“How about love?” asked Elsa-May with a faint smile.
“Love?”
“Jah, love. Did he have any love interests?”
“Well, we know he liked Thea, but it was far from a relationship.”
“They say he had an argument with a boy from the market over Thea,” Ettie said.
“Roy heard the men argue at the market,” Samuel said.
“They both probably were fond of young Thea,” Wilma said in a soft voice suddenly joining the conversation. “I know Thomas was fond of her.”
Elsa-May carefully continued, “Well… love is a battlefield, says one of the Englischers’ songs, or so I’m told.”
It suddenly clicked with Ettie that Samuel said something odd. “Roy was there, at the market, too?”
“Jah, that’s right, but he described it as boys bickering. One jealous guy was barking at another. Besides…” Samuel hesitated.
“Besides…?” asked Elsa-May quizzically after the pause got longish.
“Besides, my son was a big man. He wouldn’t have been easy to overpower.”
Ettie wanted to point out that if his son had been hit over the head, Thomas’ height or physical strength wouldn’t have mattered, but good sense told her to keep silent. The picture in her mind was too grisly. It seemed Thomas’ parents knew nothing, but Roy seemed always to be about. He was there at the market and he also found the body.
“How is Roy?” Ettie asked.
“He’s upset, naturally. It was awful for him finding Thomas like he did.”
“That day, did Thomas go home with Roy—did they travel back here together?”
Samuel shook his head. “You’d have to ask Roy that. We don’t know how Thomas got home, or how Roy came to be here at that moment.”
Ettie gave Elsa-May a sideways glance and knew they were thinking the same thing. Their next stop had to be a talk with Roy. Was it merely a coincidence that he witnessed the argument and then found his brother’s body as well?
While riding back to their house in a taxi, Ettie said, “They didn’t know anything.”
“Nee, we’ll have to find Roy.”
“Shall we wait until the funeral?”
“I think that’s the best idea. We don’t want to make a special trip to his haus since we’ve never visited him before now.”
Ettie blew out a deep breath.
“Are you okay?”
Ettie whispered so that the taxi driver wouldn’t overhear, “Yeah, fine. I'll feel better once we find out what the police think about why he died.”
Elsa-May whispered back, “The coroner will make his report soon.”
“And until then, we perhaps shouldn’t ask too many questions.”
Elsa-May nodded. “I think you’re right for once, Ettie.”
Ettie turned and stared at her sister, thinking perhaps she was joking, but her eyes remained looking to the front and her face was deadpan.
Chapter 8
At the market the next day, Thea was concerned about the mounting rumors surrounding Austin, and then she was even more concerned when he hadn’t shown up for work an hour and more past his usual opening time.
When her father came to collect her from work at the end of the day, she told him she wanted to visit friends and would come home later. Thankfully, he nodded and asked no questions.
Thea had found out from someone at the market where Austin lived and soon after she stood at the front door of his apartment and rang the doorbell. Her boot tapped nervously on the mat outside the door. She bit her lip and suddenly hoped he wouldn’t answer, and then a second later she prayed that he would.
The door opened just a crack and she could see part of Austin’s face.
“C’min,” he murmured after a while, leaving the door open and withdrawing into the dark behind him.
Thea cautiously tiptoed inside and was overwhelmed by the odor of stale beer. She stepped over the clumps of things lying everywhere and followed him to the couch where she sat down. He lit a cigarette and took up the controller of a game console, and continued with his game.
After a while, he spoke. “If you want anything, go take it. There’s beer in the fridge, and OJ.”
“I’m okay.” Thea sat silently for a few minutes, watching his game as Austin made his way through waves of space monsters jumping out from behind trees in a colorful forest.
He suddenly stopped and turned off the game and stared at her. “Why are you here, Thea? I hope your dad didn’t follow you here, or I’ll be in all kinds of trouble. More trouble than I’m probably already in.”
“I’m worried about you, that’s all.”
“Why? Is it because everyone thinks I caused Thomas’ death? I hope the coppers don’t think I did it! Because that good-for-nothing lunatic chose that very moment, minutes after our argument to freaking walk off from the roof of his barn so skillfully that he was able to kill himself from a twelve foot fall!” He wasn’t making much sense at all and his speech was slurred.
“Why weren’t you at work today?”
“Why? Because if I’m going to be arrested, I don’t want it to happen where so many people can see it.” Austin jumped off his threadbare couch and stormed into the kitchen.
Thea pulled her legs up and hugged them. A tear trickled silently down her face, and she heard the hiss of a beer bottle opening.
He lurched back, putting a beer bottle under Thea’s nose without asking anything, and slammed back into the couch, hugging his bottle. He took up his cigarette packet, shook out another cigarette and lit it. Thea wasn’t fond of beer and left the one that he’d meant for her sitting in front of her.
He drew in the smoke and slowly exhaled. “What was his problem anyway?”
She knew he was referring to Thomas. “I don’t know. He wasn’t always like that. Something seemed to be eating away at him lately.”
“He was horrible.”
“He wasn’t. You didn’t know Thomas like I did.”
“Do you believe that he died accidently?”
