Jim drove his car to the hospital. Smoke had settled on them and soaked into their clothes, but none of them wanted to take the time to clean up. Hal's family rushed through the hospital emergency doors and stopped at the nurse's station.
The night nurse came down the hall to them. “You related to Nurse Hal?”
“Jah, I am her husband. These are her sons and father,” John said. “How is she?”
“Awake, but she has a whale of a headache. Mr. Lapp, you can go see her.” She pointed to the waiting room. “The rest of you go in that room. I'll send Nurse Hal's mother to talk to you.”
John walked briskly down the ER hall with the nurse. “Nurse Hal has a concussion. She'll have to take it easy for a few days and stay in bed. She'll be dizzy if she tries to get up and might fall. Going to the bathroom will be about it until she sees the doctor again.”
“Sure enough,” John said. “We will take gute care of her.”
Hal was dozing when they entered the exam room. Nora rose from her chair and came to them. She said softly, “Hal went to sleep a few minutes ago. She has a bad headache. Resting is the best thing for her.”
The nurse asked Nora, “You want to go out to the waiting room and talk to the worried men waiting for news?”
Nora looked at John. “Jim and the boys came with me. Aendi Tootie stayed with the girls.”
“Tell them the doctor said Nurse Hal will be fine after she rests,” the nurse said to Nora. “She will be moved to a room soon. After the doctor makes rounds in the morning, he'll probably release her.”
John spent a few minutes watching Hal sleep. Satisfied she was resting all right, he walked to the waiting room. “We might as well go home now.”
When they arrived back at the house, Nora went into the clinic to wake up Aunt Tootie to tell her Hal would be home in the morning. Aunt Tootie had the girls behind her in bed. They were sleeping soundly. Nora debated waking Aunt Tootie and decided to wait to talk to her until morning. She didn't want to wake the little girls. They might have trouble going back to sleep.
John wasn't sure any of the rest of them could rest easy after such an unsettling night, but he was sound asleep the minute his head hit the pillow.
The next morning as soon as breakfast, devotion and the chores were done, John sent Noah to Emma's school to tell her what happened to Hal.
Jim and Nora took John to the hospital to pick up Hal. Doctor Christensen said she was to have bed rest for two days. Her equilibrium might be off for at least that long from such a hard blow to the head. After two days, Hal should come back for a checkup before he'd release her to go back to her regular routine.
Back home, John helped Hal out of the back seat. He put his arm around her waist to help her up the steps and into the house. She headed him toward the couch and eased on to it.
Nora scolded “That won't do, Hal. You heard the doctor's orders. You're to lie down.”
Aunt Tootie clucked like a setting hen. “Home a whole minute, and she's not minding right away.”
“One thing I'm not doing is get stuck in my bed upstairs like I was the last time I had a concussion. I want to be down here with my family,” Hal demanded as she laid her head on the back of the couch.
“All right, I'm going upstairs to get your pillow and a quilt to cover up with. If you're staying down here, you're going to stretch out on that couch,” Nora insisted as she headed for the stairs.
“Don't take a quilt off the bed. John will need the cover. Get one out of the quilt chest sitting by the window. There's plenty of quilts in it,” Hal said.
John backed up beside Jim while Nora and Aunt Tootie scolded Hal. After the matter of her resting on the couch was settled, he put his hand over Hal's and squeezed. “Now that you are all settled in, I want to look around in the barn again. Charlie Miller and Sheriff Dawson will be here soon to check the barn, then we can clean the mess up.”
“See you later,” Hal said with a weak wave.
Aunt Tootie kept watch at the living room window. Just before eleven, she announced the sheriff and fire chief had arrived. Half and hour later, she related the sheriff and fire chief were headed to the house.
Aunt Tootie opened the door.
“Morning, ma'am,” the sheriff said. “Would it be possible to talk to Nurse Hal a minute?”
“She isn't feeling well and is supposed to stay quiet,” Aunt Tootie declared.
“It's all right, Aunt Tootie. I can talk to them,” Hal said.
“All right, you can come in.” Aunt Tootie begrudgingly stepped out of the way.
Chief Miller nodded. “Glad you're going to be all right, Nurse Hal. You gave everyone quite a scare.”
