by Mary Alford
“I’m safe with you,” she said. “And Anna might tell me something she would be too nervous to say with just you alone.”
Holding her gaze a long moment, he sighed and tapped the radio on his jacket. “Janine, I’m making a stop at the Lapp place on Spruce before heading to the station. I have Rachel Albrecht with me. Walker knows, but I wanted you to be aware, as well. I’ll radio you when we’re heading your way.”
“Copy that,” the dispatcher said.
While Noah concentrated on his driving, Rachel tried to imagine him as a deputy sheriff. He’d loved working on his family’s farm and helping her daed out whenever possible. She’d always assumed he’d one day own his own farm, yet something had changed him.
Seeing him again after all these years felt unreal. When she’d first learned that his family had moved from the area, she’d been devastated. There had been no goodbye—no explanation. Her mamm was the one to break the news to her. All along, she’d known his family didn’t approve of their relationship, but she’d thought he would stand up for her. For them.
Back then, her whole world revolved around the time they spent together. Even though Noah wasn’t Amish, her young heart believed they could find a way to work through all the problems facing them as long as they had each other.
He caught her looking at him and she dropped her gaze to her hands. Her palms stung from the cuts there. The worry for Eva threatened to swallow her up. She was barely hanging on.
Noah turned off Spruce and eased the patrol vehicle down the potholed dirt road leading to the Lapps’ home. Once they reached it, he killed the engine. The house was dark inside. The family of six would be sleeping. Morning came early in Amish country. As dairy farmers, the Lapp men would be up before dawn to start the morning chores.
“We’re going to have to wake them. There’s no other choice.” He focused on his watch. “It’s almost two.” With a sigh, he glanced her way. “This won’t be easy.” Climbing out, Noah came around to her side. He’d grown up a lot over the years. Still, no matter how much he’d changed, when she looked at him, she saw the young boy she’d once adored.
Slightly taller now, he’d filled out from that lanky teen, but those brilliant blue eyes were much the same, as was the blond hair, though he’d cut it much shorter now. She’d thought about him a lot over the years. Wondered. Kept the pain to herself. Her mamm had been the only one who knew how broken Rachel was after Noah left.
“Ready?” he asked when she stood beside him.
Letting go of the past was hard. Her life had been blessed. She and Daniel had many happy years together. And a life spent lingering on regrets is a wasted life, her mamm always said.
She nodded, the hurt too fresh to trust her voice.
Noah stepped up on the porch with her. It took several knocks before someone rousted. Samuel Lapp opened the door a crack, holding a lantern high, concern etched across his face.
“Mr. Lapp, I’m sorry to wake you so early. I’m Deputy Noah Warren, and you know Rachel Albrecht. We need to speak with your daughter Anna immediately.”
Samuel’s gaze shot to Rachel. She couldn’t imagine how pitiful she must look.
“What is this about, Deputy?” Samuel asked.
“It’s about Eva, sir. She didn’t come home last night. Is she here?”
Samuel’s eyes widened and he shook his head. “Nay. Eva left hours ago.” The worst possible news. Rachel struggled to hold herself together.
“We believe your daughter may have been the last person to see her,” Noah said. “That’s why we need to speak with her.”
Samuel gasped, his bushy white brows shooting up. “What could have happened to Eva? This is a peaceful community. There’s been no crime.”
Noah glanced at Rachel. “We’re not sure. We’re hoping Anna can shed some light.”
“Jah, please come inside.” Samuel held the door open, and they stepped across the threshold. His wife, Kathryn, stood beside her husband.
“What has happened to Eva?” Kathryn asked with a fearful expression on her face. Rachel could not speak the darkest fears of her heart aloud.
“She didn’t come home last night. We don’t know where she is,” Noah answered for her.
“Go quickly,” Samuel said, facing his wife. “Wake Anna.”
With a worried glance at Rachel, Kathryn hurried away. In the awkward silence that followed, Rachel’s concern for Eva’s safety continued to grow.
