A man stared down at her through the windshield. “Julianne?”
She rubbed her eyes and pulled herself upright, recognizing the angled face, full mouth and crystal-blue eyes.
William Lavy.
He was wearing an Amish jacket and a wide-brimmed felt hat.
“Is that you, Julie?”
She hadn’t seen Will in five years, and until last night, she hadn’t expected to see him again. She threw aside the blanket, adjusted her sweater and raked her hand through her hair, embarrassed he had found her asleep.
His brow was raised, and his mouth set in a frown as he continued to stare at her.
Pulling in a fragile breath, she offered him a weak smile.
“What happened? Are you okay?” His raised voice was filled with concern.
For half a heartbeat, she thought she was dreaming.
“Answer me, Jules. Are you okay?”
She tapped the button to lower the automatic window before realizing the car’s engine was off. She grabbed the handle and pushed open the door.
The cold morning air swirled around her. “I must have—” Her sleep-laced tone was little more than a whisper, even to her own ears. She cleared her throat. “I must have fallen asleep.”
“Looks like both you and your car got stuck in the mud.” He leaned closer. “Are you okay?”
“I... I’m fine. A bit bruised, but—” Tears burned her eyes. She blinked them back.
“You’re hurt.” His gaze softened. “What happened?”
“I came home to sell my father’s property.” She glanced at the letter lying open on the console. “They want to take my farm. I left late in the day and then was delayed by a rockslide.”
The words were tumbling out too fast, but she couldn’t help herself. If she stopped talking, she might cry, and she was struggling to keep the tears at bay.
“When I got to my house,” she continued without taking a breath, “a man in black wearing a red bandana was hiding in the bushes. He attacked me, then followed me in his car. I turned toward the pond, thinking you or your dad could help me.”
Regret flashed in his eyes. “I was at a friend’s wedding and spent the night. I saw your Honda when I returned this morning.”
“Why would someone attack me?”
“Vandalism has become a problem.” He gazed around, as if checking that the man in black wasn’t hiding nearby. “That’s why the authorities are concerned about unoccupied property, but vandals don’t usually attack people.”
She blinked back another rush of tears.
“Let’s get your car out of the mud,” he said. “Then we can drive to town and alert the sheriff. We can also stop at the medical clinic and have the doc make certain you’re okay.”
“I don’t need a doctor, but I do need to talk to the sheriff.”
“Start your car, Julie. I’ll push from the rear. Give it a little gas when I signal you, but not too much.”
She did as he asked and watched for his signal through the rearview mirror.
He stepped behind the car, placed his hands on the trunk and nodded. “Okay...now.”
Julie pushed on the accelerator. The wheels spun.
Stepping to the side, William nodded again. “Put it in Reverse and ease it back, then forward.”
Again, she followed his instructions. The car rolled back and she moved the gear to Drive. William pushed from the rear as she eased down on the accelerator. The wheels grabbed and the car broke free.
“Keep going,” he called after her. “I’ll meet you at the top of the hill.”
Near the edge of the road, she pulled to a stop and waited for him there. Before meeting with the sheriff, she wanted to check her house to ensure the hateful man hadn’t caused any damage last night. No one had known she was coming back to Mountain Loft, yet he’d been hiding in the bushes. What was he doing there, and why had he attacked her?
* * *
William hurried to the top of the hill to catch up to Julianne. She was spattered with mud, and fatigue lined her oval face, but he was drawn again to her beauty, just as he had been at the lake so long ago. Long auburn hair, jade-green eyes, arched eyebrows and an open expression that nearly took his breath away.
She leaned out the window as he approached her car. “Climb in. I want to stop at my house.”
He glanced down at his boots. “If you don’t mind a little mud.”
“My shoes are caked. We can clean up at the pump.”
He slid into the passenger seat. She exited onto the main road, drove the short distance to her farm and parked near the barn. They washed at the pump and wiped dry with a towel she had in her car.
After hanging the towel to dry, she stamped the mud from her shoes and then pointed to the shrubbery growing near the side of her house.
“The man was hiding there in the bushes last night. I—I didn’t think I’d survive.”
William searched the area she had indicated. “I don’t see that he left anything behind.”
“Except a few bruises that’ll appear in a day or two.” She rubbed her side and then turned her gaze to the farmhouse and stared at the structure for a long moment.
“I—I haven’t been back since—”
He remained silent, giving her time to control the whirlwind of confusion evidenced by the arch of her neck and her furrowed brow.
She glanced around at the farm that had been her world for the first seventeen years of life. The house, the barn and outbuildings, the pastures in the distance and the fields were all dormant.
“It looks better than I expected,” she admitted.
“I worked construction in Knoxville, and after I returned home last year, I shored up the fencing and completed some minor repairs around the place when I had free time,” he explained.
Fresh tears filled her eyes. Evidently, she hadn’t expected his help.
“Danki, William.”