“Yes. I guess so. There’s no reason to believe otherwise. I don’t think you did it if that’s what you’re asking.”
He scoffed and tapped the ash of his cigarette into the top of one of the several empty beer bottles on the coffee table. “That’s a relief. How did the rumor get around that I had anything to do with it?”
“I think because people at the market heard the argument you had with him just before he died.”
“I figured that. Coppers listen to things like that. That’s why I just hung out here today. I could be facing life or the electric chair because of that idiot,” he said in a hoarse tone. “I could see the way people were looking at me yesterday. I didn’t want to go through that again today.”
“You’re not going to jail. You’re innocent, and they don’t have anything against you. So you can just… get yourself together and quit whining.” She stood up. There was no use staying. He looked like he’d been drinking all day and he probably wouldn’t even remember she’d come there.
Austin screwed up his face as he looked up at her. “Are you going now? You just got here.”
“Yes.” She walked toward the door.
He staggered to his feet. “Thanks for coming, Thea. You’re a real friend. And I never had many of those.”
Turning around she said, “Can I get you anything, Austin. Maybe some food?”
He leaned over and picked up his beer bottle. “I’ve got this.”
She frowned at him and couldn’t just leave him like that. “I’ll see what you’ve got in the fridge.”
“No, I couldn’t eat anything anyway. Just go home. I’ll be okay tomorrow.”
“Will you?”
“Yeah! I’ll snap out of it. If they want to arrest me, then let ‘em do it.”
“Go easy on the beer, would you?”
He smiled. “I don’t have any more left after these, so I’ve got no choice.”
“Good. I’ll see you tomorrow
.”
“Bye, Thea.”
Thea left his apartment feeling satisfied that she’d checked on him. He wasn’t in a good way, though, and she couldn’t blame him.
Chapter 9
Ettie and Elsa-May traveled to the funeral with Elsa-May’s grandson, Jeremiah and his wife, Ava. The first part of the funeral would be the viewing of the body at Thomas’ parents’ house, and then the body would be taken to the grave, followed by a long procession of buggies.
“We’ve heard that it might not have been an accident,” Ava said as she turned around and spoke to the elderly sisters who were in the backseat of the buggy.
“Ava, there’s no need to say things like that,” Jeremiah cautioned her.
“It’s only Elsa-May and Ettie. They don’t mind. They usually know what’s happening around the community. It’s not as though I’m spreading rumors.”
“Okay,” Jeremiah agreed, "I guess that's true."
Ava turned back to the sisters. “Well?”
“Detective Kelly is on the case. He’s waiting to hear back about the coroner’s findings. There seems to be some delay.”
“Unless he knows already and he’s not telling us,” Ettie said to her sister.
“Either way, he thinks that there’s some doubt about it being an accidental death.”
“They say Roy found him,” Ava said.
“Jah, he found him and he also witnessed the argument at the market,” Elsa-May said.
Ettie added, “The one that fueled the rumors about it being a murder rather than an accidental death.”
“Sure sounds like gossip to me,” Jeremiah said.
“It’s sharing of information,” Elsa-May told her grandson.
“Jah, Jeremiah, Detective Kelly asked for our help in keeping our ears open to help him with clues,” Ettie said. “And he’s helped us before, so we are repaying his kindness.”
Jeremiah raised one hand while holding the reins in the other. “Okay. I’m clearly outnumbered here so I’ll keep my mouth shut.”
Ava giggled at what her husband said and then turned around to the sisters. “Let me know if you need any help.”
“We will,” Elsa-May said. “We’re hoping to talk with Roy today if we can get him alone.”
“Why don’t you leave it for today? It’s his bruder’s funeral,” Jeremiah said.
“I thought you were keeping your mouth shut, Grandson?” Elsa-May asked.
“Jeremiah, if it were up to you, we’d never talk with Roy about what happened,” Ettie added. “We’re only trying to help. We’re not being destructive.”
“I’ll try to keep out of it,” Jeremiah said.
Minutes later, Jeremiah stopped his buggy at the end of a long row of buggies at the Strongberg home.
There was a crowd just inside the house when Ettie and Elsa-May made their way through the front door with Ava close behind them. In front of them was the coffin with Mrs. Wilma Strongberg beside it. It was a sight that saddened Ettie. The woman would never have expected to lose a son so suddenly, accident or otherwise.
People milled past the coffin paying their respects and then saying a few words to the rest of the family who were on the right side of the room.
Ettie, Elsa-May and Ava followed the general direction of the crowd. It was Ettie’s habit not to look at the dead, as she’d rather remember people as they’d been. Once they got to Mrs. Strongberg, Elsa-May was the spokesperson for the three of them. After her kind words, they gravitated to converse with the rest of the Strongberg family. When Roy, Thomas’ older brother, broke away from the group to go outside, Ettie and Elsa-May were quick to follow him.
“Roy!”
Roy turned around and looked at Elsa-May. “Jah?”
“Ettie and I are concerned about something.”
“What is it? Do you need a ride to the gravesite?”
“Nee, denke, Jeremiah has kindly offered to drive us. It’s about Thomas.”
“What about him?”
