Lemon Tart Mystery

by Naomi Miller

  * * *

  Katie's parents were sitting on the porch when Katie arrived home. After thanking Travis for the ride home and saying a quick goodbye to Gwen, Katie stepped out of the car and made her way to the steps.

  Katie sat down on the top step and looked over at her parents, who were serenely rocking in the porch swing.

  “Gut evening, Katie. Did you not have a gut time? You are home much earlier than we expected you.”

  “Nee, Mamm. I had a wunderbaar time. Samuel Yoder was there tonight. He was both nervous and excited to be attending his first singing. Levi was watching over him, while passing out some delicious lemonade made by Mary Zook.”

  “Ach, kinner grow up so quickly.” Katie's mamm smiled. "It seems only yesterday that young Samuel was eager to start school, and now he is done with schooling and ready to move on with his life. Before we know it, he will be ready to take his instruction and join the church.”

  Katie's dat looked thoughtful.

  “Jah, and with the Yoders expanding their egg-laying business, young Samuel will be a big help to his family. I am thinking that he will stay pretty busy learning all about how to care for chickens and everything.”

  After a moment or two of silence, Katie's mamm spoke again.

  “Katie, your dat and I wanted to speak to you about your own plans for the future. We are not trying to push... or rush you... but we were for sure wondering if you had given much thought of when you would be ready to take your instruction and make plans to join the church.

  She stopped and looked over at Katie's dat. Taking her hand and gently squeezing it, he spoke again.

  “Jah, there is a baptism class starting up soon... I will admit I was a little concerned last year when you painted the pictures on the bakery window at Christmas, but nothing came of it. You are a gut dochder. What your mamm and I are trying to say is that we hope you will be praying on this... and will make the right decision.”

  “Mamm... Dat... I know you are only wanting what is best for me, and I wish I could tell you that I am ready to join the church, but I am just not ready yet.

  When her mother started to speak, Katie quickly added, “I have always planned to join the church... I'm just... not ready yet.”

  Martha Chupp's face showed concern, but she quickly hid it.

  “Dochder, this is not something you want to rush into. You must be sure that it is what you want... that you are ready... and sure of your decision. Once done, it should never be undone.”

  “That is it, Mamm. I want to be certain that I will never, ever want to leave the church. I want to have no doubts, no worries, no questions. Ach, I do not know why I do not feel ready. Perhaps I am too young, after all. I should feel ready... and eager to join the church.”

  “No, dochder.” Katie's dat broke in. “This is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. You must be sure. Now that we know you are praying on it, we will leave it for now. You should not be feeling any pressure from anyone. When you are ready, you will know for sure.”

  “Now I think we should go in to sample some of the cookies you brought home today. And you can tell us if the others liked them and if Mrs. Simpkins is going to start selling them.” Katie's mamm took a deep breath before continuing.

  “I have been hearing some strange things from our neighbors about Mrs. Simpkins... and Mr. O'Neal. Is everything going well at the bakery?”

  Orange Supreme Bliss Bars

  Ingredients:

  1 box orange supreme cake mix

  3.4 oz instant vanilla pudding mix

  4 large eggs

  1 cup sour cream

  ½ cup milk

  Glaze:

  3 cups powdered sugar

  4 tbsp orange juice

  Instructions:

  Mix ingredients in a large bowl until blended well.

  Pour into greased pans and bake at 350°F for 20 minutes (or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean).

  Cool on wire racks (be sure to put wax paper under wire racks).

  Cut into bars.

  Mix the ingredients of the glaze until smooth and glassy.

  Pour slowly over cake bars, allowing glaze to run over sides of each bar.

  Let stand until the glaze is set.

  Store in cool, dry place.

  — ELEVEN —

  Katie looked up at the sound of her name and was surprised to see Gwen looking down at her. The last thing she expected to see at the library was one of the Davis children.

  Travis must not have said anything about the singing to their mother, or Gwen would most likely not have been allowed to be out and about town.

  “Hey Katie. What are you doing here?”

  “I am looking for recipes.”

  The young girl's expression changed—into one full of mystery and intrigue.

  “Ooh. For my brother?”

  Katie let out a small sigh before answering. “Nee, they are for Freida, my freind at the bakery.”

  “Oh.” Gwen's expression changed then—to one of something more than simple disappointment.

  I must tread carefully here.

  After Gwen had insisted that Travis drive Katie home the night of the singing, and that Katie sit up front with him, it had not taken long for Katie to realize that Gwen was entertaining—perhaps even encouraging—romantic ideas about how Travis felt about her.

  Katie, on the other hand, was trying to convince herself that his feelings—and hers—stopped at friendship.

  She was fairly certain Travis had done nothing to encourage his little schweschder's ideas, but Gwen was obviously on a mission.

  “What brings you to the library today, Gwen?”

  “I'm just looking for some new books to read.”

  Ah, so those books in the front room of their house must be hers. Katie remembered seeing the many shelves filled to bursting with books on her visits to the Davis house.

