Amish Country Secret

by Lenora Worth

  Today, the air was warm and the buzz of bees could be heard near the blossoming daisies and geraniums. She felt almost content, knowing she’d be surrounded by the whole community. Josiah and Jeremiah had agreed she would be hard to find mixed in with the other women who were dressed almost like her. Church. A solid stand against evil.

  Now she wore a new dress provided by Raesha. It was blue and Josie had commented on how it brought out Samantha’s blue eyes. Her apron was a fresh white and she wore her dependable navy lace-up sneakers. She looked Amish and she had to admit, she wanted to look nice for Micah.

  Not sure what was going on in her heart, she only knew that she cared about Micah and the twins. A lot more than she wanted to admit. That might be a one-sided feeling.

  He’d been avoiding her since he’d gotten home from jail on Thursday. The last time they’d spoken had been after Alisha had sat with them and Captain Schroder, going back over everything in detail to see if they could connect the dots regarding Leon Stanton.

  While the wiry police captain didn’t seem to trust anyone, he had listened to Alisha Craig. After she’d shown him the destroyed listening device Emmie had found in the mudroom, she presented a strong case against Leon and the unfortunate Kemp boys. And now they had names of witnesses to back up their claims that Leon had paid the Kemps a lot of money to “scare” Samantha out of hiding. They were waiting for Samuel to recover before anyone could question him, so she strongly urged the chief to put a guard on him. “He’s not telling the truth. Someone else tried to beat him to death.”

  “I can’t find my assistant Dorothea,” Samantha reminded him. “I’ve checked with everyone we know. They say she’s missing. No one knows where she is.”

  “I appreciate all of you coming in today,” Captain Schroder said after Alisha had finished. “Micah, I’m sorry we had to arrest you, but you were our number one suspect. Even though we’ve verified most everything Samantha has told us, the Winter Lake police department isn’t cooperating with anybody, including the FBI. They’ve stalled out on all of us regarding Leon Stanton’s whereabouts. So I don’t have enough evidence to tie him to all of this, but we’re getting there.” Looking at Samantha, he said, “I’ll keep trying to find your assistant, I promise.”

  “Leon has them in his pocket,” Samantha had said. “I can see that now. He’s paying them to keep information to themselves. They’ve probably been on his payroll all along.”

  “I’m beginning to see that, too.” Captain Schroder played with his ink pen, his shrewd gaze moving around the room. “I’ll go and talk to Nettie, tell her I believe you’re innocent, Micah. We have enough to at least consider Leon as a strong suspect. And yes, we need to protect Samuel so he doesn’t meet the same fate as his brother.”

  Micah didn’t speak for a moment. He gave Samantha a quick, complicated frown. “Well, I’m not in Leon’s pocket. And I will do what I have to do to end this. You deserve that much, at least.”

  Was that a pledge to her, or a release?

  But would it stand? Would Micah forgive her? Would her life ever go back to being normal?

  Church, even a different kind of church, would seem almost normal. She’d become a backslider in Winter Lake since Leon only went to church to impress people and chastised her when she tried to talk about her faith.

  Here, her faith had been challenged and renewed. This community took care of its own. Jeremiah had returned and become an important part of this town. Josiah had found his sister Josie and married Raesha, and Josie had been reunited with her family and her fiancé, Tobias. They all had happy, settled lives now. Although they weren’t Amish, Alisha and Nathan had ties to Campton Creek through her grandmother and his Amish family.

  This community truly followed the rules of the Ordnung by forgiving each other and showing grace. No matter what.

  She could make this work—staying here near Gramma, doing the work she loved on a scaled-down basis. Being near Micah.

  Today, she had to think about all of it, surrounded by the whole Amish community. Church would do her good and shield her in a ring of protection. She’d certainly do her amount of praying, too.

  Now if she could just see Micah and the twins. Patch missed them since he’d come back here with her. The little dog rarely left her side.

