Amish Winter Murder Mystery

by Samantha Price

  Ettie slowly nodded knowing he was right. “All right, I'll get around and question as many people as I can.”

  “That's the idea.” Kelly leaned back in the chair. “Now, how about a cup of hot tea? And perhaps a taste of some of your home-baked goodies?”

  Elsa-May shook her head and jabbed her knitting needles into her ball of wool. “We don't have time. We have to get out and start questioning people, and that starts now.”

  He bounded to his feet. “I like the sound of that.”

  Ettie giggled. “We’ll be back in touch as soon as we find out anything.”

  As they walked him to the front door, Elsa-May asked him the question from moments ago that he hadn’t yet answered, “How are the forensic reports coming along?”

  “We should have them back soon.”

  When they closed the door, Ettie said, “We have to phone Deirdre's neighbor.”

  “Let’s get ready, call a taxi, and while we’re waiting there, you can make that call.”

  “Okay.”

  Chapter 13

  Ettie dialed the number of cousin Deirdre's neighbor. She held on for ages and no one answered. She called again and was just about to end the call when the Englischer neighbor answered.

  “Hello, this is the James’ residence.”

  “Hello, this is Ettie Smith, Deirdre Walton’s cousin. I’m wondering if you might do me a favor by giving a message to Deirdre.”

  “Deirdre's here right now. She’s showing me how to make cinnamon cake.”

  “Oh good. May I speak with her?”

  The next thing Ettie heard was the woman bellowing Deirdre's name.

  A minute later, a breathless Deirdre came to the phone. “Is that you, Ettie?”

  “Jah, it’s me.”

  “I got your letter just today.”

  “The one about Ebenezer?”

  “That’s the one. Is that why you’re calling?”

  “It is.”

  “The only Ebenezer I can recall is one who passed through here and stayed a couple of weeks. I remember him because there were rumors about him and he was asked to leave.”

  “Walnut Creek?”

  “Jah. Not Divine Creek?”

  “Nee. Here.”

  “What kind of rumors?”

  “He was constantly seen with a woman who wasn’t one of us. I don’t know all the details. I just heard the rumors, and then he was gone. He had come from somewhere near Divine Creek, they said, and so had the girl.”

  “How long ago was this?”

  “Many years ago. I guess I only remember it because of his unusual name.”

  “I see, and do you know where he came from or where he went?”

  “I only know folks said he came from somewhere close to Divine Creek, but I don’t know him from there. I just remember the connection because I used to live there.”

  “I know. What about any relatives? Did he have any that you know of?”

  After a moment, of silence, she said, “I can’t recall.”

  “Think hard. It’s important.”

  “Is that the man who was stabbed? Is that why you’re calling?”

  “You’ve heard about him?”

  “I heard someone was stabbed. Was that Ebenezer?”

  “I’m afraid so. We’d just like to find out more about him. If he has relatives, they should be informed.”

  “I think he had an older brother. Is that helpful?”

  “Really?”

  “I think so.”

  “Did you ever meet him?”

  “No.”

  “What makes you think he had one?”

  “I don't know. Someone must’ve mentioned it.”

  Ettie sighed. “Denke, Deirdre. You’ve been a good help. Can you think really hard and send me a letter by fast mail if you think of anything? Anything at all?”

  “I will. I’ll give it some good thought, Ettie. How’s Elsa-May?”

  “She’s good. Here’s my taxi. I’ll have to go.”

  “Give my love to Elsa-May, would you?”

  “I will, and she sends hers.”

  “Bye, Ettie.”

  Ettie ended the call.

  Elsa-May stepped closer. “Well, what?”

  “She thinks he might’ve had an older bruder, but she can’t tell me who he was or how she knows that.”

  “I see. That doesn’t help us at all.”

  Ettie and Elsa-May both climbed into the backseat of the taxi.

  After the sisters sat down with Patricia who’d been waiting for them at the café, a waitress came to take their orders. Ettie and Elsa-May decided to share a grilled chicken sandwich with fries, and a pot of hot tea. Patricia only ordered coffee.

  When the waitress left, Patricia was the first to speak. “How are you both?”

  “Good,” Elsa-May said glancing sideways at Ettie.

  Feeling her sister’s impatience, Ettie wasted no time getting to the heart of the matter. “We found out that one of your patients left you a lot of money.”

  “That's right he did. The dear old soul. Why does that interest you?” She looked from one sister to the other.

  “There would be some that might say that you preyed on the elderly suggesting they leave you money,” Elsa-May said.

  Ettie hadn’t expected Elsa-May to be so brutally honest, but it had to be said.

  “Look, I know what you’re thinking. Just because someone left me a lot of money everybody’s suspicious of me.”

  “Not just somebody. A patient. A person who was elderly, sick, and possibly easy to manipulate.”

  “That’s why I gave that money to charity, because I didn't want it to ruin my career.” Patricia pressed her lips together. “And still, people think ill of me over it.”

  “What charity did you give it to?” Ettie asked.

  Patricia’s gaze darted about. “I divided it amongst a few charities. Look, I didn't even know Ebenezer was wealthy. I didn’t know this was what you wanted to talk with me about, Ettie.”

