Shadow of Shame: Book 1 of the Shadow series

by Barbara Goss

  “Tell him I’ll give him everything I own for that child. Let him take me for a hostage,” Jonas begged.

  “We think someone may have told him we were onto him, or he saw us emptying the Kreider home. We wore masks and went through everything there—what a mess!” the sheriff said. “Boyd knew we’d find something on him, and we did. We found Beulah’s body stuffed into a closet. She’s been there for months. We also saw notes that he wrote to the babysitter with instructions signed by Mr. E.”

  “He killed her?” Jonas moaned. “That means he could kill again.” Jonas fell to the ground and prayed out loud for the safety of his daughter.

  Quinn jumped down from his horse, knelt beside him, and joined him in prayer.

  “I’m going back to see if my deputy found a way to sneak in the house,” the sheriff said as he walked back to his posse.

  “She must be terrified.” Jonas said. “I have to find a way to get her, Quinn.”

  “I wonder if the sheriff would let me talk to Boyd,” Quinn said.

  “Ask him. We have to do something,” Jonas said.

  “All right. I’ll be right back,” Quinn said.

  Caleb had been talking to the men in the posse. Now he met Jonas and knelt with him. “They're thinking of sneaking in a back window, but—"

  “What? They can’t,” Jonas cried. “He’ll kill Zoe!”

  “We have to trust them, Jonas.”

  “The last thing Zoe said to me tonight was 'I love you, Papa.'” Tears rolled down Jonas’s face. “What can I do, Lord?” he said, addressing the sky. “Please give the sheriff’s men the wisdom and the skill to get Zoe out safely,” he prayed.

  The sheriff walked over to them and said, “I’m going to allow Iverson to try talking to Egan. He’s going in now.”

  “Oh, dear Lord…” Jonas prayed.

  The deputy signaled to the sheriff, and the sheriff said, “Iverson's inside the house.”

  “Please?” Jonas prayed.

  To Jonas, the several minutes Quinn was in the house seemed like hours. Finally, he saw Quinn talking to the sheriff who was back in front of the house with his men. Then both men walked back to Jonas.

  “Here’s what’s happening, Jonas,” the sheriff said. “Iverson got Egan to agree to give up the girl, but he wants something in return. He wants us all to back off and let him ride away. He said he’d come out with the child and leave her in front of the house, but if anyone came after him he’d shoot her.”

  “That’s good!” Jonas said. “Thank you, Quinn.”

  The sheriff continued, “He wants us to ride one mile down the road to the east. He doesn’t know you’re here. You need to hide in these bushes until he rides away, and then you can run to get your daughter. We’ll go after Egan. In fact, I just sent a few men a half mile down the road to the west by a route that can’t be seen from the house. We’ll get him as he passes that way,” the sheriff said. “But make sure he doesn’t see you, or he won’t leave the child.”

  Jonas ran to the bushes and ducked down. He could not see the house from where he crouched, but he did have a perfect view of the front yard near the road. He waited nervously. He’d never felt so nervous or panicky in his life. If he got Zoe back, he would never let her out of his sight again. He began to pray again.

  Jonas watched the posse disappear to the east, and then he watched the front yard of the house until he saw Boyd on his horse with Zoe, still crying, under his arm. Boyd rode to the front of the house, looked up and down the road, seemed satisfied, and gently dropped Zoe to the ground. He rode off toward the west, right past where Jonas was hiding. Jonas stayed in the bushes, but he kept a close watch on Zoe. She sat there as if stunned. She was still crying, but not as hard. She seemed confused and scared, sitting there alone in the dark.

  Finally, after about four minutes, Jonas stuck his head out and looked westward—Boyd was nowhere in sight. He darted from his hiding place to grab Zoe.

  He ran with her back to the bushes, where he crouched with her. “It’s okay, Zoe. No more crying. Papa has you.”

  Zoe grabbed on to Jonas’s collar, still gasping and having breathing spasms from crying so hard.

  Jonas rocked her and patted her back, whispering soothing words to her.

  Since Quinn and Caleb had taken his horse with them, he had to wait for someone to come back for him and Zoe.

  Zoe tried to talk through her crying hiccups. “P-papa, b-b-bad m-man!”

