by Diane Craver
“Even then, some Amish won’t notify the police,” Stephen said.
“Heidi said Grayson went to their grandmother’s, but she’ll talk to him. Maybe you have time to do a couple of beach paintings.” Mitch gave Priscilla a hopeful look.
“Even if I have time to paint, I don’t know if I have it in me to do it,” she replied. “I feel like part of me has been ripped to shreds.”
Stephen hated seeing the sad and defeated expression on Priscilla’s face. “Let’s get something to eat. While I’m driving, you can call Sabrina to let her know that your work is missing. If Grayson doesn’t have your paintings, you can then call Madison.”
“Mitch, would you want to go with us?” Hannah asked. “Maybe you’ll hear back from Heidi while we’re together at the restaurant.”
Priscilla nodded. “I’m not hungry, but it sounds like a plan. I want to get out of my suit before we go.”
Hannah and Priscilla went to her bedroom to take off their swimsuits and to put on other clothing. While the girls did that, Stephen and Tobias changed to jeans and T-shirts in the first-floor bathroom. After Mitch decided to go with them, he went next door to get his wallet.
Fifteen minutes later, they all got into Stephen’s car. Priscilla wanted to sit in the back because it would be a tight squeeze for Mitch and Tobias to both sit there.
Of course Mitch didn’t sit in the front with me, but eagerly crawled into the back seat with Hannah and Priscilla, Stephen thought. Sure, my back seat isn’t comfortable for two men and a woman, but I still wish Tobias was in the back. Mitch could help me find the restaurant, since he’s probably familiar with Sarasota. “Is an Italian restaurant still okay with everyone?”
“I know one that serves great Italian food,” Mitch said. “It’s only about ten minutes from here. You stay straight on the main street and it’s on the right side. You can’t miss it. It’s called Mama Martini.”
“Sounds good,” Stephen said.
“I better call Sabrina about the paintings,” Priscilla said.
Stephen took his eyes off the street for a moment to look in the rearview mirror at her. It was obvious she hated to call the gallery owner. “I’m sure Sabrina will be understanding. It’s not your fault.”
When Sabrina didn’t answer, Priscilla left a message to call her. “I’ll call Madison after we eat.”
Fortunately, they were seated quickly, because Stephen hoped that after they ate, he could spend some alone time with Priscilla.
A young man, his hair pulled back in a ponytail, appeared at their table. He handed menus to them and said, “Hello, my name is Kyle and I’ll be your server today.”
Once he took their beverage orders, he left to get their drinks.
After glancing at the menu for a few minutes, Priscilla smiled. “I’m going to order the lasagna. That sounds good. Violet makes a delicious lasagna. She always makes it for Luke’s birthday.”
Stephen said, “I’ve never had lasagna. I’ll order that too.”
As he handed them their drinks, Kyle asked, “Are you ready to order? Or do you need a few more minutes?”
After murmurs of being ready to order, Mitch told Kyle to put it on one check. “I’ll take care of it.”
Amidst several protests, Mitch shook his head. “I had a lot of fun last night and the food was great. It’s my turn to do something. It’s my last chance, because I’ll be leaving Sarasota to spend time with my family.”
Hannah grinned at Mitch. “I’m glad you mentioned it now. I might order a dessert, too, since you’re paying.”
Mitch laughed. “You should get a dessert.”
Stephen unfolded his napkin. I’m glad Mitch is leaving soon. I don’t like the way he looks at Priscilla. I realize now why he talked to her about his faith. He might’ve been using that for an excuse to spend time with her. “Is someone going to rent the house after you leave?” Stephen asked.
Mitch nodded. “Yes, a family is. It’s a small house, but Madison said their children are young.”
“That’ll be wonderful if they are close to Olivia’s age. She’ll love having playmates.” Priscilla sipped her iced tea. “I’ll wait until we leave here to call Madison. She’ll be back here tomorrow, but I better call her this evening.”
“Before I leave, I’m going to try and find your paintings. I don’t have much time because I’m leaving here on Monday.” Mitch reached across the table and squeezed Priscilla’s hand.