Noises above were followed by voices. Anna came swiftly down the stairs with Kathryn at her heels.
“Anna, Eva did not come home last night. What time did she leave here?” Samuel asked his daughter.
Anna’s eyes widened. “I’m not sure. She wanted to be home by ten, and it’s a good walk to her house. She left in plenty of time, though. I cannot believe she didn’t make it home.”
“Did she mention if anything was bothering her lately?” Noah asked. “Was she having a problem with anyone? A boy, perhaps?”
Anna’s troubled gaze shot to Rachel. “She was happy. She talked to a lot of different people at the singing, but there was no special boy. She was so excited about taking over the teaching position soon. We had fun at the singing. When it ended, we came home. I made cocoa, and we talked for a while.” Anna smiled at the memory. “Eva spoke of the lessons she and Hannah planned for the kinner the next day and asked if I wanted to stop by sometime and sit in on the class. Eva knows I want to become a teacher, too, and thought it might be helpful. Once she takes over the position, she plans to speak to the community elders about letting me apprentice.” Tears shone in Anna’s eyes. “Eva was happy and excited about her work. There was nothing wrong.”
“Did anyone pay special attention to her at the social?” While Rachel understood Noah had to ask the question, she couldn’t envision anyone from the community wishing Eva harm.
“No, no one.”
Noah barely hid his disappointment. “We appreciate your help, Anna. I’m sorry to wake you and your family so early. If you remember anything else, please let me know.”
He started to leave, but Anna grasped his arm. “You have to find her, Deputy. Please, she’s my best friend.” Kathryn placed her arms around her weeping daughter’s waist and drew her close.
“We’re going to do our best to bring her home safely,” Noah assured her.
Samuel stepped out on the porch with them. “If we can help in any way, please let us know. Eva is like one of our own,” he told Rachel.
“Denki, Samuel,” Rachel managed through tears. She turned away, trying to hold on for Eva’s sake.
“Do you think it’s possible you or Anna wouldn’t know if Eva was seeing someone?” Noah asked when they were inside the SUV again.
Rachel couldn’t imagine Eva keeping something like that secret. “It’s not possible. Eva and I are close. She tells me everything that is happening in her life. She would not keep something like that to herself.”
The doubt she saw in him hurt. “It wouldn’t be the first time something like this happened. Teenagers keep secrets. It’s part of the age.”
“Perhaps in the Englisch world, but not here amongst the Amish. Eva would not lie to me.”
Without answering, Noah reversed the SUV, spun around and headed down the long drive. Hitting the radio on his shoulder, he spoke to the dispatcher again. “Show us leaving the Lapps’ place, Janine. We’re heading your way.”
“Will do. See you soon.”
Once he reached the end of the drive, he stopped. “You said you think someone was following you. Did anything else happen before the incident the other day? What about with Eva? Did she mention anything strange going on?”
“No, nothing. And Eva never said a word about anything out of the ordinary happening.”
He pulled onto Spruce once more and headed toward Eagle’s Nest. “By the way,
where is Beth?”
Rachel leaned against the headrest as exhaustion settled in her limbs. “Mamm left last week to visit her sister and parents in Colorado. Aenti Deborah has not been feeling well for a while. Mamm wanted to spend some time with her to help nurse her to good health.”
Noah smiled over at her, gentleness in his eyes. “I was sorry to hear about your father. He was a good man.”
She ducked her head. “Jah, he was.” Even though four years had passed since her daed died, at times, she still couldn’t believe he was gone.
Her mamm had become worried about him when he didn’t show up for the evening meal. She’d asked Rachel’s husband to check on him, and Daniel had found Daed passed out in the field he’d been working. He’d suffered a heart attack. Her daed never recovered.
Shaking off those sad memories, she tried to focus on Noah’s earlier question. Other than the incident with the car, she had no proof anyone was watching her, only a feeling.