  “It’s all right now, honey, he’s gone. You’re with Papa, and as soon as Uncle Cal and Uncle Quinn return, we’re going home.”

  “I l-love you P-papa,” she said, and hugged him tightly.

  “Zoe, Papa loves you so much, he doesn’t ever want to be without you again.”

  A few minutes later the men that had gone east rode back. Quinn and Caleb trotted over to Jonas and Zoe. The rest, along with the sheriff and deputy, rode west.

  Caleb and Quinn were relieved that Zoe was safe.

  “I have to thank God, and then we’re going home,” Jonas said. “I don’t care if they catch Boyd or not.”

  All three bowed briefly in prayer and thanked God for Zoe’s safety.

  When Jonas and Zoe walked into the house, Ivy ran to them. “Jonas! Zoe!” she cried, and threw her arms around them both.

  Zoe smiled at Ivy. “Papa got me from bad man.”

  “Oh, I’m so glad.” Ivy hugged them both. “I was so worried. I somehow felt that it was my fault,” Ivy cried. Tears rolled down her face.

  Jonas felt assured that Ivy was the right choice for him. No matter how much he loved Ivy, if he wasn’t sure she’d love Zoe, he couldn’t marry her. Tonight proved to him how important that was. The three of them hugged for several moments.

  “It will be a merry Christmas after all,” Ivy said.

  “And thanks to you, Ivy, Zoe's talking so much better,” Jonas said, “even after tonight’s scare. She was petrified.”

  “I hope,” said Ivy with a worried look, “she doesn’t have any bad d-r-e-a-m-s,” she spelled.

  Jonas nodded knowingly. “Zoe, guess what? Papa is going to sleep with you tonight in my big bed. Would you like that?”

  “Yeth—yes-s, Papa.” She smiled brightly, unshed tears still in her eyes.

  “All right. Here’s what I need you to do,” Jonas said to Zoe. “Go up to your room, get your nightgown on, and wait for me in my bed. I’ll be up in just a few minutes.”

  “Okay,” she said, and ran up the stairs.

  When she was gone, Jonas relayed the story of what happened at Boyd's house to Ivy.

  “Oh, how terrifying for you.” She hugged Jonas. “I prayed the whole time.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I knew I loved Zoe, but tonight really made me realize how much,” Ivy said. “To have her snatched right from my buggy—“

  Jonas hugged her. “It’s over now. They found Beulah’s body in a closet in the Kreider home.”

  “Oh, no!” she cried. “I’ll bet he was trying to find a way to pin that all on you.”

  “Probably so. It shocks me, though, because for two years the three of us were close friends. I don’t know what's happened to him.”

  “Was he a believer?” Ivy asked.

  “No, I don’t think he was. He never went to church, and he never talked about God.”

  “Well, that’s fertile ground for Satan isn’t it?”

  “Exactly,” Jonas answered.

  “Peggy stopped by to see what was going on and I told her to send my father. He should be here any minute. I couldn’t stand waiting alone. I guess the little girl in me wanted my Papa, too.”

  Chapter 16

  Christmas Eve morning, the sheriff and deputy paid Jonas a call. Jonas was just opening the stable doors when they rode up. They dismounted and walked over to him.

  “We bear good news, this time, Jonas,” Sheriff Smith said.

  “I could use some,” Jonas answered.

  “We got Boyd Egan. Ther
e was a shoot out, and two of my men were injured. Boyd ran out of bullets and started to run on foot, but we caught him. He’ll not see freedom for years, if ever.”

  “That is good news,” Jonas said. “I still can’t believe an ex-friend could do something so horrible.”

  “We searched his house and found four more letters to you asking for money. They were written by Beulah Kreider, so I can only think he forced her to write them before he killed her. And to think she was inside that closet all those summer months. No wonder the house smelled. I wonder if the woman who cared for her knew that.”

  “There’s only one thing I can’t get my head around,” Jonas said. “How did he know Ivy would be riding with Zoe last night? How did he know I wouldn't be with them?”

  “Once we caught him and he knew there was no way out for him, he confessed everything. We charged him with first-degree murder, since Beulah’s letters indicated premeditation. I offered him life in prison in place of hanging if he told us everything.

  “It seems he somehow snuck into your stables and overheard us talking—remember the bucket that was knocked over? That was Egan.