Sheriff Dawson said, “You got quite a wallop on the head I hear.”
“Feels like it for sure,” Hal replied.
“We won't disturb you long. We just wondered if you could tell us anything about what happened in the barn,” Sheriff Dawson said.
“Not a thing. I was ready to leave. Last thing I remember I reached for the lantern and felt like my head exploded,” Hal said. “Have any leads?”
“No. I hate to tell you this, but clearly, you were meant to burn in the barn. Otherwise, the arsonist would have let you go outside before he set the fire,” the sheriff said. “You made anyone mad lately?”
“Nah, but maybe the arsonist was anxious to get away, and he didn't want to wait for me to leave. He might have been afraid I'd see him. He was working under cover of that dense fog. If it lifted, he might have been afraid if he waited much longer someone would see him out on the road,” Hal reasoned.
“You could be right,” Charlie Miller agreed. “We best get out of here and let you rest.”
“Feel better soon,” Sheriff Dawson said.
Noah rode in from going to the school to talk to Emma. He ran up the porch steps and stuck his head in the door. “You doing all recht, Mama Hal?”
“Jah, just a little swimmy headed yet. I can't stand up for very long, and even if I could, your mammi and aendi won't let me,” Hal grumbled to him.
“I told Emma you had been in the hospital. She is going to come over to visit this afternoon,” Noah said. “Now I have to get to the barn and help.”
When John, Jim and the boys came in for lunch, they were blackened by soot and ashes.
Hal opened her eyes when they banged the screen door.
Redbird and Beth frowned from the quilt on the floor where they were playing with a set of toy dishes.
Redbird scolded, “Shhh! Mama sleep.”
“Sorry, Redbird,” John said quietly. He turned to Jim, nodding at Redbird as he grinned. “I think we have another Emma on our hands.”
Hal rolled over toward them, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. “John, how you coming with clean up?”
“Gute, it won't take much longer. The fire was put out before it could do much damage.”
Hal gasped. “I forgot to ask. How's my milk goat?”
“Jumping out of the pen this morning more times than we could count,” Noah commented.
“Sure enough, she followed us around while we cleaned the barn even when we did not want her to,” Daniel said.
“In the way and a nuisance for sure,” John summed up dryly.
“Can't Gano be put in the pasture with the sheep now? That will probably satisfy her,” Hal suggested.
Noah said, “I think that is a gute idea for this afternoon. The time has come for the goat to get to know the sheep flock.”
“Mama Hal, we have bad news,” Daniel stated glumly. The person who hit you on the head killed Tom Turkey. He must have tried to protect you and fought with the man.”
“Fudge! That's awful,” Hal cried. “I am so sorry, boys. We will certainly miss Tom, ain't so?”
John said, “If we had found the turkey in time, we could have butchered him, but by this morning, he was already stiff.”
“Daed, we could not eat Tom,” Noah cried.
“Nah, we could not,” Daniel agreed with a fast shake of his head.
“John, that was not a very gute idea,” scolded Hal.
“Jah, I forgot for a moment he was everybody's pet. You might as well carry him off to the timber for the coyotes to find,” John said to the boys.
Daniel's shoulders sagged. Noah's lips tightened as he stared at the floor. Hal could tell John's second plan for the deceased pet wasn't any better received than the first one. The boys didn't want to let the coyotes eat Tom.
“I have a better idea. Would you like to bury Tom in the walnut grove by Patches, say a prayer over him and put a cross on his grave?” Hal asked.
Nora listened at the kitchen doorway. “Sounds like a good idea to me. What do you think, John?”
Noah and Daniel perked up, waiting for John to agree. “If the boys want to do that, it is all recht with me. Tom Turkey has earned his way around here as a watch dog. He deserves a nice burial for protecting Hal when the arsonist killed him. He should have a proper burial. That what you want for Tom, boys?”
“Jah,” they said in unison and started for the front door.
“Tom Turkey should have a proper send off. We all got a kick out of him. Can Mammi and I come?” Jim asked.
“Sure enough,” Noah said. “Come on, Daniel. We'll get the shovel.”
“Wait a minute,” Jim said. “I think the funeral could wait until after lunch. You might have your grandma and aunt after you with a wooden spoon if you don't eat first.”