  “You have to stay here,” she told her furry friend as he tapped his paws toward her. “And stay quiet, too. After everyone leaves, I’ll let you visit with Emmie and Jed, okay?”

  Patch whined and went back to his bed. He’d been fed and he’d had a long break outside. Church usually lasted hours so he’d be ready to play with the children later.

  She shut the door and headed downstairs to help in the kitchen, the pleasant scents of baked casseroles and fresh fruit pies wafting out over the air. The women had brought after-church food—sandwiches and side dishes, easy food to eat out underneath the towering oaks.

  When they went outside to find their benches across from the men, Samantha sat with Josie and searched for Micah. She’d already seen Emmie and Jed and got hugs from them.

  “You’re looking for him, aren’t you?” Josie whispered, her brown eyes holding a mature, knowing light.

  “Who?” Samantha said, a coy smile on her face.

  “You know who—Micah,” Josie whispered. “We all think it’s so romantic, this forbidden crush you both have on each other.”

  Samantha shook her head. “It can be nothing more than a crush on my part.”

  “Well, crush or no, there he is,” Josie said with a nudge.

  She spotted him in the crowd of men who’d already lined up and taken their seats. He looked like Micah, fresh, his hair curling everywhere, and frowning. But he seemed to sense her there. He turned his head and their eyes met. He nodded and looked away.

  He didn’t want her in his life anymore.

  She sat through the hymns sung in the old language and thought about her life. Samantha made a decision while she listened to the ministers.

  She’d find a way to get to Leon. He wouldn’t kill her outright. If she could somehow flush him out maybe she could pretend that she cared, that she’d only run away because she was confused. Maybe he’d confess to her. She’d wear a wire if she had to, to prove he was evil.

  Then she could be free and clear to make any decisions about her future. After the service was over and they’d eaten, she let Patch out to play with some of the lingering children.

  Maybe her future could at least hold Micah and his children as her friends, if nothing else. That would be more than she’d ever dreamed.

  * * *

  Micah finished his meal and threw his trash in a bin that had been set up near the tables. He’d stayed to help load the wagon that carted the church benches and tables around to different locations. He planned to stay later so he could talk to Samantha. He wanted to tell her that he understood she’d have to return to her world and he hoped she’d understand why he couldn’t ask her to stay here in his world. He hoped they could stay in touch. He had a feeling she’d visit her gramma a lot now. That might have to be enough—that he’d see her on the occasional holiday or weekend visit.

  He’d placed a bench into one of the wagons when Jeremiah rushed up. “Gut thing we stationed people on the road,” he said, pointing to the end of the winding lane up to the big house. “We have company.”

  Micah hopped out of the wagon and stared down the lane. A black truck sat parked underneath some trees across from the turn-in. “That’s mighty bold of them to sit right there.”

  “They’re waiting as people leave,” Jeremiah replied. “Checking all of the women, I imagine.”

  Micah looked toward the house. “We need to warn Samantha.”

  “I’ll go,” Jeremiah said. “You warn the others who are still here.”

  Micah took off, reporting to several able-bodied men. Then he turned toward the
house to make sure Samantha was safe. He was greeted by about two dozen women, all merging together near where they’d been clearing away food. He couldn’t even find Samantha in the crowd.

  Relieved to know she was being protected, he hurried toward the road with a bold frustration roaring like a thunderstorm through his system. When Josiah tried to stop him, he pushed on. “I’m going to confront them.”

  “Micah, neh.”

  Micah was beyond caring. He stalked across the old road and went up to the truck, surprising the two burly men inside.

  “You’ve done enough damage here,” he said, eying both of them. “I know you have weapons. If you shoot me right in front of all of these people, at least someone will know who you are. You’re murderers. You killed an innocent man and beat up his brother, left them both to die. You’re finished here, because we’re watching you. You can tell your leader that from me. Tell him to leave us in peace. Now leave before the authorities arrive.”