The Amish thank-you seemed to surprise her as much as the tears. She had left Mountain Loft before baptism and had undoubtedly worked hard to leave her Amish roots behind.
He touched her arm and she drew back ever so slightly, then pulled herself upright. “I didn’t think coming home would be so hard.”
“Don’t go inside, Julie.” His tone was firm, even to his own ears. “It’s not necessary.”
“I can’t control the memories—” She steeled her jaw. “But facing the past in the light of day will help me heal even more.”
He shook his head. “You need more time.”
“It’s been five years.”
“A few more days won’t hurt.”
“Except I have a new life that’s waiting for me.” She stared at him, then turned to the porch and climbed the stairs.
A crow cawed and he glanced up as it soared overhead. Clouds blocked the sun and a cold wind whipped across the barnyard, tugging at Julianne’s hair. With trembling hands, she slipped the key into the lock. The door creaked open. Straightening her shoulders, she entered the cold interior.
William wiped the mud from his boots and followed her inside, noting the simple furnishings, the woodstove, the oil lamps and kitchen cupboards. The curtains blocked the light and cast the house in shadows.
With decided steps, she approached the closest window, pushed back the curtain and peered through the dusty pane. She touched the glass, then turned and swept her gaze over the main room. “A good cleaning will help. Plus, I’ll need supplies if I stay here.”
“That’s not wise after what happened last night. I have two spare guest rooms on the second floor. Both would provide for your privacy.”
“And what would the town gossips say, William? Tongues would wag. I won’t dishonor your name.”
He smiled ruefully. “It would not be the first time people talked behind my back.”
&
nbsp; “Perhaps, but the bishop would take issue with your father and insist he control his wayward son.”
Evidently, she didn’t know. “My father died five months ago.”
“Oh, William.” She clasped her hands over her heart. “I’m so sorry.”
“I am, as well, but it is the way of life.”
And death, which he failed to mention. Julianne knew enough about death.
“Now both of us are orphans, yah?” he said.
“I feel more like a teenager looking for what I left behind.” She peered into the empty pantry.
His heart went out to her and he stepped closer. “Your aunt asked some of the ladies to clean the kitchen of anything perishable before she closed up the house.”
“A wise decision.” Julie tugged a strand of hair behind her ear. “I don’t remember much about those first few weeks.”
“The shock undoubtedly blocked your memory.”
She touched the dusty counter and then glanced up at him. “Aunt Mary said you tried to say goodbye.”
“Yah.” He pulled in a breath, seeing the question in her gaze. “I left Mountain Loft for a few years to find myself. My first stop was at your aunt’s house in Willkommen. She said you were not ready to receive visitors.”
“My aunt was protective.” Julie sighed. “Perhaps overly so.”
“She was thinking of your well-being.”
“For which I am grateful. When I left Willkommen—”
He raised an eyebrow. “You’re no longer staying with Mary?”
“I live in Dahlonega now.”
“The old gold mining town?”
She nodded. “The site of the first major US gold rush in 1828.”
He smiled. “You have become a history buff.”
“Hardly, but the tourists have questions. They visit the mines and pan for gold and then buy gifts in the shop where I work.”
Glancing at the Englischer clothing she wore and the car parked in the drive, he voiced the question that begged to be asked. “Am I right to believe you are no longer Amish?”
“I decided to make a fresh start in Dahlonega. That included embracing Englisch ways.” She angled her head and gazed at him with her jade-green eyes. “What about you? That night at the lake, you talked about leaving Mountain Loft. I presumed that meant leaving the faith as well.”
“Living Englisch was my plan. Then my father became ill...” He shrugged. “Someone needed to care for him.”
“Yet you struggled under his control when you were young.”
“Young and foolish. We reconciled. His lungs were bad, and his well-being was more important than hanging on to past misunderstandings.”
“You’re a good man, William Lavy.”
Her remark touched a chord. He didn’t think of himself as gut, but he couldn’t let his father languish alone. Julianne would have done the same if she’d been given the chance.
“The sheriff’s never been one of my favorite people.” She glanced around the kitchen and into the main room. “Especially the way he handled the investigation five years ago, but I need to report what happened last night, and I could use some support.”
“I’ll come with you. After we talk to the sheriff, we can stop at the Country Kitchen for waffles and coffee.”
A hint of a smile tugged at her lips. “You remembered.”
He remembered a lot of things about Julie that he needed to forget. Instead, he needed to focus on her safety. Someone had attacked her last night. William wanted to ensure the man in the red bandana didn’t try to harm her again.
Copyright © 2021 by Deborah W. Giusti
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ISBN-13: 9780369704245
Target on the Mountain
Copyright © 2021 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Deadly Evidence
First published in 2019. This edition published in 2021.
Copyright © 2019 by Elizabeth Goddard
Standoff at Midnight Mountain
First published in 2018. This edition published in 2021.
Copyright © 2018 by Mary Eason
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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