“We wish you could go with us, Mama Hal,” Daniel said.
“I wish I could, too,” Hal replied wistfully.
“Oh, no, she's not getting up for at least another day,” Nora protested.
Hal winked at Daniel. “You heard your mammi. I'll say a prayer for Tom from here and visit his grave as soon as I feel up to it.”
While they milked that evening Noah said, “Daed, we are going to take the dog through the timber by Bender Creek this evening. We plan on stopping in on that party.”
“Are you really sure you want to do this?” John frowned.
“We are now,” Daniel said. “After what happened to Mama Hal and Tom, we want to find the fire setter as bad as everyone else does. He is dangerous.”
“You're right about that, Daniel,” Jim said. Your Mama Hal is lucky she survived that blow on her head and to not be burned alive with the barn. That makes me worry about you boys getting hurt by the same man if you find out who he is.”
“You have to be careful,” John cautioned.
“We will, Daed,” Noah agreed.
After supper, Noah and Daniel put Biscuit on a leash and walked across the pasture to the timber along Bender Creek. A boom box, cranked up to the max, blasted them with music long before they arrived at the clearing.
Albert Jostle swaggered over to meet them. He shouted to be heard over the music. “I thought you said you did not want to come to the party.”
Noah shook his head. “Nah, I said we had not thought about coming. We decided to run our coon dog in Bender timber to get him used to trailing again.”
“We heard the music and stopped in,” Daniel added.
“Come on. You might like the party well enough to hang around,” Albert said loudly.
When Daniel tugged on Biscuit's rope, the dog stiffened his legs and drug his feet. He didn't want to go with them. “Come on, boy. We will not stay long,” Daniel whispered in his ear.
Biscuit whined as he flopped down in the dried leaves. He put his front paws over his ears. The music hurt his ears, and he didn't want any closer.
“Tie him to a bush. We can come back to get him,” Noah said.
“I cannot say I blame the dog. The music is too loud. The mood Biscuit is in he might bite someone,” Daniel joked.
When they caught up with Albert, he said to the others, “Look who is here to join us.”
Teenage boys and their girlfriends looked up to see who Albert was talking about.
Noah and Daniel knew the Plain part of the group. Some of the strangers were English. The ones they did know waved a greeting. That was easier than trying to speak from a distance which would be drowned out by the loud music anyway.
Albert sat down by a black haired, girl in a tank top and skinny jeans. He gave her a lascivious smile as he rubbed her thigh. “This girl's mine for the night, but I might could pry a couple of girls away from my two brothers if you want them.”
Noah shook his head. “Denki, but nah. Next time, we will bring our own dates.”
“What can I offer you boys to drink? The keg is over there.” He wiggled a finger at a gooseberry bush with the keg by it. He picked up a half full bottle of clear liquid and said with a slur, “I have vodka here. Using orange juice in it tonight.”
“We are not used to the hard stuff. Got any pop?” Noah asked.
“Sure enough, it is Rueban Rogies's night to furnish the pop in that cooler by him,” Albert said, pouring vodka in a glass. He reached in a paper sack and pulled out a small bottle of Tropicana orange juice, screwed off the cap and emptied it into his glass.
Daniel grabbed the back of Noah's arm and nodded.
Noah whispered, “I see.” He said to Albert, “We will go get the pop. Denki.”
When they approached Rueban, he rose to his knees and took the lid off the cooler. “You looking for the pop?”
“Sure enough,” Noah said, taking a mountain dew and handing Daniel one. “How much do we owe you?”
“A buck a piece,” Rueban said.
Noah slipped two one dollar bills out of his trouser pocket while Daniel checked out the teenagers in the clearing. “It looks like you had a gute turn out.”
“Anyone new to you show up lately?” Noah asked.
Rueban shook his head. “Nah, same old crowd all summer.”
After an hour and a half of wandering from couple to couple, Noah said, “We better get back to Biscuit.”
They stopped by Albert and his girlfriend long enough to say they were leaving. Noah excused he didn't want their dog to get restless. He might untie himself and run off.
Albert slurred, “I hope you had a gute time. You are wilcom to come again.”
