But that was for later. Right now, all he needed was a friend.
41
SERENITY
December 22nd
I pushed the papers out of the way, gazing out the window at the white, fluffy world. Large flakes were still falling heavily, proving that the weather forecasters had gotten it right for a change—we really were going to have a white Christmas.
The gruff throat clearing brought me back from the winter wonderland. Bobby stared at me in shear annoyance.
“Really, Serenity, you’re as bad as a toddler, losing complete focus since the snow began falling.”
“Don’t you remember the excitement of rushing outside after school to make a snowman or toss a hard packed snowball at one of your buddies?” I asked, leaning back in the chair and noticing that Todd had been doing the same thing as I had been doing—only I’m sure he was dreaming about the ski slopes.
“Trust me, when you get to be my age, snow loses its appeal entirely. The cold is not good for arthritis my girl. Now, I might be distracted if there was a warm beach with palm trees beyond the glass.”
The thought of Bobby in swimming trunks made me grin and I hid my mouth with my hand.
“Have you heard that’s where Tony is right now—recovering at some damn retreat in sunny, Florida.” Todd snorted.
“Just shows that there’s very little justice to be had in Blood Rock, Indiana, or the world for that matter,” I said sourly. I still hadn’t been able to prove that the ex-sheriff had a hand in my house burning down. To rub salt in the wound further, the local judge had only slapped his good old buddy on the wrist for assaulting me—something about how the two of us had been squabbling for a while now and there was no need to drain the tax payers’ dollars about it in today’s economic conditions. It made me sick just thinking about it.
“If you spend as much time in this town as Tony has, you’ll have the friends to get you out of a fix too,” Bobby said matterof-factly. I shook my head. The statement just didn’t deserve a response in my book.
“Getting back to what I was trying to tell you, Serenity. My friend from Ohio listened to the interrogation room audio tape and was able to give me a pretty good gist about what Daniel Bachman said to Eli.”
Bobby’s words pulled me from any remnants of my daydreaming with startling force.
“What did he say?” I rushed out, hardly believing that the old coroner had come through with the information. The man really did have connections.
“Daniel wasn’t being the traitor you thought. He was actually helping us out.”
“How so?” I asked, wanting to go around my desk and shake the information out of him so that I could hear it quicker.
“He told Eli that the unborn child was his, but that that was not evidence that could be used against the boy.”
“And how was that helpful?” I immediately felt a blanket of gloom go over me.
“Hold your horses, and let me tell you everything. You’re so impatient all of the time. I’m surprised that you can sit still for even a minute.”
I motioned him to get on with it, and he said, “He also advised the young man to tell you whatever he knew about the incident—that it would serve him no good at all lying or keeping secrets for the benefit of the community. Daniel basically told Eli to not be the fall guy.”
I thought back to that day and how betrayed I’d felt. I hadn’t been able to bring myself to talk to Daniel about it in the weeks following the incident. I was still that worked up about the subject and I figured any discussion would turn ugly.
“I could hardly believe that Daniel would do such a thing when he was so hot for you, Serenity. It made no sense to me,” Todd interjected into the conversation, but I ignored him.
Lifting my eyes to Bobby, I said, “Thanks for finding that out for me. It’s a very good thing to know.”
Bobby winked at me and then continued to shuffle through the small stack of papers in his lap. The knock at the door brought all our heads in its direction.
“What kind of fool would be out in this kind of weather?” Todd said stiffly.
It was true. We were operating on a skeleton crew because of the snowstorm. And the few people in the building wouldn’t have knocked.
“Come in,” I said loudly, anticipating some person as flaky as the white stuff falling outside.
“Hope I’m not interrupting an important pow-wow,” Daniel said.
My stupid heart did the jumpy thing at the sight of him. His hair was dark with wetness from the snow, but his heavy Carhartt jacket made him look all comfy and cozy.
“Guess I’ll get myself out of here before I’m asked,” Todd said, winking at me. My eyes probably bulged at him the way he laughed and left in a hurry.
To my chagrin, Bobby was up and making his exit before I had time to stop him too.
“If I don’t see you again before the holidays, Daniel, have a Merry Christmas,” Bobby said cheerfully, reaching out to grasp the other man’s hand. What the hell? When had they become friends?
When we were alone, Daniel went back out into the hallway for a second before returning with a large, wrapped object.
“What’s that for?” I asked him, kind of kicking myself for my rudeness when Daniel’s look immediately made tingly warmth spread in my belly.
Daniel sighed with controlled patience before leaning the gift up against my desk and seating himself in the chair that Todd had vacated. He stretched his legs out in front of himself, crossing them at his ankles. He then folded his hands on his lap and looked at me with just the touch of a grin on his handsome face.
“I don’t know what your problem is—but you definitely have one,” he said, surprising me.
“What are you talking about? I’m perfectly fine, thank you very much.”
