A Sister's Hope Page 4

“Maybe he had to work today.”

  “Humph! You’d think he could have taken the day off to see his friend get married.”

  “Could be his boss had lots of work and wouldn’t give Luke the day off.” Roman didn’t know why he was defending Luke. Truth was, he didn’t trust the fellow any further than he could throw one of his buggy horses. The whole time Luke had been working for him, he’d acted cocky, like he thought he knew more than Roman did about woodworking. Luke had been late to work on more than one occasion, too, which made Roman think he was lazy and undependable. If Luke were his son, he would lay down the law and tell him he either had to settle down and join the Amish church or move out. But no, Luke’s folks simply looked the other way while Luke pretty much did as he pleased.

  Roman grimaced. Who am I to talk? My oldest daughter took off for a time during her rumschpringe, and we didn’t even know where she was. Then there was my sister, Rosemary, who left the Amish faith when she was eighteen years old. For the next thirty years, we never heard a word from her.

  The bishop nudged Roman’s arm. “What’s wrong? You look like you’ve just been given a hefty dose of cod liver oil.”

  “I’m fine. Just thinking about the past, is all.”

  “How far back were you thinking?”

  “Back to when Rosemary left home.”

  “But she came back last year, and the two of you have made your peace. I don’t see why you’d be brooding about that now.”

  Roman stretched his arms over his head then lowered them and reached around to rub the small of his back. His muscles always tightened up whenever he felt overly stressed. “Sometimes, even when I think I’ve let go of the past and given everything over to God, something happens or someone says something that brings it all to light again.”

  Bishop King’s bushy eyebrows drew together. “I hope it wasn’t anything I said that got you mulling over the past.”

  Roman shook his head. “I guess the mention of Luke Friesen is what set me off.”

  “You don’t still think he’s responsible for the attacks against you, I hope.”

  “I don’t know.” Roman shrugged. “I guess several people might have a grudge against me, but Luke seems the most likely.”

  The bishop leaned against the porch railing and stared into the yard. “I’ve never really believed Luke was capable of doing any of those things to your family, but after a couple of discussions I’ve had with him and his folks, I’ll have to admit that I am a bit concerned.”

  “You think Luke’s the guilty one?”

  “It’s not that. What’s got me concerned is that Luke is twenty-two years old and still hasn’t decided to join the church.” The bishop grimaced. “From what Toby’s told me, Luke’s still running around with a couple of wild English fellows.”

  Roman nodded. “So I’ve heard.”

  The bishop’s voice lowered as he leaned closer to Roman. “Toby also told me that Luke’s got a truck he keeps hidden in the woods because he doesn’t want his folks to know.”

  “Puh!” Roman waved his hand. “A lot of young Amish fellows who haven’t yet joined the church own a car. Many keep ’em right on their folks’ property.”

  “That’s true, but Luke’s parents have always been very strict about that kind of thing. They’ve never let any of their kinner keep a car on their property, so I’m sure they won’t abide by Luke doing it, either.”

  “You’re probably right.”

  “Toby’s told me a lot about Luke over the years, and one of the things he’s said is that Luke tends to be strong willed and moody and always wants his way on things.” The bishop slowly shook his head. “Unless Luke has a change of heart, I fear he might never settle down and join the church.”

  “You think he’ll decide to jump the fence and go English?”

  “Could be.”

  Roman grunted. “Maybe it would be for the best if he did. I wouldn’t want someone like Luke courting or marrying any of my daughters!”

  “Grace is already married, and Ruth will be soon, so that only leaves you one daughter to worry about.”

  “Jah, well, I’m sure Martha would never be interested in the likes of Luke Friesen. She’s got better sense than that.”

  “That was sure a nice wedding, wasn’t it?” Mom asked as she turned and smiled at Martha and Ruth, who sat in the back of their family’s buggy.

  Ruth nodded. “Sadie seemed real happy to be marrying Toby.”

  “They’d been courting quite awhile before they were published,” Mom said. “Sadie might have been worried that Toby would never ask her to marry him.”

