In Plain View (Amish Safe House, Book 2)

by Ruth Hartzler

  Of course actually checking out her hunches without blowing her cover was just shy of impossible.

  “You'll figure it out, Kate.”

  Kate jumped in surprise at Lillian's voice, causing the older woman to jump too, and to laugh nervously at Kate’s reaction. “Goodness, Kate. You're going to get wrinkled up if you keep fretting over that project. The world won't end if you can't remember how to knit.”

  Kate forced a smile as she studied the mess in her lap. “There's just a lot on my mind. That's all.”

  “Like what?” Esther asked as she gasped and leaned forward. “Did you start to remember something about before your accident?”

  “Oh no. Nothing like that. I'm afraid I'm not any closer than when I got here,” Kate said quickly, feeling her face color. It wasn't that she was shy with crowds. Quite the contrary. She knew how to work a crowd back in her hometown. But here, people paid so much attention to you, rather than your station or job title. The Amish were so aware of individual strengths, weaknesses, body language, and quirks. Kate figured that someone like ninety year old Naomi would put lie detectors and profile experts to shame with how observant she was.

  Kate glanced in the older woman's direction. As expected, Naomi was frowning as she studied Kate from across the room. Kate suspected that Naomi knew from the start she was hiding something from them. But the woman never brought it up, and Kate was at a loss on how to confirm her suspicion.

  “Do you think you will ever -” Esther began, just as a breathless Beckie rushed through the door grasping a whirlwind of yarn and an over-sized blanket. The woman had been in such a rush that her bonnet was flapping haphazardly against her back, and her hair was falling out in wisps from the once-neat bun at the base of her neck.

  “I'm sorry I'm late,” Beckie gasped. She flopped into her chair as all eyes focused on her. She unceremoniously dumped her basket of supplies onto the floor. “You won't believe what I just heard.”

  Lillian gasped. “Was der schinner is letz?” What on earth is wrong?

  Beckie waved a hand frantically to fan herself, while Lillian rushed to get her a glass of water. Kate breathed a small sigh of relief as the attention was now focused on Beckie for the time being. Kate did not know how much longer she would be able to play on the amnesia thing, given people were getting more emboldened about trying to help jog her memory by prying for details about her supposed community. They were careful not to be indelicate about the small details they thought they knew, but it was surely a matter of time before they started to suspect something was wrong.

  “There is a crime ring in the next town over,” Beckie declared.

  Kate's jaw dropped, but luckily, her expression was hidden amongst the other shocked gasps and startled whispers between the ladies.

  “Really, Beckie,” Maria scolded the woman. “First you show up late, then you get everyone riled up with idle gossip?”

  “It's not gossip,” Beckie insisted, before gulping down half her glass. “My cousin, Jeremiah, saw them with his own eyes. He’s on rumspringa, you know.”

  Beckie, clearly ignoring Maria's stern disapproving looks, scooted to the edge of her seat. “They are a right nasty group too. Jeremiah says they have connections in the town's political structure. Jeremiah is staying with some people who run their own café. These thugs started shaking the family down for protection money. When the man said the mayor would run them out, the leader just laughed and said they own the mayor. Jeremiah told me that he thinks that they have people in the police force, and judges already, too. No one even acknowledges complaints.”

  “Es waarken maulvoll gat!” There’s nothing good about that! Lillian covered her mouth with delicately curled fingers. “What has this world come to, these days?”

  “He really should come on back home,” Esther said. “I know this is his time, but it's dangerous out there.”

  “That's not even the scariest part of the story.” Beckie was all but bouncing in her seat. “That photo of man the police showed us? The man found in the pond? That man was the one shaking down that family for money.”

  “How could you possibly know that?” Maria asked, looking torn between shutting down the woman's story and listening.

  “Because Jeremiah saw the dead man's picture in the newspapers. And he's the exact same man that shook the cafe down for money. Twice that he knew of.”

  Kate was surprised. She was sure that agents would have given themselves headaches trying to figure out how to find out that information, yet Beckie had effortlessly gotten all that information from her cousin. That's it - forget the Feds, Kate thought. When I get back to my real life, I’m going to hire an Amish knitting circle.

  Lillian looked around the room and twisted the scarf she was working on in her hands. “My brother nearly got run into on his way to market the other day. That was the day before they found the body. He said two cars came through the main trail going awfully fast. If he hadn't scooted this horse to the side in time, they would have smashed clear through his cart. He said it looked like one was chasing the other.”

  This brought on a fresh wave of whispers and gasps. The town road was not far from the community at all. And the man had been found in a pond right there on the path.

  “Do you think that was the man that died, and the ones that killed him?” Esther asked as the women started to whisper among themselves.

  “Goodness gracious, Lillian. Your brother had Der Herr watching out for him then,” Abigail said, her face white.

  “No doubt about that,” Esther chimed in. “Why didn't you say anything?”

  “I thought it was just some mindless teenagers from town or something.”

  Naomi banged her cane against the wooden floor, sending the women into immediate silence. Despite her age, the woman commanded immediate respect. “All right, ladies. There's no use speculating about things we have no control over.”