“No, you’re not. Any woman that would kiss me with such passion one minute, only to completely ignore my calls and text messages the next, definitely has a problem.” Seeing that I was about to let him have it, he swatted the air between us with his hand to silence me and continued, “That’s why I’m here today. I put the jeep in four wheel drive and drove through a near blizzard to get this thing figured out. And, I’m not leaving here until I know the answer.”
I looked at the determined set to his jaw and his sparking eyes. He meant it. Thinking back over the past month, I couldn’t really say when I began shying away from Daniel’s attention. We’d spent several days working together with the Amish people, getting their statements and clarifying some of the details. I agreed with Daniel that counseling for Esther was the most reasonable outcome for her, especially with the seven kids that still depended on her. What was I going to do—put the Amish woman in a jail cell with women who were jacked up on heroin and had real violent tendencies? I didn’t like her, but I didn’t hate her either.
Things had gone smoother than I’d imagined with David. He’d confessed completely, and after a couple of weeks of evaluations by the professionals, he’d been deemed unable to stand trial due to his mental health. He’d be spending the rest of his life in an institution, and unable to hurt anyone again. I had mixed feelings on that one. Part of me really would have liked to see him hang for killing Naomi, but after everything I’d witnessed first-hand in the Amish community, it wasn’t surprising that occasionally one of them would go off the deep end. After some of my own research, I discovered that violent crimes rarely happened among the Amish—at least that were reported, anyway.
Daniel was thrilled with my handling of his former people and we’d gotten along fabulously during the days following the barn incident. But, when the dust began to settle, and Daniel was pestering me about going out to dinner or seeing a movie, I began to worry. I just couldn’t believe that this gorgeous guy wanted me. And, I was fairly certain that when he realized what a difficult girlfriend I was, he’d dump me quicker than I could draw my gun. I just wasn’t girlfriend material, even though I felt the pull to make an exception for this particular man.<
br />
“How’s Mervin doing?” I asked him, hoping to deflect any more personal talk.
“Don’t go trying to change the subject. This is important,” Daniel’s voice boomed and I glanced at the door wondering if anyone would come to rescue me. As sadistic as my fellow co-workers were, I wouldn’t bet any money on it.
“It’s important to me. So why don’t you just go along with the conversation like a normal person,” I said sweetly.
Daniel snorted a laugh. “Sure—okay. If that’s what you want to talk about…for now. I’ll humor you.” He breathed deep and said, “Mervin is all right. Lester has allowed me to spend some time with the boy, and we went hiking last weekend. Yesterday, I took him to the Diner for lunch. I think he’ll always be touched with a deep sadness, but he’s learning to cope. He seems all right with staying with his family and the Amish, for the time being anyway. When he’s of age, I’ll help him get out if that’s what he wants.”
I nodded, happy to hear that Daniel had taken the poor kid under his wing. Mervin was too young to leave his Amish roots without some difficult obstacles, but maybe just having a non-Amish friend would help him.
“So, how are your family—and Bishop Esch? How’s he doing?” There were quite a few things to get caught up on. I figured that I might be able to stall him to the point of such boredom that he’d forget his original intention for the visit.
He shook his head, and answered me with a rushed voice. “My father and mother are both fine. I’ve seen them a couple of times over the past month, and although I’ll never be considered a normal member of the family, it’s nice to at least have a relationship with them again. The rest of the family is about the same—friendly enough, but not doing back flips to have me around.
“As far as Aaron goes, he’s the same as always—meddling into everyone’s business and keeping the law and order of the community. And, before you ask, business has been slow, because of the weather and I have my winter survival kit packed and in the jeep.”
My confused look made him laugh and suddenly he rose, moving around the desk in a blur. I didn’t have time to escape, but even if I had, I probably would have stayed rooted in my seat anyway.
“Stop it, Serenity. Stop it right now.” He breathed near my face kneeling before me. “Stop what?” I whispered, knowing full well what he was talking about.
“Avoiding me like I have the plague. Either you have feelings for me and would like to get to know me better—or you don’t. Just give me a damn answer. You at least owe me that much.”
His dark eyes held me captive and I couldn’t look away. Why was I being so stupid? I began to lower my face to his, but he stopped me by putting two of his fingers to my lips and softly pushing me away.
“As much as I want to kiss you, I’m not doing it until you give me an answer. Hell, I’m willing to give this thing a go, even though you’re the most pig-headed woman I’ve ever known in my life. I can’t seem to shake you from my thoughts, to the point that I’m having difficulties getting my work done properly. Just tell me what you want. I need to know if there’s a chance for us.”
Daniel had been so much a part of my own thoughts, that late at night, if I closed my eyes, I could almost feel his skin brushing mine, his tongue sliding over my lips. Physically, we both wanted each other—mentally, I was into him. The only thing holding me back was the fear of being hurt.
Would he be true to me?
“Daniel, I think we should take it real slow. You know, be friends for a while first,” I said.
He laughed bitterly and stood up. Leaning against the window sill, he looked out, ignoring me for a few long seconds before he said, “Sure thing—if that’s how you want to handle it.”
