by Dana R. Lynn
He couldn’t stay in this room, all warm and cozy, while they could be in danger. Or worse. The image of Phillip catching up and taking the girls while leaving Aiden for dead flashed through his mind.
Completely awake now, he flung off the covers and swung his feet over the edge of the bed to sit up. Immediately, his head protested. He dropped his head in his hands and sat for a moment while the room whirled around him.
He’d been so worried about the others he hadn’t taken inventory of his own physical issues. Vaguely, he recalled hitting his head on a rock.
When he was sure he could stand without falling down, he pushed himself slowly to his feet and lifted his head. The room didn’t spin, which was a good sign. Nothing seemed broken, although he felt like one big bruise. He could deal with that. He was alive. He took a quick look around the room, searching for his boots. When he didn’t find them, he had to resign himself to walking around in socks. Not his first choice, though, again, he’d manage. He did, however, find one of the phones they’d purchased. He looked at it. It had only eighteen percent battery. He needed to call his chief before it was too late. He shoved it in his pocket. Now to find Sophie and the others.
Leaving the quiet confines of the bedroom, he moved out into the hall. He was on the first floor, which made sense. Whoever had brought him here probably wouldn’t have wanted to carry his deadweight up a flight of stairs.
His musings again reminded him of Levi. The sense of urgency increased. He made his way down the hall. It opened up into a large open room. Again, the furnishings were very simple. Hardwood floors and no family pictures on the walls.
There was a large cast-iron stove, the type mostly used for burning wood to heat homes, near the far end of the room.
He realized that he was in an Amish home. The question was—whose? He doubted that they had made it to Levi’s family home. They hadn’t traveled far enough down the river. Surely he hadn’t been unconscious for that long?
A door opened and shut in the next room, and he heard the soft hum of voices. They were not speaking English, and he couldn’t make out what they were saying.
It was time to meet the owner of the house.
Stepping around the corner, Aiden came face-to-face with an older man pouring himself a cup of coffee from a silver kettle on the stove. A woman stood at the counter, mixing something in a large bowl.
“Gut,” the man grunted. “You are awake.”
The man set down his coffee and introduced himself. “I’m Silas King. This is my wife, Eleanor.”
He nodded at them and shook the man’s hand.
“Aiden Forster. I want to thank you for your trouble.”
Silas waved away his thanks and picked up his coffee. “It was no trouble. Would you like some coffee? Breakfast? Your friends have been worried about you.”
Breakfast and coffee sounded wonderful, after he made sure everyone else was safe. “My friends—are they all right? All of them.”
“Ja. They are well. Celine and Sophie are out in the barn with my daughter, Mary. Your friend Levi, the one who was shot, he is still sleeping. We had a doctor over to see him last night.”
Some of Aiden’s alarm must have shown on his face, for the man stepped closer and held out his hands in a calming manner. “Now don’t be getting anxious. The doctor, he is a gut man. He will take care of your friend. He is also a man who understands how to keep a secret, so he will not be calling the police.”
“How can he not call the police? Isn’t that part of his obligation? To report gunshot wounds and anything that looks like criminal behavior.”
“Ja, maybe so. If he was treating patients in an Englisch hospital. Not in a Plain home.”
His muscles relaxed. “Did he ask you what happened?”
“Ja, he asked.”
Aiden waited. “And? What did you tell him?”
Silas chuckled, his eyes gleaming with mischief. “I did not tell him anything. Your Sophie explained it. You’ll have to ask her about it.”
Aiden’s ears grew uncomfortably warm, hearing the words “your Sophie.” Why would the man assume that they were together? Other than the fact that they had been traveling together. Had Sophie said something?
He would have to wait until he had talked with Sophie. In the meantime, as much as he wanted to rush out and make sure that she and her sister were all right, it seemed clear to him that Levi had to take precedence. If he looked at him now, he could see for himself whether his friend was going to be fine where he was or if he actually needed to take him to the hospital. Levi would hate going to the hospital, but Aiden knew he would if it was necessary.
“Would it be possible for me to see Levi now?” he questioned his host politely.
Five minutes later, he was looking down at Levi. He rubbed his neck, knowing in his heart that it was his fault Levi was in this mess. While he wasn’t sure what else he could have done, if he hadn’t shown up at Levi’s house, his friend would not have been shot.
But he had been.
Enough!
He couldn’t change the past. He had made decisions based on the urgency of the situation. If he had to do it all again, he might make the same decision. Because even though Levi had been shot, if he hadn’t made that decision then the Larson sisters might very well be dead right now.
Still, he couldn’t quite get past the guilt of failing someone else and allowing a friend to be injured.
Levi stirred and opened his eyes. He seemed confused at first, and then his gaze cleared as he focused on Aiden. “Hey. Where are we?”
As Aiden explained their current situation, Levi listened intently. “And the girls?”
“I haven’t seen them yet.” He hesitated. “Look, I’m sorry I—”
“Ach. Don’t apologize. You did what you had to do. I would have done the same. Do me a favor, though. Go check on the girls. I think we’ll both feel better after you see them.”