  “Oh, Toby didn’t ask her; it was the other way around.” Martha winced when Ruth’s elbow connected with her ribs.

  “You weren’t supposed to say anything,” Ruth protested. “I told you that in confidence.”

  “Sorry. It just slipped out.”

  “Did Sadie really propose marriage to Toby?” Mom asked.

  Ruth nodded, and her face flamed. “She wanted me to do the same with Abe, and I sort of did.”

  “You did what?” Dad craned his neck to look back at Ruth.

  Martha, fearful that their buggy might run off the road, pointed up ahead.

  “Don’t worry,” Dad said with a shake of his head. “Jeb won’t leave the road unless I tell him to.”

  Mom touched Dad’s shoulder. “Just the same, Roman, I’d feel more comfortable if you kept your focus straight ahead.”

  “Jah, okay,” he mumbled, turning back around.

  “Now, Ruth,” Mom said, “tell us about how you sort of proposed to Abe.”

  The color in Ruth’s cheeks deepened. “Well, Sadie had mentioned reading the story of Ruth in the Bible, and she got the bright idea that I should do something that would let Abe know I was interested in him and wanted to be his wife.”

  “Don’t tell me you lay at Abe’s feet?” Mom said with a gasp.

  Ruth shook her head. “Of course not. I did, however, take a seat at the end of the sofa, and his legs were stretched out—one still in a cast.”

  “What happened?” Martha prompted. “Did you ask him to marry you?”

  “I asked if he could think of me as an acceptable wife.”

  “How did Abe respond?” Mom asked.

  “He reminded me that we’re ten years apart and said he thought I could find a younger man.” Ruth paused and sucked in her bottom lip. “I can’t imagine what Abe must have thought about my boldness.”

  “He must have agreed to marry you, or else you wouldn’t be making plans to be married in January,” Martha pointed out.

  “Our conversation was interrupted when Abe got the news that Willis had fallen in the pond.” Ruth sighed deeply. “Some time after Willis’s funeral, I found Abe in the barn, offering Gideon comfort because he blamed himself for his brother’s death. It was then that Abe finally asked me to marry him.”

  “I’m sure it was the Lord’s timing,” Mom said as she turned back to the front of the buggy. “Just as all things are.”

  “Wasn’t that Steven Bates’s car I saw going in the opposite direction?” Ruth asked.

  Dad grunted. “Jah, and I gave him a friendly wave, but he didn’t bother to wave back.”

  “Maybe he didn’t know it was you,” Mom said.

  “I’m sure he knew who I was, Judith. The man looked right at me as he went past. He never cracked a smile.”

  Mom said nothing more. Martha figured it was because she knew Dad would only rehash the past if the subject of Steven Bates continued.

  Martha’s thoughts went to Luke. A couple of years back when Luke was still working for Dad, some cabinets Steven had ordered for his wife fell off the back of the wagon Luke had used to deliver them. Steven had blamed Dad for it, and Dad put the blame on Luke. Steven had also told Dad that he was done doing business with him. Ever since then, Steven hadn’t spoken to Dad. Talking about Steven, the broken cabinets, or Luke always set Dad on edge.

  Martha leaned
her head against the back of the padded wooden seat. Would God see fit to bring her and Luke together, the way He had Ruth and Martin and then Ruth and Abe? It seemed doubtful, since Dad didn’t care for Luke.

  The buggy jostled this way and that, and Martha’s eyes grew heavy.

  Sometime later, the buggy lurched as Dad gave a sharp pull on the reins and guided the horse up their driveway. They drove past Dad’s woodworking shop, and then their house came into view.

  “Look, Roman,” Mom cried. “Someone’s thrown eggs all over the side of our house!”

  Ruth gasped. “There’s a headless scarecrow on our front porch, too!”

  Dad halted the horse and jumped down from the buggy. Martha watched as he leaped onto the porch, bent over to study the scarecrow, and plucked something off the scarecrow’s shirt. With a grim expression, he marched back to the buggy and waved a piece of paper in the air. “I can’t believe it!”

