Ettie Smith Amish Mysteries Box Set 4

by Samantha Price

  When all the doors were shut, Molly leaned down and opened the basket and Tom sat there. “He’ll move when he’s ready, I guess,” Molly said.

  “Jah, leave him be,” Jazeel said, sitting down on one of the wooden chairs opposite the couch.

  “I certainly had no intentions of trying to touch him,” Ettie said. “Would either of you like tea or kaffe?”

  “Nee denke, Ettie.”

  The elderly sisters sat down with them and heard what had happened with Jazeel and why he wasn’t at Uncle Alfie’s house like he’d said he was going to be.

  Ettie turned to Elsa-May, "See what happens when you don't wear your glasses?"

  "Stop it, Ettie. My glasses are only for knitting and reading. I don't need them for anything else, like catching busses."

  Ettie chuckled.

  Tom suddenly leaped out of the basket and ran under the couch. Ettie lifted up her feet. “Will he bite me?”

  “No. He only bites when you touch him,” Molly said.

  Elsa-May and Ettie exchanged glances.

  “Molly tells me he’s had a hard life,” Jazeel said.

  “Have I told you the story of how I found him?”

  “No. Is it a long story?” Ettie asked remembering the last story she’d told them about reuniting with Jazeel at a coffee shop.

  “Nee. It’s short. I’ll tell it fast. It was back when I had a car. I was driving home, just two streets from the apartment I had then, and I saw him jump out of a car window and the car kept going.”

  “Are you sure he wasn’t pushed?” Elsa-May asked.

  “I don’t know, but I stopped the car and found him down an alleyway. He was all battered and bruised. I took him to the vet and they fixed him up. I tried very hard to find the owner—flyers, advertisements in the paper—and I couldn’t find them anywhere. I gave up after a few months and now Tom and I are very well acquainted and I wouldn’t know what to do without him.”

  “And what do you think of Tom, Jazeel?” Elsa-May asked.

  “If he makes Molly happy, he’s fine with me.”

  Good answer, Ettie thought. Good man.

  Jazeel said, “I’m grateful to the both of you for helping Molly like you have.”

  “We didn’t do much,” Elsa-May said.

  “Do you know anyone who’d want to harm Uncle Alfie?” Ettie asked.

  “The only person I know is Bruno Gillespie, but last time I heard anything about him, he was in jail.”

  “Who’s he?” Elsa-May asked.

  “Bruno Gillespie committed quite a few crimes. He went to jail for breaking and entering but he could've gone to jail a lot longer if they could've proven what he had done."

  "And what was that?"

  "It must've been something pretty bad, like murder or armed robbery. Uncle Alfie would never tell me. But he told me that he had the proof right there in his house."

  "Did Bruno Gillespie know he had proof?"

  "I couldn't tell you that. That's all Uncle Alfie told me."

  "How would he have come in contact with a criminal like that?"

  "Uncle Alfie left the community years ago, as you know, and the area where he now lives is a neighborhood where criminals gather. There are always strange people coming and going at the house next door."

  "Yes, we met Dave, the neighbor."

  "Dave has always been good to Uncle Alfie. He's a good neighbor."

  "I wonder if the police know about Bruno Gillespie. Did you tell them?"

  "No, they weren't in the mood to listen to anything I had to say."

  "You should tell them," Ettie said.

  "They'll just think I'm saying that to get myself off the hook."

  "We'll need to find out if Bruno Gillespie is still in prison or not."

  "That could be why Alfie's house was in such a mess; because Bruno could've been looking for the evidence," Elsa-May said.

  "I didn't even know my uncle's house was in a mess. No one's told me anything like that."

  Molly put a hand on his shoulder. "I didn't want to tell you anything that would upset you."

  "We met Marlene at the house," Ettie said.

  "She's back?" he asked.

  "Apparently. She was there with the realtor to sell the house."

  Jazeel shook his head. "Uncle Alfie hadn't seen her for years. They’d had a falling out. She’s moving quickly to sell the place, isn’t she?"

  “She’s the only child, so I guess there’s nothing and no one to stop her,” Elsa-May said.