Aiden didn’t need to be told twice. He said he’d see Levi later and followed Silas’s directions out to the barn.
As he neared, a familiar laugh cut right through him and nearly stopped his heart. For just a moment, he leaned against the outside wall, gathering his strength and composing himself before he went in. Once he was sure he wouldn’t disgrace himself, he straightened up and entered the barn.
He passed a clothesline and saw that all of their clothes were hanging out to dry. He smiled, wondering if his girls looked like Amish girls now.
Not his girls. He had to remember that. Otherwise, it would be difficult to leave when this was over.
And he had to leave. There were things he had to accomplish that he couldn’t focus on while he was in charge of anyone’s safety.
Even thinking about saying farewell left him hollow.
Sophie and Celine were standing next to a young Amish girl. Sure enough, they were both wearing long dresses. Celine’s was a lovely light blue. Sophie’s—
She took his breath away. The jade green dress brought out the fire in her hair. From where he stood, he had a clear view of her face. Seeing the smile on her face released a spark of joy inside him. One he wasn’t sure he’d ever felt before.
She turned to find him watching, and her smile widened into a full grin. “Aiden!”
She flew at him. He barely had time to open his arms before she leaped into them and squeezed him, hard.
He didn’t mind at all. Having her in his arms felt natural, like she belonged there. He was reluctant to let her go. When she loosened her grip, though, he did the same.
Her face was bright pink when she backed away. “Oops.” A nervous laugh spilled from her lips. “I didn’t mean to do that. It’s just that we’ve been worried about you.”
“It’s fine. I didn’t mind. I was concerned about you, as well.”
He couldn’t be pulled in by the attractio
n simmering between them, yet he found it difficult to distance himself.
The spell was broken by the phone ringing. He startled, then shook his head. He didn’t even need to look at the number to know who was calling.
“Yes, Brad?”
“Hey, I hate to keep calling you, but I thought you should know that someone has reported Levi missing. You are suspected in his kidnapping.”
“I’m what?” This was unbelievable.
“Sorry, Aiden. I thought you should know.”
“I appreciate it, Brad.”
He hung up the phone, his mind whirling.
It felt like a net was slowly closing in around him. And around those he was trying so hard to protect.
ELEVEN
She couldn’t believe that she had jumped into his arms like that! Sophie was mortified.
Until she saw the look on his face as he talked to Brad on the phone. He had moved away from her so that he could talk privately, which was ridiculous since she had every right to know what was going on.
Since she was watching him, she noticed the instant his jaw clenched tight and his face went blank.
Whatever it was, it wasn’t good.
When he hung up, he casually asked her if she wanted to go for a walk. He cast a significant glance at Celine. Sophie got the message. He wanted to relay what Brad had said to her privately.
Tapping Celine’s shoulder to get her attention, she informed her that they’d be outside the barn. Celine was more interested in the animals that Mary was showing her. In fact, she could barely take her eyes off the new baby calf long enough to watch her sister sign. No sooner had Sophie finished than Celine was waving her away and turning her back.
Sophie grinned. Her sister would be just fine.
“I think I’ve been replaced,” she joked to Aiden. His lips twitched upward in a crooked half smile, but she could see that his heart wasn’t in it. The smile vanished as quickly as it had come.
Apparently without thought, Aiden took her hand to tug her along in his quest to find a quiet spot to talk. She liked the feel of her hand in his. She liked it far too much. She knew they had no future. Aiden obviously had some things in his past that he hadn’t shared with her, and she had to focus on her sister.
It didn’t stop her from wishing things were different, though.
When they were far enough away from the barn he finally spoke.
“You probably heard that that was Brad on the phone.”
She nodded and tugged her hand from his in order to wrap both arms around herself to ward off the sudden chill. Brad had called them three times so far, and it had always been bad news. Although, without his calls, they would probably have been caught by now. So it was good that he gave them a heads-up. She was just so tired of running.
She hunched slightly as her stomach clenched.
He didn’t keep her waiting long.
He reached out and rubbed his hand up her arm. He probably wasn’t even aware that he did it. For some reason, he seemed to need to touch her when he was giving her bad news. She wouldn’t complain, as she found comfort in his touch.
“Apparently somebody reported Levi missing. My guess is the police found our phones and have connected us to Levi.”
She thought about this new piece of information for a minute.
“Well, I don’t think we’re any worse off than we were before. I mean, they’re already looking for you and me.”
“I know, but I’m wondering who reported him missing. Levi doesn’t get very many visitors. I’m inclined to think that it might have come from Phillip. His men followed us to Levi’s place. So he obviously knows that we were with Levi, at least at one point. So now the police will be looking for him, as well.”
She frowned, pondering the situation. “Will he get in any hot water? For helping us?”
Aiden shrugged and looked off in the distance. “I don’t know. He might. There are several charges they can throw at him. I don’t know, Soph. I think we need to leave him here and continue. Let’s go talk with him.”