A frown creased Noah’s handsome face. He watched something in the rearview mirror.
She glanced behind them. Headlights. “Is something wrong?”
“I’m not sure. That car came out of nowhere the moment we left the Lapps’ drive. I think they were waiting for us.”
Fear gathered her in its embrace. Someone was following them.
* * *
The vehicle came closer. Noah’s bad feeling doubled. The headlights were on bright. What was the driver trying to do? Noah slowed the SUV’s speed, thinking if the incident was innocent, the driver would pass them. Did they not know they were tailgating a sheriff’s deputy?
As he continued to watch his rearview mirror, he noticed something alarming. The car’s front license plate was missing. With the vehicle inches from his bumper, Noah prepared to radio for assistance, when the car rammed the rear of the patrol vehicle.
Noah lurched forward, the seat belt caught hard. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Rachel gripping the armrest for support.
The SUV slipped on the icy road and he struggled to keep it under control.
“What’s happening?” she asked, her voice unsteady and barely audible.
“They’re trying to run us off the road.” The car edged up behind them once more. Noah floored the gas pedal. The SUV fishtailed, and he held on to the wheel with all his might to keep from losing control. The car stayed with him.
“Hold on,” Noah yelled when the car slammed into them again. Before he had time to radio for assistance, the rear tire of the SUV blew. The vehicle spun three hundred and sixty degrees on the ice before heading straight for the snow-covered ditch at full speed.
Noah fought for control and lost. The cruiser hit the snow hard, launched itself through the air and slammed onto its side. Skidding some twenty feet, it plowed up snow and debris until it came to a shuddering stop on the passenger side. His head slammed against the driver’s-side window. It shattered on contact, sending glass flying everywhere. Noah lost consciousness briefly. When he came to, seconds ticked away before the fog lifted. Blood oozed from his face where bits of glass embedded.
Rachel! Below him, a barely audible moan. He glanced down to see her suspended by the seat belt. “Rachel, are you hurt?” Her lack of response was terrifying. Noah craned his neck. The dashboard lights revealed her eyes were not open. She wasn’t moving.
“Rachel!” he called to her again. Her eyes fluttered open. Breath seeped out in a sigh of relief. Still, she could have internal injuries. “Are you okay? Can you move?” he asked.
She flexed her arms and legs. “I think so.”
A flashlight’s beam swept across the windshield. Rachel’s eyes shot to Noah’s. He signaled for her to keep silent. The men who ran them off the road were still out there.
Noah’s radio hung freely from his jacket, smashed to bits when he’d slammed into the door. He couldn’t find the cell phone that he’d placed on the center console. They were on their own.
“See if you can unfasten your seat belt,” he whispered with urgency.
It took several tries before she was free.
“Stay down and don’t move no matter what,” he said in a low voice. Rachel flattened herself against the floorboard.
It took all his effort to unholster his Glock.
“Be careful, he’s a cop,” a man’s voice warned. He had to be standing right next to the SUV.
“Yeah, well, you’d better hope she’s alive because he’s going to be angry if you killed her by ramming their vehicle. We were supposed to follow them. Find out what’s going on. See if we could get her alone and nab her, and now you’ve gone and done this.”
“Shut up. I got the job done, didn’t I? We have them at our mercy,” the first man snapped.
“By running a sheriff’s vehicle off the road! You could land us both in jail. I want my share of the money. If she’s dead or we get caught, there’s nothing.”
“She’s not dead, and there’s no way I’m going to jail, not even if I have to kill him.” Rachel’s terrified gaze met his. “Besides, they’re probably both unconscious. And we’re wearing masks. Now, give me a foot up so I can grab her before he wakes up.”
Outside his door, Noah heard the men struggling to reach it. A man’s head and shoulders popped into view. In the cramped position, Noah aimed and fired. The man yelped and fell backward.
“I’m hit,” he screamed. “He shot me. Help me out, why don’t you. We need to split. There could be more of them coming.”
“What about the girl? We need her,” his partner said.
