarded and then sneak in.”

  “They’ll see you.”

  He glanced over at her again, unswayed by her words. “It’s not like I’m going to announce myself.”

  “What if the men don’t leave?”

  “They will.”

  She rubbed her hands together. She only had one more trick left in her bag. “I know another way into the barn.”

  “Through the front door?”

  “Of course not,” she said with a roll of her eyes. “An entrance where they won’t see you.”