  “That's right,” Maria said, recovering her composure and stern expression. “We're not here to be a bunch of gossiping hens. One minute it’s news about Jeremiah having an encounter, next you are all letting your imaginations run wild.”

  Maria rose to her feet and neatly placed down her knitting as she sniffed and headed toward the kitchen. “It should be about time for the cobbler to come out of the oven. I'll prepare the plates. Beckie, would you help me with the drinks?”

  Beckie agreed as she struggled to her feet, but the fact that she was disappointed that Maria was pulling her away from continuing the hushed gossip, was as plain as day.

  Kate frowned and tried to look busy with her knitting as she thought about the details. The crime ring had some sort of connection to the mayor. The dead man had been shaking down town businesses for protection fees. And he was found dead in a pond the day after they nearly ran over Lillian's brother. That about summed it up. If she had her badge, she'd be having a hay day with this rush of information. But how to do it as Kate, the amnesic Amish girl?

  “Is your brother okay?” Kate asked Lillian, trying to think of any details he might have told her about the car chase. If it had been right before the murder, then there could potentially be some vital clues in their stories.

  Lillian turned her attention to Kate. “Jah, Benjamin is fine, denki. He was a mite shaken up over the whole thing, but that is it.”

  Kate was about to work out an innocent enough request for details when she saw the gears turning in Lillian's head.

  “You know, Kate,” Lillian started speculatively. “My bruder, Benjamin, well, I think he might have an eye on you. You and he ought to take a little buggy ride together. How would you feel if he happened to ask?”

  Esther reached over to smack Lillian on the knee. “Lillian! You can't just go pushing your brother on poor Kate. She might have herself a fiancé back home she still needs to remember.”

  “Well then, she should break it off with him for not coming by all this time,” Lillian shot back in an indignant tone. “She can't remember what
doesn't come visiting. And we all know there's plenty of eligible menner that would come courting if Kate gave them half a hint she was looking.”

  “But I'm not looking,” Kate said. She was startled and her mind was whirling. How in the world did they go from a crime ring to her love life? Or lack thereof?

  “Well you can just look. Having a little attention now and then never hurts anyone.” Lillian smiled mischievously.

  Esther shook her head. “Oh let her be, Lillian. Kate, don't fret over it. Lillian is just teasing you a bit. Don't pay it any mind.”

  Kate smiled, but already her thoughts were drifting away. The sooner she could solve the case, the safer these ladies would be. If organized crime got their claws too far into the town, an occasional burglar would be the least of this Amish community's problems.

  Colossians 3:1.

  If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

  Chapter 6.

  As the sun shone through the window, illuminating her bedroom, Kate rolled over, partially waking up from the intrusion of light that crept into her tightly closed eyes. She rubbed her eyes furiously and forced herself to wake from her deep slumber. After struggling to avoid getting out of bed for several minutes, she finally rolled out of bed and walked into the kitchen. She put on the coffee and then started to make scrapple.

  When Kate had first arrived in the community, she had done her best to avoid the mixture of meat and cornmeal, but now she looked forward to the breakfast meal. She had even become used to not having electricity, and was becoming accustomed to the slower pace of life.

  Yet Kate was still was not comfortable driving the buggy, despite the fact that she had done so many a time. Today, she had to drive Rose to town so Rose could work in a quilt store for several hours, and the thought of driving the buggy was making Kate’s stomach churn. She thought of asking Rose to drive, but it was expected that the older woman would be the one to drive.

  Later, while Kate was walking around town, trying to keep herself entertained while waiting for Rose, she stopped in a small café and ordered coffee, this time a spiced chai latté. I feel almost normal again, Kate thought, drinking a latté and watching the television affixed to the wall.

  The local news report was on, talking about such things as the weather, and some cats stuck in a tree, and a bank robbery in another county. None of that interested her, but then something she heard definitely caught her attention. The narration of a breaking news report echoed through the café.

  “Good morning, I’m Maria Mandalay, reporting for Channel 7 news. Today we are bringing you an update on an ongoing investigation. Last week we reported that a man was found lifeless in a resident’s pond. Police have now released the victim’s name. He is a thirty-four year old man by the name of Ethan Jackson. Police are also reporting today that new evidence in the case is being examined. A 2007 Lincoln Continental was found crashed into a tree near a back road just south of the park and approximately one hundred yards from where the victim’s body was recovered. Stay tuned to Channel 7 for more updates on this breaking story.”

  Kate listened intently to the shocking report. She knew there was a good chance that the car had probably been towed back to the station to be inspected and tested for evidence by now, but perhaps there could still be some sort of clue that could point her in the right direction. She didn’t have an exact location, but she had a good idea of the general vicinity of the site of the car wreck.

  Kate walked out to the buggy and untied the horse, patting his glossy neck before climbing aboard the buggy. After trotting for some time, the buggy arrived at the park that had been mentioned in the news report.