“Forget the girl. We’ll get her another time,” the first man snapped. “I’ve been shot! I need a doctor.”
Seconds slipped by. A car’s engine fired. Tires squealed as the vehicle sped away.
“Let’s get out of here before the one guy changes his mind and decides he’d rather have the money than save his buddy’s life.” Noah tried to free the latch on the seat belt, but the tension of his weight against it was too much.
He felt around on the center console, unable to open it from his angle.
“I’m going to need your help. I have a knife in the center console. Can you reach it?”
Using the seat as a crutch, Rachel managed to stand. Opening the console, she felt around until she located the knife.
“I have it.” She held it up.
He took it from her. “Once I cut through the seat belt, I’m not sure if I can control where I’ll land, and I’m afraid I’ll hurt you in the process. Can you make it to the back seat? You should be safe there.”
She glanced behind him. “I think so.” Gathering her skirt, Rachel eased between the two seats until she was tucked behind the passenger seat.
Noah braced his weight against the console. Opening the knife, he began cutting away at his restraints.
It took longer than he’d expected for the final piece to fray loose and free him. His full weight slammed against the console, which blocked his fall. Wincing in pain, he breathed a prayer of thanks. He spotted his cell phone where it had landed in the passenger side pouch. Grabbing it, Noah quickly called Walker.
“Where are you? Janine said you were heading to the station a while ago.”
Drawing in a breath, Noah explained about the attack. “The SUV’s incapacitated and I’m afraid those goons might return to try and kidnap Rachel again.”
“We’re on our way. Can you two make it out of the cruiser?”
“I think so.”
“Good. Find someplace safe to hide until we arrive. We’re ten minutes out.” Sirens blared through the phone.
Ending the call, Noah pocketed the phone. He killed the SUV’s engine and peered out the shattered driver window.
“I think we can climb out this side and then scoot across to the front of the SUV and hop to the ground.” Noah eased out the window and moved a little a
way. He held out his hand to her.
Bracing her foot, Rachel grasped it, and he lifted her up and out of the patrol vehicle. She glanced over the side. It was a good drop straight down.
“Don’t look down, just do what I do, okay?” He held her gaze. Slowly she nodded. On his hands and knees, Noah edged to the front of the vehicle. As carefully as possible, he put one foot on the headlight and the second on the grill. He jumped down, the deep snow cushioned his landing.
Holding out his hands, he looked up at Rachel, reading all her doubts in her eyes. “It’s okay. I have you. I’m not going to let you fall.” He’d let her down once. Would she trust him this time?
“You promise?” she asked, her voice filled with uncertainty.
“I promise. I won’t let you down again.” And he meant it. No matter what, he’d do his best to keep her safe and bring Eva home to her family.
With the tiniest of nods, she placed her feet where he had. His hands circled her waist, and he lowered her to the ground at his side still holding her close. Their gazes tangled. All her doubts there for him to see. The past enveloped him once more, as did his regret.
Pushing against his hands, she stepped back, and he felt her rejection almost like a blow.
Noah cleared his throat. “We’d better get out of sight until Walker arrives.” Taking her hand, he headed up the snowbank to the woods close by, while his thoughts ground out all sorts of possibilities. I want my share of the money. If she’s dead, we get nothing. The brazen attack on a law enforcement officer along with the unveiled threat to kill Noah if necessary proved these men would stop at nothing to get to Rachel. And if what happened here tonight was any indication, Noah wasn’t so sure he could protect her if they did.
THREE
She squeezed her eyes shut. The fluorescent lights bored into her head. It throbbed with pain. All she could think about was Eva. What Anna said confirmed the truth in her mind. Eva never made it home. Someone kidnapped her like they’d tried to do to Rachel. What did these men want with them?
So far, after looking at dozens of photos of criminals for hours, the man who attacked her wasn’t among them—at least as far as she could tell. All she had to go on was his eyes, but they left a lasting impression.