Chocolate Truffle Mystery

by Naomi Miller

  “Buwes in my church, of course. Wait! Obvious? What. . . who. . . to everyone?” Her cheeks hot with embarrassment, Katie ran towards the back door, hoping to escape. Instead, the door opened and Katie suddenly found herself held tightly in the arms of a man!

  * * *

  Travis was not expecting Katie to fling herself into his arms when he opened the back door of the bakery, but that's exactly what happened!

  Well, of course that couldn't be what she had meant to happen. . . It was pretty obvious that she had rushed to leave at the precise moment Travis opened the back door to walk inside.

  Still, it was an unexpected, albeit exciting, moment. Travis couldn't remember the last time he had driven Katie to work. . . or home in his car, or had been alone with her in the kitchen, or anyplace else.

  He knew when things began changing between them. It had been almost a year ago when he noticed Katie pulling away, around the time that he found his sister at one of the singings dressed like. . . well, a much older, more experienced female.

  Katie had been understanding about it. They had driven her home. Everything had been fine.

  Then, the very next day, Katie had seemed different, almost as if she were avoiding him. . . and things had never been the same again.

  Travis had had no idea how to fix things. Weeks went by, then months, with no change. Oh, there were times that Katie laughed and talked with him when Freida or Bella was around. But they had lost something—and Travis still had no idea how to get it back.

  Today, when Katie bounded towards the doorway, Travis had reached out and grabbed her with both arms, trying to steady her, hoping he wouldn't get knocked aside. Or worse, get knocked to the ground, pulling her with him.

  For a moment. . . a long moment. . . Travis allowed himself to hold on to Katie, enjoying the feel of her against him as he hugged her.

  All the feelings he had hidden months ago suddenly rushed to the surface. After talking to Jake Yoder last spring, he had even begun to give serious thought to a future with Katie.

  Then, after she had begun to avoid him, Travis had decided since she would probably be joining the Amish church soon anyway, there was no chance for a relationship with her.

  So why does it feel so good. . . so right. . . to hold her? What is it about Katie that makes her so special? So unforgettable? Maybe this will be a good thing. Maybe we'll get another chance.

  Finally, reluctantly, pulling away a little, he looked down at her. She raised her head to look up at him, surprise showing in her eyes. Her face flushed a pretty shade of pink and she blessed him with one of her beautiful smiles.

  “Um, Travis? I think you should let me go now.”

  He smiled back, then winked at her, before letting go and stepping back.

  — THREE —

  The breath left Katie in a sharp whoosh when she collided with a man's chest. And when she looked up and saw that it was Travis holding her, she inhaled sharply. . . and the heat in her cheeks began to spread.

  She told herself she should step away, back out of his embrace immediately. Amelia had in essence just said that some people already suspected she had feelings for Travis. If she was looking at Travis. . . the expression on his face would tell her there was reason to suspect.

  But oh it felt gut to be wrapped in his strong embrace. The way he held her—so carefully, but tightly at the same time—made her never want to move.

  Nee. This cannot be. I cannot leave the church, my family, the community, not like this. We must stop.

  When she felt him loosen his grip a little, she struggled against the little voice in her head that told her to lean into his embrace. . . to stop him from letting go.

  And then, when he did not, she had to force herself to speak up. It took nearly every ounce of will-power to make herself tell him that he could let her go now.

  When he did finally let go, she cleared her throat, trying to calm the fluttering that his wink set loose in her stomach—and then she spent several seconds straightening her apron and kapp before taking a deep breath. After running into Travis. . . literally. . . Katie figured she would need any extra courage she could muster in those few seconds.

  If Mrs. O'Neal had not wondered about her feelings for Travis before. . . she certainly would now.

  When she turned back toward the kitchen, not only Amelia, but Freida and Bella had joined her and they were all standing there, watching the whole exchange.

  “Katie, are you all right?”

