Grace had just said good-bye to Anna, who was being driven to school in Martha’s buggy, when she spotted Sheriff Osborn’s car coming up their driveway. “I wonder what he wants,” she murmured.
“Who?” Cleon called from the kitchen doorway.
“Sheriff Osborn. He’s heading this way.”
Grace stepped outside, and Cleon joined her on the porch. A few minutes later, the sheriff parked his car and got out. “I was down at Roman’s house looking for him, but no one was there,” he called. “Thought maybe he might be up here.”
Cleon shook his head. “Roman’s out of town.”
Sheriff Osborn stepped onto the porch. “For how long?”
“Several days, I believe,” Grace said. “He took Mom up to Geauga County to his brother’s place for a while.”
“Hmm … I see. Well, I just wanted your dad to know that I’ve been doing more investigating lately, and I’ve ruled out several of his original suspects.” The sheriff leaned on the porch railing. “I think I might know who’s responsible for the attacks, but I won’t know for sure until I follow up on a couple more leads.”
“What kind of leads?” Cleon asked.
“I’d rather not say anything more until I know something definite and the criminal’s been caught.” The sheriff raked his fingers through the back of his hair. “With your folks being gone for several days, it might be an open invitation for another attack, so I’m planning to keep a close watch on their place—hopefully catch the attacker in the act.”
Grace drew in a deep breath and released it slowly as a sense of hope filled her soul. Was it possible? Did the sheriff really know who had done the attacks? It would be such a relief for all of them if the person was caught. Maybe it would happen while Mom and Dad were gone. Maybe soon the family would find some peace.
As Martha guided her horse and buggy down the road toward Anna’s school, she thought about her folks being gone and how this would be the perfect chance to do some investigating without anyone knowing what she was doing or asking a bunch of questions. She planned to keep a close watch on things. If the attacker struck again, she would hopefully see who it was.
“Mama said she would take me over to Poppy’s new house soon, but probably not ‘til Grandpa and Grandma Hostettler get back from Geauga County.”
Martha reached across the seat and touched Anna’s hand. “I know you want to see your poppy again.”
“Jah.” Anna fiddled with the strap on her backpack. “Is Grandma Hostettler gonna die?”
Anna’s unexpected question took Martha by surprise. “Ach, no, Anna. What makes you ask such a thing?”
Tiny wrinkles marred Anna’s forehead. “Mama says Grandma’s sick, and when my other grossmudder got sick, she died.”
Feeling the need to reassure the child, Martha reached across the seat and took Anna’s hand. “Grandma Hostettler’s not going to die. She just needs to rest and calm her nerves. That’s why Grandpa and Aunt Rosemary took her up to Geauga County to see my uncle Walt and aunt Mary.”
A look of relief flooded Anna’s face, and she smiled. “When they get back home, will Grandma be better?”
“I hope so, Anna. I surely do.”
Anna remained silent for the rest of the ride, and Martha hoped it was because the child’s mind was at ease.
Now if someone could only put my mind at ease.
As Luke headed down the road in his truck toward John’s shop, he glanced at the clock on the dash and grimaced. It was getting close to the time when he should be opening the shop, and if John showed up and Luke wasn’t there, he’d have some explaining to do. Since he was supposed to be sleeping in the back of the shop, John would expect him to be there and to open the place on time.
Maybe I should tell John where I spent last night. Luke shook his head. No, John’s a gabber. He might say something to one of his customers.
Luke had told John last night that Roman was planning to take Judith up to Geauga County and would be gone several days, but he didn’t want anyone but Martha knowing he’d spent last night in Roman’s barn and planned to continue doing so until Roman returned home. If the attacker heard that Roman and Judith were out of town, that could be a good thing, because he’d probably think he had free run of the place. But if the attacker thought anyone was hiding out with the intent of discovering who was responsible for the attacks, it could prove to be disastrous.
Luke had just passed the Amish schoolhouse when he noticed Martha’s buggy pulling out of the parking lot. Figuring she must have driven Anna to school, he waited until her buggy was ahead of him; then he pulled up beside her and waved her off the road.
“Wie geht’s?” Martha asked when he stepped up to her buggy.
“I’m kind of sore and stiff after sleeping in your daed’s barn all night.” Luke reached around to rub a sore spot in his lower back.
Her mouth fell open. “You stayed there last night?”
He nodded. “Said I was going to, didn’t I?”
“Well, jah, but I figured you wouldn’t start sleeping there until I could get you a key to open the padlock so you’d be able to get into the barn.” Her forehead wrinkled. “How did you get into the barn, anyhow?”
“I brought my ladder along and went in through the small window that opens into the hayloft.”
She slowly shook her head. “I might have known you’d pull something like that.”
He offered her a sheepish grin. “I’m surprised you didn’t know I had slept there.”
“How would I know? I stayed up at Grace and Cleon’s place last night, and there isn’t a good view of my daed’s barn from there. Just the rooftop can be seen from the second floor.”
“I knew you were staying at Grace’s, but I figured you’d show up at the barn to feed your dogs this morning and that you’d find me sleeping in the hayloft.”
She shook her head. “Grace asked me to take Anna to school this morning. She was running late, so I decided the dogs could wait to be fed until I got back from the schoolhouse.”
“Ah, I see.”
“Did you see or hear anything unusual during the night?” she asked.
“Nope, and it wasn’t because I was in a deep sleep, either.” He grunted and rubbed his back again. “What little sleep I did get was not restful. I think I’ll take the mattress off the cot I’ve been using in John’s back room and take that with me when I sleep in the barn tonight.”
Martha reached into her handbag and handed him a key. “You’d better take this with you then, because it would be kind of hard to carry the mattress up the ladder and squeeze it through the window.”
“Good thinking.” Luke took the key and shoved it in his pants pocket, but as he thought things through, his eyebrows drew together. “If I take your key, then how are you gonna get into the barn when you need to?”
“Cleon has a key. I’ll ask to use his.”
“Won’t he think it’s a bit strange that you’d need his key when you have one of your own?”
“I’ll tell him it was in my purse but it’s not there now.”
“You’d tell your brother-in-law a lie?”
“I wouldn’t really be lying, because the key won’t be in my purse—it’ll be in your pocket.”
Luke chuckled. “Good point. No wonder I fell in love with you—you’re a real schmaert woman.”
Martha’s cheeks turned pink, and if a car hadn’t been passing just then, he would have kissed her.
“I’d best be on my way,” Luke finally said. “I need to get to work before John gets there, or he’ll want to know why I didn’t sleep in his back room last night.”
“John doesn’t know what you’re planning to do?”
He shook his head. “Figured the fewer people who knew about my plan, the better. No point getting the word spread around that someone’s hiding out in your daed’s barn hoping to catch the attacker.”
“You think John would blab if you asked him not to?”
“Probably not intentionally, but he’s quite the gabber. Who knows what he might let slip to one of his customers?”
Martha nodded. “Maybe it’s best that you don’t say anything then.”
He smiled. “On that note, I’d better be off. Maybe I’ll see you in the morning.”
“If I get out to the barn to feed my dogs before you leave.” She reached out and touched his arm. “Please be careful, Luke. I couldn’t stand it if anything happened to you.”
Luke clasped her hand. “You be careful, too.”