Kitabı oku: «Amish Covert Operation», sayfa 2
TWO
The pierce of sirens slowly circled in her mind as she became aware of the trees, the clouds and even the ground spinning around her. She grasped for something to steady herself with so that she wouldn’t fall off. But off what? Where was she?
The sirens stopped, and the buzz of summer insects filled the silence. Something tickled her forehead, and with great effort, she lifted a hand to brush it away.
“Katie?”
Whatever was tickling her sprang back, and she brushed it away again.
“Katie, can you open your eyes?”
It was a low but strong male voice, and she forced her eyes open to find that this man was the one tickling her forehead, brushing and smoothing her hair away with his hand. She closed her eyes again, wanting to lie there and rest. But the man squeezed her shoulder. “Katie, you fainted. Can you wake up? Are you all right?”
Adam. That was his name. The events of the afternoon came rushing back—looking for her bruder, finding him at the cabin, climbing the tree with the ICE special agent.
Her head rested on a soft surface, and she noticed he now wore only a navy T-shirt with his khaki cargo pants. His button-down shirt was gone. He must have used it as a pillow for her.
Where is Timothy? With her abdominal muscles, she pulled herself to a sitting position. The sky and trees began a violent spin around her, and she swayed against Adam. With eyes closed, she leaned against him until the spinning subsided.
Slowly she opened her eyes. “Are we safe now?”
“Yes. The police are here. They found the cabin cleared out.”
“Mein bruder? Timothy?”
“I’m not sure who your brother is, but everyone was gone. I would guess they scattered when they heard the sirens.”
“Who are they? What are they doing here?”
“First let’s get you some medical care. The paramedics are here. Can you make it to the ambulance? They drove off the country road and into the grass, but they’re going to have a tough time getting through the trees to us.” He scanned the horizon behind her.
“Jah, I think so. But will you stay close? Just in case?” It felt like a weak smile that she offered him, but he smiled in return, a kind look in his eyes that hadn’t been there before.
It seemed a long way through the trees to the spot where the ambulance had pulled up into the clearing. Katie breathed with relief to see that the paramedic was a woman. She looked barely older than Katie, with dark hair knotted into a bun. As she helped Katie lie down on the cot, she smiled warmly, and Katie had instant faith in her.
As Adam leaned against the open door of the ambulance, the paramedic quickly assessed the situation, taking her temperature and blood pressure, as well as asking a dozen or more questions. Then she removed solutions and bandages from various bins and boxes in the vehicle. “Special Agent Troyer was correct. The first bullet grazed your outer thigh. It didn’t go anywhere close to your femur, your upper leg bone. It just skimmed the soft tissue, so I’m going to clean and bandage the wound. You might be hobbling for a week or so, but there won’t be any lasting effects. If you need them, you can buy crutches or a cane from any local drugstore.”
“Praise Gott for His protection.” She closed her eyes for a quick prayer, but when the darkness began to spin, she popped them open again. Gott would hear prayers with eyes open, as well.
Adam had stepped away from the door of the ambulance, but he soon returned with a long, stout stick. He dug out a pocketknife and began whittling one end of the stick.
With a gentle touch, the paramedic cleaned and bandaged her forehead. “You have some minor abrasions, probably from your fall from the tree. They will also heal up with time. I don’t expect you to have any scars.”
“Did I faint? Is that why I am so dizzy?”
“Yes. It’s called vasovagal syncope. Do you faint at the sight of blood?” She nodded toward Adam. “Special Agent Troyer told me you found your injury first by the blood on your skirt.”
Katie glanced at Adam, but he was studying his stick. Surely he was listening. “Nein. Not that I know of. When one of my twins scrapes a knee, I do not like that she is hurt, but the blood does not bother me.”
“Extreme emotional distress is probably your trigger then. You’ve been shot at twice. That makes for a difficult afternoon. In response, your heart rate slowed and your blood pressure dropped. That made you faint.”
The paramedic made it sound so matter-of-fact, but that was her job. Still Katie pressed the back of her hand to her forehead, an effort to wipe away the stickiness of anxiety.
“Would you like to go to the hospital? They can do a more thorough examination there.”
“Do I need to?”
“Not necessarily. It’s completely up to you.”