  Since the remainder of the family gathered in the den at the back of the house, she had wondered if the bookcases that were simply overflowing might have actually belonged to their dat, especially since she had never seen any of them with a book in their hands or setting beside them—as though they'd just put it down.

  “What type of books do you like to read?”

  The girl's eyes lit up at the question. “I like to read almost anything. Mysteries, science fiction, fantasy... romance...”

  Katie noticed how her voice lowered as she said the last two words, as if she was expecting a reprimand.

  “I suppose I am mighty boring by comparison. I mostly like to read cookbooks.”

  Gwen's head came up in obvious surprise. “But you're such a wonderful baker. Why would you need to read cookbooks?”

  “Ah,” She held up a finger for emphasis. “Perhaps that is because I read so many cookbooks. Reading about how others put together new recipes helps me to make fewer mistakes when I am creating my own recipes.”

  “I had not thought of that.”

  “Anything I bake... or read about... helps me to learn how to create new recipes to tempt and delight those who try them.” Katie bit her lip, trying to think of a gut example to give her young freind.

  “If you think about it, it is much like math. First, you learn to add and subtract, making multiplication and division much easier to learn and understand. With baking—or cooking—you start out with basic recipes, then add different ingredients, making the food much more interesting and tasty.”

  “I'm pretty good at math. I haven't had much of a chance to cook much, but I'm learning. Can you teach me how to make a cake?”

  “Jah, I can. Last week I made a special cake for the Mayor and his wife; it was three layers, with orange and lemon flavoring in the cake—and in the frosting. The Mayor himself stopped by the bakery to tell Mrs. Simpkins how much their guests enjoyed it.”

  “Oh, wow! I bet you were pretty excited and proud of what you had created.”

  “Plain people do not seek hochmut—pri
de. It would not be pleasing to Gott.”

  “Honestly, I don't know if I would want to be Amish... you guys have too many rules.”

  “Jah, that is what most Englischers believe, but we believe it makes life easier. When you have no rules, how do you decide what is the right thing to do?”

  “Well, most people just do whatever they want to do.”

  “Jah, but sometimes that makes more trouble for everyone. Are you not happier when you follow the rules your mamm tells you to follow?”

  “I guess so.” She looked down, a telltale pink stain spreading across her cheeks and neck.

  Clearly she was thinking of the rules she had disobeyed the night of the singing.

  After a moment, Gwen looked back up at Katie. The blush was fading and a look of mischief was back in the young maedel's eyes.

  “Even if I don't want to be Amish, I really like the Amish people I have met. I don't know what we would have done last year if so many people hadn't brought us food and other supplies. And they helped in other ways, too.”

  Gwen looked up at the big clock on the wall. “Speaking of rules, I have to get home. I don't want to be late and worry my mom. I'll see ya later.”

  And before Katie could say anything, Gwen was rushing out of the library.

  * * *

  Katie walked back to work, wondering how she might help Gwen. It would be difficult for her at home with four bruders and no schweschders.

  Katie had two younger schweschders, but she was blessed with many freinden her own age that she could talk to and confide in. She almost laughed out loud when Freida came running out to meet her on the sidewalk.

  “Katie, I am glad you returned early from lunch. Mrs. Simpkins asked me to watch out for you. She wants to talk to both of us right away.”

  “Did she say what she wanted to speak to us about?”

  “Nee, she just said it was important and for me to watch for you and us to come back to her office as soon as you got back.”

  “I guess we should go on back now then, jah?”

  But before they walked into the kitchen, Mrs. Simpkins was coming out of her office to meet them.

  “Girls, come on in. This won't take long.”

  Quickly, the girls made their way to the office.

  “Please have a seat. I appreciate whatever is said in this office to stay just between us.”

  “Have we done something wrong?” Freida was quick to ask.

  Thankfully, she stopped to give her boss time to answer her.

  “No, dear. I only wanted to speak to both of you together. I know you probably have questions concerning what's been going on lately, but I would rather not go into all of that right now.” She paused for a moment to let her words sink in, then continued.

  “I have asked Mr. O'Neal to stop coming by the bakery for awhile. Please trust me when I say that for now, this is how it must be. However, I feel dreadful about my actions—and behavior—during the past few weeks and want to apologize again for being angry, bad-tempered, and generally rude at times. It means everything to me that you girls have stuck by me even while I was cranky and difficult to be around.”

  Katie spoke up immediately. “Mrs. Simpkins, we love working here. Please do not worry about anything. We just want you to be happy.”

  “And I feel the same about you as well, both of you. Why, I think of you two as my own, dear girls. I don't know what I'd do without you. I wish I could take you both with me on the cruise, but I don't suppose it would be a good idea to close the bakery for almost a month.”

  Freida nearly jumped out of her seat.

  “Really? You would take us with you? On a big ship out on the ocean for a whole week?”

  “Freida, stop. She can't, even if she wants to. We have to keep the bakery open and running.” Katie interrupted her over-zealous freind.

  Mrs. Simpkins looked a bit embarrassed.

  “Oh my dear, yes, I would love to take you with me, but it's just not possible this time. Perhaps there will be another time when it will be possible. Or perhaps when you marry, I can send you and your husband on a cruise.”