  “You really should tell the police about the man you just mentioned to us, Jazeel. They’d need to find out about him, and if he killed Alfie, you’d be free and clear.”

  “You’re right. I will.” He turned to Molly. “Will you come with me if I go to the police station now?”

  “Of course I will.”

  He put out his hand and helped her to her feet.

  “Oh, what will we do with Tom while we’re at the station?”

  “You could take him home on the way,” Elsa-May suggested.

  “Or, we could look after him,” Ettie said smiling. “He’s no trouble.”

  “Denke, but I think it might be better if we take him back to Molly’s haus. You’ve got the dog to contend with.”

  “Okay. Do you need help getting him into the basket?” Elsa-May asked.

  “Nee. I’ll get him if you can bring the basket here, Jazeel,” Molly said.

  Jazeel grabbed the basket and set it down in front of the couch while Ettie and Elsa-May stood well back. After the lid was open, Molly talked softly and kindly to Tom. He moved his head out. He looked at everyone suspiciously and then went back under the couch.

  “Perhaps he’ll come out for a piece of cooked chicken?” Elsa-May asked.

  “Jah, he loves chicken. It doesn’t agree with him, but a little bit wouldn’t hurt.”

  Elsa-May went into the kitchen and came back with a thumb-sized piece of chicken and handed it to Molly who was down on all fours.

  “Denke,” Molly said and then pushed the chicken toward Tom. “Here’s some nice chicken, Tom.”

  Looking over Molly’s shoulder, Jazeel said, “He’s sniffing it. He’s moving forward.”

  Then Tom’s head appeared as Molly slowly pulled the chicken away from him. When half of his body was out, Molly let him have the chicken and grabbed him and popped him in the basket while Jazeel closed the lid and fastened it.

  “Phew! I’m exhausted just watching that,” Elsa-May said.

  “He’s shy,” Molly explained.

  When they were nearly at the front door ready to leave, Ettie asked, "Jazeel, before you go, do you know a man called Joe Mulligan?"

  Jazeel scratched his head. "I can't say that I do. Why?"

  "Nothing; it's just that Uncle Alfie’s neighbor mentioned something about a man by that name. Forget it, it's probably nothing important."

  The corners of Jazeel’s mouth turned down. "If I hadn't gotten on the wrong bus, Uncle Alfie might still be alive today."

  "Or you could both be murdered," Ettie pointed out.

  "You can't worry about what might have been," Molly said. “You’re always telling me that.”

  He slowly nodded. "You're right. I need to take my own advice."

  “When you get to the police station, ask for Detective Kelly. He’s the one in charge of the investigation.”

  “I’ve met him.”

  “Tell him everything you can think of, Jazeel,” Elsa-May said.

  He nodded. “I will. Denke once again.”

  When Elsa-May and Ettie closed the door on their visitors, Ettie headed for the couch while Elsa-May let Snowy back in.

  Snowy scampered around for a quick sniffing session before heading to his dog bed in the corner, and Elsa-May sat down in her chair.

  "What are we going to do? We know Jazeel didn't do it. We could find Joe Mulligan and talk to him. Kelly managed to find him."

  “You’re determined to talk to him, it seems. Uncle A
lfie’s neighbor could’ve been making it all up about Mulligan and the man’s already told Kelly he didn’t owe Uncle Alfie any money.”

  “I can't just sit around doing nothing. Anyway, Mulligan wouldn’t have told Kelly the truth. Didn’t you hear what Kelly said? Kelly knows Joe Mulligan’s name and that means he’s been in trouble before."

  Elsa-May folded her arms across her chest.

  Ettie glanced at the clock on the mantle. “We could make it up there in time for his drinking session.”

  "Ettie, we’re going to stand out like a sore thumb at the bar in these clothes."

  "Of course, we are, but what can we do? Do you think we should disguise ourselves as Englischers?"

  Elsa-May’s jaw dropped. "Of course, not!"

  Ettie chuckled. "There's not much we can do about it, then. We just have to go there and find the man and see what he’s keeping from the detective. If Dave’s right he’s holding back a lot."