Concern for her bruder was pushed aside by thoughts of her twins. The sun was slanting lower and lower, and the four-year-old girls must be anxious for her return. Her friend Sarah would take gut care of them, feeding them supper and probably too many treats. But Katie didn’t like to be away too long. A mother needed to be with her children, and children needed to be with their mother. A trip to the hospital would most likely extend into the nighttime hours.
“Danki, but nein. I am sure I will be fine with some rest.” How much would an ambulance cost, anyway? For sure and for certain, it was expensive, a cost with which she did not want to burden the community.
“I’ll take you home.” Adam looked up from his whittling. It wasn’t even a question. It was a statement, and a shiver stairstepped down Katie’s spine. Was it from the richness of his baritone voice or the insinuation that he had more questions for her?
An hour later, with the help of the paramedic, Katie scooted off the cot. A strong twinge of pain shot up her leg from the site of the wound. In the couple of steps toward the ambulance door, though, she determined that she could make it. But Special Agent Troyer was there with hand outstretched, and she willingly leaned most of her weight on him to get out of the vehicle.
Once both of her feet were firmly planted on the ground, Adam held the stick out to her. “It’s a rough job since I didn’t have much time, but I think it will serve its purpose.” His voice sounded apologetic.
She took the walking stick from him and touched the simple spiral handle he had whittled at the top. It fit in her hand perfectly. Without letting go of his arm, she leaned into the cane. It held her weight comfortably. “Danki. You have skill. That is gut.”
Between the cane and Adam’s arm, she hobbled to his vehicle, a large black monster of an SUV called a Tahoe. The Amish Taxi that she used was a simple minivan. She had traveled in a van that had carried fourteen of them from their community in Northern Indiana for shopping in Fort Wayne several years ago. Most likely, vehicles like this had passed her buggy many times on the roads, but she had never noticed. Why would she when she had little use for or interest in cars?
“I’ll get your bicycle.” He left her leaning against the side of the vehicle, retrieved her bicycle from the trees and loaded it into the back. Without breaking a sweat, he returned to her.
At the door, she stared up at the seat. Ach, how would she ever get up that high?
As if he had read her thoughts, Adam leaned in and pointed. “Lean on me to get your good leg on the running board. I’ll help you up.”
A moment later, with Adam lifting on her elbow, she was perched in the SUV. Adam jogged around the front and quickly seated himself behind the wheel. He didn’t start the vehicle, though, but turned to her with his eyebrows scrunched into a questioning look.
Apparently he wasn’t just going to take her home. She would have to answer more questions first. Her heart thrummed within her chest.
“Why don’t you tell me about your brother. What’s his name? When did you last see him?” He tapped one finger against the steering wheel.
From this height and location, she had a clear view of the cabin. Several officers were working at various tasks, including one putting yellow tape around the perimeter. What had Timothy been doing there? She couldn’t imagine, but it hadn’t involved sketching.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, but everything began to spin. With her eyes open, it wasn’t much better. Anxiety overwhelmed her, and her hands began to shake in her lap. Her brother was still out of contact, she sat in the vehicle of a law enforcement officer who had saved her from two bullets and she wasn’t sure when she would see her twins again. She grasped one hand with the other, an act of will to stop the trembling, but it only worsened until tears cascaded down her face. She swiped at her cheeks, desperate to get some control over her emotions and be strong for her daughters, but it felt hopeless. Her parents were gone, her husband had been killed two years ago and now she seemed to have lost her bruder, as well.
Was she in custody? What were the intentions of this agent? When would she get to Jed and Sarah’s house to see her twin girls again? With no husband to step in for her, she would have to have a special reliance on the care of Gott. Her leg throbbed, and although the officer was kind enough to make a cane, how would she keep up with the household chores?
Her world was crashing down, and she had no family to which to turn.
* * *
The Amish woman sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly, lifting a dainty finger to wipe away a stray tear.
She was lovely, wholesome, innocent-looking. But Adam couldn’t let that influence him. Until he found out exactly what she was doing there and confirmed it with someone reputable, he would consider her a person of interest.
He shifted in his seat to get a better look at her. As he waited for her to begin answering his questions, he noted her light green dress with the white apron, which was soiled from the tree and the shooting. Her dark blond hair was pulled back into a bun, but her kapp now sat askew.