  And Katie wished her freind would not sound quite so. . . excited, but she dare not say anything. She only nodded, hopeful that everyone would think it was only Freida's normal level of over-excitement that had her sounding so.

  “What is going on? What did we miss? Bella and I came in to say gudemariye to you. Instead, we see you flying toward the back door!” Freida still looked far too excited and Katie tried to find some way to express with her eyes or her tight smile that she should calm down. “Or was it Travis that you were running to?”

  And Katie inhaled sharply again, her cheeks were positively aflame now—but, before she could say anything to her mischievous friend, Mrs. O'Neal spoke up, rescuing her.

  “Katie, before when we were chatting, you mentioned having some questions. Were you referring to my vacation trip?” And Katie was very grateful to her boss for going on as if she had not just made such a spectacle of herself.

  “Jah. Like you said, you and Mr. O'Neal have pretty much kept to yourselves. We would all sure like to know whatever you want to tell us about your trip. . . and how Mr. O'Neal found you. . . and how you ended up married.”

  Katie stopped herself when she realized that she was babbling on—and that the heat was crawling up her neck again. Turning this way and that, she tried to think of some reason she could excuse herself. . . if only to hide her bright pink cheeks.

  Looking around the kitchen, she latched onto the first thing that came to mind. “But I guess right now I need to get busy with baking. We have lots of orders to fill today.”

  “Girls, here is what we will do.” Mrs. O'Neal said. “Katie, you can work on your baking while we chat. Freida, you come and help Katie, and Bella, you can step inside the kitchen whenever there are no customers to wait on if you want to join us.”

  She looked back to Katie—and Katie nodded her agreement. At least, if she had something to do with her hands, she might be able to calm her speeding heart.

  * * *

  Bella walked through the swinging double doors to the front, not knowing what to think.

  Wow! When Freida stopped by for a visit, I bet she never expected to find Katie and Travis together! How long has that been going on, I wonder. They had me completely fooled.

  Going around the room, making certain everything was ready for more customers, Bella's thoughts were racing around faster than lightning.

  And Travis? How does a relationship work between the Amish and Englischer? I thought that was forbidden. Did Freida know about them? She made a mental note to ask her about it later.

  Checking the shelves and display case, Bella sighed with relief. Everything was ready—and Katie had certainly been distracted from asking her any more questions.

  When no one came in, she decided it might even be safe to go back into the kitchen. I hope I haven't missed a lot.

  When she turned to go back into the kitchen, she thought about how wonderful it was to be included. . . especially since Mrs. O'Neal had been away when she was hired. She doesn't even really know me and she has been ever so nice, including me in everything as if I've always been here. And I've only had time to say hello to her whenever she drops by to. . . well, do whatever it is she does.

  And she had to admit she had been more than a little curious about her new boss's story. Especially since I heard that she ran away from Mr. O'Neal. And then they show up here, right after I begin working, married!

  So what's the haps with them. . . Then she hurried over to the swinging doors to go back into th
e kitchen.

  Katie's Triple Chocolate Cake

  Ingredients:

  2 cups all-purpose flour (sifted)

  1 tsp salt

  ½ cup shortening

  1 ½ cups sugar

  2 large eggs

  ¼ cup ice water

  ½ cup cocoa

  1 cup hot coffee

  1 tsp baking soda

  ½ cup boiling water

  2 oz dark chocolate

  Instructions:

  1. Sift together the flour and salt. Set aside.

  2. Add sugar to shortening until creamy

  3. Blend in unbeaten eggs.

  4. Combine hot coffee and cocoa. Stir to dissolve cocoa. Add to sugar/shortening mixture.

  5. Add dry ingredients, blending thoroughly.

  6. Dissolve soda in water and add to batter.

  7. Grease and lightly flour two 8” cake pans.

  8. Pour batter into cake pans.

  9. Bake in pre-heated oven for 30-35 at 375°.

  10. Cakes should be allowed to cool before icing.

  11. Shave dark chocolate, using vegetable peeler.

  12. After spreading chocolate icing over cake and between layers, cover top of cake with chocolate shavings.

  Note. Also makes 30 cupcakes. Bake 18-22 minutes.