  By the time he’d finished, several Amish men had come to the road to stand behind him, some of them holding pitchforks and baseball bats.

  The men in the truck looked at each other, then back to him. One of them raised a handgun and held it close to his black shirt. “We need to talk to her,” he said. “We won’t hurt her and we won’t make trouble. We need to take her back.”

  “She’s not going anywhere with you two,” Micah said, stabbing his finger in the driver’s face. “Nowhere. Now get out of here and don’t come back. We’re watching.”

  The men gave him an evil glare but cranked the truck and pulled away. Micah let out a breath and turned to face his friends. Josiah and Isaac came to stand with him.

  Isaac patted him on the back. “Kumm now. You did the right thing. Foolish, ja, but the right thing. You always do, Micah.”

  Micah gathered himself and started back toward the house. Yes, he always tried to do right. This went beyond doing his duty. He cared about Samantha. Too much. She might blend in today, and soon she’d go back to the way things were before.

  He saw Samantha moving through the crowd of women to stand apart and wait for him. Did he stop now and talk to her or did he keep away as he’d tried to do over the last few days?

  He walked up to her and nodded curtly, then kept going on by. That effort had been much harder than facing down those evil men.

  “Micah?” she called after him.

  He kept walking until he’d made it to his buggy. He had to find the twins and leave now. Before he did something he’d regret later, like grab her and hold her tight.

  When he saw Jed running toward him, he called out. “Go get your sister. It’s time to go home.”

  Jed kept running. “I can’t find her, Micah. Emmie is gone. She went to find Patch.” He grabbed Micah’s shirt, his eyes full of tears. “And now she’s gone.”

  TWENTY

  “What do you mean, gone?” Micah asked as he dropped the harness he’d been holding and started moving around the vast yard. “Emmie? Emmie, where are you?”

  Samantha came running. “What’s wrong?”

  “Emmie’s gone,” Jed said, rushing to Samantha. “She went after Patch and the woman told her she knew where Patch was.”

  “What woman?” Micah asked as he scoured the countryside, a gut-cutting dread stabbing at his heart. “I don’t see her. Which way did they go, Jed? Who was the woman?”

  Jed pushed at his hat. “I didn’t know her. She said she knew Martha.”

  Jeremiah and Isaac walked toward them. “What’s going on, Micah?” Jeremiah asked.

  “Emmie is missing,” Samantha replied, giving Micah another scared glance. “And Patch. He ran around the corner. She went to get him.”

  “Which way?” Jeremiah asked.

  “The woman took her into the woods,” Jed explained, pointing to the west.

  “What did the woman look like?” Micah asked, his heart pumping too fast, his mind going to places he didn’t want to think about.

  “She was Amish,” Jed replied. “I thought Emmie knew her. She looked a lot like Samantha and she said she was a friend of Martha’s.”

  Samantha shook her head. “Gramma would have mentioned a friend. I’m sure she would have introduced me to any friends I don’t already know. I didn’t see anyone out here. Emmie was playing near the corner of the shop and Patch was right there with her.”

  “Patch went around the corner,” Jed said. “Then the woman showed up and laughed and talked to Emmie. They were going to find Patch in the woods.” Jed gave Micah a pleading stare. “I let her go ’cause the woman seemed so friendly. I shouldn’t have done that.”

  Micah hugged his brother and put his hands on Jed’s shoulders. “You did nothing wrong. Nothing.”

  Samantha shot Micah a terrified glance. “I’ll go get my phone and call for help.”

  Jeremiah shouted to everyone to start looking. “She went into the woods,” he explained as people came closer. “With a woman dressed as Amish. We think Emmie went to search for Patch.”

  He motioned for everyone to spread out and soon Micah had a whole team of people calling and searching for Emmie. He tried not to think of her with a stranger. She’d be afraid. She’d be worried about Patch. He wouldn’t think beyond that.

  When Samantha returned and started toward the woods, he caught up with her. “How could this happen? We’ve been so careful all week.”