Stray thoughts wandered unbidden through his mind. Where would he be right now if his own father hadn’t rejected his Amish upbringing? Adam knew a little of the Amish from his infrequent visits to his grandparents, but the faith and lifestyle he had seen in them hadn’t saved them from difficult circumstances, including outright rejection and scorn from their own son, Adam’s father.
He shook his head to force himself back to the present task, a responsibility that had nothing to do with his own Amish heritage, a generation removed.
Katie stared out the front window, not blinking, and said, “Mein bruder is Timothy Schwartz.”
Okay, that was a start. Silence stretched between them, but Adam could sit for as long as it took.
“I last saw him on Easter. I do not know where he is or what he has been doing. That is why I was looking for him today.” She paused, but he waited patiently. “I found a social security card in his shop, but I do not know the name on it.”
Adam hid his surprise. He tucked that valuable piece of information away for later examination as he quickly completed a mental calculation. “So, it’s been over two months since you talked to your brother. Isn’t that unusual for the Amish? Unless you don’t live near here?”
“Jah, it is quite unusual. Since I am widowed, I was accustomed to seeing him every day, when he would come to care for my animals. I live close by. I have looked for him many times at his house, but this is the first I came to this cabin.” She gestured toward the back of the SUV, where her bike rested. “One person can travel only so far by bicycle.”
“Do you ride your bike often?” He felt his eyes narrowing into what felt like his customary expression during interrogations, and he quickly forced what he hoped was simply an inquisitive look. He knew from his grandparents that the Amish were not fond of law enforcement, and he didn’t want her to stop talking. At least not until he had all the information he needed.
“Jah, it is easier sometimes than hitching up Molly, my horse. I live over on Five Pines Road, a couple of miles from here.”
“How long have you lived in Northern Indiana?”
“All my life.”
“And you said you were widowed? What about other family?”
“Nein. My daed and mamm died about three years ago, just a few days apart. Daed died of a massive heart attack, quite suddenly. A few days later, Mamm died of a broken heart. That is what the doctor said.” She took a deep breath and stared out the side window, seeming to refocus. “My husband was killed in an accident at work. That was two years ago. Now I only have my twin girls, Ruth and Rebekah. They are four.”
“Where are your twins now?”
“They are with my friend Sarah and her husband, Jed. I left them for a little while so I could go to mein bruder’s house. I needed to talk to him. To find out what struggle keeps him from his family and the church.”
He studied her profile, the drooping prayer kapp, the hair that had escaped and now trailed across her cheek, the fine lines around her eyes. She looked tired, exhausted even. Everything she said seemed genuine, and Adam relaxed in his seat ever so slightly. She may not be in cahoots with the shooter, but she still might be a helpful source of information. “Tell me about Sarah and Jed. Who are they, and how do you know them?”
“Sarah has been a gut friend since she moved here from Lancaster County several years ago. She was a widow also and had a little girl, and we would help each other out. A few months ago, she married Jedediah Miller. He used to be a police officer from Fort Wayne, but now he is Amish. He works at the same sawmill where my husband did.”
He felt a muscle spasm in his jaw, the same one that ticked when he was trying to figure out a case, and he rubbed to soothe it. “If he’s Amish, then there’s no way I could call him. Or does your church allow telephones?”
“Nein. There is a phone shanty not far from their house, but if you are taking me home, you can meet him. I need to pick up my twins, if you are willing.”
“Fine. I need to check in with the sheriff, and then we’ll be on our way.”
He slipped out of the car and closed the door gently, so as not to shake her up further. Katie seemed to be made of tough stuff, but everyone had a limit to their endurance. The slamming of the heavy car door would only add to her jitteriness.
The scene in and around the cabin was intense and busy, but that was the way Adam liked his work. He leaned against the driver’s side door and pulled his pocketknife and a small piece of wood out of his pocket. Whittling helped him think, and right now he especially needed to concentrate. A ring of smugglers out of Chicago had expanded, ICE believed, toward Cincinnati. That would take them right through the Amish communities of Northern Indiana. He hadn’t had much success in his investigation thus far, and now this Amish woman landed right in the middle. What should he think about it? Where did she fit?