  “He said that while you were out he got into the stables with the purpose of stealing a few horses to pay for his way out of town, but once you returned he was stuck there and couldn’t leave without your seeing him, so he had to stay in there. He overheard a customer tell you he’d pick up a horse at seven. He’d heard in town that Zoe was to be in the Christmas Eve play and would be at rehearsal with Ivy Jeffries. He also heard me say we were going to search the Kreider house. He figured the town would probably just demolish the house, which we almost did.”

  “Thank you both, and please thank the whole posse. I’m glad this is over and we can finally enjoy Christmas. We'll all appreciate each other more after last night,” Jonas said.

  “How's your little daughter doing today?” the deputy asked.

  “She’s fine, and has already forgotten about it. Since we have no snow this year, she’s more worried about how St. Nick will get here and how he’ll get down our chimney if the fireplace is lit.”

  The deputy laughed. “I was asked that same thing by my son! As parents we need to come up with some creative answers.”

  The lawmen mounted their horses. “It’s getting cold and windy, I wouldn’t be surprised if we did get a bit of snow overnight,” the deputy said.

  Ivy wanted to share Christmas morning with Zoe so she arranged to have Violet accompany her. They were both to spend Christmas Eve night in one of Jonas’s spare rooms.

  Before Thelma took her leave on Christmas Eve, she left the mincemeat pie and a whole platter of chocolate drops. She also wrapped all Jonas’s gifts in paper for him and even left one for him and Zoe. She also left some decorative candles out for Jonas to use that evening.

  Jonas had given both Thelma and Ingrid a generous Christmas bonus, and the next two days off with pay.

  After they returned from the successful Christmas Eve play, they all sat around the sitting room sipping hot cocoa, eating chocolate drops, and singing Christmas Carols by candlelight.

  Jonas played the piano. Zoe was in her glory—she loved it when he played and sang. She didn’t know the words to the songs, but she danced around the room to the music anyway.

  Jonas was pleased to have Violet, and of course, Ivy—, with them to celebrate. It wouldn’t have been much fun with just him and Zoe, but he would have tried nevertheless.

  Afterward, Jonas told Zoe she needed to be asleep before St Nick arrived or he wouldn’t leave any gifts. She pouted a bit, but then gave in and gave everyone a kiss goodnight. When she gave her Papa his kiss she said, “Will Ol’ Nick drive a buggy tonight?”

  Jonas nodded. “I’m sure he will.”

  “Leave door open?” She pointed to the door

  “Yes. I will be sure to not lock the door.”

  Jonas took Zoe upstairs to bed, tucked her in, and read her a story. When he was finished he sat there, watching her, silently thanking God again that she was safe in her bed. What a gift from God she was. He took this as a sign that God had forgiven him. God had even rewarded him by sending him the best gift ever, and she had quickly captured his heart.

  Jonas stroked her cheek. “Are you happy here, Zoe.”

  “Yes-s.”

  Jonas noticed that she spoke without a lisp. He smiled and kissed her again. “Goodnight, my sweet angel. When you wake up and see that it’s morning, come in and wake me up. We’ll call Ivy and Violet and we’ll all go down together to see what Old Nick left us.”

  “Okay, Papa.”

  Jonas turned off her kerosene lamp and left her door slightly ajar. For some reason, he hated to shut the door completely—she'd already been shut away for too long. Never would she be shut away anywhere ever again.

  Jonas, Zoe, Ivy, and Violet all held hands to walk down the stairs the next morning. Zoe ran to her stocking, but she couldn’t reach up high enough to put her hand inside. Jonas took the stocking down and gave it to her.

  “Show us all what St. Nick brought you,” Jonas said.

  Zoe’s cheeks glowed with excitement.

  While she was digging around in the stocking, Jonas said to Ivy, “Last night she said yes instead of yeth.”

  Ivy nodded. “We’ve been working on that. I’m so glad she remembered.”

  Zoe pulled a candy cane from the stocking. She smiled, showed it to everyone, and then dug back in for more. She pulled out something wrapped in brown paper, unwrapped it, and squealed in delight to find a small rag doll, which she immediately hugged. She took out more candy, and when she got to the very bottom, a box. She opened it and smiled. “A horse!”