“We know he was troubled about something. Do you know what it was?”
Roy lowered his eyes and rubbed his dark beard. When he looked up, he said, “He told you something was troubling him?”
“Not us ourselves, but we think he was upset about something.”
“The day he died, he was going to tell me something. I got the idea he might have been in trouble. It was something to do with a friend he made on rumspringa.”
“Did he ever say what it was?”
“Or who the friend was?” Elsa-May added.
“He was about to tell me that day. He said he couldn’t keep it in any longer. He came to see me and then Olive wanted to go to the market and I ended up going instead. He came along and when we were there, Thomas said he would go to say hello to Thea. When I took him home, we talked along the way, and he said he wanted to tell me what was going on in his life. I knew Olive needed the meat for our dinner that night, so I took him home and said I’d be right back to hear what it was.”
“Why didn’t he go with you?” Ettie asked.
Roy stared at Ettie a while before he answered, ‘I don’t know. He didn’t ask and I guess I didn’t offer. I was in a rush to get the meat home to Olive. I knew she’d be waiting for it.”
“Then what happened?” Elsa-May asked.
“When I got back, he wasn’t in the house. I thought he might be in the barn and then I found him as soon as I walked in.”
“Was there anything out of place?’
“I didn’t look, but ever since Thomas had come back from rumspringa, the barn was left in a mess with stuff everywhere. Anyway, the ladder was across him, so I pushed it away and saw he wasn’t breathing. I did my best to revive him and nothing I did worked. I heard a buggy and rushed out to see Mamm and Dat had just arrived home. I hollered out to them and told them what had happened. They rushed in and saw him. It was too late. He’d gone.”
“He was already dead when you found him, though?” Elsa-May asked.
“Jah. So Dat and I carried him into the house and we called the funeral director. We didn’t know what else to do.”
“Did you see any sign of anyone else there? A car leaving or anything like that?”
“Nee, I passed no car on the way, not near the haus; I would’ve remembered if I had.”
“Who called the police?” Ettie asked.
“It must’ve been the funeral director who called the paramedics. And the police, because they actually arrived first. It seems the police think it wasn’t an accident and they’re suspicious that he was moved.”
“You weren’t to know,” Ettie said.
“How would I?” Roy commented. “Anyway, he’s gone now and I was too late to help him.” Tears came to his eyes. “I was his older bruder and I should’ve been able to protect him. That was my job as an older bruder and I failed him.”
“It might have been an accident, though, and if it were, we know that it was Gott’s will.”
Roy blinked a couple of times. “It was a shock to see him there. I never even thought that one of my siblings would die so young.” Roy managed a smile before he hurried away.
“I feel awful asking him questions like that right now,” Ettie said.
“I know, me too, but it’s best to ask before he forgets anything.”
“I suppose, but today is the funeral.”
“Ettie, you’re starting to sound like Jeremiah.”
Ettie nibbled on a fingernail. “I just wish we knew what really happened.”
“We will—I hope.”
Chapter 10
That night, Detective Kelly came to Elsa-May and Ettie’s house.
“I’ve got some interesting information,” he announced at the door.
Once Kelly was seated in front of them, he began. "The coroner has delivered his findings. From the angle Thomas Strongberg was hit, it could either have been a blow to the head or a fall, although he's judging it as inconclusive."
"Well, that's not really helping
me at all," Ettie said.
“Surely a blow to the head would’ve done more damage than a fall?” Elsa-May asked.
“I’m no expert. I just go on what I’m told.”
"What do you do now, Detective? Do you look for a killer, or not?" Elsa-May asked.
"You're right; it's very difficult. All we can do is ask questions and investigate further and then if nothing turns up, we’ll have to wrap up the case. With the findings being inconclusive, we’ve got no other choice."
"So, it's likely that a murderer might get away with it if Thomas was killed and you can't do anything about proving it?"
"That's right. We'll just have to close the case and put it down to an accident.”
"But we don't even know it was a fall for certain."
"According to the brother, he found the ladder across his brother's body. And that's all we've got to go on. There was no one else there at the time."
"Why isn't anything ever simple? " Elsa-May asked.
"It gets more intriguing, Elsa-May."
Elsa-May leaned forward with her eyebrows nearly reaching her starched white prayer kapp.
The detective continued, "Thomas Strongberg was arrested during his rumspringa, and that was one year ago."
Elsa-May dropped her knitting and her mouth fell open in shock.
“What were the charges?” Ettie asked.
“Drug charges. He was mixed up with a group of people who were selling and smuggling drugs.”
“Smuggling them to where?” Ettie asked.
“Into the country.”
“What happened?” Elsa-May asked.
“The charges were eventually dropped. The person he was arrested with claimed that Thomas had nothing to do with it. He was just at the wrong place at the wrong time. We had no evidence to make anything stick, so the charges were dropped.
“With whom was he arrested?” asked Elsa-May.
“A man by the name of Bart Crittenden. He’s serving time now, but he’s due for parole soon.”
Ettie breathed out heavily.
“That’s not good," Elsa-May said.
Ettie Smith Amish Mysteries Box Set 3 Page 23