  Kate drove around, looking for any signs of a tree that could have been hit recently. Other than some poorly trimmed bushes and an abandoned sneaker that hung from an electrical wire, nothing seemed out of place in the slightest. She circled the area several times and decided to head toward the neighbor’s land where the body was found. Just a few minutes later, she came upon a clearing right to the side of the road. Some ribbons of caution tape blew in the wind, still wrapped around a barely standing tree. Its bark was severely scuffed, and there were some large, broken branches dotting the ground beneath it. This had to be where the car was found.

  Kate carefully tied the horse to a tree well away from the road, and looked around the scene. She noticed several shards of glass decorating the ground and some deep tire impressions in the soft earth. Crouching down on one knee, she carefully examined the marks, but she knew they would be of no help to her. The police already knew the make and model of the vehicle, so the tires would surely match it, she thought. “Hmm,” she said softly.

  Kate was startled by the sudden low buzzing of what appeared to be some type of music. She looked around, but could see nothing that could be emitting such a sound. There were no cars on the desolate, forgotten back road. The ringing continued, so Kate walked toward the source of the noise.

  As she approached the melody, Kate realized it was coming from a large set of bushes located several yards away from the damaged tree. Making her way over, she peered between a few short branches, hoping to catch a glimpse of the source of this unexpected music. To her surprise, what appeared to be a small electronic screen lit up and rumbled as the device danced to the rhythm of the ring tone. It was an abandoned cell phone that must have been discarded there recently. Kate reached in through the sharp, needle-like leaves of the evergreen shrub, gripped the phone in her hand, and pulled it from its hiding place.

  Kate looked around to make sure nobody had been watching her, and then decided to head back to the buggy and examine the newly discovered cell phone in privacy. Once she was back inside the buggy, Kate tried to look through the phone; however, there was an obvious problem - it was locked, and to get in, she needed to swipe the touch screen interface in a specific order and pattern. After trying for some time to connect the dots in the correct sequence, Kate became more and more frustrated as attempt after attempt failed.

  Finally, just as she was about to give up, she noticed it was possible for the sequence to outline a letter. First she used her finger to trace a Z - nothing happened. Then, she tried a Y - definitely not. “This is so frustrating,” she said aloud. Right before she placed the phone down, Kate had the urge to try just one more time. After she swiped a V from left to right, the phone unlocked, giving her free access to the device and all of its contents.

  The first place she looked for clues was the phone’s photo album. As she scrolled through several images, a clear portrait of a man who was most likely the victim appeared. Because it was taken in the manner of a selfie, she assumed that the phone must have belonged to the victim. Reinforcing her claim, the man’s social media sites were all linked, proving the identity of the cell’s owner.

  Maybe she could find a contact who would be willing to give her some information about the guy and with whom he was involved. Yet the list of names and phone numbers was long. How would she know just who to contact? It was like looking for a needle in a haystack, and the haystack just kept growing.

  Kate decided to look through a few more screens on the phone, when an app caught her attention. It was named, Record-a-Call. How odd. Opening it up, a splash screen welcomed her back, and then revealed a list of saved files which looked like recordings. Each file was labeled with a contact, followed by what appeared to be a date and time.

  The newest recording was entitled Lucas_03_15_01:32. With curiosity building, Kate tapped the track and listened closely to what came next. The snapping of twigs could be heard, as the voice yelled into the phone. “Yo man, I need your help!” The voice subsided and all that could be heard was static before the sound of more rustling.

  “Hello? Hello? I can’t hear a word you’re saying. What’s up?” another voice replied.

  In broken phrases, the caller continued. “Service out here is bad…man…but… I’m being chased
. I think it’s W..te’s men. Can you hea… Hello?”

  The service seemed to keep dropping here and there, making the conversation difficult to comprehend. Then, the other voice spoke again. “I knew tho… uys… ere gonna come aft… you.”

  It was enough to give Kate a headache, but she kept listening closely. After nearly thirty seconds of silence, a new voice crackled over the speaker.

  “Logan White sent us looking for you. Your double dipping stops here.” A loud bang ended the recording. In a state of horror and shock, Kate sat in silence for several minutes. Not sure what to do, she listened to the phone call once more. Kate realized this was probably a professional hit. Who was Logan White? Unsure of what step to take next, Kate clicked the horse into a trot and headed back to town.

  Kate still had time before Rose would return, but after she parked the buggy and tied up the horse, she climbed back into the buggy to think over what to do. The thought of taking the phone to the police station was on her mind, but she could not afford anyone questioning her as to how she had come across it. Further, her identity could be called into question if anyone were to dig into her background.

  Holding onto the phone was out of the question, even if it was her next idea. Not only would it look bad if it were somehow to be found in her possession, but it would also be withholding crucial information from an ongoing investigation. That simply was not a valid option. Then, her next idea struck a chord. Why not mail it in anonymously?

  Kate got out of the buggy and walked through town until she came to a little stationery store, where she found the idea piece of stationery. She pulled out a manila envelope that was insulated with bubble wrap. She knew that would be perfect, and it was no larger than a folded sheet of paper.