They wandered inside the house. Melvin and Silas were both gone. “They work at the lumber mill a mile up the road,” Eleanor said with a smile. She had two smaller children with her. One, in a high chair with a bowl of cereal, was eating. The other, a small girl, hid behind her mother’s skirts.
A twinge of guilt poked her. This nice family didn’t deserve to be involved in this mess.
Eleanor looked at the clock. “The older children won’t be home yet for two hours. They are helping their grossmamma bake pies today. Supper will be at four.”
“Thank you. We’re just going to visit our friend Levi for a bit.”
Eleanor looked scandalized. “You can’t go in his room!”
Sophie blinked at her. “We’ll leave the door open. But we have to talk with him.”
Although Eleanor didn’t look happy about it, she didn’t argue. Sophie hated making an issue of it, especially as they were guests in their home, but she refused to be left out of a discussion that could impact her or Celine.
A few minutes later, they were talking to Levi.
“Ja, I think we should leave for my family’s old community.”
He tried to sit up and blanched. Aiden was there, pushing him back down.
“No, not this time. You need a little time to recoup.”
Sophie looked at Aiden. “Maybe in a day or so?”
“We’ll see.”
They left Levi and headed back outside. Together they meandered into the barn to see how Celine was getting on. She was showing her new friend some signs. They seemed to be doing well, so Aiden and Sophie decided not to bother them.
Leaving the barn, Sophie inhaled deeply. She loved the scent of honeysuckle that was heavy in the air. It reminded her of home.
“You amaze me, you know that?”
Surprised, she jerked her head to look at Aiden. “Me? Why would you say that?”
She couldn’t think of anything amazing she’d done, ever; neither could she deny the admiration she saw in his eyes.
“Look at you,” he said, waving his hand at her. “You’ve suffered a tremendous loss, your uncle is trying to kill you, I nearly drowned you in a raft when you have a fear of water, and here you are, smiling and talking with me like nothing is wrong. Like I said. Amazing.”
Her face grew warm with his praise, and she grinned at him. “I guess I am kind of amazing, huh?” She grew serious. “I don’t have a choice. I have Celine to look after. And in spite of almost drowning me,” she said, using her fingers to make air quotes, “you have been the one keeping us alive. I won’t forget all that you have done for us.”
His mouth twisted in not really a grimace yet not a smile.
“What? Aiden, what is it that haunts you?”
He kicked at a pebble with his boot. She thought he wouldn’t answer, and then he shrugged.
“I have a sister. Jennie. She was the sweetest thing. I think of her when I look at Celine.”
She’d wondered if Celine reminded him of someone. Her heart was already pounding. Even though he’d used the present tense, letting her know Jennie was still alive, she had a hunch this story did not have a happy ending.
“What happened?”
“Our dad died when we were young. I looked out for Jennie while our mom worked. She worked a lot to pay the bills. Every night, she’d tell me to look out for Jennie. So I did.” He reached down and picked up a rock. She watched him toss it from hand to hand, waiting until he was ready to continue. “When I was thirteen, my mother married again. Jennie, she was only nine. I’m not even sure how mom met Steve. He was just there in our lives, always bringing gifts and saying nice things. I didn’t trust him. Kids know when someone is not telling the truth. But Mom married him.”
They were at the house. He sat down o
n a step and patted the space beside him. She sank onto the sun-warmed wooden stair.
“It took all of two weeks before he showed his true colors. At first, he’d just yell. When he was drunk, Mom would make excuses. We learned to stay out of his way. When Jennie was eleven, Steve went after her. I locked the two of us in my bedroom and called the cops. I thought that would solve everything. He’d go to jail and we’d be alone with Mom again.”
She put her head against his shoulder, longing to comfort him. When she felt him kiss the top of her head, she closed her eyes to keep the tears from streaking down her cheeks.
“That didn’t happen, I take it.”
“Nope. Oh, Steve went to jail, all right. But Mom? Well, the system decided that she was unfit. They put both Jennie and I in foster care. Separately. When we were both older, I tried to find her. She wanted nothing to do with me. I’d failed her, you see. She blamed me for the fact that she was in foster care.”
She sat up fast. “Wait a minute, she blamed you? That was not your fault.”
He wouldn’t meet her eyes.
“Aiden. Aiden, look at me.”
Finally, he tilted his head so she could see his face. “Please don’t tell me that you are holding yourself responsible. You were a kid. A kid who should not have had that burden in the first place. And Steve deserved to be in jail.”
This time when he smiled, she could see that it warmed his eyes. “I know that. In my mind, I understand. In my heart, I still feel like I failed her. And she hasn’t talked to me since.”
“Don’t give up on her. She might come around. Sometimes we need to grow up to see the truth.”
* * *
He had never told anyone about what had happened to him and Jennie. Not his partner. Not Levi. No one.
He’d almost backed out of telling Sophie. The urge to tell was a pressure building inside him. At that moment, he’d had to tell her. The confession left him feeling strangely weightless. As if the burden he’d carried had been made of bricks that were weighing him down.
He glanced her direction. Her lovely hazel gaze caught him and drew him in.