Stephen felt like throttling Mitch for holding Priscilla’s hand. He didn’t like seeing Mitch giving her constant caring glances and touches. He’d been attentive to Priscilla at her party too. Stephen of all men could understand why Mitch was attracted to her, but he should respect the fact that Priscilla and he had an understanding about getting married. Or if he didn’t know that, Mitch must know that they were serious about each other.
Priscilla looked beautiful in her simple dress with short sleeves. Although it wasn’t Amish, it was a modest dress, and her hair was in a French braid. He could see why she and Hannah were not wearing Plain clothing when he and Tobias were dressed in English clothing. He’d only bought one pair of jeans and a few T-shirts because he wanted to experience wearing English clothing, but he didn’t think it would be any hardship to stop.
When Priscilla returns to Fields Corner, I think she’ll want to wear only Amish clothing. I hope we can decide soon what to do for our future together.
* * *
When they returned to the house, Sabrina, Heidi, and Grayson were there on the patio. The women were seated by the glass table. Grayson sat on a lawn chair by the swimming pool.
Priscilla raised her eyebrows when she saw Grayson looking like a scared kid. Did he take my paintings?
Heidi, dressed in dark jean shorts with a narrow white belt and a white top, stood and gave Priscilla a hug. “I’m sorry this happened. Grayson didn’t take your paintings, but he thought about it.” Before Heidi returned to her chair, she walked to her brother and touched his arm.
Grayson left the chair and stood close to the table. He cleared his throat and gave Priscilla an embarrassed glance. “After I left here Thursday night, I couldn’t sleep when I got home. I still thought about returning to take your paintings, so Heidi could have the show by herself. But I changed my mind and realized how wrong it’d be to take your work. I’m sorry I even thought about it. I’m glad I was stopped by Mitch asking me what I was up to. I can’t believe someone did what I thought about doing.”
“Thanks, Grayson, for coming here in person to talk to me,” Priscilla said, sitting on a chair next to Sabrina.
Grayson gave a nervous laugh. “I didn’t have any choice, but I’m glad I did.”
“Would anyone like a drink of something? We have pop, sweet tea, and lemonade.” Priscilla glanced around the table at everyone. Since there weren’t enough patio chairs, Mitch had pulled a lawn chair closer to them.
Heidi grinned at her. “I think it’s interesting how we use ‘soda’ here, and back in Ohio, you say ‘pop.’ Thanks, but maybe later. Sabrina’s anxious to talk to you.”
“I have something to share with you that might be helpful.” Sabrina’s black hair brushed against her chin.
Is Sabrina going to ask me to hurry painting so I can replace what was stolen? I don’t have the heart to do any painting. In fact, I wish I could go home when Stephen leaves here. I shouldn’t have signed the contract. “What is it?” Priscilla asked.
“While we waited for you, I thought of something strange that happened a couple of days ago. A man called me and asked about the art show. He wanted to buy a painting of yours and one of Heidi’s. He asked how much one would cost. I told him I couldn’t quote the prices on the phone, but I hoped he’d attend the show.” Sabrina tapped the table with a finger. “Obviously, there hasn’t been time to advertise you being included in Heidi’s show.”
“That is strange,” Stephen said, turning his head to gaze at Priscilla. “You just signed the contract. Have
you talked to someone on the beach about your work?”
Priscilla thought for a moment. “I haven’t except for Mitch and Grayson.”
Hannah grinned at Mitch. “I guess we can rule you out as being the thief.”
Sabrina held her hand up, then directly looked at Priscilla. “There’s more that might mean something. I asked if he was a friend of yours. He gave a nasty laugh and said not a friend, exactly. He ended the call in a hurry then. But I have to tell you that he had an accent like yours. Do you think he could be Amish?”
Leaning closer to the table, Hannah said, “Do you think it could be Elmer? You told me that he was nasty to you on the beach.”
Priscilla bit her lower lip, thinking hard. “He did taunt me on the beach last week. I wasn’t painting, but I’d gone for a walk.”
A worried expression crossed Stephen’s face. “You never mentioned him to me. Is he Amish?”