  “What is it?” Mom asked, leaning out the opening on her side of the buggy.

  He handed her the paper. “This!”

  Mom’s voice quavered as she read the words: “IT’S NOT OVER YET. BE PREPARED FOR MORE.”

  Martha sank to the edge of her bed with a moan. For the last few days, Mom had been acting jumpier than usual. Dad hadn’t notified the sheriff about the latest vandalism, and he kept saying that Mom was overreacting—that pranksters could have egged the house.

  The recent attack had made Martha even more determined to learn who was responsible. Last night, she’d updated the list she’d made of the previous attacks, adding the egging and headless scarecrow.

  Since it was Monday and Martha didn’t have to work for Irene, she’d decided to go over her list of suspects and try to figure out who might have egged the house. It had to be someone who wasn’t at Toby and Sadie’s wedding.

  During the wedding meal, Martha had spoken to Luke’s mother. Betty had mentioned that Luke hadn’t come because he’d had to work for John. Did Luke really work for John on Thursday, or could he have. . . ?

  Martha thumped the side of her head. It couldn’t have been Luke. I don’t want it to be him, but I need to know for sure he didn’t egg our house or leave the scarecrow on our porch with the threatening note.

  She stared at the notebook in her hand and read the list of suspects:

  Luke—upset with Dad for firing him.

  Gary Walker—said he would get even with Grace for breaking up with him.

  Steven Bates—stopped doing business with Dad and said Dad would be sorry for ruining the cabinets that fell off the wagon and broke.

  Bill Collins, the land developer who wanted to buy our land—left the area some time ago but could have hired someone to cause trouble.

  Ray Larson—has been using his binoculars to watch our place from his neighboring property and once asked about buying our land.

  Martha drew in a deep breath and released it quickly. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, Luke was a suspect.

  She rose from the bed. The first thing I need to do after breakfast is pay a visit to John’s woodworking shop and find out from Luke where he was during Toby and Sadie’s wedding.

  “Do you want me to stain that set of cabinets in the back room?” Luke asked John when he’d finished sanding the legs of a table.

  “You’d better wait and do the cabinets after lunch. I’ve got some deliveries to make, and I’d like you to be near the front of the shop so you can wait on customers and answer any phone calls while I’m gone.”

  Luke nodded. “I can do that, but wouldn’t you like me to get some work done while you’re gone?”

  John pushed an unruly strand of dark, curly hair off his forehead. “I guess you could finish up sanding that table you’ve been working on and then do the chairs that go with it. You can do that by the front of the store.”

  “Sure, no problem.”

  John clasped Luke’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “Just want you to know that I’m glad you came to work for me. You’re a hard worker, and I appreciate all that you do.”

  Luke smiled. “Thanks.” It made him feel good to know John appreciated him.

  “I plan to stop by the bakeshop while I’m in Berlin,” John said.

  “Would you like me to bring you back something?”

  “Maybe a lemon-filled doughnut.”

  John quirked an eyebrow. “Just one?”

  Luke chuckled. “Better make that two or three.”

  John grinned and headed out the door.

  As Luke continued sanding, he thought about John and how easy he was to work for compared to Roman. He did wonder, though, why John made most of the deliveries himself. After all, Luke had a driver’s license.

  Maybe John doesn’t trust me as much as I thought. He does know about those cabinets that fell off Roman’s wagon a few years back when I was making a delivery to Steven Bates. Maybe he’s afraid something like that will happen while I’m working for him. Luke grimaced. He wondered if anyone trusted him these days.

  The bell above the shop door jingled, and Luke looked up. His heart skipped a beat as Martha stepped into the room.

  “Wie geht’s?” he asked with a smile.

  “I’m doing okay.” She glanced around the room. “Where’s Flo? I didn’t see her outside anywhere.”

  “John had some deliveries to make, and he took the dog along.” Luke shook his head. “When you first sold Flo to John, I thought the poor critter would never quit howling, but it didn’t take the dog long to warm up to John. Now she’s his constant companion.”