  — FOUR —

  Katie was using the commercial mixer to make bread when Bella came into the kitchen. Watching the dough carefully, Katie moved to change the setting so the mixer would knead the dough. After this step, Katie always scraped the dough out onto the work counter where she would finish the kneading by hand.

  “Don't make us wait any longer, please.” Freida had been mixing up ingredients for peanut butter cookies, a favorite of Thomas, her new husband. She teased that she could prepare them blind-folded now, since he asked for them often.

  Katie was thankful she didn't try to demonstrate how to make cookies blind-folded. Freida loved to be the center of attention. . . except for the few times she shined a spotlight on somebody else—like Katie.

  Four dozen cookies were soon in the oven, filling the kitchen—and the bakery—with a delicious, peanutty aroma.

  “All right, Freida. Ask your questions. I'll stay as long as I can today to answer them.”

  “When you left, we all had the impression you were angry with Mr. O'Neal. So, how did it all happen? Had you made up and we just didn't know? Did you call Mr. O'Neal and ask him to meet you there? Did you really take a cruise or not? And married? When? How? Where?”

  “Merciful heavens, Freida! No! Oh no, I did not call Andrew or ask him to meet me.” Mrs. O'Neal looked shocked at the very idea.

  Katie broke in before anything else could be said. “I am thinking it might be best, Mrs. O'Neal, if you just started at the beginning. This way you can share whatever you like and if there are personal things you'd rather not talk about, then you can just leave them out.”

  “But Katie, I want to know everything about it!” Freida blurted out the words.

  But Katie insisted. There had been far too much embarrassment all around for today already. “Nee, Freida. Let Mrs. O'Neal decide what she wants to tell us. Did we ask you personal questions about your honeymoon?”

  Flushing a little, Freida looked sheepish. “Okay. I get your point.”

  “Allrecht, Mrs. O'Neal. Please start at the beginning. When you left, you were going to drive to Chicago and ride the train to New York. . .”

  “Right. I bought tickets on the Amtrak. It took an entire day just to get from Chicago to New York City. The train was a new experience for me.” She looked a bit flustered talking about the train and Katie wondered if something had happened there, but since she had just told Freida to let Mrs. O'Neal tell the story, she thought it might be best to refrain from interrupting so soon.

  Fortunately, the worry in Mrs. O'Neal's voice faded quickly. “I reserved a bedroom compartment on a sleeper car. After I boarded and my bags were safely in my compartment, I freshened up and rested awhile”

  She took a moment to pour herself a cup of coffee, and took a sip before going on. “It was such an adventure, eating lunch in the dining car. The food was delicious and the view was magnificent. And when I returned for dinner, I joined three pleasant-looking ladies who were already seated at a large table. I found them to be delightful dinner companions and we chatted awhile afterwards.”

  Mrs. O'Neal looked absorbed in her thoughts as she recounted them to the girls. After a moment, she gave a quiet laugh.

  “The ladies at our table were my age—or a little older. Two of them had taken cruises and they shared bits of advice on how to make the most of a cruise.”

  “How was your sleeping compartment? Did you sleep well?” Bella asked.

  “I'm glad you asked, Bella. I retired a bit early, not knowing what to expect. The bed was comfortable enough; it was the size that took getting used to. The bunks are not quite as wide as a twin-size bed and I'm used to sleeping in a queen-size bed. But once I fell asleep, I didn't wake till morning.”

  Lifting her cup to her lips, Mrs. O'Neal took several sips of her coffee before picking the story back up. “I decided to take breakfast in my compartment. After checking to see that my bags were ready to go, I sat quietly and made a few notes of what I had learned the night before about the cruise.”