  “Well …”

  “I haven't heard anything about being left money and if he did or had intended to do that, he never mentioned anything about it to me. Do you think I killed him for his money? Is that what you think?”

  “No,” Ettie said.

  “That is not the reason I became a nurse and I'm quite upset that you both could think that of me.”

  “We don't think that of you, but it is a possibility that we thought of. We’re just asking a few questions because we thought it was funny that you were there the other day at his house,” Elsa-May said.

  “I was upset, that's why I was there. I didn't know what else to do. No one else knew him. I couldn’t grieve with someone else who knew him. I just wanted to pay my respects and say goodbye in private—have a quiet moment. Can you understand that?”

  Elsa-May nodded. “I do. It makes perfect sense to me.”

  Patricia turned her attention to Ettie. “And what about you, Ettie? Can you understand that?”

  “Everybody's different in the way they do things. I hope you don't mind us asking you questions.”

  The waitress came back and placed their drinks on the table. "The sandwich will be here in a minute or two," she said as she turned around.

  “I don't mind at all. If I were in your shoes, I would probably be thinking the very same things.”

  Elsa-May took a sip of her tea and then placed her cup down on the saucer with a clunk. “Did he mention any friends or anybody he was particularly close with?”

  “He mentioned Helga and Levi. Then he mentioned the neighbors, who were always pestering him about one thing after another.”

  Ettie warmed her hands around her teacup. “Like what?” That sounded different from the information Kelly had given them, that the neighbors had only talked to him once in the whole time they’d lived there.

  “He didn't really say and if he did, I probably didn't pay enough attention.”

  “Was he worried about a
nything?” Elsa-May asked.

  “He didn't say.” Patricia brought her coffee cup to her lips, and Ettie noticed the woman was still wearing gloves. The sandwich and fries arrived just then, and they paused long enough to thank the waitress and get plates, napkins, silverware and condiments organized.

  “Did Ebenezer ever mention the young man who brought him his food?” asked Ettie as she started in on her half-sandwich.

  “No, but he told me he got his food delivered once a week. It was part of my job to check that he got enough food and was capable of preparing it on his own. He had various food allergies and liked his food fresh. Fruit was his favorite.”

  “We hope you don’t mind us asking all these things.”

  “That’s perfectly fine. Although, a little unexpected. I had nothing to do with his death. As a nurse, it’s my job to help people. It’s ingrained into my nature.”

  “Did he ever mention a brother?” Elsa-May asked.

  “He had a brother?”

  “We don’t know. Someone thought there might be one.”

  “He said he was alone in the world. That’s what he told me. You might want to look into the Amish man who was there all the time in these last months.”

  “Gabriel?”

  “Yes, that’s him.”

  “And, what about him?” Ettie asked.

  “Why did he suddenly show up?”

  “Didn’t he say?”

  “Ebenezer said he wasn’t welcome there but he kept coming around, and then Ebenezer just accepted his visits.”

  Ettie laughed inside. That sure sounded like Gabriel. He was like an over-friendly puppy sometimes.

  Chapter 14

  When they finished talking to Patricia, they parted on a friendly note. Next on their list was to talk to the fruit boy. Elsa-May and Ettie headed on foot to the markets where he worked, when they saw Ava’s buggy approaching. Elsa-May stepped close to the road and waved to her, and she pulled her buggy over to the side.

  Ava jumped out to secure her horse. “I’ve been looking for you two. I went to your haus, but you’d already left.”

  “Are you alone?” Ettie craned her neck looking for Aaron.

  “Jah. It’s Mamm’s day to look after him today. Have you had the meeting with the nurse?”

  “We’ve only just finished.”

  “What did you find out?”

  “Nothing really. She said a lot of people think that she's preying on old people. She insists she gave the money to various charities.”

  “I wonder if there's a way to check on that. It's easy enough for anyone to say they donated the money to charity. Which charities were they?”

  Ettie looked at Elsa-May. “She didn't say.”

  “She was still wearing gloves. Did you notice that Elsa-May?”

  “I did. And you’d think she would have taken them off because it wasn’t cold in the café.”

  “Why are you worried about the gloves?”

  “Kelly explained to us that it was possible that the killer might’ve accidentally cut themselves because the knife hit bone and there was something about the angle of the knife handle and such.”

  “You think she's cut her fingers, so you think she did it?”

  “I don't know. We still don't know why anyone had any reason to kill him.”

  “We were on our way to the markets to find the delivery boy to ask him a few questions. He was at the funeral,” Ettie told Ava.

  “Jump in and I’ll drive you. Let’s see if we can find him, shall we?”

  The sisters didn’t need to be asked twice. Getting a ride was far better than walking.

  They drove to the markets and were fortunate enough to see the fruit boy in one corner of the parking lot.

  “See him, Elsa-May?”

  “Not without my glasses. I need them for close up work, but I can’t see very well far away either.”

  “That’s him. He’s unloading empty boxes from that pickup truck.”

  “I’ll park here further away if you want to speak to him, Ettie.”