  "Have you given two thoughts that this man might be the murderer?"

  "And he might not be, but we're not going to get any closer to finding out who killed Uncle Alfie if we just sit on our backsides and do nothing. If he’s the killer, he’s not going to murder us in front of everyone in a public bar."

  “I suppose you're right. And if we don't do anything, they might put Jazeel back in jail."

  "Exactly."

  Chapter 10

  Early that evening, two elderly Amish ladies walked into a bar and everyone turned and stared. Ettie and Elsa-May ignored everyone and walked up to the man behind the bar and ordered one soda and one iced tea.

  “You ladies from around here?” the bartender asked once he’d delivered their drinks.

  “No, we’re not. We’re looking for a man.”

  “Just one?” he asked, now resting his elbows on the bar, leaning over looking interested.

  “One particular man. His name is… what was it again, Ettie?”

  “His name is Joe Mulligan.”

  “Joe’s here every day.” He leaned even closer to them and pointed to a man sitting in a booth by himself with a beer in his hand. “That’s him there. Does he owe you money?”

  Ettie stared at Joe and then looked at the bartender. “No. He doesn’t.”

  “Thank you,” Elsa-May said to the man.

  The bartender straightened up and grabbed a cloth and wiped the counter while Ettie and Elsa-May took hold of their drinks and headed to Mulligan.

  “Mr. Mulligan?” Ettie asked.

  He looked up. “Who’s askin’?”

  “I’m Ettie Smith and this is my sister, Elsa-May Lutz.”

  “What can I do for you?”

  “Can we sit down a minute?” Elsa-May asked.

  When he nodded, Ettie slipped behind the table and slid across leaving enough room for her sister.

  “We’re here to ask you about Alfie Graber.”

  “I thought as much when I saw you were Amish. Alfie said he used to belong to the Amish.”

  “That’s right he did.”

  “What do you want with me?”

  “We heard some talk that you might have owed Alfie money?”

  “Have you come to collect?” he asked.

  Ettie shook her head. “No.”

  “Not at all,” Elsa-May said.

  “We’re not here about the money. All we’re trying to do is find out who murdered him.”

  “It wasn’t me if that’s what you want to know.”

  “The police arrested one of our friends…”

  “He was Alfie’s nephew.”

  “Yes, and he was going to look after Alfie and then he got on the wrong bus.”

  “And after Alfie was found murdered, the police thought that our friend did it and we’re trying to find some kind of proof he didn’t do it, or find the killer.”

  "I hit Alfie's car. I rear-ended him. I knew I was in the wrong and I told him I’d get the money, but I didn’t know how I was going to get it."

  “Did you know Alfie before you crashed into his car?” Elsa-May asked.

  “Yeah, we knew each other from when I had my car yard.”

  He tapped a cigarette out of his packet and offered one to Ettie and Elsa-May and they shook their heads. He placed the cigarette in his mouth and lit it.

  After he inhaled and then blown a cloud of smoke up into the air, he said, “A couple of years ago I had to close the business like a lot of people had to do, so money has been tight since then. When I hit Alfie’s car a few months back—his car wasn’t insured and my car sure wasn’t either ‘cause I didn’t have the money. I didn’t know how I was gonna come up with that money. I was telling someone here one night about my problem trying to come up with the money—five grand—he told me he could have a way out for me. He told me he was a drug dealer and had to leave town quick.”

  Ettie and Elsa-May glanced at one another.

  Joe continued, “Anyway, this guy said he had some cocaine left and I could sell it for five thousand and then he asked me how much I had. I only had six hundred and he said that’d be enough to buy it from him. We went out the back to his car, he opened his trunk and there was the cocaine. It seemed a small amount for that much money.” He took another drag on his cigarette and exhaled the smoke slowly.

  “What happened then?” Elsa-May asked.