“Troyer!” Sheriff Moore, a man with a thick torso and a jovial demeanor, sauntered toward him. The sheriff’s easygoing attitude seemed to be appreciated by the Amish, who apparently had had some difficulty with their last sheriff, but he was a little too laid-back for Adam’s preference. Still, the man was well-liked and got the job done. “Find out anything?” He nodded his head toward Katie in the SUV.
“Not much. You know her?” Adam took a few steps toward the sheriff as he scraped his knife over the little piece of wood. It would soon be a squirrel, a twin to the one that already resided in his pocket.
“No. Haven’t met her yet.”
“She says she’s friends with a Sarah and Jedediah Miller. Says Jed’s former law enforcement from Fort Wayne.”
“Yeah, he’s out of it now. Decided he wanted the plain life.”
“How’d he end up Amish?” Adam could appreciate a lack of complication as much as the next guy, but leaving electricity behind seemed a little drastic. Why couldn’t he just have a sticky bun with his Saturday-morning coffee and old-fashioned newspaper?
“From what I’ve heard, he was working undercover and about to testify against a ring of counterfeiters when he was found out. Had a snowmobile accident, hit his head on a rock and woke up with amnesia. Sarah found him and took care of him. He’s fine now. A real upstanding guy.” The sheriff swiped a hand across his brow and adjusted his hat.
The more he heard, the more Adam thought Katie’s story was legitimate. There didn’t seem to be any other way to explain her presence at the cabin. If her brother was involved in whatever nefarious activity was occurring in the area, she could be a helpful asset. She certainly seemed concerned enough about her brother, despite his wayward ways. He had to take her home anyway, so he’d have a few words with this Jed.
Adam nodded back toward his SUV. “The bullet grazed her leg, so she won’t be riding her bike anytime soon. I’ll take her to her friends’ house to pick up her twins and see if I can get a private word with Jed.”
“He’ll tell you what he can.” The sheriff plucked a long piece of foxtail grass and stuck the stem between his teeth.
“Good. I’d appreciate being kept in the loop with what you find here.”
“We don’t hope for much. So far we’ve pulled a bullet out of a tree trunk. We’ll look for a match, but I’m doubtful at being able to find the weapon. I’ll keep in touch.”
“Thanks.” Adam turned back to the Tahoe, determined to get a little more of Katie’s story from another law enforcement officer, even if he was Amish now.
THREE
As the crow flies, the drive would probably have been only a few minutes, and that certainly would have been safer. But the back roads through the hills and hollows of Northern Indiana Amish country took a bit more of a winding route. Adam found he couldn’t get over thirty miles per hour in most stretches. Slowing down for a couple of buggies didn’t help either.
The painfully slow speed also didn’t help his anxiety at the shooter still being on the loose. Would he come back for Katie? Why was he shooting at her in the first place? Would he go after a law enforcement officer? Some criminals did, and some didn’t. Adam just didn’t know enough about who this shooter might be to be able to determine his probable next move.
He tore his attention from the rearview mirror and checked both side mirrors. Through the drive, all had been clear. As he crested a hill, an Amish homestead came into view.
“There. On the right.” Katie leaned forward as if it would help her get to her children faster, her hand on the cane.
The property wasn’t large, but the whitewashed house was sizeable, the barn a cheerful red. Colorful flowers—marigolds, maybe—dotted the edge of the house and the barn. A large vegetable garden filled a back corner. As he approached, a malamute bounded forward, tail wagging and tongue lolling.
Memories of childhood time spent with Amish grandparents struggled to free themselves from the dusty corners of his mind. His grossmammi with a plate full of oatmeal cookies and a pitcher of warm milk that was fresh from their dairy cow. His grossdaadi sitting on the porch, showing him the finer points of whittling, while his cousins swung from the hayloft. Adam swallowed hard and shoved the memories back to their places. His father’s rumspringa and continuing alcoholism had altered not only his father’s life but the lives of his future children, as well. And after his father’s and brother’s untimely deaths in the automobile accident, those remembrances didn’t deserve the freedom to roam unhindered through his thoughts. The only way to assuage the grief was to maintain his laser-like focus on his job and the justice for victims that he sought every day.