“Ya. He was when he lived in Fields Corner. When I was sixteen, Elmer took me home from a singing . . .” Priscilla hesitated, then continued, “I had gone with my sister Beth and her boyfriend. When Elmer asked to take me home, I said yes. I thought that way, my sister could have alone time with Henry. Elmer was awful and bruised my lips when he kissed me. When I pushed him away, he got angry. He threatened me, so I never told anyone. Except for Hannah.”
“Do you think he followed you here from Fields Corner?” Heidi asked.
Priscilla shook her head. “No. His family left Fields Corner a few years ago to move to Florida because his sister has asthma. I can’t believe they moved to Sarasota.”
“So what happened on the beach?” Mitch rested his elbows against the tabletop. “I take it he recognized you.”
Priscilla nodded. “He was sarcastic and mean. He’s gotten bigger, but I decided not to act afraid of him. He wore shorts and had a beard. Amish husbands grow a beard after they marry, but I don’t know if Elmer is.”
“Did he mention your paintings?” Sabrina asked.
Priscilla released a deep breath. “No, we didn’t talk anything about my paintings. He gave me the creeps the way he looked at me. He left when some guys called for him to play volleyball.”
Grayson gave Priscilla a startled look. “He might be the man I talked to on the beach. He said it was a small world and he knew you a long time ago. I’m so sorry. I mentioned your paintings when he asked me about what you were doing now. He asked me and my friends to play volleyball with him. It wasn’t when you were on the beach, though.”
“What is his last name? I’ll google him and see if I can find an address for him,” Heidi said. “There’s a free search I’ve used before when I needed someone’s address.”
“His last name is Riehl,” Priscilla said.
“If you find an address, Stephen and I can drive to his house,” Tobias offered.
Priscilla wasn’t sure if that was a good idea. “Maybe we should call and have a police officer go to Elmer’s house.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
After locating Elmer’s place of residence on a street with the houses spaced close together, Sabrina pulled her Lincoln Continental into the driveway. She shifted around to look at Priscilla in the back seat. “Do you still want to go in with us?”
Priscilla nodded. “I want to confront Elmer if he did take my paintings.” She was glad they hadn’t called ahead to see if Elmer was home. They hadn’t wanted him to realize they suspected him of being in possession of her paintings.
Quickly, Sabrina and her husband’s friend, Don McCarthy, a retired police detective, were on the front porch. The tall detective wore a sharp-looking business suit. Priscilla was glad to have the older man with them, and hoped he’d be able to put the right pressure on Elmer to confess. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that Elmer had her paintings in his possession.
Sabrina knocked on the door while Priscilla and Stephen stood behind her and Detective McCarthy.
Within a moment, a pale teenage girl with dark hair showing in front of her prayer kapp came to the door. Priscilla recognized her as Elmer’s sister, Millie. Priscilla said, “Hello, Millie. Is Elmer at home? We need to ask him something.”
“Ya, he’s here. I’ll get him.” Millie gave them a weak smile. “Come on in.”
When Millie hadn’t asked why they wanted to see Elmer, Priscilla wondered if she knew he’d stolen her paintings.
After entering the house, Sabrina said softly, “I’m glad he’s here.”
When Elmer appeared in the small foyer, he looked startled to see them. “Hi. Millie only mentioned that Priscilla was here.”
Priscilla raised her eyebrows when she saw Sabrina extend her hand to Elmer.
As she shook Elmer’s hand, Sabrina said, “My name is Sabrina Sloan. I own an art gallery in Sarasota.” She gave a nod to Don. “This is Detective Don McCarthy.”
Detective McCarthy said, “We believe you have Priscilla King’s paintings in your possession. We want them returned now.”
Priscilla noticed the detective’s eyes bored into Elmer’s, and it was obvious to her that he meant business. She hoped Elmer realized he better confess if he had them. “Elmer, did you take them?” Priscilla asked.
He exhaled a deep breath. “Ya. I planned on selling them to help pay medical bills. My mother’s in the hospital getting chemo. I’m glad Dat is with her. I don’t want them to know I have them.” There was a flash of jealousy in his eyes as he looked at Priscilla. “We don’t have the perfect family life like you do. It seems like bad things happen to us. When I lost my job, my wife left me.”