  “Hey, what happened to Horsey?” Jonas asked.

  “Ivy taught me to thay—s-say—horse.”

  “Look, the horse is on wheels,” Ivy said.

  Zoe wheeled the horse all around the room. She even tried to make horse noises.

  “Zoe,” Ivy said, “I also brought a gift for you that St. Nick left at my house.”

  “You did? Where is it?”

  “Good job with your ‘s’, Zoe.” Ivy handed her a gift wrapped in paper.

  Zoe tore it open to find a box. Inside were a tiny blue necklace and a matching bracelet. Zoe squealed with delight. She ran to Ivy. “Put it on.”

  “What do we say when we want a favor, Zoe?” Jonas prompted.

  “Please,” Zoe said.

  Once it was on, Zoe modeled the jewelry for everyone.

  Jonas pointed to a large box set behind the armchair. “What’s this?” he said, dragging the box out. “It says, ‘For Zoe.’”

  With a squeal of delight she ran to the box and tried to open it. Jonas helped her. After a bit of a struggle, they lifted out a small saddle.

  Zoe looked at it in confusion. “What tis it, Papa?”

  “It’s a saddle. I wonder what you will put it on."

  Zoe shrugged.

  “Let’s see,” Jonas said. “I heard St. Nick out in the stable last night. Let’s put our coats on and see if he left something out there for you.”

  Jonas led them all to the stable, opened the door to reveal a black and white pony with a bright, red ribbon tied around its neck in the first stall.

  Zoe stood wide-eyed with her little mouth in the shape of an O.

  “She's yours, Zoe," Jonas said. Zoe beamed. "What will you name her?” He opened the stall door so Zoe could touch her pony, but instead of touching the horse she ran to Jonas and hugged his legs.

  “I love you, Papa.”

  Ivy and Violet wiped tears from their eyes.

  Later that day they all went to George Armstrong’s house for dinner. Phoebe had cooked a wild turkey with all the trimmings. The Jeffries family joined them.

  After dinner in the sitting room over coffee and tea, Lavinia and Phoebe chatted about starting a gardening club in the spring. George and Hiram were conversing about the church and how they might be able to add more social events, mostl
y for the younger people in the congregation.

  Ivy held hands with Jonas, and Violet and Rose played with Zoe.

  Jonas gazed around the room and felt true happiness. Both families were getting along, he had found the best mother for Zoe, and for the first time in years he felt free from the heavy shadow of guilt and shame. He squeezed Ivy’s hand, and she looked up at him and smiled.

  Caleb sat at the far end of the sofa, alone. Jonas made a mental note that he would have to start praying that he, too, would be able to find someone to make him happy.

  George and Hiram came into the room carrying something wooden. “This is my gift to my granddaughter,” George said. He set it on the floor.

  “Did you make that rocking chair yourself, Father?” Jonas said.

  “I did,” George said proudly. "I started working on it the first day I met her.”

  Zoe rushed to sit in her chair. She rocked back and forth wearing a huge smile on her face. “Thank you Gram Papa.” This made George smile with equal delight.

  “I’m afraid our Zoe will be spoiled before long,” Jonas said.

  “I hope so,” Caleb said. “She deserves to be spoiled.” He brought out his gift and handed it to Zoe. “My apologies in advance, Jonas.”

  Zoe squealed in delight once more when she saw the little drum, complete with two drumsticks and began to play on it, while Jonas grimaced.

  “You know I’ll pay you back for this one day, brother,” Jonas said, smiling.

  Lavinia stood. “What? No gift from your other grandparents? That can’t be!” She left the room and came back with a wrapped gift.

  Zoe’s eyes sparkled with joy. She tore off the paper in haste, but all she was able to say was, “Oh.” She stroked the chalkboard. “What tis it?” She looked up at Lavinia with big-eyed wonder.

  “It’s a chalkboard. Here’s the chalk. Watch.” Lavinia took the piece of chalk and wrote on the board. “See?”

  Zoe’s eyes widened. “Ohhh!” she said.

  Lavinia handed her the chalk. “You try it, Zoe.”

  Zoe made a mark on the board. She became quickly mesmerized by the gift, and spent the rest of the evening sitting in her rocking chair and writing on her chalkboard. Jonas had thought it a good idea to hide the drum.