  “Denke, Ava.”

  “I’ll go with you,” Elsa-May said.

  * * *

  The elderly sisters walked over to him, and he looked up when they were close.

  “Excuse me. Do you think we might have a word with you?”

  “You’re Ebenezer’s friends?”

  “Yes, we are. I met you at the funeral,” Ettie said. "You're Pete, right?" When he nodded and kept the same vague expression, Ettie figured he was probably thinking that most Amish people looked the same.

  “What’s this about?” he asked.

  “We just want to ask you about Ebenezer. It won't take long.”

  “Sure.” He dropped the box he was carrying. “What do you want to know?”

  “We know that you and he spent a bit of time together.”

  “That's true. We always talked after I delivered his food. He was always my last job of the day so I wouldn’t have to hurry.”

  “Was he worried about anything in particular recently?”

  “He said someone wanted him to get off his land. He was worried he might not be able to stay. I said he could stay with me until he found somewhere else.”

  “But wasn't he the owner of the land?”

  “I don't think so.”

  “And he didn't want to leave?”

  “That's right.”

  “Who wanted him to leave?”

  “It was a woman, I think.” He folded his arms across his chest and it was then that Ettie noticed his hands had cuts on them.

  “What about Ebenezer’s neighbors? You were talking with them at the funeral.”

  “What about them?”

  “Do you know them?”

  “I’d never met them before the funeral. I guess you could say I know them now. What’s this all about?”

  “We’re trying to work out who killed him.”

  “I talked to the police already. I don’t have anything more to say.”

  “We’re just—”

  “Look, I don’t know who you think you are, but this conversation is over.” He turned away from them, and Ettie stepped forward to ask another question but Elsa-May gripped her arm.

  “Let's go Ettie.” Elsa-May slowly turned her sister around by her shoulders.

  When they got back inside Ava’s buggy, Ava asked, “I was watching everything from here. He didn’t look too happy at the end. What did you find out?”

  “Nothing really. He got upset about something. Did you see his hands, Elsa-May?”

  “Nee.”

  “They were red and cut.”

  “Really?”

  “Jah.”

  “That might just be from the kind of work he does. He’d be scraping his hands on the wooden fruit boxes. What do you think, Ava?”

  “It's hard to say, but I think that might be right.”

  Ettie sighed. “Can you drive us back to Ebenezer’s haus, Ava?”

  “What do you hope to find there?”

  “I want to talk to the neighbors.”

  “Sure. What are you going to ask them?” Ava checked in her rearview mirror and then clicked her horse forward.

  “I’ll think of something before I get there. I need to know why Pete the fruit boy got upset when I mentioned them.”

  “Let's go.”

  Chapter 15

  Ava stayed in the buggy, while Ettie and Elsa-May walked up to the neighbors’ house and knocked on the door.

  Ettie’s heart thumped hard. She didn’t like talking to people she didn’t know, and it was worse when she had to ask questions.

  Jack Simpson opened the door and stared at both of them. “Hello, again.” His words were hesitant.

  “Hello. I’m wondering if you might be able to answer some questions.”

  “About Ebenezer from next door,” Elsa-May added.

  “What kind of questions?” He eyed them carefully. “What’s this about? I hardly knew the man.”

&nbs
p; “Did he own the house next door or was he leasing it?”

  “If you’re trying to find the owner, I can’t help you. We only talked once and that was when the fence fell down and he wouldn't do a thing about fixing it. As far as I know he was the owner, but I never knew a thing about him.”

  Ettie noticed his hand when he put it behind his back. “You hurt your hand?”

  He pulled it out from behind his back and Ettie noted it was his right hand. “Yes.”

  “How did you do that?” Elsa-May asked.

  “Horse bite.”

  “Really?” Elsa-May asked. “When did the horse bite you?”

  At once, Ettie knew Elsa-May had gone too far.

  “Look, it’s none of your business. Why you are asking me all these ridiculous questions?”

  “We’re trying to find out who killed Ebenezer.”

  “Isn’t that a job for the police?”

  “Yes.”

  He frowned. “I’ve got better things to do with my time.” The man stepped back inside and slammed the door.

  Elsa-May looked over at Ettie. “That went well. You’re not losing your touch.”

  Ettie sighed. "True, and neither are you, I'd say."

  They were getting nowhere and not only that, they were alienating the very people who might have valuable information.

  Suddenly the door swung open and the man pointed to the road. “Get off my property.”

  “We're going.” Ettie and Elsa-May hurried down the porch steps and continued to the buggy waiting at the bottom of the long driveway.

  “Looked like he was angry,” Ava said when they got back into the buggy.

  “His hand was bandaged and he got upset when we asked him about it,” Elsa-May said.

  Ava wasted no time turning the buggy around.

  “He said a horse bit his hand.”

  “Thanks for driving us around today, Ava, but I think we need to go home now and put up our feet and have a rest.”

  Ava giggled. “Denke for letting me come with you.”

  “We couldn't have covered so much ground today if it wasn't for you, so we’re the ones thanking you,” Elsa-May said.