Noah stuffed his hands in his trouser pockets. “Denki, but it is not safe to be out here with that arsonist roaming around setting fires all the time.”
“I do not fear that person,” Albert bragged.
“That so? Why not?” Daniel asked.
Albert shrugged.
“You know who the guy is?” Noah asked.
“Nah,” Albert elongated and belched. “Do you?”
“Nah, that is why he scares us,” Noah said. “We will run our dog through the timber as we head for home. See you soon.”
It was some time after midnight. The stars were fading, and the quarter moon sank low enough to be hidden by the tree line.
I wish I had not over slept. I meant to be home by now, but it is not much farther to the Weber Sisters house if I keep moving. Those women have to be stopped from luring English into the Plain community to eat with them. Getting close to the English gives Plain people ideas that take them away from the Ordnung. I'll set fire to the house and head for home. Wish I could move faster, but I cannot stand the pain. Not tonight.
The golden draft horse walked at an easy pace on the country road along Bender Creek. He shied sideways at the Bender timber line when he heard the throbbing sounds of the teenage party slice through the trees.
“Easy, Jack. I did not know there would be such a wicked gathering here tonight. I will change my plan to teach those that have strayed from the faith a lesson. I can get an earlier start next time to visit the Weber sisters.”
Once the horse turned around in the direction he came from, his ears perked up. Alerted to the smell of kerosene spilling from juice bottles into the grass and dried leaves under the trees, he tensed. The horse realized what was to come next now that he had been through this procedure several times.
The raspy scratch of a match head ignited it into a flame when the head was rubbed against the sandpaper side of the box. A flick of the wrist landed the match in the kerosene spill. The flame flickered and took hold, spreading fire through the spill. Smoke boiled up as fire consumed the leaves and grass.
A nudge of a knee in the draft horse's ribs made him move away. A pull on the reins stopped him again for a repeat of another spill and ignited match.
The first fire was taking hold, spreading and creating a cloud of smoke as it licked at the trees. The next fire would soon catch up.
Now I will go home.
Albert left his girl long enough to stagger past the underbrush to take a leak. He sniffed the air. As fast as he could scrambled on his leaden feet, he ran back into the clearing, crying, “Fire!”. The others weren't paying any attention to him. He dived for the boom box and turned it off. “Smoke! The timber is on fire. Quick, get out of here.”
Noah and Daniel heard the excitement in Albert's voice while Daniel untied the dog. They turned to see him come out of the brush and looked where he pointed.
“Odd he should see that fire right now after we talked to him about the arsonist,” Noah said.
Daniel tugged on Noah's arm. “We need to get out of here. Fire will travel fast in this dry timber. We are on foot.”
The teenagers jumped into action, packing and closing coolers. They were soon running for buggies, horses and cars.
Noah said, “We can head for the phone shed and call the fire department.”
Albert heard him as he past the boys. “I have a cell phone. I can call.” He brought a phone out of his trouser pocket and made the call as he ran.
Sirens blared when Noah and Daniel were a mile from home. They made it safely to the road before the fire ate its way through the timber.
John waited up for them on the porch swing. His voice came out of the dark. “How did it go?”
“We watched Albert Jostle spike his vodka with a small bottle of Tropicana orange juice like has been found at the other fires,” Noah said. “I asked him if he had heard anything about the arsonist. I told him it did not seem like a gute idea to have a party with someone sneaking around setting fires.”
“Albert said he did not worry about the arsonist. We left and stopped to untie Biscuit from a gooseberry bush near the clearing. Next thing we knew Albert yelled the timber was on fire,” Daniel said.
John gasped. “What?”
“Albert came out of the bushes and told everyone to get out of the timber fast,” Noah said.
“Did everyone get out all right?” John asked.
“Jah, the breeze blew the smoke at the party so they had plenty of warning,” Daniel said.
“Did you call the fire department?”
“We said we would run for the phone shed. Albert Jostle said we did not have to do that. He has a cell phone,” Noah shared.
“Sure enough, you think Albert set the fire?” John asked.
“We did not see him do it, Daed? All we know is, he was bragging the arsonist did not scare him, and he is the first one who saw the fire,” Noah affirmed.