  “As nice as John is, I’m surprised he doesn’t have a wife and houseful of kids by now.”

  “Maybe he hasn’t met the right woman yet.”

  “That could be.” Martha moved closer to Luke. “We missed you at Sadie and Toby’s wedding last Thursday.”

  “I had to work that day,” he said with a shrug. “How’d the wedding go?”

  “It went fine, but I’m sure Toby was disappointed that you weren’t there.”

  “John has a lot of work going right now, and I didn’t think I could ask him for the day off.” Luke gave the table a few solid swipes. “Besides, I don’t think Toby really missed me.”

  “Why do you say that? You and Toby have been friends since you were little.”

  “Lately, I’ve begun to think Toby has it in for me.”

  Martha’s forehead wrinkled. “You really think that?”

  Luke nodded. “You heard the way he was goading me at the pizza place a few weeks ago. It’s like he’s got an axe to grind or something. Toby’s always been very competitive, and whenever I’ve done anything better than him, he’s gotten jealous.”

  Martha leaned against a workbench. “So you think Toby’s trying to make you look bad?”

  “I wouldn’t put it past him. Toby’s gone tattling to his daed more than once in the last few years about something I said or did that he didn’t like. If nothing else, I think he’s hoping I’ll get in trouble with my folks.” Luke dropped the sandpaper to the floor and stood. “I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if Toby’s connected to the attacks in some way and is trying to make it look like I’m the one responsible.”

  “Do you think Toby’s capable of doing something so terrible?”

  “I’m not sure, but I do know Toby likes to rattle me, and we can’t rule anyone out until we know for sure that they’re not involved.”

  “I agree.” Martha moved away from the workbench and took a step closer to Luke. “Which is why I’ve made a list of suspects.”

  Luke’s interest was piqued. “You’ve made a list already?”

  “Jah. I started working on the list after we had pizza together.” She shifted her weight from one foot to the other and stared at the floor. “I added to it after what happened on Thursday.”

  “What happened on Thursday?”

  “You haven’t heard?”

  He shook his head. “Since yesterday was an off-Sunday from church, I haven’t seen anyone w
ho would have told me what’s been going on.”

  Martha frowned. “When we got home from Sadie and Toby’s wedding Thursday evening, we discovered someone had egged our house and put a headless scarecrow on the front porch with a note pinned to it.”

  Luke’s eyebrows pulled together. “What’d the note say?”

  “It said: IT’S NOT OVER YET. BE PREPARED FOR MORE.” Martha’s frown deepened as she slowly shook her head. “Mom’s been on edge ever since. These attacks have gone on way too long. I don’t know how much more any of us can take.”

  “I’ll do whatever I can to help you find out who’s responsible,” Luke said.

  Martha’s face relaxed. “I’m relieved to know where you were last Thursday. If my daed suggests you had anything to do with last Thursday’s vandalism, I can tell him you were here working for John all day.”

  Luke grimaced. “Is that why you came here today? To check up on me and see where I was during the wedding? Did you think I’d stayed away from the wedding so I could sneak over to your place and vandalize it? Is that what you thought?”

  Martha dropped her gaze to the floor. “I didn’t really think that, but I needed to be sure.”

  He sighed. “I guess everyone’s a suspect until proven otherwise, huh?”

  “Jah.” She reached into the black handbag draped over her shoulder and pulled out a writing tablet. “If you really want to help, how about reading my list of suspects and telling me what you think?”

  Luke nodded. “I’d be happy to take a look, but if my name’s on the list, I’ll have to scratch it off right away!”

  As Ruth moved about Abe’s kitchen, trying to get breakfast on the table for his family, a feeling of weariness washed over her like a drenching rain. Although she tried to act as if nothing was bothering her when she arrived at Abe’s house each morning to help get his children ready for school, she’d felt drained ever since she and her family had gotten home from Sadie and Toby’s wedding last Thursday and discovered the vandalism. Each attack reminded her of the tragic event that had taken Martin’s life nearly a year ago. Despite her love for Abe and his children, she wasn’t sure she would ever completely get over Martin’s death.