  “I had to find someone to buy it, didn’t I? The next night when I was back here, I asked around and couldn't find any takers. There was a band here that night and two guys approached me and said they heard I had some stuff to sell. Then they told me they didn’t have money and asked if I’d do a trade. They traded me an amp and a microphone. It looked pretty good quality and they told me I could get more than five thousand if I sold it. They were roadies. I figured I could put the things on Craigslist and I could get the money that way. I was nervous hanging onto the drugs and I was glad to see the back of the white powder. Then I took the amp and mike to Alfie’s and asked him to hang onto them until I sold them. That way he’d see I was trying to get the money. Next night I see those two guys and they weren’t happy. They dragged me outside into the alley and roughed me up.”

  Ettie gasped. “You mean it wasn’t cocaine?”

  “Or did they want more?” Elsa-May asked with eyes round like saucers.

  “It was no good. I dunno anything about cocaine. I only smoked pot. It was white and the guy selling it looked like a drug dealer, so how was I to know? I’d heard that cocaine tastes sour on the tip of the tongue and this stuff did. I wasn’t stupid. I tested it before I gave him the six hundred. These guys wanted their amp and mike back and I said I’d get it for them. They said they’d get it and made me give them the address and I said I’d have to go with them. After I gave them the address, they beat me up some more.” He pointed to a faint bruise near his eye and a scrape down the side of his face.

  "Do you think they killed Alfie?" Ettie asked.

  "Maybe. They were angry."

  “That was the night Alfie was killed?”

  “Could’ve been.”

  "Why didn’t you tell the police anything?"

  "What? Tell them I sold drugs? They asked how I got the black eye and I told them I fell over walking home one night."

  "What band were the roadies with?"

  He nodded his head to a noticeboard near the door. “They’d be on that timetable up there. They were here last week and I don't know where they are now."

  "Thank you, you've been very helpful."

  "I hope they get ‘em—the people who killed Alfie. He was a good friend."

  Elsa-May and Ettie walked out of the bar and got a taxi back to the bus stop.

  Soon they were heading back home.

  “You were right to go, Ettie.”

  Ettie’s face lit up. She wasn’t used to getting compliments from her older sister. “Denke, Elsa-May.”

  “Maybe Alfie had hidden the mike and the amp and that’s why the place was roughed up.”

  “That makes sense.
We’ll have to tell Detective Kelly.”

  “He’s not going to believe second-hand information.”

  “He could come back and talk to Joe. I’m sure he’d talk to Kelly if he knew he wasn’t going to be in trouble for anything.”

  “Jah, I think he would.”

  Chapter 11

  The next day, Ettie and Elsa-May went to see Detective Kelly. Once they were sitting opposite him in his office, they relayed what Joe Mulligan had told them.

  “So you want me to believe that Joe Mulligan sold bad drugs, and the people who bought them from him killed Alfred Graber? It was a drug deal gone wrong?” Kelly asked.

  “Well, there’s a few steps in between all that, but that’s what we think.”

  Ettie pulled her mouth to one side. “What Elsa-May means is that we’re not certain if we believe that, but it’s a possibility.”

  Detective Kelly shook his head. “And then I have Jazeel Graber coming to me yesterday with a fantastical story about Bruno Gillespie.” The detective made notes on the pad in front of him. “You said you had the name of the band the roadies came from?”

  Ettie passed him the slip of paper with the band’s name written on it.

  “Can I keep this?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  A voice came from behind Ettie and Elsa-May. “Can I see you for a minute, sir?”

  The sisters looked around to see an officer.

  “Is it urgent?” Kelly snapped.

  “Kind of.”

  Kelly pushed his chair out and stood up. “Excuse me, ladies.”

  When he came back into the room a few minutes later, he said, “I’m heading back to Alfred Graber’s house. Would you like me to drive you back home on the way?”

  “Yes thank you. That’ll save us going by taxi.”

  “If you can wait here a few moments, I’ll be back and then we can head off.”

  “Why’s he going back there, Ettie?”

  “He didn’t say and with the mood he’s in, I’m not game to ask him. The forensics have already done all they had to do. Maybe he’s going to speak to Joe Mulligan again and he doesn’t want to tell us.”

  Elsa-May grinned. “That’s probably it. Or he could be going back to ask Dave if he saw people taking sound equipment out of Alfie’s house.”