  While Freida peppered Mrs. Simpkins with questions about her upcoming cruise and the idea of a honeymoon cruise, Katie sat quietly, thinking about what her dear, sweet boss had said.

  What is it that she is hiding? What could possibly be going on that it has her changing everything about her normal behavior... How serious must it be that she cannot explain?

  No matter how Katie thought about it all, there was no answer that made sense. She would simply have to wait for Mrs. Simpkins to decide if and when she could share more about what was going on with her.

  — TWELVE —

  Freida was waiting when Katie walked up to the door of The Sweet Shop, still humming a little to herself.

  “Well, it is about time. What has kept you this morning, Katie Chupp?”

  The irritation in her freind's voice did not affect Katie's mood one bit. She nearly sang out her “Good morning” as she unlocked the door and walked in, Freida close on her heels.

  “It was a wunderbaar gut walk today. The sky is clear. The birds are singing. The trees are blooming. Everything is simply beautiful. Monday is Memorial Day. And there is another singing tonight Gott is gut.” At which point, she turned to smile at her freind.

  Freida was not smiling back. Instead, she turned away and walked behind the counter, although there were no customers since the bakery was not yet open.

  “What is wrong? Why are you not in a better mood? You will get to spend time with your sweetheart tonight and you will have a very special cookie to bring him—a cookie you helped to create, if I may remind you.”

  “I don't know, Katie.”

  Katie waited for her usually chatty freind to say something else, but Freida only stood there on the other side of the counter, silent and frowning.

  “Was iss letz, Freida? What don't you know?”

  “I don't know if I want to join the church or not! I am being silly, I guess. Only... I really want to go on a cruise with Mrs. Simpkins. I want to get out and see the world!”

  “Well, but you can “see the world” without leaving the church.”

  “Nee, I cannot. Thomas came by for me last night. He wants us to marry in November. If I agree, I will never get to see the world.”

  “But you have been wanting to court—wait, Thomas? I thought it was Timothy you were wanting to court. Thomas is so serious all the time. Are you for sure it is Thomas you want?”

  “Jah, it is Thomas. You can see why he would not be wanting to do things in the world. Why, he has already joined the church.”

  “If you truly care for Thomas, you should be willing to put aside your own desires. Are you sure you care for him—enough to make a future with him? And if you do not... wait, what did you tell him last night?”

  “He did not really give me time to answer him. After I got in his courting buggy and we started down the road, he started talking about his family getting hundreds of chickens, then he said something about building a house and that's when he told me he wanted us to marry in November.”

  “Well, but why did you not say anything? You never have any trouble talking. Why did you not speak up?”

  “Because he kissed me!”

  “He—he kissed you?”

  “Jah.”

  “But, Freida—“

  “I am trying to tell you...” Tears were running down Freida's face now, but Katie had no idea if they were tears of joy or tears of sorrow.

  Not knowing what else to do, Katie quickly walked around the counter, where she hugged Freida, patting her back in an effort to calm her.

  “Katie, it was the most wunderbaar kiss I have ever had!”

  Katie's question shot out before she could squelch it. “How many kisses have you had?”

  Freida's face turned a warm shade of pink. “Only the one... well, we kissed several times before Thomas took me home, but that was my first time kissing.�
�

  “And you never said anything about marrying him—or not?”

  “Nee, after that first kiss, my brain shut off. Katie, I want to marry him... I am in lieb with him. But now you can see why I am upset.”

  “Jah, I can. You are in lieb with Thomas, but you still want to leave our community—to go out into the Englisch world.”

  “Jah... Nee, I just want to see some things in the world, like what it is like being on a big ship out on the ocean.”

  “Freida, did you feel this way before Mrs. Simpkins told us she was going on a cruise?”

  “Nee, not really. I mean, I thought about seeing placing and doing things, but mostly I just wanted Thomas to court me.”

  “Then why are you upset?”

  “I do not know. My brain is still addled by everything that happened last night. I should be froh. When Thomas was kissing me, it felt so wunderbaar; there was nothing else. But this morning, all I could think of was that maybe I will not make him froh. Do you think I could make him froh?”

  “I think you already do. Even more important, I think he makes you froh. But Freida, you should not keep your feelings from him. Tell him how you are feeling—about seeing the world. Then tell him Mrs. Simpkins is going to send you both on a cruise after you marry. Ask him if this is something he would like to do... if it is, there is no problem. You can marry—and see the world, too.”

  “Katie, you think of everything! I will ask him when he comes for me tonight.”

  “But Freida, there is one important thing you must do...”

  “What is that?”

  “You must ask him before he kisses you... and makes you forget everything but his kisses.”

  Freida giggled. “Jah, that is a gut idea.”

  Grabbing Katie in a hug, Freida swung them around. “Ach, I cannot wait until tonight!”

  Heading for the kitchen, Katie wondered if Freida was more excited thinking about telling Thomas about the cruise... or thinking of his kisses.

  * * *

  Like any other day, Katie pulled out the ingredients to make nine-grain bread. It was a good thing she was following her normal routine, as her mind was on her conversation with Freida.