  A jingle of bells was heard and Bella rushed back through the swinging double doors. There had been a nearly steady stream of customers all morning.

  “But Mrs. O'Neal, what happened between you and Mr. O'Neal—even before the trip? I've been dying to know!” Freida spoke up again, her voice full of expectation.

  Katie had been kneading the bread dough on the large counter, but she stopped to look at her freind.

  “Now Freida, you promised to let Mrs. O'Neal tell us what she wants. She might not want to talk about that.” Turning back to her dough, she separated it into sections, weighing each one carefully before settling them into loaf pans. Covering the pans with clean cloths, she set them aside to let the dough rise.

  “Ach, Katie! How can you stand there and say that. . . you know you want to know, too.”

  “Girls! Please remember we have customers in the next room. If you will calm down a bit Freida, I was getting to that. Perhaps we could give Bella a moment. She might not want to miss out on the story.”

  “Oh I definitely do not want to miss out. Thanks for waiting for me.” Bella moved through the swinging doors just as the bells over the front door sounded again. “What did I miss?”

  “Mrs. O'Neal just finished telling about the train ride. I think you heard all of that, but Freida asked again about Mr. O'Neal.” Freida was practically jumping up and down by then.

  Mrs. O'Neal took a last sip of her coffee and then moved to rinse out her cup. “Well, first, let me go back to the start. . . When I lost my dear Henry, after 30 years of marriage, I had no idea what I would do. I never intended to remarry.” She paused a moment, as if reaching for the strength to continue.

  “After a time, I felt that I would never move on if I stayed in our home. So I packed a bag and decided to visit a few Amish communities Henry and I had visited in years past. When I reached Abbott Creek, I passed by a house that had always caught my attention—and it was for sale. I just knew it was where I belonged.”

  Bella was nodding and Katie found herself wondering if the same sort of thing had happened with her—she had settled in Abbott Creek so quickly after all. . . much like Mrs. O'Neal.

  “As it happened, Mr. O'Neal moved to the community about six months later. I had just opened the bakery and he would come in and tease me every morning. I never took him seriously—at least not until Christmas before last, when he gave me the most beautiful heirloom brooch that had belonged to his grandmother.”

  She paused a moment when all three girls squealed. Katie could see how Freida and Bella were moved by the romance of his gesture.

  “Then something was said to make me believe he was only looking
for something temporary. I was hurt. . . angry. . . and I no longer wanted his attention. I returned his brooch, but he wouldn't leave me alone, so I decided I needed to get away for awhile.”

  Katie and the others were shocked! Even Freida seemed speechless. They had known something happened, but could not have guessed what.

  “As it turns out, I was worrying over nothing. Everything worked out wonderfully.” She stopped there when Freida and Bella started giggling. Katie sighed a little as she began rolling out dough for cookies.

  Suddenly, Mrs. O'Neal stood, moving away from the table where Katie was working. “Oh dear. Now I need to get to my work. Andrew will be coming to get me and I won't be ready. Can we talk more about it tomorrow?”

  “Ach, of course.” Katie and Freida laughed as they said the words at the same time.

  “Freida, I know you want to hear it all today, but I think we had better all get back to our work.”

  “Jah, allrecht.”

  — FIVE —

  Andrew O'Neal walked across the street to speak with his nephew Sean, after leaving Amelia at the bakery. As he walked through the cafe, he stopped at each table to speak to customers.

  The cafe was busier than it had been all month. Andrew was thankful to be able to say that Sean had done a great job while he had been away with Amelia. No one was more surprised at the results than he.

  It was good fortune—especially since Andrew hoped to turn more of the responsibility over to his nephew during the next few months.

  There were several good reasons he could think to do so. First, it would leave him free to spend time with his sweet wife whenever he wanted to—and he could always work at the cafe when he wasn't busy. Second, it would give him the chance to spend time doing other things, such as helping out people in the community.