  Samantha pushed at her falling hair. “Those two men were another distraction. I should have been watching more closely. I’m sure they timed it perfectly.”

  Micah didn’t respond. What could he say? He’d been out there trying to be the hero with those criminals when Emmie was being lured away from them. If anything happened to her it would be on his shoulders.

  Samantha gave him a stare full of pain and regret, but he couldn’t comfort her right now. Together, they searched around the shop and the side yard, then hurried toward the trees, following the men who were already forming a grid.

  As they entered a copse of trees near the road, Micah heard a dog barking. “Patch.”

  He and Samantha ran to the edge of the woods, near the road. Patch started barking even louder and jumping in excitement. The little dog was tethered to a sapling, an old rope holding him two feet away from the tree. A food bowl sat nearby.

  Jed ran up. “Patch. You found Patch. Where’s Emmie?”

  That was the question. Micah watched as Jed and Samantha untied the little dog. Watched while his heart shivered in rage and fear.

  Where had they taken his little sister?

  * * *

  They’d searched the woods and the creek, hoping Emmie might have tried to get away and could be hiding out near the water. She was nowhere to be found.

  Samantha glanced at the sky. A storm was rolling in and it would be dark in an hour or so. No one wanted to give up, so they’d returned to the yard to discuss what to do next.

  Captain Schroder came walking toward her and Micah, shaking his head. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe all of this at first. We have tried to watch out for this community. I have patrols going around knocking on doors and I’ve called the state police to ask for help. Some of the sheriff’s deputies are willing to help on their own time, too. And we’ll put out an Amber Alert.”

  “Denke,” Micah said, his voice raw and hollow, his eyes rimmed with fatigue and shock.

  After the captain went back to the search, Samantha held Micah’s arm. “You need to rest.”

  He pulled away, his eyes on the growing clouds. When he looked back at her, Samantha could see the rage and apprehension threatening to overtake him. He blamed her and why wouldn’t he?

  Leaning close, he said, “I can’t rest. Emmie is out there. She could be alone and afraid or worse, they could hurt her. You know these people. You know what he’s capable of. So I can’t rest until my siste
r is safe. Please don’t suggest that to me again.”

  Samantha backed away, tears burning at her eyes, her heart so shattered she didn’t think she’d ever recover. And if Micah didn’t find his sister safe and alive, he’d never recover either. She watched him walk away and turned to go help with sandwiches for the men, her heart heavy with grief and guilt.

  Gramma came up to her and took Samantha into her arms. “They will find her. Gott has a plan for Emmie.”

  “Then why did He let them do this to a child?” Samantha asked, rage burning through her. “Why, Gramma?”

  Gramma tugged her close again. “We can’t question. We can only pray.”

  Samantha could do that, but would God hear her hollow, weak prayers? She still had her phone in the fold of her apron near her stomach. She knew what she had to do. She’d call Leon and tell him to come and get her. He had to get Emmie safely home first. He’d have to do a swap and let Emmie go. She knew he had Micah’s sister, but Samantha would take Emmie’s place in a heartbeat. She had to—what other choice could there be? She had to wonder, who was the woman who’d helped him?

  When her phone rang before she could even reach for it, she quickly tugged it out from between her apron and her dress. Would Leon dare call her?

  The call wasn’t from Leon. When she saw Dorothea’s name on the caller ID, her heart jumped and became deflated all over again. “Hello,” she said, her nerves sending a current of fear throughout her system.

  “Samantha, I’m so glad I caught you. I’ve been so worried.”

  “Where are you, Dorothea? I’ve been worried, too. Why haven’t you returned my calls? Leon is a dangerous man. You have to hide from him. He kidnapped a little girl today to get to me.”

  “I know,” Dorothea said, her voice low. “He has me. He’s been holding me since you left. He’s a madman and he won’t stop until you talk to him. If you want to see the girl alive, you have to sneak to the end of the road and look for his bodyguards. They’ll bring you to him.”