Adam pulled into the lane, and a man emerged from the house, placing a straw hat on his head as he approached the vehicle. Adam opened the car door and hopped out. He smiled as warmly as he could and raised a hand in greeting, palm open and facing out, as he jogged around the front of the Tahoe. The man’s countenance was expressionless until Adam helped Katie down from the SUV. As she emerged from behind the door, a wide smile split the man’s face, and a woman with three girls, all in identical blue Amish dresses and white starched prayer kapps, stepped out of the house.
“Katie, are you all right?”
“Jah, Jed.” She leaned heavily on Adam’s forearm. Grasping the cane, she stepped toward Jed but still held on to Adam’s arm.
The woman who must have been Sarah flew toward them. The three girls followed on her heels, all chattering at once.
“Ach, Katie! Where have you been? You are injured!”
“Mamm! Are you all right?”
“What happened, Mamm?”
Sarah frowned in Adam’s direction and took Katie’s arm from him as twin girls threw their arms around Katie’s waist. Both had the same shade of dark blond hair and the same pert nose, although one appeared to have a few more freckles than the other. Adorable seemed too blasé of a word to describe them.
“Liebchen! My loves!” Katie smiled broadly and shrugged at Adam as she tried to hug both twins with Sarah hanging on. “I will be fine, Sarah. I will tell you everything inside.”
He felt himself begin to trust her a little bit more as he observed Katie’s affection for her girls. She gently pulled her arm from Sarah, and, leaning on the cane, she tucked a stray hair back into one girl’s kapp and then ran her finger down the cheek of the other girl. A smile played about her lips as she seemed to relax. With a reflex honed from training and experience, Adam glanced around the yard and down the lane to make sure all was quiet. Then he stepped toward Jed.
“You must be Jedediah Miller. Sheriff Moore told me you’re retired from Fort Wayne PD.” He extended his hand, and they shook. “I’m Adam Troyer, special agent with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security.”
“Call me Jed. And yes, retired police officer.”
Adam felt his eyebrows scrunch together. “You don’t sound Amish, like Katie and Sarah.”
Jed smiled. “No. Most of my growing-up was in the Englisch world. I just took my vows to join the Amish church a few months ago, so I’m still learning. I imagine it’ll be a lifelong process.” He looked Adam up and down, the smile sliding off his face. “What’s your business here?”
Before Adam could respond, Sarah called from the house. Jed turned to wave and then spun back to Adam. “Before you can answer that, we’re required to head in the house for cookies and coffee. Or tea. Or milk. Whatever’s your pleasure. It’s the Amish way.”
In the house, Adam squeezed into a place at the long table and gobbled down three of the most delicious oatmeal cookies he had ever eaten. A twin leaned on either side of Katie as she told of going to her brother’s house and then to the cabin. All eyes widened at the mention of the gunman, and Jed nodded an acknowledgment to Adam.
“You must leave Ruth and Rebekah here overnight, then.” Sarah leaned forward to run a hand down Katie’s arm. “You will rest better.”
Katie paused before answering. “Danki. That would probably be best for my recovery.”
As he reached for a fourth cookie, Adam’s phone rang, the ringtone a loud gong in the quiet Amish house. “Excuse me,” he said softly and stepped outside the back door before answering.
The late afternoon sun was beginning to cast sleepy shadows across the property, shadows that, to Adam’s way of thinking, could hold danger. But Sheriff Moore’s voice filled his ear, and the best he could do was visually survey the perimeter.
“Yeah, Troyer? We got nothing. You said you wanted to be kept in the loop, but there’s nothin’ there. We pulled the bullet from the tree.”
“I knew that before I left the site.”
“Yeah, and there was nothing worth fingerprinting inside the cabin. Pretty bare in there. All rough wood surfaces, way too porous and too recessed to collect fingerprints. Even if I could find a print, it wouldn’t stick to the lift tape. There’s no way to lift a print in a wooden cabin.”
“So, we got nothing.”
“That’s what I said.”
The door closed behind him, and Adam turned to see Jed step outside. “Thanks anyway, Sheriff.” He pocketed his phone.
“Sheriff Moore is a good guy.” Jed hesitated. “Learn anything you can share?”
“No. Didn’t learn anything at all. I don’t know anything more about what happened today than Katie does, and you know that means the investigation is at a standstill.” Adam couldn’t share anything more with Jed, but he walked slowly around the house and toward the lane, surveying, as Jed fell in step beside him. The night air cooled his skin as he breathed deeply. “You might be able to help, though. What do you know about Katie’s brother, Timothy?”