“I’m sorry about your mother, but that doesn’t give you the right to steal Priscilla’s paintings,” Stephen said. “She never hurt you or your family. I heard how you’ve treated her in the past. Maybe she should press charges against you. Stealing and being abusive ain’t right.”
As Stephen put his arm around her shoulders, Priscilla said, “My family has had our share of trouble. My brother-in-law was killed in a barn fire caused by an arsonist. My sister’s firstborn was stillborn. My sister-in-law was held hostage and shot. In every family, there are blessings and hardships.”
Millie put her hand on her brother’s arm. “They’re right, Elmer. I told you we could ask the church for help to pay our bills, but instead you decided to steal and lie to me.” Millie turned away from Elmer to look at Priscilla first, then Sabrina. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know Elmer stole the paintings. He told me they belonged to a friend. He planned to sell them for her and get a commission.”
Detective McCarthy crossed his arms, giving Elmer a scornful stare. “Your sister apologized, but she’s not guilty. How about you apologize to Mrs. Sloan and Miss King?”
In a hurry, Elmer said, “I’m sorry I broke into the house and stole the paintings. I hope you both can forgive me.” His piercing eyes met Priscilla’s for a second, then he continued, “They’re in my bedroom. You can follow me and get them.”
As Priscilla walked down a narrow hallway, she felt anxious and hoped her work hadn’t been damaged in any way. Relief went through her that she was not alone with Elmer. He still made her feel uncomfortable.
Elmer and Millie entered the last room on the right side. Once inside the bedroom, Priscilla saw three covered canvases in a row along a wall. They were loosely covered with the same heavy white paper she’d used. Sabrina took her red glasses out of her purse and put them on to examine the first one against the wall. Priscilla went to the next one. Once the women saw all three paintings were undamaged, Stephen picked up one to carry.
Before they grabbed the other two paintings, Millie said, “You’re a gifted artist. I was unaware of your talent when we lived in Fields Corner. I wish Elmer hadn’t taken them, but I’m glad I got to see your work.”
“Danki, Millie.” Priscilla wondered why Millie hadn’t realized in the first place that the paintings belonged to her, but maybe Millie had never looked at the back of the canvases, where she’d put her full name.
> Detective McCarthy looked at Sabrina and Priscilla. “We can take him to the station and book him now.”
Priscilla shook her head. “That won’t be necessary. I have my paintings back.”
“I agree with Priscilla. I have her work back for my gallery, so I don’t want to press charges.” Sabrina put a lock of black hair behind her ear.
“This young man is getting off easy.” Irritation edged Detective McCarthy’s tone. “How about he does some work for you in your gallery?”
Sabrina nodded as she lifted a painting. “That is a great idea. Elmer, call me on Monday and I’ll give you the times I need you.”
“Danki. I’ll call then,” Elmer said.
“And I know you have the gallery’s phone number,” Sabrina said.
Giving Sabrina a puzzled look, Elmer said, “My name shouldn’t have shown up on your caller ID.”
Sabrina shrugged. “It didn’t, but we realized later you were probably the one who called about Priscilla’s paintings. I had only advertised Heidi’s.”
Something was bothering Priscilla. If Elmer wanted money so much, why hadn’t he taken anything of Madison’s? Did he only take her stuff because he disliked her a lot? “I want you to come tomorrow to Madison’s beach house and apologize to her. Even though you didn’t take anything of hers, it was her place you broke into. Why didn’t you steal anything of hers?”
Elmer stroked his dark beard. “I was afraid to because I heard she’s some kind of a big New York author. And I wasn’t sure how long I had before you returned to the house. When Grayson played volleyball with us, he mentioned your birthday party. I’d told him I knew you from Fields Corner.”
On the way to Sabrina’s automobile, Millie tagged along and asked, “How did you know it could be Elmer?”
After Sabrina explained why they had suspected Elmer, Millie said, “I’m glad you figured it out.”
* * *
From the front seat of his car, Stephen said, “I’m a little nervous about meeting Madison. I hope I don’t put my foot in my mouth.”