“I think it’s best for right now,” I said, not being able to keep my eyes from straying to the large wrapped object leaning up against my desk. He must have seen the path of my gaze. He closed the distance to the present and picked it up, laying it on the desk before me.
“It would be rude of you not to accept the gift. I don’t have any use for it.” Daniel pushed it forward and took up his position at the window again.
I didn’t want to owe him a present in return. But he was right. Refusing to take the gift would be rude. Decided, I grasped the object and began unceremoniously tearing the paper.
I wasn’t surprised. The shape of the object had tipped me off, but the picture itself touched me. When I freed it completely of the wrapping, I held it up and gazed at the image of a cornfield flowing up to a flowered yard with a plain white house. There was a black buggy in the drive behind an equally black horse. The sky was blue and the foliage was thick and green from the summer heat.
I couldn’t help sniffing in all the emotions that began to bubble within me. The frame was of an old wood that felt rough against my hands, reminding me of the night in the barn that seemed like a dreamed up event now. The house made me think of Daniel’s sister, Rebecca, and her pretty little homestead on the outskirts of the Amish community.
The corn…the tall green plants all crowded together in the bright sunshine, of course, made me remember Naomi. Staring at the leaves, I imagined her running through the stalks on a hot summer evening to meet Eli for a little bit of love making. In a way, Naomi was blessed. She’d found love two times. Some of us went an entire lifetime without experiencing it once.
I quickly wiped away the tear that threatened to run down my face. “Thank you. It’s lovely. Hopefully, within a few months you’ll have a house built for me to put it up in.”
I met Daniel’s shocked eyes when he said, “You want me to do the job?”
“Of course, you’re the only builder I know in town that has the guts to put up with me, and that I’d trust with the contract.” I was relieved that I’d finally asked him about the work.
Daniel smiled, “You know, that means we’ll be spending a lot of time with each other for an extended period of time.”
“Yep, I know.”
Daniel nodded, the smile on his face growing larger. The soft rap at the door made me sigh in agitation. “What now?” I spoke to Daniel. Then I said louder, “Come in.”
I was not ready for the two men who came through the doorway. Even Daniel straightened up to attention.
The dark clad figures looked out of place in my office, yet they didn’t act like they were uncomfortable. Instead they stood still and calm, staring at me.
I rose somewhat apprehensively.
“What brings you into town on such a day, Bishop?” I asked, letting my eyes wander to the strange man who was at his side. The man was tall and exuded a sense of confidence that equaled Bishop Esch’s, but this man was closer to my age, his brown beard shorter and more tailored than the other Amish men I’d been around. The jacket he wore was somehow different also—a little longer. His hat was larger too. I realized that the fact that I even noticed these subtleties was odd, but then I guess, after seeing the men and woman in my county dressed exactly the same, any variation stuck out.
The other thing that immediately made an impression on me was that this man didn’t avoid my gaze the way the other Amish men did. Just like the bishop, he stared straight at me, as if he were attempting to read my soul. Although, it bugged me with Bishop Esch, it felt much more inappropriate with the younger man staring at me so intently. And the fact that he was good looking didn’t help the feeling of awkwardness either.
“This is Rowan Schwartz. He resides in an Amish community about a hundred miles north of here in the Poplar Springs settlement.”
A feeling of dread began to surge through me, and not wanting to waste any more time finding out what was going on, I said, “Okay. So why are the two of you here in my office today?”
Rowan’s eyes flicked over to Daniel and narrowed. I swiveled my head to see Daniel’s response, which was tight lips and a steady look back at the newcomer.
The bishop, ever on top of things, spoke up, “This is Daniel Bachman. He’s Mo Bachman’s son. He left
our way of life when he was quite young.”
“Nineteen, actually,” Daniel said.
Rowan ignored him completely, instead turning back to me.
“Aaron has informed me that you have experience investigating situations within Amish communities,” Rowan said softly. His voice held more of a strained accent than I’d heard from my Amish people. With sudden clarity I recognized that I now considered the strange Plain people of the Blood Rock community to be mine. I guess it was definitely easier to deal with the craziness you had grown accustomed to, rather than totally new and unknown insanity.
I lifted my chin, and met his hard gaze. “I guess you could say that.”
“Well, our community has need of the help of someone who understands the rules and laws of the outside world, but also respects and is willing to work with our culture’s differences.” He took a breath, and went on to say, “We will pay your travel expenses, and you’ll find accommodations with one of our families if you choose to come.”
My mind was whirling. Was this conversation really happening? I glanced at Daniel, but his eyes were guarded, not giving me any indication of what I should do. The idea of going to some far off Amish community and living in one of their homes in order to investigate, something, was insane.
Yet, it was also very intriguing.
“What kind of trouble are you having up there?” I asked apprehensively.
Rowan looked at the bishop, who nodded his head once solidly, before he turned back to me.
“There has been a rash of barn burnings. At first, we believed that they were random accidents, but when they continued, we realized that they were being purposely set.”
“Have you talked to local law enforcement? The fire department has ways of establishing arson, you know,” I said, totally perplexed as to why this man was in my office in a snowstorm.