“Probably nothing more than she told you. He’s a stand-up guy and an excellent furniture-maker. Then, a couple of months ago, he stops coming around. He’s not caring for his sister’s horse anymore, not coming to church services or visiting on the off Sundays. Basically he’s nowhere to be seen.”
“What about his customers? His business?” Adam looked up and down the road and then turned to walk back up the lane.
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen him to be able to ask him. I know that’s not helpful, but I don’t have any further information. It’s like he just disappeared.”
“But he didn’t leave the community? Quit being Amish? Did he and Katie have a falling-out?” The sun dipped behind the tree line, and the first fireflies of the evening began to flash. Darkness was fine when it worked in his favor and hid him, but it could be deadly when it concealed the enemy.
“No. He’s still around. There’s evidence of that. When I stop by, his dog is obviously cared for. His yard is kept. I’ve even seen wash on the line. But he’s never there.” Jed crossed his arms over his chest, a sign of resignation. “He’s there but not there.”
“So, he knows that you’re coming and takes off?”
“It seems so. I’ve thought of contacting an old buddy of mine in Fort Wayne, but I don’t have anything to tell him. There doesn’t seem to be any evidence of wrongdoing. He just doesn’t come around.”
“You’re still in contact with people from your...former life?” Adam just couldn’t wrap his mind around the idea of leaving law enforcement to be a farmer or to build furniture, or whatever it was that Jed did to earn his living.
“Sure.”
“How did you ever decide to—”
“Join the Amish church?” Jed chuckled. “I had amnesia.”
“And then you remembered you were Amish?” Adam couldn’t keep the sarcastic tone from his voice. But to give up a career in law enforcement, a job that righted wrongs and fought for justice? He couldn’t understand that.
“No, but as I worked through the difficulties of my loss of memory, including my run-in with the guys who were after me, I realized I’d been wanting a more relaxed and slower pace to my life. I was ready to settle down, spend time raising a family, eat pie.” An easy smile stretched across his face.
It still wasn’t anything Adam could understand, although he begrudgingly admitted to himself that he admired the peace Jed seemed to have. He was ready to move on to the next topic. “What about Katie? All she told me was that her brother is her only family left.”
“That’s probably about all you’re going to get as far as information goes. I haven’t known her long, but Sarah tells me Katie’s husband was killed in an accident at the sawmill. It’s been a struggle for her since, but we help as much as we can. And her brother has always been helpful, until just recently. The Amish take care of each other, especially families.”
“Would she be helpful in the investigation?”
“The Amish don’t like to mix with law enforcement. They keep to themselves as much as they can. Considering what the former sheriff was like, I can’t say I blame them all the time.” Jed shook his head and smiled. “I should say we keep to ourselves as much as possible. It’s only been a few months since I joined the church, and it’s going to take a while to get used to. With Katie, though, I think she honestly doesn’t know anything about her brother. Just give her time. The Amish believe patience is a virtue.”
Adam touched his weapon in its holster, his fingers rubbing on the smooth leather, and scanned the perimeter again. For too long he had been investigating a suspected ring of identity-document smugglers. Counterfeit passports and social security cards had been leaching out of the Chicago area and turning up all over the Midwest. Katie’s brother had been missing in action for two months, there but not there, and now it seemed that someone was willing to shoot at Katie. Patience may be a virtue, but he didn’t have time to wait. The sooner justice could be administered, the better.
* * *
Katie might be Amish but that didn’t mean she was naive. She noticed things. A lot of things. Facial expressions. Unspoken words. Nearly imperceptible gestures. She had clearly seen Adam’s skeptical look in her direction when he had stepped out to take his telephone call. His brown eyes had clouded with uncertainty. The man doubted her, and to some extent she could understand why.
Her own bruder, her only bruder, was a person of interest. What was that phrase? Guilt by association.
But she wasn’t guilty. She was scared and doing her best to trust in the goodness and divine will of Gott.
Katie sipped her coffee and forced herself to make conversation, trying not to stare out the window. Eventually Adam returned, and although he didn’t exactly smile at her, it seemed that his clouds of doubt had cleared. Perhaps whatever private conversation he had had with Jed had satisfied him.
